Events surrounding a pro-Trump demonstration at the U.S. Capitol, coupled with the president’s related communications on Twitter, have understandably dominated attention, making it difficult to focus on other news.

Nevertheless, a significant amount of news occurred prior to these events, and readers of The Daily Crunch rely on us for technology updates. Therefore, we will continue to provide a summary of important headlines.

This is your Daily Crunch for January 6, 2021.

Leading news: President’s tweets coincide with Capitol breach by protestors

A large group of supporters of President Trump entered the U.S. Capitol building today, causing the Senate and House of Representatives to suspend proceedings related to the certification of Joe Biden’s presidential election.

The protestors voiced slogans such as “stop the steal,” originating from online conspiracy theories circulating on social media platforms. Reports indicate at least one person sustained a gunshot wound, and a separate explosive device was safely detonated near the Republican National Committee headquarters.

During this time, President Trump continued to share unsubstantiated allegations of election fraud via Twitter, and released a video message to the protestors stating, “Go home, we love you.” Twitter has added cautionary notices to these posts, but there are increasing demands for more substantial action from the platform.

Major technology companies

Facebook updates Pages with a streamlined design and removes the ‘Like’ button — The updated design features a revised visual appearance, improved navigation, a dedicated News Feed, and a new question-and-answer feature.

Twitter acquires creative agency Ueno to support the development of new products — Twitter is effectively purchasing an agency with which it has maintained a strong collaborative relationship.

TikTok introduces its first AR effect utilizing lidar technology — The effect showcases an AR sphere, reminiscent of the ball drop in Times Square on New Year’s Eve.

Startups, funding, and venture capital activity

Perfect Corp., the company behind the virtual beauty application YouCam Makeup, secures $50M in Series C funding led by Goldman Sachs — The YouCam Makeup app allows users to virtually sample products from over 300 brands worldwide.

Thistle, a plant-focused prepared meal delivery service, raises $10.3M — The company provides customers with plant-based meal plans, alongside a selection of juices and side dishes.

Teamflow receives $3.9M to advance its virtual headquarters platform for enhanced productivity — Teamflow, previously known as Huddle, is developing a virtual workspace designed to facilitate collaboration and communication for remote teams.

Insights and analysis from Extra Crunch

Reasons for declining venture capital interest in leading D2C brands — In 2020, venture capitalists largely shifted away from investing in D2C brands and product-focused businesses.

Revenue-based financing: An evolving approach to private equity and early-stage investment — The financial models employed by venture capitalists have remained largely unchanged since their inception in 1957.

Extra Crunch Live returns in 2021, fostering connections between founders and prominent technology companies — Despite the circumstances, we successfully produced 44 episodes of the show in 2020.

(Extra Crunch is our subscription program dedicated to providing accessible information about startups. You can register here.)

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