Klarna

Welcome to TechCrunch Fintech (formerly The Interchange)! Apologies for being out last week — a cold got the best of me, but I’m back and here to talk about the fact that shutting down startups is big business, Stripe’s new valuation, Klarna’s latest AI update and more. To get a roundup of TechCrunch’s biggest and most important fintech stories delivered to your inbox every Sunday at 7:30 a.m. PT, subscribe here. The big story Last week, I wrote about two startups — Sunset and SimpleClosure —…

Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski bragged on Tuesday that his company’s new OpenAI-powered customer service chatbot was doing the work of 700 people—nearly two years after Klarna laid off about 700 people.Like It or Not, Your Doctor Will Use AI | AI UnlockedIn a post on X, Siemiatkowski called the work of Klarna’s AI assistant a “breakthrough in the practical application of AI!” The CEO explained that in the chatbot’s first four weeks, it had handled about 66% of its customer support or about 2.3 million chats. Klarna…

In a statement that’s likely to spark controversy, Klara announced that its AI assistant does the work of 700 full-time agents. The statement might raise skepticism for those who remember that the Swedish fintech unicorn laid off roughly the same number of people in 2022, citing inflation and economic uncertainty. Others might also recall that in December, the company freezed hiring on account of AI “productivity gains.” Klarna partnered with OpenAI last year, integrating ChatGPT technology…

Financial Times: Klarna reports 2023 revenue up 22% YoY to ~$2.28B, a $241M net loss, down from $1.01B in 2022, with credit losses falling by 32% in 2023 to $369M — Klarna has reported a fifth straight annual loss as the Swedish fintech that was once Europe's most valuable private tech group stuck … Financial Times: Klarna reports 2023 revenue up 22% YoY to ~$2.28B, a $241M net loss, down from $1.01B in 2022, with credit losses falling by 32% in 2023 to $369M — Klarna has…

Klarna is bullish on bots. One month after taking its OpenAI-powered virtual assistant global, the Swedish buy-now, pay-later company has released new data touting its ability to handle customer communications, make shoppers happier, and even drive better financial results. The app-based AI chatbot already handles two-thirds of all customer service chats, the company said Tuesday—some 2.3 million conversations so far—with the virtual assistant earning customer satisfaction ratings at the same level as human agents.…

Swedish buy now, pay later firm Klarna unveils a $7.99 monthly subscription plan called Klarna PlusCourtesy: KlarnaSwedish fintech firm Klarna is launching a monthly subscription plan in the U.S. to lock in its heaviest users ahead of an expected initial public offering this year, the company told CNBC.The product is set to be announced later Wednesday and will cost $7.99 per month, the Stockholm-based company said.Users of the subscription plan, named Klarna Plus, will get service fees waived, earn double rewards points…

Sebastian Siemiatkowski is a co-founder and CEO of Klarna, the Sweden-based company that’s one of the world’s biggest providers of buy now, pay later services to customers. Klarna started off in Europe and entered the U.S. market in 2015.Buy now, pay later has become an increasingly popular option for consumers for purchases: its usage is up 10-fold since the pandemic and U.S. regulators see it as potentially a more sustainable way for borrowers to pay for purchases instead of using credit cards.Siemiatkowski spoke to the…

In a hiring freeze that CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski attributes to the rise of AI, Swedish fintech unicorn Klarna is no longer recruiting staff beyond its engineering department. “There will be a shrinking of the company,” Siemiatkowski told the Telegraph. “We’re not currently hiring at all, apart from engineers.” The chief exec of the buy now, pay later app said that the productivity gains from using tools like ChatGPT meant the company now needs “fewer people to do the same thing.” Klarna is…

Welcome back to The Interchange, where we take a look at the hottest fintech news of the previous week. If you want to receive The Interchange directly in your inbox every Sunday, head here to sign up! Due to the U.S. holiday, this is an abbreviated edition. Buy now, pay later comeback Both Klarna and Affirm — known primarily for their buy now, pay later businesses — revealed their quarterly results this week. And they did not disappoint. Affirm reported that its fiscal first-quarter revenue grew 37% year over year…

Apple on Tuesday launched its "buy now, pay later" (BNPL) service in the US, a move that threatens to disrupt the fintech sector dominated by firms like Affirm Holdings and Swedish payments company Klarna.The service, Apple Pay Later, will allow users to split purchases into four payments spread over six weeks with no interest or fees, the company said. It will initially be offered to select users, with plans of a full roll-out in the coming months.Users can get loans between $50 (roughly Rs. 4,000) and $1,000 (roughly…