T-Mobile buys Mint Mobile's parent company in a deal worth up to $1.35B

TechCrunch Newsletter [TechCrunch logo]( [The Daily Crunch logo]( By [Christine Hall]( and [Haje Jan Kamps]( Wednesday, March 15, 2023 Hellooooo, and welcome to the Wednesday Crunch! SVB’s new CEO Tim Mayopoulos has had a lot to say in the 24 hours since he joined the bank on Monday. In a private Zoom meeting run by SVB for a select number of LPs and investors, [he asked clients to return deposits]( to the institution, [Natasha M]( reports. With much love from [Christine]( and [Haje]( [ image] Image Credits: Justin Sullivan / Getty Images The TechCrunch Top 3 - [Mint-y acquisition](: The big news for today is that T-Mobile is acquiring Mint Mobile’s parent company — you know, the company that Ryan Reynolds has a stake in — in a deal valued at $1.35 billion. [Aisha]( notes that this “move indicates that T-Mobile is looking to boost its prepaid offerings.” - [I know you are, but what am I?](: Well, if you ask OpenAI’s Greg Brockman, GPT-4 isn’t perfect, but neither are you,[Kyle]( writes. Ouch. - [Talk about timing](: On the back of OpenAI announcing its [new GPT-4 model](, Quora announces Poe, its own chatbot offering, which is launching subscriptions to let you chat with a GPT-4-powered bot,[Ivan]( reports. [SOC It 2 Me! The InfoSec Compliance Guide You Need to Win Deals]( Sponsored by [Laika Inc.]( [SOC 2 compliance is a must for many customers, especially as you move upmarket, but navigating the journey to an audit can be complex. Grab Laika’s SOC 2 Guide to learn about everything you need to know, including time, cost, steps, and scope.]( [Download Here]( Startups and VC There’s no shortage of startups attempting to put drones to work. There is, however, a long-standing question around the efficacy of such plans. Drones — especially the smaller variety — are impressive pieces of technology, but their functionality is relatively limited. A small quadcopter probably isn’t going to prune your trees or walk your dog anytime soon, [Brian]( writes. One thing they can do exceptionally well, however, is imaging. [Verity raises $32 million as Ikea stores deploy its inventory drones](. To celebrate Wednesday, here are some alluring alliterations: - Ride-share roll-up: [Romain]( reports that[BlaBlaCar is to acquire Klaxit](, a ride-sharing service for daily commutes. - Scam security show-off: Once scammed for ten grand, [this VC is building a crypto security vault](, reports [Rita](. - Watching wildfire worries: [Brian]( reports that Torch is building [solar-powered outdoor sensors to spot wildfires early](. - Hiring healthcare helpers: [Paul]( reports that [Medwing, a recruitment marketplace for Europe’s healthcare workforce, raises $47 million](. - Assisting AI archetypes: [Kyle]( writes that OpenAI hopes to [crowdsource AI model testing with Evals](. [Zero-based budgeting: A proven framework for extending runway]( It’s critical to extend runway in this environment, but pulling back too much in the wrong places can reduce momentum across your entire organization. Instead of simply trimming a little off the top, more startups are turning to zero-based budgeting, an aggressive tactic where founders return to Square One “every budget period to verify all of the line items are relevant and cost-effective,” writes FP&A analyst Healy Jones. “The best founders look for a framework to strategically cut burn while keeping their startup’s value drivers functioning.” Three more from the TC+ team: - You can’t stop the robots: AI’s ascendance seems [unfazed by SVB mess]( by[Alex](. - We need a minute: “Trust is a hard thing to earn”: [SVB’s closure could disproportionately affect Black founders](, writes [Dominic-Madori](. - From chaos, order: [Jacquelyn]( writes that chaos in U.S. banks could [push the crypto industry toward decentralization](. [TechCrunch+]( is our membership program that helps founders and startup teams get ahead of the pack.[You can sign up here](. Use code “DC” for a 15% discount on an annual subscription! [Read More]( [Zero-based budgeting: A proven framework for extending runway image] Image Credits: Getty Images Big Tech Inc. Today’s Big Tech theme seems to be “ways to do something easier.” First up is GitHub, which created its own set of guidelines around [setting up open source program offices](. [Paul]( writes that companies trying to stay on top of open source compliance, security, and so on, will soon find this is a challenge, hence the open source program office “emerging as a staple part of the modern corporation, formalizing what might previously have been a loose collective of employees spanning myriad departments and roles.” Next we go over to Waze. If you have an electric vehicle, you are going to want to come closer. [Ivan]( reports that Waze has a [new feature that tells EV owners where compatible charging points]( are along their route. And we have five more for you: - Crackberry on the big screen: [Matt]( is bringing us all back to the late 1990s with a look at the trailer for the new [“BlackBerry” movie](. - Sarcasm clouds ahead: If you like your weather with a dose of insults,[Carrot Weather’s new chatbot]( with a ChatGPT update will deliver,[Lauren]( reports. - Signal lost:[Carly]( writes that two weeks later, [Dish customers are still looking for answers]( as the satellite company’s ransomware fallout continues. - Buckle up: A European court delivered another blow to Meta, ruling that[Facebook’s behavioral ads lacked legal basis](.[Natasha L]( has more. - We don’t need no stinkin’ solar panels: Tesla’s [new home battery]( now comes without the solar panels,[Harri]( writes. [Read more stories on TechCrunch.com]( Newest Jobs from Crunchboard - [Senior Full Stack Developer at Moseley Technical Services (Huntsville, AL, USA)]( - [Business Intelligence Analyst at Creatd, Inc. (New York City, NY, USA)]( - [Systems Administrator at Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (Middletown, PA, United States)]( - [Sr BI Developer at Global Lending Services (Greenville, SC, USA)]( - [Database Administrator at ALOM TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION (Fremont, CA, USA)]( [See more jobs on CrunchBoard]( [Post your tech jobs]( and reach millions of TechCrunch readers for only $200 per month. [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Youtube]( [Instagram]( [Flipboard]( [View this email online in your browser]( [Privacy Policy]( | [Terms of Service]( | [Unsubscribe]( © 2023 Yahoo. All rights reserved. 110 5th St, San Francisco, CA 94103