Medium gets more funding
Medium, the online publishing platform founded by Twitter co-founder Ev Williams, announced $50M in Series C funding yesterday in a round that reportedly values the company at $600M post-money, up from the $400M valuation it received in September. Spark Capital led the round, with participation from return investors Andreessen Horowitz and GV. Ben Horowitz and JLabs CEO Judy Estrin will join Medium’s board of directors, and Greylock’s David Sze will step down.
The state of the unicorn: More money, more problems
It might not be as easy for other companies looking to raise their next round of funding. According to Bill Gurley, we may be poised to see more unicorn companies raising money at lower valuations. But taking a down round might not be a bad call: agreeing to a dirty term sheet is like starting the clock on a time bomb.
What’s a “lamb,” exactly, in startup speak?
Many founders out there have been softened by market conditions and are going to be slaughtered and eaten, according to Jason Calacanis, which is why he refers to aspiring unicorns as “lambs.” Investors should instead seek out lions: “the predatory founders that want to eat what they kill, sharpen their claws and be feared by the rest of the jungle.”
Disrupt NY adds more CEOs to its lineup
More speakers were announced this week, including Jon Stein of Betterment, Talmon Marco of Juno, and Tony Xu of DoorDash. TechCrunch is also giving a free Amazon Echo to those who purchase a General Admission ticket today.
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