Jake Bright
TechCrunch
New York, NY, United States
Contact Jake
Discover and connect with journalists and influencers around the world, save time on email research, monitor the news, and more.
| Recent: |
|
| Past: |
|
Past articles by Jake:
African fintech startup Chipper Cash raises $30M backed by Jeff Bezos –
African cross-border fintech startup Chipper Cash has raised a $30 million Series B funding round led by Ribbit Capital with participation of Bezos Expeditions — the personal VC fund of Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. Chipper Cash was founded in San Francisco in 2018 by Ugandan Ham Serunjogi and Ghanaian Maijid Moujaled. The company offers mobile-based, no fee, P2P […] → Read More
Nigeria’s Autochek raises $3.4M for car sales and service platform –
Nigeria based startup Autochek looks to bring the sales and servicing of cars in Africa online. The newly founded venture has closed a $3.4 million seed-round co-led by TLcom Capital and 4DX ventures toward that aim. The raise comes fresh off of Autochek’s September acquisition of digital car sales marketplace Cheki in Nigeria and Ghana. […] → Read More
Harley-Davidson should keep making e-motorcycles –
Harley-Davidson should continue to make electric motorcycles. That’s my big takeaway after taking home the company’s LiveWire for three weeks. I’d ridden it on a closed course in 2019, but that wasn’t enough absorb the finer qualities of the 105 horsepower machine. After nearly a month and a thousand miles on the LiveWire, I’d venture to […] → Read More
Zero’s SR/S doubles as an EV sport motorcycle and sport-tourer –
Zero’s 2020 SR/S could be your EV sport bike or sport-tourer. Unveiled earlier this year, the all electric motorcycle brings performance attributes of both classes — with a unique list of pros and cons compared to gas-powered peers. The SR/S also adds to the business mission of its manufacturer, Zero. The California based EV company […] → Read More
Interswitch to revive its Africa venture fund, CEO confirms –
Pan-African fintech company Interswitch plans to fire up its corporate venture arm again—according to CEO Mitchell Elegbe—who spoke at TechCrunch Disrupt on Wednesday. The Nigerian founder didn’t offer much new on the Lagos-based firm’s expected IPO, but he did reveal Interswitch will revive investments in African startups. Founded by Elegbe in 2002, Interswitch pioneered the […] → Read More
Tarform unveils Luna e-moto for folks who may not like motorcycles –
Brooklyn-based EV startup Taform unveiled its Luna electric motorcycle in New York last week, a model designed for an audience that may not actually like motorcycles. This follows the debut of two concept e-motos in 2018. Tarform’s first street legal entrant, the Luna, starts at $24,000, does 0-60 mph in 3.8 seconds, has a city […] → Read More
Interswitch CEO Mitchell Elegbe to discuss African fintech at TechCrunch Disrupt –
The CEO of Pan-African fintech unicorn, Mitchell Elegbe, is set to speak at TechCrunch Disrupt 2020 on September 16. He founded the company in Lagos in 2002 to connect Nigeria’s — then — largely disconnected banking system. Over the next decade plus, Interswitch accelerated the adoption of digital payments across Africa and now stands as […] → Read More
Security lapse at South Africa’s LogBox exposed user accounts and medical data –
LogBox, a South African medical data startup that bills itself as an “absolutely secure” way of replacing paper forms for sharing patient data with doctors, has exposed user accounts and patient data following a security lapse. Security researcher Anurag Sen found an exposed database belonging to the company containing account access tokens for thousands of […] → Read More
NYSE seeks SEC approval for more direct listings –
The New York Stock Exchange filed an amendment today with the Securities and Exchange Commission to allow for more direct listings. Direct listings offer a more streamlined method for companies to go public and raise capital than traditional IPOs — which entail a lengthy roadshow process and involvement of underwriters to determine valuations and share-prices. […] → Read More
African payment startup Chipper Cash raises $13.8M Series A –
African cross-border fintech startup Chipper Cash has closed a $13.8 million Series A funding round led by Deciens Capital and plans to hire 30 new staff globally. The raise caps an event filled run for the San Francisco based payments company, founded two years ago by Ugandan Ham Serunjogi and Ghanaian Maijid Moujaled. The two came […] → Read More
Triumph releases e-bicycle but no word on e-motorcycle debut –
UK motorcycle manufacturer Triumph released an e-bicycle today, the Trekker GT — with 90 miles of riding range, a 250 watt motor and a 504 watt hour battery. With a five hour charge time, the bike weighs 52 pounds (24 kilograms) and can produce up to 60 Nm (or 29 ft-lbs) of torque. Triumph’s Trekker […] → Read More
Uber Africa launches Uber Cash with Flutterwave and explores EVs –
Uber is launching its Uber Cash digital wallet feature in Sub-Saharan Africa through a partnership with San Francisco based — Nigerian founded — fintech firm Flutterwave. The arrangement will allow riders to top up Uber wallets using the dozens of remittance partners active on Flutterwave’s Pan-African network. Flutterwave operates as a B2B payments gateway network […] → Read More
The Sun Exchange raises $3M for crypto driven solar power in Africa –
South Africa based renewable energy startup Sun Exchange has raised $3 million to close its Series A funding round totaling $4 million. The company operates a peer-to-peer, crypto enabled business that allows individuals anywhere in the world to invest in solar infrastructure in Africa. How’s that all work? “You as an individual are selling electricity […] → Read More
Africa’s top angel Tomi Davies eyes startups and co-investors –
When Nigerian angel investor Tomi Davies backed his first company — Strika Entertainment in 2001 — he admits he wasn’t aware of his future role. “I was just helping out friends. I didn’t know it was angel investing. I didn’t know there was a structure to it,” he said. Seven years later, Davies received a […] → Read More
Africa Roundup: DHL invests in MallforAfrica, Zipline launches in US, Novastar raises $200M –
Events in May offered support to the thesis that Africa can incubate tech with global application. Two startups that developed their business models on the continent — MallforAfrica and Zipline — were tapped by international interests. DHL acquired a minority stake in Link Commerce, a turn-key e-commerce company that grew out of MallforAfrica.com — a […] → Read More
Vaya Africa launches electric ride-hail taxi network –
Vaya Africa, a ride-hail mobility venture founded by Zimbabwean mogul Strive Masiyiwa, has launched an electric taxi service and charging network in Zimbabwe with plans to expand across the continent. The South Africa headquartered company has acquired a fleet of Nissan Leaf EVs and developed its own solar powered charging stations. The program goes live […] → Read More
DHL acquires stake in Link Commerce developed by MallforAfrica.com –
DHL has acquired a minority stake in Link Commerce, a turn-key e-commerce company that grew out of MallforAfrica.com — a Nigerian digital-retail startup. Link Commerce offers a white-label solution for doing digital-sales in emerging markets. Retailers can plug into the company’s e-commerce platform to create a web-based storefront that manages payments and logistics. With the […] → Read More
Carry1st has $4M to invest in African mobile gaming –
Gaming development startup Carry1st has raised a $2.5 million seed round led by CRE Venture Capital . That brings the company’s total VC to $4 million, which Carry1st will deploy to support and invest in game publishing across Africa. The startup — with offices in New York, Lagos, and South Africa — was co-founded in […] → Read More
Zipline begins US medical delivery with UAV program honed in Africa –
Drones are being deployed in the fight to curb COVID-19 in the U.S. Novant Health and California based UAV delivery startup Zipline have launched distribution of personal protective gear and medical equipment in North Carolina. Novant is a non-profit healthcare provider with a network in the Southeastern United States. Through the partnership, Zipline’s drones will […] → Read More
Cake brings a Swedish take on e-motorcycle design to the U.S. –
Cake has crafted the Swedish edition of electric motorcycle design starting in the dirt. The Stockholm based mobility startup’s debut, the Kalk OR, is a 150 pound, battery powered two-wheeler engineered for agile off-road riding and available in a street-legal version. On appearance, Cake’s Kalk has a minimalist stance and doesn’t evoke “motorcycle” in any […] → Read More