Silicon Valley

Elon Musk’s ten-billion-dollar defamation case against critic Randeep Hothi is nearing its end. In March, Hothi’s lawyers said Musk asked to settle the nearly three-year-old case. “For a modest $10k,” Hothi tweeted on Monday. The Tesla skeptic said he “look[s] forward to receiving a check from him in the mail.” …

According to a person with knowledge of the situation, the Japanese marketing technology company Geniee, a member of the SoftBank Group, paid about $70 million in cash to acquire the revenue optimization platform Zelto (previously known as AdPushup), providing investors in the startup that started out in India with a …

A government watchdog found that the Secret Service and ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) section often broke the law when they spied on people’s cell phones in a snoopy way. Last week, the inspector general for Homeland Security, who is in charge of keeping an eye on the U.S. government …

Co-founder and CEO Paul Eremenko called it the start of a “new golden age of aviation” as a Universal Hydrogen-branded jet made its first test flight in eastern Washington using the largest hydrogen fuel cell ever used to power an aircraft. Even though the 15-minute test flight of the modified …

Roofing isn’t glamorous. It meets the three Ds of automation—dull, dirty, and dangerous—with ease. Some smart roboticists could transform it. It’s always one of the most dangerous construction jobs, but there are a lot of roofs in the world, so everyone who wants one should have one. At launch, Renovate …

People want healthier food, including their comfort foods, but tastes change. Ramen is a pantry staple and a joke for college students and young entrepreneurs, but the market potential is huge. The global instant noodle market was nearly $46 billion in 2020 and expected to reach $66 billion by 2027. …

The Information and former Twitter employees reported at least 50 more layoffs. According to Platformer’s Zoë Schiffer, even Elon Musk loyalist Esther Crawford, Twitter payments’ top executive who handled Twitter Blue, was fired. Crawford and most of the product team were laid off this weekend, according to Alex Heath of …

Americans expect credit cards. Mexico makes it harder and less common. Fewer than 20% of people have credit, and only 10% have credit cards. In recent years, several startups have emerged to provide underserved Mexicans with more options to increase inclusion. Vexi is a startup. Rojo Blasquez, Gabriela Estrada, Cinthia …

Charging a battery In an effort to start up its $1.6 billion gigafactory, Our Next Energy announced this morning that it had closed a sizable $300 million Series B round. The two-and-a-half-year-old company, which closed a $25 million Series A in October 2021 and a $65 million Series A1 in …

As COVID-19 shakes the second-largest economy in the world, China’s smartphone market is experiencing a speed bump after a decade of frantic growth. According to research firm Counterpoint, the nation’s smartphone shipments fell 14% year over year in 2022, hitting a ten-year low. According to Canalys, it was also the …