Catherine Shu
Writer
The Latest from Catherine Shu
TaskRabbit CEO posts statement as its app returns following a cybersecurity breach
After taking them down to investigate what it called a “cybersecurity incident,” TaskRabbit’s website and app are back online. The Ikea-owned platform for on-demand labor also posted an update f
ZTE postpones earnings report after being slapped with U.S. exports ban
ZTE will postpone the release of its quarterly earnings report after the United States government banned American companies from selling goods to the Chinese telecom and smartphone maker. In a filing
Funding Societies, a Southeast Asian lending platform, gets $25M Series B led by Softbank Ventures Korea
Funding Societies, a peer-to-peer lending platform in Southeast Asia, said today that it has raised a $25 million Series B led by Softbank Ventures Korea, the Japanese tech conglomerate’s early-stag
Taiwanese startup Kdan Mobile raises $5M Series A for its cloud-based content creation tools
Kdan Mobile, a Taiwanese startup that makes cloud-based software for content creators, announced a $5 million Series A today, raised from investors including W.I. Harper Group, Darwin Venture Manageme
TaskRabbit’s app is offline while it investigates a “cybersecurity incident”
TaskRabbit, the on-demand errand service acquired by IKEA last year, announced today that has taken its website and app offline while investigating a “cybersecurity incident.” The company also sai
Ola will add 10,000 electric rickshaws to its India fleet over the next year
Ola announced today that it will add 10,000 electric auto-rickshaws to its fleet in India over the next 12 months. The program, called “Mission: Electric,” is part of its ambitious plan to put one
Marketing platform Punchh raises $20M Series B to give brick-and-mortar retailers better data analytics
Founded in 2010 as an online loyalty card service, Punchh has since grown into a marketing platform serving more than 115 restaurant chains, including Pizza Hut and Quiznos. Now it’s raised a $20 mi
Billie, which wants to eliminate the “pink tax,” closes a $6M seed round for its razor subscription service
Billie, a New York-based startup that wants to fight the “pink tax” on goods marketed to women, announced today that it has closed a $6 million seed round. The funding was led by Silverton Partner
Tencent and education startup Age of Learning bring popular English-learning app ABCmouse to China
Tencent is teaming up with Los Angeles-based education company Age of Learning to launch an English education program for kids in China. ABCmouse, Age of Learning’s flagship product, has been locali
PlayingViral helps marketers grabs millennials’ attention with quick, interactive surveys
Millennials have been accused of possessing shorter attention spans than goldfish. Though that claim is questionable, online marketers know display ads and even sponsored content are no longer enough
Coinbase unveils fund for early-stage cryptocurrency startups
Coinbase has launched a new fund called Coinbase Ventures to invest in early-stage cryptocurrency and blockchain startups. In a blog post, Coinbase head of corporate and business development Emilie Ch
Razer’s gaming ecosystem gets bigger with the launch of its online game store
Razer, known mainly for gaming laptops and peripherals, expanded its ecosystem today with the launch of Razer Game Store, an online game distribution platform. Razer Game Store will compete with Steam
Walmart reportedly in talks to acquire prescription delivery service PillPack
Walmart is in discussions to acquire medication delivery service PillPack for “under $1 billion,” reports CNBC. CNBC’s sources said the deal isn’t final yet, but talks have been going on for m
COSMIQ maker Deepblu launches a booking platform it calls the “Airbnb of diving”
After it took James Tsuei a month of research and emails to plan a dive in Indonesia, he decided it was time for his startup, Deepblu, to launch a booking platform for divers. Planet Deepblu bills its
Alibaba to buy all remaining outstanding shares of local delivery service Ele.me
As expected since February, Alibaba will buy all outstanding shares of Ele.me that it doesn’t already own. Best-known for food deliveries, Ele.me claims to be China’s biggest online delivery and l
SoftBank Group and Saudi Arabia plan to spend $200 billion building the world’s biggest solar power plant
SoftBank Group Corp., known for splashy deals involving billions of dollars (see: its Vision Fund and investments in Uber and Didi), has signed a memorandum of understanding with Saudi Arabia to build
CardUp raises $1.7M to help small businesses get more out of their credit cards
CardUp, a Singapore-based startup that enables users to make large, recurring payments by credit card even to recipients that don’t accept cards, has raised $2.2 million SGD (about $1.7 million) led
Precious uses artificial intelligence to help parents figure out what to do with all their baby photos
While pregnant, I imagined I’d spend maternity leave making elegant baby albums with detailed captions each month. That didn’t happen and now I have thousands of baby photos on my phone a
Amazon partners with French retailer Monoprix to launch Prime Now grocery deliveries in Paris
Amazon’s business in France is taking a big step forward after announcing a new deal today with retail giant Monoprix to deliver groceries through Prime Now. The service will begin serving Prime Now
Facebook denies it collects call and SMS data from phones without permission
After an Ars Technica report that Facebook surreptitiously scrapes call and text message data from Android phones and has done so for years, the scandal-burdened company has responded that it only col