Author: Editor-in-Chief

At Web Summit Vancouver, Tailscale CEO Avery Pennarun told BetaKit’s Josh Scott that the pressure to adopt AI has created a “Wild West” for corporate cybersecurity. The statement stood out for the obvious reason, but also because it’s rare to find founders with both the technical chops and the capacity to articulate those chops in a way that’s accessible to the average person. “That’s the literal term several CISOs have used with me unprompted: ‘ticking time bomb.’ There’s no world in which this doesn’t explode the way it’s done right now.” Avery Pennarun Tailscale I made a mental note to…

I Montréal-based gaming tech startup LocusX has raised $3 million to fund its artificial intelligence (AI)-powered debugging software for game developers. LocusX is the brainchild of two gaming enthusiasts and the two Montréal venture firms that co-led the round: venture builder Diagram Ventures and entertainment tech-focused Triptyq Capital. The funding closed at the end of July. CEO Francois Pelland told BetaKit in an interview that LocusX’s “issue resolution engine” can identify and propose fixes for programming bugs. “The night before the ship, I’ve seen game developers more anxious about leaving bugs than the quality of the game.” With the engine,…

Ten months ago, Mishel Wong thought her sustainable packaging startup was going to fold. BO Fundraising efforts for Bo (sometimes referred to as Bopaq) appeared to be stagnating as Investissement Québec paused the Impulsion PME (IPME) program meant to back young startups. “I didn’t know that stress could feel so physical,” Wong told BetaKit at the time. “This is such a validation of our business model as something not only viable, but [one that others] see a future in replicating.” This week, that stress turned to elation as Wong told BetaKit that Bo has been acquired by Québec’s largest recycling…

Why is Electronic Arts, one of the biggest names in the video game business, reportedly in talks to go private? Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier notes that video game companies are moving towards consolidation and that the deal could reflect EA executives’ broader concerns over the future of the industry. Following a period of rapid growth in the 2010s and during the pandemic, Schreier said gamers in recent years have “tended to stick with old favorites rather than purchasing new titles.” This seems to be reflected in EA’s fiscal year 2025, with 75% of revenue coming from live services rather than new…

Nick Pompa, founder of Lootlock — an app that prevents kids from running up unauthorized gaming bills on their parents’ credit cards — is an avid gamer and software developer working in fintech. As a dad of two under two, he’s looking forward to sharing his passion for gaming with his kids when they grow old enough to play. He started gaming at age 6, he told TechCrunch. Lootlock was selected for TechCrunch’s 2025 Startup Battlefield 200 and will be exhibiting at TechCrunch Disrupt, October 27 to 29 in San Francisco. As he gabbed about gaming with other parents, or simply…

 Harm reduction is something we all need to be talking about. It is the belief that even when someone is participating in risky behaviour, that there is still a way to minimize harm. It’s a common part of everyday life, whether you realize it or not. It keeps you safer. It’s wearing your seatbelt. It’s putting on your bicycle helmet. It’s not drinking and driving. We are the Trip! Project, a Toronto based peer-run, city-funded non-profit. We practice harm reduction to help people party safer. We go to festivals, night clubs, all-ages parties and raves, bathhouses, concerts and house parties.…

[web_stories title=”true” excerpt=”false” author=”false” date=”false” archive_link=”true” archive_link_label=”” circle_size=”150″ sharp_corners=”false” image_alignment=”left” number_of_columns=”1″ number_of_stories=”5″ order=”DESC” orderby=”post_title” view=”circles” /] “One of the key things to understand about cybersecurity is that it’s a mind game,” Ami Luttwak, chief technologist at cybersecurity firm Wiz Chief , told TechCrunch on a recent episode of Equity. “If there’s a new technology wave coming, there are new opportunities for [attackers] to start using it.”  As the digital landscape evolves, the shadows of cyber threats grow ever darker. Ami Luttwak, the chief technologist at Wiz, paints a vivid picture of how AI is not just a tool but a…

When Sierra Space won a contract to deliver cargo to the International Space Station nearly a decade ago, the company promised a first for the commercial space market: a privately built, rapid reuse and cargo return spaceplane capable of landing on commercial runways.

President Donald Trump declared Friday that Microsoft needs to fire Lisa Monaco, the company’s president of global affairs. Citing her roles as “a senior National Security aide under Barack Hussein Obama, and a Lawfare and Weaponization obsessed Deputy Attorney General under Crooked Joe Biden and Lisa’s Puppet ‘Boss’ Attorney General Merrick Garland,” Trump posted on Truth Social that Monaco’s current role gives her access to “Highly Sensitive Information,” which he deemed “unacceptable.” “It is my opinion that Microsoft should immediately terminate the employment of Lisa Monaco,” he wrote. As Trump noted, Monaco worked with both Barack Obama and Joe Biden,…

If you’ve been on the New York City subway recently, you’ve probably seen stark white ads promoting a wearable AI device called Friend. CEO Avi Schiffman told Adweek that the company spent more than $1 million on a campaign with more than 11,000 cards on subway cars, 1,000 platform posters, and 130 urban panels. Some stations, like West 4th Street, are completely dominated by Friend ads. “This is the world’s first major AI campaign,” Schiffman said. (There have been other AI ads of questionable effectiveness, but perhaps not a print campaign of this scale.) He described it as “a…