Tech News Roundup: April 27, 2021

Significant developments occurred today, including Spotify’s introduction of paid podcast features, Amazon’s unveiling of new tablet devices, and the release of the agenda for TC Sessions: Mobility. This summarizes the key updates in today’s Daily Crunch.

Spotify Enables Paid Podcast Subscriptions

Following initial announcements made in February, Spotify is now empowering podcasters to provide exclusive content to paying subscribers through its Anchor platform. Content creators can select from three distinct subscription levels: $2.99, $4.99, or $7.99 monthly.

This launch follows Apple’s recent announcement regarding support for paid podcast subscriptions by one week. However, a key differentiator exists in the revenue sharing model. While Apple intends to retain 30% of subscription revenue in the first year, decreasing to 15% thereafter, Spotify will remit 100% of revenue to podcasters for the initial two years, implementing a 5% fee beginning in 2023.

Updates from Tech Industry Leaders

Amazon has revealed its latest Fire tablets, including kids’ editions. The Fire HD 10 boasts a slimmer and lighter design compared to its previous iteration, with a starting price of $150.

Tesla envisions transforming homes into distributed power plants. CEO Elon Musk articulated a vision of residences generating, storing, and even contributing energy back to the power grid, utilizing the company’s product ecosystem.

Red Hat’s CEO, Paul Cormier, aims to sustain double-digit growth during his second year leading the company, which is central to IBM’s broader transformation strategy.

Startup Funding and Venture Capital Activity

Greenlight, a fintech company focused on children, secured $260 million in a Series D funding round led by a16z, nearly doubling its valuation to $2.3 billion. Since its launch in 2017, the company has established accounts for over 3 million parents and children.

Kry experienced a 100% year-over-year increase in the utilization of its telehealth tools and subsequently closed a $312 million Series D funding round. The company rapidly expanded its services during the pandemic, offering free web-based consultation tools for doctors.

Banana Capital launched its inaugural fund, specifically targeting internet-first startups. Turner Novak, known for his engaging social media presence, has transitioned from meme creation to venture capital investment.

Insights from Extra Crunch

Internal rates of return (IRR) in emerging U.S. tech hubs are beginning to surpass those of Silicon Valley. AngelList analyzed IRR data from nearly 2,500 deals dating back to 2013.

Brendan Wallace of Fifth Wall and Assaf Wand of Hippo engaged in a discussion regarding the most significant opportunities within the proptech sector. They addressed key questions concerning competition, strategic investment versus traditional venture capital, and board composition.

Adam Riggs suggests that the current implementation of SaaS subscriptions may not be optimally serving customer needs, arguing that the model has become overly standardized.

(Extra Crunch is a membership program designed to support founders and startup teams. Sign up here.)

Additional News

The agenda for TC Sessions: Mobility 2021 has been announced. Featured speakers include Scale AI founder Alexandr Wang, Zoox co-founder and CTO Jesse Levinson, Amy Jones Satrom of Nuro, and prominent investor Reid Hoffman.

An assessment of the venture capital industry’s progress regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion was conducted. The analysis is based on data from the VC Human Capital Survey conducted by the National Venture Capital Association, Venture Forward, and Deloitte.

The Daily Crunch is TechCrunch’s daily compilation of its most important and impactful stories. To receive this roundup in your inbox each day around 3pm Pacific Time, subscribe here.