Science & Technology

$1 Billion a lot of money these days?

Databricks just snatched up another AI company () . This week, data analytics giant announced a $1 billion acquisition of Neon, a startup building an open-source alternative to AWS Aurora Postgres. It’s the latest in a spree of high-profile buys, joining MosaicML () and Tabular () , as Databricks positions itself as the place to…

Published

11 months ago

May 16, 2025

CYBER TECH TV

Databricks just snatched up another AI company () .

This week, data analytics giant announced a $1 billion acquisition of Neon, a startup building an open-source alternative to AWS Aurora Postgres. It’s the latest in a spree of high-profile buys, joining MosaicML () and Tabular () , as Databricks positions itself as the place to build, deploy, and scale AI-native applications.

Today, on TechCrunch’s Equity () podcast, hosts Kirsten Korosec, Max Zeff, and Anthony Ha unpack the Databricks–Neon deal, where Neon’s serverless Postgres tech fits into the larger vision, and whether $1 billion still counts as “a lot of money” these days (spoiler: Kirsten and Anthony are on the fence).

Listen to the full episode to hear about:

•

Chime’s long-awaited IPO plans () and what the neobank’s S-1 did (and didn’t) reveal.

•

AWS entering a ‘strategic partnership’ () that could shake up cloud infrastructure, especially as the Middle East ramps up its AI ambitions

•

The return of the web series () . Yes, really. Short-form scripted content is back, and investors are placing big bets on nostalgic trend

Equity will be back next week, so don’t miss it!

Equity is TechCrunch’s flagship podcast, produced by Theresa Loconsolo, and posts every Wednesday and Friday.

Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts () , Overcast () , Spotify () and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X () and Threads () , at @EquityPod. For the full episode transcript, for those who prefer reading over listening, check out our full archive of episodes here () .

Credits: Equity is produced by Theresa Loconsolo with editing by Kell. We’d also like to thank TechCrunch’s audience development team. Thank you so much for listening, and we’ll talk to you next time.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices ()

Up Next

Building a Switch OLED with Custom Colors

Don't Miss

Android XR at Google I/O: What We Expect

1 Comment

@OfficialDanielSilvas

May 16, 2025 at 11:31 am

The the VC World $1 Billion is now like saying, “here’s chump change”, back then during the 2010’s, a $1 Billion valuation made a start up a unicorn 🦄 and now not so that case

Reply

Popular Science

Americans loved drinking radioactive ‘miracle water’ in 1920s

Radithor promised to cure everything from wrinkles to leukemia, but its unintended results were deadly. Watch the full video:

Published

21 hours ago

April 9, 2026

CYBER TECH TV

Radithor promised to cure everything from wrinkles to leukemia, but its unintended results were deadly.

Watch the full video:

Science & Technology

How to handle layoffs with compassion with Ayal Yogev, Anjuna

This week’s guest is Ayal Yogev, co-founder and CEO of Anjuna Security, who has experienced both sides of the startup journey: scaling quickly during the boom years and then making the incredibly difficult decision to lay off a significant portion of his team when the market shifted. From growing to 75 employees to scaling back…

Published

1 day ago

April 9, 2026

CYBER TECH TV

From growing to 75 employees to scaling back and rebuilding, Yogev learned firsthand that the hardest part of leadership isn’t hiring fast, it’s making tough decisions with care, transparency, and integrity.

In this episode, Isabelle Johannessen and Yogev unpack what it really means to lead through layoffs with compassion and how founders can support their teams even in the most challenging moments. They also explore the lessons learned from scaling too quickly and how to build a more resilient company the second time around.

Apply to Startup Battlefield: We are looking for early-stage companies that have an MVP. So nominate a founder (or yourself): techcrunch.com/apply. Be sure to say you heard about Startup Battlefield from the Build Mode podcast.
TechCrunch Disrupt: If you’re thinking about applying to Startup Battlefield, then October 13 to 15 in San Francisco, we’re back for TechCrunch Disrupt, where the Startup Battlefield 200 takes the stage. So if you want to cheer them on, or just network with 1000s of founders, VCs, and tech enthusiasts, then grab your tickets.

Use code buildmode15 for 15% off any ticket type.

New episodes of Build Mode drop every Thursday. Hosted by Isabelle Johannessen. Produced and edited by Maggie Nye. Audience development led by Morgan Little. Special thanks to the Foundry and Cheddar video teams.

Chapters:
00:00 We grew too fast
02:30 What Anjuna actually does
04:45 Scaling the team quickly
06:10 The market crash hits
09:40 Handling layoffs with empathy
12:10 Supporting employees the right way
15:30 Why culture matters in crisis
20:50 The hiring mistake founders make
27:40 When to scale your sales team
34:40 Rebuilding after layoffs

CNET

First Look at Dyson’s $99 HushJet Mini Cool Portable Fan 🪭

Dyson has now entered the handheld fan space. The company just unveiled the HushJet Mini Cool, a 7.5-oz fan with five speeds and a boost mode for airflow up to 55 mph. It costs $99 and comes in three colors: blush pink, available now; red, available in May; and blue, available in June. Dyson’s Senior…

Published

2 days ago

April 8, 2026

CYBER TECH TV