VCs say Silicon Valley isn’t the gold mine it used to be
The Economist published the cover story, ‘Why Startups Are Leaving Silicon Valley.’
The author outlined reasons why the Valley has “peaked.” Venture capital investors are deploying capital outside the Bay Area more than
ever before. High-profile entrepreneurs and investors, Peter Thiel, for example, have left. Rising rents are making it impossible for new blood to make a living, let alone build businesses. And according to a recent survey, 46 percent of Bay Area residents want to get the hell out, an increase from 34 percent two years ago. [ Tech Crunch ]
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Chamath Palihapitiya burns down what he built
Two weeks ago today, we detailed the ego-fueled collapse of Social Capital, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm known for early investments in companies like Slack.
What's new: Social Capital no longer will raise outside
capital, and instead convert itself into "technology holding company" that mostly invests CEO Chamath Palihapitiya's own money. Palihapitiya yesterday confirmed much of our previous reporting — via both a Medium post and interview with The Information — while simultaneously calling it "fake news."
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Checkout Chamath Palihapitiya's Deals Activities.
Ride-hailing startup Shohoz raises $15M to build the Grab of Bangladesh
Uber may be global but it is very much the alternative in some parts of the world. One such place is Bangladesh — the South Asian country that’s home to 160 million people — where local rival Pathao is backed by Go-Jek and recently raised $10 million. Now Pathao’s closest rival, Shohoz, has also pulled in investment after it closed a $15 million funding round. [ Tech Crunch ]
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A venture capitalist is running for Congress in farm country. And his opponent is turning those Silicon Valley years into an insult.
Jeff Denham would like to make “venture capitalist” a dirty word. Josh Harder would probably be all right if voters didn’t know what one of those is.
Denham, R-Calif., and his wiry 32-year-old Democratic opponent are locked in one of America’s most competitive congressional races, playing out here in this almond-picking, culturally conservative swath of California’s Central Valley. And yes, Josh Harder was until last year a venture capitalist. [
Re/Code ]
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Digital Freight Startup Convoy Raises $185 Million, Surpasses $1 Billion in Value
Digital freight-booking startup Convoy raised $185 million in a funding round led by an investment arm of Google parent company Alphabet Inc., adding big new backing for the company competing in an increasingly crowded field trying to reshape U.S. shipping operations. [ WSJ ]
Check out Convoy's major investor -
Y Combinator
Greylock Partners
CapitalG
Deals, Exits, and Fund Raised data on our platform.
Cleo, the ‘digital assistant’ that replaces your banking apps, picks up $10M Series A led by Balderton
When Cleo, the London-based “digital assistant” that wants to replace your banking apps, quietly entered the U.S., the company couldn’t have expected to be an instant hit. Many better-funded British startups have failed to “break America.” However, just four months later, the fintech upstart counts 350,000 users across the pond — claiming more than 600,000 active users in the U.K., U.S. and Canada in total — and says it is adding 30,000 new signups each week. All of which hasn’t gone unnoticed by investors. [ Tech Crunch ]
Check out Cleo's major investor -
Balderton Capital
LocalGlobe
Deals, Exits, and Fund Raised data on our platform.
‘Brotopia’ inspired OODA Health to raise its $40.5M round only from firms with female partners
It’s never particularly easy to raise a round of venture capital — but I think most experienced founders will tell you it’s not quite as bad the second or third time around, when you’ve got some experience under your belt and a track record to present to VCs. [ Tech Crunch ]
Check out OODA Healths major investor -
DFJ
Deals, Exits, and Fund Raised data on our platform.
Vegan meal delivery service allplants nabs £7.5m
Allplants, a vegal meal delivery service, has secured £7.5m in funding. The startup’s Series A drew support from Octopus Ventures (which has backed UK startups including Graze, Secret Escapes and Zoopla), Felix Capital (FarFetch and Deliveroo), partners from VerlInvest, and high profile individuals including environmentalist and YouTuber Jack Harries. [ UKTECH ]
Check out allplants's major investor -
Octopus Ventures
Felix Capital
Deals, Exits, and Fund Raised data on our platform.
Medtronic to Buy Mazor Robotics for $1.6 Billion
Medtronic has reached a deal to acquire medical device maker Mazor Robotics Ltd, for about $1.64 billion, as the company looks to strengthen its provision of technology for robotic-assisted spine surgeries. Under the agreement, Dublin-based Medtronic will acquire all outstanding ordinary shares of Israel-based Mazor Robotics for $58.50 per American Depository Share, or $29.25 per ordinary share, in cash. The deal is expected to close during Medtronic’s third fiscal quarter, ending Jan. 25, the companies said Thursday. [ WSJ ]
Check out GitLab's major investor -
Israel Healthcare Ventures
Deals, Exits, and Fund Raised data on our platform.
Cluep, a Canadian startup that raised just $500K, acquired for $40M
Everyone loves a tale of a bootstrapped startup founder’s journey to an eight-figure exit. The team at Toronto-based Cluep have a good one. The founders of the adtech startup raised less than $500,000 from angel investors before selling their company to Impact Group for $40 million ($53 million CAD) this week. [ Tech Crunch ]
A Conversation with Aileen Lee - Moderated by Geoff Ralston
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