CB Insights - top research briefs of Q2'20

Hola,

The 2nd quarter of this year has been a weird, topsy-turvy, and sometimes downright confusing period.

Sure, parts of the stock market are on fire. But there is still a lot of smoke in the air, and it’s hard to see what’s what.

Let’s look at what CB Insights clients have been reading at to make sense of the world. These are the top research pages of the quarter for our clients:

• Covid-19 Research Resources: Startups, Funding Trends, Tech Solutions, & More To Watch Amid Covid-19
•  AI In Numbers Q1’20: The Impact Of Covid-19 On Global Funding, Exits, Valuations, R&D, And More
• State Of Healthcare Q1’20 Report: Investment & Sector Trends To Watch
• Venture Capital Funding Report Q1 2020
• Out Of Office: 65+ Startups Helping You Work From Home

Some of our most popular content in the quarter has direct links to Covid-19 and the post-Covid world. Other posts show abiding interest in themes and sectors where Covid-19 has only accelerated preexisting trends toward more tech, digitization, and software.  

Note: If there’s a lock, that means it’s paywalled for CB Insights clients.

You know what's cool? A billion dollars 
 

Tencent just bought Malaysia-based company iflix in an effort to expand its video business, which is facing increasing competition.

The other 2 companies in China’s big tech trio, Baidu and Alibaba, are also making purchases to evolve beyond their core businesses. Take a look at their biggest bets in this graphic. 

Right place, right time
 

In contrast to legacy brick-and-mortar brands, D2C brands like Hims and Brooklinen have thrived amid the pandemic. 

We highlight some of the advantages that have allowed these D2C startups to flourish. Clients can read more about them here. 

You ain't heard nothin' yet

Airbnb has yet to rule out an IPO for 2020, according to its CEO. 

It was one of our predictions for companies that will go public this year. See the rest of the contenders here. 

That’s a smart algorithm
 

The Covid-19 crisis shut down supply chain and manufacturing operations across the globe. But AI can help circumvent these troubles, from predicting vendor risk to flagging loopholes in contracts. 

Clients can read more about how manufacturers can leverage the tech to lower risk in sourcing and procurement in part 2 of our AI in manufacturing series here.

Brazil-based Nubank raised $300M from investors Sequoia Capital, Ribbit Capital, and Kaszek Ventures, bringing the company’s total disclosed funding to $1.4B. The challenger bank has seen tremendous customer growth through Covid-19, as lockdown measures drive consumers to adopt mobile banking and seek credit to cover expenses.

Beyond providing mobile and no-fee banking, Nubank is disrupting traditional banking by bringing credit to under- and unbanked populations in Latin America. Mobile, no-fee, and underbanked credit represent 3 of 13 emerging trends in our  retail banking NExTT report.

In many ways, Covid-19 has spurred rapid growth of digital banking. “The silver lining to the crisis is that it is accelerating behavior change, reinforcing adoption in a way no one would have expected,” says Nubank CFO Marcelo Kopel.

Latin America, where  nearly 40% of the population remains unbanked, is a particularly ripe area of opportunity for challenger banks.

Have a great rest of the week.

P.S. We're hiring a senior data scientist. Apply for the role here.