Wow! That headline was a hit!An example of entrepreneurship is the recent board fight at a unicorn in digital health. It reminds entrepreneurs that it is important to establish boundaries even amid this summer's dizzying deal volume and velocity.This week, I published a story about how Bessemer Venture Partners replaced Hinge Health's board member after the board member had invested in a rival startup. Daniel Perez, co-founder of Hinge Health, claims that the board member failed to notify him before leading a round in a startup in the same industry.This situation offers a rare glimpse into the competitive tension between startups. Although founders expect investors to follow certain conduct standards, such as notifying them about investments in startups that are directly competitive, investors might feel more pressure to take faster decisions than the founders they have backed. Investors may also be required to notify investors of investments in startups that are not directly competitive. These conversations will need to be redefined in a post-NDA world.While I'm not sure if more diligence is the answer to all your problems, transparency and openness between investors and founders can only help. This is not only for founders. Investors who owe returns on their LPs don't want to find themselves in a situation where they can't invest in a booming sector because they have another investment in that sector.There are many possibilities.What happens if a startup moves into a new market than it originally sold investors and becomes competitive with a portfolio firm?What happens if the future strategy of a portfolio company conflicts with an investment proposal?Can Sequoia India help a competitor company to become a Sequoia India Partner?Can there be multiple investments in the same company as long as different shareholders are on the board?My DMs show that Hinge Health doesn't deal with competitors backing investors. This adds another dimension to the avalanche of funding rounds. It's a hot summer of due diligence, I guess.The rest of this newsletter will focus on the Duolingo S-1, an innovative rebranding for the creator economy, and an exclusive interview featuring top startup marketers. You can follow me @nmasc_ to send me any tips or comments on competitive tensions that you have dealt with.Wall Street is the time for you to learn a language lessonDuolingo is a language-learning unicorn that was last valued at $2.4billion. It filed for public listing this week. We were able to see the financials for a rare edtech firm that is ambitious enough to list on stock exchange, despite the puns and jokes from this reader.Here's what you need to know: Duolingo's monetization efforts have resulted in 129% revenue growth, solid conversion between paid and free users. Other fun facts included the fact that Duolingo has a plan to acquire other companies and that four employees left the company in 2020.You can learn more languages at the language learning companyRebranding the creator economicAlexis Gay, a techie comedian, joined me on Equity to discuss the creator economy.Here's the scoop: Gay has gone from being a Patreon creator to being a creative herself. We discussed our pet peeves and why it is important to be clear when building tools for the economy. And if rolling funds are a necessity for anyone who has a following on Twitter. This episode is my favorite.As your postgame:Marketing some marketingTechCrunchs Miranda Halpern, Eric Eldon and Eric Eldon are busy creating TechCrunch Experts. This directory will feature vetted professionals in the startup industry. They are still accepting submissions for the top growth marketers behind your favorite tech startup.Here's what you need to know: Halpern interviewed Kathleen Estreich (co-founders) of MKT strategic marketing company. This conversation reveals notes about marketer attrition and why it is so important. It also explains how their job involves more than just advertising. And, finally, how they are working to combat the stigma that marketers are often considered second-class citizens within companies.Deeper divesAround TCTechCrunch's Early Stage 2021: Marketing and Fundraising will be next week! This event is for founders looking for tactical tips, from how to survive startup growth during COVID-19 to how find the perfect product-market match. I will be very happy if you buy your tickets.All weekTechCrunch: SeenExtra CrunchThank you for taking a moment to read this. It never gets boring. Enjoy your long weekend and let's do it again next week.Talk about it.N
