Equity

This week, Natasha is bringing one of her favorite panels from Disrupt to your ears. She sat down with Clubhouse co-founder and CEO, Paul Davison, to talk about the core of Clubhouse, competition, and the impact of hype.The conversation touches on the company's hyper growth, celebrity power, and navigating social platforms and social patterns, with a round of questions from the audience at the end. If you love the conversation, share it with a friend. And if you want more on Clubhouse, Natasha dove deeper into the conversation here.Equity drops every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 7 a.m. PT, so subscribe to us onApple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. TechCrunch also has agreat show on crypto, ashow that interviews founders, ashow that details how our stories come togetherand more! Credits: Equity is produced by Theresa Loconsolo with editing by Kell. Bryce Durbin is our Illustrator. We'd also like to thank the audience development team and Henry Pickavet, who manages TechCrunch audio products.

Hey, Equity family! While we're off preparing more end-of-year special episodes for you, we wanted to share an episode from our sister pod: The TechCrunch Podcast.This week Darrell Etherington talks with Taylor Hatmaker on to talk about Lensa AI and the possible ramifications for artists. Then we’ll hear from some attendees at the TC sessions: Space event  And as always, Darrell breaks down the biggest stories in tech.Articles from the episode:Lensa AI, the app making ‘magic avatars,’ raises red flags for artistsUPDATED: It’s way too easy to trick Lensa AI into making NSFW imagesRead all of the stories from TC Sessions: SpaceOther news from the week:Meta won’t let staff discuss topics like abortion, gun control and vaccines at workAmazon will give your overworked delivery driver $5 if you ask Alexa to say thank youConfirmed: Slack CEO Stewart Butterfield stepping down in JanuaryThe FTC is suing to block Microsoft from buying Activision Credits: Equity is produced by Theresa Loconsolo with editing by Kell. Bry

We are nearly at the end of the year, so your friendly, local podcast crew is trying to make sense of just what happened in 2022.We started the year on a venture capital high which quickly turned into a downturn. Startups kicked off the year hiring and wrapped the year shedding staff. The stock market kept going down. A crypto winter kicked off. We saw some PE deals but very few IPOs. And the world saw a bit more geopolitical upheaval than we might have anticipated.There were elections and shutdowns and frauds and mistakes and big wins. It was, well, a lot.Thankfully Mary Ann, Natasha, and Alex were able to collate the news into a few distinct categories, so that we can all look back at 2022 with a bit more clarity. And we even got to hear from a bunch of you, thanks to your dozens and dozens of great taglines you sent in concerning the year and how it felt from your chair.We have even more good stuff coming, including our yearly predictions episode. Get hype, and we'll talk to you soon!Equity drops at 7 a.m.

This week, Natasha chatted with Alex about ego, how recent news from Sam Bankman-Fried and Elizabeth Holmes gives us a window into how it works, and impacts on the tech and venture landscape.We talked about:What Holmes and Bankman-Fried have in common, from centralized ownership to a cult of personalityThe differences between the two entrepreneurs, and why their stories tend to blur togetherHow Adam Neumann, Elon Musk and others fit into the conversationLearning lessons from startups from a chaotic, and main-character-driven yearWe have a lot of really fun stuff coming up in the next week or two. Thanks for sticking with Equity in 2022, and we cannot wait for 2023.Equity drops every Monday at 7 a.m. PT and Wednesday and Friday at 6 a.m. PT, so subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. TechCrunch also has a great show on crypto, a show that interviews founders, a show that details how our stories come together and more! Credits: Equity is produced by Theresa Loconsolo with editing

Stocks in China are ripping higher on news that its drastic COVID-related policies could be starting to ease. It's a long way from a reopening, but after years of hard-edged lockdowns, Chinese tech companies are breathing a sigh of relief — at least in valuation terms. Shares are down in Europe and the United States.How much are Chinese equities rallying? Bilibili is in the lead, up around 16% in pre-market trading. The day's gains won't cover all prior losses, but for the nation's beleaguered tech industry, the valuation gains are beyond welcome news.And sticking to the good news vibe, the fact that the U.S. central bank may slow the pace at which it raises interest rates could provide some useful tailwinds to tech companies.The Circle SPAC deal is off.Giraffe360 raised new capital, which surprised us, given our perspective on the housing market.And we closed with notes on ChatGPT, the thing that everyone on Twitter cannot stop playing with.Equity drops at 7 a.m. PT every Monday and Wednesday, and at 6 a.m.

For the last time in 2022, the whole Friday gang got together to chat through the latest and greatest in the world of technology and startup news:ResortPass raises money. Mary Ann explains the business model.Post.News raises money. Alex digs into what he likes and doesn't like about the new Twitter competitor.SBF wants you to know he had no idea what was going on. We are not so sure.Venture red flags are great in hindsight, but would have been more useful last year.Layoffs at DoorDash and Kraken are a reminder that we're still in a risk-off environment when it comes to tech spending today.Plus, the latest regarding Pipe, and Alex's notes on Series A and C rounds.Equity is not done for the year, but we are settling into our final 2022 holiday groove. This is Alex writing this, and I wanted to take the moment to thank you for sticking around with us this year. Really. I think we broke a bunch of records in terms of downloads and the like. Wild that the show just keeps getting bigger. Hugs.Equity drops at 7 a.m.

Hello and welcome back to Equity, a podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines.This is our Wednesday show, where we niche down to a single person, think about their work and unpack the rest. This week, Natasha interviewed Vijay Chattha, a startup comms leader who has spent over 20 years in the storytelling world. Chattha is the CEO and founder of VSC and founding partner of VSC Ventures, a $21 million investment vehicle to back startups. Here's what we spoke about:How his clients are reacting to the downturn in terms of their openness, vulnerability, and general hunger to tell their storyThe difference between pitching a VC and pitching a journalist (lol)How startup's goal with media coverage can sometimes inherently clash with the media's goal to cover a startup (and why we disagree on the importance of disclosing valuations)The best framework for the different types of media form out there, from Twitter to billboards to earned media.How the #MeToo mov

It's me! Hi! (I'm not the problem, just the podcast's host, here to bring you the latest greatest in startup and tech news this fine Monday morning). Welcome back to Equity, the podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines. And for those of you who hummed the first sentence of this post, extra points to you.I'm starting things off this week as a test run before Alex heads on paternity leave. We have lots to get to, so shake off the holiday feels and let's remember how this ecosystem works?Here's what we got to:The markets are broadly down, due to COVID-19 protests breaking out in China. Blockfi filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Our crypto reporter Jacquelyn Melinek has more on what happened - and she explains just how intertwined this universe is. I'll also get to notes I took from our recent crypto conference and how the reality may be looking like Web 2.5 before it looks like Web 3.0.We also talk about Amazon's three-pronged retreat, and the common threa

Hello and welcome back to Equity, a podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines.While the Equity crew unwinds from Thanksgiving here in the U.S., we're bringing you one of our favorite conversations from this year:Natasha, along with Alex's help, asked: Who should be raising Party Rounds? The episode was inspired by Natasha’s recent Startups Weekly column, “When the party has confetti but no allergen-friendly appetizers" and the companion TechCrunch+ piece with Anita, “Investment clubs are cool again, and maybe community is, too.”Here's what we got into:The definition of party rounds, boundaries and the fact that we don't entirely agree on if there needs to be a lead or nahHow has party round funding changed? What place do they hold in the ecosystem?Is this vehicle better for experienced founders versus first-time founders?The pros and cons of each sideEquity drops at 7 a.m. PT every Monday and Wednesday, and at 6 a.m. PT on Fridays, so subscribe to us o

Hello and welcome back to Equity, a podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines.This is our Wednesday show, where we niche down to a single person, think about their work and unpack the rest. This week, Natasha interviewed Karla Monterroso, a long time leadership coach, racial equity advocate and the founder of Brava Leaders. We talked about her route into the leadership coaching space, but mainly sought to answer questions about the challenges facing executives today. Here are some of the topics we touch onDiverse leadership and the unique semblance of power on a person of colorHow she's thinking through the second-order impacts of Elon Musk's Twitter takeover and what signal it sends to the industry.Tech's homogeneity problem and if it's getting better or worseHow leaders can cultivate a workforce that leans into conflictAnd of course, we end with a lightning round - including but not limited to how Monterroso would define 2022 in a headline.We'll be b

Hello, and welcome back to Equity, the podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines.Note: Equity will be back on Wednesday, and Friday in some capacity. But keep in mind that this is a holiday week in the United States, so things are going to be a little bit slower than usual.Here’s what we got into on our Monday episode, a weekly kickstart to your week!Stocks are largely down around the world, and crypto prices continue to deflate. Watching both these asset classes lose value in tandem feels like the worst horse-race in history. No matter what you hold, it's a bad Monday.Twitter CEO Elon Musk decided to bring former American president Donald Trump back to Twitter. Ironically, the former president is so far declining the option and wants to stick to his own social network, Truth Social.FTX owes $3.1 billion to its 50 largest creditors.In more positive news, Wove just raised a nearly $3.85 million Seed round, and SponsorUnited's big Series A proves that ni

Hello and welcome back to Equity, a podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines.This week, Alex and Natasha discussed the latest and greatest of this consuming news cycle. Our goal with the episode, as always, is to go beyond what you may see in a 140 character-take on [insert big story here]. And in today's recording? That wasn't hard at all.We started with our good news segment: 1) Maven, now valued at $1.35 billion, is answering a countrywide demand: More fertility benefits and 2) Alibaba eyes logistics growth in LatAm as China commerce slows. We love a chance to talk about growth, despite all odds and even trends!Then, right off the heels of our amazing debut crypto conference, we take a minute to talk about the FTX Fall out. Yep, we're talking about how one African Web3 startup got screwed over  and why SoftBank joined Sequoia in marking down its investment in the crypto exchange.We then turn to the latest in layoffs: Amazon's 3% cut, cuts at Mornin

Hello and welcome back to Equity, TechCrunch's venture capital focused podcast where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines.Today we have something a bit different for you. In light of the never-ending Musk-Twitter saga, and news that the new social media CEO had cut its corporate communications staff to the bone -- and then some. So to get more perspective on the role that a corporate comms team plays in both startups and public companies alike, we wrangled two folks who have just that experience set:Kelly Boynton, senior director of communications at GustoKeyana Corliss, until recently the head of global communications and PR at DatabricksThe pair discussed the role that comms plays in companies both internally and externally, and why it deserves a seat at the decision-making table. Given the media furor surrounding Musk himself, you can imagine that we had a lot to talk about.Oh, and Keyana has a podcast that Alex was a guest on, in case you want to hear more from her! Regular service return

Hello, and welcome back to Equity, the podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines.Here's what we got into on our Monday episode, a weekly kick-off of sorts:Stocks are mixed around the world, up in parts of Asia and Europe, but down sharply in the United States to start the week.Crypto prices have recovered modestly, but remain sharply depressed from the last week. The FTX damage continues to reverberate.Speaking of crypto, the FTX saga continues. The latest includes a hack on Friday, and a massive emission of new FTT tokens that was so poorly received that major exchanges pulled deposits of the now-radioactive security.All the exchange drama has led to other exchanges taking fire, and Coinbase looking great in contrast.Elsewhere in tech-land: Fake meat raises a bunch more money, Klarna is doing some neat product work, India has unbanned VLC, which was a head-scratcher to begin with, and e-commerce infra startups are still raising capital!And that’s all

Hello and welcome back to Equity, a podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines.We thought that last week was a lot. It was, but this week was somehow more. More chaotic, rapid-fire change at a number of massive tech companies kept us on our toes. So, while our beloved co-host Natasha was out, we couldn't do the recording down a set of hands, so we brought Becca aboard with Mary Ann and Alex.The list of news was so long that we were cutting entire sections up until we hit record, and even still we went over time. If you like longer episodes, this one is for you.Deals of the Week: What's going on with the former Peloton CEO's new rug startup? And how is Tellus going to offer much better consumer savings rates? And, finally, how wrong can Alex get the Harmonic business model until he figures it out live on the show?Mega-layoffs: From there, we had to sit down and discuss the massive Meta layoffs. Our read is that the company is doing right by the folks it

Hello and welcome back to Equity, a podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines.This is our Wednesday show, where we niche down to a single person, think about their work, and unpack the rest. This week, Natasha interviewed Nolan Church, the CEO and co-founder of Continuum, about his perspective on the tech layoff wave. While we do indeed get into how his vision of fractional work fits into this conversation, we start with the fact that Church helped conduct Carta's layoffs in 2020 (a low of his entire career, he says) and what that experience taught him about the importance of being direct. Here are a few of the topics we get into:Twitter's recent layoffs, Jack's silence and who should take ownership for whatThe generic CEO statement on macroeconomic challengesStripe's recent layoffsWhat is the best way to conduct a layoff, and how should you communicate with staff? How does that change based on stage?Is the rumor that all startups should just cut 20% o

Hello and welcome back to Equity, a podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines.Stocks are up around the world, which is a nice thing to wake up to. Crypto prices are down a smidgen, but nothing majorThere's FTX-Binance drama afoot, in case that's your jam.On the Twitter beat, in the wake of rehires Musk is tweaking his work on moderation policies regarding impersonation, verification appears to be on hold, and more.PhotoRoom raised $19 million, the Unity megadeal is complete, no matter what we thought about it, and Yassir just raised $150 million from Bond. Has Bond been quiet lately? Not sure but dang, this round was a big one.There's an election tomorrow in America.And that’s our show! More Wednesday!Equity drops at 7 a.m. PT every Monday and Wednesday, and at 6 a.m. PT on Fridays, so subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. TechCrunch also has a great show on crypto, a show that interviews founders, one that details how

Hello and welcome back to Equity, a podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines.Oh what a week. What a week. Things are busier than ever at TechCrunch, where we're coming out of our post-conference stupor and charing straight back into a packed news cycle. Sure, Musk is still making waves, but there are startup rounds to cover, layoffs to chew on, earnings coverage, unicorn reports, new data, and more.After cutting back sharply on material and still going long, here's what Mary Ann, Natasha, and Alex got into this week:Rewind wants to help people with their memory. We talk about how the startup, which launched this week, uses recording technology to help you get what you see, hear and say at your finger tips.We talked about Onward, a startup that wants to help divorced or separated parents fight less about money and how it just raised nearly $10 million despite being pre-revenue.The somewhat odd, possible Byju's IPO-spinoff of Aakash, a tutoring company

Hello and welcome back to Equity, a podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines.This is our Wednesday show, where we niche down to a single topic, think about a question and unpack the rest. This week, Natasha and Alex interviewed one of their favorite reporters, Business Insider's Melia Russell! The trio chatted through how the role of a venture capitalist is changing. That means we spoke about emerging fund managers, seasoned operators, and, of course, Russell's latest story about how some investors are re-writing the playbooks when it comes to maternity leave policies at their firms.I don't want to tease out all the hot takes, but let's just say that this dispatch is a tad blunt. For one, apparently, no one thinks that venture firm M&A is a thing other than us. Anyways, we think you'll love the episode, learn something new about how venture is changing, and probably have a take on whether this is natural job cycle stuff or true structural changes.

It's official - Elon Musk has sealed the deal on Twitter, and we're bringing you a bonus episode to talk through it all. In case you missed it, Alex took to Twitter Spaces  on Friday with Darrell Etherington, Amanda Silberling, Anita Ramaswamy, and Taylor Hatmaker to process some of what’s gone down, and what comes next on a special joint Equity/TechCrunch Podcast episode, so have a listen and be sure to read all about the Elon era at Twitter on TechCrunch.We'll talk to you again on Wednesday!Equity drops at 7 a.m. PT every Monday and Wednesday, and at 6 a.m. PT on Fridays, so subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. TechCrunch also has a great show on crypto, a show that interviews founders, one that details how our stories come together, and more! Credits: Equity is produced by Theresa Loconsolo with editing by Kell. Bryce Durbin is our Illustrator. We'd also like to thank the audience development team and Henry Pickavet, who manages TechCrunch audio products.