venture capital

VCs are so eager for AI startups, they’re buying into each others’ SPVs at high prices

Fundraising /

VCs are increasingly buying shares of late-stage startups on the secondary market as they try to get pieces of the hottest ones — especially AI companies. But they are also increasingly doing so through financial instruments called special purpose vehicles (SVPs). Some of those SPVs are becoming such hot commodities that they are commanding premium […]

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Harmonyze wants to build AI agents to help franchisors make sense of unstructured data

AI /

For some businesses, there is a clear path to growth that doesn’t involve acquiring other companies or expanding organically: franchising. The U.S. has more than 800,000 franchise businesses, according to Statista, and that number is predicted to keep growing year over year. But franchising a business — licensing a business model and brand to an

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Bolt’s wild ultimatum to its VCs will only succeed if they agree, expert says

Fundraising /

Bolt’s aggressive ultimatum to its existing shareholders – in which it told them to buy many more shares at higher prices or it would take back their shares for payment of 1 cent a share – will be an expensive uphill battle, an expert familiar with Bolt’s corporate charter tells TechCrunch. To recap: On Tuesday, when

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Etched founder Gavin Uberti thinks his company stands on the “shoulders of giants”

Startups /

The release of ChatGPT in November 2022 sparked a new wave of AI companies. It also brought attention to the companies that were already building in the space like Etched. Etched co-founder and CEO Gavin Uberti said on a recent episode of TechCrunch’s Found podcast that his company “stands on the shoulders of giants.” While

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Rippling’s Parker Conrad says founders should ‘go all the way to the ground’ to run their companies

Venture /

HR startup Rippling has grown into a company valued at $13.5 billion with more than 3,200 employees. Despite that size, its founder and CEO Parker Conrad still approves every expense report over $10 and is still the one who does routine HR tasks like running payroll. That’s because doing such tasks means he’s using his

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Jeff Bezos’ brother’s firm has launched a debut $100M VC fund called HIPstr

Fundraising /

HighPost Capital, a private equity firm run by Mark Bezos, Jeff Bezos’ younger brother, and PE veteran David Moross, has launched a new venture capital arm called HIPstr. And with it, fresh capital to invest in startups. The new entity just announced its first VC fund of $100 million. HighPost Capital focuses on consumer companies and

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From Lauri Moore to Vic Singh, venture capitalists continue to play musical chairs

Venture /

When Keith Rabois announced he was leaving Founders Fund to return to Khosla Ventures in January, it came as a shock to many in the venture capital ecosystem — and not just because Rabois is a big name in the industry. It was surprising because unlike in many other fields, venture capitalists don’t traditionally move

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Parker Conrad says founders have been building software wrong for the last 20 years

Startups /

What is the right way to build a software business? Many startup advisers say that B2B software should solve one pain point, gain customers, then add features as their company grows. Serial founder Parker Conrad, currently the founder and CEO of Rippling, an HR software startup valued at $13.5 billion in April, thinks that’s the

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