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Finance

Circle Files for IPO After Previous SPAC Deal Failure

Circle, the issuer of USDC, a stablecoin pegged to the U.S. dollar, has filed to go public. The company's 2024 revenue and reserve income was $1.68 billion, up from $1.45 billion the year prior, with a net income of $156 million, down from $268 million in 2023.

This marks Circle's second attempt at a public listing, having previously tried to combine with a SPAC in 2022 but abandoning the plans due to SEC delays. The previous SPAC deal valued Circle at $9 billion. Renaissance Capital estimates the company will attempt to raise $750 million in its offering.

Key investors with more than 5% ownership include Accel, General Catalyst, Breyer, IDG Capital, and Oak Investment Partners. The filing indicates that Circle USDC in circulation are valued at $60 billion. The IPO is planned amidst increasing support for crypto assets.

Space Technology

Aetherflux Secures $50M to Pioneer Space-Based Solar Energy by 2026

Aetherflux, founded by Robinhood co-founder Baiju Bhatt, has raised $50 million in Series A funding to launch its first low Earth orbit demonstration in 2026. The startup aims to create a constellation of satellites to collect and transmit solar energy to ground stations on Earth. The funds will be used to hire engineers and invest in technology for upcoming missions, including building a payload to convert satellite-generated power into laser power. Aetherflux is partnering with Apex Space and developing ground stations to convert the laser energy into electricity, with the goal of providing power to even the most remote locations. The company also received an award from the Department of Defense to develop space solar power for the U.S. military.

Business & Technology

Epic Games CEO Accuses Apple and Google of 'Gangster-Style' Practices

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney criticized Apple and Google, labeling them as "gangster-style businesses" for alleged illegal practices and anti-competitive behavior.

Sweeney highlighted how these practices negatively impact Epic's business by deterring users from installing the Epic Games Store and discouraging developers from joining their platform.

He pointed out that Google's warnings about installing software from "unknown sources" on Android, and Apple's warnings on iOS, cause significant drop-off rates (50-60%) in installations of the Epic Games Store.

Sweeney also addressed Apple's "core technology fee" for apps with over 1 million downloads, stating it makes it too expensive for free-to-play games to operate on the Epic Games Store on iOS.

He emphasized the need for more vigorous enforcement against these companies to change their behavior, as the current fines are often cheaper than the revenue gained from illegal practices.

Social Media

Instagram Account Transition: Second Lady Inherits Second Gentleman's Followers

Meta is transferring the Instagram followers of the former Second Gentleman, Doug Emhoff (@secondgentleman46archive), to the newly created account of the Second Lady, Usha Vance (@SLOTUS). This transition means that 1.2 million followers of Emhoff's archived account will now follow Vance.

Meta stated that this process aligns with their procedures for presidential transitions, similar to the handover of accounts for the President, VP, FLOTUS, and the White House. The White House created the @SLOTUS account recently, with the first post dated March 10th. Currently, Usha Vance does not have an official Facebook account.

Users may experience delays when trying to unfollow the @SLOTUS account due to the high volume of follow and unfollow requests during the transition. Meta clarified that it assists the White House in these transitions and does not force users to auto-follow accounts without their consent.

These White House social media account transitions occur every four years and often cause confusion as users may not remember following the accounts, especially from previous administrations.

Legal/Business

Corporate Espionage Unveiled: Rippling's Lawsuit Exposes Deel's Alleged Spy Operation

Rippling has publicly released the affidavit of an employee who claims he spied for Deel, escalating the legal battle between the two HRtech companies. The affidavit details how Deel executives allegedly recruited the Rippling employee to gather confidential information, offering payment in exchange. The employee reportedly provided data on sales leads, product roadmaps, and customer accounts.
Rippling claims it caught the spy using a fabricated Slack channel, leading to a confrontation where the employee allegedly destroyed evidence. The affidavit further alleges that Deel representatives advised the employee to make false claims against Rippling. Rippling's attorney asserts they have undeniable evidence of corporate espionage, while Deel denies all wrongdoing and anticipates counterclaims.
The case has sparked industry reactions, with competitors like Papaya Global applauding Rippling for addressing the issue. This legal conflict follows previous incidents, including a controversial marketing campaign by Rippling targeting Deel.

Technology

Redwood Materials Expands Footprint with New San Francisco R&D Center

Redwood Materials is expanding beyond its Nevada headquarters with a new research and development center in San Francisco. This 15,000-square-foot facility in the Design District will house engineers working on all aspects of the battery ecosystem, from chemical engineering to software development. CTO Colin Campbell aims to tap into the Bay Area's talent pool to enhance cathode production and equipment development for Redwood's factories.

The company is focused on building an end-to-end battery ecosystem, including recycling, refining, and remanufacturing. Engineers at the new lab will also work on battery diagnostic methods to assess battery pack health. Campbell emphasizes the importance of battery materials as the foundation of Redwood's business, with diagnostic tools potentially boosting the bottom line and aligning with the company's ethos of extending the life of batteries.

Gaming/AI

Epic Games Enhances Creator Tools with Loci Acquisition for Automated 3D Asset Tagging and IP Protection

Epic Games has acquired Loci, an AI platform specializing in automated tagging of 3D assets.
This acquisition aims to streamline the content creation process by automating the labor-intensive task of tagging 3D assets, making them easier to search, share, and discover.
Loci's computer vision models will also assist in identifying potential intellectual property infringements, a challenge Fortnite has previously faced.
The AI technology will be integrated across the Epic ecosystem, including Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN) and Fab, the digital asset marketplace.

Technology

Nivenly Foundation Launches Security Fund to Fortify the Fediverse

The Nivenly Foundation has launched a security fund to reward responsible disclosures of security vulnerabilities in fediverse apps like Mastodon, Threads, and Pixelfed. Payouts range from $250 to $500 based on the severity of the vulnerability.

The fund aims to improve security practices among fediverse projects, many of which are run by independent operators. It also addresses issues like premature public disclosure of vulnerabilities, as seen with Pixelfed.

The program includes educating project leads on responsible disclosure practices to protect users and prevent the need for drastic measures like defederation.

Artificial Intelligence

DeepMind's AGI Safety Blueprint: A Call for Proactive Harm Mitigation

Google DeepMind has released a comprehensive paper outlining its approach to AGI safety, predicting AGI could arrive by 2030 and potentially cause 'severe harm.' The paper contrasts DeepMind's risk mitigation with Anthropic's and OpenAI's, advocating for techniques to block bad actors, understand AI actions, and harden AI environments.

The paper suggests recursive AI improvement could be dangerous, while some experts question the concept of AGI itself. Concerns are raised about AI reinforcing itself with inaccurate outputs, highlighting the risk of mistruths being presented convincingly.

Despite its comprehensiveness, DeepMind's paper is unlikely to resolve debates over AGI's realism and the most urgent areas of AI safety.

Real Estate

Roam Secures $11.5M to Revolutionize Home Buying with Assumable Mortgages

Roam, a startup founded by ex-Opendoor product lead Raunaq Singh, secured $11.5 million in Series A funding led by Khosla Ventures to expand access to assumable mortgages. The platform aims to address the housing affordability crisis by enabling buyers to assume existing mortgages with lower interest rates. Roam facilitated $200 million in home sales for several hundred buyers in 2024 and has over 200,000 registered buyers.

Roam claims buyers can save up to 50% on monthly payments by assuming loans, with the platform allowing as little as 5% down. The company operates in 17 states and plans to be nationwide by the end of the year, projecting $1 billion in home sales in 2025.

Roam's platform streamlines the assumable mortgage process, offering pre-approval and reducing closing times from 180 days to 45 days. The company focuses on FHA/VA loans originated in 2020 and 2021, representing $1.4 trillion in potential opportunities.