reading

Capsule’s new app combines AI and human editors to curate the news

A Paris-based startup called Capsule wants to transform the way users seek out their daily news. Instead of offering a standard news aggregator experience, Capsule’s mission is to become the &#8

Read-it-later app Matter can now transcribe your favorite podcasts

Matter, a GV-backed read-it-later app that competes broadly with apps like Pocket and Instapaper, though with more of a focus on reading recommendations, is today launching a new way to use its app. T

Looking for your next book? These 9 authors have reading recommendations for you

We asked authors whose work is closely tied to tech and startups this simple question: "What book have you read this summer that you think others might enjoy?"

Library e-book app OverDrive to shut down on May 1st, readers directed to Libby instead

For over a decade, the OverDrive app has offered a service that allows institutions, including public libraries and schools, to lend their digital catalogs of e-books, audiobooks and other digital med

Time-tested tactics for building investor presentations

A story, like a relationship, is built in stages. It’s important to match each stage with the appropriate content.

Amazon’s Joe Quinlivan discusses how building a robot army fueled its e-commerce dominance at TC Sessions: Robotics 2022

There’s an 800-pound gorilla in the warehouse, and its name is Amazon.  Back in 2012, the company bought Kiva Systems for $775 million and renamed it Amazon Robotics. The deal, in hindsight, was a

Amazon is Primed for online domination

We talk about bulls in china shops, but what about bulls running through the streets of entire shopping districts, or other neighborhoods? This morning, Amazon unveiled a new feature that will test ju

Study finds half of Americans get news on social media, but percentage has dropped

A new report from Pew Research finds that around a third of U.S. adults continue to get their news regularly from Facebook, though the exact percentage has slipped from 36% in 2020 to 31% in 2021. Thi

Amazon introduces Reading Sidekick, a kids reading companion for Alexa, and Voice Profiles for Kids

Amazon today announced a new feature that will turn Alexa into a reading companion for children, as well as new support for Alexa Voice Profiles for Kids, which personalize the child’s Alexa exp

Microsoft’s Reading Progress makes assessing reading levels easier for kids and teachers

Among the many, many tasks required of grade school teachers is that of gauging each student’s reading level, usually by a time-consuming and high-pressure one-on-one examination. Microsoft&#821

Twitter acquires distraction-free reading service Scroll to beef up its subscription product

Twitter this morning announced it’s acquiring Scroll, a subscription service that offers readers a better way to read through long-form content on the web, by removing ads and other website clut

Amira Learning raises $11M to put its AI-powered literacy tutor in post-COVID classrooms

School closures due to the pandemic have interrupted the learning processes of millions of kids, and without individual attention from teachers, reading skills in particular are taking a hit. Amira Le

The TechCrunch Survey of tech startup hubs in England and Wales

TechCrunch is embarking on a major new project to survey European founders and investors in cities outside the major European capitals. Over the next few weeks, we will ask entrepreneurs in these citi

Isotropic Systems raises $40 million for a satellite antenna that could make the most of new constellations

U.K.-based Isotropic Systems has raised a $40 million funding in an “oversubscribed” round that the startup says will help it get its next-generation broadband terminal to the production p

Security testing firm NSS Labs ceases operations, citing coronavirus

Security testing company NSS Labs “ceased operations” last week, the company said in a notice on its website, citing impacts related to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The Austin, Texas-

Azure’s Immersive Reader is now generally available

Microsoft today announced that Immersive Reader, its service for developers who want to add text-to-speech and reading comprehension tools to their applications, is now generally available. With Immer

Google launches ‘Read Along,’ a free app that helps young children practice reading

Google today is launching a new app, Read Along, that aims to help elementary school students practice their reading skills and stay educationally engaged amid school closures due to coronavirus. The

Storytelling community Wattpad now lets you personalize adult content options

Wattpad, the online storytelling community that’s home to some 80 million monthly users, has successfully tapped into the power of crowdsourcing to help uncover the next potential hits for media

Inkitt raises $16M led by Kleiner Perkins to publish crowdsourced novels in ‘mini-episodes’

The traditional world of publishing has been challenged hard by the digital revolution. Reading as a pastime has been in significant decline, in part because of the proliferation of screens and option

Storytelling community Wattpad launches Paid Stories and its ad-free subscription globally

Online storytelling community Wattpad, also now a content feeder for streaming services and other media companies, is taking its two consumer-facing paid products global. Wattpad Premium, the ad-free
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