Some useful pointers before pitching.

At WIP: Index x @AnthropicAI last month, Index partner @GeorgiaS_IV shared: "Getting in a room together and learning together, at such a moment in time — it couldn't be more important." Eleven builders presented in one afternoon and 80 filled the Index Ventures London office for an evening @claudeai build session. Journalist @psawers was in the room to ‘vibe decode’. Watch + read about WIP: Index x Anthropic: indexventures.com/perspectiv…

Cal.com goes private: A security reckoning for open source thenewstack.io/cal-com-codeb…

A new release from @MistralAI brings together reasoning, coding and image capabilities into a single hybrid, open source model. For developers, that could mean fewer moving parts to manage — but it also raises questions about whether one model can match tools built for a single job. 🔗Read the story in full here: tessl.co/800

SurrealDB 3.0 launches with $23M in funding to tackle "architectural sprawl" for AI agents, offering a multi-model database for persistent memory and logic. thenewstack.io/surrealdb-3-a…

Terminal Velocity: How Terminal-Bench became the proving ground for AI's command-line competence by @psawers laude.org/updates/terminal-b…

From Linux to AI, Jim Zemlin explains how the Linux Foundation helps build the future of tech openly, collaboratively, and sustainably. A great read via @TechCrunch from @psawers→ hubs.la/Q03hsPwl0

“Ban remote learning. Ban any learning. Ban anything that makes me think too hard. Ban any thought at all.” In @newyorkerhumor, Sean Lavery adds some items to the ban lists. nyer.cm/KGnNWDp

He's in for a disappointment.

The incredible @TechCrunch team

There are price increases and then there are price increases. I'm happy to support products that I like, but tripling a subscription is not the best way to keep subscribers.

Amazon Admits Giving Police Ring Footage Without Consent theintercept.com/2022/07/13/…

Boris Johnson: Yes, I met with Russian intelligence without officials present...but I didn't inhale. (He really needs to study Clinton better. Perhaps a trip to Arkansas would help?)

Amazon agrees to make unsubscribing from Prime easier after EU complains. Cancelling your subscription was a maze-like ordeal, pushing you through a purposefully complex process. Now will be 2-clicks away.

Incredible that someone NOT tweeting can be news.

So today is my first day at TechCrunch, where I'll be covering UK and European startups, as well as other areas of the global technology sphere. You can pitch me on: paul.sawers[at]techcrunch.com.

Animated map shows the rise and fall of Blockbuster Video stores in the US from 1986 to 2019. Fascinating to view. Source: buff.ly/31np1fI

Remember this picture every single time you hear someone in your city say "we're not Amsterdam." This was #Amsterdam in the 1970's via @fietsprofessor. The cities we admire made better choices regarding cars, and are still making them today. Better choices instead of excuses.

On this day in 1995: Bill Gates sent an urgent memo to his executives It was about the Internet. He called it a “tidal wave”… … “the most important development since the PC.” At the time, just 0.4% of the world’s population was using it. And on TV, it was joke material: