Investors say emerging multiverses are the future of entertainment

The COVID-19 pandemic is accelerating the adoption of new technologies and cultural shifts that were already well underway. According to a clutch of heavy-hitting investors, this dynamic is particularly strong in gaming and extended reality.

Unlike other segments of the startup and tech world, where valuations have been slashed, early-stage companies focused on building new games, gaming infrastructure and virtual or extended reality entertainment are having no trouble raising money. They’ve even seen valuations rise, investors said.

“Valuations have increased pretty significantly in the gaming sector. Valuations have gone up 20 to 25% higher than I would have seen prior to this pandemic,” Phil Sanderson, a co-founder and managing director at Griffin Gaming Partners, told fellow participants on a virtual panel during the Los Angeles Games Conference earlier this month.

Driving the appetite for new investments is the entertainment industry’s bearhug of virtual events, animated features, games and social media platforms after widespread shelter-in-place orders made physical events an impossibility.

Google's Threat Analysis Group says it saw new activity from some Indian "hack-for-hire" firms in Q1 2020, which spoofed WHO Gmail accounts for spearfishing (Catalin Cimpanu/ZDNet)

Catalin Cimpanu / ZDNet:
Google's Threat Analysis Group says it saw new activity from some Indian “hack-for-hire” firms in Q1 2020, which spoofed WHO Gmail accounts for spearfishing  —  Google also discloses seven coordinated political influence campaigns that took place on its platforms during Q1 2020.

Only private labels listings back to pre-Covid-19 days on Amazon

Total number of unique products or stock keeping units down to 30% or 15 million SKUs, compared to 15 million SKUs before the lockdown https://ift.tt/2AcSkpV https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Indian gaming industry attracted $350 million venture capital investments between 2014-2020: Report

India's gaming industry has attracted about USD 350 million in investments from venture capital firms between 2014 and first few months of 2020, growing at a CAGR of 22 per cent, a report by Maple Capital Advisors said on Tuesday. https://ift.tt/2TFfPi8

Mobile wallets Q1 transactions volume drops 4% in India: Report

The number of transactions done on mobile wallets in Q1 2020 was 1.08 billion and the value of transactions was Rs 429 billion in India, recording about four per cent drop in volume and about six per cent drop in value over Q1 2019, a report said on Tuesday. https://ift.tt/2X2CPKg

Apple to reopen about 100 US stores, most with curbside pickup

Apple Inc plans to reopen about 100 U.S. stores, mostly with curbside pickup but some with walk-in service, the company said. https://ift.tt/3eo4R8Y

Twitter fact-checks Donald Trump's tweet for the first time

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Amazon in advanced talks to buy self-driving startup Zoox: Report

The deal will value Zoox at less than the $3.2 billion it achieved in a funding round in 2018, the Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. https://ift.tt/36xj7JH

Elon Musk's SpaceX raises $346 million ahead of debut astronaut mission

The launch, which will be attended by President Donald Trump, is crucial for Musk, SpaceX and NASA. https://ift.tt/3eqzV83

Amazon in talks to buy autonomous vehicle startup Zoox

Zoox had outsized ambition and financial backing. The startup wanted to build a fully driverless car by this year. https://ift.tt/2AeQXas https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Ola Electric acquires Etergo, plans to launch own two-wheeler next year

Ola Electric will now own the intellectual property, design and engineering capabilities of Etergo, which is known for making a fully electric AppScooter https://ift.tt/2Xv9hnu https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Nokia Shuts Plant in Tamil Nadu After 42 Test Positive for Coronavirus

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Walmart partners with fashion consignment marketplace thredUP

Walmart is continuing its foray into fashion e-commerce, announcing a strategic partnership with fashion resale marketplace thredUP to list a large number of the items on Walmart’s digital storefront.

With this partnership over 750,000 items from thredUP will be available on walmart.com/thredup, starting today.

Notably, only clothing items and shoes marked as “new” or “like new” will be listed, though accessories and handbags marked as “gently used” will also be available, Walmart says. The companies didn’t share details of the partnership’s revenue share model.

ThredUP’s marketplace, which bills itself as the web’s largest consignment and thrift store, allows people to buy and sell secondhand women’s and children’s apparel. Rather than simply connecting sellers with buyers, sellers send a bunch of items directly to thredUP which then inspects them and returns ones they don’t want and photographs and lists the items they do on its marketplace. When an item sells, thredUP handles shipping the item and paying out sellers.

This partnership brings Walmart access to sales of a new slew of fashion brands. The retailer has added over 1,000 fashion brands to its site over the past several years, the company notes. This isn’t thredUP’s first major partnership with an existing physical retailer, the company has previously partnered with both Macy’s and JCPenney on pilot programs of in-store rollouts of curated item selections.

One of the biggest benefits of the partnership will be the ability to score free shipping on orders over Walmart’s $35 threshold as well as the ability to  return items for free at Walmart stores.

ThredUP has raised over $305 million from investors including Goldman Sachs Investment Partners, Irving Investors and Redpoint. The company shared that they had closed $175 million in funding  this past August. Last year, CEO James Reinhart told TechCrunch that the team had grown to 1,200 employees and was on track to process their 100 millionth item by year’s end.

Israel-based D-ID, which is working on tech to make faces unrecognizable to face recognition software, raises $13.5M led by AXA Ventures (Jonathan Shieber/TechCrunch)

Jonathan Shieber / TechCrunch:
Israel-based D-ID, which is working on tech to make faces unrecognizable to face recognition software, raises $13.5M led by AXA Ventures  —  If only Facebook had been using the kind of technology that TechCrunch Startup Battlefield alumnus D-ID was pitching, it could have avoided exposing …

Truecaller record of 4.75 crore Indians on sale, claims report; company denies hack

A cyber criminal has put on sale records of 4.75 crore Indians claimed to be sourced from online directory Truecaller for about Rs 75,000, according to online intelligence firm Cyble. https://ift.tt/3gjLIqi