logo
Attack Drone Maker Stark Set to Boost Valuation on Sequoia Raise

Attack Drone Maker Stark Set to Boost Valuation on Sequoia Raise

Bloomberg11 hours ago
German kamikaze drone maker Stark Defence is raising a funding round led by Sequoia Capital, boosting its valuation to around $500 million 18 months after its inception, according to people familiar with the matter.
The startup plans to raise around $60 million, according to the people, who asked not to be identified as the information is not yet public. 8VC, the venture capital fund run by politically connected investor and Republican donor Joe Lonsdale, is in discussions to join the round, the people said. The funding is not yet finalized and some of the details could still change, they said.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

This Phone For Kids Will Block the Capture of Nude Content From Within the Camera
This Phone For Kids Will Block the Capture of Nude Content From Within the Camera

CNET

time2 minutes ago

  • CNET

This Phone For Kids Will Block the Capture of Nude Content From Within the Camera

Among the biggest concerns of parents whose kids own a smartphone must surely be the knowledge that there's a whole bunch of nude content out there on the internet for them to stumble across. Likely more worrying still is the thought that their precious offspring may be tempted to make such content themselves. Finnish phone maker HMD has been on a mission for the past few years to make phone ownership a safer prospect for children via its Better Phones Project -- and it might have come up with a solution to calm the nerves of concerned parents. On Wednesday, the company unveiled the HMD Fuse phone, which comes with built-in AI-powered technology to prevent children from filming and sending nude content, as well as well from seeing and saving sexual images -- even from within a livestream. "This is more than a product," said James Robinson, VP of HMD Family. "It's a safety net, a statement of intent, and a response." The AI (called HarmBlock Plus) has been created by cybersecurity SafeToNet, and is embedded into the phone (including the camera), which according to HMD, makes it impossible to bypass. It's apparently been ethically trained on 22 million harmful nude images and works offline. "HarmBlock Plus can't be removed, tricked, or worked around," said SafeToNet founder Richard Pursey. "It doesn't collect personal data. It just protects every time, across every app, including VPNs, with zero loopholes." Parental controls, similar to those available on the Fusion X1, which HMD introduced at MWC in March, will also allow for supervision and management of a child's phone use. This can be scaled back as a kid grows older and requires more independence. The phone is launching exclusively on Vodafone in the UK, where the recent introduction of the Online Safety Act means strict age verification rules are now required to prevent minors from accessing harmful content online. It will cost £33 per month, with a £30 up-front fee and is set to launch in other countries in the coming months, starting with Australia. There's no indication the Fuse will be headed to the US, where the company has in the past few months scaled back its operations.

UK government walks back controversial Apple ‘back door' demand after Trump administration pressure
UK government walks back controversial Apple ‘back door' demand after Trump administration pressure

CNN

time3 minutes ago

  • CNN

UK government walks back controversial Apple ‘back door' demand after Trump administration pressure

UK Digital privacy Tech giants Digital securityFacebookTweetLink Follow The UK government has backed down on a controversial demand for Apple to build a 'back door' into its technology to access private user data following pressure from the Trump administration. The order could have undermined a key security promise Apple makes to its users — the company has said it has not and would never build a backdoor or 'master key' to its products — and compromised privacy for users globally. UK officials had reportedly sought access to encrypted data that users around the world store in iCloud, materials that even the iPhone maker itself is typically unable to access. US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said on X Monday that the United Kingdom 'agreed to drop its mandate for Apple to provide a 'back door' that would have enabled access to the protected encrypted data of American citizens and encroached on our civil liberties.' Gabbard said that over the 'past few months,' she had been 'working closely with our partners in the UK,' alongside President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, on the agreement. A source familiar with the discussions told CNN that Gabbard spoke with her counterpart in the UK, Deputy National Security Advisory Matt Collins, a few times about the issue, including once when the UK delegation visited the White House. Vance was also personally involved in reaching a deal, engaging in direct conversations with British government officials to come to what was considered a 'mutually beneficial' agreement for both countries, a White House official told CNN. No further details on the agreement were provided. The British Home Office reportedly made the order under the Investigatory Powers Act that lets UK law enforcement compel access to communications and metadata from tech companies in secret, although the agency never confirmed the demand. The Home Office did not immediately respond to CNN's request for comment on Tuesday. Reports about the order earlier this year quickly raised alarm among security experts and tech leaders who worried that Apple could be used by a foreign government to spy on its users. The company in February rolled back a data security feature for iCloud called Advanced Data Protection (ADP) for users in the United Kingdom. The feature provides optional end-to-end encryption for personal data such as photos and messages, meaning only the user who holds the account, not even the company itself could view that information. Without end-to-end encryption, Apple could have access to users' data, meaning law enforcement could legally compel the company to hand it over to aid in investigating crimes. Removing the feature for UK users was widely viewed as an effort to protect more advanced security for users elsewhere in the world in the face of the UK government's demand for a technical back door. But it didn't necessarily address the UK's demand for access to user data globally. Apple said in a statement at the time that it was 'gravely disappointed' to no longer offer ADP to UK users, 'given the continuing rise of data breaches and other threats to customer privacy.' Apple did not immediately respond to CNN's request for comment on the UK government's retreat from the demand. Tech executives, including Apple CEO Tim Cook, have sought to foster close relationships with Trump since he took office in hopes of gaining his support on key policy and regulatory issues. The UK agreement marks the latest instance of the Trump administration convincing a foreign government to walk back regulation of an American tech company. In June, Canada said it would rescind a digital services tax — which Trump had called a 'direct and blatant attack' on the United States and its companies — to restart trade negotiations with the US.

UK government walks back controversial Apple ‘back door' demand after Trump administration pressure
UK government walks back controversial Apple ‘back door' demand after Trump administration pressure

CNN

time34 minutes ago

  • CNN

UK government walks back controversial Apple ‘back door' demand after Trump administration pressure

UK Digital privacy Tech giants Digital securityFacebookTweetLink Follow The UK government has backed down on a controversial demand for Apple to build a 'back door' into its technology to access private user data following pressure from the Trump administration. The order could have undermined a key security promise Apple makes to its users — the company has said it has not and would never build a backdoor or 'master key' to its products — and compromised privacy for users globally. UK officials had reportedly sought access to encrypted data that users around the world store in iCloud, materials that even the iPhone maker itself is typically unable to access. US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said on X Monday that the United Kingdom 'agreed to drop its mandate for Apple to provide a 'back door' that would have enabled access to the protected encrypted data of American citizens and encroached on our civil liberties.' Gabbard said that over the 'past few months,' she had been 'working closely with our partners in the UK,' alongside President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, on the agreement. A source familiar with the discussions told CNN that Gabbard spoke with her counterpart in the UK, Deputy National Security Advisory Matt Collins, a few times about the issue, including once when the UK delegation visited the White House. Vance was also personally involved in reaching a deal, engaging in direct conversations with British government officials to come to what was considered a 'mutually beneficial' agreement for both countries, a White House official told CNN. No further details on the agreement were provided. The British Home Office reportedly made the order under the Investigatory Powers Act that lets UK law enforcement compel access to communications and metadata from tech companies in secret, although the agency never confirmed the demand. The Home Office did not immediately respond to CNN's request for comment on Tuesday. Reports about the order earlier this year quickly raised alarm among security experts and tech leaders who worried that Apple could be used by a foreign government to spy on its users. The company in February rolled back a data security feature for iCloud called Advanced Data Protection (ADP) for users in the United Kingdom. The feature provides optional end-to-end encryption for personal data such as photos and messages, meaning only the user who holds the account, not even the company itself could view that information. Without end-to-end encryption, Apple could have access to users' data, meaning law enforcement could legally compel the company to hand it over to aid in investigating crimes. Removing the feature for UK users was widely viewed as an effort to protect more advanced security for users elsewhere in the world in the face of the UK government's demand for a technical back door. But it didn't necessarily address the UK's demand for access to user data globally. Apple said in a statement at the time that it was 'gravely disappointed' to no longer offer ADP to UK users, 'given the continuing rise of data breaches and other threats to customer privacy.' Apple did not immediately respond to CNN's request for comment on the UK government's retreat from the demand. Tech executives, including Apple CEO Tim Cook, have sought to foster close relationships with Trump since he took office in hopes of gaining his support on key policy and regulatory issues. The UK agreement marks the latest instance of the Trump administration convincing a foreign government to walk back regulation of an American tech company. In June, Canada said it would rescind a digital services tax — which Trump had called a 'direct and blatant attack' on the United States and its companies — to restart trade negotiations with the US.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store