Have we told you lately that we love you? Well, we do. For ’tis March, and spring is almost here. Breathe in and check the <checks notes> smell of snow? Good heavens, what’s going on with this weather?

Enough of that, let’s March on with the tech news. — Christine and Haje

The TechCrunch Top 3

• That’s some delicious credit: If you’re a fan of DoorDash and credit card rewards, the delivery giant now has its own co-branded credit card with Chase. There are indeed some nice perks that come with being a cardholder, but we’ll let Aisha tell you more.
• Elon Musk’s favorite day: By the time this hits your inbox, this may have already happened, but today is Tesla Investor Day. Kirsten has your inside scoop on how to watch and what to expect.
• Better late than never: Revolut’s annual report for 2021 is out, and while Romain writes that 2021 was a while ago, the report provided some exciting news for the company, including that it was the financial app’s first full year of profit. Pop open the champagne!

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Startups and VC

Rad Power Bikes is focused on popularizing electric utility bikes for the consumer market. Rebecca reports that the company launched its next-generation RadRunner 3 Plus e-bike today alongside a host of new cargo accessories that will make it easier for riders to cart along pets or haul groceries as they ride.

Apropos e-bikes: The e-bike market in America is getting a brave new player. Off the back of its $7.4 million Series A funding close, Velotric announced this week that it will be doubling down on U.S. expansion with its privately owned e-bikes, Rita reports.

Another fistful for you, with less bike content than you might expect from the intro above.

• Oh good, TikTok on your car: VW’s software unit Cariad launches app store to bring Spotify, Tiktok and hundreds more to vehicles, Kirsten reports.
• Shrtr eml: Ivan reports that the Shortwave email app introduces AI-powered summaries.
• Founder/market fit is for wimps: Christine explores how an entrepreneur, who didn’t know how to cook, started a recipe company.
• You pay, you watch: Aisha takes a closer look at a creator platform that focuses on pay-per-view content: Zarta raises $5.7 million led by a16z.
• Jet fuel but green: JetBlue and Toyota-backed company Air Company struck an up-to $65 million deal to help the Air Force capture CO2 and turn it into “sustainable” aviation fuel on base, Harri reports.

Dear Sophie: What are my options for changing my status from an L-1 visa?

Dear Sophie,

I started working for my current employer on STEM-OPT, but I’ve lost out in the H-1B lottery four times. Thankfully, my employer transferred me to an international office, and I am now coming back to the U.S. on an L-1 visa.

I’ve heard many complaints from my classmates about not being able to switch employers on an L-1 visa. I don’t see myself staying at my employer for six more years, which is the estimated time until I can get a green card based on my employer’s internal policy.

What are my options for changing my immigration status so I can work at a startup in the U.S. within a year or two?

— Tenacious Transferee

Three more from the TC+ team:

• Grosser and grocer: Tim writes about Divert bagging $100 million worth of growth equity to tackle grocery store food waste.
• To da moon: Jacquelyn reports that Ethereum NFT marketplace passes $1 billion in volume for first time since May as the creator royalties war heats up.
• But what happened to web3?: Alex wonders, Does web3 need a venture bailout now that AI has all the hype?

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

Big Tech Inc.

If you’re looking for an enjoyable read and a reason to let out a scream of eek, look no further than Zack’s article today. Zack spoke with an unnamed former Microsoft executive who had to jump through a lot of hoops to get his life back in order after his address was changed at the post office.

Kyle has a trio of stories about — what else? — OpenAI. Two are some new features, including Whisper API for text-to-speech transcription and translation and API for ChatGPT, while the third reports on OpenAI no longer using customer data to train its models by default.

Now, on with the show:

• Don’t break the chains: Chainlink doesn’t want to leave Web 2.0 behind in favor of web3, so its new platform enables web3 projects to connect with Web 2.0 systems like AWS and Meta, Jacquelyn reports.
• Something to ponder: Software consultancy firm Thoughtworks laid off around 500 employees, or about 4% of its global workforce, amid ongoing slowdown, Jagmeet writes.
• Tweet tweet: Some Twitter users had broken timelines lately, and Ivan went to figure out why. Speaking of Twitter, Sarah has some details on Twitter alternative Bluesky, which is now in the App Store as an invite-only app.
• A blessing for Biden?: The U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs voted in favor of a bill that would give Biden the power to ban TikTok. Amanda has more.
• Salesforce saga: Elliott Management, one of the five activist investors inside Salesforce, nominated its own slate of candidates for Salesforce’s board, Ron reports.

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• Java Developer at GitKraken (Alicante, Spain)
• Senior Project Manager for Cloud Applications at University of Virginia (Anywhere)
• Information Technology and Services Director at City of Beaverton (Beaverton, OR, USA)
• Sales Account Executive at Makai HR (Hawaii, USA)

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