SoftBank’s Son Transforms $5.5 Billion to $17 Billion OvernightCall it the Masayoshi Son mathematical distortion field. The founder of SoftBank Group Corp. added about 1.94 trillion yen ($17.6 billion) to the market value of his company Thursday — by unveiling a plan to buy back shares worth less than a third of that amount. Based on his own stake, Son’s net worth rose by about $5 billion. His fortune was estimated at $14 billion before Thursday’s rally, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.[ Bloomberg ] Health Data Platform Health Catalyst Raises $100M, Valued At $1BSuccessful medical treatment requires some of the most sensitive data in the world to be gathered and crunched on a continual basis. Health Catalyst has taken on that challenge, aiming to help medical professionals improve treatment outcomes while keeping finances in check and operations efficient. [ Crunch base ] KKR strikes billion-dollar software deal with OneStreamKKR has agreed to make a "significant investment" in OneStream Software that values the company at more than $1 billion, with The Wall Street Journal reporting the firm will shell out over $500 million in the deal and take a majority stake. The move represents the first outside investment in OneStream, a creator of software designed to simplify finances and other operations for large and mid-sized corporations. [ Pitchbook ] AI-assisted CRM co Gong.io raises $40mGong.io, which provides AI solutions for improving sales and service calls, has raised $40 million in Series B funding, bringing the company’s total funding to $68 million. [ Globes ] The government is using the wrong data to make crucial decisions about the internetHigh-speed internet is not really available where the government says it is. And that misinformation means that a lot of Americans, especially those in poor and rural areas, can’t get access to broadband — a service that is becoming more and more integral to daily life in the US. [ Recode ] The Most Overvalued Startup in the World?WeWork is the 4th highest valued startup in the world but it may not survive the next recession. This includes a paid sponsored promotion which had no part in the writing, editing, or production of the rest of the video. E899: News Roundtable! Zach Coelius, Dave Mathews: FaceTime, Titan, flying cars, Facebook, DeadpoolNews Roundtable! Zach Coelius & Gadget Guy Dave Mathews: Apple's self-driving Project Titan is dropped, FaceTime eavesdrops, predictions for flying cars, latest Facebook scandals, the largest privacy breach ever (again!), journalism lay-offs, & the return of Deadpool (fallen startup of the week) Top 10 Learnings from the Redpoint Free Trial SurveyAt Saastr yesterday, I presented the top 10 learnings from the Redpoint Free Trial Survey that we distributed in October. The data confirmed many rules of thumb but also raised some interesting new questions about the best way to use trials. When we distributed the survey, we never would have expected the response. About 600 companies submitted data. They span single digit ARR businesses to publicly traded SaaS companies. These businesses sell at every price point and sell to every operational buyer. From product to sales, from legal to marketing. We processed the data with 1000+ lines of R code to parse the insights from the data and test for statistical significance. [ Tomasz Tunguz ] Capitalist Exploits - Royalties & Streaming Panel with Jamie KeechJamie Keech, founder of Ivaldi Venture Capital Ltd., hosts Nolan Watson, President & CEO of Sandstorm Gold Ltd., Dan O’Flaherty, CEO of Maverix Metals Inc., and Gary Brown, CFO of Wheaton Precious Metals Corp to discuss the growing trend of Royalties and Streaming. [ Tomasz Tunguz ] Navigating the world of VC funding as a designer | Alexis Houssou, Hardware Club, Core77 ConferenceWhere and how to find funding for your big idea is a multifaceted question that requires you as a creator and entrepreneur to ask: “what type of funding is right for me?” In this talk at the 2018 Core77 Conference "Now What?", financier and former entrepreneur Alex Houssou explains where you should be searching for capital based on your business goals. Houssou includes tips on how to figure out whether or not your project is a fit for venture capital funding, how to pitch your idea, how to figure out if your project is appropriate for crowdfunding platforms, and the do and don’ts of using your money. |