Matt Burns
Matt is a Managing Editor at TechCrunch.
He started at TechCrunch as a freelance writer in 2008 and moved up the ranks to become the Managing Editor in early 2017. Born and raised in the heart of the automotive world, he has a special place in his heart for mobility startups and gadgets.
At TechCrunch he manages the editorial side of the company’s events including TechCrunch Disrupt, TechCrunch Sessions and the company’s various worldwide events. Previously he was a freelance writer at Engadget and EngadgetHD where he hosted podcasts until he was removed from that role after saying a swear word. He’s very sorry and promises it won’t happen again.
His passions include emails, run-on sentences and following through with action items developed during a conference call. And woodwork.
Crunchbase profile →Featured Picks from Matt Burns
Latest from Matt Burns
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Duo Security raises $70 million at a valuation north of $1 billion
Duo Security today announced its Series D funding that puts the company in unicorn territory. The company raised $70 million led by Meritech Capital Partners and Lead Edge Capital at a valuation of $1.17 billion. This funding round brings the company’s total amount raised to $119 million. This round included new investors, Index Ventures and Workday, that latter of which joins as a… Read More
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BlackBerry ditches the keyboard in latest handset
Yesterday at GITEX Technology Week in Dubai, BlackBerry announced the Motion, an all-screen smartphone with a massive battery. Made by TCL under the BlackBerry Mobile brand, the Motion packs a 5.5-inch screen and running on a Snapdragon 625 SoC platform. The phone will be initially available in Middle Eastern markets for around $460 USD. North American availability was not announced. The… Read More
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Porsche’s Mission E caught testing alongside Tesla vehicles
Ignore the exhaust tips on the back. Those are just to throw off casual onlookers. According to our friends at Autoblog, there’s a good chance this is the electric car Porsche hopes to throw down against Tesla. Called Mission E in previous concepts, Porsche has talked about this car for several years though this is one of the first photos of the production car. The photos show a car void… Read More
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FAA outlaws drone use around 10 US monuments and dams
The Federal Aviation Administration announced new rules for drone use around key US landmarks including monuments and dams. Under the new restrictions, drones are not to fly within 400 feet of the designated landmarks. The FAA says these rules were implemented at the request of US security and law enforcement agencies. These locations are just the latest added to the growing list of the… Read More
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Watch Elon Musk’s keynote where he announced SpaceX’s new rocket and Mars colonization
Elon Musk gave a keynote address yesterday to the International Aeronautical Congress in Adelaide, Australia. During the 43 minute talk, which is embedded above, Musk laid out SpaceX’s future including colonizing Mars and building one rocket to rule them all. The talk is fantastic. Elon was Elon and revealed countless details about future SpaceX plans. This is why he’s celebrated… Read More
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Stilform’s Kosmos pen is a polished titanium delight
I’m a pen and pencil person. There’s something lasting about the tactile experience when using a writing instrument. Writing with a pen or pencil feels real and I obsessively purchase all sorts of pens and pencils so I jumped at the chance to review Stilform’s Kosmos pen. Stilform is a design outfit out of Munich and the Kosmos is their first pen. Special editions of the… Read More
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Amazon just launched 6 new gadgets and none was over $150
In the year of the $1000 iPhone Amazon just announced a scattering of new gadgets and none cost more than $150. Essentially, Amazon said “screws the margins” and are selling everything as cheap as possible. This race to the bottom is Amazon’s standard operating procedure. The company did it with Kindles e-readers and again with Kindle Fire tablets. The company releases a proof… Read More
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N.Y. regulators issued Equifax with a subpoena, per report
Equifax was issued a subpoena from New York state’s financial service regulators in regards to the massive data breach the company announced last month, Reuters reported today. The regulators want Equifax to provide more information, which is about right since it seems like Equifax has changed the story several times since the first announcement. Specifically, Reuters states the subpoena… Read More
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This $35 add-on will let Amazon Echos place phone calls
The Amazon Echo Connect will connect Echo devices to landline phones. Yes, a landline because safety. The thought is with this add-on Echo owners will be able to dial telephone numbers, like 911 or Pizza Hut or Mom, by just using their voice. To do this, the device connects to a home phone system through RJ-11 jacks. It uses the line’s existing phone service to handle the dialing. This… Read More
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Delta to offer free in-flight use of WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and iMessage
Starting October 1, passengers on most Delta will have free access to WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and iMessage. To access the feature, a passenger will have to log into Delta’s in-flight wifi portal powered by Gogo. This is first time an airline has offered such a service throughout its fleet. Traditional SMS messages will not work. Only the aforementioned mobile messaging services… Read More
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Watch Nest unveil its next big thing right here
Starting at 12:00 pm Eastern, Nest is set to unveil… something. There have been rumors and whispers and murmurs about what Nest could unveil but all will be revealed shortly. And then shortly after, Nest Co-founder and VP of Engineering Matt Rogers will speak at Disrupt SF about the new products. The company needs a hit and the product announced earlier today is not a hit in the same… Read More
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This could be the Google Home Mini
There have been rumors for weeks about Google nearing the release of a smaller version of the Google Home. DroidLife just posted what it claims is the upcoming Google Home Mini. If true, the design speaks the same language of the Google Home. The little puck uses the same cloth covering found on larger version. Gone are the multi-colored lights, replaced by four soft-white lights on top of… Read More
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Watch industrial robots play traditional instruments
Robots are stealing jobs, the narrative says, and, according to this video, robots are stealing the arts too. The video shows several industrial robotic arms playing the piano, guitar, drums and a keyboard. Through some stellar music production, it sounds amazing too. Read More
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Vitalik Buterin explains Ethereum in his own words at Disrupt SF
Today at Disrupt SF 2017 Vitalik Buterin sat down with AngelList founder Naval Ravikant to talk Ethereum. Because, well, Vitalik created Ethereum. Up front, Ravikant asked him to explain Ethereum and this is what he said. “You basically need to have some system that keeps track of how much money you have at any given time, how much money you have the right to spend,” Buterin said. Read More
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A Google security chief considers the NSA a state-sponsored threat
Today at TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2017 Google’s Manager of Information Security Heather Adkins sat down for a fireside chat. Among the varying topics discussed, she spoke about what’s like to have the NSA tap the company’s lines and how she views state sponsored threats. Moderator and TechCrunch Senior Editor Frederic Lardinois asked Adkins if she thinks of the NSA as a… Read More
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Equifax security and information executives are stepping down
Top executives at Equifax are retiring effective immediately, according to the WSJ. Susan Mauldin was the company’s chief security officer and David Webb was the chief information officer. The report says the executives are retiring though, in the wake of the company’s major security breach, “retire” feels like an euphemism for “fired.” Read More
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South Park trolled Amazon Echo owners in the best way possible
This is one of the minor dangers of owning an Amazon Echo. Most anyone can activate the device by just saying the wake word, including Cartman. And in the season opener of South Park, that’s exactly what happened. Read More
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Tesla files patent for mobile battery swapping rig
Tesla is still exploring options to make swapping vehicle battery packs easier and faster. This patent filed in May reveals one option that would allow technicians to change out packs in less than 15 minutes. This isn’t the first of such ideas. Back in 2014 Tesla briefly played with an automated system that swapped Model S battery packs in less than 90 seconds. That idea seemed to be… Read More
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I don’t want the new iPhone X and I can’t be alone
Apple announced the latest iPhone yesterday. It’s thinner, faster and has a better screen than the previous model. But of course it does. That’s how these things go. But the phone also lacks things I consider part of my daily life. I’m lost. This iPhone is not for me. Without these two features, I’ll stick with the boring and passé iPhone 8. The iPhone X follows a… Read More
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Jumia and Safaricom CEOs, Showmax and EchoVC heads top Battlefield Africa lineup
TechCrunch’s Battlefield Africa competition is set for Nairobi, Kenya on October 11. Along with 15 startups vying to become “Sub-Saharan Africa’s Most Promising Startup,” the event includes an exciting lineup of speakers and judges from the area and abroad. It’s free to attend and we would love to have you there. Apply for tickets here. TechCrunch and event… Read More
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