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Hi Sifted reader,

Saying cheese is so last century. In the world of tech, getting your photo snapped means making things weird. But what's the secret to nailing the perfect founder photo? After an extensive review of the best that Europe's founders have to offer, we think we have the answer. Scroll to find out.  

And it's Friday, which means it's also time to tune in to the latest episode of The Sifted Podcast. Today Eleanor and Tim discuss reports of a new investment round for Gorillas (yes, really), luxury real estate fintechs and Tim’s experience delivering food in the middle of a heatwave. 

Plus:

• The most active seed-stage VCs investing in Web3
• Italy’s top soonicorns
• Why all founders need an Earthshoot plan

— Sophie, editorial assistant & Tom, digital editor

🩺 Cera raises Europe’s biggest ever elderly care round. The UK-based elderly care platform raised £260m in a round consisting roughly of half equity and half debt. The round was led by Kairos HQ, with participation from the likes of Vanderbilt University Endowment, Schroders Capital and Jane Street Capital. Cera helps elderly patients and their carers manage at-home healthcare, and it hopes to increase the number of patients it supports by 500% and expand internationally. 

📢 The Sifted Summit lineup is out! Join us in London on October 5-6, where we’ll be bringing together the best of Startup Europe for a two-day networking extravaganza. There'll be podcast recordings, an expo floor, workshops and a host of top speakers, including Trinny Woodall from Trinny London, Hiroko Takeuchi from GoCardless, Sacha Michaud from Glovo and many more. Book your tickets now.

🔬 US biopharma giant Gilead Sciences to acquire MiroBio for $405m. The life sciences startup is part of Oxford Science Enterprises’ portfolio — the investment company formed to found, fund and build companies via its partnership with the University of Oxford. MiroBio was spun out of the University of Oxford to develop immune checkpoint agonists — a new class of medicine that treats autoimmune diseases by restoring balance to the immune system. 

From first customers to solid marketing strategies, launching a product is no mean feat — and preparation is key. We’ve created a how to — a tech bible if you will — for startup success.

Hear from the experts here.

Trying to snap the perfect founder photo? Sifted's got your back.

In an attempt to discover the secret formula for a great founders' photo, we reviewed dozens of photos across Europe's tech ecosystem to come up with a "foolproof" formula — think parodying your favourite band, wearing matching tracksuits or, er, playing hide and seek.

But who won Sifted’s best founder photo award?

Crashing cryptocurrencies and NFTs may have made headlines, but do Web3 technologies really have potential beyond the media hype?

Investors certainly think so, with new Web3 funds emerging across Europe and investments into European crypto and decentralised finance growing by six times in 2021.

But who are the investors backing Europe's Web3 startups?

Last year, VC investment into Italian startups reached a record high of $1.4bn, and the country gained its first unicorn since the dotcom boom when BNPL fintech Scalapay reached a $1bn valuation earlier this year. 

Using data from Sifted’s Intelligence team and Dealroom, we’ve compiled a list of the Italian companies that could be next.

So which startups made the Italian soonicorn list?

Last week we passed Earth Overshoot Day — the date in which humankind has used up all the resources the Earth can replenish in a calendar year. 

It’s grim news, but OLIO cofounder Tessa Clarke believes that tech entrepreneurs are in a unique position to make the changes we need to bend the arc of consumption back the other way. 

So, founders, what should your Earth Overshoot plan be?

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❄️ The total worth of all cryptocurrencies is down to $900bn from an all-time high of $3tn... so are we in the midst of a crypto winter? Or does this present a big opportunity for founders?

🛍️ Running a sale can bring in the cash, but they can sometimes fall flat. Sifted’s Startup Life writer, Anisah Osman Britton, speaks to Nomfundo Mphuthi, strategy director at fashion shopping app Lyst, for her top tips on getting them right.

🍳 Funding for creator economy startups doubled to $939m in the past year with more than 200m users trying to monetise their following — and the number of self-identifying creators could hit 1bn in the next five years. The Sifted Intelligence team spoke to Isabell Weiser, cofounder of The Plate, about the future of the creator economy.

Sophie Zhang

Editorial Assistant

Get in touch with them at sophiezhang@sifted.eu

Tom Nugent

Digital Editor 

Get in touch with him at tomnugent@sifted.eu
Or tweeting at @TJNugent92

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