Hyundai Acquires Boston Dynamics - Daily Crunch

Hyundai gains a majority ownership position in a renowned robotics firm, Twitter completes the acquisition of a screen-sharing application, and we present a selection of gift suggestions centered around security. This is your Daily Crunch for December 11, 2020.

Key development: Hyundai obtains an 80% interest in Boston Robotics

Boston Robotics is the creator of several remarkable robotic systems, notably the Spot quadruped robot, which resembles a dog. The company has experienced multiple changes in ownership over the last ten years, initially being acquired by Google in 2013, and subsequently sold to the Japanese investment firm SoftBank in 2017.

Following the completion of today’s transaction, which assigns a valuation of $1.1 billion to Boston Robotics and is pending regulatory clearance, SoftBank will retain a 20% ownership stake.

Hyundai stated in a press statement that “Boston Dynamics will greatly benefit from new funding, technology, connections to customers, and Hyundai Motor Group’s extensive global market presence, which will improve opportunities for the commercialization of its robotic products.”

Major technology companies

Twitter integrates screen-sharing social application Squad — The complete Squad team will be joining Twitter, and the Squad application will cease operations tomorrow.

European authorities are encouraged to prevent Google’s acquisition of Fitbit prior to a significant revision of digital policy — Shoshana Zuboff, a Harvard professor and author of a prominent work on surveillance capitalism, has recently voiced opposition to the $2.1 billion agreement.

Code within the Twitter application suggests the potential closure of live video broadcasting app Periscope — Should Periscope be discontinued, it would conclude a five-year period of service.

Startups, investment, and venture funding

Gorillas, a rapid on-demand grocery delivery service gaining popularity in Berlin, has secured $44M in Series A funding — Gorillas provides grocery delivery service with an average timeframe of 10 minutes.

Sweden-based Tink secures $103M as its open banking platform expands to encompass 3,400 banks and 250 million customers — Tink consolidates numerous banks and financial institutions through an API.

Benchmark expands its team with the addition of Miles Grimshaw — Grimshaw previously served as a general partner at New York-based Thrive, where he identified investment opportunities in companies such as Lattice, Mapbox, Benchling, and Airtable.

Insights and analysis from Extra Crunch

Cloud-gaming platforms represented the most overemphasized trend of 2020 — While the technology holds promise, its future is less sensational than initially anticipated.

General Catalyst’s Katherine Boyle and Peter Boyce are seeking ‘highly dedicated’ founders — We discussed with Boyle and Boyce their criteria for evaluating founders, the sectors they find most appealing, and how business dynamics have shifted following the COVID-19 pandemic.

A forecast for fundraising in 2021 — DocSend CEO Russ Heddleston offers perspectives on the fundraising landscape in a post-pandemic environment.

(Extra Crunch is our subscription service, designed to broaden access to information regarding startups. You can register here.)

Additional news

Gift Guide: 9 security and privacy gifts to help protect your friends and family — This is an opportune moment to assess your data security practices and assist others in doing the same.

Disney+ is planning 10 Marvel series and 10 Star Wars series over the coming years — The company revealed an extensive lineup of original streaming content.

Offer the gift of Extra Crunch at a 25% discount — TechCrunch readers can purchase an annual Extra Crunch membership as a gift for friends, family, or colleagues at a 25% reduction in price.

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