Startups & Ventures

💻 Robots taking over? Let’s talk numbers

South Korea leads with a whopping 1,012 industrial robots per 10,000 workers, making it the robot king. Singapore and Germany follow close behind, while China flexes as the ultimate robot collector with the largest total count.

👀 Automation game strong, but how long before we start seeing robot unions popping up in the US?

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💬 Apple Pay, PayPal, and the Gang – time to play by the bank's rules

The CFPB is stepping in. So popular payment apps like Apple Pay, Cash App, and PayPal will soon face new bank-like rules to protect against fraud and ensure better data privacy. But don’t expect the crypto world to feel the same heat anytime soon.

🏃‍♀️ Ready for your payment app to act like a bank, or is that a bridge too far? Anyway we're wondering what this will even look like for users.

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👕 Fusion power in a squeezed doughnut

Tokamak Energy just secured $125 million(!) to push its unique fusion reactor design closer to reality. The startup is working on a doughnut-shaped reactor that squishes plasma to reach mind-blowing temperatures.

With big plans to power up a plant by 2034, Tokamak is racing to meet energy demands — and they're even selling magnet tech to keep things sizzling until then.

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❗️ Not again... but yep, again. Palo Alto firewalls under attack

Hackers are back at it, exploiting zero-day flaws in Palo Alto Networks’ firewalls. Thousands of devices worldwide are compromised, and patches are out – but, seriously, haven’t we been here before?

Stay vigilant and patch your systems today!

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📌 Nvidia CEO confident in AI future despite rising competition

Nvidia's CEO, Jensen Huang, reassured investors about Nvidia's role in AI, despite growing competition in AI inference chips. He emphasized Nvidia's edge in AI pretraining and large-scale inference, calling it a key part of the company's growth. Huang is optimistic that as AI becomes more mainstream, Nvidia will remain a leader in providing the infrastructure necessary for its evolution.

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🔵 ChatGPT is eating up the AI world

With 82.5% of all web traffic for generative AI tools, ChatGPT is crushing the competition. Runners-up like Gemini and Midjourney are miles behind, while video AI tools like Runway are just starting to make noise.

The takeaway? Everyone's chatting with ChatGPT while the rest are trying to keep up.

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🐸 Big tech bosses or superheroes?
Here’s how much their security costs

Mark Zuckerberg tops the chart with $23.4M spent in 2023 to keep him safe, while Sundar Pichai’s security bill hit $6.8M. Elon Musk, after two reported threats, cost Tesla $2.4M. Tim Cook? A modest $800K.

Is it the price of fame, or maybe some of them are trying to save Gotham in a mean time? Share your thoughts in the comments!

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📎 Startup Speed Is A Vital Edge for Success

In the fast-paced startup world, speed isn't just about working hard – it's about working smart. Here’s how you can achieve startup speed:

*️⃣Conduct a Speed Audit – Identify operational bottlenecks.
*️⃣Run Speed Drills – Test your team’s speed with time-bound tasks like hackathons or rapid prototyping.
*️⃣Seek a Speed Mentor – Find someone with experience to guide you on maintaining velocity.
*️⃣Emphasize Rapid Learning – Adapt quickly, learn fast, and convert insights into action.

Mastering speed will help you turn capital into value at a much faster pace.

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🛡 Norwegian Startup Factiverse Tackles Disinformation with AI

Factiverse, a B2B-focused Norwegian startup, offers live fact-checking tools for text, video, and audio, targeting disinformation online. Using a model trained on high-quality, credible sources, it outperforms leading LLMs in identifying and verifying claims in 114 languages.

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💡 Juna.ai Uses AI to Optimize Factory Energy Efficiency — Startup Review

Juna.ai, a German startup, aims to improve energy efficiency in factories by automating industrial processes using AI agents. The company’s software integrates with manufacturing tools to optimize machine settings, increasing throughput and reducing energy waste. With $7.5M in funding, Juna.ai plans to scale its self-learning system to transform heavy industries, like steel and chemicals, into smarter, more sustainable operations.

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🚀 The Exploration Company Secures $160M to Build Europe’s SpaceX Alternative

The Exploration Company raised $160M to develop Nyx, a reusable spacecraft aiming to transport 3,000 kg of cargo to and from the ISS by 2028. Backed by private investors and European agencies, the company is advancing Europe's space capabilities with a focus on reliability and innovation in space transportation.

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Apple Brings Edge AI to the Masses

Apple’s hybrid approach to AI combines on-device processing with secure cloud computing through its "Private Cloud Compute" system. This model showcases how edge computing can enhance privacy, efficiency, and scalability for both consumers and enterprises.

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🔗 ByteDance Values Itself at $300 Billion Amid TikTok Uncertainty

ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, recently valued itself at $300 billion in a share buyback offer, maintaining its 2022 valuation despite prior dips. TikTok’s U.S. prospects remain uncertain following legislative pressure for ByteDance to sell or face a ban, though Donald Trump's reelection has brought potential policy shifts, with Trump expressing support for keeping TikTok in America.

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💫 Startups Forge Ahead Despite IPO Challenges

The U.S. IPO window remains closed, but startups are making moves with major funding rounds and acquisitions. Klarna and other tech firms explore public offerings, while notable investments include Writer’s $200M raise and Tessl’s $125M funding. Additionally, AI startups dominate Paris’ Station F incubator.

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📎 Bottom Up by David Sacks: Key Sales Pipeline Metrics Simplified

1️⃣ Pipeline Generation Metrics

Opportunities Created: Count of potential deals.
Pipeline Value Created: Total ARR (or TCV) value of these deals.
Win Rate: Percentage of deals closed (~20% is standard).

2️⃣ Pipeline Conversion Metrics

Sales Cycle Length: Time to close deals, often 6-9 months for complex B2B products.
Cohorted Win Rates: Analyze win rates by client cohorts; identify drop-off points and optimize support.
Stage Conversion Rate: Track how deals move through sales stages to find bottlenecks.
Average Time per Stage: Spot delays and improve pipeline flow.

3️⃣ Active Pipeline Metrics

Open Pipeline by Close Date: Forecast when deals will close and revenue will arrive.
Weighted Pipeline: ARR multiplied by the probability of closing, varying by stage.
Pipeline Waterfall: Visualize pipeline changes over time to pinpoint growth drivers.

#️⃣ These metrics provide a data-driven approach to refining your sales strategy and forecasting growth. Leverage tools like SaaSGrid to automate and visualize these insights.

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🖥 Skydio Secures $170M Extension Round Amid Defense Tech Boom

Drone manufacturer Skydio raised $170 million in a Series E extension, with strategic investments from KDDI and Axon. The company is diversifying revenue, focusing on defense and enterprise markets, and projecting significant growth despite high capital burn.

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💫 Tourlane Secures $26M Series D

Berlin-based travel platform Tourlane raised $26M led by Sequoia Capital to enhance its AI-powered trip planning, targeting profitability and growth. The funds will improve personalization, expand services, and potentially reach new markets. Founded in 2015, Tourlane has served 100,000 customers and aims to scale further. Investors include Target Global and HV Capital.

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🟢 Volkswagen Bets $5.8B on Rivian as Software Partner

Volkswagen finalized a $5.8 billion joint venture with Rivian to co-develop automotive software, led by engineers from both companies. The move aims to strengthen VW's software strategy amid struggles at its Cariad unit, while Rivian faces challenges with demand and supply chain issues.

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