Nickie Louise

Author

Nickie is a writer, editor, and co-founder of TechStartups.com based in the Washington Metropolitan Area. She covers early-stage startups, AI, emerging technologies, cryptocurrencies, gaming, and gadgets. When she’s not writing about innovation, Nickie enjoys crafts, spending time with her family and children, hiking, and exploring God’s majestic creation.

Artificial Intelligence / Self-Driving / Semiconductor / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Tesla signs $16.5B deal with Samsung to build AI chips for self-driving cars

Nickie Louise Posted On July 28, 2025

Tesla is betting big on Samsung. Elon Musk confirmed Monday that Tesla has inked a $16.5 billion chip deal with the South Korean tech giant to produce the company’s next-gen AI chips—starting with the AI6—at Samsung’s factory in Taylor, Texas. […]

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Featured / FinTech / Startup Funding / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Fintech startup Ramp in talks to raise new funding at $21 billion valuation, up 30% from June financing

Nickie Louise Posted On July 28, 2025

Just weeks after raising funds at a $16 billion valuation, Ramp is back at the table—this time eyeing a $21 billion mark. The six-year-old expense management startup is reportedly in talks to raise another $350 million, according to The Information, […]

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Artificial Intelligence / Featured / Launch / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

China’s AI startup Zhipu releases open-source GLM-4.5 to challenge OpenAI, rebrands as Z.ai

Nickie Louise Posted On July 28, 2025

Not long after OpenAI’s public admission of its growing influence, Chinese AI startup Zhipu AI is stepping up to the global stage. On Monday, the Beijing-based startup launched its latest open-source large language model, GLM-4.5—aimed at challenging the dominance of […]

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Artificial Intelligence / Featured / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Meta names ChatGPT co‑creator Shengjia Zhao as chief scientist of AI Superintelligence Lab

Nickie Louise Posted On July 28, 2025

Just a month after poaching three OpenAI researchers, Meta is doubling down on its artificial intelligence ambitions with another heavyweight hire. On Friday, CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that Shengjia Zhao, the co-creator of ChatGPT and one of the key minds […]

953 Views

Research / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Nikola Tesla’s final words still echo today, yet he remains the ‘Forgotten Inventor’

Nickie Louise Posted On July 26, 2025

Four years ago, we wrote a simple piece about Nikola Tesla’s final words. It wasn’t written to go viral. Just one sentence from a man who gave everything—and died with almost nothing. “All these years that I had spent in […]

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Artificial Intelligence / Emerging Technology / FinTech / Startup Funding / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Top Startup and Tech Funding News Roundup for the Week Ending July 25, 2025

Nickie Louise Posted On July 25, 2025

It’s Friday, July 25, 2025, and we’re back with your top startup and tech funding news roundup for the week ending today. From AI blood analyzers and bitcoin-powered remittances to submarine data intelligence and edge AI chips, this week’s deals […]

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Artificial Intelligence / Featured / FinTech / Startup Funding / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Lightyear raises $23M to challenge Robinhood in Europe with AI-powered investing

Nickie Louise Posted On July 25, 2025

Building a pan-European investment platform wasn’t supposed to work. Too many languages, too many regulations, too many tax codes. But just a few years after launch, Lightyear has proven the skeptics wrong—and now it’s raised another $23 million to keep […]

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Artificial Intelligence / Startup Funding / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Top 10 Startup and Tech Funding News – July 24, 2025

Nickie Louise Posted On July 24, 2025

It’s Thursday, July 24, 2025, and the capital continues to pour in at breakneck speed. Today’s funding news underscores a clear trend: investors are chasing AI-native platforms, defense manufacturing scale-ups, and intelligent tools that reduce friction across enterprise workflows. From […]

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Artificial Intelligence / Startup Funding / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News / Venture Capital

Elad Gil’s $1.5 Billion Fund: A Solo VC Revolutionizing the Future of Tech

Nickie Louise Posted On July 24, 2025

Elad Gil has long been a force to reckon with in Silicon Valley, known for his ability to spot and back transformative startups. Now, he’s redefining what it means to be a Solo GP with his latest funding haul. According […]

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Artificial Intelligence / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

The U.S. unveils AI blueprint to beat China and deregulate AI for global dominance

Nickie Louise Posted On July 24, 2025

After years of caution and regulatory hand-wringing, the White House just made its position on AI crystal clear: it’s time to speed up—and lead. The Trump administration has released a sweeping AI Action Plan that aims to position the U.S. […]

933 Views

Featured / Startup Funding / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Amazon backs startup founded by MIT researcher in $12M round to tackle $100B return fraud crisis

Nickie Louise Posted On July 24, 2025

Return fraud has quietly ballooned into a $100 billion problem for retailers. It’s the kind of scam that feels almost too simple: customers request refunds, keep the product, and send back an empty box—or worse, a box filled with junk. […]

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Apps / Artificial Intelligence / Featured / Social Media / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Vine 2.0? “We’re bringing back Vine”: Elon Musk teases AI-powered reboot of the classic app

Nickie Louise Posted On July 24, 2025

Short-form video might be getting a new twist—one only Elon Musk could deliver. Early this morning, Musk posted on X: “We’re bringing back Vine, but in AI form.” That single line was enough to light up the platform, setting off […]

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AdTech / Artificial Intelligence / Bitcoin / Cryptocurrency / Emerging Technology / Startup Funding / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Top Startup and Tech Funding News – July 23, 2025

Nickie Louise Posted On July 23, 2025

It’s Wednesday, July 23, 2025, and we’re back with today’s top startup and tech funding news. We’re a bit late hitting send today, but we’ve more than made up for it with an expanded edition—packed with some of the biggest […]

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Blockchain / DeFi / FinTech / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News / Token

Goldman Sachs and BNY just launched Tokenized Money Market Funds

Nickie Louise Posted On July 23, 2025

As a first step in bringing Wall Street’s safest asset onto the blockchain, Goldman Sachs and BNY Mellon are teaming up to launch digital tokens that mirror shares of money market funds. The move deepens Wall Street’s push to blend […]

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AdTech / Artificial Intelligence / Featured / Startup Funding / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Vaudit raises $7.3M to bring AI-powered audit intelligence to digital ad spend

Nickie Louise Posted On July 23, 2025

Ad budgets are leaking money—and most companies don’t even know it. Vaudit, an ad fraud watchdog startup taking aim at billing discrepancies across digital ad platforms, has raised $7.3 million in seed funding to fix that blind spot. The round […]

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Cybersecurity / Hacking / Security / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

U.S. Nuclear Weapons Agency Breached in Microsoft SharePoint Hack

Nickie Louise Posted On July 23, 2025

A cyberattack that started as a breach of Microsoft SharePoint servers has now spilled over into more than 10,000 on-premise installations, including systems run by the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the agency tasked with managing the country’s nuclear […]

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Cybersecurity / Featured / Security / Startup Funding / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Cybersecurity compliance startup Vanta valued at $4B after $150M funding round

Nickie Louise Posted On July 23, 2025

Vanta just doubled its valuation. The San Francisco-based startup, known for helping companies stay on top of cybersecurity and privacy compliance, has raised $150 million in fresh funding. The round pushes Vanta’s valuation to around $4 billion—up from $2.45 billion […]

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Artificial Intelligence / Featured / Startup Funding / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Top 10 Startup and Tech Funding News – July 22, 2025

Nickie Louise Posted On July 22, 2025

It’s Tuesday, July 22, 2025, and we’re back with your daily snapshot of startup and global tech funding news, tracking where capital is flowing and which founders are building what’s next in AI, robotics, enterprise software, and beyond. Today’s funding […]

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Artificial Intelligence / Featured / Startup Funding / Startup Spotlight / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Musk’s AI startup xAI to raise additional $12 billion in funding, WSJ reports

Nickie Louise Posted On July 22, 2025

Elon Musk isn’t done fundraising just yet. Less than a month after his AI venture xAI raised $10 billion to supercharge Grok and build what he calls a “gigafactory of compute,” the company is reportedly eyeing another $12 billion in […]

857 Views

Artificial Intelligence / Electric Car / Electric Vehicles / Futuristic / Robotics / Startups / Tech Startup News / Tech Startups / Technology News

Tesla Diner debuts in Hollywood with Musk’s futuristic drive-In and Optimus bot serving popcorn

Nickie Louise Posted On July 22, 2025

Elon Musk’s latest stunt is part sci-fi, part drive-in nostalgia—and all Tesla. On Monday, the electric automaker opened its first-ever diner at 7001 Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood, where burgers meet movie screens, charging stations, and even a humanoid robot […]

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