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Munchery, the on-demand food delivery startup, has shut down its operations in Los Angeles, New York and Seattle, the company announced on its blog today. That means the teams from those cities are also being let go. In total, 257 people (about 30 percent of workforce) were let go, according to a Munchery spokesperson.
“We recognize the impact this will have on the members of our team in those regions,” Munchery CEO James Beriker wrote on the company blog. “Our teams in each city have built their businesses from scratch and worked tirelessly to serve our customers and their communities. I am grateful for their unwavering commitment to Munchery’s mission and success. I truly wish that the outcome would have been different.”
With LA, New York and Seattle off the table, Munchery says it’s going to focus more on its business in San Francisco, its first and largest market. This shift in operations will also enable Munchery to “achieve profitability on the near term, and build a long-term, sustainable business.”
The last couple of years for Munchery has not gone very well, between scathing reports of the company wasting an average of 16 percent of the food it makes, laying off 30 employees and burning through most of the money it raised.
During that time, Munchery tried a number of different strategies. Munchery, which began as a ready-to-heat meal delivery service, in 2015 started delivering meal recipes and ingredients for people who want to cook. Then, Munchery launched an $8.95 a month subscription plan for people who order several times a month. In late 2016, Munchery opened up a shop inside a San Francisco BART station to try to bring in new business.
But it’s not just Munchery that has struggled. The on-demand food delivery business is tough in general. Over the last couple of years, a number of companies have shuttered due to the now well-known fact that the on-demand business is tough when it comes to margins. The most recent casualty was Sprig, which shut down last May, after raising $56.7 million in funding. Other casualties include Maple, Spoonrocket and India’s Ola.
Munchery has raised more than $120 million in capital from Menlo Ventures, Sherpa Capital and others. In March, the company was reportedly seeking $15 million in funding to help keep its head above water.
Source: Tech Crunch Startups | Munchery shuts down operations in LA, New York and Seattle
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Google held its developer’s conference earlier this week, wowing and shocking the world with a demo of Google Duplex. The new AI voice assistant can make phone calls on your behalf, and it’s shockingly believable.
While some raised the question of ethics, YouTuber Adam Fierman dreamed up another scenario. In the parody published on Friday, the assistant makes a phone call to a man’s girlfriend. Then it dumps her.
“John would like you to remove his belongings from his apartment,” the bot says.
“What are you talking about?” the woman asks.
“I’m very sorry, but John has decided to end your relationship,” the bot responds. Read more…
More about Tech, Funny, Google Duplex, Culture, and Web Culture
Source: Mashable | Parody of Google Duplex phone call shows the true, terrifying future of AI
A year later, the exploit that fueled the WannaCry ransomware remains a threat
May 11, 2018It’s been a year since the WannaCry ransomware swept the globe, encrypting computers and wreaking havoc in the process. So you might think we’d have the vulnerability it exploited neatly wrapped up by now.
You’d be wrong.
Despite the potential billions of dollars in damage caused by the likely North Korean ransomware, hundreds of thousands of computers around the globe are still vulnerable to similar attacks — and that’s probably not going to change any time soon.
SEE ALSO: Ransomware has been around for almost 30 years, so why does it feel like it’s getting worse?
WannaCry hit the world hard on May 12, 2017. It wasn’t long before security researchers determined that the reason it was able to spread so quickly from computer to computer — like those at UK hospitals — was because of an exploit once hoarded by the NSA: EternalBlue. Read more…
More about Hackers, Hacking, Ransomware, Wannacry, and Eternalblue
Source: Mashable | A year later, the exploit that fueled the WannaCry ransomware remains a threat
We’ve officially taken our love for the royal family a little too far.
An online printing service called Bags of Love sells personalized bathing suits. Buyers can upload pretty much any photo and put it on a suit. So in order to show off their product, the website decided print closeup face shots of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle on a suit, which can be yours for about $38.
I guess if you’re trying to make the swimsuits look as good as they possibly can, the royal couple is a good choice.
With the image zoomed in, Prince Harry looks like Mr. Potato Head. Read more…
More about Royal, Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, Bathing Suits, and Culture
Source: Mashable | Well, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle bathing suits are a thing now
Just look at those smooth edges and friendly exterior — UPS’s newest delivery truck is quite the crowd-pleaser.
The internet let out a collective “awww” when the delivery service announced its new electric truck partnership with British EV company Arrival this week.
UPS will have 35 of the zero-emission EVs with 150-mile range and a driver assistance system to help with driver fatigue. A trial program with the fleet will hit the road by the end of the year in Paris and London. Sorry America, no cute trucks for you yet. Read more…
More about Europe, Arrival, Trucks, Electric Vehicles, and Ups
Source: Mashable | UPS's new electric truck is emission-free — and really, really adorable