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Greetings, readers. As Hey and Christine I already told you last week that this week’s Daily Crunch will look a little different, as they’re both taking some time off. But you’ll still get some TC tidbits during this typically slow news week. I’ll also be sharing some of our favorite stories from the year from TC and TC+, so let’s get started! — Neither Christine nor Haje
Contents
The businesskinda.com Top 3
- 2023 will be the year when electric vehicles really start to take shape“Driven by policy initiatives from governments and billions of dollars in investment from automakers, we can safely say that the EV industry is starting to take shape,” Rebekah writes.
- No “Next Twitter,” he says: Devin writes that it is perfectly okay that there is no substitute for the Twitter that some of us have come to know and struggle with: “The illusory choice to rush to The Next Twitter must be rejected. Twitter was more than a product: it was a moment in time, an unrefined manifestation of digital possibilities that, like any raw element, destroyed as often as it created. It was necessary and interesting, but these messy delights have messy ends. To recreate it now, with only superficial lessons learned, would be like rebuilding a fallen castle on the same shifting sands. Look how it sinks!”
- “It’s in the (lack of) details”: Bag and Carlyour friendly neighborhood cybersecurity reporters took a look back at the worst-handled data breaches of the year.
Startups and VC
- In the wind turbine: Harry writes that robotics startup Aerones, which scrubs and inspects wind turbines, has raised $39 million in funding from undisclosed investors.
- Versatile fintech: Jakarta-based Akulaku raised $200 million. The fintech, which also operates in the Philippines and Malaysia, offers a virtual credit card and installment store platform, as well as an investment platform and neobank, Catherine writes.
- A look at money: Indian fintech Money View raised $75M in new round to scale its lending business and build more products, Manic writes.
High-growth startups should start narrowing their way to IPO now
Image Credits: Richard Druy (Opens in a new window) /Getty Images
It sounds counterintuitive, but in this chilly fundraising environment, late-stage startups should consider going public.
“While some companies postpone their IPOs, others can catch up and prepare for the time when the open market is itching to invest again,” writes Carl Niedbala, COO and co-founder of commercial insurance brokerage firm Founder Shield.
In a detailed TC+ article, he looks at why “wise companies risk their public path less,” which industries are best positioned, and perhaps most notably, which benchmarks indicate “that an IPO is in their future.”
Two more and a review:
- Six trends in climate technology: More investors are looking to get into the climate tech space, and we have some ideas on where they’ll put their money, Tim reports.
- FOMO about due diligence: Some investors talk about how due diligence and investment practices suffered a bit this year and how we can learn from the biggest mistakes. Dominic Madori and Ron have more.
- Look back: Karan Bhasin covers what 10 investors thought about no-code/low-code startups in the first quarter of this year. We will conduct a new no-code/low-code survey in Q1 2023, so if you are an investor interested in the space and want to participate, contact us here.
businesskinda.com+ is our membership program that helps founders and startup teams lead the way. You can sign up here. Use code “DC” for a 15% discount on an annual subscription!
BigTech Inc.
- Wrestling in India: Amazon and Uber were among a number of companies named by research firm Fairwork India as creating unfair working conditions for gig workers. Manic has more.
- Balance out: If you’re looking for a report on how you use your computer, Balance has your back and can even help you work into some healthy computing habits if that’s what you’re looking for in the new year, Ivan writes.
- What’s next for AI: Kyle also put on its prediction cap this weekend to let us all know what to expect on the AI front in 2023.
Janice has been with businesskinda for 5 years, writing copy for client websites, blog posts, EDMs and other mediums to engage readers and encourage action. By collaborating with clients, our SEO manager and the wider businesskinda team, Janice seeks to understand an audience before creating memorable, persuasive copy.