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Happy Monday Crunch!
Haje is finishing this newsletter before heading to TechCrunch 2023 Early Stage in Boston on April 20. It’s not too late to get your ticket! Meanwhile, on today’s Equity podcast, the capsule team asks: How much is an Angry Bird worth? Turns out Sega thinks it’s $775 million for the entire poultry farm.
TechCrunch Top 3
Apple’s announcements were important to today’s readers, so here we go:
- Psst, do you want to install an app?: Apple likes to keep things secret, but Ivan writes that the consumer tech giant is reportedly considering letting people sideload apps on their iPhone in iOS 17.
- Apple makes things interesting: Last October, Apple introduced a new financial productand today, the company spilled a little more tea on its Apple Card savings accounts, with an interest rate of 4.15%, reports Roman.
- See 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 get its biggest software update since its debut in 2015.
Startups and VCs
In January, an $810 million deal to buy Angry Birds makers Rovio fell apart, but the company suggested it was still in talks with other potential interested parties. Today, Pablo reports deal made official as Japanese gaming giant Sega has confirmed that it will buy the Finnish company Rovio in an all-cash settlement worth $775 million.
As the economy has gotten tougher, many businesses have shifted from buying to renting. There’s an acronym for this: XaaS, or “everything as a service,” also known as “servitization.” An example of this would be ServiceNow, which automates services for business operations. A new player in this space is Equipme, out of Germany, which secured $3.8 million in a seed investment round directed by La Famiglia VC, Miguel writes
And we have five more for you:
No, you are not raising money to increase your runway.
Image Credits: Siriporn Kaenseeya / EyeEm (opens in a new window) / Getty Images
Haha you often hear founders say they are raising money to increase their runway from 18 to 24 months. In a sense, that’s correct, but only from the startup’s point of view.
That is not what an investor is looking for. Your business surviving another year and a half is not the goal of a fundraiser; that’s a side effect at best. 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 company enough that it can do something it can’t do right now, and in this article, Haje explains how.
Three more from the TC+ team:
TechCrunch+ is our membership program that helps start-up founders and teams get ahead of the rest. You can sign up here. Use code “DC” to get 15% off an annual subscription!
big tech inc
There was no “up, up and away” for SpaceX today, which was attempting to fly its Starship launch system for the first time. Aria reports that the the flight test turned into a wet dress rehearsal due to a frozen pressure valve. Now SpaceX is considering April 19 as the next possible date to try again.
Luxury car enthusiasts gather around. Mercedes debuts Maybach EQS SUVwhich includes features that Mate he writes are “overflowing with historic Maybach design elements: two-tone paint, imposing wheels, a proper hood ornament and, yes, a filigree slatted grille even though it’s electric and there’s no radiator to protect.”
Now here are five more for you: