All posts tagged: exclusive

Elea AI is chasing the healthcare productivity opportunity by targeting pathology labs’ legacy systems

Elea AI is chasing the healthcare productivity opportunity by targeting pathology labs’ legacy systems

Published by skeptic

VC funding into AI tools for healthcare was projected to hit $11 billion last year — a headline figure that speaks to the widespread conviction that artificial intelligence will prove transformative in a critical sector. Many startups applying AI in healthcare are seeking to drive efficiencies by automating some of the administration that orbits and enables patient care. Hamburg-based Elea broadly fits this mould, but it’s starting with a relatively overlooked and underserved niche — pathology labs, whose work entails analyzing patient samples for disease — from where it believes it’ll be able to scale the voice-based, AI agent-powered workflow system it’s developed to boost labs’ productivity to achieve global impact. Including by transplanting its workflow-focused approach to accelerating the output of other healthcare departments, too. Elea’s initial AI tool is designed to overhaul how clinicians and other lab staff work. It’s a complete replacement for legacy information systems and other set ways of working (such as using Microsoft Office for typing reports) — shifting the workflow to an “AI operating system” which deploys speech-to-text …

Exclusive: Honor Debuts a New AI Agent That Can Read and Understand Your Screen

Exclusive: Honor Debuts a New AI Agent That Can Read and Understand Your Screen

Published by skeptic

It chose a restaurant, but then couldn’t complete the process as the spot it chose required a credit card to confirm a reservation, at which point the user had to take over. You can be flexible in your query—in another example, asking it to book a “highly rated” restaurant meant it would look at reviews with high scores, though the agent doesn’t do any more research than that. It’s not cross-referencing OpenTable reviews with data from other parts of the web, especially since all of this data is processed on device and isn’t sent to the cloud. This kind of agentic artificial intelligence is the current buzzword in the tech sphere. My colleague Will Knight recently tested an AI assistant that could browse the web and perform tasks online. Google late last year unveiled its Gemini 2 AI model trained to take actions on your behalf. It also renews the idea of a generative user interface for smartphones—at MWC 2024, we saw a few companies working on ways to interact with apps without using apps …

Exclusive: Meghan Markle’s close friend Abigail Spencer reveals hidden side to the Duchess

Exclusive: Meghan Markle’s close friend Abigail Spencer reveals hidden side to the Duchess

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Meghan Markle’s Suits co-star Abigail Spencer is ready for the world to know her close friend’s true character ahead of the Duchess’ solo Netflix debut. With Love, Meghan, her hybrid cooking and lifestyle show, premieres on March 4 and features a slew of famous faces, including Mindy Kaling, her husband Prince Harry, and, of course, Abigail herself. The Suits actress stopped by the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women Red Dress Collection Concert on Thursday night, to raise awareness around cardiovascular disease.  WATCH: Meghan Markle debuts trailer for new series on Netflix, “With Love, Meghan” HELLO! spoke exclusively with Abigail at the event, where she opened up about how much the upcoming series means to her.  “I’m so excited for everyone to get to know the Megan that I know,” she shared. “[The show is] so authentic, it’s so cool.” “It’s really beautiful, and you’re going to learn a lot,” she added. “I mean, I’ve learned a lot.” © Getty ImagesThe Duchess’ longtime friend shared insight into her upcoming series, With Love, Meghan When asked …

African fintech Moniepoint gets Visa backing, plans to work on contactless payments

African fintech Moniepoint gets Visa backing, plans to work on contactless payments

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Visa has joined African fintech Moniepoint as a new investor. The business banking and payments platform confirmed to TechCrunch that it received a “strategic investment” from the global payments giant as both companies look to drive financial inclusion and support the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across Africa. Sources close to the deal say the fintech – which announced a $110 million investment last October, received over $10 million from Visa. The fintech, whose Series C now exceeds $120 million, is reportedly in talks with other investors and may attract more funding in the coming months, all while maintaining its billion-dollar valuation, sources say. Moniepoint declined to comment on the size of Visa’s check or interest from other investors.  Moniepoint provides businesses and individuals with banking accounts, credit, payments, and other financial tools through an app and a network of agents. The fintech now processes over 1 billion transactions monthly, with total payment volumes reaching $22 billion—a growth of over 25% in under three months. Its rapid rise began during Nigeria’s Central Bank …

Bench customers are now being forced to hand over their data or risk losing it, they say

Bench customers are now being forced to hand over their data or risk losing it, they say

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After accounting startup Bench abruptly shut down on December 27 and was bought in a fire-sale by Employer.com, Bench customers are now learning they can’t easily just take their financial data and leave.  And some are very unhappy about it, three customers told TechCrunch. To recap: When Bench, a startup based in Canada that raised $113 million from investors like Bain Capital Ventures and Shopify, shuttered, it left thousands of businesses without access to their accounting and tax documents. Days later, Bench announced it would be acquired by Employer.com for an undisclosed price in a last-minute deal. San Francisco-based HR tech company Employer.com focuses on payroll and onboarding, in contrast to Bench, which specializes in accounting and tax.  On the surface, Employer.com appears to be a relatively new company: Its CEO, Jesse Tinsley, announced his acquisition of the domain name in November for about $450,000. Tinsley is behind a host of HR, onboarding, and recruiting-related businesses, including Recruiter.com and BountyJobs. However, digging deeper, TechCrunch learned that Employer.com is a dba for Recruiting.com Ventures. Tinsley acquired …

The Split’s Annabel Scholey talks close bonds with co-stars: ‘I feel like the middle sister’ – Exclusive

The Split’s Annabel Scholey talks close bonds with co-stars: ‘I feel like the middle sister’ – Exclusive

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Annabel Scholey revealed that her on-screen relationships with her The Split co-stars Nicola Walker and Fiona Button are just as strong in real life.  The hit BBC series follows the Defoes, a family of high-flying divorce lawyers and centres on sisters Hannah, Nina and Rose – and their formidable mother Ruth Defoe – as they navigate their demanding careers with their messy personal lives.  WATCH: Annabel Scholey stars in The Split: Barcelona Sitting down with HELLO! ahead of the legal drama’s return with its two-part special, The Split: Barcelona, the actress opened up about the trio’s sibling-like dynamic. “I very much feel like the middle sister on and off-screen,” said Annabel, who plays Nina in the drama. “I absolutely love them both. I’ve got different friendships with both of them.” © BBC / SISTERAnnabel shares close friendships with her on-screen sisters, Fiona Button and Nicola Walker Reflecting on filming the first series, which aired in 2017, Annabel recalled her instant chemistry with Nicola and Fiona, who portray Hannah and Rose, respectively. “We were lucky when …

Lerer Hippeau files to a raise Fund IX

Lerer Hippeau files to a raise Fund IX

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Lerer Hippeau, one of New York’s most prolific A-list VC firms, has filed to raise its ninth fund, according to an SEC filing made Wednesday. There is no target raise amount.  Lerer Hippeau did not immediately respond to our request for comment.  The firm, founded in 2010, has more than $1.2 billion in assets under management, according to Pitchbook, and has invested in more than 400 companies including footwear maker Allbirds, eyewear maker Warby Parker, social media platform Pie, gifting platform On Me, mattress company Casper, and the online furniture marketplace Kayio.  Last year, it announced the close of two new funds: Select Fund IV for $85.9 million, which we reported would be used to back companies from Series A to C, and Fund VIII for $143 million, which we reported would focus on pre-seed and seed-stage companies. Source link

Benchmark, Index, others are in a wild unsolicited bidding war over Anysphere, maker of Cursor

Benchmark, Index, others are in a wild unsolicited bidding war over Anysphere, maker of Cursor

Published by skeptic

There isn’t a shortage of AI-powered coding assistance startups. They include Augment, Codeium, Magic, and Poolside. However, Cursor has become one of the most popular. Its developer, Anysphere, has seen its revenue grow from $4 million annualized recurring revenue (ARR) in April to $4 million a month as of last month, according to a person with direct knowledge of the company’s financials. The company is experiencing faster user adoption and growth compared to other coding assistant providers, another person said. Such fast growth has VCs flocking to it. Anysphere has received unsolicited offers valuing the company at as much as $2.5 billion from Benchmark, Index Ventures, and previous investors  Andreessen Horowitz and Thrive, among others, the person said. Index Ventures declined to comment. Anysphere, Benchmark, Andreessen Horowitz, and Thrive didn’t respond to requests for comment.   Interest in the company has exploded so fast that last week, the unsolicited offers started at a $1.5 billion valuation, but have already risen to $2.5 billion, the person with direct knowledge of the company said. Sources also told …

Sarah Ferguson reveals grandchildren Sienna, August and Ernest’s reactions to latest book – exclusive

Sarah Ferguson reveals grandchildren Sienna, August and Ernest’s reactions to latest book – exclusive

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Sarah, Duchess of York has published her latest children’s book, and it has already had the seal of approval from three very important readers – her grandchildren. Flora and Fern: Wonder in the Woods is the first in a new series from the best-selling author, who has published more than 70 books, including Budgie the Little Helicopter and Little Red for children and romantic novel Her Heart for a Compass for adults.  Illustrated by Denise Hughes, the heartwarming tale follows characters Flora and Fern on a snow-filled woodland adventure as they prepare for a festive party. A second book is due to follow next year.  Sarah, 65, who is grandmother to Princess Beatrice’s daughter Sienna, three, and Princess Eugenie’s sons August, three, and one-year-old Ernest, has said that she strives to share the book’s ethos – “the power of community and being connected to the world around you” – with her grandchildren.  The family is looking forward to a new addition to the fold, with Beatrice and her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi having recently announced that they are expecting …

Bend It Like Beckham’s Parminder Nagra reveals whether she’d return in film sequel – Exclusive

Bend It Like Beckham’s Parminder Nagra reveals whether she’d return in film sequel – Exclusive

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Parminder Nagra hasn’t ruled out reprising her role in a Bend It Like Beckham sequel. The actress, who starred as football-playing 18-year-old Jess alongside Keira Knightley’s Juliette in the feel-good 2002 film, said she would have to see the script. The romantic sports comedy follows Indian teen Jess as she dreams of becoming a professional football player, despite the expectations of her traditional Punjabi family: to get a job as a lawyer and settle down with a suitable husband.  © Film Council / Lions GateParminder Nagra and Keira Knightley starred in the film Sitting down with HELLO! ahead of her returning role in ITV’s DI Ray, Parminder said “I don’t know” when asked whether she’d star in a second film. “Sometimes I feel like when someone’s made a film, you kind of go, that was that moment and it probably should just be left alone because then the expectation for whatever the sequel is,” explained the actress.  Pondering where her character would be 20 years on, she asked: “What I would like come back as, a coach? What would …