Data Point

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Data Point

The Rise of ‘Retention Rates,’ the Software Metric Investors Are Obsessing Over

By Kevin McLaughlin · Oct 15, 2020 6:00am PDT · 2 comments
When database startup Snowflake filed for an initial public offering in late August, investors honed in on one measure of its performance: net revenue retention rate, which reflects a company’s ability to keep customers and get them to increase their spending over time. The figure may have become the most important metric no one has heard... When database startup Snowflake filed for an initial public offering in late August, investors...
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New Amazon Data: Retailer Wins Sales While Losing to Merchants on Listings

By Paris Martineau · Oct 14, 2020 6:02am PDT · 2 comments
Just 1% of the vacuum cleaners, immersion blenders and other household products listed on Amazon last year were sold by the retailer, with the rest coming from other merchants who use its platform. And yet 33% of all sales in that category were by Amazon. Those were among the figures published last week in a little-noticed chart, based on... Just 1% of the vacuum cleaners, immersion blenders and other household products listed on Amazon...
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Airbnb Rental Supply Fell This Summer for First Time

By Cory Weinberg · Sep 22, 2020 6:01am PDT
With a successful pivot to close-to-home travel, Airbnb has managed to defy early predictions that the coronavirus pandemic would doom its business. But previously undisclosed figures nevertheless show the toll the crisis has taken on the home rental site. Airbnb had about 5% fewer listings on its site that were available or rented in July... With a successful pivot to close-to-home travel, Airbnb has managed to defy early predictions...
Chromebooks Gain Share of Education Market Despite Shortages
By Laura Mandaro · Sep 9, 2020 6:01am PDT · 1 comment
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Chromebooks Gain Share of Education Market Despite Shortages

By Laura Mandaro · Sep 9, 2020 6:01am PDT · 1 comment
When many children attend classes this fall, they’re likely to do so by opening a laptop at home rather than sitting down in a classroom. That shift has caused a spike in demand for PCs—and particularly for Chromebooks, the low-cost laptops that use Google’s Chrome operating system and apps. Demand from schools and parents... When many children attend classes this fall, they’re likely to do so by opening a laptop at...
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Headcount Tracker: Despite Deep Cuts at Tech Firms, Many Keep Hiring

By Nick Wingfield · Sep 8, 2020 6:02am PDT · 1 comment
There has been plenty of grim news about jobs in the technology industry over the past few months, from headline-grabbing staff cutbacks at startups to an overall employment dip in the sector. But an analysis by The Information of two dozen publicly traded tech companies shows that many companies have actually expanded their workforces since the... There has been plenty of grim news about jobs in the technology industry over the past few...
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Biggest Startup Markdowns: Magic Leap, WeWork, Airbnb

By Cory Weinberg · Sep 2, 2020 7:02am PDT
Investors in Magic Leap have marked down their stakes in the troubled augmented reality startup by 93%, on average, between the start of the year and the end of June, previously unreported figures show. The dizzying drop makes Magic Leap the private tech firm in which investor sentiment has soured the most in 2020, surpassing hard-hit firms... Investors in Magic Leap have marked down their stakes in the troubled augmented reality startup...
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Despite Flurry of Activity, Software IPOs to Fall Short of 2019 Numbers

By Ross Matican · Sep 1, 2020 7:01am PDT
The last week has seen a flurry of subscription software companies filing to go public in the last few months of the year, hoping to cash in on the booming stock market and rich valuations accorded the software sector. But thanks to the drought in initial public offerings, brought on by the pandemic, this year’s total of software IPOs is... The last week has seen a flurry of subscription software companies filing to go public in the...
Amazon’s Massive Spike in Delivery Stations Poses Threat to USPS
By Paris Martineau · Aug 24, 2020 12:10pm PDT · 2 comments
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Amazon’s Massive Spike in Delivery Stations Poses Threat to USPS

By Paris Martineau · Aug 24, 2020 12:10pm PDT · 2 comments
Amazon has carried out an unprecedented physical expansion during the coronavirus pandemic as homebound consumers have sought to have supplies delivered to their doorstep. While its hundreds of vast suburban fulfillment centers still make up the largest chunk of its physical footprint in the U.S., openings of smaller facilities—delivery... Amazon has carried out an unprecedented physical expansion during the coronavirus pandemic as...
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Roku, Amazon Devices Risk Losing Grip on Streaming TV

By Jessica Toonkel · Aug 5, 2020 12:45pm PDT · 2 comments
In recent weeks, the absence of two high-profile new streaming services—WarnerMedia’s HBO Max and NBCUniversal’s Peacock—from streaming devices made by Roku and Amazon has shown how important the two tech companies have become as media gatekeepers. That clout might not last, though.Streaming-video devices are losing... In recent weeks, the absence of two high-profile new streaming services—WarnerMedia’s...
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Covid Slowed Startup Recruiting, but Not for Long

By Cory Weinberg · Jul 21, 2020 10:19am PDT
As the coronavirus outbreak took hold in the U.S. early this spring, prompting layoffs at startups across Silicon Valley, engineers and product designers at big tech companies appeared to lose interest in making the leap to smaller firms. The presumed job security offered by Apple, Facebook, Amazon suddenly seemed more appealing, new data... As the coronavirus outbreak took hold in the U.S. early this spring, prompting layoffs at...
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China’s Pinduoduo Is Nipping at Alibaba’s Heels

By Juro Osawa and Yunan Zhang · Jul 9, 2020 7:01am PDT
For well over a decade, Alibaba has been China’s top destination for online shopping. But the rapid growth of its leading competitor, Pinduoduo, suggests its hold on the market isn’t guaranteed.Pinduoduo’s monthly active users climbed 40% in May from a year ago to 471 million, narrowing the gap with Alibaba’s Taobao app,... For well over a decade, Alibaba has been China’s top destination for online shopping. But...
Unicorn Deals Drive Valuations to Record Highs
By Kate Clark · Jun 25, 2020 7:01am PDT · 1 comment
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Unicorn Deals Drive Valuations to Record Highs

By Kate Clark · Jun 25, 2020 7:01am PDT · 1 comment
When coronavirus fears sent stocks tumbling this spring, venture capitalists expected startup valuations to follow. Instead, late-stage valuations for U.S. startups have risen in the first half of 2020 as the stock market, shaking off fears of a pandemic-caused recession,  rebounded.The median valuation for Series C or later-stage... When coronavirus fears sent stocks tumbling this spring, venture capitalists expected startup...
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Just 2.7% of Top Roles in Big Tech Held by Black Executives

By Cory Weinberg · Jun 19, 2020 12:39pm PDT
Shavone Charles got her start in the tech industry as an intern at Google in 2011, before moving to full-time media and partnerships jobs at Twitter and, later, Instagram. She has watched those businesses succeed in part because of their popularity with African Americans. But tech companies have few black executives. Charles, who is black, has... Shavone Charles got her start in the tech industry as an intern at Google in 2011, before moving...
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Instacart Blows Past Walmart in Online Grocery Business

By Amir Efrati · Jun 9, 2020 7:00am PDT · 2 comments
The coronavirus pandemic gave a major boost to online grocery orders, as many people sheltered in their homes. But one company—Instacart—benefited a lot more in the business than its bigger rival, Walmart, as new data demonstrates.Walmart saw its weekly share of the online grocery business relative to other major players in the... The coronavirus pandemic gave a major boost to online grocery orders, as many people sheltered in...
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Tech Workers Could Face Steep Pay Cuts for Leaving Bay Area

By Cory Weinberg · Jun 1, 2020 7:01am PDT · 5 comments
Last year, Michael Snow joined GitLab, an open-source collaboration software firm that has long allowed its employees to work remotely from anywhere they want. After several months of working while traveling the world, Snow eventually settled in San Francisco. The decision surprises people, who ask Snow why he didn’t choose a much cheaper... Last year, Michael Snow joined GitLab, an open-source collaboration software firm that has long...
Where Are Most Tech Layoffs? Not Silicon Valley
By Cory Weinberg · May 26, 2020 11:02am PDT
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Where Are Most Tech Layoffs? Not Silicon Valley

By Cory Weinberg · May 26, 2020 11:02am PDT
Some of San Francisco’s most well-known tech firms have cut deep into their staffs in recent months. But much of the pain is being felt outside the Bay Area. An analysis of public filings from 20 tech firms based in the region, including Uber, Lyft and Airbnb, show that three-quarters of employees laid off worked outside the region,... Some of San Francisco’s most well-known tech firms have cut deep into their staffs in...
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Boom in Home Electronics Sales Shows Signs of Peaking

By Nick Bastone · Apr 21, 2020 10:29am PDT
When cities across the U.S. shut down due to the coronavirus, consumers flocked online to beef up their home office and entertainment setups. The surge in spending for consumer electronics has extended into April, with only a slight cooling in growth, according to an analysis of email receipts from online transactions provided to The... When cities across the U.S. shut down due to the coronavirus, consumers flocked online to beef up...
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Why Now Could Be Apple’s Moment in TV

By Martin Peers, Tom Dotan and Jessica Toonkel · Apr 13, 2020 1:01pm PDT
This could be Apple TV Plus’s moment.If Apple wanted to get a jump on its rivals in video streaming, it would use some of its $200 billion in cash reserves and buy up as much available programming as it could—including any unreleased movies Hollywood studios might be inclined to sell. None of its rivals, with the  exception of... This could be Apple TV Plus’s moment.If Apple wanted to get a jump on its rivals in video...
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VCs Could Exhaust ‘Dry Powder’ in a Year Unless They Slow Investing

By Kate Clark · Apr 9, 2020 7:00am PDT · 3 comments
Venture capital investors are flush with cash, but they may want to slow down their spending.U.S. venture firms have roughly $150 billion of funds available to invest in cash-starved startups, a little more than half of the $279 billion they have raised since 2014. That estimate of the VC industry’s “dry powder”—business... Venture capital investors are flush with cash, but they may want to slow down their spending.U.S....
Chart by Jesse Howe
Cash-Rich Tech Giants Could Provide Alternative to Federal Loans
By Nick Bastone · Apr 7, 2020 11:47am PDT · 2 comments
Chart by Jesse Howe
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Cash-Rich Tech Giants Could Provide Alternative to Federal Loans

By Nick Bastone · Apr 7, 2020 11:47am PDT · 2 comments
The Small Business Administration has a $349 billion emergency fund to provide some relief to small businesses across the country hurt by the coronavirus. But a possible alternative source of funding for cash-strapped tech startups could be the tech giants, which between them have much more cash than the SBA.Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Facebook and... The Small Business Administration has a $349 billion emergency fund to provide some relief to...