Delphi acquires self-driving startup NuTonomy for $450 millionDelphi, one of the world’s largest automotive suppliers, is acquiring Boston-based self-driving car startup NuTonomy for an upfront purchase price of $400 million as well as $50 million in earn-outs, the companies announced today. Delphi isn’t as well-known in the self-driving space as its much bigger rivals Uber, Waymo, and Tesla. A GM spinoff now based in the UK, the company has been showing off its autonomous technology for over three years, mostly in Pittsburgh and Singapore. And NuTonomy, which spun out of MIT in 2013, has also been operating autonomous taxis in Singapore since 2016, and recently received permission to test its self-driving vehicles in Boston. [ The Verge ] 4 of New York’s Biggest VC-Backed Tech Exits Happened This Year AlreadyIf you look at a list of the top ten VC-backed tech exits, you’ll find four of them happened in 2017. What does it mean? That NY tech companies are finding the money, whether it’s an IPO or an acquisition. But that finish-line success might not be so apparent across the rest of the tech world. [ Tech.co ] Where the Startup Money Will Come FromSam Altman, Jenny Lee and Bill Maris offer their thoughts on startup funding, the most exciting technologies and increased regulation. Ideas about investing and politics were bubbling as Wall Street Journal reporter Rolfe Winkler met with Sam Altman, president of the accelerator and seed-money investor Y Combinator, Jenny Lee, managing partner at GGV Capital, and Bill Maris, founder of the venture fund Section 32, and the founder and former CEO of Google Ventures. Edited excerpts follow. [ WSJ ] After a $3.7B exit, AppDynamics founder eyes next billion-dollar companyAbout a decade ago, Jyoti Bansal found himself rejected by dozens of venture capitalists as he tried to get funding for his startup, a software management provider called AppDynamics. Until recently, serial entrepreneur Naveen Jain’s most ambitious project was Moon Express, a literal moonshot that aims to land a rocket on our cratered neighbor and use its resources to make other planets livable for humans. His newest mission feels just as profound: create a world without chronic disease. To accomplish it, he founded Viome, a bacteria-analysis company that examines the microorganisms in users’ guts and counsels them on how to keep harmful bacteria at bay. In September, the Bellevue, Washington–based company began selling its kits in the U.S., the U.K., Canada, India, and the Middle East. [ Fast Company ] HOW SAND HILL ROAD BECAME THE MAIN STREET OF VENTURE CAPITALLIKE HOLLYWOOD, SAND Hill Road is a metonym for an industry based on dreams: VCs gathered in low-slung office buildings funding startups that aim to change the world (sometimes they even succeed). Like Chernobyl, though, it’s also a proxy for some cataclysmic flameouts. Here’s how a sleepy 5.6-mile stretch of roadway in Menlo Park, California, became a genuine rock star. [ Wired ] Sheryl Sandberg has inspired more humane policies for grieving workers at Facebook and beyondThe myth that grief is processed in discrete stages, or that proper grieving of a loved one can bring “closure,” is slowly losing its hold on our cultural psyche. But corporate family leave policies do not reflect this deepening understanding of human nature. In the UK, US, and Canada, for example, a three-day paid leave for bereavement is still common practice in many workplaces. And though some large employers offer more, in the US, 40% of workers do not get any paid time off to deal with the trauma of death in the family. While loosening up for some of us, work culture still generally demands a stiff upper lip, even as we recognize that grief is powerful enough to kill. [ QZ ] Tesla Director Jurvetson Investigated by His VC Firm for MisconductDFJ, a venture capital firm known for backing Elon Musk’s ventures, said it’s investigating founding partner Steve Jurvetson for potential misconduct. The firm hired a law firm in the summer after hearing indirectly of allegations about Jurvetson, said Carol Wentworth, a spokeswoman for DFJ. The process is ongoing, and the firm hasn’t received a formal report of claims against Jurvetson or other investors, she said. Where Venture Capital Has Peaked“Peak Startup” is a phrase that no doubt strikes terror in the hearts of entrepreneurs and startup investors alike. But saying “Peak Startup” is not the same as saying that the market is at the very height of a bubble. Indeed, with Softbank driving late-stage valuations to the chagrin of IPOs, worldwide early and late-stage rounds growing in size, and US venture market’s stabilizing, we are not seeing the imminent implosion of the market for private equity. [ The Guardian ] E771: #STHLMTech: Future Games w/Unity David Helgason; Investing BackingMinds, Norrsken, WellstreetIPOs Are Back In FavorThe Four Cringe-Worthy Mistakes Too Many Startups Make with DataBeware the rise of the 'zombiecorn'ActionIQ nabs $30M led by A16Z to bring big data targeting to marketersHome services marketplace UrbanYou acquires HomeHello to expand into BrisbaneSteve Wozniak: Bitcoin is better than gold and USDB Capital Hires Howard L. Morgan as Its New ChairmanDo Ex-Startup Founders Make The Best Venture Capitalists?Tech companies and U.S. lawmakers are clashing over the need for new regulations targeting political adsStartup O.school raises $800,000 to improve sex educationA confab craze that's attracting Bezos and other Silicon Valley titans |