e Readers Reviews: Exxon lawsuit aims to stifle shareholders

Monday, January 22, 2024

Hello and welcome to TechCrunch PM, your afternoon dose of startups, venture capital and Big Tech. We'll discuss what happens when shareholders actually pay attention, developers don't develop, a big climate tech fund and X comes down with a bug. Let's go!

— Christine

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TechCrunch PM Top 3

Exxon throws a fit over shareholders exercising their rights: Over on TechCrunch+, Tim writes about two Exxon activist investors pushing for Exxon to reduce its vast carbon emissions. Simple enough, right? Well, over the weekend, the oil giant filed a lawsuit in federal court asking for permission to ignore them at its next annual meeting. So much for public companies being beholden to shareholders.

Apple Vision Pro is coming, only without a lot of apps: Although consumer excitement for Apple's Vision Pro mixed reality headset may be high, there's only a tepid response from app developers. New App Store data shows only around 150 apps have been designed specifically so far.

X bug labels some posts as 'sensitive media': X's relationship with advertisers has been . . . hot and cold at best — examples here and here. However, when you are trying to attract and retain advertisers, it helps when the system doesn't mark them as "sensitive media."

Image Credits: Brian Heater

More top reads

Disney wants you to get moving: Myriad laughs have been had watching people walk into walls or destroy televisions while operating VR headsets. To save your drywall, Disney has a solution that will keep you on your feet and moving, but stay in place.

Day One wants you to share: Journal app Day One got a bit more social with a new "Shared Journals" feature, which is a private space where you can share life updates with up to 30 other people. Members of Shared Journals can leave comments and reactions on entries.

Crypto snow seems to be melting away: Sure, there's been a string of good news lately on the cryptocurrency front, including the recent launch of spot bitcoin ETFs and the legal system being more crypto-positive. Over on TechCrunch+, we wonder if those recent wins are enough to resurrect venture interest.

My, what a big climate tech fund you have: ArcTern, now flush with $355 million in capital commitments for a new climate tech fund, is looking for startups that can show quick returns. It's not interested in tech that can't scale.

It's a good time to invest in early-stage edtech: Speaking of areas to invest in, AI has excited the world of edtech startups, and some have been heads down in the development phase. However, AI is not going to be enough — startups will need to get creative on the best ways to use it. That's why a handful of investors remain bullish on this sector. Head over to TechCrunch+.

How to activate auto scroll on TikTok: TikTok has been experimenting with an auto-scrolling mechanic for months. Here's how it works.

Here comes the sun: Japan's first lunar lander has officially powered down on the moon after its solar cells were unable to generate electricity. There's a chance things could change with the direction of the sun's rays.

A comprehensive list of 2023 & 2024 tech layoffs: We continue to show you how and where layoffs are affecting the tech industry.

In case you missed it:

Voice cloning startup ElevenLabs lands $80M, achieves unicorn status

LoanDepot says 16.6M customers had 'sensitive personal' information stolen in cyberattack

Terraform Labs files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

Hackers breached Microsoft to find out what Microsoft knows about them

Image Credits: TikTok

On the pods

Monday's Equity gives a rundown of news from the weekend and the week ahead: Crypto is not enjoying a post-ETF boom, Canva is big, and the Q4 2023 earnings cycle will kick off this week. Listen here.