For Your Information Blog: 25/11/21

Thursday, November 25, 2021

UK privacy watchdog warns adtech that the end of tracking is nigh

Thursday, November 25, 2021 • By Alex Wilhelm and Henry Pickavet

Welcome to a surprise edition of The Daily Crunch! You might have noticed that we sent tomorrow's newsletter yesterday; hope you enjoyed the glimpse into the future. But back in the present we are, and we have a few more stories than usual for you. If you're in the U.S. and celebrating Thanksgiving, may it be a good one!

— Henry (for Alexander who has most assuredly finished his turkey by now and is playing a video game of some sort)

The TechCrunch Top 5

The 2022 Polestar 2 is more appealing, affordable and repairable: Polestar is rolling out a more affordable, single-motor, two-wheel-drive version of the sedan that still offers many of the features of the dual-motor Polestar 2 along with a few changes that make it a bit more affordable, appealing and greener for those looking to make the electric switch. In a recent drive, we put it to the test.
Adtech industry warned that the end of tracking is nigh: Today, the UK's outgoing information commissioner, Elizabeth Denham, published an opinion in which she warns the adtech industry that its old unlawful tricks simply won't do in the future. New methods of advertising must be compliant with a set of what she describes as "clear data protection standards" in order to safeguard people's privacy online, she writes.
Up north, an AI boom: Continuing TechCrunch's coverage of the rapid-fire AI fundraising market, we explored the Canadian artificial-intelligence startup industry. There's a lot more going on up north than you might expect. Consider this more evidence of the increasingly global startup landscape.
France asks search engines and app stores to remove Wish: Akin to a nonprofit U.S. newsroom, France decided to test its concerns about e-commerce marketplace Wish by buying stuff and checking out what they got. A bunch of violations, it turns out. France is now asking search engines and app stores to delist the public U.S. company.
Attio is taking on Salesforce: While startups are busy attacking a host of markets, there are certain areas of the software domain that have felt too off-limits in recent years. Search is finally seeing a wave of competitors, for example. Attio, now flush with $7.7 million in capital, is taking on the old-school CRM market.

Image Credits: Abigail Bassett

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Startups/VC

Astroscale raises $109M for its on-orbit services technology: Japanese space startup Astroscale has raised $109 million in a new Series F round of financing, bringing the company's total funding raised to date to $300 million. The company specializes in on-orbit servicing technology, designed to help reduce the amount of debris that exists in operating orbital altitudes, and also to extend the life of existing satellites as a means of making orbital businesses more sustainable.
Perfeggt brings in first capital to shell out plant-based egg alternative: The Berlin-based foodtech company is poised to debut its chicken-less egg product in the first quarter of 2022 in Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Today, the company announced it raised $2.8 million in its first funding round to aid the initial launch and then expand further in Europe later in 2022.
Asilimia wants to bring more loans to Kenya: The business of loaning money to folks not supported by the traditional banking world is big business. Asilimia just raised $2 million — half debt, half equity — to keep money flowing in its home market. Per TechCrunch reporting, the company also offers "a lifeline to traders in Kenya by enabling them to make mobile money transactions that are devoid of transfer charges through its Leja app."
OnePipe raises $3.5M for its fintech API business: Plaid is a big deal in its domestic market, but that doesn't mean that there aren't related startups executing similar work around the world. OnePipe is one such company, bringing fintech infra APIs to Africa. And now it has a pile of new funds to continue its work.
Ok *now* the used car market is out of control: If you read business news, you've read about the used car market. A chip shortage has made used cars more pricey than ever. And now Indian startup Spinny has shifted into unicorn territory with a new $280 million round. There are related companies in the U.S. market that have gone public, so Spinny is operating in a market that we understand. Let's see how its economics bear out.
Clothes for a bleak future: If you want jackets for huge storms and a fleece for extreme conditions — wagering that climate change is going to make our home planet a bit less fun to live on — Vollebak has your, well, back. The startup just raised a Series A, likely, we guess, hoping to follow Allbirds and other recent DTC debuts to the public markets.
Today in startup names we're not sure about: I've never been huge on calling meat fat "marbling" — to me, marble is the material for old-world erotic sculptures. I blame my parents' love for art and art museums for this view. Regardless, there's a startup called Juicy Marbles out there hoping to create "plant-based whole meat cuts." I am in favor of the product and the company's goals. But Juicy Marbles? There I am less confident.

Dear Sophie: How long does International Entrepreneur Parole take?

Dear Sophie,

My co-founders and I think we might qualify for International Entrepreneur Parole.

How long does it take to get IEP approved? How does that compare to other options that are available to startup founders, and can my spouse work?

— Committed COO

(TechCrunch+ is our membership program, which helps founders and startup teams get ahead. You can sign up here.)

Dear Sophie: How long does International Entrepreneur Parole take? image

Image Credits: Bryce Durbin/TechCrunch

Why SoundHound is valued at 5 Shazams

Voice AI company SoundHound is set to go public on the Nasdaq via a SPAC transaction at a nearly $2.1 billion valuation in early 2022. So what happened that would make SoundHound now significantly more valuable than its British counterpart?

(TechCrunch+ is our membership program, which helps founders and startup teams get ahead. You can sign up here.)

Why SoundHound is valued at 5 Shazams image

Image Credits: Nigel Sussman

Big Tech Inc.

Uber to shutter most of its service in Belgium tomorrow after court ruling: Uber will halt its ride-hailing service in most of Belgium tomorrow following a court ruling Wednesday that extends a 2015 order banning its p2p UberPop service to also cover professional drivers providing its ride-hailing service. Uber told us that it is studying the detail of the ruling to decide whether to appeal the decision with the country's Supreme Court.
Head of Instagram Adam Mosseri will testify before the Senate on teen mental health: Mosseri posted a video responding to the news of his forthcoming appearance on Capitol Hill. He discussed growing concerns about teen safety online, then outlined past actions Instagram has taken to protect young users, like making young teens' accounts private by default and restricting the kinds of ads they see. Mosseri's hearing will take place on December 6.
BNPL giants want to get into things other than BNPL: Yesterday's news that Klarna is moving into upfront payments might have had you scratching your head. Get ready for more follicular punishment. Today, TechCrunch reported that Afterpay is getting into the installment subscription game. Sure.
Twitter brings web update to iOS so that you stop losing tweets: Ever been on your phone, looking at a Very Good Tweet, only to have it disappear from your view, gone forever into the ether that is the ever-flowing timeline? Yeah, it sucks. The company fixed the issue on the web recently and is now fixing its mobile app. Rejoice.

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