CB Insights - the paypal ponzi

Hi there, 

What did you do to make your first dollar on the internet?

Like your very, very first dollar.

I set up multiple PayPal accounts under different email addresses and sent money between them to get the $5 referral bonus for getting “friends” to sign up.

Yeah — I was clearly a big thinker back in the day.

And you?

Quantum leaps

Funding to quantum tech startups soared to record levels in 2021, with nearly $1B invested as of December. 

Against this backdrop, big tech’s quantum activity is ramping up quickly.

Find out how Google, Microsoft, Amazon, IBM, and Intel are establishing themselves in the quantum space in this report. 

Nom nom

Meta (aka Facebook) recently confirmed it’s acquired yet another company in the AR/VR space — ImagineOptix, whose lens tech could help enhance and shrink the size of VR headsets. 

Meta’s been gathering tools to build the metaverse for years. 

We dug into its acquisitions and partnerships over the last 3 years to uncover Meta’s 5 most important strategic tech priorities here. 

Walmart & driverless delivery

Autonomous last-mile delivery is expected to be a $41.8B market by 2027. 

As it looks to a future of driverless delivery, Walmart has been actively investing and partnering in the space. 

We break down Walmart’s multi-pronged delivery strategy with a look at every one of its relationships in the last-mile and middle-mile delivery arenas here.

DTx market map

By 2030, chronic diseases are expected to account for 70% of total global deaths and 56% of the global burden of disease.

Digital therapeutics (DTx) — software-driven, evidence-based therapies that are used to prevent, manage, or treat diseases — are gaining traction as viable solutions to improve patient care. 

Clients can check out 150 DTx companies addressing 15 therapeutic areas, including diabetes and chronic pain, in this tech market map report. 

VentureBeat. Kyle Wiggers (@Kyle_L_Wiggers) discusses recent AI trends and references CB Insights research.

Los Angeles Times. Michael Hiltzik (@hiltzikm) comments on the Theranos verdict and cites CB Insights unicorn data.

Crain’s New York Business. Ryan Deffenbaugh (@RyanDDeff) reports on New York’s biggest startup deals in 2021 using CB Insights data.

P.S. We’re looking for a business development manager. Check out the role here.

Client-Exclusive Research
 

[Venture & Tech]

Wild ride. The NFT market saw exponential growth in 2021, with funding to NFT startups topping $2B through Q3'21.
 

[Healthcare]
Clinical trials on lock. With the return on investment for drug R&D down 80% over the past decade, sponsors and CROs are adopting clinical trials tech to reduce costs. 

[Insurance]
MVP tech framework. We evaluate 9 underwriting tech markets that P&C insurers should monitor, vet, and prioritize.

[Venture & Tech]
Snapstreak. Snapchat alumni or "mafia" have raised $343M, including $197M in 2021 alone, across 35 startups.