China Is Underwater And The FCC’s Worried

[Startup Investing Network]( [TODAY'S DEAL: Honestly, you should get this book](mailto:editor@investmentnewsweb.com?subject=Give+me+my+top+stocks+for+2020&body=Give+me+my+top+stocks+for+2020) Todays Top News [China Is Underwater And The FCC’s Worried] China Is Underwater And The FCC’s Worried Literally, just in cable form. Geoffrey Starks of the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is worried about the undersea cables that network across the world and connect the US and China. Why? Some of them are partially owned by Chinese companies. So, here come the espionage rumors. How bad is it? Well, there’s only 300 cables underwater that take care of 99% of global data traffic. Stark’s solution is making the FCC “ensure that adversary countries and other hostile actors can’t tamper with, block, or intercept the communications they carry.” Don’t you like how this concern happens after the FCC gave Alphabet (Google’s parent company) the green light to use a telecommunications line that’s part US, part Asia? That was in April. And now, Google started operating some of the Pacific Light Cable Network System that runs 8,000 miles long between the US and Taiwan (excluding Hong Kong). Also in April was the FCC going back and forth between shutting down US operations on China Telecom Americas, Pacific Networks, and China Unicom Americas, all controlled by the Chinese state. No word from FCC chair Ajit Pai yet on whether or not this is true, but we’ll keep you in the loop about when they can make a decision. Investing [Tell Me Something Good] Tell Me Something Good The founder of Ethel’s Club, a digital membership club for people of color, Naj Austin, is taking it one step further with her new startup Somewhere Good. Somewhere Good is a one-stop-shop for people of color to shop e-commerce, find art, music, films, wellness services and more all in one lil’ app. Let’s face it: a lot of these communities have been pinned up against each other or don’t have it easy when it comes to bringing their brand and businesses to the right people. Cue Somewhere Good where everything is easily found in one place. The community and shopping hub aims to focus on more granular topics that are specific to different POC, like jazz music from the 80s, for example. It’s got a bit of a Tinder or Facebook essence to it by allowing users to put in their info and identify themselves based on life pursuits, career, interests, family, pets, and more. Then the app splits the user into the communities it thinks they’ll like the best. Speaking of Tinder, Austin does want to foster an extra layer of connection with a potential matchmaking tool. Love is in the air when something feels good (okay, I tried). So far, so good for the app as they have over 100 brands on the site with everything from hair to cereal makers. Financially, however, we’re not sure if it’s that great, considering that the app will be 100% ad-free and the business model only relies on users paying to join certain communities. The app is just in beta right now, but just raised $1 million with investors like Color, Debut Capital, Shrug Capital and a few angel investors. Do you think we’ll see more POC-centric apps like this? Know of any good ones? Hit reply and let us know. Don't Miss This [Adobe Should Get Ready To Retire] Adobe Should Get Ready To Retire And we don’t mean the CEO as in, “Hey man, I just started my own tech company,” said over ramen noodles and Fortnite. Dylan Field, CEO of Figma, was just a computer science nerd interning in the software engineering department of Flipboard, a news sharing service, and got a Thiel fellowship at 19. He co-founded Figma with Evan Wallace, originally pitching a drone idea, but instead deciding to focus on design. Figma is a cloud-based software that lets designers create and collaborate on their designs. Back in 2012, Field was concerned that focusing on designers was too narrow, but now, in 2020 when everyone’s digital and users are spoiled with apps like TikTok and Instagram, he’s counting his stars. He took his software to beta in 2015 and then offered a paid membership model in 2017, so it was a slow start and they relied on word of mouth to grow. Slow to start is sometimes a good sign the future is bright, considering Figma is valued at $2.05 billion and has raised $132.87 in capital to date (yes, even with competitors like Adobe Creative Cloud suite). Doesn’t matter though when Microsoft, GitHub, Square, Zoom, Airbnb and Uber all use your software. Not bad, not bad… On top of it, now, since the world thinks it’s design savvy, Figma’s getting more users for visual communications and not just interface design. Next on Figma’s list is what they’re calling “acqui-hires”, aka acquiring smaller startups to build their team out. Do you think Figma can continue to out-position Adobe? Hit reply and tell us what you think! [Vote Now] PS. How useful did you find today’s update? 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