Brutal week of cuts – TechCrunch

Hello friends.

In case you missed it last week: it’s me Gregand now I’m dealing with Week in Review Lucas is off with Anita build their new crypto-focused podcast / newsletter, Chain Reaction.

I am theetechnically I was supposed to be on vacation today, but I decided it was probably not great to throw the ballot to someone else ONE WEEK after taking office, so I went back for this one. I usually have a very good work / life balance, I promise! Of course, I have too many colleague numbers set up to automatically bypass the Do Not Disturb switch on my phone, and, yes, I sometimes wake up in the middle of the night to a phantom Slack ring that doesn’t actually ring, but … um. Maybe I’ll get that promise back.

the big thing

If there’s one “big thing” this week, it’s unfortunately not fun to write at all: Employees in the world of start-ups are hit hard by layoffs right now, as if with a new set of layoffs every other day.

The first was Robinhood, announcing that it would lay off 9% of its full-time employees.

Netflix then cut (but doesn’t stop!) Much of its newly formed internal Tudum publication.

Then came Thrasio, Cameo, On Deck and MainStreet. And I’m sure there are some that I’ve missed or haven’t heard of yet.

Why now? Short version: Many of these companies saw huge positive changes in their customer base (in terms of size, use or both) with the pandemic and adjusted accordingly. Now that we are probably on the other side of the pandemic (or as close as we will get to some “other side”) and things are moving in another direction…

Natasha Mascarenyas and Amanda Silberling have delved deeper into layoffs lately and some of the arguments behind each. See this here.

other stuff

What else happened this week? Here are some of the things that people read the most on the site:

The “father of the iPod” shows his collection of prototypes: Tony Fadel, the man behind such iconic devices as the iPod, iPhone and Nest Thermostat, is writing a book on building things – and as part of the process, he’s dusting off his collection of once-so-secret prototypes and conceptual art. He shared some great ones with us, including the absolutely whimsical iPod Mini hybrid / rotating head phone.

Rocket Lab catches rocket accelerator … by helicopter: With more reusable space rocket parts, companies are still developing the best / safest / most efficient way to actually … you know, get those parts back. Last weekend, Rocket Lab decided to use a HELICOPTER to catch a reusable accelerator falling from the sky … and it worked! At least in the beginning. I won’t even fly most video game helicopters because they’re always too hard, so this whole thing is breaking my brain.

Apple, Google and Microsoft team up to destroy passwords: Not every day you see Apple, Google and Microsoft is working together on something … but this week the trio announced that they are teaming up to deal with a beast that causes all of them problems: passwords. If all goes according to plan, next year they will introduce a password-free standard that allows you to use your smartphone’s fingerprint reader or face scanner to get into macOS / Safari, Android / Chrome and Windows / Edge. .

Instagram is testing a full screen experience: Why? It’s a hell of a lot harder to answer without using the word “TikTok.”

Google is trying to improve the removal of personal information: Ever searched Google and found your home address or phone number on a schematic website that refuses to remove it? Google – after many, many years of complaints – is introducing a process to remove these search results. Zack has a step-by-step guide on how to submit a request … but in terms of how long can it take to complete? TBD.

added things

We have a paid wall section of our site called TechCrunch +. It costs a few dollars a month and is full of many good things! From this week, for example:

Decreased UiPath rating: UiPath’s rating has dropped completely in the last year. Why? Ron and Alex have some thoughts.

6 problems that investors are looking for: You’ve created something great and it seems to find an audience, and now you’re ready to raise some money … or are you? Bill Petty of the investment firm Tercera outlines six things that every investor will look for in the due diligence process.

Common mistakes that founders make with financial forecasts: Financial forecasts do not exist just to please potential investors. In this post, Jose Cayaso, co-founder of the Slidebean Founders Training Platform, breaks down some of the most common mistakes he sees among the founders he works with.