Acorn OakNorth rises to $2.3bn valuation as it closes fresh $100m fundraise September 6, 2018 London fintech Acorn Oaknorth has been valued at $2.3bn (£1.8bn) after it secured $100m from two Singaporean state-backed funds EDBI and GIC, as well as NIBC Bank, Clermont Group, and Coltrane Asset Management. The deal represented a total 4.3 per cent holding in the group. The fresh capital, announced yesterday, will be used to power growth [...]
Magic Leap taps Andy Serkis’ CGI studio to power content for its new VR headset September 6, 2018 Virtual reality startup Magic Leap has teamed up with The Imaginarium Studios, a London firm founded by actor Andy Serkis to power additional CGI content for its latest headset, which it raised $2.4bn to develop. Imaginarium, which has worked on films such as Star Wars: The Force Awakens, uses performance capture technology with actors to build [...]
Ride-hailing firm Taxify enters the electric scooter market September 6, 2018 Embattled ride-hailing firm Taxify has launched its first foray into battery-powered scooters with a debut in Paris, proving the tide might be turning after it was forced out of the UK just three days into operations last year. The firm, which operates in 25 countries across Europe, Africa and Australia, will compete against startups Bird and [...]
Shazam! EU gives Apple go-ahead for music app takeover September 6, 2018 Apple was given the green light for its planned takeover of popular song-recognition app Shazam by the European Union today. The tech giant got the go-ahead to acquire Shazam, which identifies songs played within range of a smartphone, from an EU antitrust investigation that said the takeover would not harm competition in the bloc. A full-scale [...]
Super Soco review, price, specs and details: Could this be the Tesla of motorcycles? September 6, 2018 The first time I rode a moped, I immediately crashed it into a parked car near my house. Just ramped up onto the pavement like Steve McQueen and smashed into a Fiesta, causing several pounds worth of damage. I was 15 years of age, which is so long ago now that no policeman can arrest [...]
Top scientist warns that artificial intelligence could suffer a ‘backlash’ from the public September 6, 2018 The incoming president of the British Science Association, professor Jim Al-Khalili, warned that the potential for artificial intelligence (AI) in the UK could be stifled by a “backlash” from the public. Previewing his address to next week’s British Science Festival in Hull, he warned that without greater transparency the potential of AI may not achieved. [...]
Challenger banking app Monese lands $60m series B from Kinnevik and Augmentum Fintech September 6, 2018 UK and European digital banking app Monese has scored a $60m (£46.4m) series B fundraising round, led by venture capital firm Kinnevik. London-based fintech investment vehicle Augmentum Fintech also got on board to contribute £5.3m, alongside new investors Paypal and Avios. Existing investors such as Investec's INVC Fund also participated. Powered by an e-money licence, Monese has [...]
Facebook to invest over £780m in its first Asian data centre September 6, 2018 Facebook has said it will splurge more than S$1.4bn (£786.8m) on building its first data centre in Asia in Singapore, with an opening date scheduled in 2022. The 170,000 square metre facility will be based on the island's west coast, close to Google's own data centres, which the search giant is also expanding through an $850m (£657.2m) investment. Facebook's [...]
DEBATE: Should mobile phones be banned in schools to help children concentrate? September 6, 2018 Should mobile phones be banned in schools to help children concentrate? Jenny Afia, privacy lawyer and partner at Schillings and a member of the Children’s Commissioner’s Digital Task Force, says YES. Bravo to France for banning mobile phones in schools. We face a public health crisis in the UK with children glued to their screens, causing [...]
Meet the startups in the Treasury-backed Tech Nation fintech accelerator September 6, 2018 Delivered as part of the Treasury's fintech strategy, Tech Nation has pegged these 20 UK startups as the ones to watch. The startups selected come from across the financial services sector, representing businesses in areas such as payment solutions, financial inclusion, Open Banking innovation, SME lending and artificial intelligence. [infographic id="987"] New figures released today [...]