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Friday was a good day.
If you follow the ups and downs of the industry, you won't want to miss this space. The sun sets at 3:00 a.m. The time is at 10:30 pm The most exciting opportunities among early-stage web3 companies will be the subject of a conversation between senior reporter Anita and two other people.
Happy weekend, you are partying. We can all be animals in our own way, even though we are more napping cat animals than party animals.
The TechCrunch Top 3
- Delivery drop: When one door opens for DoorDash, another door closes. Earlier this week, we reported that DoorDash and Facebook were becoming fast friends as they piloted a program to pick up and drop off Facebook Marketplace items to customers. Now, Aisha reports that DoorDash may be ending its delivery relationship with Walmart in September. Walmart might not be too upset by the breakup, though, as it has been working on its own delivery efforts.
- Falling Facebook: The social media giant is “losing its grip,” as Sarah put it, on younger consumers who are preferring newer apps like TikTok and BeReal. The evidence? Facebook just can’t seem to stay in the Apple App Store’s Top 10. Though this phenomena is not new for them, Sarah has more on if it’s time for Facebook to be concerned.
- Leveraging Love: Former Bolt (this one) CEO Ryan Breslow may still be in some hot Twitter water for his comments about the hurdles to going up against competitors, but he tells Connie that he has “no regrets” about anything he said. Instead, he is jumping headfirst into some new startups, including a “people-powered pharma” startup called Love.
Startups and VC
In the golden era of SPACs, IPOs have been an extremely rare outcome for robotic companies. The three true robotic startup outcomes are discussed in Brian's awesome Actuator newsletter. You can subscribe to it and all the other newsletters. We don't know if the form will ask you if you're a robot, but that would be hilarious.
There was a lot of action in the automatic-transcription-and-note-taking field. Ivan reported that the free plan was slashed to a maximum of 300 minutes per month.
We saw five more that caught our attention.
- Culling card: Uni, India’s pay-later cards startup, plans to temporarily suspend its card services in the South Asian market following the local central bank’s guidelines on digital lending, Manish reports.
- Unrolling the rollups: Mary Ann reports that something is shifting in the world of fintech, as a16z’s fintech leads say “Silicon Valley is becoming unbundled.”
- A locker for your keys: If hackers get hold of secret codes and drain the wallets, users have no way to recover their funds. Safeheron secures $7 million to make those keys safer, reports Rita.
- More money for African pre-seed startups: Microtraction, an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in African startups at the pre-seed stage, is announcing that it has reached the first, $15 million close of its second fund, Tage reports.
- Say what?: Becca reports that the FDA’s decision to allow over-the-counter hearing loss tech will strap a rocket booster to innovation in the sector.
5 investors explain why longevity tech is a long-term play
Life expectancy in the US has fallen for two years in a row. By 2020, it was 78.86 years, but it had shrunk by 2 years and 3 months.
The decline was caused by COVID-19, but reporter Anna Heim interviewed five investors who are backing startup technology that may allow us to live longer, healthier lives.
The space is only getting started now and will encompass all aspects of our life in the next five to 10 years according to one person.
5 investors explain why longevity tech is a long-term play
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Big Tech Inc.
It could be TikTok if you feel like someone is watching you. Keylogging is a term that has surfaced related to TikTok's in-app browser injecting code that could be used to monitor keyboard inputs and taps on third-party websites. Felix said that just because TikTok might be doing this doesn't mean it's a bad thing.
How much do you think it will cost to drive an electric vehicle? The wager is at least $249,000. The price of its new performance EV is not known. It has a glass roof and three motor vehicles.
- Clear your closet: Online home goods retailer Wayfair saw its shares plummet today following news that it would lay off nearly 900, or about 5% of its workforce. Andrew writes the move is “a way to reprioritize investment needs and meet the company’s current needs.”
- Tip your hat: W4 Games, a new company from the creators of the Godot game engine, is tapping into the wisdom of commercial open source software giant Red Hat to take Godot to the next level. Paul has more on how W4 plans to do that.
- Clean your plate: European food delivery company Just Eat Takeaway is selling its stake in Brazil-based iFood to Prosus for up to $1.8 billion in an effort to gain some liquidity “amid troubling times,” Paul writes.
- Fold your phone: Brian is having fun whipping out two of Samsung’s foldable phones and showing friends to see their reactions. Here, he reviews the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4.
- Know your car history: Lincoln’s idea of an electric vehicle concept car is a bit outlandish. Jaclyn writes that the Lincoln Model L 100 concept “pays homage to the brand’s first luxury vehicle, the 1922 Model L.” You’ll need to see it for yourself.
