Tech
Littlebird raises $11M for its AI-assisted ‘recall’ tool that reads your computer screen
There has been a lot of talk around building context for AI systems. In consumer software, we have seen startups being built around search, documents, and meetings. All of them want to capture context from your digital life, provide connections to other tools, and let you query all that data. Some tools went further. For instance, Rewind (which became Limitless and sold to Meta) and Microsoft Recall aim to capture everything happening on your screen and help you remember it all.
A new startup called Littlebird is trying a similar thing with a slightly different approach. While apps like Rewind store screenshots or some kind of visual data, Littlebird is “reading” the screen and storing the context in text format.
The core idea behind the product is that since it is reading your screen all the time, you don’t need to provide additional context for productivity. The startup believes that while a lot of AI tools are trying to distract you, Littlebird can work in the background and can only appear when you want it to.
When you set up Littlebird on your computer, you can customize which apps you want the app to ignore and not capture any context. The startup said that it automatically ignores password managers and sensitive fields in web forms like passwords and credit card details. You can opt to connect other apps like Gmail, Google Calendar, Apple Calendar, and Reminders with the app, as well.
The app lets you ask questions about your data, offering pre-generated prompts to get you started, such as “What have I been doing today?” or “What kind of emails are important to me?” In a couple of days of usage, I noticed that these prompts became more personalized as time went on.
Littlebird also has an in-built Granola-like notetaker that uses system audio and runs in the background to capture transcription from meetings and create notes and action items based on that. When you open a meeting in the detailed view, there’s an option called “Prep for meeting” that takes the context of past meetings, emails, and company history into account to give you more details about the meeting. The feature also fetches information from sources like Reddit to inform you what users are thinking about a particular product or a company.
Another tool called Routines offers detailed prompts for Littlebird to run at a repeated interval, such as daily, weekly, or monthly. The company lists some ready-to-use routines like daily briefing, weekly activity summary, and yesterday’s work summary. Users can create their own routines as well with custom instructions.
Littlebird was founded by Alap Shah, Naman Shah, and Alexander Green in 2024. Brothers Alap and Naman founded Sentieo, a platform for institutional investors, which was sold to market intelligence firm AlphaSense. They previously also co-founded a health-food company called Thistle. Alap was also a co-author of the viral Citrini paper on how AI agents could destroy the economy, which resulted in various tech stocks dipping. Green has built various companies in hardware, software, and AI.
“We got started when Alap posed an interesting problem that AI is going to be about your [users’] data. Models don’t know anything about you, and that limits their utility. We were thinking about various UI and OS paradigms that were likely to be ripe for disruption with AI and that kicked off Littlebird as a project,” Green told TechCrunch over a call.
Green noted that while Rewind was close to what Littlebird is trying to do, it relied on screenshots and didn’t have a great search experience. He said that the startup is just getting started and there are many more problems to solve, including making large language models (LLMs) understand different kinds of context about users.
With Littlebird, users can remove their data at any time, and their data is stored in the cloud with encryption. Green said that the rationale behind storing the data in the cloud was to run powerful models for different AI workflows, which is not possible locally.
“We don’t store any visual information. We only store text, which makes the data a lot lighter-weight. I think that was probably another reason that Recall and Rewind struggled, which is that taking a screenshot is a lot more data hungry. I also think it’s more invasive,” he said.
Littlebird is free to download and use, but to get more usage limits and access to features like image generation, users can pay for plans starting from $20 per month.
The startup has raised $11 million in funding led by Lotus Studio, with participation from Lenny Rachitsky, Scott Belsky, Gokul Rajaram, Justin Rosenstein, Shawn Wang, and Russ Heddleston.
Several of these investors are regular users of the product. Rajaram, who has worked at Google and Facebook on ad products, said that the product removes the friction of remembering, retrieving, and re-explaining your own work. DocSend co-founder and CEO Heddleston said that he rewrote the company’s marketing site using the tool, using context from meetings, email, Notion, and more.
Rachitsky, who runs his own newsletter and podcast, said that AI is as good as the context it has, and it misses so much about your day. He said he asks the tool about improving his productivity workflows and being happier. He said that for long-term success, the product will need to find a killer use case.
“I think it’s all about finding that killer must-have use case. That’s all that matters to this product’s success right now. I know a lot of people already have found that for themselves, and the team is leaning into these experiences as they see these use cases emerge,” he noted.
“I’ve had a lot of AI product builders on the podcast, and the most consistent theme is that you don’t actually know how people will use your product until you put it out. The strategy is to put out early stuff, see how people use it, and double down on those use cases versus waiting for something totally figured out.”
Tech
Sam Altman-backed fusion startup Helion in talks to sell power to OpenAI
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is stepping down as board chair of the Helion — the fusion startup he backs — amid reported talks between the two companies.
The deal, which was reported by Axios, is in early stages, and it could guarantee OpenAI 12.5% of Helion’s production — five gigawatts by 2030 and 50 gigawatts by 2035. OpenAI partner Microsoft signed a similar deal with Helion in 2023 to buy power starting in 2028.
If the figures in Axios’ report prove to be accurate, it suggests that Helion expects to be able to rapidly scale production of its fusion power plant. The startup has said that each of its reactors will generate 50 megawatts of electricity, meaning it will need to build and install 800 reactors by 2030 and an additional 7,200 by 2035.
Helion wouldn’t confirm if talks with OpenAI were underway. A spokesman told TechCrunch the company has not announced any new customer agreements beyond those it already has with Microsoft and Nucor. However, the company did confirm to TechCrunch that Altman is leaving the board chair of Helion, suggesting that the two companies may eventually work together.
“Sam is stepping down from Helion’s Board of Directors after more than a decade. This decision enables Helion and OpenAI to partner on future opportunities to bring zero-carbon, safe electricity to the world,” David Kirtley, co-founder and CEO of the company, told TechCrunch in statement. “We look forward to continuing to work with him in this new capacity.”
Helion is racing to build its first commercial-scale reactor by that time. If the startup is successful, it would place it years ahead of the competition, which is mostly targeting early 2030s for commercial operations.
The startup raised $425 million last year from investors, including Altman as well as firms Mithril, Lightspeed, and SoftBank.
Most fusion startups are pursuing one of two approaches — harvesting heat from the fusion reactions and using a steam turbine to turn it into electricity. Helion is taking a different tack, developing a reactor design that would use magnets to convert fusion energy into electricity.
Techcrunch event
San Francisco, CA
|
October 13-15, 2026
Inside the hourglass-shaped reactor, fusion fuel is first turned into plasma at either end and then shot toward each other using magnetic fields. When they collide in the middle, another set of magnets compresses the merged plasma ball until fusion occurs. The reaction pushes back on the magnets, which can convert that energy directly into electricity.
Helion is currently operating its Polaris prototype in advance of its push to commercial power. In February, the company generated plasmas inside the reactor that hit 150 million degrees Celsius, almost to the 200 million degrees Celsius the company thinks will be required for commercial operations.
Though Altman has stepped down from his position as chair of Helion’s board and reportedly recused himself from the discussions, his fingerprints are all over the matchmaking.
Last year, Altman stepped down as board chair of Oklo, a small modular nuclear reactor startup that had merged with his acquisition company, AltC. The move was intended to allow Oklo to explore strategic partnerships with leading AI companies, including potentially with OpenAI,” Caroline Cochran, Oklo’s co-founder and chief operating officer, said in a statement given to CNBC at the time.
Update 1:30 pm ET: Added confirmation from Helion regarding Altman stepping down as board chair.
Tech
FBI says Iranian hackers are using Telegram to steal data in malware attacks
Iranian government hackers are using Telegram as a way to steal data from hacked dissidents, opposition groups, and journalists who oppose the regime around the world, according to an FBI alert published on Friday.
In the first stage of the attack, the hackers contact their targets and pretend to be a known contact or tech support, and are tricked into accepting a link to a malicious file masquerading as legitimate apps, such as Telegram and WhatsApp. Once the target installs the malware, the second stage of the attack connects the infected victim with Telegram bots that allow the hackers to remotely command and control the victim’s computer. This allows the hackers to gain remote control of victims’ devices to steal files, take screenshots, and record Zoom calls, according to the FBI.
Using Telegram as a way to remotely control a victim’s device is a common technique by hackers to hide malicious activity among legitimate network traffic, which makes it harder for cybersecurity defenders and anti-malware products to identify.
According to the FBI, the hackers responsible for these attacks are allegedly working for Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS). The FBI said these attacks are an example of Iranian government hackers’ attempts to push the regime’s “geopolitical agenda.”
Contact Us
Do you have more information about Handala, or other Iran-linked hacking operations? From a non-work device, you can contact Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai securely on Signal at +1 917 257 1382, or via Telegram, Keybase and Wire @lorenzofb, or by email.
In the alert, the FBI mentioned the pro-Iranian and pro-Palestinian fake hacktivist group Handala, although it’s not clear if the attacks referenced in the alert were carried out by this group.
Earlier this month, Handala claimed responsibility for an attack on medical tech giant Stryker, which resulted in wiping tens of thousands of employee devices.
In an 8-K filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday, Stryker said it is still recovering from the hack.
Techcrunch event
San Francisco, CA
|
October 13-15, 2026
Last week, the U.S. Justice Department accused Handala of being a front for Iran’s government, specifically the MOIS, and for being behind the Stryker hack. At the same time, the FBI took down and seized two websites linked to Handala, and two other sites linked to another Iranian hacktivist group called “Homeland Justice.” In the recent FBI alert, the bureau said the two groups are linked and controlled by the MOIS.
An FBI spokesperson said in an email that the bureau “has nothing additional to add.”
Telegram’s spokesperson Remi Vaughn said that the platform’s “moderators routinely remove any accounts found to be involved with malware.”
Updated to include the FBI’s and Telegram’s response.
Tech
Elizabeth Warren calls Pentagon’s decision to bar Anthropic ‘retaliation’
Anthropic is attracting an increasing number of supporters in its fight against the U.S. Department of Defense, which last month designated the AI lab as a supply-chain risk after it refused to make concessions on how its AI could be used by the military.
In a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) equated the DOD’s decision with “retaliation,” arguing that the Pentagon could simply have terminated its contract with the AI lab, CNBC reports.
“I am particularly concerned that the DoD is trying to strong-arm American companies into providing the Department with the tools to spy on American citizens and deploy fully autonomous weapons without adequate safeguards,” Warren wrote, per the report, adding that the barring of Anthropic “appears to be retaliation.”
Warren’s words echo many other organizations that have spoken out against the Defense Department’s treatment of Anthropic. Several tech companies and employees — including from OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft — as well as legal rights groups, have filed amicus briefs in support of Anthropic and denouncing the designation, which is usually applied to foreign adversaries and not U.S. firms.
The dispute arose after Anthropic told the Pentagon that it did not want its AI systems to be used for mass surveillance of Americans and that the technology wasn’t ready for use in targeting or firing decisions of lethal autonomous weapons without human intervention. The Pentagon contested that a private company shouldn’t dictate how the military uses technology, and soon after designated the company as a “supply-chain risk.” The label requires any company or agency that does work with the Pentagon to certify that it doesn’t use the designated company’s products or services — effectively barring Anthropic from working with any company that also works with the U.S. government.
The letter from Warren comes a day before a hearing in San Francisco on Tuesday, when District Judge Rita Lin will decide whether to grant Anthropic a preliminary injunction that seeks to preserve the status quo while its case against the DOD is litigated.
While Anthropic is suing the DOD for infringing on its First Amendment rights and for punishing the company based on ideological grounds, the Defense Department has maintained that Anthropic’s refusal to allow all lawful military uses of its technology was a business decision, not protected speech, and that the designation was a straightforward national security call and not punishment for the company’s views.
Techcrunch event
San Francisco, CA
|
October 13-15, 2026
The AI lab last week submitted two declarations to the court that claim the government’s logic is flawed as they depend on technical misunderstandings as well as points of concern that were not raised during the company’s negotiations with the DOD.
Warren has also written to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, asking for details of the company’s agreement with the DOD, which came just a day after the Pentagon blacklisted Anthropic.
Anthropic and the Defense Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
2026 NFL Mock Draft: First 12 Picks Predictions and Analysis
March Madness History: Origins, Records, and Greatest Moments
