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☆ Cloud-API startup Kong valued at around $2 billion in a new funding round led by Tiger Global
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-09 | by ( Ben Bergman | Sri Muppidi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

It's valued at about $2 billion in a new funding round led by Tiger Global Management, sources say. AdvertisementKong, which offers cloud-based application programming interfaces, was valued at about $2 billion in a new funding round led by Tiger Global Management, two people familiar with the matter said. Tiger Global declined to comment. Kong last raised $80 million in Series D funding in 2020, which valued the startup at $1.4 billion. Sapphire Ventures, Lombardstreet Ventures, Index Ventures, CRV, Andreessen Horowitz, and Notable Capital also participated in that round.

Persons: Kong, Tiger, —, Andreessen Horowitz, Goldman Sachs, Augusto, Aghi, Marietti, Marco Palladino Organizations: Tiger Global Management, Service, Kong, Tiger, Sapphire Ventures, Lombardstreet Ventures, Index Ventures, CRV, Capital, PayPal, Nasdaq, Volvo

☆ Influencers are swiping a new black card at restaurants, spas, and fitness studios
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-08 | by ( Amanda Perelli | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

After creating sponsored content, influencers can spend the payment in person at the business. AdvertisementThere's a hot new card influencers are swiping at restaurants and retailers to redeem products and services. Advertisement"We are being extremely diligent on only letting in the top creators in cities we are operating in," Van Kuyk said. Influencers who use the platform include Roz Model (15 million Instagram followers), Montana Tucker (3.2 million Instagram followers), Kat Graham (9.7 million Instagram followers), and Matt Staffanina (3.7 million Instagram followers). Brands care about a creator's audience, brand safety, and if the creator fits the right aesthetic, Van Kuyk said.

Persons: influencers, —, Flowrbombr, OTH, Van Kuyk, Ketan Rahangdale, Brands, Influencers, Roz Model, Montana Tucker, Kat Graham, Matt Staffanina, we've, It's Organizations: OTH Network, Service, OTH, Brands, Visa, Mastercard Locations: Miami, Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, LA, Chicago, Las Vegas, New York

☆ Exclusive: AI cloud startup Ori is in talks to raise up to $80 million in funding, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-08 | by ( Riddhi Kanetkar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

AI cloud startup Ori is raising up to $80 million in new funding, two sources have told BI. AdvertisementAI cloud computing startup Ori is in talks to raise up to $80 million in a fresh funding round, two sources told Business Insider. Related storiesYahya added: "I was pleased to recently be at 10 Downing Street to discuss UK AI policy. Our plan is to invest nine figures in the UK AI infrastructure over the next 24 months." In May, rival AI infrastructure startup CoreWeave secured $7.5 billion in debt financing from Blackstone just weeks after it secured $1.1 billion in equity funding.

Persons: —, Ori, Mahdi Yahya, Yahya, Blackstone Organizations: Ori, Nvidia, Service, Business, BI

☆ How Discord is laying the groundwork for ads to make as much revenue as subscriptions
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-03 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Discord is launching Video Quests, its second ad format, as it looks to grow its ads business. Discord aims to balance ad revenue with its subscription service ahead of a potential IPO. Related storiesActivision Blizzard's World of Warcraft, Epic Games' Fortnite, and HoYoverse's Genshin Impact have run Quests on Discord this year. "Discord is a place where you play games with your friends, so game-related ads feel really good," Sellis told Business Insider in an interview. Peter Sellis, Discord's SVP of product, thinks ads could one day be on par with subscriptions for the company.

Persons: —, Peter Sellis, Sellis, Jason Citron, we'd, KARL VERKADE, Adam Bauer, Ming Gianotti, Monks, Gianotti Organizations: Service, Activision, Netflix, Bloomberg, Meta, Google Locations: Discord's, FaZe

☆ Exclusive: Diabetes startup Omada Health has confidentially filed its S-1 to go public
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-02 | by ( Rebecca Torrence | Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Diabetes startup Omada Health has confidentially filed its S-1 for an IPO, BI has learned. Fellow healthcare startup Hinge Health has hired banks as it prepares to confidentially file its S-1. AdvertisementRumors about diabetes startup Omada Health's public market debut have been swirling for years. Omada Health confidentially filed its S-1 this summer to go public, according to one person with knowledge of the transaction. After 20 healthcare startups went public in 2021, only one healthcare company went public the following year — Akili Interactive, which sold for $34 million this July.

Persons: —, Health confidentially, It's, Sean Duffy, Morgan Stanley, Cameron Lester, Ben Narasin, Duffy, Omada Organizations: BI, Service, Health, Lyra, Tempus, Jefferies, Venture, Amazon

☆ LiquidStack helps data centers cut energy and water use. Check out the 13-slide deck it used to raise $20 million from Tiger Global.
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-01 | by ( Riddhi Kanetkar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

LiquidStack has secured a $20 million Series B extension from Tiger Global. The startup has launched various cooling technologies for data centers. AdvertisementLiquidStack, a Texas-based startup developing technologies to cool down data centers, has secured a $20 million Series B extension from investment firm Tiger Global. LiquidStack has also launched a two-phase immersion cooling unit to reduce energy in high-density server environments. The $20 million Series B extension, led by US-based investment firm Tiger Global, brings the total Series B round to $35 million.

Persons: LiquidStack, —, Joe Capes, PitchBook Organizations: Tiger Global, Service, US, Trane Technologies Locations: Texas

☆ Some techies are leaving cushy Silicon Valley jobs to launch startups at home in India
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-01 | by ( Shubhangi Goel | Charissa Cheong | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Some expat Indians are moving back home to launch companies of their own. But the chaos, where even established startups are trying and failing, makes India a fair playing field for new entrants, Hassan said. Programs like Startup India, which provides founders benefits like tax exemption, easier compliance, and funding support, have made creating a company smoother. Bhide returned to India in January, leaving behind about $580,000 in total compensation at ticketing platform StubHub. Bhide said the general sentiment among local founders is shifting from "Build from India" to "Build for India."

Persons: —, Nithin Hassan, — Hassan, Hassan, he's, Binod Khadria, Khadia, That's, Ben Mathias, VCs, Mathias said, Devyani Parameshwar, It's, Rohan Bhide, Bhide, Dhruv Anand, Dhruv Anand Dhruv Anand, Anand, Ruchit Garg, Garg, Niranjan Vemulkar, Vemulkar Organizations: Service, Amazon, Microsoft, Meta, Global Research, Diaspora, Business, Vertex Ventures, Indian, Startup, Reliance, Tech, Google Locations: India, Bengaluru, Oyo, Byju's, Asia, Africa, Delhi, Gurugram, Silicon Valley, It's, Mumbai, Bangalore

☆ AI startups should brace for a wave of down rounds, investors say. Here's how it might play out.
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-24 | by ( Riddhi Kanetkar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Read previewDown rounds and flat rounds for VC-backed startups have hit an all-time high this year since 2014. And AI startups, which have been the darlings of the tech ecosystem since late 2022, aren't exempt from the trend. The deal was seen by some investors as an omen for a wider phenomenon in the AI ecosystem — an impending wave of flat rounds and down rounds. "Investors went crazy for AI startups with zero revenue, at higher valuations, which will be an issue," said Umesh Padval, managing director at Thomvest Ventures. Down rounds are on the riseIn 2022, 90.2% of AI startups in the US raised up rounds, while 6.5% raised down rounds, according to PitchBook data.

Persons: —, we've, Andreas Riegler, Umesh Padval, Padval, Francesco Ricciuti Organizations: Service, Microsoft, Business, Big Tech, APEX Ventures, Jasper, Google, Thomvest Ventures, Runa Locations: London

☆ Meet the Latin American e-commerce platform that's outperforming Amazon this year
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-24 | by ( Kate Rooney | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

One of the world's largest e-commerce companies is emerging as a top pick on Wall Street as investors look for tech opportunities beyond the Magnificent Seven. "There was no venture capital for Latin America. Last year, venture-backed companies in Latin America raised $3.3 billion across nearly 1,000 deals, according to PitchBook. E-commerce and online payments are steadily growing, and Latin America has a young, mobile-savvy population of more than 600 million people. "When you look at the penetration of e-commerce in Latin America, it's still quite low compared to the U.S., Europe or Asia," Galperin told CNBC.

Persons: Marcos Gaplerin, Brad Gerstner, Gerstner, CNBC's Scott Wapner, Goldman Sachs, It's, Buenos Aires Galperin, Galperin, MercadoLibre, We've, it's Organizations: Nasdaq, Wall Street, Stanford Graduate School of Business, CNBC, Stanford, eBay Locations: Delaware, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Chile, South America, Mercado Pago, Buenos Aires, Palo Alto , California, California, America, Silicon Valley, New York, Sand, West, Latin America, U.S, Europe, Asia

Sovereign wealth funds out of the Middle East are emerging as key backers of Silicon Valley's artificial intelligence darlings. In the past year, funding for AI companies by Middle-Eastern sovereigns has increased fivefold, according to data from Pitchbook. Few venture funds have deep enough pockets to compete with the multibillion-dollar checks coming from the likes of Microsoft and Amazon . MGX was launched as a dedicated AI fund in March, with Abu Dhabi's Mubadala and AI firm G42 as founding partners. For the U.S., having sovereign wealth funds invest in American companies, and not in global adversaries like China, has been a geopolitical priority.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Prince Mohammed bin Salman's, Uber, LIV, UAE's Mubadala, MGX, Abu Dhabi's Mubadala, Anthropic, Andreessen Horowitz, Jamal Khashoggi, It's, Bpifrance, WeWork spiraled, Jared Cohen, there's Organizations: United, CNBC, Microsoft, Gulf Cooperation Council, Saudi Public Investment Fund, Abu, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Qatar Investment Authority, BlackRock, Global Infrastructure Partners, Saudi, U.S, Saudi Company, Artificial Intelligence, Washington Post, SoftBank, Goldman Sachs Global Institute Locations: Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Pitchbook, Abu Dhabi, Temasek, Singapore, China, UAE

☆ Kamala Harris' old apartment is on Airbnb from $6,000 a month — and we know at least one person who rented it
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-19 | by ( Dan Latu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewTwenty years ago, inside a humble one-bedroom apartment in San Francisco's South of Market neighborhood, Kamala Harris might've one day dreamed of running for president. Ji has listed the apartment on Airbnb with a minimum of 30-night stays and advertises the "amazing opportunity to live inside the home previously owned by Vice President Kamala Harris." He's even added a commemorative wall with photos from her career, including the day she was sworn in as vice president, according to the listing. Setty served South Indian dishes to guests as they watched Harris debate former President Donald Trump, the Times said. The Times reported that Setty called Harris a "rock star" when talking with other supporters at the debate party.

Persons: —, Kamala Harris might've, Harris, Joe Biden, Zhengtao Ji, David, wasn't, Ji, Kamala Harris, hasn't, Lata Setty, Setty, Donald Trump Organizations: Service, Democratic, The New York Times, Business, Times, The Times, Naval Observatory Locations: San Francisco's, Market, California, Brentwood, Los Angeles, Washington, DC

☆ Smartcat is using AI to translate content into any language. Check out the six-slide pitch deck the startup used to land $43 million in fresh VC funding.
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-16 | by ( Samantha Stokes | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The startup, Smartcat, just raised $43 million in Series C funding led by New York-based VC firm Left Lane Capital with Lead Edge Capital also participating. Smartcat previously raised a $4.5 million seed round in 2017, a $7 million Series A in 2018, and a $15 million Series B in 2020, according to PitchBook data. VC investment in AI startups is continuing to go gangbusters, topping out at a whopping $24 billion in the second quarter of 2024 — the biggest quarter for AI funding in recent years, according to Crunchbase. AdvertisementWhile some consumer and healthcare AI startups have raised eye-popping rounds, the tech is creating plenty of opportunities in the B2B space. Check out the six-slide presentation Smartcat used to raise $43 million in Series C funding.

Persons: —, Smartcat, Ivan Smolnikov, Smolnikov Organizations: Service, Left Lane, Lead Edge Capital, Marbruck Investments, Chrome, Business Locations: New York, Koro, Smartcat

☆ Bill Gates says this is how he’d start Microsoft again from scratch today: It's a 'fantastic opportunity'
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-16 | by ( Tom Huddleston Jr. | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

If Bill Gates had to start all over again, he'd join the artificial intelligence arms race with an "AI-centric" startup, he says. "Today, somebody could raise billions of dollars for a new AI company [that's just] a few sketch ideas," the billionaire Microsoft co-founder tells CNBC Make It. Gates researched the AI industry for his upcoming Netflix docuseries "What's Next? But AI will be transformative enough as it grows for any new tech startup to consider how it can fit into that industry, Gates says. "I was lucky that my belief in software made me unique," says Gates, adding: "Just believing in AI, that's not very unique.

Persons: Bill Gates, he'd, Gates, Allen, that's Organizations: Microsoft, CNBC, Google, Nvidia, Netflix, CNN

☆ Gwyneth Paltrow said she had to 'Google acronyms under the table' at Goop business meetings when she started the company
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-11 | by ( Samantha Grindell | Amanda Krause | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewGwyneth Paltrow is thinking about what she didn't know when she founded Goop. Gwyneth Paltrow speaks at the Forbes Power Women's Summit 2024. Paltrow said she became more successful when she let go of her "shame" about what she didn't know. In her conversation with Forbes, Paltrow touched on the brand's ever-evolving strategy, saying that "intention" keeps Goop centered. "We've been through a lot," Paltrow said.

Persons: —, Gwyneth Paltrow, Forbes, Paltrow, Moira Forbes, Goop, Amanda Krause, I'm, Nobody's, We've, we've, we're Organizations: Service, Power Women's, Business, Forbes Power Women's Locations: New York

☆ Gwyneth Paltrow's Goop is cutting 18% of staff as it scrambles to change strategy
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-06 | by ( Madeline Berg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewGoop, Gwyneth Paltrow's blog/lifestyle brand/beauty company/vitamin retailer/etc., launched 16 years ago, spurring copycat celebrity brands and products like the infamous orgasm candle. Goop is cutting 18% of its 216-person staff, citing a change to its organization, WWD reported on Thursday. It'll focus on beauty, fashion, and food — specifically its Goop Beauty and Good Clean Goop beauty brands, its G. Label clothing line, and Goop Kitchen restaurants. Last year, it launched Good Clean Goop, a lower-priced line of skincare that can be found in Target and on Amazon. (An exfoliator from the brand costs $20, while one from Goop Beauty costs $125.)

Persons: —, Gwyneth Paltrow's, Goop, it's, WWD, Condé Nast, Puck, Neil Saunders, Travis Kalanick, Uber, Paltrow Organizations: Service, Business, Netflix, GlobalDatal Locations: Target, Southern California

That continues a trend from 2023, when generative AI companies raised $25.9 billion for the full year, up more than 200% from 2022. The average round for AI companies is 140% bigger this year compared with last, the data shows, while for non-AI companies the increase is only 10%. Most venture investors are bullish on the potential for generative AI to eventually create big returns at the application layer. John-David Lovelock, an analyst at Gartner and a 35-year veteran of the IT industry, sees a big opportunity for generative AI in the enterprise. Yet, in 2024, only 1% of the trillion dollars spent on software will be from businesses spending on generative AI products, he said.

Persons: Adam Selipsky, Anthropic, Dario Amodei, Noah Berger, aren't, They're, Melissa Incera, Chip Hazard, PitchBook, that's, Cerebras, hasn't, Jeremiah Owyang, Owyang, That's, —, Cohere, Tobias Lutke, Inovia, JPMorgan Chase, Elon Musk's, what's, NASA's, Joe Raedle, Michael Harris, David Lovelock, Lovelock Organizations: Amazon Web, Getty, Microsoft, Nvidia, Tech, P Global Market Intelligence, CNBC, U.S, Forge, Flybridge Capital Partners, Federal Reserve, Meta, Nasdaq, Benchmark, Foundation Capital, SEC, Blitzscaling Ventures, Menlo Ventures, Inovia, Menlo, SPV, AMD, Oracle, Representatives, JPMorgan, Morgan Private Ventures, Elon Musk's SpaceX, SpaceX, Polaris, NASA's Kennedy Space Center, New York Stock Exchange, NYSE, Astera Labs, Tempus, Google, Facebook, Gartner Locations: Vegas, Las Vegas, PitchBook, Anthropic, Montreal, xAI, Cape Canaveral , Florida

☆ This startup ditched plans to go public and sold to a private equity firm for $3 billion. Here's the pitch deck it used.
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-06 | by ( Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

European private equity firm Hg expressed interest in buying a majority stake in the enterprise software company. For startups, private equity represents a deep-pocketed buyer willing to move quickly, pay a premium, and potentially help the business by tapping into complementary companies in their portfolio. AuditBoard is the kind of startup that private equity goes gaga over. Bidding warArnold then delivered the pitch deck that he had shown to public market investors just weeks before. Here's the 19-slide pitch deck that AuditBoard used to court a $3 billion buyout from private equity.

Persons: —, Scott Arnold, Morgan Stanley, Arnold, AuditBoard, Corporates, Daniel Kim, Jay Lee, It's, Fortune, Alex Johnson, Johnson, Morgan Stanley's, Roxanne Oulman's, Nic, Humphries — Hg's, Goldman Sachs, Humphries, he's Organizations: Service, Business, Battery Ventures, Tiger Global, Morgan Locations: Silicon Valley, San Francisco, Shutterfly, Paris

☆ The weirdest startup in healthcare has a blank check from General Catalyst
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-05 | by ( Rebecca Torrence | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +17 min

Hemant Taneja, the CEO of top venture firm General Catalyst, cofounded the healthcare startup Commure in 2017, and launched it in 2020. AdvertisementIt's made six acquisitions in four years — a remarkable number for a healthcare startup. He hatched Commure inside General Catalyst in 2017 alongside former leaders from Google, Salesforce, and healthcare data analytics firm Health Catalyst. The Philadelphia-based health system co-created a startup with General Catalyst, patient engagement platform Tendo, in 2020. General Catalyst said HATCo will work closely with its more than 20 health system partners, including HCA Healthcare.

Persons: Hemant Taneja, Catalyst, PitchBook, Commure, It's, Augmedix, He's, Tyler Le, Taneja, Livongo, Teladoc, Glen Tullman, Ashwini Zenooz, CommureOS, Tanay Tandon, Rusty Russell, Strongline, Tandon, didn't, General Catalyst, it's, Axios, he's, HATCo, GABRIELLA AUDI, wasn't, Hemant Organizations: Catalyst, Business, Catalyst's, Google, NASDAQ, Jefferson Health, Healthcare, HCA Healthcare, Athelas, SMP Labs, SMP, Commure, BI, FCC, Labs, Strongline Pro, Strongline, Northern District of, Canopy, General, Health, Healthcare Assurance Transformation Corporation, Summa Health, Olive AI, Augmedix, HCA, Getty, Big Tech, Commure's Locations: Livongo, Philadelphia, Commure, PatientKeeper, Athelas, Strongline, Northern District, Northern District of California, Ohio, Augmedix

☆ Andreessen Horowitz just dealt a blow to tech's move-to-Miami movement
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-04 | by ( Sarah Jackson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read previewAndreessen Horowitz has reportedly given up on its Miami office after just two years in the space. "The firm is now virtual, but can materialize physically on command," Horowitz said at the time. Andreessen Horowitz did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment. VC investment in Miami also saw a huge decrease in 2023, dropping 70% to $2 billion, according to the Journal.

Persons: —, Andreessen Horowitz, cofounders, Ben Horowitz, Horowitz, Marc Andreessen, Keith Rabois, Rabois, Florida . Austin, Elon Musk, he'd Organizations: Service, Miami Beach, Bloomberg, Business, Miami, Street Journal, SpaceX Locations: Miami, Miami Beach, Miami Beach , New York City, Santa Monica, Francisco, California, San Francisco, Fort Lauderdale, Florida ., Austin, Texas

☆ Supersized seed rounds: The earliest stage of the startup market is getting out of control
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-31 | by ( Vishal Persaud | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Read previewThere's been an investor gold rush to find the hottest new startup, causing a new dynamic: larger seed rounds. In some cases, the seed round is getting out of control. Tier one multi-stage firms have decided to allocate more resources to investing at the seed stage, according to several traditional seed investors who Business Insider spoke to. Related storiesMy colleague Sri Muppidi has reported on these supersized seed rounds in AI startups throughout the summer. Other supersized seed rounds this year include a $10.5 million round by Swedish legal AI startup Leya, and Gameplay Galaxy recently announced a $24 million seed round for its Web3 gaming platform.

Persons: —, Greylock, they've, Let's, Sri Muppidi, Ed Sim, whiff, Sim, Sim postured, Shruti Gandhi Organizations: Service, Business, Q2 Venture Monitor, Sequoia, Felicis Ventures, Galaxy, Boldstart Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Canaan Partners, Instacart's, Ventures, Founders Locations: Canaan

☆ Legal tech is undergoing an AI revolution. Here are the 15 startups that have raised the most funding from VCs like a16z and Menlo Ventures.
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-29 | by ( Samantha Stokes | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

You can opt-out at any time by visiting our Preferences page or by clicking "unsubscribe" at the bottom of the email. Go to newsletter preferencesSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read previewLegal tech is having a moment in the spotlight, thanks in part to advancements in artificial intelligence. AdvertisementBusiness Insider has identified 15 legal tech startups that have raised the most funding from investors, via an analysis of PitchBook data. AdvertisementWe organized our list based on the total amount of VC funding each startup has received.

Persons: —, AI, Harvey Organizations: Service, Business, Clio, Rocket Locations: London

☆ For young, promising venture capitalists, the path to partner has suddenly become much steeper
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-26 | by ( Melia Russell | Sri Muppidi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Let's make a dealThere's no one way to get promoted in venture capital. Amanda "Robby" Robson became a partner at Cowboy Ventures at 29 years old, making her the youngest partner in the firm's history. Network your way to a promotionFundraising for venture firms has become increasingly competitive, with dollars concentrated into fewer legacy funds. Firms might be faster to hire or promote young investors who land deals in the desired category. The next day, the fund promoted him to senior associate and Brenner made it LinkedIn-official.

Persons: —, Dan Miller, Abigail Johnson, Michael Larsen, It's, Clara Brenner, Larsen, Amanda, Robby, Robson, Jill Chase, Chase, Miller, " Miller, Johnson, Jenieri Cyrus, Julie Lein, Brenner, Cyrus Organizations: Service, Business, True, Sapphire Ventures, Cambridge Associates, Urban Innovation Fund, Investors, Google, Cowboy Ventures, TechCrunch, intel, Urban, Northwestern Kellogg, LinkedIn Locations: Northwestern

☆ Lucy Guo's second act: After the 29-year-old left Scale AI, she has the 'itch to build' something new
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-23 | by ( Sri Muppidi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

But Lucy Guo, the 29-year-old cofounder of data labeling startup Scale AI blurs the line between the two archetypes. Yet this is the persona many have come to know since Guo left Scale AI in 2018. But, midway through the program, they pivoted again, this time to what would eventually become Scale AI. Lucy GuoThe idea of Scale AI came from a suggestion by one of their YC roommates, who proposed creating an "API for humans." Advertisement"The itch to build"After Scale AI, Guo decided to apply her learnings to a new entrepreneurial opportunity: investing.

Persons: —, Lucy Guo, Billie Eilish, Charlie XCX, Guo, she's, Adam D'Angelo, Alexandr Wang, Alex, Wang, Guo's, Cruise, Dave Fontenot, Kylie Jenner's lipsticks, Jake Paul's, Passes Organizations: Service, Business, Fry's Electronics, Carnegie Mellon University, Thiel, Facebook, Multicoin, Bond Locations: Miami, Fremont , California, San Francisco, China, hackathons, Quora

☆ A private-equity takeover is coming for startups
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-12 | by ( Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The European private equity firm had been eyeing the late-stage startup for five years, impressed by its traction and focus on customer success. The speed of the deal, and the flashy multiple, illustrate how private equity funds are able to swallow startups more often lately. But in the face of rising inflation and interest rates, software customers from tech startups to mom-and-pop shops trimmed their budgets. Andreessen Horowitz plans to invest in the private equity asset class through its family office division. With high interest rates and a liquidity crunch reshaping the landscape, private equity is seizing the moment.

Persons: —, Scott Arnold, AuditBoard, Michael Brown, They're, Brown, Derek Hernandez, Aaron Fleishman, Fleishman, they're, Thoma, Yoni, Rechtman, it's, Catalyst, Andreessen Horowitz Organizations: Service, Business, Battery Ventures, Battery, Tola Capital, Thoma Bravo, Vista Equity Partners, Slow Ventures, Eldridge Industries, Sequoia Locations: Southern California, VCs, Big Tech, Metropolis, North America

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailEther climbs to start the week after crossing $2,600 over the weekend: CNBC Crypto WorldCNBC Crypto World features the latest news and daily trading updates from the digital currency markets and provides viewers with a look at what's ahead with high-profile interviews, explainers, and unique stories from the ever-changing crypto industry. On today's show, PitchBook's Robert Le breaks down the findings of the research firm's Q2 crypto report, which reveals that crypto startups raised slightly more from VC funding compared to Q1, despite a drop in the total number of deals.

Persons: explainers, PitchBook's Robert Le Organizations: CNBC Crypto, CNBC

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