PitchBook News - Skewering the 'propaganda' of Web3

Read online | Don't want to receive these emails? Manage your subscription.

PitchBook

Log in

The Weekend Pitch

February 13, 2022

Presented by Masterworks

(Julia Midkiff/PitchBook News)

If having an abundance of investable capital is any indication, there has never been a better time than right now for technological innovation.

In 2021 alone, US venture capital firms raised nearly $130 billion, the highest annual total on record, according to PitchBook data. This figure doesn't even include all the capital that will be potentially funneled into new technologies by crossover investors. And it's even further dwarfed by the cash sitting on the balance sheets of technology giants like Alphabet, Apple and Microsoft.

From curing cancer to producing cleaner energy, there's no shortage of real problems this capital can help solve, while generating decent investment returns along the way. And yet, it is far from clear what long-term value the world can hope to get from two areas of tech innovation creating some of the biggest buzz and eating up a lot of capital: the metaverse and Web3 platforms.

I'm Marina Temkin, and this is The Weekend Pitch. You can reach me at marina.temkin@pitchbook.com or @mtemkin on Twitter. We caught up with Silicon Valley veteran Phil Libin for his take on the two technologies, their future and why the hype reminds him of Soviet propaganda.

Quote/Unquote

(Jitalia17/Getty Images)

"When we could find assets that are 20% to 40% off compared to where the last round was priced, it is a massive boost to our performance."

—Larry Aschebrook, founder and managing partner at G Squared, a growth-stage firm that deploys 60% of its capital in the secondary market.

Here's a closer look at how secondary deal activity is heating up as IPO exit opportunities dwindle and the blank-check boom cools down.

Deal Flow

Last year, the median pre-money valuation of late-stage VC deals with nontraditional investor participation reached $200 million—double what it was in 2020. In recent years, the proliferation of nontraditional investors has added an upward pressure on both deal sizes and valuations across the venture lifecycle.

Our recent US VC Valuations Report explores how startup valuations across a variety of stages and sectors have changed amid 2021's frenzied pace of dealmaking.

Did you know ...

(metamorworks/Getty Images)

… That 2021 was an exceptionally strong year for exit activity in global enterprise healthtech? The vertical hit more than $36 billion in exit value across 55 deals, according to PitchBook data. The surge was driven mostly by strong IPO activity within the insurtech segment.

Our 2021 Annual Enterprise Healthtech Report breaks down the key trends behind the industry's growth, spotlighting specific markets to watch, including prescription tech, customer acquisition tools and clinical trial tech.

Datapoints

Less than two months into the year, video game M&A is red-hot as industry giants vie for dominance.

Microsoft announced plans to buy Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion in January, soon followed by Sony's $3.6 billion agreement to purchase game developer Bungie. Take-Two Interactive also announced it would acquire mobile game giant Zynga last month. If the Activision Blizzard and Zynga deals close, 2022 would already be a record year for game software M&A in terms of deal value.

The uptick in activity comes amid a confluence of recent gaming industry trends.

Recommended reads

Through self-written handbooks, better equipment and backcountry-trained guide dogs, disabled hikers are forging a new path toward encountering nature on their own terms. [The New York Times]

While many are still trying to get a firm grasp on cryptocurrency and NFTs, a new form of digital investment involving emojis is making its way into the spotlight. [Fortune]

Why Peloton could be the WeWork of the pandemic. [Intelligencer]

So much of daily life—from online dating to search engines to social media feeds—is mediated by algorithms. One writer argues that we don't know nearly enough about them. [The Cut]

What founders and other insiders think of Sequoia partner Roelof Botha, one of the most powerful people in VC. [Protocol]

San Diego may have one of the most expensive housing markets in the US, but a new high density model for affordable housing in the city is now emerging in the least expected place. [Fast Company]

This edition of The Weekend Pitch was written by Marina Temkin and Priyamvada Mathur. It was edited by Alexander Davis, Kate Rainey, Angela Sams and Sam Steele.

Were you forwarded The Weekend Pitch? Sign up at pitchbook.com/subscribe.

Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added:

35

People

13

Companies

See what our data software can do

About PitchBook | Terms of use | Advertise with us | Contact

This email was sent to you via the PitchBook Platform.

Do you want to change your email address, get a different edition or unsubscribe? Manage your subscription here.

PitchBook News - Skewering the 'propaganda' of Web3

Quote/Unquote

Deal Flow

Did you know ...

Datapoints

Recommended reads

Older messages

The wild data on VC valuations

Foodtech funding swells in 2021

Digitization boosts enterprise healthtech funding

The rise of subscription healthcare

VCs home in on motion tracking tech

You Might Also Like

‘We found the thing that gives us joy’: Microchild on the microverse, music, and shared language

🦅 Reminder: Masterclass with Jesse Pujji

[Webinar tomorrow] Canadian? How to Grow Your Amazon FBA Business as a Canuck

The state of ad serving for brands and agencies

♟️ OpenAI's smart chess move!

March Madness is here: Tap into the hype with these marketing plays

ET: March 11th 2025

If SEO is dead…

Niche = $$$

The Founder Institute targets first VC fund