Startup Life 

"My USP is my age"

83-year-old Han van Doorn doesn't have the typical vision of retired life — to buy a country house and get into gardening. He wants to build a tech startup.

After van Doorn's wife passed away, he decided he wanted to feel secure in his home so he founded AreYouOkayToday. Its system monitors what elderly people are up to in their homes via their electrical devices and warns family members if any changes occur.

The founder is set on keeping it wearables free and protecting the privacy of its users. So how does it all work?

Mimi Billing chats with van Doorn about his startup journey.

🔋 Perfect your sustainable energy solution 🔋

Meet heaps of leading energy companies, top investors and policymakers online at TBB.Connect on 4-5 November. 

Discover 150+ sustainable energy technologies and listen to high-profile speakers from companies like ENGIE and Schneider Electric.

Sign up now. [Sponsored post]

 Fintech 

Investors love B2B fintechs

New data shows that business-to-business (B2B) fintechs have overtaken their business-to-consumer (B2C) counterparts in terms of investment and new deals.

B2B fintechs are seen as less risky than B2C, with strong unit-economics and more reliable revenues. 

So who are Europe's top B2B players? And is B2B the real 'el dorado' of fintech?

Isabel Woodford gives the rundown.

 Consumer 

How this music startup wooed Jay-Z and Elon Musk

Paris-based sound engineering startup Devialet has caught the eyes of quite a few VIP clients, and has built a reputation by selling some of the world's most sophisticated and loudest wireless speakers, worth thousands of euros.

Now, it wants to broaden its appeal by selling more affordable products. It's also going up against the likes of Apple and Samsung as pre-orders go live for its wireless earbuds.

What is the startup's vision for the future?

Marie Mawad finds out.

 Venture Capital 

The future is consumer

2020 has ushered in a big old shift to online retail as consumers have taken to the web to buy products like never before.

Looking to ride that wave is London-based VC Octopus Ventures — which has previously invested in several big consumer businesses like Zoopla and Depop, and has built a new team to focus on this dramatic behavioural change.

The VC is confident it can lead by building off its past success with consumer startups. But how?

Amy Lewin reports.

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Sifted Suggests 

🤦‍♀️ Female-founded businesses have been hit hardest by Covid. A report by the Entrepreneurs Network and Barclays shows that equity-backed businesses founded by women were twice as likely to have faced significant disruptions — such as closed premises or a delayed product launch — than businesses founded by men. Freya Pratty dives into the report further.

🛴 Copenhagen’s escooter cleanup. The Danish capital’s municipal government has cracked down on scooters being left all over the city’s streets, announcing that scooters must now be hired from a rental shop and brought back when the user has finished. 

🌍 Big business is no longer the planet’s biggest problem. Multinationals will not achieve their sustainability agenda unless they convince smaller companies of the merits, thinks Andrew Edgecliff-Johnson at the FT.

🤔 Who’s who in the industrial internet of things? Find out what you need to know about key leaders, influencers and researchers in the space from sectors like smart cities and cybersecurity.

🇷🇴 Managing teams as a leader. Alexandru Mihailciuc, global VP of pre-sales at UiPath shares his leadership inspirations and tips.

Events
 

🇸🇪 Sting Day from Stockholm | Online | 22 Oct
Talks, trends and matchmaking for investors and tech startups, with panel discussions moderated by Sifted's Mimi Billing and Amy Lewin. [Sponsored post]

👩‍💻 FT NextGen Event | Online | 22 Oct
Financial Times is hosting its second FT NextGen event — online! Workouts, property investment and dating during Covid. Register today and use promo code NextGen2020 to receive £5 off your pass. [Sponsored post]

👐 F for Future | Online | 14 Oct
Join Station F and a bunch of top speakers, from the likes of LocalGlobe and La French Tech, to learn about initiatives in the tech and startup ecosystem helping to create more sustainable and inclusive societies. Sifted's Amy Lewin will be hosting a panel and tickets are free.

🎤 B2B Office Hours | Online | 28 Oct
Pretiosum Ventures invites early-stage B2B startups to get advice from a handful of top VCs, from Balderton to SpeedInvest. Register now.