Posts by Liam Redmond
Venture Capital Fund for Founders Elsewhere: Endeavor Catalyst
Endeavor Catalyst, the investing arm of the nonprofit Endeavor, wrapped up its fifth fund at $320 million in commitments, TechCrunch reported on October 7. The firm now manages more than $850 million and focuses on founders far from Silicon Valley. This is a venture capital fund with an unusual design, and its rules say a…
Read MoreContract Manufacturing Gets a Marketplace With Bloom’s Seed Round
Bloom, a Detroit startup, closed a $3.6 million seed round to build what its CEO calls an AI-powered answer to Alibaba for American factories, TechCrunch reported on October 7. SNAK Venture Partners led the round, and the company says its marketplace has handled more than 2,000 matches for over 140 companies. If you build physical…
Read MoreChatGPT Interface Gets Visual: What Founders Should Test
OpenAI is launching Intelligent UI, a feature that turns ChatGPT from a wall of text into a more visual, interactive interface, TechCrunch reported on October 7. Answers can now include diagrams, charts, maps and small calculators that users can tap, adjust and edit. That matters because many founders already use chat as a daily work…
Read MoreAI Gadgets Flopped: Tony Fadell on What Founders Should Learn
Tony Fadell, the engineer behind the iPod and the Nest thermostat, told an audience at MIT Future Fest that the early AI devices flopped because none of them fixed a problem ordinary people actually have. TechCrunch reported his remarks on October 7, and he singled out three shuttered products, namely the Rabbit R1, Humane’s AI…
Read MoreJourney drummer Deen Castronovo suffers medical emergency during Oklahoma concert
Journey drummer Deen Castronovo was hospitalized when he suffered a medical emergency during the band’s concert in Oklahoma on Thursday night. Castronovo, 62, was helped off the stage after the legendary rock band wrapped up their second song at Tulsa’s BOK Center, according to Tulsa World. Keyboardist Jonathan Cain then addressed the crowd, asking fans…
Read MoreWhite House targets Stanford, Caltech and tech giants in visa crackdown
The White House is expanding its campaign against international workers, targeting elite study and work visa holders with restrictions and a new investigation. On Thursday, the Trump administration announced a probe into whether Stanford, Caltech, UC Davis and other universities across the country have been abusing a special visa used by international scholars and students…
Read MoreAI Penetration Testing Gets Backing as Hadrian Raises Funds
Hadrian, an Amsterdam-based security company, has raised $40 million to expand its AI-driven attack testing, according to a Business Wire release dated October 6, 2026. Forgepoint Capital International and SmartFin co-led the round. Total funding now stands at $65 million, and the company plans to grow in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the United…
Read MoreDigital Wellbeing at Work: What Logitech’s New Study Says
Does your tech stack make you feel in charge, or does it make you want to throw your laptop? A new global study from Logitech suggests the answer shapes your mood, your output, and your growth. The company released its first Ctrl Tomorrow Study on October 6, 2026, based on research by Burson. For founders,…
Read MoreOpen Weight Models Get a Big Test With Reflection’s Beam
Reflection AI has unveiled Beam, a large language model it says will ship with open weights, in a post on its own blog dated October 5, 2026. The model is aimed at coding, reasoning, and agent work. Weights are promised later this month under the Apache 2.0 license, and early access runs through a waitlist.…
Read MoreFreight Brokerage Shake-Up: What C.H. Robinson’s RXO Deal Means
C.H. Robinson has agreed to buy RXO in a stock-and-cash deal worth about $5.8 billion, according to Supply Chain Dive. Announced on Monday, October 5, 2026, the plan targets completion during the first six months of 2027. Regulators and RXO’s owners must still sign off. If you ship products to customers, this may sound like…
Read MoreKate Hancock and Daniel Robbins Join Dhar Mann’s Creator and Brand Ambassador Network at Advertising Week New York
Entrepreneurs, media personalities, and Founders Story podcast hosts Kate Hancock and Daniel Robbins have been named to Dhar Mann’s Creator and Brand Ambassador Network in connection with Advertising Week New York, joining an influential community of business leaders, marketing executives, and digital creators. The initiative, led by Dhar Mann Studios, brings together prominent voices from…
Read MoreStartup Acquisition Lessons From Schneider’s Deal for PTC
Schneider Electric has agreed to buy PTC, the engineering software maker behind Creo and Onshape, in an all-cash deal that values PTC’s equity at roughly $22.6 billion. The companies announced it on October 5, 2026, and Schneider will pay $205 per share. The target for closing is the third quarter of 2027, and shareholders and…
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