A look at boom time M&A failures

Plus, $80M for AI-generated voices January 23, 2024 Hi, {NAME}. Buying a startup can work out very well. Just ask [Meta]( about its [Instagram]( purchase in 2012 or let [Google]( tell you about its $50 million acquisition in 2005 of a little company called [Android](. But while success stories happen, it’s also true that many purchases work out badly. Recent case in point: [Uber]( decision to shut down [Drizly]( the alcohol delivery service it acquired for $1.1 billion less than three years ago. Today, we look at [some of the boom time startup acquisitions made during the VC heyday years that turned out to be major misses for the buyers](. 😬 [A look at some of the biggest boom time M&A failures]( From [Meta]( ill-fated purchase of [Giphy]( to [Shopify]( [Deliverr]( buy, we scanned the largest purchases of venture-backed companies in the past four years and found some that haven’t exactly worked out as hoped. ⬇️ [Web3 funding craters]( Funding to startups in the crypto and blockchain sectors tanked in 2023, with Q4 making a particularly poor showing. But for founders and VC firms still interested in the sector, not all hope is lost. See also: [The Crunchbase Web3 Tracker]( 🗣️ [AI voice startup raises $80M at unicorn valuation]( [ElevenLabs]( has raised an $80 million Series B at what it called a unicorn valuation in a round co-led by [Andreessen Horowitz]( former [GitHub]( CEO [Nat Friedman]( and [Y Combinator]( former head of AI, [Daniel Gross](. The Brooklyn-based company allows creators, enterprises and others to use AI software to replicate voices in dozens of languages. ✂️ [Big Tech job cuts keep coming]( [Google]( and [Amazon]( again landed on our Layoffs Tracker, as did a major e-commerce furniture retailer and a social media startup by an [Instagram]( founder. 🏅 [Top 10 deals: $300M for quantum computing ranks No. 1]( Quantum computing, biotech and fintech startups topped the 10 largest U.S. funding deals last week, though only one company cracked more than $100 million. See also: [The Crunchbase Megadeals Board]( Get more with Crunchbase Enterprise Find out more about Crunchbase’s prospecting software that enables your entire team to find the right companies, identify the right people, and connect with the decision-makers who can move deals forward – all in one solution. [BOOK A MEETING NOW]( Recent Investments [BharatPe]( [$100M]( / [Debt Financing]( BharatPe is a financial services platform that processes payments via UPI and POS, and provides credit or loans to their merchants. Categories: Apps • Financial Services • FinTech • Payments • QR Codes Founders: [Ashneer seth Grover]( [Bhavik Koladiya]( [Shashvat Nakrani]( Investors: [InnoVen Capital]( (Lead) [ElevenLabs]( [$80M]( / [Series B]( ElevenLabs is a research company developing AI voice synthesis software for creators and publishers. Categories: Artificial Intelligence (AI) • Audio • Content Creators • Developer APIs • Publishing Founders: [Mati Staniszewski]( [Piotr Dabkowski]( Investors: [Andreessen Horowitz]( (Lead), [Daniel Gross]( (Lead), [Nat Friedman]( (Lead) [+ 5 more]( [GreenSpark Software]( [$13M]( / [Venture Round]( GreenSpark Software offers an end-to-end, web-based software solution to modernize and digitize the metal recycling industry. Categories: Recycling • Software • Software Engineering Founders: [Evan Vandegriff]( [Gordon Driscoll]( More Fundings Company Amount / Round Lead Investor [Beatdapp]( $17M / [Funding Round]( - [AquaExchange]( $6.0M / [Series A]( [Ocean 14 Capital]( [Acorai]( $4.0M / [Venture Round]( [CerraCap Ventures]( [Wiz Freight]( Unknown / [Corporate Round]( [Nippon Express]( [All Recent Funding Activity]( Recent Acquisitions [Prometheus Medical Global]( Pending acquisition by [Safeguard Medical]( for Unknown More Acquisitions Company Acquired By Amount [Propagenix]( [STEMCELL Technologies]( Unknown [All Recent Acquisition Activity]( #{Rails.configuration.daily.cb_url} Discover innovative companies and the people behind them. [Follow Us on Crunchbase]( [View Jobs on LinkedIn]( [Follow Us on Twitter]( [Like Us on Facebook]( 564 Market St, San Francisco, CA 94104 © 2024 Crunchbase Inc. All rights reserved. [Privacy Policy]( | [Terms of Service]( [Unsubscribe]( from Crunchbase Daily.