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Hi Sifted Reader,

It's podcast day at Sifted! The third episode of our second series has hit the airwaves, and we're delighted to report that we recorded this one with zero (!) audio issues.

Your hosts Amy and Eleanor chat to Sifted reporter Freya Pratty about how Brexit is squashing the UK's edible insect sector (yum) and discuss our most controversial story of week. Listen to it on Spotify or Apple to find out what that was. Plus...

• Getir's eye-watering raise
• More on those tasty insects
• China's new European investment strategy
• Lessons from a year as a pro angel

— Kai, reporter & Amy, editor

If you thought the heady days of whopping cheques for speedy delivery startups were over, think again.

Turkish giant Getir has snapped up an eye-watering round to reach an $11.8bn valuation, cementing its position as a frontrunner in this very well-funded industry.

An all-star VC squad backed the business. 

If you’re a pre-Series A company, founded in the last five years, you could expand your startup — and connect to more customers globally — with Twilio.

Apply to Twilio’s startups programme here. 

The edible insect market could be worth $8bn by 2030 — but, following Brexit, it's looking unlikely that the UK is going to be leading this nascent sector.

Edible bugs have been illegal in the UK since its divorce from the EU, as transitional measures hadn't been put in place for approving these "novel foods" — and it's sent the 25 UK startups in the sector into limbo. 

Freya Pratty spoke to the companies that've been affected.

Chinese investment into Europe has dipped dramatically since its heyday in the mid-2010s, when it pumped $44.bn into the region.

But European tech is at the forefront of a new, more subtle strategy from Chinese investors.

Steph Bailey finds out what it is.

12 months ago Kim Fai Kok left his director of comms role at Swedish unicorn Truecaller to become a full-time angel investor.

From teaming up with pals to being "ruthless" with your time and clear about who you want to back, he shares what he's learnt as a pro angel.

Thinking about making the leap? Read this first.

Healthtech is having a moment. 2020 was the year of the global telemedicine explosion and a massive 39 AI healthtech startups hit unicorn status in 2021.

As the metaverse doctor's office gets closer to being a reality, regulators crack down and AI continues to make waves, we find out what the future holds in the sector.

Take a look into the healthtech crystal ball.

🇫🇷 France's top founders launch seed fund. Over 250 of France's most successful entrepreneurs have got together to launch new seed fund Galion.exe. The fund has already raised €30m of its €80m target, and has plans to back 12 (mostly French) companies a year with cheques of up to €4m. 

👩⚕️ Doctolib becomes France's most valuable startup. This week the healthtech raised a whopping €500m — half of which was debt funding — to hit a €5.8bn valuation, following an investment boom for the country's startups in early 2022. On the lookout for the next French tech company on a path to scaleup stardom? Check out our ranking of the country's most promising startups.

🏫 Europe's largest edtech fund. Paris-based (and woman-led) Educapital is aiming for a final close of €150m for its second fund, as investment in the previously underfunded sector surges. It'll invest from post-seed to Series B with cheques of between €3m and €10m, and will look to back around 20 European startups.

💰 Hoxton Ventures raises third fund. The VC, which saw three portfolio unicorns go public in 2021 (Darktrace, Deliveroo and Babylon), has a new $215m fund to invest in seed-stage companies in Europe. It also has a new partner: Charles Seely. We took an in-depth look at how the firm operates when it raised its last fund, of almost $100m.

💻 Andreessen Horowitz’s first fintech bet in DACH. The US VC giant has stepped into the fintech game in the DACH region, writing a cheque for financial operations software startup Payrails to the tune of $6.4m. The Berlin-based startups is founded by Delivery Hero alumni, and says it wants to build fintech's answer to cloud computing.

👉 Applications open for Google's Black Founders Fund. The fund looks to address the massive inequality in VC funding for Black-led tech startups, and has £3m on the table. Successful founders will get cash, cloud credits and mentoring. You can apply here.

🗑️ Europe's most popular food waste apps. Startups have begun to tackle Europe's major food waste problem — every year 88m tonnes of it get chucked in the bin — and there are now dozens of apps on the case. But which are the most popular with consumers? We found out.

📱 How Instagram-famous pets became big business. Brands are beginning to realise the massive potential of "petfluencers" and they're shelling out up to $15k per sponsored post. But why are brands now willing to pay the big bucks for promotion from a grumpy looking cat? Adam Green finds out.

👍 How to find the right chief of staff. As trusted companion to the CEO and the glue that holds a startup together, a chief of staff is a pretty important role to fill. But when's the best time to hire one and what are the key qualities to look out for? Tristan Lim, chief of staff at community platform Commsor, shares some top-notch advice.

🔮 The future of cannabis in Europe. As Germany lines itself up as the destination for cannabis startups with legalisation on the horizon, Niklas Kouparanis, the cofounder of Germany’s biggest cannabis company, tells us what founders and investors in the sector need to know. Read this piece to dig into the risks and opportunities.

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