"George had a vision of a cloud-centric world and the need for a cloud-native cyber platform."
The blistering performance of Crowdstrike run by George Kurtz is a big win for Santa Monica's March Capital. Senior Reporter Ben Bergman talked with the fund's founder about how VCs can score big returns even if only a single company in their portfolio scores a home run.
The Justice Department accuses Facebook of discriminating against U.S. workers.
Aespected Google researcher says she was fired for criticizing its approach to minority hiring, bias in AI.
NASA picks four companies to mine specimen on the moon.
Warner Bros CEO on why the company decided to release all its films on HBO Max.
Hillary and Chelsea Clinton will host a new docuseries on Apple TV+.
RavnX autonomous rocket for small satellites is unveiled.
Facebook's virtual reality practices have reportedly attracted attention from the DOJ.
U.S. Labor Board accuses Google of tracking workers and discouraging organizing.
Fidelity Reportedly Seeks To Unload Bird Shares at a Loss
The move comes after dot.LA reported in October that the mutual fund giant has marked down the value of its Bird investment by 17% since the beginning of the year. Read more>>
How March Capital Scored a Billion Dollar Return on CrowdStrike
CrowdStrike shares surged more than 13% Thursday, a big win for March Capital, the Santa Monica venture firm focusing on enterprise software. Read more >>
Warner Bros.’ 2021 Films Will Be Released in Theaters, HBO Max Simultaneously
As the pandemic continues to reshape Hollywood, the AT&T-owned studio announced its 17-film slate, including "Mortal Kombat," "The Suicide Squad" and "Matrix 4," will be available on the streaming platform exclusively for one month. Read more>>
VC Bill Gurley On Startups,Venture Capital and Scaling
VC legend Bill Gurley talks with dot.LA co-founder and Office Hours host Spencer Rascoff about marketplace-based companies, how work-from-home will accelerate business opportunity and why startups should pick up the phone when a big company calls with interest to acquire. Read more and listen here>>
Strategy Session: 2020 Year in Review
Join us Wednesday, December 16th at 11:00 a.m. PT for the closing Strategy Session of the year as we reflect on L.A.'s emerging tech trends, challenges and predictions for 2021.
Upfront Managing Partner Mark Suster and dot.LA Senior Finance Reporter Ben Bergman will kick off the event with a one-on-one conversation. More speakers to be announced. Register here - space is limited.
"It could be an initiative that ignites the creative community as well as small businesses."
A new citywide program will funnel over $1.5 million in funds to about 1,000 businesses over the next year, with an emphasis on those serving low-income communities. Reporter Francesca Billington looks at the effort to provide hard-hit small businesses with the tools to compete online.
Amazon is reportedly in talks to buy L.A podcast studio Wondery.
PlayStation, Xbox console shortages are taking a toll on game sales.
Discovery Plus is the latest entrant into the streaming wars.
Huntington Beach-based Surfline media company gets a $30M investment.
MSN expands its esports empire, acquiring Smash.GG tournament tool.
Singapore becomes the first country to approve sales of lab-grown meat.
Hulu launches its co-viewing WatchParty feature.
TikTok is experimenting with longer-form videos.
Space Perspective raises $7M to take tourists into the stratosphere.
From Mom & Pop to Ecommerce Shop
Los Angeles will give graphic designers, artists and others $500 grants to help them get brick-and-mortar businesses that have been harmed by the "safer-at-home" orders set up to sell their goods and services online. Read more >>
Sketchy Medical Raises $3 Million to Expand Beyond Medicine
L.A.-based Sketchy Medical is looking to shake up the $9 billion textbook industry with a $3 million infusion from Reach Capital. Read more >>
Column: The Future of Education Is Entertaining
Sketchy Medical's CEO says he's seen the future of at-home education, and it doesn't look like long, drawn-out Zoom classes and reading from online textbooks. Read more >>
Pharrell Williams Launches Black Ambition Incubator
The songwriter/producer's Black Ambition nonprofit aims to invest in Black and Latino startups, and it has begun by creating two competitions — one for recent HBCU grads and another for underrepresented entrepreneurs. Read more >>
Apple Podcast Veteran Joins QCODE
The L.A.-based podcast startup run by a former Creative Artists Agency talent agent, snagged longtime Apple podcast executive Steve Wilson. The 15-year veteran will become QCODE's chief strategy officer. Read more updates >>
How Lightspeed Ventures Gets Deals Done So Quickly
Nicole Quinn's portfolio includes Calm, Goop & Lady Gaga's House. In the latest 'LA Ventures" podcast, she outlines her approach to investing in early-stage consumer interest & fintech startups. Read more and listen here >>
Strategy Session: 2020 Year in Review
Join us Wednesday, December 16th at 11:00 a.m. PT for the closing Strategy Session of the year as we reflect on L.A.'s emerging tech trends, challenges and predictions for 2021.
Upfront Managing Partner Mark Suster and dot.LA Senior Finance Reporter Ben Bergman will kick off the event with a one-on-one conversation. More speakers to be announced. Register here - space is limited.
"We have always believed that there's a much bigger opportunity for what we call the competitive amateur."
PLLAY Labs Inc., a video game wagering app that lets users play Fortnite and Call of Duty against each other for money, launched in June and has a user base of 60,000. Reporter Breanna de Vera talks with co-founder Shawn Gunn about his inspiration for the company, its celebrity backers and game wagering.
Salesforce will buy Slack for $28B.
Amazon's new tools will monitor factory workers and machines.
Tiktok creators are paying brokers for certification.
Airbnb IPO seeks $35B valuation.
Bird's chief vehicle officer on why swappable batteries aren't the norm.
Kevin Mayer and other Hollywood A-listers behind $300M entertainment SPAC.
Elon Musk would consider Tesla buying a legacy carmaker.
SpaceX wants to send an uncrewed vehicle to Mars within two years.
Triller Eyes SPACs to Take It Public
TikTok competitor Triller is in advanced talks with at least three blank-check companies to go public at a valuation between $3 billion and $6 billion. Sources said the company is also seeking to acquire a strategic partner that will help monetize the app. Read more>>
Sarah Flint On Forging Destiny
Sarah Flint of the namesake luxury shoe brand talks with Behind Her Empire about her direct-to-consumer approach, influencers and how she built her design skills. Read more and listen here>>
PLLAY Lets Gamers Play for Profit
Shawn Gunn ran e-tournaments from his college dorm in the 1990s, long before esports exploded. Now he's found a way to make them profitable for average gamers like himself. Read more>>
Strategy Session: 2020 Year in Review
Join us Wednesday, December 16th at 11:00 a.m. PT for the closing Strategy Session of the year as we reflect on L.A.'s emerging tech trends, challenges and predictions for 2021.
Upfront Managing Partner Mark Suster and dot.LA Senior Finance Reporter Ben Bergman will kick off the event with a one on one conversation. More speakers to be announced. Register here - space is limited.