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Hello! You have one more day before I take my well-deserved Friday off Kyle It’s filling, so I decided to make an extra-large version of the daily crunch. We hope many of you are hanging out with the Crypto Gang in Miami for TC Sessions: Crypto. As you can see, quite a few stories have come out of it and I’m sure there will be more to come.
Oh, and if you have 30 minutes to spare, I think you’ll enjoy it AlexInterviews with some corporate comms experts about working with startups and public companies. See also cameA satellite pitch deck rip-off that has a lot going for it but needs last names for its team members.
Let’s examine today’s news! – Christine
TechCrunch’s Top 3
- character dumpFor you guys who love using Google Maps, Google Search and Google Shopping, the company has some new features for you. Aisha It destroys them.
- Put your money where your mouth isIndex Ventures says the economic downturn will spur more startups, and it’s putting $300 million on that horse to win. Mike He wrote.
- “A goal without a plan is just wishful thinking.“Mozilla released its “State of Mozilla” report today, and Frederick The search engine giant looks at how it sees its next chapter.
Startups and VCs
More cybersecurity M&A is happening here. Ingrid Palo Alto Networks is reportedly buying Cedar Securities in a deal worth up to $300 million. The move she wrote has been rumored for a while, but now some pieces are falling into place, including telling investors, which makes it more likely that it’s happening.
Mary Ann She spoke to some crypto-focused venture capitalists who were already cautious about deploying their money into cryptocurrency, but now worry that the FTX crash will make it harder to get limited partners on board for future funds.
And we have six more for you:
SaaS startups that ignored VC advice to cut sales and marketing fared better this year.
Image Credits: Andriy Onufriyenko (Opens in a new window) / Getty Images
Many VCs have advised founders to dial back their sales and marketing spending this year to maintain a runway. And as it turns out, many VCs have been giving the wrong advice.
According to data from Capchase, a fintech provider of equity capital for startups, “companies that did not reduce their sales and marketing spending were in better financial and growth shape in 2022 than they were when the market started to decline.” Rebecca Szkutak.
Of the 500 companies surveyed, bootstrapped companies showed the most growth, said Miguel Fernandez, founder and CEO of Capchase.
“What we’ve seen in this case, and what’s really interesting, is that the best companies have cut everything except for sales and marketing.”
Three more from the TC+ team:
TechCrunch+ Our membership program helps founders and startup teams stay ahead of the pack. You can register here.. Use code “DC” for 15% off annual subscription!
Big Tech Inc.
Please have fun BrianMore Big Actuator newsletter today where he breaks down Boston’s tech scene, walks around town, talks to Ty Brady, does some work with robotics, and takes a “field trip to some of Boston’s best startups.”
For those of you who like to tweet in threads, Twitter is working on a feature that will automatically split long posts into threads for you. Ivan Reports. This step reduces the need to split all of your carefully curated vomit into 280-character chunks.
Meanwhile, in Binance land, co-founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao, also known as CZ; Anita This morning at TC Sessions: Crypto, and Roman Catch some highlights, including CZ’s thoughts on FTX: “We were the last straw that broke the camel’s back.” and then Manish He released some comments from CZ as it relates to the Binance business in India. That is, there is none.
Today, there are six more we think you should read:
- On cloud nineApple’s iCloud website is now a little different, with apps that look like widget-like tiles instead of icons. Ivan He wrote.
- More layoffsRoku said it is cutting jobs, citing economic conditions as the reason why 200 US workers will be let go. Lauren He wrote.
- Misinformation controlIn case you didn’t know, PR software giant Season Factmata, which is fighting fake news, got it. Ingrid Reports.
- Car pornographyToyota’s new all-electric SUV concept has stylish looks and a planter seat; Jacqueline Reports.
- Surprise, surprise, surprise: Blizzard Activision has shocked us all by banning most of its games in China, citing the end of licensing agreements with NetEase. Rita It has more.
- hello my name is…We have been following Metta’s India journeys, but now we have some news that Metta has appointed India leader. Manish Reports.
