Jack Ma's Ant Financial Eyes More Deals in Global ExpansionAnt Financial, China’s largest provider of internet financial services, will continue investing in mobile-payment providers around the world to boost offshore revenue and buttress itself from rising competition and tighter regulation at home. Controlled by billionaire Jack Ma, the Hangzhou-based firm will announce more “partnerships” this year with a focus on Asia and is also “actively assessing” other markets, Douglas Feagin, the head of its international operations, said in a phone interview on Thursday. [ Bloomberg ] How to Find Product Market Fit - CS183FCybersecurity firm CrowdStrike raises $100M amid renewed security fearsThe recent WannaCry ransomware attackshave reminded businesses that cybersecurity is more important than ever, which is good news for security providers such as CrowdStrike Inc., which today announced that it has raised a large $100 million Series D funding round. The round was led by Accel, and it included existing investors CapitalG and Warburg Pincus, as well as new investors March Capital and Telstra. This brings CrowdStrike’s total funding to date to more than $256 million, and the company’s valuation is now more than $1 billion. [ Silicon Angle ] And the winner of Startup Battlefield at Disrupt NY 2017 is… RecordGramAt the very beginning, there were 19 startups. After three days of incredibly fierce competition, we now have a winner. Startups participating in the Startup Battlefield have all been hand-picked to participate in our highly competitive startup competition. They all presented in front of multiple groups of VCs and tech leaders serving as judges for a chance to win $50,000 and the coveted Disrupt Cup. [ Startup Daily ] Why Did a Chinese Peroxide Company Pay $1 Billion for a Talking Cat?Samo and Iza Login were Slovenian high school sweethearts who studied computer science in college and then decided, in 2009, to get into the business of apps. Steve Jobs had introduced the Apple App Store the year before, and it was easy to believe that an overnight fortune was just an eccentric idea away. With $250,000 they’d saved while working for local IT companies, the Logins—who legally changed their surname to sound techy—started a company called Outfit7. Alongside six friends, they set up an office in the capital, Ljubljana. [ Bloomberg ] How can women entrepreneurs make the most impact?World's 500 Richest People Lose $35 Billion From Trump TurmoilThe world’s richest people lost $35 billion Wednesday when global equity markets were rocked by political turmoil in the U.S., according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Bill Gates, the world’s richest person with $86.8 billion, lost $1 billion as shares of Microsoft Corp., his largest holding, tumbled 2.8 percent, the most in almost a year. Amazon.com Inc. co-founder Jeff Bezos, who came within $4 billion of taking the top spot from Gates earlier this week, dropped to No. 3 after losing $1.7 billion as shares of the online retailer slid 2.2 percent. Spanish retailing tycoon Amancio Ortegalost $355 million to end the day in the second
position with $83.2 billion. At midnight, the shore of Hunts Point–where the Bronx meets the East River–comes alive. Crew unload up to a million pounds of fish from shipping containers and haul them into the New Fulton Fish Market, a 700,000 square foot warehouse that replaced the original Fulton Fish Market, which operated in Lower Manhattan from 1822 until it was shuttered in 2005 and moved to the Bronx. Seafood streams into the market from fisheries along the Atlantic Seaboard and around the world, where it lands in a system that, as Mike Spindler, CEO of the startup FultonFishMarket.com tells Fast Company, “really has not changed or modernized in several hundred years.” [ Fast Company ] We Recorded VCs’ Conversations and Analyzed How Differently They Talk About Female EntrepreneursWhen venture capitalists (VCs) evaluate investment proposals, the language they use to describe the entrepreneurs who write them plays an important but often hidden role in shaping who is awarded funding and why. But it’s difficult to obtain VCs’ unvarnished comments, given that they are uttered behind closed doors. We were given access to government venture capital decision-making meetings in Sweden and were able to observe the types of language that VCs used over a two-year period. One major thing stuck out: The language used to describe male and female entrepreneurs was radically different. And these differences have very real consequences for those seeking funding — and for society in general. [ HBR ] Developer behind Newhall Ranch, Great Park closes IPO at $320 millionOrange County firm Five Point Holdings — the master developer behind several marquee California communities — said this week that it closed its IPO, taking in more than $300 million. Orange County firm Five Point Holdings — the master developer behind several marquee California communities — said this week that it closed its IPO, taking in more than $300 million. What I learned during my first year as a VCA little over a year ago, through some luck and hustle, I joined Brett and Jonathon full-time at Ludlow Ventures — an early stage technology focused venture firm. Over the course of the past year, I’ve done my best to document some of the most important lessons I’ve learned. The Promise of AIBuilding on our popular primer on artificial intelligence [a16z.com/2016/06/10/ai-deep-learning-machines/] -- and a companion microsite [aiplaybook.a16z.com/] to help newcomers get started with AI -- this presentation shares more about the promise of artificial intelligence, beyond the hype. It's a ~45-minute narrated walkthrough of what companies are doing with AI today and what’s bubbling up from the research community that’s just a few years out [ Vimeo ] VC interest in adtech is down: The numbers behind the trend [datagraphic]Investor activity in the adtech industry is waning, both anecdotally and according to the numbers. Facebook wants to know why teens are using group video app HousepartyAre you a teenager who uses the group video chat app, Houseparty? Facebook wants to know! At least Facebook did want to know back in February, and was willing to pay people for their thoughts on the app, which lets users jump in and out of video conversations with friends (or friends of friends). [ Re/Code ] Honeywell unveils $100 mln venture fundHoneywell today announced the launch of a new investment fund that will invest in early-stage, high-growth technology companies that are strategically aligned to the Company’s portfolio and software capabilities. The initial fund size is expected to be approximately $100 million and investments will be made through Honeywell Venture Capital LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell. [ PE Hub ] |