Welcome to Startups Weekly, a nuanced take on this week\u2019s startup news and trends by Senior Reporter and Equity co-host <\/em>Natasha Mascarenhas.<\/em><\/a> To get this in your inbox, subscribe <\/em>here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n Toward the end of 2022, a number of entrepreneurs, some citing Elon Musk, told me that they\u2019re bringing back an in-person work culture in the following year to help promote productivity and, in some cases, loyalty. One founder even told me over drinks and fancy snacks that they weren\u2019t worried about losing talent \u2014 because those who leave just because there\u2019s an in-person mandate weren\u2019t truly mission-driven to begin with.<\/p>\n While some founders are clearly set on a return, others are confused. There\u2019s the argument \u2014 sometimes coming from venture capitalists desperate to see portfolio companies succeed \u2014 that being in-person will help grow productivity, and eventually the bottom line. And there\u2019s also the counterargument that remote work allows for more inclusive and expansive hiring, which could also help, well, the bottom line.<\/p>\n And if 2023 isn\u2019t the year of the bottom line, I don\u2019t know what else it could be. Kruze Consulting, an accounting firm for startups, mined through over 750 companies\u2019 finances, which includes upward of $300 million in quarterly revenue and over $750 million in quarterly spend. I spoke to Healy Jones, who runs financial planning and analysis for Kruze Consulting, about his findings \u2014 and the results, he thinks, offer some balance to the debate.<\/p>\n To read more about his findings, read my TC+ column \u201cData hints at the value of startup offices.\u201d<\/a> In the rest of this newsletter, we\u2019ll talk about noisy venture firms, Salesforce spinouts and Artifact. As always, you can follow me on Twitter<\/a> or Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n On paper, venture funding appears to be back. <\/a>The flurry of new funds gives me and, more importantly, founders the vibe that VCs are back in business and ready to write lots and lots of checks. But one could argue that new VC fund announcement dates, much like the phrase \u201coversubscribed,\u201d don\u2019t mean much in practice.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s why this is important: <\/strong>There are many reasons why all the dry powder isn\u2019t as jumpy as <\/a>we may hope. While new fund announcements are certainly exciting, the fund may already be partially invested through and investors need to make capital calls before writing those checks. The signal to watch is less around new money entering the venture space and more around, Why is this VC firm announcing their fund now, versus before, versus later? What\u2019s the argument to show that you\u2019re playing offense right now? I imagine it\u2019s more complicated than \u201cbusiness as usual.\u201d<\/p>\n Image Credits:<\/strong> Getty Images\/dane_mark\/DigitalVision<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Firsthand Alliance, led by solo investor Simon Chan, is a venture firm seeking to capitalize on Salesforce. Here\u2019s how: The firm, which closed a $25 million debut investment vehicle, landed investments from 21 Salesforce-acquired founders, while Chan himself built the company that he says is the foundation of Einstein, the AI initiative across all of Salesforce businesses.<\/p>\n With the backing of alumni and advisors, the firm hopes it can help early-stage enterprise startups land extra support and, of course, fresh capital.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s why it\u2019s important: <\/strong>Mafia funds can be exclusive, both in which LPs are invited to the table and which companies land funding. In a statement to TechCrunch, Chan said that the firm\u2019s investment scope is \u201cway beyond the Salesforce app ecosystem\u201d and that founders do not need to be Salesforce alumni to be considered. Right now, 35% of Firsthand Alliance\u2019s portfolio is founded or co-founded by females, and 50% of the portfolio is co-founded or founded by people of color.<\/p>\n Impressive. And, well, interestingly timed considering both the layoffs and the tensions<\/a> seeping out from the mothership as we speak. Maybe now is the time to capitalize on changes happening on the old stomping grounds<\/a>?<\/p>\n Image Credits:<\/strong> Bryce Durbin\/TechCrunch<\/p>\n<\/div>\n There\u2019s nothing like a good comeback story to follow up on, am I right? Instagram\u2019s co-founders are back with a new social app<\/a>, looking to make news consumption easier and smarter. The startup, Artifact, is accepting people on its waitlist as we speak.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s why it\u2019s important:<\/strong> Artifact is eyeing a controversial business because it has to do with news consumption, control, algorithms and, no offense, easily persuaded consumers. If you\u2019re raising your eyebrows at all the potential issues that may arise from this company, you\u2019re not alone. We talk about the news and why we\u2019re hopeful anyway on Equity.\u00a0\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n Image Credits:<\/strong> Artifact screenshot via The Verge <\/a>(opens in a new window)<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Seen on TechCrunch<\/em><\/p>\n Car-sharing SPAC Getaround lays off 10% of staff<\/a><\/p>\n Car-sharing platform Getaround gets delisting warning from NYSE<\/a><\/p>\n There are still robotics jobs to be found (if you know where to look)<\/a><\/p>\n Apple stock drops on rare earnings miss<\/a><\/p>\n Coinbase\u2019s asset recovery tool just saved my bacon<\/a><\/p>\n Seen on TechCrunch+<\/em><\/p>\n Pitch Deck Teardown: Laoshi\u2019s $570K angel deck<\/a><\/p>\n Dear Sophie: What H-1B and other immigration changes can we expect this year?<\/a><\/p>\n Which open source startups rocketed in 2022?<\/a><\/p>\n What do recent changes to state taxes mean for US SaaS startups?<\/a><\/p>\nThe wrinkle<\/h2>\n
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