{"id":1282,"date":"2019-01-19T21:30:07","date_gmt":"2019-01-19T21:30:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/surfshields.com\/index.php\/2019\/01\/19\/startups-weekly-squads-screen-shares-and-slacks-swastika\/"},"modified":"2019-01-19T21:30:07","modified_gmt":"2019-01-19T21:30:07","slug":"startups-weekly-squads-screen-shares-and-slacks-swastika","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/surfshields.com\/index.php\/2019\/01\/19\/startups-weekly-squads-screen-shares-and-slacks-swastika\/","title":{"rendered":"Startups Weekly: Squads screen-shares and Slacks swastika"},"content":{"rendered":"
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We\u2019re three weeks into January. We\u2019ve recovered from our CES hangover and, hopefully, from the CES flu. We\u2019ve started writing the correct year, 2019,<\/em> not 2018.<\/p>\n

Venture capitalists have gone full steam ahead with fundraising efforts, several startups have closed multi-hundred million dollar rounds, a\u00a0virtual\u00a0<\/em>influencer raised equity funding and yet, all anyone wants to talk about is Slack\u2019s new logo<\/a>\u2026 As part of its public listing prep, Slack <\/span><\/a> announced some changes to its branding this week, including a vaguely different looking logo. Considering the flack the $7 billion startup received instantaneously and accusations that the negative space in the logo resembled a swastika \u2014 Slack would\u2019ve been better off leaving its original logo alone; alas\u2026<\/p>\n

On to more important matters.<\/p>\n

Rubrik more than doubled its valuation<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

The data management startup raised a $261 million Series E funding at a $3.3 billion valuation<\/a>, an increase from the $1.3 billion valuation it garnered with a previous round. In true unicorn form, Rubrik\u2019s CEO told TechCrunch\u2019s Ingrid Lunden it\u2019s intentionally unprofitable:\u00a0\u201cOur goal is to build a long-term, iconic company, and so we want to become profitable but not at the cost of growth,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are leading this market transformation while it continues to grow.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Deal of the week: Knock gets $400M to take on Opendoor<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Will 2019 be a banner year for real estate tech investment? As $4.65 billion was funneled into the space in 2018 across more than 350 deals and with high-flying startups attracting investors (Compass, Opendoor, Knock), the excitement is poised to continue. This week, Knock brought in $400 million<\/a> at an undisclosed valuation to accelerate its national expansion.\u00a0\u201cWe are trying to make it as easy to trade in your house as it is to trade in your car,\u201d Knock CEO Sean Black told me<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Cybersecurity stays hot<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

While we\u2019re on the subject of VCs\u2019 favorite industries, TechCrunch cybersecurity reporter Zack Whittaker <\/span><\/a> highlights some new data on venture investment in the industry<\/a>.\u00a0Strategic Cyber Ventures says more than $5.3 billion was funneled into companies<\/a> focused on protecting networks, systems and data across the world, despite fewer deals done during the year. We can thank Tanium, CrowdStrike and Anchorfree\u2019s massive deals for a good chunk of that activity.<\/p>\n

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Send me tips, suggestions and more to kate.clark@techcrunch.com or\u00a0@KateClarkTweets<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Fundraising efforts continue<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

I would be remiss not to highlight a slew of venture firms that made public their intent to raise new funds this week. Peter Thiel\u2019s Valar Ventures<\/a> filed to raise $350 million<\/a> across two new funds and\u00a0Redpoint Ventures set a $400 million target<\/a> for two new China-focused funds. Meanwhile, Resolute Ventures closed on $75 million<\/a> for its fourth early-stage fund, BlueRun Ventures nabbed $130 million<\/a> for its sixth effort, Maverick Ventures announced a $382 million evergreen fund<\/a>, First Round Capital introduced a new pre-seed fund<\/a> that will target recent graduates, Techstars decided to double down on its corporate connections with the launch of a new venture studio<\/a> and, last but not least, Lance Armstrong wrote his very first check as a VC<\/a> out of his new fund, Next Ventures.<\/p>\n

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More money goes toward scooters<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

In case you were concerned there wasn\u2019t enough VC investment in electric scooter startups, worry no more! Flash, <\/span><\/a> a Berlin-based micro-mobility company, emerged from stealth this week with a whopping\u00a0\u20ac55 million in Series A funding<\/a>. Flash is already operating in Switzerland and Portugal, with plans to launch into France, Italy and Spain in 2019. Bird and Lime are in the process of raising $700 million between them<\/a>, too, indicating the scooter funding extravaganza of 2018 will extend into 2019 \u2014 oh boy!<\/p>\n

Startups secure cash<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n