Outdoor Voices and Glossier are cleaning up by making fashion inclusiveThe founders of Glossier and Outdoor Voices, Emily Weiss and Tyler Haney, respectively, spoke at TechCrunch Disrupt in New York today about how they’re taking a bite out of the massive beauty and apparel industries. Key to both startups’ success? A digital-first, and friendly, approach to everything from sales to product development. [ Tech Crunch ] IFC to invest $125 mn in two Mahindra Group companiesInternational Finance Corporation plans to invest $125 million (Rs 800 crore) in two financial services companies of the diversified Mahindra Group, the World Bank’s private-sector investment arm said on Monday. IFC will put in $100 million in Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services Ltd and $25 million in Mahindra Rural Housing Finance Ltd via non-convertible debentures, it said in separate disclosures. [ VC Circle ] Snap's Rebound Accelerates After Big-Name Funds Disclose PositionsSnap Inc. keeps clawing back losses from last week’s 21 percent swoon, welcome news to any of the institutional owners now detailing stakes in the messaging service -- as long as they didn’t bail in the downdraft. Fidelity Management & Research, New York-based hedge fund Coatue Management and Singapore state investment firm Temasek Holdings Pte were among those listing positions with the Securities and Exchange Commission in filings today. Some were started before Snap went public. Fidelity and Coatue each reportedly participated in pre-IPO funding rounds. [ Bloomberg ] NAB’s digital branch UBank launches AI assistant to guide consumers through home loan applicationsNational Australia Bank’s (NAB) digital-only banking service UBank has announced the release of RoboChat, an artificial intelligence (AI) assistant designed to guide homebuyers through the entire home loan application process. Built on IBM Watson’s Conversation API, RoboChat combines machine learning and intuitive language to respond to customers across forty home loan topics as well as hundreds of associated questions. [ Startup Daily ] A Silicon Valley startup is under scrutiny after a former employee sued and alleged there was a sex bed in the office ‘kink room’Another Silicon Valley startup has been accused for having an office with "rampant sexual behavior" and discriminating against female employees. On May 8, UploadVR was sued by a former female employee, for allegations of a hostile work environment, gender discrimination, failure to prevent harassment, and retaliation. [ Business Insider ] 2016: An Uncertain But Compelling Year For Venture CapitalWhile the first half of 2015 was a rip-roaring start for the venture capital industry, by the second half of the year, VCs adopted a more measured approach to their investments, and excitement tempered. As we discuss in our latest annual State of Venture Capital report, in many ways, 2016 played out the same way that 2015 ended. Ultimately, the venture capital industry remained at its “new normal.” [ Forbes ] Notion Capital outs new $80M ‘growth equity’ fund to invest in enterprise Saas and cloud portfolioNotion Capital, the London-based VC focussed on enterprise SaaS and cloud startups, is announcing a number of updates today. This includes a new later-stage follow-on fund for existing portfolio companies, and the final closing of its third early-stage fund, which now counts Cisco amongst a number of new U.S-based LPs. The firm has also made two internal promotions, with both Chrys Chrysanthou and Patrick Norris making the step up to Partner. Two Billionaires Have Yet to Approve Flipkart Pact for SnapdealFlipkart Online Services Pvt. is nearing a final agreement to acquire rival e-commerce provider Snapdeal after winning support from the startup’s three primary venture investors, but the contract still needs backing from two of India’s most powerful businessmen, according to people familiar with the matter. SoftBank Group Corp., the largest shareholder in Snapdeal, has pushed for the deal and ultimately persuaded Nexus Venture Partners to agree to terms, said the people, asking not to be named because the matter is private. [ Bloomberg ] How an Accountant Turned a Water Bottle Company Into a $100 Million Fashion BrandEditor's Note: S'well is a winner of Inc.'s 2017 Design Awards, our annual recognition of entrepreneurs using design to build great companies, in the "Brand Design" category. When S'well founder Sarah Kauss locked in a distribution deal with Target, her first reflex was to make sure someone on her team actually toiled through the vendor's phone book-size guide for new partners. [ INC ] If You Invested in Amazon at Its IPO, You Would Be a Millionaire TodayInvestment titan Warren Buffett has good reason to regret not buying Amazonwhen it first went public — as do most investors. Had the average Joe decided to save $5,000 and spend it on Amazon's stock when it first hit the public markets 20 years ago, they be worth at least $2.4 million today. While those returns would have made the average Joe quite happy, $2.4 million would've hardly been noticeable in Buffett's now $72 billion net worth. [ Fortune ] Uber Pushes Google into a Partnership with Rival LyftAsk people to name a ridesharing company and most would probably mention Uber. But there's also Lyft, the key word being "also." It's a distant second in the U.S. But Lyft has been making headway by capitalizing on Uber's self-inflicted wounds. The number two in ride-sharing had made hay on social media and in PR. And now Lyft just made its biggest score off Uber to date. Oscar Health’s CEO believes the U.S. has a moral obligation to provide healthcare to its citizensHealth insurance in the US is broken. That much seems to be regarded as a universal truth. Oscar Health co-founder and CEO Mario Schlosser acknowledged that the system is need of some major fixes this afternoon during a panel at Disrupt New York. And the country, he added, certainly has a ways to go in order to address those key shortcomings. [ Tech Crunch ] White House claims Apple’s $1 billion US investment is sign of ‘optimism’ around TrumpWhite House press secretary Sean Spicer on Monday afternoon cited Apple’s $1 billion investment in US manufacturing as a sign of “optimism” around President Trump’s domestic economic agenda. “The president is also glad to see businesses once again making significant investments in America,” Spicer said at the daily press briefing. “From Intel to General Motors to Walmart to Apple — who specifically just announced earlier this month they will start a $1 billion fund to promote advanced manufacturing jobs here in the United States. [ The Verge ] Chef Andrew Zimmern talks about the future of foodThis week on Technotopia I talked to chef Andrew Zimmern, host of Bizarre Foods. Zimmern is a fascinating thinker and has a lot to say about the future of restaurants, eating, and food distribution. Zimmern believes that the future looks more like the artisinal movement than fast food and he has some interesting answers to what the world looks like in 20 years. Listen in to find out what he thinks of the coming food crisis. [ Tech Crunch ] Chart: Here’s How 5 Tech Giants Make Their BillionsSheryl Sandberg is right: the way America treats mothers has to changet’s supposed to take a village to raise a child. In America, however, it takes a really big bank account. Indeed, childcare costs in America are so astronomical that they’ve even become an issue for the wealthiest 0.001%. Ivanka Trump, for example, has made tax deductions for childcare one of her signature issues. And on Mother’s Day, Sheryl Sandberg, the Facebook executive, called for America to improve its childcare policies and better support working mothers in a post on her personal Facebook page. [ The Guardian ] Bill Gates reveals what he'd study if he were a college freshman todayTake notice, incoming college freshmen — the richest person in the world has some advice for what you should study. In a Twitter thread on Monday, Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates said if he were to enter college now, he'd major in artificial intelligence, energy, or biosciences. He called them all "promising fields where you can make a huge impact." [ Business Insider ] |