Current Affairs Of Pakistan & World: 06/19/20

Extra Crunch Friday: 13 Boston-focused VCs share the advice they're giving portfolio companies

Friday, June 19, 2020 • By Walter Thompson

Welcome to Extra Crunch Friday

Image Credits: Bill Ross / Getty Images

Natasha Mascarenhas and Alex Wilhelm reached out to Boston-based investors to track VC sentiment in the region and found that area startups are doing better than expected.

Fewer companies than anticipated are laying off staff, but several VCs noted that their Boston-area portfolio companies aren’t planning to raise this year.

“The March-era stress tests are now months in the rearview mirror, and every startup has shaken up their spend and growth plans,” concluded Alex and Natasha. “Perhaps we have met the new normal, and it's time to let the runway do the talking.”

Here’s who we heard from:

Rudina Seseri, Glasswing Ventures
Lily Lyman, Underscore VC
Jamie Goldstein, Pillar VC
The Victress Capital team (Lori Cashman, Suzanne Norris, Kate Castle, Madeline Keulin. Molly Sellers)
Rob Go, NextView Ventures
Bill Geary, Flare Capital
Michael Greeley, Flare Capital
Jeff Bussgang, Flybridge Ventures
Neeraj Agarwal, Battery Ventures

Thanks very much for reading, and have a great weekend; we’re publishing on a light schedule today so we can celebrate Juneteenth.

Walter Thompson
Senior Editor, TechCrunch
@yourprotagonist

How we're rebuilding the VC industry image

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If the venture capital industry were a neighborhood, it would be a gated community where no one gets in without an invitation or a key. Once inside, the demographics are somewhat homogenous.

When Managing Editor Danny Crichton returned to TechCrunch after his second time working in VC, he was frustrated by the industry’s insular nature — “few investors were really willing to go out on a limb and invest in founders before another VC had committed a check.”

To create a more level playing field, we’ve launched The TechCrunch List — a database of active investors who are the top recommended “first check” writers in 22 categories ranging from D2C to space.

We hope you’ll help us build this resource that will help make the tech industry look more like the world it aims to change.

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A virtual event with two days of workshops, tools and information you can use to take your startup to the next level.

4 months into lockdown, Eventbrite CEO Julia Hartz sees 'exciting signs of recovery' image

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Eventbrite CEO and co-founder Julia Hartz appeared on Extra Crunch Live this week to talk about managing an events company when we’re all trying to keep our distance from each other.

"You never as a founder — at least I never — ever wondered what would happen if the whole basis of our mission was tested," she said.

The company says paid ticket volume was up 33% last month compared to April, but overall, sales were down 82% from the same time last year.

"A massive market and industry dislocation and disruption. I mean, we're a living example of that," she said. "It's not a victory lap. Certainly, we're seeing some really exciting signs of recovery, but it's still very sobering."

Implement DevSecOps to transform your business to IT-as-code image

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Just as no one wants to say “development, security and operations” repeatedly, when it comes to implementing company-wide processes that help make security top of mind, there’s no time to waste.

There are several pillars to building a successful DevSecOps program; here are some immediately actionable tips for putting your plan into action.

Superhuman's Rahul Vohra says recession is the 'perfect time' to be aggressive for well-capitalized startups image

Image Credits: Superhuman

After TechCrunch reporter Lucas Matney spent six months using email service Superhuman, he warned: “If you aren't used to the cult of ‘inbox-zero,’ the service will drag you into it.”

Nearly a year later, the invitation-only service has a waitlist with more than 275,000 people. That’s by design, CEO Rahul Vohra told us earlier this week on Extra Crunch Live.

"I think a lot of folks misunderstand the nature of our waitlist," he said. "They assume it's some kind of FOMO-generating technique or some kind of false scarcity. Nothing could be further from the truth.

The real reason we have the waitlist is that I want everyone who uses Superhuman to be deliriously happy with their experience."

Fintech's savings and investing boom isn't just a domestic affair image

Zero-cost trading app Robinhood has seen a surge of new users and a spike in trading volume since the pandemic started; in times of doubt, saving and investing are popular pastimes.

In Thursday’s edition of The Exchange, Alex Wilhelm looked into why financial service startups in the U.S. are doing well, but “fintechs abroad are reveling.” To get an insider view, we spoke with Adam Dodds, CEO of U.K.-based trading app Freetrade.

Matt Martin of Clockwise: How we closed an $18M Series B during a pandemic image

Image Credits: Matt Martin

In his own words, Clockwise CEO Matt Martin shares the story of how the startup went from concept to launch to closing its Series B after connecting with Bain Capital Ventures a few months ago.

“It would require getting to know a partner in lockdown, long nights assembling a pitch deck and many bleary-eyed Zoom calls with some of the best VCs in the world,” he writes.

Matt’s post covers establishing trust while sheltering in place, decision-making during extreme economic uncertainty, finding opportunities in the pandemic, and other topics that resonate with entrepreneurs.

How Reliance Jio Platforms became India's biggest telecom network image

Image Credits: Dhiraj Singh / Bloomberg / Getty Images

In the last nine weeks, India’s Reliance Jio Platforms has raised $15.2 billion from an assortment of private equity firms, sovereign wealth funds — and $5.7 billion from Facebook.

By selling a 24.7% stake in its business, which serves almost 400 million subscribers, Manish Singh writes that the telecom “is the world's most ambitious tech company.”

In the first of several reports, he creates a timeline for Reliance Jio’s rapid ascent over the last four years.

R&D Roundup: Orbital opportunity, AI accessibility and electronic peach sniffers image

Image Credits: Rudy Malmquist / Getty Images

In his latest recap from the science world, Devin Coldewey reports on a prototype electronic nose that can sniff out ripe peaches in an orchard, breaks down technology that enables more efficient data collection for oceanographers and looks at an AI breakthrough that will provide major benefits for people with disabilities.

European VC firm Pale Blue Dot plans to fund 40 'planet-positive' startups image

Image Credits: Pale Blue Dot

Targeting pre-seed and seed stage startups, Sweden-based Pale Blue Dot this week announced the first closing of its debut €53 million climate tech fund.

“We invest all over Europe, but can also do the U.S., even if we think a majority of the investments will be done here,” said founding partner Joel Larsson.

Decrypted: the tech police use against the public image

Image Credits: Treedeo / Getty Images

Since protests over the killing of George Floyd, several tech companies have announced plans to pull back from government contracts that offer facial recognition for surveillance technology.

Secrecy over protest surveillance has prompted widespread calls for transparency, which means lawmakers will be taking a closer look at security tech in general.

Plus, the latest funding news in “$ECURITY $TARTUPS.”

'One day we were in the office and the next we were working from home' image

Image Credits: Alistair Berg / Getty Images

When regulators asked Ryan Easter to run a pandemic business continuity test in October 2019, “I honestly thought that it was going to be a waste of time," said the IT director, who’s also a principal at Johnson Investment Counsel.

Months later, the company was rolling out a response plan it never thought it would need. “Our systems and the plan operated perfectly," said Easter.

Long-term profitability is the only growth metric that matters image

Image Credits: James Warwick / Getty Images

There are myriad ways to measure the effects of your growth marketing, but according to Joe Yakuel, “your company's one metric that matters should be long-term profitability.”

Optimizing for long-term value instead of short-term profitability is a more sustainable way to generate lift, which is why data analysis leads to better customer experiences — and more revenue down the road.

As layoffs slow and churn improves, is startup health improving? image

In Wednesday’s The Exchange, Alex used trends in software sales and startup layoffs as a proxy to detect the general health of the startup market.

“Studying layoffs and churn should help sharpen some of the blurred edges in our view of the current landscape.

The news was mostly positive, “but lost in the mix is the fact that many companies are still struggling for one reason or another,” he found.

Playbook PM: Trump is down — and doubling down

Jun 19, 2020

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By Jake Sherman, Anna Palmer, Garrett Ross and Eli Okun

Presented by

A LITTLE BIRDIE POINTS OUT … Not only is the topline of the latest FOX NEWS national poll troubling for President DONALD TRUMP -- he's down 12 -- but if you dig deeper, you see that TRUMP is leading JOE BIDEN by only 9 points among rural voters. In 2016, TRUMP won that segment of the population by nearly 30 points. Fox poll … RCP average: Biden +8.8

SO … READ THESE HEADLINES WITH THAT IN MIND:

-- 591 DAYS SINCE LOSING THE HOUSE … 137 DAYS FROM ELECTION DAY 2020: THE PRESIDENT said he would reup his plan to end DACA.

-- KTAR (ARIZ.): "President Trump to visit border wall in Yuma before Phoenix visit"

-- TRUMP NOW THREATENING PROTESTERS … at 9:34 a.m.: "Any protesters, anarchists, agitators, looters or lowlifes who are going to Oklahoma please understand, you will not be treated like you have been in New York, Seattle, or Minneapolis. It will be a much different scene!"

… at 10:08 a.m.: "Big crowds and lines already forming in Tulsa. My campaign hasn't started yet. It starts on Saturday night in Oklahoma!"

EHHH, WRONG: The campaign kicked off a year ago yesterday in Orlando. NYT headline: "Trump, at Rally in Florida, Kicks Off His 2020 Re-election Bid"

THE PRESIDENT ISSUED a Juneteenth statement through director of strategic comms ALYSSA FARAH. The statement

LOUISVILLE COURIER-JOURNAL: "Officer Brett Hankison to be fired from Louisville police after Breonna Taylor shooting," by Darcy Costello and Tessa Duvall: "Mayor Greg Fischer announced Friday that Louisville Metro Police is initiating termination of Officer Brett Hankison, one of three LMPD officers to fire weapons on March 13 at Breonna Taylor's apartment, killing her.

"Hankison is accused by the department's interim chief, Robert Schroeder, of 'blindly' firing 10 rounds into Taylor's apartment, creating a substantial danger of death and serious injury. 'I find your conduct a shock to the conscience,' Schroeder wrote in a Friday letter to Hankison laying out the charges against him. 'I am alarmed and stunned you used deadly force in this fashion.'"

MULVANEY BACK ON THE CIRCUIT, via Quint Forgey: "Former acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney on Friday acknowledged that Donald Trump 'didn't hire very well' in the earlier stages of his presidency, specifically noting his poor working relationships with administration officials who had ties to the military.

"'If there was one criticism that I would level against the president, [it] is that he didn't hire very well. He did not have experience at running government and didn't know how to put together a team that could work well with him,' Mulvaney, now the U.S. special envoy to Northern Ireland, told CNN's 'New Day.'" POLITICO

-- BUT DO YOU KNOW WHO DID have experience in government? MIKE PENCE, CHRIS CHRISTIE and others involved in the transition.

-- ANOTHER NUGGET from the JOHN BOLTON book, p. 245: He describes a conversation with Secretary of State MIKE POMPEO, whom he says "thought Mulvaney would do essentially whatever Ivanka and Kushner wanted him to do" as acting White House chief of staff.

Happy Friday afternoon. Press secretary KAYLEIGH MCENANY will brief at 1 p.m.

A message from PhRMA:

America's biopharmaceutical companies are sharing their knowledge and resources more than ever before to speed up the development of new medicines to fight COVID-19. They're working with doctors and hospitals on over 1,100 clinical trials. Because science is how we get back to normal. More.

MORE JUNETEENTH READING … OMAHA WORLD-HERALD: "Daniel Manatt: Juneteenth has important connections to Nebraska and the Midwest" … NBC NEW YORK: "Juneteenth to Be Official NYC Holiday Next Year" … CNN: "The Juneteenth flag is full of symbols. Here's what they mean"

PLAYBOOK METRO SECTION -- D.C. Mayor MURIEL BOWSER announced the city will move into PHASE TWO of its reopening Monday. That includes playgrounds, fields, gyms with limited capacity, 50% capacity indoor seating at restaurants and gatherings of up to 50 people (with masks and social distancing). More from Washingtonian

HUNT FOR A VACCINE -- "Coronavirus Attacks the Lungs. A Federal Agency Just Halted Funding for New Lung Treatments," by NYT's Katie Thomas: "[E]arlier this month, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, or BARDA, a federal health agency, abruptly notified companies and researchers that it was halting funding for treatments for this severe form of Covid-19 …

"The new policy highlights how staunchly the Trump administration has placed its bet on vaccines as the way to return American society and the economy to normal … The decision to suspend investment in lung treatments blindsided academic researchers and executives at small biotech companies, who said they spent months pitching their proposals to BARDA." NYT

THE LATEST RESEARCH -- "Covid-19 Research Opens to Little-Studied Group: Pregnant Patients," by WSJ's Amy Dockser Marcus: "Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania are allowing pregnant and lactating women to enroll in two convalescent-plasma trials for Covid-19 patients, giving access to a group that hasn't been widely included in drug testing for the coronavirus.

"Pregnant patients have been little studied in nonobstetric drug and research trials, even though data indicate most women in the U.S. have taken at least one medication while pregnant or lactating. The result is a lack of drug-safety information specific to pregnant patients, leaving their physicians to either prescribe drugs with unknown risks during pregnancy or accept the risks of no treatment." WSJ

-- "People probably caught coronavirus from minks. That's a wake-up call to study infections in animals, researchers say," by WaPo's Karin Brulliard

HAPPENING MONDAY 9 a.m. EDT - "INSIDE THE RECOVERY," PART IV: CONGRESS DURING COVID-19: Join POLITICO Playbook co-authors Anna Palmer and Jake Sherman for a special virtual program featuring congressional reporters Heather Caygle and Burgess Everett. Get a behind-the-scenes look at what it is like to report from inside the Capitol during a global pandemic, what legislation on police reform is gaining traction, and what to expect in the next coronavirus aid package. REGISTER HERE

THE PROTESTS' POWER -- "Diverse donor network puts conditions on its cash," by Maya King: "The group, called the Donors of Color Network, announced on Friday plans to unveil a series of inclusion principles that political action committees and other groups have to adopt in order to receive funding. They include filling senior-level positions with candidates of color, spending at least 30% of their annual budget on communities of color, submitting annual diversity reports and hiring African-American and Latino consultants. …

"Donors with the network are looking to raise $10 million within the next calendar year to distribute to progressive organizations."

… AND THE PROTESTS' LIMITS: "Even in deep-blue cities, 'defund the police' movement faces skepticism," by Nolan McCaskill: "Many of the cities with the highest number of law enforcement per capita on the payroll are urban areas with progressive mayors — including many women and people of color — and Democratic majorities on the city council.

"That means local leaders in cities like Washington, D.C., New York and Atlanta have the power to limit funding for some of the nation's largest police forces and reallocate that money for programs to shrink the wealth gap and provide stable housing, access to jobs and health care. But even in those liberal bastions, the movement is running into resistance." POLITICO

MAKING OF A COP -- "In Minneapolis, Looking for Police Recruits Who Can Resist Warrior Culture," by NYT's John Eligon in Minneapolis and Dan Levin: "In the Minneapolis Police Academy, cadets are trained to be mindful of their own biases, to treat the public with respect and to use force only when necessary. But then they enter station houses and squad cars with veteran officers who may view policing differently — as an us-versus-them profession with a potential threat on every street corner. …

"The death of Mr. Floyd has led to a national rethinking of police training. Some are urging significant reforms, while others complain that the current system is irredeemably broken." NYT

KNOWING AMY MCGRATH -- "Amy McGrath Staked Her Political Career on Beating Mitch McConnell. But Will She Even Get a Chance?" by Lexi Pandell in Medium's GEN

BIG CAROL MOSELEY BRAUN FEATURE -- "The Woman Who Helped Save Joe Biden," by Michael Kruse: "Biden has pledged that his running mate will be a woman, and … there is a high chance the woman he picks will be a woman of color. And if he does, the story of his relationship with Carol Moseley Braun in the early 1990s presents a newly salient look at both the candidate and how influential, too, a new person with a fresh perspective can be—once she's in the job.

"According to more than 30 interviews with aides to Biden and Moseley Braun, plus operatives, activists, strategists and political scientists, it highlights a complicated truth about the candidate: Some see in Biden self-interest, while others see high-mindedness and a genuine want to right a wrong—but the most intellectually honest observers grant that it's obviously both." POLITICO Magazine

IMMIGRATION FILES -- "Businesses Brace for Possible Limits on Foreign Worker Visas," by NYT's Miriam Jordan: "Citing the economic slump, the president is looking at a limit on H-1B, L-1 and other visas as well as a program allowing foreign students to work in the United States after they graduate."

STAFFING UP -- "Biden campaign names 2 key Arizona staff members, will run first ads in state," by the Arizona Republic's Ronald Hansen: "Andrew Piatt, who served as campaign manager in Sen. Kyrsten Sinema's successful 2018 run, will be the campaign's senior advisor. Jessica Mejía, who was the state director in California for the Biden campaign during the party's primary, will now serve as state director in Arizona." Republic

Protect Yourself and Others From Coronavirus: Even if you don't have symptoms, you could spread the coronavirus. Practice these physical distancing and hygiene tips to keep yourself and your loved ones safe: Stay 6 feet away from others in public; wash your hands often for 20+ seconds; disinfect frequently touched surfaces like cellphones and light switches; and wear a cloth face covering when out in public. Together, we can slow the spread. Visit coronavirus.gov to learn more.

NEW EU OFFICIAL SPEAKING OUT -- "Trump Moves Have Damaged Trans-Atlantic Ties, Says EU Foreign Policy Chief," by WSJ's Laurence Norman in Brussels: "Josep Borrell said Europe wouldn't follow U.S. calls to adopt a more confrontational approach to Beijing. 'We are closer to the United States than to China because…we share the same political system, and this makes a strong difference,' Mr. Borrell, who started the post as EU foreign policy chief six months ago, said in an interview this week. But 'it's clear that we don't have the same kind of systematic confrontation with China' that Washington faces." WSJ

FOR YOUR RADAR, via South China Morning Post's Catherine Wong: "China is moving ahead with the prosecution of two Canadians on spying charges, widely seen as retaliation against Canada's detention of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou.

"Former Canadian diplomat Michael John Kovrig and businessman Michael Spavor have been detained since December 2018, soon after Canada arrested Meng, who faces extradition to the US. China's top prosecutor said on Friday that a public prosecution for gathering state secrets and intelligence had been initiated against Kovrig." SCMP

THE COMING COLD WAR -- "Will India Side With the West Against China? A Test Is at Hand," by NYT's Maria Abi-Habib: "This week, the idea of such a confrontation became more real as Indian and Chinese soldiers clashed in the worst violence on the countries' border in 45 years … Prime Minister Narendra Modi has publicly reveled in the prospect of a more muscular role for India in the region and the world. But analysts say the new tensions with China will be the starkest test yet of whether India is ready — or truly willing — to jostle with a rising power bent on expanding its interests and territory. …

"With China facing new scrutiny and criticism over the coronavirus pandemic, Indian officials have recently seemed emboldened, taking steps that made Western diplomats feel that their goal of an India closer to the West was starting to be realized. … But India is still well behind China when it comes to military and economic power. That may give India's leaders pause over the prospect of an armed escalation." NYT

THE LATEST IN ISRAEL -- "Israel's Netanyahu Tries to Rally Support for Annexation Amid International Criticism," by WSJ's Felicia Schwartz in Tel Aviv: "Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is going all out to rally domestic support for his plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank, according to an internal party note, saying the move would secure Israeli settlements amid divisions within his coalition over how to proceed.

"'Applying Israeli law to already existing Jewish communities in Israel's ancestral homeland will lead to a realistic regional peace based upon facts on the ground,' the note, seen by The Wall Street Journal, said. While Mr. Netanyahu has made this argument before, the note for the first time collates his main reasons to move on his pledge to annex parts of the West Bank and marks an attempt to begin selling his plan to unpersuaded political partners and a divided public." WSJ

-- HAARETZ'S AMIR TIBON: "Despite AIPAC Opposition, Letter Opposing West Bank Annexation Gains Momentum Among House Democrats": "One notable lawmaker who has already signed the letter is House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer. Usually a supporter of Israel, Hoyer has worked with AIPAC's educational arm to organize delegations of freshmen House members to visit Israel."

WELCOME TO THE WORLD -- Joseph Campbell, media manager for Booz Allen Hamilton, and Linda Campbell, choral director for West Potomac High School, welcomed Beverly Rose Campbell on June 11. She joins big sister Cora. Pic

A message from PhRMA:

America's biopharmaceutical companies will continue working day and night until they beat coronavirus. Because science is how we get back to normal. More.