UPchieve, an online tutor app for low-income students, launches a free tool for teachers

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UPchieve student (Aaron Custodio) next to UPchieve on a computer

Image Credits: UPchieve

UPchieve, the free, 24/7 online tutoring and college counseling app for low-income students, announced Thursday it’s giving teachers in Title 1 middle schools and high schools a new tool to ensure their students get the academic support they need.

The new offering, called “UPchieve for Teachers,” allows teachers to offer 1:1 support to their students. They can invite students to sign up for tutoring, create classes, and monitor students’ platform usage. Previously, students had to sign up for tutoring services themselves, but with this new product, teachers can now recommend students for 1:1 tutoring at no cost. In the coming weeks, they’ll also be able to assign tutoring sessions to entire classes.

UPchieve for Teachers is available to educators working in Title 1 middle schools and high schools. Title 1 is a federal aid program provided to K-12 schools with the highest number of low-income families within school districts. Approximately 43% of public schools qualify for Title I funding, with fewer than 50,000 schools benefiting from the program.

This new offering is expected to help UPchieve expand its user base by reaching students who may not be aware of free services like this or who may not be actively seeking additional assistance.

“The product is going to be really valuable to teachers because it’s going to help them accomplish some of the hardest parts of their job,” founder Aly Murray told TechCrunch. “Students are coming into the class with different gaps in their foundational skills. Teachers have to try to support all of their students, but there’s not enough time to support each student individually, so that’s a natural place where a tutor can help. We’re really excited about launching a product that’s going to give teachers more control.” 

Image Credits: UPchieve

UPchieve was founded in 2016, shortly after Murray graduated from the University of Pennsylvania. As a former low-income student herself, she struggled to access academic support services throughout her schooling and wanted to make it easy for other students to be able to get help whenever they needed it, even when working on homework late at night. 

“I was raised by a single mom, and as an immigrant to the United States, she often wasn’t able to help me with schoolwork and with my college applications. And so that had a big impact on my life. It made things very difficult, and I found that I often needed help late at night when there was really nowhere I could turn to for support,” Murray said. 

UPchieve says it has matched over 190,000 tutoring requests from more than 20,000 students across all 50 states. Its 24/7 online tutoring sessions are conducted in the in-app messenger or via voice chat on the web or mobile app. UPchieve covers over 30 subjects, including math, science, English, history, humanities, and more.

Tutors can volunteer by signing up on the website. Volunteers can even be students themselves; however, they must be in 9th grade or higher. UPchieve currently has around 2,400 tutors active on the platform. 

“All of the volunteers on UPchieve go through a background screening, training, and certification process to become a volunteer tutor. Before they’re ever going to work with a student, they have to pass a quiz in every subject that they want to help students with,” Murray explained.

Image Credits: UPchieve

Similar to other edtech companies, the company utilizes OpenAI’s GPT-4o to assist tutors in providing AI-generated feedback and progress reports to students after the sessions are over. In the future, the company also plans to use AI to help tutors create practice problems and offer AI-generated summaries of student sessions through its Teachers product. 

“We have no plans to replace our human tutors with AI tutors anytime in the near future,” Murray added.

As a nonprofit organization, UPchieve relies on charitable donations, grants, and paid partnerships with schools, districts, and corporations. Donors include Atlassian, AT&T, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Guggenheim Capital, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, the Skyline Foundation, and Verizon. 

UPchieve has partnered with over 50 schools, and each school or organization pays a $10,000 partnership fee per year or is sponsored by a donor or corporation who pays the fee on their behalf. The company also graduated from Y Combinator’s Winter 2021 batch. 

In 2023, UPchieve raised over $4 million through philanthropy and earned revenue from paid partnerships. The company claims its annual recurring revenue (ARR) is currently $840,000, which comes solely from paid and sponsored partnerships. 

Sportive young woman at the riverside in the city with smartphone and smartwatch

FlutterFlow attracts cash for its low-code mobile app dev platform

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Sportive young woman at the riverside in the city with smartphone and smartwatch

Image Credits: Getty Images

Low-code dev platforms have gained momentum in recent years, in large part because they promise to shorten what’s otherwise typically a lengthy app development cycle. According to data from analytics firm GlobalData, there was a fivefold increase in VC funding into low-code dev platforms from 2021 to 2022.

Demand has tapered off a bit since then as the focus shifts to AI, particularly generative AI. But low-code isn’t going anywhere, as evidenced most recently by low-code dev startup FlutterFlow’s financing round.

FlutterFlow, which is building a low-code platform for mobile app developers, today announced that it closed a $25.5 million Series A led by GV (formerly Google Ventures), Gradient Ventures (Google’s AI-focused venture fund), Xoogler Ventures and Y Combinator, among others, a source familiar with the matter tells TechCrunch — at a ~$170 million valuation. The tranche brings FlutterFlow’s total raised to date to $30 million and will be put toward scaling FlutterFlow’s enterprise efforts and “significantly” increasing its investment in AI, according to CEO and co-founder Abel Mengistu.

“If you look at how many people have come online primarily through mobile devices over the last 10 years, it’s a staggering number,” Mengistu told TechCrunch in an email interview. “But … even for large successful companies with billions of dollars in annual revenue, delivering high-quality digital experiences is the exception, not the norm. That’s ultimately the problem FlutterFlow aims to solve.”

Mengistu co-founded FlutterFlow with Alex Greaves in 2020. The two met while working at Google on the Maps team, where they became friends.

FlutterFlow is the pair’s second startup after the pandemic doomed their first, a restaurant recommendation app.

“We weren’t making progress [on our first startup] and shut that down less than a year into it,” Mengistu said. “Upon reflection, we realized we spent far too much time trying to build what should have been a relatively simple app on top of a lot of backend complexity. That’s when Alex and I decided to work on making it easier to build apps.”

FlutterFlow provides low-code tools designed to make it easier to build apps that run on iOS and Android as well as desktop OSes (e.g. Windows and macOS). Leveraging Flutter, Google’s open source UI creation toolkit, FlutterFlow generates what Abel describes as “clean” and “maintainable” app source code.

FlutterFlow
Image Credits: FlutterFlow

There’s no shortage of competition in the market for low-code app dev platforms. See Appsmith, which focuses on business apps, and Builder.ai, a modular app-building suite.

But Mengistu asserts FlutterFlow’s differentiated in its emphasis on an “open” dev approach — i.e. allowing customers to deploy apps without any dependencies on its platform — and fully centralized governance pipeline. On-trend, FlutterFlow’s also embracing GenAI, recently launching an AI-powered code assistant that can generate code given a description of desired functionality (e.g. “find the distance between two points”).

“FlutterFlow [enables] organizations to establish their core building blocks, such as design systems and components, that can be inherited and utilized across different projects,” Mengistu said. “Vendor lock-in is a great strategy to extract maximum value in the short term, but we’re focused on providing value for our customers.”

FlutterFlow’s strategy appears to be working for it; the company claims to have around 10,000 self-service paying customers, ~1 million users and a handful (between 10 and 20) of enterprise customers (mum’s the word on how large those enterprise customers are). Abel said that burn is currently “minimal” and that FlutterFlow has “several years” of runway even with accelerated spend.

“FlutterFlow is a tool that allows customers to accelerate timelines and increase productivity,” Mengistu said. “Therefore, headwinds can present an opportunity for us as decision makers are looking for ways to execute on ambitious product roadmaps amidst increasing financial constraints.”

Sportive young woman at the riverside in the city with smartphone and smartwatch

FlutterFlow attracts cash for its low-code mobile app dev platform

by with No Comment Tech

Sportive young woman at the riverside in the city with smartphone and smartwatch

Image Credits: Getty Images

Low-code dev platforms have gained momentum in recent years, in large part because they promise to shorten what’s otherwise typically a lengthy app development cycle. According to data from analytics firm GlobalData, there was a fivefold increase in VC funding into low-code dev platforms from 2021 to 2022.

Demand has tapered off a bit since then as the focus shifts to AI, particularly generative AI. But low-code isn’t going anywhere, as evidenced most recently by low-code dev startup FlutterFlow’s financing round.

FlutterFlow, which is building a low-code platform for mobile app developers, today announced that it closed a $25.5 million Series A led by GV (formerly Google Ventures), Gradient Ventures (Google’s AI-focused venture fund), Xoogler Ventures and Y Combinator, among others, a source familiar with the matter tells TechCrunch — at a ~$170 million valuation. The tranche brings FlutterFlow’s total raised to date to $30 million and will be put toward scaling FlutterFlow’s enterprise efforts and “significantly” increasing its investment in AI, according to CEO and co-founder Abel Mengistu.

“If you look at how many people have come online primarily through mobile devices over the last 10 years, it’s a staggering number,” Mengistu told TechCrunch in an email interview. “But … even for large successful companies with billions of dollars in annual revenue, delivering high-quality digital experiences is the exception, not the norm. That’s ultimately the problem FlutterFlow aims to solve.”

Mengistu co-founded FlutterFlow with Alex Greaves in 2020. The two met while working at Google on the Maps team, where they became friends.

FlutterFlow is the pair’s second startup after the pandemic doomed their first, a restaurant recommendation app.

“We weren’t making progress [on our first startup] and shut that down less than a year into it,” Mengistu said. “Upon reflection, we realized we spent far too much time trying to build what should have been a relatively simple app on top of a lot of backend complexity. That’s when Alex and I decided to work on making it easier to build apps.”

FlutterFlow provides low-code tools designed to make it easier to build apps that run on iOS and Android as well as desktop OSes (e.g. Windows and macOS). Leveraging Flutter, Google’s open source UI creation toolkit, FlutterFlow generates what Abel describes as “clean” and “maintainable” app source code.

FlutterFlow
Image Credits: FlutterFlow

There’s no shortage of competition in the market for low-code app dev platforms. See Appsmith, which focuses on business apps, and Builder.ai, a modular app-building suite.

But Mengistu asserts FlutterFlow’s differentiated in its emphasis on an “open” dev approach — i.e. allowing customers to deploy apps without any dependencies on its platform — and fully centralized governance pipeline. On-trend, FlutterFlow’s also embracing GenAI, recently launching an AI-powered code assistant that can generate code given a description of desired functionality (e.g. “find the distance between two points”).

“FlutterFlow [enables] organizations to establish their core building blocks, such as design systems and components, that can be inherited and utilized across different projects,” Mengistu said. “Vendor lock-in is a great strategy to extract maximum value in the short term, but we’re focused on providing value for our customers.”

FlutterFlow’s strategy appears to be working for it; the company claims to have around 10,000 self-service paying customers, ~1 million users and a handful (between 10 and 20) of enterprise customers (mum’s the word on how large those enterprise customers are). Abel said that burn is currently “minimal” and that FlutterFlow has “several years” of runway even with accelerated spend.

“FlutterFlow is a tool that allows customers to accelerate timelines and increase productivity,” Mengistu said. “Therefore, headwinds can present an opportunity for us as decision makers are looking for ways to execute on ambitious product roadmaps amidst increasing financial constraints.”

missing target, seed, Series A, startups

Crypto exits remain low but investors remain unfazed

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missing target, seed, Series A, startups

Image Credits: Getty Images

The global venture capital market is enduring a long period of limited exits. Startups are staying private longer, M&A is quiet in part due to sharpened regulatory oversight, and the IPO market remains frozen. This means many historical venture deals are slowly rotting on the vine, in IRR terms.

The crypto market is no different, but some investors in the space are unfazed. New data from PitchBook’s Q4 2023 Crypto Report makes it clear that if the larger startup market is suffering from an exit drought, crypto startups are possibly even more parched.

The lack of crypto startup exit volume — and value — can be linked to a related decline in total venture investment into upstart web3 companies; when liquidity is light, investment return prospects can darken. The good news for crypto founders is that despite slim chances at selling their company, venture capital investment ticked 2.5% higher in Q4 2023 compared to the third quarter, though deal volume fell a similar percentage.

The fourth quarter was consistent with the “low-level activity seen throughout 2023,” the report stated. And with only 12 exits during that time frame, it was the lowest number since Q4 2020.

More deal value despite limited exits does imply a level of optimism among crypto investors that we might consider to be surprising. But with crypto prices rising, key regulatory hurdles cleared, and other positive signals casting a bit of warm light on web3 more generally, more investment doesn’t shock us.

The exit question, however, remains, recent investment totals be damned. Looking at yearly data, crypto-focused, venture capital–generated exits worth $1.2 billion in 2012, just $500 million between 2019 and 2020. In 2022 and 2023, the numbers came to $1.4 billion and $1 billion. The outlier was 2021, with $88 billion worth of crypto exit value.

Why the massive discrepancy? It’s not hard to parse: Exits were hot in 2021 for many startup categories, and Coinbase went public that year. The company was worth more than $65 billion at its direct-listing reference price, and even more in early trading. That explains why 2021 stands out so sharply compared to its peer years, even if Coinbase is worth a more modest $37 billion today.

Equity vs. tokenomics

In equity terms, then, there has been a single venture-backed crypto exit of note in recent years (Coinbase), while all other web3 exits measured in a traditional manner are a rounding error at most.

However, in crypto, exits are largely bifurcated between M&A and IPOs on the one hand, and token launches on the other, said Vance Spencer, co-founder of Framework Ventures. “The first two are not the primary ways in which VCs get liquidity in crypto, and so the relatively low, 1-billion-dollar exit number is likely a bit misleading.”

“The vast majority of liquidity events in crypto VC will come from tokens, and that’s likely much harder to gauge holistically,” Spencer said. “I wouldn’t see a decline in these metrics as a proof point that VCs are having more difficulty achieving liquidity.”

“Year over year, we have witnessed an increasing evolution from the ‘traditional VC exit model’ to more of a token-driven liquidity event approach where decentralization, building in public, and community adoption are paramount to driving a successful return for all stakeholders,” said Brian Mahoney, VP of business development at venture-focused studio Thesis.

But some investors believe this is indicative of how the market is changing and how important it is to hold — or HODL — investments with conviction, even as they are navigating the exit dearth.

Not worried

While it’s important for returns to be delivered to investors from the more mature investments, some firms are doubling down on their support of early-stage projects.

For example, one of Ryze Labs’ early investments in Solana is holding strong, thanks to its performance in the past year, said Thomas Tang, the firm’s VP of investment. “Our experience during the bear markets showed us that we need to rise above by being steadfast in supporting innovative ideas that have the potential to redefine the future of blockchain tech,” Tang said.

Investors also recognize that these exits could take years, said Frameworks’ Spencer. “Smart VCs did their buying in 2022 and 2023, and now the more competent class of investors are waiting for new all-time highs before even thinking about exit opportunities,” he said. “We’re known for being more long-term oriented, especially with venture investments, and we believe that mindset has put us in a good position for this coming cycle.”

As the venture landscape focuses toward 2024 and the crypto market cap continues to grow, there’s still cautious optimism in the space and an appetite to hold on to seemingly strong bets.

Photoncycle storage

Photoncycle targets low-cost energy storage with a clever hydrogen solution

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Photoncycle storage

Image Credits: Photoncycle (opens in a new window)

For years, the solar energy sector has grappled with interseasonal energy storage. The ability to harness the surplus solar energy of summer months for use during the winter has remained an elusive goal, with existing solutions like batteries falling short due to prohibitive costs and limited lifespans. Hydrogen, meanwhile, despite its clean-burning properties, has been sidelined due to inefficiency and high costs.

Photoncycle — a startup emerging from the depths of an accelerator in Oslo Science Park in Oslo, Norway — has been working on a solution. With a vision as bright as the summer sun, the startup claims its solid hydrogen-based technology can store energy more efficiently in an ammonia synthesis reactor. The claim is this tech does the storage more cost-effectively than any battery or liquid hydrogen solution on the market.

 

A schematic of how Photoncycle envisions its full system when installed at a house. Image Credits: Photoncycle

“Lithium-ion batteries use costly metals. Our material is super cheap: To store 10,000 kilowatt-hours, it costs around $1,500, so it’s almost nothing. In addition, our storage solution is 20 times the density of a lithium-ion battery, and you don’t lose the current,” founder and CEO Bjørn Brandtzaeg explains in an interview with TechCrunch. “That means we have a system where you can contain energy over time, enabling seasonal storage. It’s a completely different thing than traditional batteries.” 

Photoncycle employs water and electricity to produce hydrogen. That in itself isn’t uncommon if you’ve been following fuel cell vehicle technology. However, the company’s approach incorporates an innovative twist: a reversible high-temperature fuel cell. This advanced fuel cell can produce hydrogen and generate electricity within the same unit. 

The core of Photoncycle’s innovation lies in its treatment of hydrogen. They process the hydrogen and then utilize its technology to convert and store it in a solid form. The company claims this storage method is not only safe, owing to the non-flammable and non-explosive nature of the solid state, but also highly efficient. It enables hydrogen storage at densities approximately 50% greater than liquid hydrogen, presenting a significant advancement in hydrogen storage solutions. These innovations form the cornerstone of Photoncycle’s system, facilitating safe and dense hydrogen storage, which the company says is a huge step forward in energy technology.

Current clean energy solutions such as rooftop solar power are limited by inconsistent supply due to the unpredictable nature of weather conditions. A robust, reusable energy storage solution could bridge these timings, ensuring a stable energy supply when these renewable sources encounter unavoidable intermittent periods. 

Great in theory, but not without its own challenges.

“The Netherlands is the country in Europe with the highest density of rooftop solar. We are seeing a massive ramp now because of high energy prices; everyone wants solar on the roof,” Brandtzaeg says. He adds, however, that this method can backfire for homeowners: “In July last year, in the Netherlands, in the middle of the day, you had to pay €500 a megawatt hour to export your electricity.”

Putting the energy storage along with the house generating the power effectively lets houses go off-grid. Photoncycle says it has tested and worked the main components of its solution — the next step is to integrate it into a system. If successful, the company says it can seriously challenge Powerwall, Tesla’s lithium-ion battery solution.

David Gerez, CTO at Photoncycle, and Ole Laugerud, who is a Photoncycle chemist, in Photoncycle’s purpose-built lab, which has been operational for close to two years. Image Credits: Photoncycle

“This is a relatively complex system — that’s why we have so many PhDs in different disciplines working on this. The reason why Elon Musk said that hydrogen is stupid, is that when you convert electricity to hydrogen and back, you are losing quite a bit of energy,” Brandtzaeg says. He believes his company can turn this bug into a feature. “In a residential setting where 70% of energy needs are heating, there is an opportunity to use that excess heat to provide hot water. We will target markets where people are using natural gas for heating at the moment and then replace the gas boiler in the house using the existing water-based infrastructure.”

Brandtzaeg’s confidence regarding the concept’s operational framework is compelling. He gestured toward a small mock-up of their operations plant within their labs, scaled down to the size of a car battery. Brandtzaeg believes this scaling should be problem-free, citing it as the primary reason they felt confident moving forward with the project. 

When it comes to power delivery, it takes a little while for the hydrogen to generate electricity, so while it is spooling up, the company relies on an intermediary, more conventional, battery for load balancing. The firm certainly has investors’ attention: Photoncycle just raised $5.3 million (€5 million) to build its first few power storage devices in Denmark, which Photoncycle has chosen as its test market. 

“We could have raised 10 times as much as we did, given the interest. But after this raise, I’m still a majority owner,” Brandtzaeg says. “I wanted to keep control over the business as long as possible and not raise more capital than we need to bring this service to market.” 

CMU drone flying above wildfire

CMU is developing low-flying drones to map wildfires

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CMU drone flying above wildfire

Image Credits: CMU

A harsh truth: As bad as North American wildfires have grown over the past several years, things are only going to get worse. Climate change continues to accelerate the issue, putting people, property, nature and animals at risk.

Drones have been a fixture in the fight for over a decade now, and the Fire Apparatus Manufacturers’ Association anticipates its fleet to increase to 30,000 by next year. While effective, however, these systems certainly have their limitations.

“As of now, the military-grade drones used by those fighting wildfires are high-altitude aircraft that fly far above the trees,” Carnegie Mellon University PhD student Andrew Jong notes. “They can’t fly low because they can’t see through smoke. We want to fly just above the trees or even below the canopy.”

Researchers at CMU’s Robotics Institute are building drones capable of navigating through the smoke, providing firefighters with map and escape routes, while drawing attention to danger zones.

Retired firefighter Josh Wilkins, who is collaborating with researchers on the project, notes somberly, “I helped bury too many folks who died for lack of actionable information.” He adds that firefighters are often provided 12-hour-old information when they begin their eight- to 12-hour shifts. By that point, the information is outdated and poses a very real risk to first responders.

The project builds on research for CMU’s DARPA Subterranean Challenge, which revolved around underground navigation for mine rescues. The forest drones utilize pathfinding to determine the optimal trajectories with obstructed views. The goal is to effectively build a 3D “digital twin” of the impacted area as quickly as possible.

Wilkins notes, however, that his former colleagues can be hesitant to embrace new technologies. “There’s always resistance, particularly in the fire service,” the second-generation firefighter explains. “But once we show them the safety factors that have been designed into these systems and the good data that we can collect with the drones, I think we’ll win them over.”

Fisker CEO Henrik Fisker introduces the all-electric compact hatchback Pear

Fisker stiffed the engineering firm developing its low-cost EV and pickup truck, lawsuit claims

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Fisker CEO Henrik Fisker introduces the all-electric compact hatchback Pear

Image Credits: Frederic J. BROWN / AFP / Getty Images

Henrik Fisker stood on a stage last August and proudly debuted two prototypes designed to catapult his eponymous EV startup Fisker into the mainstream. There was the Pear, a low-cost EV meant for the masses, and the Alaska, Fisker’s entry into the red-hot pickup truck market.

In the weeks that followed, Fisker stopped paying the engineering firm that helped develop those vehicles, according to a previously unreported lawsuit filed in federal court this week. The firm, a U.S. subsidiary of German engineering giant Bertrandt AG, also accuses Fisker of wrongfully holding onto IP associated with those vehicles. It’s asking for around $13 million in damages.

The lawsuit adds to a pile of legal trouble facing Fisker, which is on the brink of bankruptcy. At least 30 lawsuits alleging lemon law violations have been filed, a handful of which Fisker has already settled. A former director has filed a proposed class action suit claiming unpaid wages. A textile supplier has also sued Fisker for more than $1 million that it alleges the EV startup never paid.

The engineering lawsuit stands out amid the legal trouble because it suggests that financial cracks were already forming inside Fisker last August despite the bold claims its CEO made on that stage.

“The lawsuit filed by Bertrandt is without merit,” Matthew DeBord, Fisker’s vice president of communications, said in an email to TechCrunch. “It is a legally baseless and disappointing attempt by what has been a valued partner to extract from Fisker payments and intellectual property to which Bertrandt has no right to under the relevant agreements or otherwise.” He declined to comment on the other cases.

Bertrandt says in the complaint filed in Michigan Eastern District Court that it entered into a “design and development agreement” with Fisker in May 2022 to perform “engineering, design, and development services” on the Pear — a contract worth north of $35 million, according to a copy of the design and development agreement attached to the lawsuit. (The agreement also shows that Fisker had previously hired Bertrandt to perform a feasibility study, cost analysis, timing proposal and other items for the Pear EV.)

At some point after entering into the agreement, Bertrandt says Fisker asked it to do similar work in connection with the Alaska pickup truck. Bertrandt says in the complaint that a formal written agreement was never executed with Fisker for the Alaska, but that it provided a quote of $1.66 million that Fisker agreed to pay.

Fisker stopped paying Bertrandt at the end of August 2023, according to the complaint. The company continued to fail to pay invoices through January 31, 2024, bringing the total unpaid to $7,061,443. The engineering firm also claims that Fisker’s decision to put the development work on the Pear and Alaska EVs on “pause” is an additional breach of the contract as it caused Bertrandt to suffer delay costs.

Bertrandt says it had a meeting with Fisker on February 6, 2024 where the EV startup “acknowledged its liability for payment of these invoices and agreed to promptly pay $3,685,000 as a partial payment” — but then never made that payment.

Breaching the contract, according to Bertrandt, has cost the engineering firm an additional $5,858,000 in “lost profits, delay costs, and incidental damages,” which is why it’s seeking $12,919,443 in total damages.

What’s more, the firm says it demanded on April 22 that Fisker “return all of Bertrandt’s intellectual property” and “certify in writing that Fisker had not retained any hard copies or electronic copies,” and claims the EV startup has “failed to do either.”

“Fisker has been unjustly enriched at the expense of Bertrandt,” lawyers for the firm write in the complaint.

Bertrandt isn’t the only supplier to sue Fisker so far.

Georgia-based Corinthian Textiles sued Fisker in Los Angeles Superior Court in early April. The supplier claims it entered into an agreement with the EV startup in early 2023 to provide it with “customized products for use in Fisker’s automobiles.” It doesn’t specify what products it made for Fisker, but the company’s website says its automotive division specializes in floor, trunk and cargo mats, as well as “automotive carpet.”

Corinthian says Fisker “refused, and continue[s] to refuse” to pay invoices and other fees in the amount of $1,077,571.75.

Working overtime

Days before Bertrandt sued in federal court, Robert Lee, an employee who worked for Fisker from October 2023 to March 5, 2024, filed a proposed class action complaint in Los Angeles Superior Court alleging a pattern of overworking employees and not properly compensating them. The suit also claims Fisker failed to reimburse expenses and pay out wages owed when employees separated from the company.

Lee claims that he and other hourly employees worked “well over” eight hours a day and 40 hours per week, and instead often worked over 12 hours per day. He claims they were “frequently compelled” to work weekends. Fisker did not compensate employees for that additional time, according to the complaint. Lee also claims Fisker failed to properly track hours worked, and even deducted commissions from their hourly pay.

He claims employees were “regularly compelled to work off the clock and [Fisker Inc] created a policy to account for less hours than the total amount of hours actually worked” in order to “meet certain goals, to generate more sales.”

Lee also claims Fisker “effectively coerced and pressured its non-exempt employees to work of[f]-the-clock, have their wages deducted, have their wages miscalculated, to shorten (tantamount to a missed meal period) or forego meal and rest periods (or not be paid for their rest breaks).”

Lemons

Fisker started getting peppered with lawsuits in California alleging that it was violating the state’s lemon law as early as last November, which TechCrunch previously reported. The company has started to settle some of those earlier lawsuits in what roughly amounts to buying back the vehicles, according to court filings and a person familiar with the settlements.

More lemon law lawsuits have continued to pour in across the state, where Fisker has delivered the bulk of its cars in the United States.

Customers may have taken action in other states where Fisker has delivered cars, like New York, Florida and Massachusetts. Those states require that lemon law disputes run through arbitration, making it difficult to know just how many actions may be pending against the company.

In its recent annual filing for 2023, Fisker noted that it is still defending against a proposed class action lawsuit from shareholders alleging violations of securities laws. Fisker then goes on to vaguely say that “[v]arious other legal actions, claims, and proceedings are pending against the Company, including, but not limited to, matters arising out of alleged product defects; employment-related matters; product warranties; and consumer protection laws.”

It also implied that it has been contacted by unnamed government agencies for information about its business, including subpoenas, in a new line of text that it had never included in any of its prior SEC filings.

“The Company also from time to time receives subpoenas and other inquiries or requests for information from agencies or other representatives of U.S. federal, state, and foreign governments,” the company wrote. DeBord, the communications VP, told TechCrunch that Fisker “currently [has] no pending subpoenas from governments.”

Correction: The article incorrectly identified Robert Lee as Fisker’s former director of technical services. The Lee who filed the lawsuit is an employee who worked for Fisker from October 2023 to March 5, 2024. The article has been corrected.