LA Tech Weekly Round Up: Lawsuits Plague Bird as it Prepares to Go Public
Rachel Uranga is dot.LA's Managing Editor, News. She is a former Mexico-based market correspondent at Reuters and has worked for several Southern California news outlets, including the Los Angeles Business Journal and the Los Angeles Daily News. She has covered everything from IPOs to immigration. Uranga is a graduate of the Columbia School of Journalism and California State University Northridge. A Los Angeles native, she lives with her husband, son and their felines.
Bird Rides is going public. Apple is backing a Latinx-focused venture firm. PayPal is acquiring Happy Returns. Snap Inc. suspends apps after it's sued for death of teenager. Plus Thrilling, GEM, Jellysmack and other local startups notched raises. Here's a look at this week's top L.A. tech and startup stories.
Bird Plans to Go Public via SPAC at $2.3 Billion Valuation
Bird Rides, the e-scooter company that was once a startup darling but saw ridership plunge during the pandemic, is planning to go public through a so-called blank-check company, dot.LA learned early this week. Then the Santa-Monica company made it official, revealing more than a hundred lawsuits involving "brain injuries, internal injuries, and death."
VamosVentures Doubles Down on Backing Latinx Founders
Companies like Apple and Bank of America were knocking on the door of VamosVentures when it decided it might as well capitalize on the increasing desire of corporate America to show they cared about diversity. The firm just closed a $50 million fund focused on Latinx and other diverse founders.
Appia Bio Comes Out of Stealth Aiming to Offer Faster, Safer Cancer-Fighting Therapies
Cell therapy has taken the oncology world by storm. Appia Bio, a Westwood-based biotech startup that came out of stealth this week hopes to speed up the process of cell therapy with a new type of treatment. The company is armed with $52 million in Series A funding led by venture capital firm 8VC.
PayPal Acquires Another LA Startup
After acquiring Honey, a modern twist on coupons, in 2019, PayPal announced Thursday it has purchased Santa Monica-based Happy Returns. The company allows online shoppers to return items at one of 2,600 physical stores like Paper Source and Cost Plus Market.
Snap Suspends Two Partner Apps, YOLO and LMK
One day after the family of Carson Bride filed suit against Snap Inc., accusing it of failing to protect the 16-year-old from cyberbullying, the Santa Monica-based company said it would suspend the anonymous messaging apps — YOLO and LMK — Bride was using before he killed himself.
Thrilling Rides a Wave of Vintage Interest to Get Mom-and-Pop Thrift Shops Online
Before Poshmark and the RealReal and ThredUp went public, Shilla Kim-Parker had a hard time convincing investors there was a market for buying used clothes online. Those companies flourished in recent years and helped Kim-Parker make the case for her company, Thrilling. This week, she closed an $8.5 million Series A round led by Prelude Venture.
Rachel Uranga is dot.LA's Managing Editor, News. She is a former Mexico-based market correspondent at Reuters and has worked for several Southern California news outlets, including the Los Angeles Business Journal and the Los Angeles Daily News. She has covered everything from IPOs to immigration. Uranga is a graduate of the Columbia School of Journalism and California State University Northridge. A Los Angeles native, she lives with her husband, son and their felines.
