European Union demands $ 1 billion fine from VW and BMW for hiding emissions – TechCrunch



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Hello and welcome to Daily Crunch for July 9, 2021. We have arrived at Friday, all be proud. But we can’t relax right away – there is a lot going on today. From deceptive auto companies masquerading as tech companies to today’s venture capital frenzy, we’ve got it all. Let’s go! – Alexis

The Top 3 TechCrunch

  • Startups have never been so successful: This is our reading of the venture capital market for the second quarter of 2021. Records have been broken around the world, record numbers of unicorns have been born, and valuations have risen. If you are a founder and are considering raising capital, now is probably a good time to do so.
  • Biden takes on mega-bodies: We jokingly call the public companies section of this newsletter Big Tech because, well, the most famous tech companies are huge. And it’s got a lot of people worried that some companies have grown so big that they would have to be taken down to spawn more competition. Tech companies disagree, of course. Either way, the US government noise about Goliath corporations is starting to translate into action.
  • What future for European startups? We usually reserve these three slots for the biggest news of the day, but I wanted to share an essay written by a German venture capitalist on his country. The investor is optimistic, but has two thoughts on where the country could do better: employee stock options and fallout regulations. It’s worth reading if you want to understand why some countries end up with more active startup communities than others.

Startups / VC

First, the main news from the startup:

  • Korean grocery startup Kurly raises $ 200 million: The online grocer is now worth over $ 2 billion. More so, his plans to go public in the United States are kaput. Instead, the company will look to register locally in the future. Chop Didi or something else? Either way, the business is one to watch.
  • Today’s round of the Tiger? Flash of the Brazilian HR startup: The company has just formed a $ 22 million Series B led by the hyper-caffeinated venture capital group. The São Paulo-based startup offers a new way to deliver benefits in the country.
  • $ 500 million more for Ola: The carpool market’s insatiable appetite for capital was fueled by another half a billion today with news that Indian Ola has raised new funds from ‘Temasek and a subsidiary of Warburg Pincus’, according to TechCrunch. Perhaps the Didi fiasco is viewed by investors as a once-in-a-lifetime event, at least when it comes to the world of on-demand rides.

Second, on the venture capital side of the market:

  • Ron Miller from TechCrunch wrote a profile on the Artemis Fund, which is worth reading. The investor group, which was founded by women and often invests in women, “invested in 11 companies with the intention of investing in 4 to 5 other companies. [before raising its] the next fund.
  • DN Capital has raised a fund of 350 million dollars after several of the startups he supported went public. The company invests primarily in Europe as opposed to the UK, a market where its partners say more US-based venture capitalists are showing up.
  • Three venture capitalists have come together to write some tips for robotics-focused startups. So if you are building material that moves, This is for you.

3 analysts intervene: What are Andy Jassy’s main priorities as the new CEO of Amazon?

Now that he’s leaving AWS and replacing Jeff Bezos, what are the biggest challenges facing new Amazon CEO Andy Jassy?

Enterprise reporter Ron Miller reached out to three analysts for their opinion:

  • Robin Ody, Canalys
  • Sucharita Kodali, Forrester
  • Ed Anderson, Gartner

Amazon is ranked second in the Fortune 500, but it’s not all sun and roses – continued growth, unionization, and the potential for antitrust regulation at home and abroad are just a few of its responsibilities.

“I think the biggest thing to do is build on the momentum the company has had over the past few years,” Kodali said. “He has to make sure they don’t lose this. If he does that, I mean, he’ll win.

(Extra Crunch is our membership program, which helps founders and startup teams move forward. You can register here.)

Big Tech Inc.

To conclude the topical part of today’s missive, two final entries. First, an overview of the reasons why the EU has just imposed a fine on a number of car manufacturers. Rebecca reports:

As environmental issues really came to fruition in the 1990s, some German automakers gathered in secret groups to ensure their cars continued to actively contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. According to the European Union, Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche, BMW and Daimler, the parent company of Mercedes-Benz, have illegally colluded to restrict competition in cleaning up emissions from new diesel passenger cars, essentially slowing the deployment of new diesel passenger car technologies. cleaner emissions.

Yes, you can be very angry about it.

Finally, from the world of Facebook, good news for all WhatsApp users. You’ll be able to select an option to send higher quality images and videos, bypassing what TechCrunch has called the service’s “questionable image compression”. You see, not all news is bad news!

TechCrunch Experts: Growth Marketing

Montage of illustrations based on education and knowledge in blue

Image credits: SEAN GLADWELL (Opens in a new window) / Getty Images

We reach out to startup founders to tell us who they turn to for the most up-to-date growth marketing practices. Complete the survey here.

Read one of the recommendations we received below!

Name of merchant: Nikita Vorobiev

Name of the sponsor: Ruby Club

Recommendation: “Nikita and her company, Buildrbrand, worked tirelessly to bring my idea to life and did everything in their power to bring it to the level it is today. He and his team have created a world-class conditional quiz visual experience that I think it would be really cool for him to share with the industry. He doesn’t know I named him, but I absolutely wanted to give it back in any way I can because I think his agency is making some of the best viral brands online right now.



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