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Figma managed something rare in today’s market: It survived a failed Adobe acquisition, stayed independent, and went public on its own terms. But its post-IPO performance tells a more complex story about startup exits in 2025. “This is a little bit of a meme stock,” said Jai Das, president and partner at Sapphire Ventures, on this week’s episode of Equity. Das joined Rebecca Bellan to break down what Figma’s IPO really signals about the current climate for startup exits. With more than a dozen IPOs under his belt, including MuleSoft, Square, and Box, Das knows what a strong debut looks…

Facebook Tweet Email Link Tokyo  —  Japan’s precipitous population decline shows no sign of slowing, with the nation shrinking by more than 900,000 people last year – the biggest annual drop on record, according to government data. The data, released by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications on Wednesday, showed that the number of Japanese nationals fell by 908,574 in 2024, bringing the total population to 120 million. Since peaking at 126.6 million in 2009, the population has declined for 16 consecutive years, diminished by various factors like a struggling economy and deep-seated gender norms. With the population of…

BERLIN (AP) — Germans are in kebab angst. They worry that their most beloved street food option, the spicy, juicy kebab in a pita that can be found on every street corner across Germany, may get more expensive — or even worse, that the country may be sliding into a national kebab shortage.Even if these fears may sound exaggerated at first, they aren’t unfounded. Workers at one of Germany’s biggest kebab factories are locked in a bitter and ongoing fight with their employer over wages and working conditions.For weeks, workers at the Birtat Meat World SE factory in southwestern Germany…

OpenAI is poised to undercut rivals like Anthropic and Google in the race to see its AI tools integrated into federal agency workflows.  The AI giant has reached an agreement with the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), the government’s central purchasing arm, to offer ChatGPT Enterprise to participating federal agencies for just $1 per agency for the next year.  The partnership comes a day after the GSA added OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic to a list of approved AI vendors that can offer their services to civilian federal agencies. The companies will see their tools offered via the Multiple Award Schedule…

HAVANA (AP) — Every afternoon, 81-year-old Nélida Pérez begins her familiar walk down the cobblestone streets of Old Havana, a procession of hungry cats trailing close behind her.For years, Pérez has taken it upon herself to feed some of the street cats that roam this part of town, which is also one of the most popular tourist spots in the Cuban capital. She once relied on her own food or restaurant donations, but as the island’s economic situation worsened and tourism declined, it has become increasingly difficult to provide for them.“I have never in my life asked anyone for a…

As the new school year approaches, Google announced on Wednesday that it’s launching a new tool called Guided Learning within Gemini. The tool sort of functions like an AI tutor, as it’s designed to help users build a deep understanding instead of just getting answers. The launch follows just over a week after OpenAI rolled out Study Mode for ChatGPT, which is also designed to go beyond simply obtaining answers to questions by actually helping users develop critical thinking skills. Both companies’ launches come amid concerns that AI chatbots undermine the learning process because they spit out direct answers. The…

Facebook Tweet Email Link The Mexican state of Oaxaca is threatening legal action against Adidas, accusing the footwear company of cultural appropriation over a newly unveiled shoe that resembles a traditional handmade sandal. The “Oaxaca Slip-On,” billed as a collaboration between American designer Willy Chavarria and Adidas Originals, features a woven leather surface, open heel, and thick rubber sole – and, in the eyes of the Oaxaca government, bears more than a passing resemblance to the “huarache” handmade sandal from the Oaxacan community of Villa Hidalgo Yalalag. Oaxacan Governor Salomón Jara Cruz on Wednesday accused the company of copying the…

Museums throughout New York City were just reopening in the wake of the COVID pandemic when Jane August launched what seemed like a straightforward plan: She would travel to every single museum in the city, producing a short video log of each one. She figured it would take three years at most. But with 136 museums documented since 2021, she still has about 64 to go by her estimation. And with new museums opening and some old ones changing so dramatically that they deserve a revisit, the 26-year-old now says she’s realistically aiming to complete the project before she’s 30.“At…

I owned a lot of Alexa-powered devices in my former home: There were Amazon Echos in most rooms, including an older Echo Plus in the living room, a smattering of Dots, a Spot in a bedroom, and an Echo Show in the kitchen. A Fire TV ran in the bedroom. And, in a drawer, a rarely used Fire HD tablet sat collecting dust. With the total loss of the home due to a March 2024 house fire, there also came a new opportunity: We could now make a fresh start to create a more modernized smart home after rebuilding our…

Facebook Tweet Email Link Kherson, Ukraine  —  Russia has launched a new bid to exert control over the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson by threatening key access roads with its drones and trying to split it in two by striking a vital bridge. On Sunday, a wave of airstrikes damaged a key bridge between Kherson’s island, Korabel, and the main city, sparking a widespread effort to evacuate the estimated 1,800 Ukrainian civilians who still live there. Russian forces appear not to have targeted the evacuation effort over the past three days, according to locals and rescuers, a rare moment of…