Foxconn sees a slowdown, Dapper Labs gets its megaround, and Spotify saunters into social audio

March 30, 2021
Top News
 
Foxconn, the world's biggest contract electronics manufacturer, says a global chip shortage will reduce its shipments by 10%, potentially impacting the world's biggest consumer names, from Apple to Amazon. "The [supply in the] first two months of this quarter was still ok, as our clients are all very big, but we started to see changes happening this month," Chairman Young Liu said in an earnings call today that was covered by Nikkei Asia. More here.
Sponsored By ...
 
“Pete Kazanjy’s Founding Sales is excellent. The book has a straightforward perspective on how to sell well in a modern way.” ~Tomasz Tunguz | StrictlyVC subscribers can purchase the book (or in bulk for portfolio support) at 10% off with the code “StrictlySales” at the Founding Sales online store.
Massive Fundings
 
6sense, a nearly eight-year-old, San Francisco-based predictive sales and marketing platform, has raised $125 million in Series D funding at a $2.1 billion valuation led by D1 Capital Partners, with participation from Sapphire Ventures, Tiger Global Management and Insight Partners. TechCrunch has more here.
 
BrightInsight, a three-year-old, San Jose, Ca.-based digital health platform for biopharma and medtech, has raised $101 million in Series C funding. General Catalyst led the round, joined by earlier backers Insight Partners, New Leaf Venture Partners and Eclipse Ventures. More here.
 
Cameo, a four-year-old, Chicago, Il.-based startup that invites fans to pay for personalized videos from celebrities, has raised $100 million in Series C funding led by e.ventures, with participation from GV, Amazon Alexa Fund, United Talent Agency, SoftBank Vision Fund 2, Valor Equity Partners, Counterpoint Global and earlier investors Lightspeed Venture Partners, Kleiner Perkins, Chernin Group, Origin Ventures and Spark Capital. Variety has more here.
 
Capitolis, a five-year-old, New York-based SaaS platform that enables banks, hedge funds and asset managers to eliminate, move, or create trading positions by collaborating with other financial institutions, has raised $90 million in Series C funding. Andreessen Horowitz led the round, joined by Index Ventures, Sequoia Capital, S Capital, Spark Capital, SVB Capital, Citi, J.P. Morgan and State Street. TechCrunch has more here.
 
Dapper Labs, the three-year-old, Vancouver-based non-fungible token (NFT) company behind CryptoKitties and NBA Top Shot, has raised $305 million led by Coatue at a post-money valuation of $2.6 billion valuation. Other investors in the round include Michael Jordan, Kevin Durant, Plus Sound Ventures, Dreamers VC, AG Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, Union Square Ventures, Version One and Venrock. TechCrunch has more here.

Ecovative Design, a four-year-old, Green Island, N.Y.-based developer of mushroom mycelia-based alternatives to styrofoam packaging, has raised $60 million from Viking Global Investors, Senator Investment Group, AiiM Partners and Trousdale Ventures. TechCrunch has more here.  
 
GoStudent, a five-year-old, Vienna, Austria-based tutoring marketplace for K-12 students, has raised €70 million in Series B funding. Coatue led the round, joined by earlier backers Left Lane Capital and DN Capital. TechCrunch has more here.
 
HighRadius, a 14-year-old, Houston, Tex.-based SaaS business that helps companies automate their accounts receivable and treasury processes, has raised $300 million in Series C funding round led by D1 Capital and Tiger Global Management. The round values the company at $3.1 billion, more than triple where it was valued when it closed on $125 million in Series B funding in January 2020. The company has now raised $475 million altogether. TechCrunch has more here.
 
HYCU, a three-year-old, Boston-based startup that provides multi-cloud backup and recovery services to mid-market and enterprise customers, has raised $87.5 million in Series A funding. Bain Capital Ventures led the round, joined by Acrew Capital. TechCrunch has more here.
 
Nice Tuan, a three-year-old, Beijing-based startup focused on community grocery buying, has raised $750 million in funding in a round that was co-led by Alibaba Group and DST Global. Other investors in the round include D.E. Shaw, Anatole Investment and Jeneration Capital. Bloomberg has more here.

Omega Therapeutics, a four-year-old, Cambridge, Ma.-based epigenomics company that was spun out of Flagship Pioneering, has raised $126 million in Series C funding from Flagship, Fidelity, Invus, BlackRock, Cowen, Point72, Logos Capital and Mirae Asset Capital. BioSpace has more here
 
Rightway, a three-year-old, New York-based healthcare navigation company that says it aims to help members find quality care at fair prices, has raised $100 million in Series C funding led by Khosla Ventures in a round that values the company at $1.1 billion. Thrive Capital and Tiger Global Management also joined the round, among others. Forbes has more here.
 
Tomorrow.io, a five-year-old, Boston-based weather intelligence platform that sells to businesses and countries that need to manage weather-related challenges, has raised $77 million in Series D funding led by Stone Court Capital, with participation from Highline Capital. The company was formerly known as ClimaCell. TechCrunch has more here.
 
Zoomin, a six-year-old, New York-based startup that says it helps companies turn disparate product content into useful customer support data, has raised $52 million in Series C funding led by General Atlantic. Earlier backers Bessemer Venture Partners, Salesforce Ventures and Viola Growth are also participating. TechCrunch has more here.
 
Big-But-Not-Crazy-Big Fundings
 
Cleo, a five-year-old, San Francisco-based family benefits platform, has raised $40 million in Series C funding led by Transformation Capital, with participation from Glynn Capital, PruVen Capital, Gaingels and earlier backers Greylock, NEA and Felicis Ventures. More here.
 
Crosschg, a four-year-old, San Francisco-based recruiting software startup, has raised $13 million in Series A funding. Tiger Global Management led the round, joined by GGV Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, Slack Fund, SAP, Intersect Capital and Rocketship.vc. More here.
 
Ethic, a six-year-old, New York-based asset management platform "that powers personalization for advisors," has raised $29 million in Series B funding. Oak HC/FT led the round, joined by Fidelity, Nyca Partners, Sound Ventures, ThirdStream Partners, Urban Innovation Fund and Kapor Capital. More here.
 
Hiber, a five-year-old, Amsterdam-based IoT satellite network focused on oil and gas well monitoring, has raised €26 million from the European Innovation Council Fund, the Dutch government, Finch Capital, Netherlands Enterprise Agency and Hartenlust Group. More here.
 
Inbrain Neuroelectronics, a two-year-old, Barcelona, Spain-based biotech that's focused on epilepsy and Parkinson’s disease, has raised $16.8 million in Series A funding co-led by Asabys Partners and Alta Life Sciences. Mass Device has more here.

Kudo, a four-year-old, New York-based cloud-based collaboration platform that enables web meetings and live conferences with real-time multilateral language interpretation, just raised $21 million in Series A funding. Felicis Ventures led the round, joined by hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, Maverick Ventures, Elephant VC, FJ Labs and Global Founders Capital. More here.
 
Living Security, a four-year-old, Austin, Tex.-based cybersecurity awareness training startup, has raised $14 million in Series B funding led by Updata Partners. Earlier backers Silverton Partners, Active Capital, Rain Capital and SaaS Venture Partners. More here.

Manual, a nearly three-year-old, London-based company that sells men’s wellness products (it competes with Ro and Hims), has raised $30 million in Series A funding from Sonoma Brands, Waldencast, FJ Labs, GISEV Family Office Capital, Cherry Ventures and Felix Capital. TechCrunch has more here

Productsup, an 11-year-old, Berlin, Germany-based e-commerce data integration startup (it offers more visibility into product data and make updates to product feeds in real-time), has raised $20 million in equity and debt funding co-led by Nordwind Capital and Deutsche Handelsbank. Tech.eu has more here.
 
Second Closet, a four-year-old, Toronto, Ontario-based self-storage startup, has raised C$20 million led by Whitecap Venture Partners, with participation from Intact Ventures and earlier backers MIG, Toronto tech entrepreneur Michael Hyatt and Cowie Capital Partners. More here
 
WaveSense, a four-year-old, Somerville, Ma.-based company at work on navigation systems for self-driving cars, has raised $15 million co-led by Rhapsody Venture Partners and Impossible Ventures. More here.
 
Smaller Fundings
 
Cere Network, a two-year-old, San Francisco-based, blockchain-based customer relationship manager, has raised $5 million in funding led by Republic Labs, with participation from Woodstock Fund, JRR Capital, Ledger Prime, G1 Ventures, ZB Exchange and Gate.io. VentureBeat has more here.
 
Gryps, a 10-month-old, New York-based robotic process automation (RPA) startup focused on the construction industry, has raised $1.5 million in seed funding led by LDV Capital, with participation from Pear VC, Harvard Business School Graduate Syndicate and individual investors. VentureBeat has more here.
 
Nimbly, a three-year-old, Singapore-based startup whose tech aims to help businesses automate their standard operating processes, via digital checklists, inventory management and field audits that can be accessed through a mobile app, has raised $4.6 million in pre-Series A funding, led by Insignia Ventures Partners, with participation from Sovereign’s Capital and Saison Capital. TechCrunch has more here.
 
SuperRare, a three-year-old, Newark, Delaware-based NFT art platform that has garnered tens of millions in new sales in recent weeks, just raised $9 million in Series A funding co-led by Velvet Sea Ventures and 1confirmation, with participation from numerous other outfits and individuals, including Naval Ravikant and Chamath Palihapitiya. TechCrunch has more here.
New Funds
 
Boyu Capital, a 10-year-old, Hong Kong-based investment firm that's transitioning its headquarters to Singapore, is raising its fifth flagship venture fund and its first growth equity fund, reports DealStreetAsia. Meanwhile, the WSJ wrote last month about why two of the firm's cofounders and a share of the company's operations are being relocated out of HK. 
 
Canvas Ventures , the early-stage, Bay Area-based venture firm, has garnered $350 million in capital commitments for its third fund, it announced today. The outfit, which closed its second fund with $300 million in 2016 and focuses largely on marketplaces, digital health, fintech and logistics, now has $835 million in assets under management. Forbes has more here.
 
Craft Ventures, the four-year-old, Bay Area-based venture firm cofounded by entrepreneurs-turned investors David Sacks, Bill Lee and Jeff Fluhr, is raising its third early-stage fund, along with a growth fund, show SEC filings first flagged by Axios. No target amounts are listed. More here.
 
Goodwater Capital, a six-year-old, Burlingame, Ca.-based venture firm focused primarily on consumer facing companies, is in the process of raising its fourth flagship fund, per an SEC filing that lists a target of $455 million. The firm never announced its third fund, but according to an earlier filing, it had planned to close that vehicle with $350 million in capital commitments in 2018. More here.
 
Halogen Ventures, a six-year-old, L.A.-based venture firm that's focused on consumer-tech startups led by woman and which was founded by Jesse Draper (whose father, brother, and grandfather, are also VCs), has raised $21.1 million for its second fund, according to an SEC filing that lists a target of $30 million. More here.
 
Overline, a nearly two-year-old, Atlanta-based venture firm focused on seed-stage businesses, primarily in Atlanta and the Southeast region of the U.S., has closed its debut fund with $25 million in capital commitments anchored by the email marketing giant Mailchimp. TechCrunch has more here.
 
TCV, the 26-year-old, Menlo Park, Ca.-based growth-stage and crossover investment firm, looks to be putting together a new fund that it has branded Bear Technology Fund. Related SEC paperwork doesn't list a target amount. The firm closed its newest flagship fund with $4 billion back in January. More here.
 
TWO, the second blank check company led by Eventbrite co-founder Kevin Hartz and other industry veterans targeting the tech sector, has raised $200 million by offering 20 million shares at $10. The offering did not contain warrants. More here.
 
Zigg Capital, a three-year-old, New York-based proptech venture capital firm co-founded by entrepreneur Dave Eisenberg and former Morgan Stanley analyst Ryan Orley, has raised $225 million in capital commitments to double down on real estate technology, including from the University of Chicago. That's more than twice the size of the outfit's $100 million debut fund. The Real Deal has more here.
Exits
 
Amazon has acquired a startup in India that is helping offline stores go online, the e-commerce group’s latest attempt to make inroads in a nation where brick and mortar continue to drive more than 95% of sales. According to a regulatory filing, Amazon paid $14.7 million in cash for Perpule and it expects to pay $5 million or so more to compensate Perpule’s employees. The startup had raised $6.36 million, says Tracxn. TechCrunch has more here.
 
Spotify said today that it's buying Betty Labs, an app developer, and a live audio app developed by Betty Labs called Locker Room. The deal marks Spotify's first foray into social audio, notes Axios. The company said last month that it was looking at ways to make its podcast more interactive between creators and listeners. More here.
Going Public
 
Allbirds, the five-year-old, San Francisco-based wool sneaker maker that was most recently assigned a $1.6 billion valuation by its investors, is taking steps toward the public markets, says Axios, which notes that it recently hired Panera vet Mike Bufano as CFO, added a pair of independent directors, and posted a job opening related to building an SEC reporting function. More here.
 
Coursera, the nine-year-old, Mountain View, Ca.based online education provider, has priced its shares at the top of a marketed range in an IPO to raise $519 million. Coursera and selling stockholders sold 15.73 million shares today for $33 each after marketing them for $30 to $33, according to a statement. The listing gives the company a market value of about $4.3 billion based on the outstanding shares listed in its filings with the the SEC. Including employee stock options and restricted stock units, it would have a fully diluted valuation of more than $5.4 billion, says Bloomberg.
 
German aviation start-up Lilium has agreed to go public through a merger with Qell Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company founded by former GM exec Barry Engle. It’s the latest deal for the urban air mobility industry following announced SPAC agreements including Archer Aviation and Joby Aviation. CNBC has more here.
 
Tribe Capital Growth II, a tech SPAC formed by the nearly three-year-old, San Francisco-based venture firm Tribe Capital, has filed for a $300 million IPO. The outfit raised its first blank-check company, a $200 million vehicle, in January. 
People
 
Mark Cuban: The Dallas Mavericks are thinking about "turning our tickets into NFTs."
 
Facebook’s chief revenue officer, David Fischer, is leaving the company after an 11-year run.
Sponsored By . . .
 
TopFunnel helps teams hire the right people, faster and more cost effectively than traditional means. TopFunnel unlocks sourcing automation at scale for startups up to teams over 100,000. Empower founders, execs, and recruiters to source and schedule like pros. See the Talent TAM, benchmark vs the competition, track diversity, and execute on your goals. StrictlyVC readers get $10k of credits.
Essential Reads
 
For the fourth time, SpaceX today attempted a high-altitude test of its next-generation rocket and for the fourth time, it exploded.
 
PayPal this morning announced the launch of Checkout with Crypto, a new feature that will allow consumers to check out at millions of online businesses using cryptocurrency. TechCrunch has more here.
 
LinkedIn confirms that it's working on a Clubhouse rival, too.
 
VW tries an April Fool's joke. In March.
Detours
 
How Elizabeth Loftus changed the meaning of memory.
 
The Louvre just put its entire art collection online for free.
 
The boarding school boom.
Retail Therapy
 
Um, what?!
Sponsored By . . .
 
Designed for VC’s, Kushim is an all-in-one investment tracking solution. From deal-screening to exit, Kushim helps you streamline your workflow, collaborate with stakeholders, and manage your funds. Key features include reporting, custom metric tracking, LP management, and integrations with Crunchbase, Pitchbook, Gmail, Outlook and more. Arrange a demo today!
Subscribe!

StrictlyVC

StrictlyVC, LLC, 1 Blackfield Drive, No. 239, Tiburon, CA 94920

Unsubscribe - Unsubscribe Preferences

Older messages

Ramp ramps up, Andreessen doubles down, and the force behind those snarky Amazon tweets

Tuesday, March 30, 2021

The news you need to know March 29, 2021 Hi, welcome back.:) Top News Visa said today that it will allow the use of the cryptocurrency USD Coin to settle transactions on its payment network, the latest

A doomed deal, Amazon's bizarre PR strategy, and WeWork is going public after all

Saturday, March 27, 2021

The news you need to know March 26, 2021 Friday! We're wishing you a safe weekend and also a happy Passover. As for us, we're already sipping a Big Gulp-size glass of hooch to end another busy

A wasted opportunity in Washington, Didi Chuxing eyes New York, and another smartphone maker joins the EV race

Friday, March 26, 2021

The news you need to know March 25, 2021 Thursday! Hello.:) Top News Lawmakers questioned the leaders of Facebook, Google and Twitter today about the connection between online disinformation and the

An SEC inquiry into SPACs, TuSimple's not-so-simple IPO, and buy your Tesla with Bitcoin (says Musk)

Thursday, March 25, 2021

The news you need to know March 24, 2021 Top News Pony Ma, the founder of Tencent, China's biggest social media and video games company, met with antitrust watchdog officials this month to discuss

Intel's new game plan, Facebook's Clubhouse copycat, and friction in Austin

Wednesday, March 24, 2021

The news you need to know March 23, 2021 Top News US stocks edged down today as investors digested testimony by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell about the US economy. Intel's new CEO, Pat

You Might Also Like

SaaSHub Weekly - Mar 28

Thursday, March 28, 2024

SaaSHub Weekly - Mar 28 Featured and useful products Loach logo Loach Say goodbye to unachieved OKRs with Loach, an OKR management solution that empowers your team to seamlessly align their daily work

84 new Shopify apps for you 🌟

Thursday, March 28, 2024

New Shopify apps hand-picked for you 🙌 Week 12 Mar 18, 2024 - Mar 25, 2024 New Shopify apps hand-picked for you 🙌 What's New at Shopify? 🌱 New login requirements for the Order Status Page Changed ⸱

We've Been Tinkering

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Join Our Beta! ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏

AMA with Chiedo John, Director of Growth @ GitHub

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Live on Wednesday, April 3rd, starting at 9 AM PST͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌

red hot startup intel

Thursday, March 28, 2024

FULL SWOT analysis on Ramp, Databricks, Cohere, Devoted Health, and Coalition inside Scouting Reports on 🔥 Startups Download Now Hi there, Psst. Want competitive intel on the top 5 industry leading

The Ultimate Amazon Guide: Strategies For Sellers In 2024

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Learn from Melisa Vong for FREE in the Start Your Ecommerce Business Summit ! Another day, another exciting opportunity to introduce you to one of our 20+ ecomm trailblazers in the Start Your Ecommerce

[SaaS Club] Overcoming Early Struggles to Bootstrap to $22M ARR

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Hey Reader Let's connect on LinkedIn! Follow me to stay in touch! Here's a quick round up of what's been going on at SaaS Club: 🎧 Podcast Hubstaff: Overcoming Early Struggles to Bootstrap

The ultimate 9-5 escape plan

Thursday, March 28, 2024

This is from THIS episode - Spotify - iTunes Reid Hoffman (founder of LinkedIn) once said “Entrepreneurship is like jumping off a cliff and building a parachute as you go down.” 😅🪂 I don't know

The Entrepreneur's Secret Weapon 💪

Thursday, March 28, 2024

​ ​ The Entrepreneur's Secret Weapon 💪 ​ ​u/Electrical_Ad_7754​ Hey friends! ​ Welcome to The Slice, a weekly curation of cool bootstrapped startups and actionable reads. We've got AI tools for

📂 Treat content like its your product

Thursday, March 28, 2024

​ ​ ​ ​ Today's newsletter is proudly supported by Embarque 🎉 ​ For two years in a row, SaaS founders and marketers reported content as the #1 driver of growth according to the State of SaaS