Future Fund Startups Facing Bankruptcy
Many UK startups that received funding from the UK's Future Fund COVID-19 support program may now face bankruptcy as repayment deadlines loom.
Key Facts & Points
- The Future Fund provided convertible loans to UK startups during COVID.
- Loans must be repaid in full plus a 100% premium if companies haven't raised a new round.
- Deadline to repay or convert loans is approaching.
- Many startups may not have funds to repay, facing bankruptcy.
Klarna Cuts Losses in Q2 2022
Klarna reduced losses by 77% in Q2 2022 through cuts like laying off 700 employees. It had 1 profitable month.
Key Facts & Points
- Klarna is a buy now, pay later company.
- It cut costs significantly in 2022 with layoffs.
- This reduced losses from €326m in Q2 2021 to €76m in Q2 2022, a 77% decrease.
- CEO said they had 1 profitable month in Q2.
Babylon Sells UK Healthcare Business
Babylon Health sold its UK healthcare business after going into administration in 2022.
Key Facts & Points
- Babylon provides digital healthcare services and GP at Hand app.
- It went into administration in UK in 2022.
- Administrators sold the UK business to preserve services.
- Babylon's services and app are expected to continue operating.
UK Healthtech Huma Lays Off Staff
UK remote patient monitoring startup Huma laid off around 45 employees or 10% of its workforce.
Key Facts & Points
- Huma provides remote health monitoring software.
- It cut around 45 jobs or 10% of workforce.
- Due to slower revenues and difficult fundraising environment.
PhotonVentures Raises €100M Fund
PhotonVentures, a Dutch VC, is raising a €100M fund to invest in photonic chip startups.
Key Facts & Points
- Photonic chips are fast, energy efficient alternative to electronics.
- Wide applications from phones to medical devices.
- PhotonVentures has raised €60M toward new fund so far.
- Plans to invest in 10-15 early stage startups.
McDonald's Ice Cream Machines Breakdowns
iFixit and Public Knowledge want the government to let them repair McDonald's soft serve machines, which frequently break down.
Key Facts & Points
- McDonald's ice cream machines break often, with a website tracking outage.
- Machines are made by Taylor, which has an exclusive repair deal with McDonald's.
- Taylor charges $350 for every 15 minutes of service.
- iFixit found the machines have easily replaceable parts restricted by copyright.
- Groups want a copyright exemption and right to repair laws passed.
Record Travel Expected for Labor Day Weekend
14 million travelers are expected to pass through TSA airport checkpoints from Friday to Wednesday for Labor Day weekend.
Key Facts & Points
- TSA projects 14 million travelers, an 11% increase over 2021.
- International bookings jumped 44% with relaxed travel restrictions.
- The average gas price is $3.83/gallon, similar to 2021.
UBS Posts Record $29 Billion Quarterly Profit
UBS reported the highest ever quarterly profit for a bank at $29 billion in Q2 2022.
Key Facts & Points
- Driven by its acquisition of Credit Suisse in March 2022.
- UBS paid only $3.6 billion for Credit Suisse.
- Shows UBS' acquisition was a major steal.
- UBS stock hit highest level since 2008 financial crisis.
- Now 2nd largest bank in Europe behind HSBC.
Taylor Swift Tour Movie Coming to Theaters
A Taylor Swift concert movie of her Eras Tour will debut in theaters on October 13, 2023.
Key Facts & Points
- Swift announced the concert film's theater release.
- Movie theater chain AMC is showing it 4+ times daily.
- Tickets went on sale for $19.89.
- Another movie postponed release to avoid competing.
Brazil Surpasses U.S. as Top Corn Exporter
For the first time in over 50 years, Brazil surpassed the U.S. as the world's top corn exporter this year.
Key Facts & Points
- In the agricultural year ending August 31, Brazil exported 32% of global corn vs. U.S. at 23%.
- U.S. has been losing food export market share for years.
- Also lost top spots for soybean and wheat exports.
Anguilla Profiting From .ai Domain Boom
The Caribbean island of Anguilla is making millions from its .ai domain name popular with AI startups.
Key Facts & Points
- Anguilla was given .ai country domain code in the 1990s.
- With AI boom, .ai domains doubled to 300,000 last year.
- .ai revenue estimated at $25M-$30M this year.
- Up from $8.3M in 2022. Could be 25% of total revenue.
Teens Recall YouTube Ads
45% of Gen Z teenagers can recall an ad they've seen on YouTube, twice as likely as on TikTok.
Key Facts & Points
- 60% of Gen Z say they watch YouTube ads rather than skip them.
- YouTube is the dominant Gen Z advertising platform.
- 45% recall YouTube ads vs. 21% on TikTok.
Google Introduces Limited Ads Serving Policy
Google Ads will limit the reach of campaigns targeting brands by new advertisers to combat scams and misleading ads.
Key Facts & Points
- Aims to reduce scam and misleading ads.
- Limits reach of ads targeting brands by new advertisers.
- Assesses advertiser trustworthiness based on feedback, history, verification.
SEO Brand Took 2.3 Million Traffic from Competitor
A brand took 2.3 million SEO traffic from a competitor by creating 1,800 articles based on their content.
Key Facts & Points
- Exported competitor's sitemap and listed their articles.
- Produced 1,800 articles according to that list.
- Reached 340k monthly traffic in 16 months.
- Used AI writing but can be done manually.
Merriam-Webster Personifies Brand on Social
Merriam-Webster's social media accounts are entertaining by making the dictionary seem alive.
Key Facts & Points
- Social director discusses making it seem alive.
- Creating content they'd enjoy themselves.
- Including humor aligned with the brand.
DoorDash AI Voice Ordering Applicable to All
DoorDash AI voice ordering shows meeting customers on their preferred platform, which applies to all brands.
Key Facts & Points
- Enables voice orders via AI without apps.
- Meets customer needs and preferences.
- All brands should consider purchase flows suiting all.
Optimizilla Compresses Images for Faster Sites
Optimizilla is a free tool to compress image file sizes for faster page load times.
Key Facts & Points
- Images account for 60-65% of page bytes.
- Smaller pages load faster.
- Tool compresses JPG, PNG, GIF.
Substack Transcribes Podcasts with AI
Substack uses AI to automatically create podcast transcripts to share on social media.
Key Facts & Points
- Clicking one button generates clean transcript.
- Saves time over manual transcription.
- Can post transcripts on social.
