Truth: consultants can be really dumb - CBInsights

Hi Twitter. Need COO? Call me.

Hi there,

Low open rates on this weekend's newsletter so wanted to ensure folks saw that we're working on a Latin America fintech market map.

If you're a LatAm fintech company or investor in LatAm fintech companies, ensure their profiles are updated/added to CB Insights via The CBI Editor so they get in front of our research team and eventually the 257,000+ on this newsletter.

Submit by April 16th.

Alright, South Korea & Alabama - what's going on?

An interesting look at each US state's biggest import trading partner.

Early stage fin-tech'ers

If you're the CEO/founder of an early stage fintech startup, we're offering 25 discounted tickets to The Future of Fintech.

Apply here.

If you get a ticket and leave the event without significant investor or customer interest in what you're doing, it's time to re-evaluate.

Deadline to apply is April 30th but the 25 tix will be distributed as applications come in. Translation: apply sooner rather than later.

 Unbundling CVS

We created a market map to highlight the 80+ startups attacking various product verticals within the drug store business. These startups have raised $1.2B in aggregate, led by Harry’s Razor Company and The Honest Company.

From in-store analytics to digital assistants

We look at deals and dollars to AI commerce startups. Among private AI companies, commerce is the No. 3 category for deals since 2012, with $990M raised across 201 deals.

Incentive alignment or something like that

Check out compensation of Twitter execs below.

TIL: Anthony Noto is a really really really good negotiator.

And oh yeah, here's Twitter's stock chart in case you forgot.

I know 4 of you will write to tell me that it's a hard job and that it's in stock and that Twitter has to pay fair market value to retain great talent. If you truly believe any of this, I hope you will share with me whatever it is you are smoking.

On your mark

We look at marketing tech financing trends since 2012. Investors have consistently placed ~45% of their bets on early-stage marketing tech companies.

Ah yes - the famous porous funnel framework

Among participants in the Pundit Industrial Complex, there is a special place in hell for innovation consultants or people who try to advise corporations on digital disruption.

These consultants often work at large organizations that are hopelessly un-innovative themselves. This forces them to rely on buzzwords and gibberish frameworks like the one below.

This framework which I've spent too long trying to understand works as follows (I think):

1. Round balls of unknown meaning are floating around
2. They enter porous funnel at random places
3. Miraculously, they hit various random, desired targets
4. Or are connected to other round ball formulations
5. And voila - Innovation
6. You then presumably send more round balls through porous funnel
7. Rinse & repeat

Food frenzy

We analyzed funding trends to food and beverage startups since 2012. Deals to food and beverage companies slipped in Q1’17 compared to the prior quarter, and remain down from their Q1’16 peak of 91.

The Industry Standard

CB Insights data is the most trusted by those in the industry and the media. A few recent hits.

CNBC. Anita Balakrishnan (@msabalakrishnan) writes about Lyft's latest round of financing and cites CB Insights valuation data.

Quartz. A look at India's unicorns with a reference to CB Insights valuation data

Technical.ly. April Joyner (@aprjoy) reports on AI views discussed at NYU's Future Labs AI Summit and refers to CB Insights funding data.

Happy Monday.

I love you.

Anand

@asanwal

P.S. We're working on a Latin America fintech market landscape. If you are a LatAm fintech startup or investor in LatAm fintech startups, submit/update your profile here by April 16th. 

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• Check out AI's recent advances, notable startups, and where the space is headed in our latest State of AI report.

Unbundling CVS: Over 80 startups attacking drug store shelves

These startups have raised $1.2B to create new brands in the fast-moving consumer goods space, including vitamins, shampoo, and face creams. Check it out.

 Artificial intelligence is transforming commerce

AI commerce companies have raised $990M across 201 deals since 2012. See the data.

Marketing tech deals on the rebound

Since 2012, investors in marketing tech have consistently placed ~45% of their bets on early-stage companies. Read about it.

Deals to food & beverage companies still off peak, but dollars tick up

While private equity firms led the largest recent investments, food corporates are also increasingly active in the startup world. See the data.

The Blurb

A curated mix of articles on private companies, venture capital, emerging industries, and innovation.

Why distribution still matters in the digital age. How one startup went up against Ben Thompson’s aggregation theory. BackChannel

What are your valuation expectations? Rob Go (@robgo) shares how he would go about answering this question. Rob Go

The engine of purpose. Vishal Vasishth (@vishalvasishth) on the healthy tensions that fueled the team at Patagonia and what entrepreneurs can learn as they build for the long term. World Positive

My fund is old enough to drive. A look at LP stats.

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