Tech billionaires Eric Schmidt and Peter Thiel among the first people to show their faces at secretive Bilderberg summit in Switzerland as 130 high-powered guests discuss Russia, cyber threats and BrexitTech billionaires Eric Schmidt, Peter Thiel and Reid Hoffman have been pictured at the secretive Bilderberg conference in Switzerland today. Former Google CEO Schmidt, 64, PayPal co-founder Thiel, 51, and LinkedIn co-founder Hoffman, also 51, are among more than a hundred high-powered guests at the summit in the five-star Fairmont Le Montreux Palace on the shores of Lake Geneva. [ Daily Mail ] Mobility Start-Up Is Bringing Shared Pogo Sticks to American CitiesIf you're tired of hearing about e-scooters being the future of transportation, you're not alone. In fact, a Swedish company called Cangoroo was so tired of it that it decided to bring an alternative to the United States: pogo sticks. On Friday, Cangoroo announced its plans to bring "between 100 and 200" pogo sticks to San Francisco as early as this summer, marketing them as a fitness-oriented alternative to e-scooters and effectively rivaling other California-based micro mobility startups such as Lime and Bird. [ The Drive] Announcing XFactor Ventures 2: Female Founders investing in the next generation of Female FoundersWe are pleased to announce the launch of XFactor Ventures 2, a pre-seed and seed stage venture fund that will invest in 53 new companies with female founders targeting billion-dollar opportunities. When Anna Palmer, Chip Hazard, and the Flybridge team had the idea for XFactor Ventures just over two years ago our thesis was a simple one: putting checkbooks in the hands of existing female founders would not only help more new female founders launch and build their companies but also give the investment partners the opportunity to translate their deep networks and expertise into strong investment returns. Despite launching with a lot of confidence in July of 2017, we had no idea that it would succeed to the extent it has. [ Medium ] Big Gains: The Top Venture Capital Deals in Austin This MayUpland Software continued its acquisition tear. Liveoak Technologies and Novi Software both pulled in $7 million rounds. And at least two out-of-town venture capital firms announced they have their eyes on Austin startups. It was a busy month of may for funding, acquisitions and venture capital activity. And we’ve got you covered with a roundup of all the deals in the area from the past month. [ American Inno ] How a failed scientific start-up can breed successIn mid-2018, entrepreneur Nathaniel Brooks Horwitz had a problem. He had co-founded a company, Nivien Therapeutics, to create a drug that would make chemotherapy work more effectively. He and his team had designed a small molecule to block a protein in the Hippo–YAP pathway that inhibits the efficacy of chemotherapy. In mice, it worked — but not well enough. [ nature ] Earnings Review: Uber, Okta, And Zuora EditionMorning Markets: Welcome to one of our irregular looks at the public markets. Here’s a taste of earnings season to help inform your view of the private markets. Yesterday was a pretty big day in the earnings cycle. Each quarter, public companies disclose their recent financial performance. It’s a key moment for every concern, showing off recent performance to investors, and usually making projections for the future. Three tech companies that we care about reported their own results yesterday: Uber, which we care about as it’s a high-profile decacorn built with an ocean of private capital (our coverage). Okta, because it’s a recently-public SaaS company growing quickly, making it a measuring stick for how public investors are valuing unprofitable growth (our coverage). And, Zuora, as a SaaS company selling SaaS-tooling, is a firm that is an obvious temperature-check for SaaS itself (our coverage). [ Crunchbase] Northwestern Mutual to Put $150 Million in New Venture Capital FundNorthwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company says it will invest $150 million in a new venture capital fund, Northwestern Mutual Future Ventures Fund II. The Milwaukee-based life insurer invested $50 million in an earlier venture capital fund, Northwestern Mutual Future Ventures, in 2017. [ Think Advisor ] Facial recognition startup Kairos settles lawsuits with founder and former CEO Brian BrackeenFacial recognition startup Kairos, founded by Brian Brackeen, has settled its lawsuit with Brackeen following his ouster from the company late last year. In addition to forcing him out of the company he founded, Kairos sued Brackeen, alleging the misappropriation of corporate funds and misleading shareholders. In response, Brackeen countersued Kairos, alleging the company and its CEO Melissa Doval intentionally destroyed his reputation through fraudulent conduct. [ Tech Crunch ] FinTech Newsletter: May 2019Ever wondered why your mortgage is so damn complicated? Or why it takes weeks while you get bounced between so many different parties? The history of the modern mortgage is a twisty tale, full of many different players and processes. And yet owning a home is a key pillar of the American dream. So how did this come to be? In these two pieces, our a16z general partners Alex Rampell and Angela Strange make sense of mortgages, and break down the why, the what, and the why: why the process behind getting a mortgage got so complex, how it might be possible to change, and what the opportunities are. [ a16z ] ‘Weirdo’ Fintech VC Anthemis marches to its own drummerEntering into the world of Anthemis is a bit like stepping into the frame of a Wes Anderson film. Eclectic, offbeat people situated in colorful interiors? Check. A muse in the form of a renowned British-Venezuelan economist? Check. A design-forward media platform to provoke deep thought? Check. An annual summer retreat ensconced in the French Alps? Bien sûr. [Tech Crunch ] The Ultimate Guide to Launching Your StartupWe all have ideas.Some ideas might be great, some might be decent, and others are probably not that good. Even if your idea is incredible, there’s a huge difference between having it and actually launching a successful startup. First of all, not everyone is set out to be an entrepreneur. If you think you have what it takes, then all you need are the right steps to take. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying getting your startup up and running is easy. It takes hard work, lots of dedication, money, many sleepless nights, and even some failures along the way. Once your startup is launched, you’ll need to work just as hard to keep it growing. [ kisspatent ] Patent ‘Trolling’? Shark Tank Entrepreneur Becomesa Target of a $5M LawsuitTen years ago, Lori Cheek had a lightbulb moment that moved her to leave a secure, six-figure job in her field of training (architecture) to build an online dating business: Cheekd. The idea "reimagines online dating with a new app that makes missed connections obsolete. Cheekd uses a cross-platform low energy Bluetooth technology, which fosters hyper local engagement." The app connects people in real time. Connections begin in person, explains Cheek, that's why Cheekd
helps you to take the next step and continue the conversation online but in real time. With the app, "if you're near a potential spark, Cheekd makes sure you know about it." Think of it as online dating but backwards. [ swaay ] Last Week In Venture: Women-Focused Tech Vendors, Publisher CRMs, AI Trainers, And A Path For Smart CitiesHello and welcome back to Last Week In Venture, a weekly rundown of venture deals which may have flown under your radar. We’ve got a few to get to but a lot to say, so we’ll keep highlights of the Crunchbase News team’s other work brief. We listened to what immigrant entrepreneurs are saying about U.S. immigration policy, documented declines in Chinese supergiant VC funding, learned what happens when NBA players play ball as VCs, forecasted the future with Utah founders, covered some big new funds, some public company earnings reports, and the usual mix of venture rounds large and small. [ Crunchbase ] I Built And Sold An Empire To A Private Equity, OnlyTo Buy It Back And Make It Stronger Than EverMy entrepreneurial journey began pretty much like any other: with a dream. It was the late 80s and we were living in Florida, surrounded by acres of citrus groves (my husband is a fourth-generation citrus farmer) I was a new mom, pulling my young daughter Natalie through the orange groves, just thinking about the fact that there wasn't any fresh, authentic juices available that I could comfortably serve my baby daughter. [ swaay ] Investing in the Podcast Ecosystem in 2019In the world of podcasting, the flywheel is spinning: new technologies including AirPods, connected cars, and smart speakers have made it much easier for consumers to listen to audio content, which in turn creates more revenue and financial opportunity for creators, which further encourages high-quality audio content to flow into the space. There are now over 700K free podcasts available and thousands more launching each week. [ a16z ] Fundraising While Female: FiveFounders Respond To SexismAsk any woman who has ever attempted to raise funds for a business venture and she'll have a least one story of the sexism she faced in her pursuit. Whether it's being treated like a child; having failure rather than success assumed; or suffering through a public "show us your pregnant belly" request during a meeting, women have endured it all. It's preposterous really, considering that it's 2019. But it's true. [ swaay ] Johanna Posada, Elevar Equity: Driving Impact in Latin America via Venture Capital, Ep 79Originally from Mexico, developing microfinance in Latin America and India was a natural step for Johanna Posada. With over 15 years of experience working in corporate finance, economics, microfinance and investing in emerging markets, Johanna, now based in Seattle, has long been involved in economic development. Currently, as Managing Director and cofounder of Elevar Equity, an impact investment fund that focuses on fintech in both of those regions, Johanna has been able to find an intersection between work that has a social component and is also business oriented. E941 #AskJason: social media transparency & brand protection, finding angels, common pitch mistakes#AskJason Call-in: Getting ready for investment, social media transparency & brand protection, finding angels that bring value, common pitching mistakes, intangible qualities investors look for in founders & more #HowIDidIt: From Cooking Meals Out Of My ApartmentTo Running A 9-Figure Meal Delivery BrandHow can we help overcome the national health crisis and allow people access to nutritious food on a regular basis? It's a question I've been driven to answer since 2009, catalysed by one of the scariest scenarios a daughter can imagine - the health crisis of a parent. Determined to help my father overhaul his lifestyle and overcome the sudden obstacles he faced, I began prepping healthy, homemade meals. When friends and family members noticed the remarkable recovery he made, they
became interested in the plans too. [ swaay ] Weekly Webcast #41: Office Hours with Chris Haroun (Please submit your questions via Chat) |