TechCrunch Startup News
TechCrunch
Listen to select TechCrunch articles on startups coverage—who's raising, who's exiting, who's changing the world.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Dec 19, 2019 • 7min
Blindlee is Chatroulette for dating with a safety screen
Make space for another dating app in your single life: Blindlee is Chatroulette for dating but with female-friendly guardrails in the form of a user-controlled video blur effect. The idea is pretty simple: Singles are matched randomly with another user who meets some basic criteria (age, location) for a three minute ‘ice breaker’ video call. The app suggests chat topics — like ‘pineapple on pizza, yay or nay’ — to get the conversation flowing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 19, 2019 • 6min
#ANGELS founding partner raises $25M for debut fund Moxxie Ventures
Katie Jacobs Stanton, a former Twitter executive and co-founder of the #ANGELS investment collective, has raised $25 million for her debut venture capital fund Moxxie Ventures. As the sole general partner, she plans to invest between $250,000 and $500,000 in underrepresented and underestimated founders, Stanton tells TechCrunch, with a focus on “products that make life and work better. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 18, 2019 • 7min
Why is WeWork 2.0 trying to go public?
In the wake of WeWork’sembarrassing IPO rout, you might imagine that startups working in similar markets would cool it for a bit. Perhaps they could work on cutting spending, improving their gross margins, and, say, shooting for profitability. Not so, at least in one case. Instead of doing those things, China-based Ucommune filed to go public in America this month. The WeWork competitor is mostly a co-working business. It’s also a marketing company. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 17, 2019 • 6min
With $4B food delivery acquisition, Korea poised to enter upper tier of startup hubs
Seoul and South Korea may well be the secret startup hub that (still) no one talks about. While often dwarfed by the scale and scope of the Chinese startup market next door, South Korea has proven over the last few years that it can — and will — enter the top-tier of startup hubs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 17, 2019 • 4min
Sleek raises $5M to help companies incorporate and operate in Singapore and Hong Kong
Sleek, a startup that is making it easier for other startups and companies to incorporate and operate in Singapore and Hong Kong, said today it has extended its seed financing round to raise $5 million. The extended seed round for the two-year-old startup was led by private investors Pierre Lorinet and Fabio Blom, and MI8, an Asia-focused European backed private investment company. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 16, 2019 • 5min
Startups Weekly: This year in startups
Welcome back to Startups Weekly, a weekend newsletter that dives into the week’s noteworthy startups and venture capital news. Before I jump into today’s topic, let’s catch up a bit. Last week, I wrote about U.S. VC activity in Europe. Before that, I noted Chinese investor activity in Africa. Remember, you can send me tips, suggestions and feedback to kate.clark@techcrunch.com or on Twitter@KateClarkTweets. If you’re new, you can subscribe to Startups Weekly here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 16, 2019 • 4min
Chicago’s Sprout Social prices IPO mid-range at $17 per share, raising $150M
On the heels of Bill.com’s debut, Chicago-based social media software company Sprout Social priced its IPO last night at $17 per share, in the middle of its proposed $16 to $18 per-share range. Selling 8.8 million shares, Sprout raised just under $150 million in its debut. Underwriters have the option to purchase an additional 1.3 million shares if they so choose. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 13, 2019 • 3min
And the winner of Startup Battlefield at Disrupt Berlin 2019 is… Scaled Robotics
At the very beginning, there were 14 startups. After two 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. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 13, 2019 • 4min
Glovo’s Sacha Michaud: “I think there will be consolidation”
Many companies realized that there was a huge opportunity when it comes to on-demand delivery of food and groceries. And apparently, too many companies as Glovo co-founder Sacha Michaud expects some consolidation in the space in the near future. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 12, 2019 • 6min
Gtmhub raises $9M from CRV after posting 400% ARR growth in the last year
This week Gtmhub announced a $9 million Series A led by CRV. The investment was not a large round, even for an A. But the capital found its way into one of the fastest-growing SaaS companies that we’ve spoken with recently, which made it interesting all the same. And, the firm was willing to talk about its financial performance in some detail. The combination made its Series A impossible to ignore. TechCrunch caught up with Gtmhub’s CMO Seth Elliott this morning to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
