SpaceX's Starship rocket reaches orbit for the first time

Plus more of TechCrunch's top stories to start your morning

View this email online in your browser  September 28, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 SpaceX's Starship rocket reaches orbit for the first time: Though not without some drama along the way. Read More FBI reportedly declares 'cyber security incident' after hackers steal agents' personal data: The bureau has not yet publicly confirmed a breach, but has told its agents that their personal information and Social Security numbers were exposed. Read More Viral AI agent Instinct raises $1B Series C at a $10B valuation: Instinct has raised a $1 billion Series C, saying 'we're just getting started.' The company is now valued at $10 billion. Read More A message from Spin Analytics RISKROBOT. The infrastructure behind capital decisions SPIN Analytics is building AI-driven infrastructure for regulatory credit risk modelling. RISKROBOT™ accelerates model development with governed risk intelligence to support better capital allocation. Discover the investment opportunity behind a critical banking capability. Spin Analytics is part of Santander X 100, global community of Santander X. Explore the opportunity Morning Must-Reads Anthropic's Dario Amodei gets the SNL treatment: "AI is the devil and I its maker." Read More Insuretech Outmarket raises $34.5M just months after prior round: The startup uses AI to automate tedious paperwork for insurance agencies and brokers. Read More ElevenLabs' new v4 speech model supports more expression control and 90 languages: ElevenLabs v4 can clone voices with a 10 second clip Read More Anthropic’s CEO is about to have dinner with President Trump: This will be the first one-on-one meeting between Dario Amodei and Donald Trump Read More Truecaller takes its scam intelligence to the open web as it looks beyond caller ID: Truecaller finds a new way to reach users as pressure grows on its traditional caller ID business in India, its biggest market. Read More A message from RoMADE Meet the Romanian builders heading to Disrupt 2026 Romania gave the world UiPath and Bitdefender, and its next wave of founders is already shipping. Before Disrupt opens on October 13, get to know the country behind them: a deep engineering bench, a fast-growing startup scene and a habit of building for global markets from day one. RoMADE is bringing 12 Romanian tech companies to San Francisco. Discover Romanian tech Last but Not Least Modulate raises $25M for its voice models and analysis suite: Modulate deploys its models to detect deepfake, fraud and scam Read More Check out some of our other newsletters: StrictlyVC TechCrunch Events TechCrunch Mobility Want to adjust your daily newsletter schedule? You can do it right here Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Unsubscribe Member Center Privacy Policy Copyright © 2026 TechCrunch Media LLC 501 2nd Street, Suite 650, San Francisco, CA 94107

The hottest new hangout for middle schoolers is NPR's comment section?

Plus more of TechCrunch's top stories this weekend

View this email online in your browser  September 27, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 The hottest new hangout for middle schoolers is NPR's comment section?: When NPR staffers flagged strange comments under their podcasts on Spotify as bots, it took a Gen Z colleague to (immediately) figure out the mystery. Read More I created an interactive digital avatar of myself — and you can talk to it: After obtaining an interactive avatar and training it to discuss venture fraud, I have mixed feelings about making AI clones of ourselves. Read More Google tests buying from Walmart-owned Flipkart through Gemini and AI Mode in India: The limited test covers select products and users, with a broader rollout planned for later in October. Read More A message from TechCrunch Events Get up to $100 off your Disrupt pass Register now and get up to $100 off your Disrupt pass. Join 10,000+ startup leaders on October 13-15 in San Francisco for game-changing connections and deal flow via matchmaking and ad hoc meetings, plus insights from 250+ tech leaders in 200+ sessions across six industry stages, roundtables, and breakouts. Prices increase when event doors open. Register now Sunday Must-Reads Astra and Opus just passed Turing's other test: Frontier AI models are finishing Alan Turing's World War II codebreaking work. Read More Automattic has a new board after failed attempt to put CEO on leave: After days of upheaval at Automattic, following a failed attempt to remove CEO Matt Mullenweg, the company has a new board. Read More Meta and YouTube say they will run ads for ‘Musk’ documentary after all: Two companies now say they will accept advertising for director Alex Gibney’s upcoming documentary about Elon Musk, following earlier reporting that a number of social media platforms had rejected the ads. Read More Insurers claim AI is already increasing healthcare costs: Blue Cross Blue Shield says hospital use of AI tools led to an additional $942M in healthcare spending over a two-year period. Read More Crusoe abandons $1.25B plan to use Boom turbines at AI data centers: Boom Supersonic CEO Blake Scholl said the company's new stationary power plants were no longer in Crusoe's near-term plans. Read More A message from TechCrunch Events Get up to $100 off your Founder Summit pass Head to Boston on Nov. 4 for a full day of practical strategies and connections with 1,000+ founders and investors. Get actionable insights on fundraising, hiring, sales, marketing, leadership and scaling, then put them to work for your startup. Save up to $100 on your pass before prices increase. Register now Last but Not Least The Aeropod automates soil aeration without robotics — see it at TechCrunch Disrupt: Muju Earth Technologies has developed a deceptively simply pod that can save farmers money while improving crop yields. Read More Check out some of our other newsletters: StrictlyVC TechCrunch Events TechCrunch Mobility Want to adjust your daily newsletter schedule? You can do it right here Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Unsubscribe Member Center Privacy Policy Copyright © 2026 TechCrunch Media LLC 501 2nd Street, Suite 650, San Francisco, CA 94107