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A newsletter for communities, investors, angels, and founders
Power in Numbers
July 26, 2024
Welcome to PIN’d - our weekly newsletter where we pin (lol, bear with us) the most important tech/startup news of the week for aspiring angels, vc’s, startup investors, founders, etc. Expect a new weekly roundup from us every Friday morning!
If you’re receiving this, it’s because you’ve signed up for our waitlist and/or for newsletter updates.
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📰This week’s best news
Cybersecurity company Wiz just rejected what would have been the largest acquisition ever made by Google. In a memo sent to its employees, Assaf Rappaport, Wiz’s CEO, announced that the company is now aiming to go public.
Cyabra, a startup helping organizations combat misinformation on social media, plans to merge with special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Trailblazer Merger Corporation I and list on the Nasdaq. The deal values Cyabra at $70 million and is expected to close by the end of the year.
ICONIQ has just announced the launch of their seventh Growth flagship fund. With $5.75 billion in committed capital, a substantial increase over their last fund, they aim to support a new generation of leaders early in their quest to transform ideas into world-changing realities.
Alphabet is planning to invest an additional $5 billion in its self-driving subsidiary, Waymo, over the next few years. The company already provides 50,000 fully driverless paid rides per week in San Francisco and Phoenix. Recently, it has also expanded its services to Los Angeles and Austin.
Spotify saw a 20% increase in second-quarter revenue along with lower operating expenses, resulting in higher quarterly profit and free cash flow. This led to a 12% rise in shares. The audio service reported revenue of just over $4 billion and operating income of $289 million, reversing an operating loss of $268 million in the same period last year.
Mercury, a digital banking startup, has announced that it will no longer serve customers in certain countries, including North Korea, Iran, Libya, Russia, and Nigeria. The decision to include Ukraine in the list, a country known for its strong and growing startup community, has raised widespread questions, especially considering the situation following Russia's invasion.
💰 Funding announcement highlights
Didero, a startup using AI to help mid-sized companies manage their supply chains by automating procurement tasks like sourcing, purchase order management, and invoice reconciliation, raised a $7 million seed round. First Round Capital led the deal with Construct Capital, AI Grant, Box Group, Company Ventures, and Conviction also contributing.
OurRitual, a startup offering expert-led sessions and self-guided work to help individuals and couples improve their relationships, raised a $5.2 million seed fund led by Venrex. FJ Labs, Active Partners, GroundUp Ventures, 97212 Ventures, Samsung, Learn VC, Gaingels, Tiferes Ventures, Ventures Together, Liebenthal Ventures, and Rose Street Capital also participated.
Posh, a startup whose app allows users to find events, manage attendees, and promote their events, raised a $22 million Series A round. Goodwater Capital was the main investor, with FirstMark Capital, Companyon Ventures, and Epic Ventures also taking part.
Momentum, a startup that provides an AI-driven platform for sales teams that automates note-taking during calls, syncing data with Salesforce, and providing insights, raised a $13 million Series A round. FirstMark Capital led the deal, which also included Stage 2 Capital, Basis Set Ventures, and Leadout Capital.
Aviato, a startup led by a 17-year-old CEO that tracks funding rounds and headcounts for startups, raised a $2.3 million seed round from 8VC, Soma Capital, and SoftBank.
Star Catcher raised a a $12.5 million seed round. The startup aims to develop a space-based grid that captures solar energy in space and distributes it to satellites and other space assets. The round was co-led by Initialized Capital and B Capital, with Rogue VC pitching in as well.
📚 Interesting reads of the week
Austin Rief, Co-founder & CEO of the MorningBrew, shared on X the memo Wiz CEO sent his company after turning down a $23 billion deal from Google.
The age of unicorn founders at IPO can vary widely, from 23 to 85, with the average founder age at IPO being 45.
Here are Crunchbase’s best guesses about who may look to find an opening to get listed in the next six to 12 months. Chime, Revolut and Stripe are some of the companies that made the list.
There are many good reasons to start a fund, but it is a huge responsibility and it may not be the right direction for everyone. This post covers the different options to consider.
💪Tech mafia of the week
Highlights:
💰 Most money raised: Poolside
🤑 Total money raised by the GitHub Mafia: $840 million
Weekly tech mafia leaderboard
The GitHub alumni network has built some amazing companies, so we took a look at the top companies.
The GitHub Mafia takes the 53rd spot, with 61 companies founded and $840 million raised.
PS: Are you a GitHub employee/alum interested in getting your community together to invest in the community (and earn carry/other benefits along the way)? Or are you a member of another community that you think would make for an amazing startup investment community?
Learn more about us and sign up for the waitlist here.
📌PIN tweet of the week
Scott Banister is a prominent American entrepreneur, angel investor, and technology innovator.
He:
➝ co-founded IronPort Systems, which Cisco Systems acquired for $830 million
➝ was one of the early investors in PayPal and a member of the PayPal Mafia, working closely with… x.com/i/web/status/1…
— PIN (@getpinxyz)
2:08 PM • Jul 23, 2024
💼Who’s hiring in VC?
Looking to get into VC? Below are this week’s curated VC job openings.
Citi Ventures is looking for a Senior Vice President.
Adams Street Partners is looking for a VC Associate.
Celonis is looking for a VC Manager.
Hubspot is looking for a VC Director.
Playground is looking for a VC Associate.
📠Fun fact of the week
The average age of startup founders is typically around 42 years old. Contrary to the popular image of young entrepreneurs in their 20s, data shows that most startup founders are middle-aged. Specifically, the average age of founders for all types of businesses is 42 years, and for high-growth startups, this average increases to 45 years.
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