Hi there, 

Alright, we've got 3 new startup ideas for you today since these have been popular. LMK if you love ‘em or hate ‘em.  

We've also got some M&A predictions below.  

I know what you’re thinking — this newsletter is extra juicy. And you’re right.

But before all that…

Today, we publicly launched the CB Insights API as well as data feeds.

If you want to embed our startup, VC, and valuation data into your internal or commercial applications, sign up here.

Alright, now for some startup ideas.

#1 MoviePass for newsletter/Substack subscriptions: This would be a bundle of subscriptions. Writers get paid a portion of the monthly subscription based on how much their content is read.

This also serves as a discovery mechanism for readers to find new writers and newsletters, which is still quite hard.

#2 Airbnb Experiences for team-building/company events: This would be a marketplace that connects HR teams, EAs, and executives looking to put on events for their company with providers.

It would allow them to filter by:

• Virtual vs. in person

• Size of team

• Cost/employee

• Objectives/culture tenets, e.g., grit, entrepreneurship, trust

This is currently a huge PITA to do well.

#3 B2B sales deck review service: Your sales deck is put in front of prospective buyers who provide feedback. The buyers record audio or video feedback on the deck’s messaging, the company’s product description, deck design, etc. The company can specify questions they want to be answered or want feedback on.

The reviewers are paid for their time. Big company folks often like helping and working with startups so many are likely already interested. Couple that with an opportunity to make some extra cash, and boom.

Beyond feedback on your sales deck, it might also land the feedback requesters some leads.

Get with the program

From no-code AI to stream processing to data governance, commercial applications of AI are taking off. 

We break down the trends, key vendors, and more for businesses to consider in our 63-page report.

Back to the future

Predictive analytics solutions, which identify patterns and connections humans can’t, are becoming necessary for P&C insurance underwriting. 

Clients can check out 8 vendors helping P&C insurers lower losses and expenses in this ESP Vendor Assessment Matrix.

Predicting Dropbox’s next M&A target

Dropbox’s push to take on DocuSign and Adobe in the e-signature space heated up last week with its $165M acquisition of DocSend, its second deal in the document management space.

CEO Drew Houston foreshadowed the acquisition in  Dropbox’s February 19, 2021 earnings call, stating:

“So in addition to being able to store and share and access your content, being able to handle the e-signature workflows and more broadly document workflows, is a natural adjacency for us. So we’ll continue to look for opportunities and grow the portfolio through M&A.”

DocSend had formed a partnership with Dropbox a few years ago and was ultimately acquired. So we mined  Dropbox’s business relationships on CB Insights to identify some other likely M&A targets.

Here’s what the data says on Dropbox’s next M&A target.

600+ unicorns: The number of global unicorns (private companies valued at $1B+) has surpassed 600. Among the latest to join the list are cloud security company Wiz and cyber insurance provider Coalition. Check out all 603 unicorns — worth over $2T in aggregate — on our real-time unicorn tracker.

$95B: Payments platform Stripe raised a $600M Series H round at a $95B valuation — a 2.6x increase from its previous valuation, given in April 2020. Stripe is now the second-most valuable unicorn in the world, after ByteDance. Check out Stripe’s business model and traction in our teardown.
 

$400M: AI-enabled drug discovery company Insitro raised a $400M Series C mega-round from investors GV, BlackRock, Andreessen Horowitz, T. Rowe Price, and others. Insitro combines omic data with machine learning models to model diseases, identify drug candidates, and predict responses to therapies. It was selected for our latest Digital Health 150.

125M ft²/year: The growth of e-commerce as a percentage of retail sales will require at least 125M square feet — roughly one-eighth the area of Manhattan — in new warehouse space every year until 2025, according to a Prologis report. Increasing focus on supply chain resilience will contribute to the demand for more space. Delve into tech trends and solutions promoting supply chain resilience in this client-only report.

75M trades: eToro announced plans to go public by merging with a SPAC in a $10.4B deal. The social trading platform, which was selected for our latest Fintech 250, has seen increased levels of trading throughout the pandemic, with 75M trades executed in January 2021 alone. Struggling to remember what a SPAC is or why companies are doing it? Refresh your memory here.

-165%: A new study has outlined a technique to use food waste to create jet fuel. The approach could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 165% compared to conventional jet fuels. More airlines are turning to emerging tech like biofuels, carbon capture, and electric-powered planes to hit sustainability goals. Clients can dig into renewable tech in aerospace here.

Fireflies are a growing tourist attraction, with over 1M people traveling to see the glowing insects gather in countries like Thailand, Japan, and the US each year. 

Unfortunately, these “firefly tourists” are stressing local firefly populations, according to a new review. To avoid crushing firefly eggs and distracting them with outside light, the authors recommend that tourists stay on dedicated trails and “get comfortable in the dark."

Have a great rest of the week.

I love you.

Anand

P.S. There are 7 spots left available in our VIP Buyer program at CB Insights Tech Market: Digitizing P&C Insurance (May 13-14). If you are a P&C exec who makes strategy and buying decisions and want a complimentary ticket to the event, apply here.