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Zepto, a 10-minute delivery app, raises $665M at $3.6B valuation

Manish Singh — Fri, 21 Jun 2024 05:30:33 +0000

Zepto, an Indian quick commerce startup, has more than doubled its valuation to $3.6 billion in a new funding round of $665 million.

Influencer shopping app LTK gets an automatic direct message tool

Lauren Forristal — Thu, 20 Jun 2024 18:13:49 +0000

LTK (formerly LiketoKnow.it and RewardStyle), the influencer shopping app with 40 million monthly users, announced on Thursday the launch of a free direct message tool for creators to instantly share preset responses with followers. The new tool, called LTK DM, is integrated into the posts section of the LTK app. When a creator shares an […]

Daydream rakes in $50M seed funding to build an AI-powered search engine suited for e-commerce

Ivan Mehta — Thu, 20 Jun 2024 12:00:00 +0000

Online shopping trends are expected to stay strong this year, but e-commerce is more fragmented than ever. With brands selling on so many platforms — from TikTok Shop, to established marketplaces, live shopping and owned channels — you’d think it would have become easy for shoppers to find what they’re looking for. But that’s not […]

Amazon extends generative AI-powered product listings to Europe

Paul Sawers — Thu, 20 Jun 2024 11:31:01 +0000

Amazon is bringing its generative AI listing smarts to more sellers, revealing today that those in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the U.K. can now access tools designed to improve product listings by generating product descriptions, titles and associated details. Additionally, sellers can “enrich” existing product listings by automatically adding missing information. The launch comes […]

Can quick commerce leapfrog e-commerce in India?

Manish Singh — Mon, 17 Jun 2024 22:01:00 +0000

Even as quick commerce startups are retreating, consolidating or shutting down in many parts of the world, the model is showing encouraging signs in India. Consumers in urban cities are embracing the convenience of having groceries delivered to their doorstep in just 10 minutes. The companies making those deliveries — Blinkit, Zepto and Swiggy’s Instamart […]

Apple kills Pay Later feature ahead of Affirm integration

Brian Heater — Mon, 17 Jun 2024 19:26:12 +0000

Apple announced at last week's WWDC 2024 that users would be able to access loans through third-party app Affirm through Apple Pay.

From sperm freezing to accounting tools, Finaloop scores $35M to solve e-commerce retailers’ bookkeeping headaches

Ingrid Lunden — Mon, 17 Jun 2024 16:27:43 +0000

Finaloop’s solution is a platform that uses automation in the background to track transactions covering three different functions in one.

Subscription vitamin company Care/of is shutting down

Anthony Ha — Sat, 15 Jun 2024 21:55:58 +0000

Care/of, a company offering personalized subscription vitamin packs, says it will be canceling all subscriptions as of Monday, June 17 and will no longer be accepting new orders. The news doesn’t come completely out of the blue, as Care/of had previously disclosed in a New York Department of Labor filing that it planned to lay […]

YC grad RetailReady raises $3.3M for an AI warehouse app that hopes to save brands billions

Christine Hall — Wed, 12 Jun 2024 13:00:00 +0000

RetailReady targets the $40 billion compliance market to help reduce the number of retail compliance losses that shippers incur annually due to incorrectly shipped packages.

Sources: Wasoko-MaxAB e-commerce merger faces delays amid headwinds in Africa

Tage Kene-Okafor — Mon, 10 Jun 2024 11:39:33 +0000

The merger has yet to close due to extended due diligence amid ongoing restructuring and macroeconomic headwinds across multiple countries.

Meta rolls out Meta Verified for WhatsApp Business users in Brazil, India, Indonesia and Colombia

Ivan Mehta — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 17:49:49 +0000

Meta launched its Meta Verified program today along with other features, such as the ability to call large businesses and custom messages.

Amazon slammed with £1.1B data abuse lawsuit from UK retailers

Ingrid Lunden — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 16:14:57 +0000

The British retailers association also takes aim at Amazon’s “Buy Box,” claiming that Amazon manipulated which retailers were selected for the coveted placement.

True Fit leverages generative AI to help online shoppers find clothes that fit

Lauren Forristal — Tue, 04 Jun 2024 16:00:00 +0000

True Fit, the AI-powered size-and-fit personalization tool, has offered its size recommendation solution to thousands of retailers for nearly 20 years. Now, the company is venturing into the generative AI space with “Fit Hub,” a new tool that aims to improve the way online shoppers find clothing that fits their body type. Sizing issues continue […]

How a couple of former Pinterest search experts caught Biz Stone’s attention

Christine Hall — Tue, 04 Jun 2024 13:00:00 +0000

Lance Riedel and Nigel Daley both spent decades in search discovery, but it was while working at Pinterest that they began trying to understand how to use search engines to do personalized searches for online shopping.

Shopify acquires Checkout Blocks, a checkout customization app

Lauren Forristal — Mon, 03 Jun 2024 16:46:41 +0000

Commerce platform Shopify has acquired Checkout Blocks, allowing Shopify Plus merchants to make no-code customizations in their checkout to enhance customer experience and potentially boost sales. Checkout Blocks, which debuted on Shopify in September 2022, lets merchants customize their checkout by adding things such as AI recommendations, custom content (like information banners, images, headlines, and […]

Temasek, Fidelity buy $200M stake in Lenskart at $5B valuation

Manish Singh — Mon, 03 Jun 2024 07:31:03 +0000

Temasek has previously invested in Lenskart, and this new funding follows a $500 million investment by the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority last year.

Chinese e-commerce marketplace Temu faces stricter EU rules as a ‘very large online platform’

Paul Sawers — Fri, 31 May 2024 11:27:13 +0000

Temu is to face Europe's strictest rules after being designated as a "very large online platform" under the Digital Services Act (DSA).

YoLa Fresh, a GrubMarket for Morocco, digs up $7M to connect farmers with food sellers

Tage Kene-Okafor — Thu, 30 May 2024 11:15:13 +0000

YoLa Fresh works with over a thousand retailers across Morocco and records up to $1 million in gross merchandise volume.

Pinterest expands its Creator Fund to allow founders

Dominic-Madori Davis — Wed, 29 May 2024 16:50:31 +0000

Pinterest announced today that it is evolving its Creator Inclusion Fund to now be called the Pinterest Inclusion Fund. Pinterest teamed up with Shopify’s Build Black and Build Native programs to allow small business owners who are from or who serve underrepresented backgrounds to now apply for the Creator Inclusion Fund. Previously, only traditional content […]

More neobanks are becoming mobile networks — and Nubank wants a piece of the action

Paul Sawers — Tue, 28 May 2024 09:00:00 +0000

Nubank is taking its first tentative steps into the mobile network realm, as the NYSE-traded Brazilian neobank rolls out an eSIM (embedded SIM) service for travelers. The service will give customers access to 10GB of free roaming internet in more than 40 countries without having to switch out their own existing physical SIM card or […]