But there’s one problem: Pre-seed funding rounds are sorely needed but don’t have much recognition or supporters. Why Europe’s Institutional VC Funding Is Great This analysis comes from ecommerce-centric VC firm Forward Partners, which states that the amount of European VC funding capital available to founders has seen a considerable rise in recent years. They have the numbers to back this claim up: Why Pre-Seed Stage Funding Is a Problem Pre-seed problems aren’t limited to Europe....

In April, NY TechDay held its third event, which featured more than 400 NYC startups and had more than 13,000 attendees. For the organizers of TechDay, they hope to replicate this success in other cities. After narrowing down their decision between Boston and DC, they ultimately believed that DC had the perfect ecosystem for this expansion. As additional reasons for expanding into the DC market, TechDay cites that DC is nationally ranked as one of top 5 cities for VC funding, has hundreds of active angel investors, and has a local government that contributes one-fifth of its funding to support tech....

That’s right, social media giants Facebook and Snapchat have decided that copying each other’s tech is more important than innovating their own. Self-destructing messages have been the main selling point of Snapchat for years, and the Memories feature on Facebook has made sharing pictures an even more integral part of everyday life. And yet, both companies see no issue in the outright copycatting of their technology to make their products “more marketable....

The 20-week program provides $25,000 in funding and office space to selected companies. “This cycle is … a reflection of the robust entrepreneurial ecosystem in Pittsburgh with strong representation from Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Pittsburgh, and Startup Weekend-Pittsburgh,” says Jim Jen, director of AlphaLab. Here are the six startups that will present at today’s demo day: Aurochs Brewing Company: Makers of gluten-free beer that aims to be as tasty as a craft beer....

Think of it as ESPN for high schools. Varsity News Network helps schools promote all of their athletic programs through a state-of-the-art, online sports information system. It allows high schools to function as their own media outlet and streamline its content so that promoting athletes at your school is as simple as possible. You are alsp able to create custom and branded content that shows off your school colors and logos....

Now, what exactly is Camp occupying his mind with at Expa? Well, it’s important first to understand what Expa is: it’s wrong to classify it as an incubator, and they’re most definitely not a VC firm. They’re a startup studio. Much like a design studio would crank out high end designs Expa focuses on designing and developing new startups. Half of the time Expa works directly with founders to develop and launch companies while the rest of the time they build based purely on their own ideas....

Cloe is very easy to use. You don’t have to download, install, or sign up for anything. You just text what you’re looking for, and where you’re located, then she gives you her best recommendation. Using a search algorithm and human input, Cloe is able to give users recommendations in over 85 different categories. From fitness to nightlife tips, you can ask her anything on a text and get a response right away....

Many thought that the radical changes brought on by the virus would mean an end to offices — especially with companies such as Twitter announcing that employees would be able to work from home forever. However, some workers are clamoring to return to offices, missing the social side of work and the division between domestic and professional life. These seemingly incompatible trends will likely lead to a rise in agile working, with some employees working at home full time, and others splitting their time between home and the office....

Jason Gregory, CEO and co-founder of CaddyX, was tired of the headache of traveling with his golf clubs. First of all, the case is bulky and massive. But beyond that, there is always the threat of damaged clubs or lost luggage. For golf tourists, you absolutely need your clubs and if they arrive damaged, or if they don’t arrive at all, your trip has just turned into a nightmare. Gregory took his 20 years of entrepreneurial experience and gave the golfers of the world a way out....

The Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL were some of the most leaked about smartphones in recent memory. Week after week, details about the flagship phone were found across the internet, making the event more of a formality than an official unveiling. Still, excitement was palpable during the event, as Google insisted on announcing the smartphone after the new Google Home Hub and Google Pixel Slate. If you’re thinking about getting the new Google Pixel 3, we’ve got all the information you’ll need to make the right decision....

The Pixel 3a and 3a XL were some of our favorite phones from 2019, with excellent cameras, snappy performance, and Google’s impressive software. So, what can we expect from the follow-up models? Might they atone for some of the issues with the Pixel 4 (looking at you, battery life)? Here’s everything we’re expecting from Google’s new cheap phones. Google Pixel 4a Release Date We were expecting the Pixel 4a series to launch in May 2020 at Google’s annual I/O developer conference....

Meet GoShare From San Diego, CA GoShare connects pickup truck and cargo van drivers with people and businesses who need large items moved, hauled, or delivered on demand. We reached out to the team and asked them a little more about GoShare. If asked about your core values, what would you say when asked why do you do what you do (as an organization)? “Our mission is to empower people to lend a helping hand to others in their community....

Before Google deleted them, the apps had been collectively downloaded more than 10.5 million times, so it’s worth checking your phone to make sure you don’t have any of them on your own device. The apps look like they offer a wide range of perfectly normal uses, from video and photo editors to spam call blockers to games. It’s another reminder to anyone on the internet to be wary of downloading anything, even from a perfectly mainstream source like the Google Play store....

In an average month, less than 35 percent of mobile users download even a single new app. This is because unitasking apps are losing their appeal. Instead, users want intelligent apps that can meet their needs and answer their questions, which has made the climate ripe for conversational interfaces driven by AI. Initial chatbots were, for lack of a better word, robotic. They were stiff and formal. If you’ve noticed that changing lately, you aren’t alone....

In the past few years, hundreds of new opportunities have appeared for businesses with an ability to capitalize on widely available tech to provide an existing service in a better/faster/cheaper way. And it’s not due to a particular technological breakthrough per se, but rather through the optimization, integration, and widespread use of a particular existing tech. So what do we have to thank for this sudden abundance of low-hanging fruit?...

The idea is pretty simple – and pretty awesome: It’s like WordPress for mobile travel guides. You can create points of interests through their web platform or mobile app, “PlaceGrabber.” Group these various places into categories, customize the look and feel of the app, and create a professional travel guide that you can sell. Ferraris shared background on map2app, the startup scene in Italy, and what mistakes he made at his first startup that he won’t repeat this time around: Tech Cocktail: Where’d the idea for map2app come from?...

Facebooks actions are just the latest in a series of responses from tech companies, following public unease around their perceived promotion of conspiratorial anti-vaccination videos, books and articles. Why Is Anti-Vaccination Content a Problem? The rise of anti-vaccine views has happened online, but has real-world effects. Even if a small portion of the population stops vaccinating, there’s a very real risk of seeing the return of once-dormant illnesses. As a result, a whole host of old-timey Downton Abbey-era diseases — including measles, smallpox, and polio — could return in force....

While it’s important for businesses that every employee take responsibility on some level for contributing to efforts to safeguard information, physical assets and other property, executives are looking outside for help via threat information sharing and other collaborative efforts to combat threats. This new strategy of security “crowdsourcing” could be an answer to fending off threats. Why We Need Crowdsourcing for Cybersecurity The phenomenon of crowdsourcing has now joined hands with security and their alliance has rather resulted in fruitful results....

All that is changing at many companies, where boosting employee engagement makes for powerful brand advocacy. When social media was in its infancy, many brands frantically sought ways to keep their employees away from these platforms. The thinking at the time was that team members are better off avoiding the distractions and employer branding pitfalls associated with social media. Now, brands are recognizing the benefit of having engaged employees advocating for their brands....

At GrubHub, they’re always thinking about what the user wants and needs. To really understand how restaurants and patrons use their dining tools, GrubHub set up a restaurant in their office where employees could try them. Last summer, they spent weeks and weeks in actual restaurants just watching the staff use their products. Another small example: at some point, Dainora realized that they were spending so much time writing copy about how to use GrubHub while savvy users were barely reading it....