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September 10, 2024

There are changes afoot at TechCrunch, as a handful of key reporters parted ways with (arguably) the publication-of-record for the tech and venture community. We recently hosted Global Managing Editor Matt Rosoff to learn more about the stories he and his team are chasing. Here are three takeaways from our conversation:

1. Funding news helps, but it’s not everything. It can open the door, but funding does not guarantee coverage. TC reporters are curious about who’s behind the company and why it matters today — as well as the dollar amount.
2. Interesting founders are key. They want access to founders who can talk about more than their own company, and when they do talk about their own company, reporters want anecdotes and specificity. Founders can also provide fodder for personality-driven trend stories.
3. The publication is doubling down on its other other channels. TC Found joins its flagship Equity podcast to talk with early-stage startup founders. Its YouTube video series, TechCrunch Minute, features minute-long news headlines that dive into topics like robotic wheelchairs and AI pins.

What hasn’t changed? TechCrunch’s focus remains on early-stage, pre-public companies disrupting tech. No surprise here: its reporters are writing about AI, with a preference for companies showing tangible results, along with climate, infrastructure, mobility, and robotics. 

Read what Rosoff reads. Beyond CNBC, Forbes, Fortune, The Register, Wired, and the WSJ, Rosoff regularly scans the Garbage Day newsletter, 404 Media, and Rest of World. 

We truly appreciate Matt taking the time to meet with us. On that note, here’s the list of tech journalists we follow on Substack.

• X was banned in Brazil. The reason? Disinformation.
• Meta shared an insightful playbook on how to create great reels.
• Snapchat is allowing ad placement in inboxes. Marketers rejoice, but how will users take it?
• LinkedIn is launching a new podcast with iHeartMedia focusing on GenZ.
  
  

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We caught up with our colleagues at the Glen Echo Group, our Orchestra partner focused on transforming tech and innovation issues into positive policy outcomes, on what they’re hearing about AI regulations: 

• The House Science Committee holds a markup for 10 AI bills this week, including the CREATE AI Act, establishing a National AI Research Resource to help researchers develop safe and trustworthy artificial intelligence.  
• California’s S.B. 1047 is the recently passed controversial bill that would hold tech companies liable for harm done by their artificial intelligence models. Tech groups are lobbying hard against it, and it's unclear whether Governor Gavin Newsom will veto it before a September 30 deadline.
• Ten countries, including the US and UK, signed a global treaty on AI that seeks to ensure that AI systems adhere to tenets of human rights, democracy, and the rule of law.