STARTUP X
The F42 brief #005
Hello, Here’s your Monday dose of The F42 Brief, where we give you essential updates and innovations that are moving and shaping our startup space.
What’s inside »
📈 Trending Now
The one thing that’s making all the noise …. with a bit of fact checking.
💸 New Funds looking to give you cash
Who has launched a new fund to invest in startups last week.
💡Innovator Spotlight
Founders that are doing suff differently.
🛠️ Tool of the Week
Something useful to up your startups velocity.
📌 Note to Self
Stuff I constantly remind myself about, don’t want make the same mistakes again.
📈 Trending Now
AI Dominates Y Combinator's Summer 2024 Cohort
AI Dominance: Y Combinator's S24 batch shows a massive spike in AI startups, with 67% of the cohort working in AI-related fields, compared to just 13% three years ago.
Founder Profiles: Over half of the startups feature a founder with at least a Master's degree or Ph.D., and 72% have founders with a computer science background, emphasising the high value placed on advanced technical education.
Experienced Entrepreneurs: 48% of the companies have at least one founder who's launching their second venture, indicating a preference for seasoned entrepreneurs in the startup ecosystem.
Silicon Valley Focus: Despite broader geographic distribution trends, a significant 67% of these startups are still based in Silicon Valley, underscoring its ongoing importance as a tech hub.
Co-Founder Success: The majority of startups (54%) have dual co-founders, supporting the view that teams with balanced partnerships tend to achieve better outcomes.
❓ Silicon Valley still rules the startup world, but isn't it time for other cities to shine? What's your perspective?
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For the ❤️ of Startups
💸 New Funds looking to give you cash
Another week and another bunch of fresh capital, with 24 new funds announced—proof that there's plenty of capital out there ready to back startup founders. Whether it's transforming education, enhancing healthcare, or pushing the boundaries of space technology, these funds are geared up and ready to deploy.
20VC A new $400 million fund aimed at investing in European startups, focusing on later stages to "make Europe great again."
Acrew Capital A $700 million investment fund targeting data and security, healthcare, and fintech sectors, focusing on early-stage companies.
8i Ventures An early-stage venture capital fund that invests in the digital economy, with investments ranging from $300k to $1.3 million.
Hillside Ventures A student-run venture fund at the University of Connecticut, investing in sustainability, insurtech, or edtech industries.
Zhumadian New Energy Venture Capital A new investment fund focusing on battery materials, energy storage, new energy vehicles, and supporting strategic emerging industries in Zhumadian.
A climate-focused fund launched by former executives from Venture Garage and Cuemath, aiming to invest in companies working towards reducing carbon footprint.
General Catalyst is planning its first investment in Saudi Arabia, this fund typically invests in early-stage to growth-stage companies across consumer, health, financial, and enterprise technology sectors.
Volta Energy Fund II Focused on the energy sector, this fund has received significant commitments, including a $20 million commitment from the City of Fresno Retirement System.
Redwood Ventures and Seedstars Capital A $200M fund established in partnership with Seedstars Capital to invest in early-stage startups across Latin America.
Era Ventures A New York City-based fund with an inaugural fund size of $88 million, focusing on proptech and contech startups.
Saqr Fund II Managed by Vision Ventures, targeting a $90 million size to invest in early-stage startups in Saudi Arabia and the MENA region.
Moonbase Capital A new $15 million fund aimed at acquiring and growing SMEs globally, focusing on emerging markets like Latin America, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East.
Gate Ventures Capital A cryptocurrency venture capital fund launched by the venture capital arm of Gate.io, investing in digital assets and web 3.0 space from seed to pre-IPO rounds.
DB1 Ventures The Corporate Venture Capital arm of Deutsche Börse Group, focusing on startups within the capital market infrastructure space.
Node.vc A Nordic early-stage venture capital firm that has closed a €71 million fund to support emerging entrepreneurs in the region.
IndiGo Ventures A corporate venture capital fund established by IndiGo Airlines, targeting pre-Series A to Series B investments in aviation technology startups.
KdT Ventures Has launched its fourth fund, topping $100 million, to invest in early-stage science-driven companies, focusing on deep tech.
P180 A new fund focusing on investing in fashion brands and retailers, particularly in the luxury sector, co-founded by former Vince CEO Brendan Hoffman and tech entrepreneur Christine Hunsicker.
Interlagos Founded by former SpaceX leaders, this new fund aims to raise $550 million for deep tech investments, particularly in the space and defense sectors.
Gate Ventures, Movement Labs, and Boon VenturesA $20 million venture capital investment fund focused on blockchain projects that specialize in Move, a programming language developed by Movement Labs.
University of Melbourne Genesis Pre-Seed Fund and Tin Alley Ventures Early-stage venture capital investment funds focused on startups linked to the University of Melbourne and supporting deep tech ventures.
Diagram's Climate Tech Venture Builder Fund A new $80 million fund investing in companies developing capital-efficient digital solutions supporting a sustainable future.
Carozzi Corporate Venture Capital Fund A new $6M fund by Chilean food processing company Carozzi to invest in agritech, foodtech, and other sectors, focusing on pre-seed to Series A stages.
Activate Capital A San Francisco-based climate tech venture capital firm raising a new fund with a target of $500 million, focusing on early-to-growth stage companies within the climate technology sector.
💡Innovator Spotlight
🚀 The rise of faceless videos on platforms like TikTok marks a significant shift in content creation. Creators, uncomfortable with the spotlight or the aesthetic demands of traditional video, are turning to anonymity to build their followings. This trend not only caters to creators seeking privacy but also to viewers looking for a break from the typical influencer persona, offering a refreshing change in their content consumption habits.
🔍 One surprising takeaway for startup founders is the power of anonymity in building a strong online presence. Instead of focusing on personal brand aesthetics, the emphasis shifts to the quality and relatability of the content itself. This can be a game-changer for founders who are camera-shy or resource-strapped. The practical lesson here is to consider how removing personal identifiers can help focus on the message or product, potentially leading to a broader and more engaged audience.
❓ How might your startup benefit from adopting a more anonymous approach in your marketing efforts, focusing purely on product value and user experience?
🛠️ Tool of the Week
⚙️ NotebookLM, introduced by Google, is a cutting-edge AI tool billed as a "personalized AI research assistant." It processes various content formats, summarizing them into podcasts featuring realistic dialogue. This innovation has captured user interest, especially as it's blended across platforms like TikTok. Critics argue that the podcasts' density isn't yet optimal, with some finds calling it fluffy. With rapid enhancements by Google's team, these challenges are expected to be addressed soon. For startup founders, embracing AI to streamline tasks can lead to a more efficient workflow and increased market engagement.
💡 By turning user-provided content into engaging audio formats, NotebookLM highlights the power of AI in enhancing user interaction. Besides conventional applications, users creatively employ it in unexpected areas, such as therapy or educational content creation. The essential takeaway is to prioritise an intuitive user experience, which can open new avenues for consumption. This approach can massively enhance customer engagement and create fresh opportunities to repurpose existing content.
Check out this NotebookLM deepdive podcast on my Founder mode post:
🤔 How could you improve your startup's tools to better facilitate user engagement and drive productivity, perhaps through an unexpected application or fresh format? 🚀
📌 Note to Self
Thank you for reading. If you liked it, share it with your friends, colleagues and everyone interested in the startup Investor ecosystem.
If you've got suggestions, an article, research, your tech stack, or a job listing you want featured, just let me know! I'm keen to include it in the upcoming edition.
Please let me know what you think of it, love a feedback loop 🙏🏼
🛑 Get a different job.
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For the ❤️ of startups
✌🏼 & 💙
Derek