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Happy Monday Crunch!
Haje is wrapping up this newsletter before heading to businessroundups.org Early Stage 2023 in Boston on April 20. It’s not too late to get your ticket! Meanwhile, on the Equity podcast, the pod crew wonders: What’s an Angry Bird worth? As it turns out, Sega thinks it’s $775 million for the whole bird farm.
Table of Contents
The businessroundups.org Top 3
Apple’s announcements were big for readers today, so here we go:
- Psst, do you want to install an app?: Apple likes to keep things close to the vest, but Ivan writes that the consumer tech giant is reportedly considering allowing people to sideload apps to their iPhone in iOS 17.
- Apple makes things interesting: Last October, Apple unveiled a new financial product, and today the company spilled some more tea on its Apple Card savings accounts, with an interest rate of 4.15%, reports Roman.
- Look at this: Apple Watch users have been waiting – can we say patiently? — for a new software update. Good, Sarah reports today that the watch is likely to receive its biggest software update since its debut in 2015.
Startups and VC
In January, an $810 million deal to buy Angry Birds maker Rovio fell through, but the company suggested they were still in talks with other potential interested parties. Today, Paul reports that the deal became official when Japanese gaming giant Sega confirmed it is buying Finland’s Rovio in a cash deal worth $775 million.
Due to the improving economy, many companies have switched from buying to renting. There’s an acronym for this: XaaS, or “everything as a service,” also known as “servitization.” An example of this is ServiceNow, which automates services for business operations. A new player in this space is Equipme, from Germany, which raised $3.8 million in an investment round led by La Famiglia VC, Mike writes.
And we have five more for you:
No, you are not raising money to enlarge your runway
Image Credits: Siriporn Kaenseeya / EyeEm (opens in a new window) / Getty Images
Hey often hears founders say they raise money to increase their runway by 18 to 24 months. In a sense, that’s right, but only from the startup’s point of view.
That is not what an investor is looking for. Keeping your business going for another year and a half is not the goal of a fundraiser; that is at most a side effect. Ask yourself: What happens at the end of those 18 months?
Founders must communicate to investors what unlocks a funding round. That is expressed in milestones, not in time. The goal is to transform the business enough that you can do something you can’t do right now, and in this piece, Haje explains how.
Three more from the TC+ team:
businessroundups.org+ is our membership program that helps founders and startup teams lead the way. You can sign up here. Use code “DC” for a 15% discount on an annual subscription!
Big Tech Inc.
There was no “up, up and away” today for SpaceX, which was attempting to pilot its Starship launch system for the first time. Aria reports that the test flight turned into a wet dress rehearsal due to a frozen pressure valve. Now SpaceX is looking at April 19 as the next possible date to try again.
Lovers of luxury cars gather. Mercedes introduces the Maybach EQS SUV, which includes features that Mat writes its “dripping with historic Maybach design cues: two-tone paint, imposing wheels, a real hood ornament and, yes, a grill with filigree louvres, even though it’s electric and there’s no radiator to protect.”
Here are five more for you:
