2023 has been a tough funding year for European startups — even being characterised as the “most depressed” in VC exit value in a decade. Amid uncertainty and a staggering macroeconomic environment, VC activity and deal value also, unsurprisingly, dropped. But what will the funding ecosystem look like in 2024? And, more importantly, will it bring cause for hope for startups and investors alike? According to analysis by Pitchbook, neither... Read more ›
0
The generative AI movement may dominate today’s headlines, but another technological transformation is gaining momentum under the radar—the proliferation of autonomous service robots. Their surge in popularity continues to be fueled by their ability to improve efficiency and reduce the need for manual labor in repetitive, hazardous tasks, as well as more recent advancements in sensor fusion and software-defined processes that improve their price-performance. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic has... Read more ›
2
Welcome to the first episode of the TNW Podcast — our new show where we discuss the latest developments in the European technology ecosystem and feature interviews with some of the most interesting people in the industry. In today’s episode, Andrii and Linnea talk about what happens when generative AI hallucinations start to concern European politics, the big deal between OpenAI and Axel Springer, similarities between the industries of computer... Read more ›
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AI’s ability to beat human players in games like chess and GO is no longer surprising. After all, artificial intelligence has proved it can outperform its animate creators in certain tasks, especially when it comes to processing and analysing information. But physical skill has remained a human prerogative — until now. Researchers at ETH Zurich have created an AI robot with the task to learn how to play the popular... Read more ›
0
Today, Dutch neobank bunq launched its generative AI platform — Finn. Running on open large language models (LLMs) from OpenAI and Meta, the new chatbot function is designed to help users plan their finances, make better budgets, and easily find transactions. Essentially, according to bunq, enabling users to “live the life they want.” “It is basically as if you have your own personal accountant who knows everything about your personal... Read more ›
15
Digital maps and location tech specialist TomTom has partnered up with Microsoft to develop an AI voice assistant for vehicles. According to the Netherlands-based company, the automotive assistant enables voice interaction with location search, infotainment, and vehicle command systems. This means that drivers can “converse” with the vehicle, ask questions about navigation directions or route stops, and use voice control to regulate the temperature, for instance, or open the windows... Read more ›
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German-Dutch startup Zander Laboratories has secured €30mn in funding from Germany’s Cyber Agency to transform the interaction between humans and machines. Notably, this is the largest single-financed research project in the EU to date. The startup beat four other contenders who competed for the government’s “Secure Neural Human-Machine Interaction” proposal call in October. Zander Laboratories took home the price thanks to its “Neuroadaptivity for Autonomous Systems” (NAFAS) project, which aims... Read more ›
5
More money, better benefits, greater flexibility to work when and where they like: Europe’s tech workers, in tandem with their global counterparts, have a laundry list of demands going into 2024. A recent Gallup poll found that “blenders,” aka those who prefer a job where work and life are more blended throughout the day, make up 55% of the professional workforce. So when it comes to the hottest roles in... Read more ›
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If you take a morning shower at the voco Brussels City North hotel, the water that you see trickling down the drain as you wash your hair might visit you again later — when you flush the toilet in the evening. However, before that shower water returns to swirl around your toilet bowl and dash, at last, towards the city’s sewers, it will go through a special treatment process enabled... Read more ›
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X, formerly Twitter, is the first online platform to experience the full wrath of the Digital Services Act (DSA) — the EU’s landmark content moderation rulebook. The DSA, which entered into force in November for 19 major platforms, sets a list of rules designed to protect users against harmful or illegal content, disinformation, and the violation of privacy and free speech. But while big tech has so far rushed to... Read more ›
5
A branch of the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) is launching a drone delivery scheme across 30 medical facilities in the north of the country. The aim is to cut costs, while improving service to hundreds of thousands of patients. The Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust has been experimenting with autonomous drone deliveries for a while now, in partnership with UK-based Apian. The startup was founded by two former NHS... Read more ›
3
Methane is the second biggest greenhouse gas contributor to climate change. It’s also 84 times more potent than culprit number one, carbon dioxide. Unsurprisingly, 60% of global emissions result from human activity. While reducing methane emissions is key to tackling global warming, removing it from the air has proven challenging. That’s because the gas can be burnt off from air when its concentration exceeds 4%. However, the majority of human-caused... Read more ›
0
A site located on the Scottish island of Unst has become the first spaceport in Western Europe to be granted a licence for vertical rocket launches. SaxaVord spaceport in the Shetland Islands secured the licence from the UK’s Civil Aviation Authority, paving the way for the first rocket launches in 2024. It follows a three-year assessment by the authority to determine whether the spaceport meets stringent safety, security, and environmental... Read more ›
0
DeepMind has used a large language model (LLM) to generate a novel solution to one of humanity’s toughest math problems — in a breakthrough that could herald a new era in AI development. The model, known as FunSearch, discovered a solution to the so-called “cap set puzzle.” The decades-old math conundrum essentially comes down to how many dots you can joint down on a page while drawing lines between them,... Read more ›
3
The upcoming year will be a busy one for democracy. Major elections will take place in the US, the EU, and Taiwan, among others. Just as the rollout of generative AI era is gathering pace in earnest — something some fear could prove detrimental to the democratic process. One of the main concerns about generative AI is that it could be used for the malicious spread of disinformation, or that... Read more ›
15
After a five-month wait, Meta’s latest social media app Threads is now available to people living in the European Union. “Today we’re opening Threads to more countries in Europe. Welcome everyone,” wrote Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg on the platform. Threads is Mark Zuckerberg’s answer to X, formerly Twitter, which has been steadily loosing users since Elon Musk took over last year. The social media app, which can only be accessed... Read more ›
3
Let’s talk about femtech in Europe. In this bonus episode of the TNW Podcast, we’re featuring two interviews with notable players in the industry: Ida Tin, co-founder and chairwoman of the period tracking app Clue — and the very person who coined the term ‘femtech’ itself. Valentina Milanova, founder and CEO of Daye, a gynaecological health startup based in the UK. Listen to the episode with the player above... Read more ›
0
Hydropower currently generates more energy than all other renewables combined and is expected to remain the world’s largest source of renewable electricity into the 2030s. And pumping water uphill, aka pumped storage hydro, accounts for 90% of energy storage capacity. However, in Europe, investment and general interest in hydropower pales in comparison to wind and solar. This is partly because most suitable locations for power-generating dams have already been utilised,... Read more ›
2
Word of the year indeed — it seems even the Catholic Church can’t stop talking about AI. The events unfolding in the Middle East and the continued war in Ukraine has made the well-worn Christmas wish “peace on earth” even more acutely felt than normal (whatever that is). However, that the Pope would throw AI into the mix might have been a little less expected. The Pope’s message for the... Read more ›
42
After numerous setbacks, the European Space Agency recently announced that its next-generation rocket, Ariane 6, is set to launch in just six months’ time. If successful, the heavy-lift launcher will restore the continent’s independent access to space satellites. Now, various parts of the rocket, built in factories across Europe, need to be transported across the Atlantic Ocean to be assembled at ESA’s spaceport in French Guiana. This oversea territory is... Read more ›
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02.05.2026 22:55
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