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Venture Capital News
Medium
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76
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The Great Indian Real Estate Arbitrage Opportunity
- The article discusses the real estate arbitrage opportunity in India, focusing on co-working and managed office spaces as established forms of the playbook.
- India's flexible workspace market is projected to grow at over 25% CAGR in the next three years, surpassing the overall office space market growth.
- Large enterprises are increasingly adopting flexible workspaces post-COVID for agility, capital efficiency, and optionality over traditional leases.
- Managed office spaces, offering single touchpoints for enterprises and better asset-liability matching, have become the fastest-growing sub-segment within flexible workspaces.
- In India, the co-working model has been successful due to factors like fragmented ownership structure, improved asset-liability matching, and landlord collaborations.
- The market is consolidating rapidly around a few scaled players, with the top five operators controlling 45% of the total market share.
- Demand and supply in the flex space market are increasingly intermediated through institutional consultants or brokers, favoring platforms with scale and consistency.
- Location remains crucial, with micro-market presence and proximity to demand centers dictating occupancy and pricing.
- While co-working in India continues to offer an arbitrage opportunity, scale, operating leverage, and access to capital are becoming primary drivers of value.
- The article suggests that early-stage alpha opportunities may now lie in adjacent segments like co-living, vacation rentals, senior living, and hybrid hospitality spaces.
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Medium
4d
113
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Striking it Lucky: backing the next big energy drink brand
- Lucky, founded by Richard Laver, focuses on offering cleaner energy products to inspire customers.
- Richard, a resilient entrepreneur with a unique life story, created Lucky as a testament to perseverance.
- The exceptional management team at Lucky includes talent from brands like Liquid Death and Kate Farms.
- Embracing an 'anti-brand' strategy, Lucky's marketing approach is disruptive and authentic.
- Targeting Millennial and Gen Z consumers, Lucky appeals to those seeking minimal ingredients and a positive message.
- With zero sugar and calories, Lucky offers healthier energy drink options in six flavors.
- Lucky has rapidly expanded its reach, stocked in over 10k stores across the US with a growing social media following.
- The company's focus on both hyper-growth and operational efficiency sets it apart in the competitive energy drink market.
- Backed by top consumer VC funds and industry veterans like Dan Ginsberg, Lucky has ambitious growth plans.
- Expect Lucky to double its retail presence in 2025 and potentially expand beyond the US market in the near future.
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Guardian
4d
133
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WH Smith brand to disappear from high street as £76m sale of stores to Modella agreed
- WH Smith will sell its 480 retail stores to Modella Capital for £76m.
- The 233-year-old WH Smith brand will disappear from the high street after a short transitional period.
- WH Smith will retain its brand for its travel shops, keeping almost 1,300 travel stores and its online business.
- The sale of WH Smith retail stores will result in the rebranding of the business as TGJones.
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Analyticsindiamag
4d
81
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2am VC Fund to Back Early Stage Startups in Consumer Tech, AI, Fintech, and SaaS
- Venture capital firm 2am VC has launched its second fund to invest in 30 Indian startups across consumer tech, fintech, AI, food & beverage, and global SaaS.
- The firm will allocate 60% of the fund for initial investments and 40% for follow-on rounds.
- 2am VC has previously invested in 47 companies, including NEWME, Apna Mart, Bimaplan, and Karbon Card.
- The firm focuses on early-stage startups, mainly at the pre-seed to seed stage, and aims to support young and first-time Indian founders.
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Medium
4d
28
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The Role of Angel Investors in Startup Growth
- Angel investors play a crucial role in providing early-stage funding to startups in exchange for equity.
- They not only provide capital but also act as mentors, offering valuable industry expertise.
- Angel investors help startups bridge the funding gap, introduce them to valuable connections, and boost their credibility in the market.
- In India, there is a growing angel investment ecosystem, with major hubs like Delhi, Mumbai, and Bangalore offering ample opportunities for startups to secure early-stage investment.
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Medium
4d
183
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Venture Capital Trends in the Indian Startup Ecosystem
- Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs) are gaining traction in the Indian startup ecosystem as an alternative to traditional IPOs.
- Late-stage startups in sectors like fintech, EV, and SaaS are exploring the SPACs model for rapid capital infusion and market listing.
- Regulatory clarity and investor sentiment will play a crucial role in determining the future of SPACs in India.
- The Indian venture capital ecosystem is evolving rapidly, with significant investments pouring into high-growth sectors such as fintech, SaaS, EV, and healthtech.
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Siliconangle
4d
150
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Hakimo secures $10.5M in new funding and launches autonomous AI security agent
- Hakimo Inc. has raised $10.5 million in new funding and launched AI Operator, an autonomous security agent.
- AI Operator monitors existing security hardware, detects threats in real time, and executes response protocols.
- The service combines computer vision and generative AI for anomaly detection and issuing real-time warnings.
- Hakimo's funding round was led by Vertex Ventures Management and Zigg Capital, bringing total funding to $20.5 million.
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Medium
4d
8
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The Financial Markets: A Battlefield of Strategy, Psychology, and Power
- Investors will inevitably face market crashes at some point.
- Successful investors understand that market crashes are opportunities.
- Building wealth in the market requires education, resilience, and risk understanding.
- Approaching financial markets with strategy and discipline leads to success.
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Medium
5d
187
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CreativeCo invests in ProLine, the vertical AI + SaaS platform for roofing contractors
- CreativeCo has invested in ProLine, a vertical AI + SaaS platform for roofing contractors.
- ProLine offers a software solution specifically designed to meet the unique requirements of roofing businesses.
- Using customer communication integration and AI-enabled automation, ProLine streamlines sales, production, and payment processes.
- CreativeCo's investment will support ProLine's product development, go-to-market strategies, and customer success.
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Medium
5d
183
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The AI Hype Trap: Why Startup Culture Needs More Substance and Less Speculation
- AI startups experienced unprecedented funding in 2024, with companies like Databricks raising $10 billion at a $62 billion valuation.
- The culture behind AI startups and the investors backing them often mirror the hype they create, which poses a significant risk.
- Examples like Nikola Corporation and LightSail Energy highlight the failure and bankruptcy risks associated with hype-driven culture.
- To increase success rates, startup culture needs more substance, humility, and focus on building strong teams and internal culture.
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Medium
5d
269
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What Hinge Health can learn from Pre-Pandemic Health Tech IPOs
- Hinge Health is preparing to enter the public markets.
- Lessons from past health tech IPOs:
- 1. The market for point solutions is saturated.
- 2. Deep relationships with payers are crucial to win.
- 3. Not all digital health categories are IPO-friendly.
- Hinge Health faces a mature digital health market and must prove product differentiation, AI outcomes, and sustained payer partnerships to succeed.
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Medium
5d
293
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Why we couldn’t resist raising from eBay — our Series A announcement
- WunderGraph recently raised a $7.5M Series A led by Karma Ventures and eBay Ventures, and other investors.
- Despite being profitable in early 2025, WunderGraph decided to raise funds for a new product, Cosmo, a Platform for GraphQL Federation.
- Experiencing financial challenges with Cosmo initially, their breakthrough came after presenting at GraphQL Conf where they attracted substantial interest.
- Meeting eBay representatives at the conference led to a transformative partnership and subsequent rapid growth in customer acquisition.
- The partnership with eBay propelled WunderGraph's growth, attracting big names like On The Beach, SoundCloud, EOG Resources, and more as customers.
- Facing significant challenges in developing Cosmo, particularly the Query Planner, WunderGraph navigated through issues and gained momentum.
- With the newfound success and profitability in late 2024, WunderGraph made the decision to scale further by raising its Series A funding.
- Eager to build the Enterprise standard for GraphQL Federation with eBay, WunderGraph's vision aligns with scaling GraphQL in enterprises.
- Partnering with Karma Ventures and eBay, WunderGraph aims to expand its product offerings, improve Federation, and enhance API collaborations.
- WunderGraph is actively seeking experienced professionals in sales, marketing, and engineering to fuel its growth and innovation plans.
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Medium
5d
32
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B2B Wins #47: Wordy Startup Pitches are Crap. And Boring.
- The purpose of a pitch deck is to get a meeting with an investor or one of their lackeys.
- To receive investment, you have to get a meeting. To get a meeting, you must follow the rules and stand out.
- Investors read hundreds, if not a thousand or more, pitch decks per year. To get through them, they will spend about two minutes on your deck. They just want to hear the story.
- Getting your crappy pitch deck into shape can be a challenge. I often coach founders to start with a blank slate to get insight into how their story could be better.
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Eu-Startups
5d
81
Meet the experts joining our “Public Grants vs. VC Funding” panel at the EU-Startups Summit 2025!
- The EU-Startups Summit 2025 will be held in Malta on April 24-25, bringing together 2,300 founders, investors, and innovation leaders for networking and knowledge-sharing.
- The panel titled “Public Grants vs. VC Funding” will explore the funding options for startups and the implications of choosing between public grants and venture capital.
- Experts on the panel include David Seoane from FundingBox, Dimitar Vassilev from EIC & SMEs Executive Agency, Marie Latour from Euro-Funding, and Viktorija Trimbel from Coinvest Capital.
- David Seoane supports startups in accessing EU-funded programs, while Dimitar Vassilev brings knowledge on EU public funding and policy implementation.
- Marie Latour assists startups in accessing and managing public funding, with expertise in EU grant strategies and lobbying.
- Viktorija Trimbel from Coinvest Capital helps startups access equity funding and discusses the benefits and limitations of VC funding.
- The panel is recommended for early-stage founders, policymakers, and investors looking to understand Europe's funding landscape.
- Malta Enterprise, the headline sponsor, supports economic growth and innovation in Malta, attracting investments and fostering a startup-friendly environment.
- Other sponsors include Scytale, Airwallex, EUROCROWD, and M. Demajo Group, offering support for compliance, financial solutions, crowdfunding, and business diversification.
- The European Innovation Council (EIC) aims to turn European science into commercial innovations, positioning Europe as a global leader in deep tech innovation.
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Medium
5d
89
Image Credit: Medium
Emerging VC Talent: Edition 8, Bailie Salk
- In the eighth edition of the Emerging VC Talent series, Bailie Salk, an Associate at Venrock on the AI team, was interviewed.
- Venrock, investing from their 10th $650M fund, focuses on AI, fintech, defense, and healthcare companies, with investments in Apple, Intel, Cloudflare, and Athenahealth.
- Bailie's journey started with a jewelry business at eight, leading to cybersecurity studies and venturing into VC through AlphaSights.
- As an Associate at Venrock, Bailie supports Partners in AI investments and emphasizes overcoming AI limitations.
- Building trust with founders involves authentic interactions, digging deep into motivations, and being present through challenges.
- Bailie values revenue-focused assistance, network expansion, and resourcefulness when helping founders navigate challenges.
- Capital Collective, founded by Bailie, aims to connect women in VC through resources, deals, and fostering meaningful relationships.
- In today's VC landscape, young VCs like Bailie emphasize boldness, risk-taking, and excellence, surrounded by inspiring peers.
- Key advice from Bailie includes leading with gratitude, finding a supportive tribe, and seeking relationships based on integrity and curiosity.
- To suggest emerging VC talents for future features, contact the interviewer on LinkedIn.
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