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Friday! We made it! This was a busy week, so please give us a round of applause. We have earnings from Facebook, Alphabet, Microsoft, and Robinhood next week. Our super-great SaaS conference is also taking place Wednesday. I will be hosting and participating in a few panels, so come join the fun! Alex
TechCrunch Top 3
Trump SPAC welcomes the public markets: Yesterday, former President Donald Trump's media company announced that it would be going public through a SPAC-led transaction. Investors spent a lot of money today bidding up shares of the blank-check company that will take Trump Media and Technology Group public. In retrospect, however the SPAC was a memestock due to its lack of product or fundamentals.
Yesterday, former President Donald Trump's media company announced that it would be going public through a SPAC-led transaction. Investors spent a lot of money today bidding up shares in Trump Media and Technology Group's blank-check company. The SPAC was a memestock in retrospect because it lacked fundamentals and a product. Snap is suffering from supply-chain woes, Apple woes: U After reporting earnings yesterday, Snap, a social networking company in the United States, saw around a fifth disappear from its value. Snap's Q4 growth expectations were lower than expected despite a very good quarter. Why? Why? TechCrunch also covered how Snaps issues contribute to Facebook's metaverse push.
Snap, a U.S. social networking company, saw around a fifth its value disappear today following it reporting earnings after trading closed yesterday. Snap's Q4 growth expectations were lower than expected despite a very good quarter. Why? Why? TechCrunch also talked about how Snaps issues support Facebook's metaverse push. Brex raises (again): We learned this again after TechCrunch reported that Brex raised yet more money for a higher price. This could lead to Brexs competitors raising capital.
Startups/VC
Below is our normal run of startup news. But before we get to that, TechCrunch took a moment to think through Rent the Runways' expected IPO price range, and how it compares against other related companies. We have many questions.
When building a comms team in the early stages, hiring is only one step.
While there are some areas where founders may be able to cut corners, your first comms employee is not one. Companies who fail to invest in the right person for this job will regret it later.
These are the people who will bring your message out to the world. Yousuf Khan, Ridge Ventures partner, suggests that you look for a strategic partner, rather than a manager.
They should be able discuss your product and your industry with anyone on your sales team. This is another reason to invest in the job.
TechCrunch+ is our membership program that helps founders and startups get ahead. Sign up here
Big Tech Inc.
Tech watchdog doesn't like Big Techs leverage over small biz PR: Facebook and other tech giants love telling you stories about how their products or services have helped one small business. This is a way to humanize megacorps while also creating a smokescreen that allows for more objective scrutiny. Main Street Against Big Tech spends money to fight the issue.
Facebook and other tech giants love telling you stories about small businesses and how their products and services have helped them. This is a way to humanize megacorps while also creating a smokescreen that will shield them from more objective scrutiny. Main Street Against Big Tech has spent money to fight the issue. TechCrunch reports that SpaceX's Starship rocket could fly next month. However, it will require regulatory approval. The good news for spaceheads is that SpaceX will soon be able to move commercial space forward by one peg sooner than its competitors, which will benefit us all.
TechCrunch says it will require regulatory approval. The news is good news for spaceheads. If SpaceX can accelerate the commercial space industry by one peg, then all other competitors will need to catch up. This will benefit us all. Twitter users can now subscribe to Revue newsletters through their timelines. Although Twitter may be able to ignore its own product due to its small scale compared to Facebook and other companies, its product work on Revue, a newsletter product it purchased previously is proving popular. Twitter currently has two well-known a16z wagers: Substack with Revue and Clubhouse with Spaces.
TechCrunch Experts
TechCrunch would love to hear from you about the software consultants that you have worked with, for everything from UI/UX to cloud architecture. Please let us know.
This interview Anna Heim conducted with Yasser bashir, co-founder of Arbisoft. Yasser Bashir is a trusted advisor to early-stage startups.
