Latest news with #Relan
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Why this LA-based VC firm was an early investor in Slate Auto
Slate Auto, which came out of stealth mode earlier this year with a surprising – and surprisingly affordable – customizable electric truck, has raised $700 million to date. But long before the EV startup broke cover, it quietly raised a Series A round of more than $100 million in 2023. And while Jeff Bezos was involved in that round, as TechCrunch originally reported, he was not alone. A regulatory filing submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission shows as many as 16 investors were involved. Slauson & Co., a Los Angeles venture firm that launched five years ago, is one of the few investors in Slate's Series A to speak publicly about why they backed the company. Slauson & Co. partner Ajay Relan told TechCrunch in an exclusive interview his firm is well aware of the many EV startup bankruptcies that have occurred in recent years, as well as the headwinds coming from the Trump administration for anything green energy-related. Regardless, Relan said he and his partner Austin Clements believe in the startup's mission of providing 'more affordable, reliable, and customizable vehicles that are domestically manufactured.' Relan and Clements started Slauson & Co. in 2020. Friends since high school, they both grew up off of Slauson Avenue in South Central Los Angeles, which Relan wryly categorized as being 'not necessarily known for its tech and venture capital innovation.' 'But it definitely is a source of cultural capital that gets repackaged and distributed to more developed areas and other parts of the world,' Relan said. Slauson & Co.'s mission is to bridge the gap between those two worlds by funding and empowering people who have 'historically just not had their perspective represented in the innovation economy.' Relan said they got turned on to Slate by Jeff Wilkie, the former Amazon consumer division CEO who co-founded Re:Build Manufacturing, an incubator that Slate spun out of. Wilkie, who Relan has known since before founding Slauson & Co, first introduced them to the secretive project in 2023. Relan admits investing in an EV startup is a bit outside of his firm's 'primary themes.' But the duo was intrigued by Slate's mission to make a more affordable and approachable car. He was sold on the venture after Wilkie introduced Slauson & Co. to the Slate team. Slauson & Co. raises $100M Fund II proving appetite for inclusion persists The startup was still just a few dozen people in early 2023. But those people had decades of experience in the automotive industry. CEO Chris Barman spent more than 20 years at Chrysler, running vehicle line programs, leading the Android Automotive integration, and even collaborating with Waymo. Chairman Rodney Copes and chief financial officer Ryan Green spent years at Harley-Davidson and Rivian. Barman particularly impressed the Slauson & Co. partners. 'She has great vision. She has a great reputation within the company she's worked for before,' Clements said. 'She's no frills, not about the hype. She's really about delivering.' Clements said he and Relan also rely heavily on taste when it comes to early-stage investing. 'Do we think that this is something that resonates with what people are looking for at this point?' he said. 'The idea that there are no affordable cars, particularly for young people, but really for everybody, and just the mismatch between affordability of vehicles and what's available just didn't make sense.' Slate's truck won't hit the market until late 2026, but Relan and Clements already have a little validation that their eye for taste was spot on with Slate: The company passed 100,000 refundable reservations in just two weeks. Of course, it doesn't hurt to be standing alongside some serious financial and industrial firepower. Not only did Bezos invest in that initial funding round, but Slate also courted big money from Los Angeles Dodgers owner Mark Walter as well as VC firm General Catalyst. ('The partners they were able to bring along for the journey before and after us were icing on the cake,' Reman said in an email.) Those backers have helped fill Slate's coffers to the tune of around $700 million, and the company told TechCrunch that it's already started on a Series C funding round. Slauson & Co. also invested in the Series B; the firm declined to share how much it has invested in Slate to date. This combination – the Slate team, the major backers, and the opportunity at the entry level of the car market – left Relan and Clements believing their investment can generate a good return, even in the notoriously low-margin auto business. 'We have to have some deep conviction that this is something that could drive very real returns in the fund,' Clements said, before adding with a laugh: 'You know, we're not just a purely philanthropic organization.'
Time of India
02-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Air India plane crash: AI-generated fake reports, videos spreading misinformation; fraudsters exploiting vulnerability
Air India plane crash (Picture credit: AP) In the aftermath of the tragic crash of Air India Flight 171 in Ahmedabad that claimed 275 lives on June 12, the spread of misinformation, powered by AI-generated content, has stirred fresh concerns about digital disinformation during crises. A fake preliminary crash report, bearing aviation jargon and even emoji, went viral across aviation circles before being refuted by authorities, reported ET. The document was later found to be generated by artificial intelligence using details from a 2024 LATAM Airlines incident in South America. Before the Indian government could label the report fake, news websites had already published stories based on it, misleading even aviation professionals. According to the ministry, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) retrieved and transported the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) and flight data recorder (FDR) to New Delhi on June 24, over a week after their recovery but offered no explanation for the delay, as per ET. The information vacuum was quickly filled with fabricated visuals and narratives. Amit Relan, CEO of digital fraud detection firm mFilterIt was quoted by ET as saying, 'We've observed a disturbing pattern in how bad actors are leveraging AI and social media platforms to spread misinformation and commit fraud during sensitive events like the Air India Flight 171 crash.' by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like New cars, best deals! CarXplore Shop Now Undo His firm identified not only deepfake videos of the crash aftermath but also fraudulent fundraising campaigns. 'This is a classic case of emotionally-driven financial fraud,' Relan warned. Fact-checking group BOOM also flagged several AI-generated visuals, including doctored images showing the aircraft ablaze or falsely positioned outside Ahmedabad airport. These images, lacking disclaimers, were flagged by AI detectors as synthetic. BOOM confirmed the misleading nature of such content using AI verification tools. Former airline pilot and crash investigation consultant John Cox criticised the AAIB's slow communication. 'This is the most extensive case of misinformation that has been seen during any accident,' he told ET. 'The AAIB should be having daily briefings as done by agencies across the globe. Because in the absence of information, it is misinformation that fills the void.' The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) also highlights the need for effective media communication during accident investigations, stating that 'a well-planned and executed communication strategy can go a long way in minimising negative publicity and ensuring facts are reported in a timely and accurate manner.' Mishi Choudhary, founder of the Software Freedom Law Centre, stressed a multi-layered approach. 'Each new disaster now presents new opportunities for disinformation peddlers,' she said. 'This is not a problem that can be solved by enacting new laws. Platforms need to take responsibility by investing more to tackle misinformation in different languages.' As AI-generated content becomes more convincing and accessible, experts say India must adopt faster, transparent, and tech-integrated communication strategies, especially during national tragedies, to curb the rising tide of digital deception. Stay informed with the latest business news, updates on bank holidays and public holidays . AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Time of India
01-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
AI-generated content fuels misinformation after Air India crash
Days after the crash of an Air India Boeing 787 plane in Ahmedabad, killing 275 people, a preliminary investigation report was found circulating in aviation circles. The report, except for the emoji, appeared genuine with various aviation terminologies, giving it a professional look. However, a closer scrutiny by trained eyes would eventually reveal that it was created by an AI platform using details from a 2024 incident with South American airlines LATAM, giving it a convincing look. By the time the Indian government refuted the report as fake, news websites had already run headlines, clouding the minds of the public, and even that of several pilots. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Expert: "Throw Away Your Adhesive Cream and Use This Instead! Dentalcare Guide Undo With the June 12 Air India crash stirring public uproar amid scarce post-accident updates, a wave of false information, including pictures and videos created by generative AI, has swarmed the internet. 'We've observed a disturbing pattern in how bad actors are leveraging AI and social media platforms to spread misinformation and commit fraud during sensitive events like the Air India Flight 171 crash,' said Amit Relan , co-founder and CEO at digital fraud detection firm mFilterIt. Live Events In addition to fake news about the crash, Relan's firm found instances of fake videos showing the aftermath of the air accident and even a case of a fraudulent fundraising attempt. 'This is a classic case of emotionally-driven financial fraud, often operated from untraceable or unverified sources,' Relan said, advocating for public education to differentiate legitimate from manipulated content and collaboration on threat intelligence between platforms, law enforcement, and tech enablers. As per the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) module, it is essential to communicate effectively with the media to ensure the accuracy of information provided and maintain public trust in the aviation industry and accident investigation authorities. 'A well-planned and executed communication strategy can go a long way in minimising negative publicity and ensuring that the facts are reported in a timely and accurate manner,' it says. India's civil aviation ministry last week said the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has successfully extracted data from the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) and flight data recorder (FDR) of the aircraft. Both the CVR and the FDR were moved to AAIB's lab in New Delhi only on 24 June, more than a week after they were recovered from the crash site in Ahmedabad. The ministry did not give any reason for the delay. John Cox, a former airline pilot and chief executive of Safety Operating Systems, a provider of consulting services on accident investigations, said with the growing prevalence of GenAI, there needs to be a paradigm shift for providing information by India's AAIB after an event like a crash. 'This is the most extensive case of misinformation that has been seen during any accident. The AAIB should be having daily briefings as done by agencies across the globe. Because in the absence of information, it is misinformation which fills the void,' Cox said. BOOM, a fact-checking platform found images of aircraft with its tail on blaze or even an AI generated image of a wreckage in front of the Ahmedabad airport, which was also created by AI. BOOM used AI image detectors, with all indicating a high likelihood of them being AI-generated. However, none of the posts contained a disclaimer indicating the synthetic nature of the images. Mishi Choudhary, an online civil rights activist and founder of Software Freedom Law Centre suggests multi-pronged solutions including educating users and using better tools. 'Each new disaster now presents new opportunities for disinformation peddlers to muddy the waters and use heightened emotional vulnerability to exploit. This is not a problem that can be solved by enacting new laws,' she said. 'Platforms need to take responsibility by investing more to tackle misinformation in different languages, and be better prepared around such events."
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
This downtown pizzeria from Issa Rae and partners comes with spritzes and classic funk
A new pizzeria from entertainment multihyphenate Issa Rae and her business partners is set to debut this weekend, bringing funk-inspired pizza to their popular cafe. By day, the downtown space will continue as Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen. At night, starting May 3, it flips to Downtown Dough, a pizza joint that specializes in a kind of California-meets-Neapolitan style, the crust leopard-spotted from a wood-fired brick oven. 'The daytime is really for the drip, and the nighttime is for the dough,' said co-owner Ajay Relan. Relan and business partner Yonnie Hagos launched Hilltop via their hospitality group, GVO, and quickly partnered with the 'Insecure' actor and producer, whose mission of creating inclusive spaces aligned with theirs. In the years since, the trio launched another four Hilltop locations, downtown rooftop bar Lost and a sleek restaurant, bar and jazz club called Somerville. 'We could not think of a better partner and ambassador for our mission,' said Relan, who added that Rae is 'very involved' in the restaurants' operations and menu planning. At Downtown Dough, the menu calls for almond wood sourced from Northern California, which is used at the wood-fired grill — for dishes such as chicken, branzino and steak — as well as in the pizza oven. Chef Geter Atienza (previously of Broken Spanish, Bouchon Bistro, the Fig) brushes his crust with garlic oil and sprinkles it with Parmesan and tops the pizzas with pepperoni, local honey and Fresno chiles; truffled fondue and farmers market cauliflower; bacon, Manila clams and caramelized onions; and more. There are pastas, Black Angus meatballs, salads and crispy calamari. Funk can be found in the restaurant's flavor — and in the air and on the walls. 'All of GVO's venues have a very music-first vibe curation, but funk is a genre that we had always enjoyed the most,' Relan said. 'It was just always the most fun, and [we're] marrying our love for pizza with the free and forward era of the '70s and the music that came along with it.' Artwork, color schemes and, of course, the playlist will all take their inspiration from funk. Expect to hear James Brown, Bootsy Collins, the Womacks, Sly and the Family Stone and other classics, plus newer acts inspired by those bands. Steen Bojsen Moller (also of Lost and Somerville) oversees the full bar, which focuses on spritzes — some of which are named for funk musicians, their albums and the movements they started. This particular Hilltop, which debuted in 2023, was intended to serve as a pop-up, but due to its popularity it became permanent. The 6,000-square-foot location accommodates nearly 200, including a 22-seat private dining room. In the evenings the trio previously used the open kitchen and ample space for catering and events but knew they wanted to open a full restaurant eventually. Rae, Hagos and Relan hope to serve the downtown community with a series of experiences: coffee by day at Hilltop, pizza and spritzes by evening at Downtown Dough, a nightcap and a taco at Lost's nearby rooftop — and more projects for Rae and GVO are already in the works. Downtown Dough launches May 3, and will open Wednesday to Sunday from 6 to 11 p.m. 718 S. Hill St., Los Angeles, One of the best wine shops in Long Beach recently expanded next door with a restaurant and wine bar. Last year, Alicia Kemper closed her cafe, Mangette, which she co-owned and sat next to her popular natural-wine shop, Buvons. Now, she's reimagining the Mangette space as an evening-only restaurant and wine bar that works in tandem with the bottle shop. Buvons Wine Bar + Restaurant offers a more extensive food menu than what was found at Mangette and in Buvons (which offers by-the-glass pours and snacks). It draws on weekly farmers market bounty and plays off the bottle shop's lengthy wine offerings. Both the food and wine menus rotate each month. Guests might find smoked-eel carbonara with dashi and a confit egg; duck confit with leek chutney; or house-made terrine. Sometimes the kitchen will be helmed by a guest chef; May features a menu by Côme Richard, who is visiting from Paris. Plates such as charcuterie and cheese boards can still be found in the bottle shop alongside wines by the glass, but more prepared dishes can only be found in the new wine bar and restaurant. The new wine bar and restaurant also features more seating areas than were available in Mangette, and hosts classes and events such as a monthly pasta workshop. Buvons Wine Bar is open Wednesday to Sunday from 5 to 11 p.m., while the adjacent bottle shop's hours are now Wednesday to Sunday from noon to 7 p.m. 1145 and 1147 Loma Ave., Long Beach, (562) 342-6557, A 'Top Chef' contestant with a range of Italian restaurants is branching out with his first taqueria. Via his hospitality group Memento Mori, chef Jackson Kalb operates Ospi in Venice and Brentwood, Jemma in Hollywood, Jame Enoteca and John Thomas Bar in El Segundo and the temporarily closed Jemma Pizzeria in the Palisades. He launched Jaime Taqueria, his newest restaurant and first foray into tacos, to bring some new flavor close to home. 'This isn't supposed to be inspired by any one regionality,' Kalb said, telling The Times that he lives in the area and wanted to open a cantina for the neighborhood. He tapped executive chef Marco Arreguin (Puesto, MXO) to lead the kitchen, and together they're serving large-format plates such as al pastor-inspired pork shank under pineapple glaze; starters such as guacamole topped with scallion and black garlic chile crunch; sides like brown-butter esquites; and tacos piled with beef cheek quesabirria, filet mignon, citrus-achiote chicken and mojo shrimp gobernador. Wash it down with margaritas, mezcal old-fashioneds, tequila flights, mocktails and more. Jaime Taqueria is open Sunday to Thursday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., with brunch slated for the future. 450 Main St., El Segundo, (310) 648-8231, One of the country's most famous doughnut chains just launched a bright-pink outpost at the corner of Melrose and La Brea. Voodoo Doughnuts — which also operates a smaller location in Studio City's Universal CityWalk — can now be found slinging its signature bacon-topped maple bars along with classics, an array of vegan options, and seasonal specials such as cherry cola. The new Fairfax-neighborhood Voodoo Doughnut is open nearly 24 hours a day and features a larger menu than the shop in CityWalk. It also offers merch such as shirts, crewnecks, pink mugs and bags of coffee. A beachy location just under the famous Venice sign is also in the works. Melrose Avenue's Voodoo Doughnut is open daily from 6 a.m. to 3 a.m. 7101 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, (213) 782-7666, Sign up for our Tasting Notes newsletter for restaurant reviews, Los Angeles food-related news and more. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
This downtown pizzeria from Issa Rae and partners comes with spritzes and classic funk
A new pizzeria from entertainment multihyphenate Issa Rae and her business partners is set to debut this weekend, bringing funk-inspired pizza to their popular cafe. By day, the downtown space will continue as Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen. At night, starting May 3, it flips to Downtown Dough, a pizza joint that specializes in a kind of California-meets-Neapolitan style, the crust leopard-spotted from a wood-fired brick oven. 'The daytime is really for the drip, and the nighttime is for the dough,' said co-owner Ajay Relan. Relan and business partner Yonnie Hagos launched Hilltop via their hospitality group, GVO, and quickly partnered with the 'Insecure' actor and producer, whose mission of creating inclusive spaces aligned with theirs. In the years since, the trio launched another four Hilltop locations, downtown rooftop bar Lost and a sleek restaurant, bar and jazz club called Somerville. 'We could not think of a better partner and ambassador for our mission,' said Relan, who added that Rae is 'very involved' in the restaurants' operations and menu planning. At Downtown Dough, the menu calls for almond wood sourced from Northern California, which is used at the wood-fired grill — for dishes such as chicken, branzino and steak — as well as in the pizza oven. Chef Geter Atienza (previously of Broken Spanish, Bouchon Bistro, the Fig) brushes his crust with garlic oil and sprinkles it with Parmesan and tops the pizzas with pepperoni, local honey and Fresno chiles; truffled fondue and farmers market cauliflower; bacon, Manila clams and caramelized onions; and more. There are pastas, Black Angus meatballs, salads and crispy calamari. Funk can be found in the restaurant's flavor — and in the air and on the walls. 'All of GVO's venues have a very music-first vibe curation, but funk is a genre that we had always enjoyed the most,' Relan said. 'It was just always the most fun, and [we're] marrying our love for pizza with the free and forward era of the '70s and the music that came along with it.' Artwork, color schemes and, of course, the playlist will all take their inspiration from funk. Expect to hear James Brown, Bootsy Collins, the Womacks, Sly and the Family Stone and other classics, plus newer acts inspired by those bands. Steen Bojsen Moller (also of Lost and Somerville) oversees the full bar, which focuses on spritzes — some of which are named for funk musicians, their albums and the movements they started. This particular Hilltop, which debuted in 2023, was intended to serve as a pop-up, but due to its popularity it became permanent. The 6,000-square-foot location accommodates nearly 200, including a 22-seat private dining room. In the evenings the trio previously used the open kitchen and ample space for catering and events but knew they wanted to open a full restaurant eventually. Rae, Hagos and Relan hope to serve the downtown community with a series of experiences: coffee by day at Hilltop, pizza and spritzes by evening at Downtown Dough, a nightcap and a taco at Lost's nearby rooftop — and more projects for Rae and GVO are already in the works. Downtown Dough launches May 3, and will open Wednesday to Sunday from 6 to 11 p.m. 718 S. Hill St., Los Angeles, One of the best wine shops in Long Beach recently expanded next door with a restaurant and wine bar. Last year, Alicia Kemper closed her cafe, Mangette, which she co-owned and sat next to her popular natural-wine shop, Buvons. Now, she's reimagining the Mangette space as an evening-only restaurant and wine bar that works in tandem with the bottle shop. Buvons Wine Bar + Restaurant offers a more extensive food menu than what was found at Mangette and in Buvons (which offers by-the-glass pours and snacks). It draws on weekly farmers market bounty and plays off the bottle shop's lengthy wine offerings. Both the food and wine menus rotate each month. Guests might find smoked-eel carbonara with dashi and a confit egg; duck confit with leek chutney; or house-made terrine. Sometimes the kitchen will be helmed by a guest chef; May features a menu by Côme Richard, who is visiting from Paris. Plates such as charcuterie and cheese boards can still be found in the bottle shop alongside wines by the glass, but more prepared dishes can only be found in the new wine bar and restaurant. The new wine bar and restaurant also features more seating areas than were available in Mangette, and hosts classes and events such as a monthly pasta workshop. Buvons Wine Bar is open Wednesday to Sunday from 5 to 11 p.m., while the adjacent bottle shop's hours are now Wednesday to Sunday from noon to 7 p.m. 1145 and 1147 Loma Ave., Long Beach, (562) 342-6557, A 'Top Chef' contestant with a range of Italian restaurants is branching out with his first taqueria. Via his hospitality group Memento Mori, chef Jackson Kalb operates Ospi in Venice and Brentwood, Jemma in Hollywood, Jame Enoteca and John Thomas Bar in El Segundo and the temporarily closed Jemma Pizzeria in the Palisades. He launched Jaime Taqueria, his newest restaurant and first foray into tacos, to bring some new flavor close to home. 'This isn't supposed to be inspired by any one regionality,' Kalb said, telling The Times that he lives in the area and wanted to open a cantina for the neighborhood. He tapped executive chef Marco Arreguin (Puesto, MXO) to lead the kitchen, and together they're serving large-format plates such as al pastor-inspired pork shank under pineapple glaze; starters such as guacamole topped with scallion and black garlic chile crunch; sides like brown-butter esquites; and tacos piled with beef cheek quesabirria, filet mignon, citrus-achiote chicken and mojo shrimp gobernador. Wash it down with margaritas, mezcal old-fashioneds, tequila flights, mocktails and more. Jaime Taqueria is open Sunday to Thursday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., with brunch slated for the future. 450 Main St., El Segundo, (310) 648-8231, One of the country's most famous doughnut chains just launched a bright-pink outpost at the corner of Melrose and La Brea. Voodoo Doughnuts — which also operates a smaller location in Studio City's Universal CityWalk — can now be found slinging its signature bacon-topped maple bars along with classics, an array of vegan options, and seasonal specials such as cherry cola. The new Fairfax-neighborhood Voodoo Doughnut is open nearly 24 hours a day and features a larger menu than the shop in CityWalk. It also offers merch such as shirts, crewnecks, pink mugs and bags of coffee. A beachy location just under the famous Venice sign is also in the works. Melrose Avenue's Voodoo Doughnut is open daily from 6 a.m. to 3 a.m. 7101 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, (213) 782-7666,
