Law enforcement shuts down VPN service used by two dozen ransomware gangs

Plus more of TechCrunch's top stories this afternoon

View this email online in your browser  May 21, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 Law enforcement shuts down VPN service used by two dozen ransomware gangs: First VPN promised hackers complete anonymity for their cyberattacks. But Europol said it was able to notify the service’s users that they have now been identified. Read More Spotify will reserve tickets for top fans of an artists in a bid to drum up engagement: Spotify said that it will monitor activity like streams and shares to determine who is a top fan Read More Waymo pauses Atlanta service as its robotaxis keep driving into floods: Waymo's robotaxi service is now suspended in both Atlanta and San Antonio, as the company works to stop its vehicles from driving into flooded roads. Read More A message from Deck Migrate customer data from any platform No source API. No manual export. No complex workaround. Deck logs in, extracts the data, and returns it schema-matched and ready to ingest. If a human can use it, Deck can too. Try It Free Afternoon Must-Reads Beauty booking startup Fresha hits $1B valuation with KKR backing: Beauty and wellness booking marketplace Fresha says it has raised $80 million investment from KKR’s Next Generation Technology Growth fund, KKR's growth equity arm. Read More Hark raises $700M Series A for its secretive 'universal' AI interface: Hark expects to release its first multimodal models this summer, which it says will power a personal AI platform that works with existing products and services. The company expects to follow that with hardware devices built specifically for those systems. Read More Spotify launches an ElevenLabs-powered audiobook creation tool: Spotify is releasing new audiobook plans later this year Read More NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani takes to Twitch to chat with New Yorkers: New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is launching a Twitch series today at 4 p.m. ET. Read More Google is pitching an AI agent ecosystem to consumers who may not buy it: One of the most promising introductions at Google’s I/O developer conference on Tuesday was a new way for consumers to use the web: AI agents. Unfortunately, it was also the most confusing. Read More A message from Microsoft and NVIDIA Design, train & ship scalable AI: NVIDIA at Microsoft Build Get hands-on with real code, real systems, and real results. Join NVIDIA June 2–3 at Microsoft Build, happening in San Francisco and online. Developer-first activities, sessions, and solution demos available to both on-site and virtual attendees. Virtual passes are still available—sign up now. Learn more Last but Not Least Who will benefit most from SpaceX IPO? Mostly Elon — and a few from his inner circle: Elon Musk has the largest stake in SpaceX by billions of shares. The other biggest shareholders also have longstanding and deep ties to Musk. 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

Jensen Huang says he's found a 'brand new' $200B market for Nvidia

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

View this email online in your browser  May 21, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 Jensen Huang says he's found a 'brand new' $200B market for Nvidia: The next big thing for Nvidia will be CPUs for AI agents, $200 billion worth, CEO Jensen Huang predicts. Read More Beauty booking startup Fresha hits $1 billion valuation with KKR backing: Beauty and wellness booking marketplace Fresha says it has raised $80 million investment from KKR’s Next Generation Technology Growth fund, KKR's growth equity arm. Read More Hark raises $700M Series A for its secretive "universal" AI interface: Brett Adcock's new AI startup is now valued at $6 billion by its investors. Read More Disrupt 2026: Where deals and ideas ignite Oct 13–15 at San Francisco's Moscone West, 10,000 founders, investors, and operators gather for high-signal insights, curated connections, and real momentum. Register Now! A message from Schneider Electric The future of energy starts now From microgrids to smart homes, advanced energy technology is redefining reliability, sustainability, and performance at scale. At Schneider Electric, we believe the future of energy is unified, digital, and decarbonized – and we’re building it today, for everyone. Read insights Morning Must-Reads Scammers are abusing an internal Microsoft account to send spam links: The loophole allows spammers and scammers to send emails from a legitimate Microsoft email address typically used for sending genuine account alerts. Read More Google is pitching an AI agent ecosystem to consumers who may not buy it: The AI agents are coming. A lot of them. Read More Wayve's self-driving tech is headed to US cars made by Stellantis: Wayve's self-driving tech will show up in Stellantis vehicles in 2028. Read More Maka Kids is redefining kids’ screen time with a streaming app optimized for well-being, not engagement: Maka Kids is building a streaming app for children ages zero to six featuring content designed for healthy development. The startup has now raised $3 million in seed funding to scale its platform. Read More Waymo pauses Atlanta service as its robotaxis keep driving into floods: Waymo's robotaxi service is now suspended in both Atlanta and San Antonio, as the company works to stop its vehicles from driving into flooded roads. Read More A message from Microsoft and NVIDIA Design, train & ship scalable AI: NVIDIA at Microsoft Build Get hands-on with real code, real systems, and real results. Join NVIDIA June 2–3 at Microsoft Build, happening in San Francisco and online. Developer-first activities, sessions, and solution demos available to both on-site and virtual attendees. Virtual passes are still available—sign up now. Learn more Last but Not Least The Path, founded by Tony Robbins and Calm alums, hopes to offer safer AI therapy: The Path says its AI model has scored 95 on the mental health safety AI benchmark, Vera-MH. This compares to a top score of 65 for the consumer bots.  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