Hello everyone! Welcome to Week in Review, the newsletter where we recap the most read stories to cross TechCrunch over the past week. Our goal: If you’ve had a busy few days, you should be able to click on it on Saturday, take a look, and get a pretty good idea of what happened that week.
I will be AFK for the next two newsletters, with the excellent Henry Pickavet replacing me during my absence. Henry is one of the best humans I know – so be nice!
The most read The story this week, unfortunately, was one of layoffs — specifically, layoffs at Coinbase. The crypto exchange announced on Tuesday that it would lay off 18% of its workforce, with CEO Brian Armstrong saying the company “has grown too quickly” over the past year and a half.
other things
Kaiser violated: Phew. One employee email account hacked, nearly 70,000 patient records potentially exposed. In a notice sent to affected patients, Kaiser says the “potentially exposed” data included names, service dates and lab test results.
More layoffs: Coinbase wasn’t the only company to disclose layoffs this week. Property tech firms Redfin and Compass both confirmed layoffs of around 450 employees each, while Canadian fintech Wealthsimple laid off nearly 160.
Spotify buys voice simulation company: In 2014, Val Kilmer underwent a tracheotomy as part of his treatment for throat cancer. For its role in the recent “Top Gun: Maverick”, London-based startup Sonantic was asked to recreate Kilmer’s voice with AI. This week, Spotify announced the acquisition of Sonantic. Why? They don’t get too specific, but it’s not too hard to think of ways Spotify could use realistic-yet-simulated vocals — think standalone audiobooks or auto-generated podcast ads.
Elon sued for Dogecoin: Is it Elon’s fault that Dogecoin – a cryptocurrency that started out as a joke – massively rose in value and then imploded? A class action lawsuit filed in Manhattan this week claims Musk “used his pedestal as the richest man in the world to exploit and manipulate the Dogecoin Pyramid Scheme for profit, exposure, and amusement” and asks damages of $258 billion.
The SpaceX letter: On Wednesday this week, SpaceX employees posted an “open letter” to the company’s internal chat system that said “Elon’s behavior in the public sphere is a frequent source of distraction and embarrassment” and asked SpaceX to “quickly and explicitly part ways with Elon’s personal brand. As of Friday morning, at least one of the employees involved in the letter had been fired, with SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell calling it “excessive activism.” “.
sound stuff
Did work say it’s time to get back to the office? Need something to listen to while commuting? Have you ever wondered what your favorite TechCrunch writer looks like? Good news! We have podcasts. A whole bunch of them, in fact. (Fun fact: Since we’re scattered all over the world, many of us have talked to each other more on podcasts than in real life.)
This week, Lucas and Anita chatted with the inimitable Aaron Levie (CEO of Box) about his thoughts on web3 – specifically, why it won’t work. Check it out on Chain Reaction.
added stuff
Want even more TechCrunch? Head over to the aptly named TechCrunch+, where we dig a little deeper into the topics we care about. Some of the good things from this week include:
Which visa is the best to start a startup?: Immigration lawyer Sophie Alcorn is back with another edition of the “Dear Sophie” advice column, this time helping a German founder find the right way to start a startup in the United States
Brex leaves the SME market. And then ?: This week, Brex announced that it is largely withdrawing from the small and medium-sized business market, with plans to reduce services for its small customers on August 15. Alex and Mary Ann consider what this could mean for the market — and Brex’s competitors.
What is the catalyst behind the crypto crash?: Cryptocurrency prices continued to fall this week. Why? In this week’s edition of The Exchange, Alex provides insight into some of the biggest “issues currently rocking the web3 market”.
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