Russia funded Facebook and Twitter investments through Kushner associateTwo Russian state institutions with close ties to Vladimir Putin funded substantial investments in Twitter and Facebook through a business associate of Jared Kushner, leaked documents reveal. The investments were made through a Russian technology magnate, Yuri Milner, who also holds a stake in a company co-owned by Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior White House adviser. The discovery is likely to stir concerns over Russian influence in US politics and the role played by social media in last year’s presidential election. It may also raise new questions for the social media companies and for Kushner. [ The Guardian ] Venture capitalist David Lee sues former partner Ron Conway for millionsMillions of dollars are at stake in a legal battle between Ron Conway and his former SV Angel partner David Lee, according to a suit filed last week in Marin County Superior Court and first reported by Axios. Lee filed the complaint claiming Conway has not paid him in previously promised fees and agreed-upon shares in investments in companies such as Airbnb, Pinterest and Snapchat. Lee was the former managing partner of SV Angel, which he founded with Conway, but left two years ago in what was portrayed back then as “a personal decision” to spend more time with his family in Los Angeles, according to a piece detailing the departure in Fortune. However, it seems the split was not so amicable. In fact, Conway was allegedly critical of Lee when speaking to LPs about Lee’s lack of involvement and move to L.A. [ Tech Crunch ] Warby Parker Has a Bold New Holiday Plan. Meet the Swedish Painter at the Center of It AllAndreas Samuelsson paints with primary colors and open spaces, leaving it to viewers to interpret the unspoken. "It contains no text and some empty space," says the artist, who has created artwork for The New York Times, Nike, and Unicef. "You're free to fill in the rest based on your imagination." In an unlikely partnership, Samuelsson is lending his imaginative spirit to Warby Parker, the $1.2 billion online eyeglass retailer that's now expanding to dozens of brick-and-mortar locations. [ Inc. ] When Sheryl Sandberg first moved to Silicon Valley, Google's Eric Schmidt gave her advice she still uses today
Jeff Bezos’s guide to lifeHere are Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos’s tips about inspiration, work-life balance, and how to be an inventor. Oh, and how it felt getting doused with champagne at his rocket landing. The world’s richest person displayed an unprecedented level of candor during an interview atinvite-only getaway Summit Series in Los Angeles this weekend. Why did Jeff get so vulnerable? Because his little brother Mark Bezos was the interviewer. Set against a backdrop of old Bezos family photos at the opulent Orpheum Theater, Jeff revealed his personal philosophy. [ Tech Crunch ] Immigrant Tech Entrepreneurs Talk Moving, Raising Money And Overcoming Challenges There’s a lot of debate these days about immigrant entrepreneurs and their impact on the United States’ economy. But one thing’s for certain: Immigrant entrepreneurs can be a force to be reckoned with and have the ability to offer insight and experiences that are valuable to all. While there are few hard statistics on the number of immigrant entrepreneurs, a recent research report by the National Bureau of Economic Research estimates that the immigrant percentage of entrepreneurship has increased over time, from 17 percent in 1995 to 28 percent in 2008. If that trend continued, that number is likely even higher today. In this article – the first of a two-part series – we’ll talk to three immigrant entrepreneurs about their experiences of building a company in the United States. [ CrunchBase ] An open letter to Travis KalanickTravis, I've spent much of yesterday trying to understand if it was you or Benchmark Capital who threw the latest screwball into SoftBank's attempts to launch a tender offer for Uber shares. And as I sorted through the spin from all sides, something became clear: It's time for you to make a clean break with Uber. Before continuing, let me say that I believe you sincerely have Uber's best interests at heart. And, as even your detractors would admit, you were the driving force behind creating not only the most valuable tech startup of all time, but also one that has revolutionized global transportation. The accomplishments cannot, and should not, be erased or minimized. [ Axios ] Why the ‘end of the startup era’ could be great for entrepreneursThree prominent tech thinkers recently declared the end of the startup era,questioned the future of tech innovation generally and heralded the rise of the “Frightful Five” — Apple, Amazon, Facebook, Google and Microsoft — who will dominate the future of tech. All of the posts make credible arguments, but ignore how consolidation could be good, even great, for startups. If we define startup success as building cornerstone companies that will go down in history and be worth hundreds of billions of dollars, we may, in fact, be entering a lean period. If we define success as building an ever wider assortment of products, shipping them to tens of millions of users and earning hundreds of millions, or even billions of dollars in short time frames, the good times may just be getting started. [ TechCrunch ] This New Religion From a Silicon Valley Pioneer Worships AI as an Emerging GodheadThe coming age of near-complete automation is bringing with it a great amount of fear in the face of tremendous job losses and if Elon Musk is to be believed, an AI-led elimination of humanity altogether. But there are also people who view the future with optimism, looking at advanced machine brains as a necessary extension of ourselves that will supercharge our capabilities. And then there are some who think the machines will literally become our new Gods. Anthony Levandowski, a former Google engineer known for his pioneering work on the self-driving car at Waymo (an Alphabet subsidiary), has filed paperwork to register an Artificial Intelligence-based nonprofit religious corporation called "Way of the Future". What will this new church believe in? Its mission, according to paperwork found by Wired’s Backchannel, is “to develop and promote the realization of a Godhead based on Artificial Intelligence and through understanding and worship of the Godhead contribute to the betterment of society.” [ Big Think ] Uber rival Grab crosses 1 billion rides in Southeast AsiaNow, Silicon Valley Is Totally Cool With a Bill That Could Ruin the Internet$4.5 Billion to $0 -- Learn From the Mistakes of One Entrepreneur's JourneyTop VC deals: HelloFresh, headphones, and the fight against superbugsLargest cybersecurity venture capital deals in 2017 |