 Despite the average tech salary reaching over $104,000 in the U.S., perks play an increasing role in attracting talent. Crunchbase reports that, at the same time, the traditional set of perks such as ping pong tables are being supplanted by four-day workweeks and health benefits. More: - According to a recent report by tech career website Dice, an average technologist’s salary rose by 6.9% between 2020 and 2021.
- Web developers saw the biggest jump, a 21% increase up to $99,000.
- IT lead, CEO, CIO, CTO, or similar positions had the highest average salary at nearly $152,000.
- Still, tech workers are beginning to demand things like child and elder care, which 27% reported wanting but only 10% received.
- Another buzzy idea is providing fertility benefits, which are remarkably desirable based on a survey conducted by sales platform Seismic.
- Another big draw is a hybrid or fully remote work environment.
- Positions offering such arrangements jumped 357% from 2020 to 2021 based on a survey of LinkedIn job listings.
- While certain things such as fitness stipends appear to be universal, companies are finding out that employees vary radically in what will get them to sign a contract.
- As such, many companies have instituted point systems, which allow workers to select the perks they want from a basket.
| |
 Indian instant delivery startup Zepto has raised $200M in fresh funding at a $900M valuation. Y Combinator Continuity led the Series D round with support from Kaiser Permanente and prior investors Nexus Venture Partners, Glade Brook Capital, Contrary Capital, and Lachy Groom. More: - The round, which had no secondary transaction, brought Zepto’s total raised to $360M.
- It followed a Series C funding in December that valued the company at $570M.
- Zepto is operational in 11 cities across India and reports annualized revenue of $200M-$400M.
- It hopes to expand by 12 to 20 new cities in the next year and expand its workforce to 2,000 by year’s end.
- Its founders claim to have grown revenue by 800% last quarter while cutting its expenses per order by a factor of over five.
- The company seeks to achieve an ARR of over $1B by March 2023.
The wider lens: - Instant delivery took off in North America and Europe but has encountered troubles in recent months as pandemic-induced demand for home delivery has fallen.
- In India, top food delivery companies such as Zomato have gotten in on the game, while companies such as Blinkit are also fighting for market share.
- The average order size is $6 in India, compared to $12 to $15 for traditional online grocery orders, though Zepto reports that the basket size has been growing with increased usage.
| |
 A message from CONNECTEAM Learn How Managers Are Overseeing Their Employees the New Way Working remotely and managing employees in various locations is more common than ever before. How are businesses staying on top of it? Start using the all-in-one business software Connecteam to bring your employee management into the future. Thousands of businesses from more than 90 different industries benefit from Connecteam’s wide range of features. From streamlining internal communication and tracking work hours to shift scheduling - Connecteam does it all. Connecteam is simple and easy to use, meaning that everyone in your business, from your CEO and HR managers to your newest hires, can implement it into their work. Most importantly, you’ll never need to fill in a paper form again. Manage your employees efficiently, and eliminate payroll errors and communication issues for good with Connecteam. Connecteam is free to use for your first 50 users. Paid plans start from $39/month and come with a 14-day free trial. Start your Free Trial
| |
The number of fundraising deals in China declined 38.3% YoY in Q1’21, according to a report by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology. The total fundraising volume plunged fell even more steeply by 76.7% during the same period. More: - The figures were produced by a state-sponsored think tank.
- The amount of capital raised by Chinese companies fell to just $3.51B in the first quarter, compared with $15B a year earlier.
- The decline began in the second half of last year, when companies raised only $8.46B and $6.12B in Q3 and Q4, respectively.
- While U.S. investors have not completely abandoned the country, their total investment fell by 64% in the quarter compared to the year prior.
- Their reticence has been mirrored by other global investors, who have become very skeptical of investing in Chinese tech companies, says Ethan Sun, an investor at a China-focused investment fund.
- They have been scared off by an economic slowdown, stringent lockdown measures, and a regulatory clampdown.
- Moreover, Chinese tech companies are largely barred from debuting on U.S. stock markets, meaning that one of their main exit opportunities no longer exists.
| |
Chilean fintech company Xepelin has raised a fresh $111M in Series B funding. Avenir and Kaszek led by funding, which was the largest Series B round in Chile’s history to date, and one of the largest in Latin America. More: - PayPal Ventures, Wellington, DST Global Partners, Battery Ventures, MSA Novo, Endeavor Catalyst, FJ Labs, Picus, Amarena, Gunderson, Carlos Garcia, Cathay-Seaya Latam, and Gilgamesh participated.
- The injection follows a $230M equity and debt Series A round last year, led by Kaszek.
- Today’s round involved neither debt nor secondary funding.
- Zeppelin offers a B2B SaaS payments infrastructure.
- It has expanded its client count to 15,000 and has grown its Mexico revenue by 60 times.
- Since its 2019 founding, the company has grown its headcount to 400.
| |
 A message from MAGIC MIND Magic Mind is a 2oz shot that gives you 7 hours of creative, productive flow-state. Magic Mind's science-backed blend of matcha, honey, nootropics, and adaptogens work together to get you “dialed-in”, not “wired”. No anxiety, no jitters, just focus and productivity so you can crush that to-do list faster. Our founder, James, wrote a best-selling book on nootropics after a visit to the ER made him realize how counterproductive caffeine was for his health and productivity. Nearly a decade later, after 70+ formulations all backed by a star-studded scientific advisory board, and we bring you Magic Mind: what Forbes called, "Silicon Valley's new morning elixir." Try Magic Mind risk free (we’ll refund your first purchase no questions asked if it doesn’t work for you), and see why creators like Justin Kan are calling it their “favorite product discovery”. Enter code INSIDE15 for 15% off your first purchase. Claim Your Discount
| |
 Today’s Funding 💸 AI/ML - Accern (New York, N.Y.), NoCode NLP platform for AI: $20M B led by Mighty Capital, Fusion Fund, participation from Tribe Capital, Viaduct Ventures, Shasta Ventures, Gaingels.
AR/VR - RECON Labs (South Korea), e-commerce AR for creating 3D models: $4.4M from Kakao Ventures, Shinhan Capital, Lotte Ventures, Naver D2SF.
Biotech/Health - Capable Health (New York, N.Y.), software for HIPAA-compliant digital clinics: ...
Want to read about all of today’s funding in one place? The funding roundup is only available to free users on Mondays and Fridays. Upgrade to Inside VC Premium for either $10/month, or $100 billed annually, to receive the full list in every issue! For a limited time, we are offering a 14-day free trial. Click here to sign up! | | | |
Quick Hits - SeedInvest launches a pitch competition for historically underrepresented founders. Over $40,000 in prizes. Pitch to Baron Davis and Jesse Draper. Learn More.*
- Amazon aggregator Thrasio, previously valued between $5B and $10B, will lay off a substantial portion of its employees this week, according to reports. Greg Greeley, former Airbnb president and Amazon exec, will join its board and also take over as CEO.
- Omri Casspi, a former NBA star hailing from Israel, has launched a $50M venture fund together with David Citron, a veteran early-stage venture capital investor. Sheva will invest in early-stage companies.
- EVP has begun fundraising for its $100M fourth fund. The investment firm claims that its portfolio saw a valuation boost of 3.1x from its first fund.
- Breakthrough Properties, based in Los Angeles, closed a $3B Life Science Property Fund for life science companies.
- B2B businesses are switching to e-commerce. Now, it’s your turn. Learn three persuasive approaches that communicate the value of digital to decision-makers.*
*This is a sponsored post.
| |
Upcoming events at Inside - May 05 - [Live Webinar] Women in Sales: How to Build Your Personal Brand to Drive More Sales presented by Introhive (Register Here) *
- May 10 - Giving Voice and Intelligence to Digital Characters with David Colleen (SapientX) (Register Here)
- May 11 - Building Last-Mile Startups: Underground Delivery with Garrett McCurrash (Pipedream Labs) (Register Here)
- May 12 - Making Metaverse Dating a Reality (Register Here)
- May 18 - Need To Know NoCoder: Jatin Arora (Utilize) (Register Here)
- May 19 - Understanding Fractionalization (Register Here)
- May 24 - Meet Our Fund 3 (Register Here)
- May 31 - Ethereum Merge with Anthony Donofrio (Ethereum) (Register Here)
- June 01 - Selling Consumer Goods in Web3 (Register Here)
- June 09 - Empowering Content Creators with No Code (Register Here)
- June 22 - The Future of Open-Source Software Security (Register Here)
- June 30 - HR Strategies to Retain Remote Employees (Register Here)
*This is a sponsored post.
| |
 |  | Inside VC's writer/curator Stephen currently lives in Berlin and is pursuing a Master's degree in philosophy. He otherwise spends his time trying his hand at recipes from India and Southeast Asia, escaping it all at the kickboxing gym, and offending aural sensibilities with his band. |  | | Editor | Aaron Crutchfield is based in the high desert of California. Over the last two decades, he has spent time writing and editing at various local newspapers and defense contractors in California. When he's not working, he can often be found looking at the latest memes with his kids or working on his 1962 Ford. | |
Connecteam is the all-In-One Employee Management Software. Time Tracking, Shift Scheduling, Communication, and Much More. | |
| |
Comments
Post a Comment