Dozens of AI “nudify” apps remain available on Google Play and Apple’s App Store, even as concerns mount over tools that can generate nonconsensual sexualized images, according to a new report by the Tech Transparency Project (TTP). A breakdown in platform moderation TTP identified 55 nudify apps on Google Play and 47 on Apple’s App Store, many of which can remove clothing from images of women or depict them as partially or fully nude. The report estimates these apps have been downloaded more than 705 million times and generated around
Google is rolling out Black History Month programming across Search, Play, TV, YouTube, Chrome, Meet, Maps, and Arts & Culture in the US throughout February. The campaign is anchored by a hip-hop–themed Google Doodle featuring a custom beat by Detroit rapper, singer, and producer Illa J. A Google Doodle sets the tone for Black History Month Google launched the campaign with a Doodle music video focused on the mechanics of hip-hop beat-making, using one of its most visible entry points to set the tone and route users into related experiences.
Former Google software engineer Chisom Okwor is building Braidiant, a US-based startup developing an automated handheld device to speed up hair braiding for professional stylists. Launched in 2024, the company targets a labor-intensive market where price, time, and physical strain limit supply. Okwor previously worked on Google Maps for cars and paid for her undergraduate computer science degree by braiding hair. That experience shaped Braidiant’s focus on building tools that support stylists’ work rather than replace it. Automating Standardized Braiding Styles Hair braiding in the US is often expensive and
Two recent Stanford graduates have raised $2 million to launch Breakthrough Ventures, a hybrid accelerator for college student and recent graduate founders across the US, according to TechCrunch. The program mirrors how top universities often turn class projects into venture-scale companies by packaging funding, infrastructure, and investor exposure into a single pathway. While Breakthrough recruits founders nationally, much of its deal flow and decision-making remains anchored in Stanford-connected spaces, a dynamic that shapes who sets early company terms and captures ownership at the earliest stages. Funding, Infrastructure, and Formation Rolled
Paystack, the Nigerian fintech owned by Stripe, reorganized its businesses under a new holding company, The Stack Group, in Nigeria this week after reaching group profitability. The new structure places four businesses under TSG: Paystack’s core merchant payments business, the consumer payments app Zap, Paystack Microfinance Bank, and a venture studio known as TSG Labs. The shift reflects a strategic move to manage risk, regulation, and ownership across distinct financial products. A Holding Company Model to Contain Risk and Regulation By adopting a holding company structure, Paystack has separated payments,
Andreessen Horowitz partner Kofi Ampadu has left the venture firm months after it paused Talent x Opportunity (TxO), the fund and operating program he led, TechCrunch reports. TxO was launched in 2020 amid a wave of corporate commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion after the murder of George Floyd. The initiative was designed to expand access to capital, networks, and mentorship for founders who fall outside traditional venture pipelines. The Talent X Opportunity Fund In a farewell note announcing his departure, Ampadu framed TxO as a response to the venture
Nike plans to lay off 775 employees across US distribution operations as it accelerates automation and consolidates logistics work, according to CNBC, citing people familiar with the matter. The move marks the third consecutive year that Nike has cut jobs. In August last year, Nike said it planned to cut less than 1% of its corporate workforce as part of efforts to turn around the business under CEO Elliott Hill. Earlier, in February 2024, the company had announced plans to cut 2% of its jobs: more than 1,600 roles. Nike
Google has agreed to pay $68 million to settle a class-action lawsuit alleging its Google Assistant recorded and shared users’ private conversations without consent. Google Settles Google Assistant Privacy Lawsuit A preliminary settlement was filed January 23 in federal court in San Jose, California, according to Reuters. Google did not admit wrongdoing, but agreed to settle, citing the cost, risk, and uncertainty of prolonged litigation. The settlement includes $22.7 million in attorneys’ fees. The lawsuit centers on how voice assistants are engineered, deployed, and monetized. Plaintiffs alleged that Google Assistant
PayPal is returning to Nigeria through a new partnership with fintech company Paga, allowing individuals and businesses to receive international payments, withdraw funds in naira, and access PayPal’s global network after nearly two decades of restricted service, TechCabal reports. For the first time, Nigerians can receive PayPal funds directly into a locally regulated wallet at scale, rather than relying on workarounds and business‑only routes. From bans to local partners PayPal blocked Nigerians from receiving payments in 2004, citing fraud concerns, and for years offered only limited functionality. Nigerians could often
Billionaire investor Vinod Khosla publicly distanced himself and his firm from comments about ICE made by Keith Rabois, a managing director at Khosla Ventures. Rabois had defended federal agents following the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, in Minneapolis. Tech leaders from companies including Google, OpenAI, and Anthropic have also condemned the shooting and criticizing what they described as unnecessary escalation by ICE agents. Rabois’ Remarks Draw Internal Criticism Rabois wrote on X that “no law enforcement has shot an innocent person” and claimed that “illegals are
