Five years ago, investor Katelin Holloway made what she calls a “literal moon shot” investment. A founding partner of the generalist venture firm Seven Seven Six admits she and her team had “no clue” what rocket company Stoke Space was talking about when they pitched the firm on its reusable launch technology. “We knew full […]
Space investing goes mainstream as VCs ditch the rocket science requirements Read More »
Veteran indie filmmaker Jim Jarmusch premiered his new movie “Father Mother Sister Brother” today at the Venice Film Festival, where journalists asked him about Mubi, the streaming platform that co-produced the film — specifically, about Mubi’s recent $100 million funding round led by Sequoia Capital. “I was disappointed and disconcerted by this relationship,” Jarmusch said,
Director Jim Jarmusch ‘disappointed and disconcerted’ by Mubi’s funding from Sequoia Read More »
This week on StrictlyVC Download, TechCrunch Editor-in-Chief Connie Loizos talks with Uncork Capital’s Jeff Clavier and Andy McLoughlin. They discuss how their seed-stage firm is positioning itself in this environment, from a recent investment in AI chipmaker Groq to bets on AI-native companies attacking unsexy industries like material sciences and robotics. Plus, the three dig
Uncork Capital on 21 years of venture cycles — and what’s different about this one Read More »
Andreessen Horowitz’ plan to push its agenda in Washington shows no sign of slowing down, with the firm reporting $1.49 million in federal lobbying so far this year, according to lobbying records filed with Congress. A16z is even narrowly outspending its own industry trade group, the National Venture Capital Association. The pace of lobbying appears
a16z spends $1.49M in Washington lobbying, while rivals mostly sit out Read More »
When Amazon hired the founders of AI startup Adept last year, it was one of the first examples of what became known as a reverse acquihire — a deal where a large company hires key startup team members and licenses its technology, rather than acquiring the startup outright. Adept’s co-founder and former CEO David Luan
Amazon AGI Labs chief defends his reverse acquihire Read More »
Y Combinator has filed an amicus brief in the ongoing legal battle between Apple and Epic Games, arguing that the App Store has stifled startup innovation. We’ve reached out to legal reps for YC and Apple for comment. The brief comes during the years-long legal dispute. Epic Games first filed an antitrust lawsuit against the
Y Combinator says Apple’s App Store has hindered startup growth Read More »
Labubu, the ugly-cute plush toy from Chinese company Pop Mart, is turning into a massive business — and it’s on track to make $1 billion this year, exceeding the sales of Barbie and Hot Wheels. And while Labubus are physical objects, not digital ones, they epitomize the invasion of an over-the-top online aesthetic into the
Beanie Babies for the brain-rot era Read More »
There’s a generally accepted script in Silicon Valley: Identify a startup idea. Sell a chunk of your company to raise venture capital. Make sales. Raise more venture capital, and make more sales. Repeat until the company goes public, or gets acquired, hopefully for billions either way. But what if you didn’t get on a fundraising
Raising multiple rounds of venture capital might be wrong for your startup Read More »
The next era of the space economy isn’t just about rockets and satellites — it’s about infrastructure, autonomy, and entirely new models for building and defending off-Earth assets. At TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 this October 27–29 in San Francisco’s Moscone West, the Space Stage is where this shift gets real. If you’re ready to explore how
Even Rogers and Max Haot join the Space Stage at Disrupt 2025 Read More »
A firefighter since age 15, Martin Hunt, now 26, knew firsthand the pain of small communities with tight budgets buying fire equipment. One day in 2023, he found himself chatting with one of his firefighter friends who’d asked if Hunt knew of a better way. “When I couldn’t find anything, it became clear that there
YC-backed Garage raises $13.5M to help firefighters buy equipment Read More »
