Hi there. This morning we're unveiling our list of the top US seed investors, and introducing you to a metaverse landlord that's spent millions on virtual real estate.
Ready? Let's get to it.
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1. Introducing the 100 best seed investors in the US. Based on data from Tribe Capital, Insider identified the top seed investors, meaning those who repeatedly demonstrate extraordinary skill. Here's what we found:
- Among the best are Eric Paley, whose search for the "weird and wonderful" led to an early investment in Uber, and Kevin Mahaffey, a software engineer who founded his first startup at age 22.
- Insider also identified The Seed 25 which lists the women who have become a force in seed-stage investing. The data shows us which investors have proved themselves to be truly excellent — picking winners year after year.
- The Seed 25 includes women like Jenny Fielding, who ranks third on our list and has become the most well-connected investor in New York, and Aileen Lee, who launched her own VC firm after 13 years at Kleiner Perkins.
Meet the Seed 100 and the Seed 25.
In other news:
2. Staten Island Amazon workers rejected a union. Just a month after a neighboring warehouse voted in favor of the company's first union, employees at a second location rejected the movement, with 380 votes in favor and 618 opposed. What that means moving forward.
3. In a leaked memo, Amazon aggregator Thrasio announced significant layoffs and a new CEO. As growth slows among aggregators, consolidation and layoffs have become increasingly common — and Thrasio is the latest company affected. What we learned from the email.
4. Amazon is closing six Whole Foods stores. Bloomberg first reported that after shuttering dozens of its physical stores around the country, Amazon is closing a handful of Whole Foods stores, including in Chicago and Boston. Here's which stores will shut down.
5. Gorillas is struggling to hit a $5 billion target valuation as it seeks new funding. Sources said the delivery startup also had informal merger talks with rival Jokr, a reflection of the uphill battle facing Gorillas and other delivery services. What we know so far.
6. The EU hit Apple with a preliminary antitrust complaint over Apple Pay. The commission said Apple's dominant position in the market "restricts competition," stifling innovation. Get the latest.
7. An engineer at Google's DeepMind AI lab explains how he went from marketing to machine learning without a Ph.D. Businesses are quickly starting to staff up with experts in machine learning — and "the vast majority" of jobs don't require high-level degrees. Ivan Lobov made the jump, and explains how he pulled off the career pivot.
8. Facebook is shuttering its podcast business. A year after announcing its audio ambitions, the company said it will stop letting people add podcasts to the service this week, and will remove them altogether in June. Read the full report.
Odds and ends:
9. This metaverse mega-landlord has spent millions on virtual real estate. The Metaverse Group, a major industry player that has designed virtual stores for Forever 21 and threw the first metaverse fashion week, is snapping up space across 10 virtual worlds. Its CEO explains the investment.
10. Photos offer a glimpse of Elon Musk's first private jet. The $26 million Dassault Falcon 900B, which he bought before he became a billionaire, was delivered to Musk in 2004 (though this model is his current preferred mode of air travel). See Musk's first private plane.
What we're watching today:
- Future Compute, MIT Technology Review's conference, starts today.
- The WSJ's CEO Council is gathering in London today and tomorrow.
- Airbnb, Lyft, and others are reporting earnings today. Keep up with earnings here.
Keep updated with the latest
Curated by Jordan Parker Erb in New York. (Feedback or tips? Email jerb@insider.com or tweet @jordanparkererb.) Edited by Shona Ghosh in London.