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In a world where there are 25 minutes of previews before every movie, here’s why studios pay millions to secure a spot in front of summer’s biggest blockbusters. Anyone going to see Marvel Studios’ Thunderbolts* this weekend can expect to watch eight—perhaps even 10—movie trailers before the feature begins. Throw in an ad for popcorn and Nicole Kidman waxing poetic about the power of cinema, and the pre-show lineup can stretch to nearly a half-hour. Even if that can seem like a drag to an audience, those are highly valuable minutes to both the movie studios and the theater chains.…

Despite the chance of rain in the forecast, colorful plumed hats are again a fashion staple at Churchill Downs for the 151st running of the Kentucky Derby in Louisville, Kentucky.The tradition of wearing hats to the Derby began with its first running in 1875. They began taking on a life of their own in the 1960s, growing larger and more ornate so the people wearing them could be spotted on television.The hats are just one of the features among the 150,000 fans jammed under the Twin Spires for a fashion show mixed with an all-day party that is heavy on…

OpenAI says it’ll make changes to the way it updates the AI models that power ChatGPT, following an incident that caused the platform to become overly sycophantic for many users. Last weekend, after OpenAI rolled out a tweaked GPT-4o — the default model powering ChatGPT — users on social media noted that ChatGPT began responding in an overly validating and agreeable way. It quickly became a meme. Users posted screenshots of ChatGPT applauding all sorts of problematic, dangerous decisions and ideas. In a post on X last Sunday, CEO Sam Altman acknowledged the problem and said that OpenAI would work on fixes “ASAP.” On Tuesday, Altman announced the GPT-4o…

Google’s NotebookLM Android and iOS apps are expected to launch on May 20, according to app store listings. The apps are currently available for preorder. Since its launch in 2023, the AI-based note-taking and research assistant has only been accessible via desktop. Google is now gearing up to make the service available on the go. NotebookLM is designed to help students, professionals, and researchers better understand complex information through features like smart summaries and the ability to ask questions about documents and other materials. The research assistant also lets you generate AI podcasts, called Audio Overviews, to make it easier…

What if cheating was just…the future of work? That’s the pitch behind Cluely, the viral AI startup that claims its stealthy browser overlay is “undetectable” and can help users bluff their way through everything from job interviews to exams. The company has raised $5.3 million and sparked a wave of backlash from startups building tools to catch cheaters. Cluely’s response? They’ll just build smart glasses or brain chips.  Today, on TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, hosts Kirsten Korosec, Max Zeff and Anthony Ha are getting into the week’s headlines, including whether Cluely’s viral strategy is genius, gross, or both, and what it…

A total of $873m was raised across all the 20 deals reported on this week by FinTech Global.Last week, CyberTech funding rounds dominated the deals, accounting for 14 of the 32 FinTech deals to close.The leading funding round this week was pulled in by identity verification business Persona, who scored $200m.There were six WealthTech deals this week, three in the PayTech sector and three in the RegTech space. CyberTech pulled in four deals, AI/SaaS firms saw two and trade infrastructure on one and lending also on one. Location-wise, the US led the way with ten deals, followed by the UK on…

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Several thousand Turkish Cypriots took to the streets of the northern half of ethnically divided Cyprus’ capital Nicosia on Friday to protest what they say is Turkey’s attempt to erode their secular roots and to strengthen the hold of political Islam over their society.Rain showers cleared long enough for marchers to walk along a main thoroughfare hoisting trade union banners and holding placards reading “It won’t pass” and “Cyprus will stay secular” before gathering for a concert.The protest is the latest in a series of demonstrations that leftist trade unions mounted to express their opposition to…

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — President Donald Trump’s administration on Friday agreed to halt all efforts to freeze funds intended for a Maine child nutrition program after initially suspending those dollars due to a disagreement between the state and Trump over transgender athletes.In response, the state will drop its lawsuit that had been filed against the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey announced. “It’s unfortunate that my office had to resort to federal court just to get USDA to comply with the law and its own regulations,” Frey said in a statement. “But we are pleased that the…

Navro, a London-based FinTech specialising in simplifying international payments for businesses, has raised $41m in a Series B funding round aimed at accelerating its global growth plans.The investment was led by Jump Capital, with additional backing from Bain Capital Ventures, Motive Partners and Unusual Ventures. The funds will be used to scale operations and enhance Navro’s global payments infrastructure.Navro operates a payments curation platform that allows businesses to access top local payment and banking services worldwide through a single API and contract. Its solution helps reduce working capital needs by up to 70%, supports real-time global payouts, and simplifies cross-border…

Dinari, a FinTech firm focused on enabling global access to US equities through blockchain-based technology, has announced a $12.7m Series A funding round.The round was led by Hack VC and Blockchange Ventures, with further backing from VanEck Ventures, F-Prime, Blizzard (Avalanche Fund), and several other strategic investors. This latest injection brings Dinari’s total capital raised to $22.65m.Dinari provides tokenised versions of US equities and ETFs, known as dShares™, which are accessible through a single API. These dShares are supported by SEC-registered infrastructure, including Registered Transfer Agent status. The company’s technology is already being used across more than 60 countries in…