👀 Chrome’s got competition

PLUS: Delivery weed goes mainstream. November 19, 2021 [The Hustle]( Earlier this week, we told you about ConstitutionDAO -- an online group of 17,437 donors that crowdfunded $40m+ with the goal of buying a 1st-edition copy of the US Constitution at a Sotheby's auction. Last night, though the group failed to win the intense bidding war, it may have broken records for the largest crowdfund of a physical object. Today’s rundown: - Chrome’s throne: The browser battle is heating up - Holy cow! The Cowgorithm tech saving farmers time - How convenient: Mobile cannabis dispensaries are en route Let’s do it. The Big Idea [Chrome]( Chrome owns the browser game. Competitors want to change that. When it launched in 2008, Google Chrome had .3% of web browser market share. Today, that figure hovers around ~70%. Nira CEO Hiten Shah, [attributes]( Chrome’s market dominance to treating the browser as a platform, not just a tool to view webpages. Now, it’s challengers are following suit. Companies are making the browser a focus for a number of reasons David Pierce at Protocol [says]( 2 of the biggest are: - Collaboration: Browser-first apps like Figma and Miro have shown how a web-based experience can foster collaboration better than desktop apps - Crypto: Browsers are where crypto users access their wallets, and identity and security tools Now challengers are thinking about browsers as operating systems, and optimizing for different benefits depending on the company. The key players include: - Apple, which went all-in on customization in Safari with its OS Monterey [update](, including the ability to customize your start page, toolbar, and tab preferences. - Microsoft, which recently made it even harder for Windows users to change their default browser from Edge by [blocking]( apps like EdgeDeflector. - Brave, which has always optimized for privacy, and recently doubled down on crypto by [adding]( a native wallet where users can trade crypto and store NFTs. - The Browser Company, a startup that’s [reimagining]( browser UI to combat tab overload and increasing user productivity. - Mighty, another startup that [uses]( 10x less memory than Chrome, allowing users to load tabs way more quickly. But there’s a catch… … all of the challengers except Safari are built on Chromium, Google’s open-source browser codebase -- which raises the question: Can anyone build a better Chrome than Chrome? While Apple [commands]( a respectable ~19% market share, and Microsoft may be able to use lock-in to force users onto Edge, the bar for browser startups has never been higher. In such a crowded market, .3% market share doesn’t sound so bad. [Share on Facebook]( [Share on Twitter]( [Send as email to a friend](mailto:?subject=The%20Hustle%20wrote%20something%20I%20think%20you%27ll%20like...%0A&body=Chrome+owns+the+browser+game.+Competitors+want+to+change+that.%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fthehustle.co%2F11192021-Chrome%3Futm_campaign%3DChrome%26utm_content%3D11192021-Chrome%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_source%3Ddaily%0A%0AYou%20can%20subscribe%20with%20my%20link%20here%20to%20get%20the%20latest%20in%20tech%20and%20business%20daily:%0A [View on our website]( SNIPPETS So long, Genius Bar: Apple [announced]( it would make iPhone parts available to consumers with the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13, allowing customers to make repairs themselves. Prime lattes: Amazon and Starbucks [announced]( plans to open a cashierless coffee shop in Manhattan. Plant-based unicorn: Daily Harvest, a frozen-food delivery service focused on healthy, plant-based ingredients, [reached]( a $1.1B valuation. Copycats: Vans [sued]( Walmart, claiming it flooded the market with cheap Vans knockoffs, causing damage to Vans’ reputation. Credit check: Amazon [announced]( plans to stop allowing payment with Visa credit cards issued in the UK due to high fees. Styled by Harry: Harry Styles [launched]( a beauty brand called Pleasing, which offers nail polish, serums, and a range of products between $20 and $65. --------------------------------------------------------------- Hey — enjoy getting quick updates on what you care about? Take [20 seconds]( to personalize your Snippets. Pick your preferences👇 and we’ll send you more of what you love. Boom. [Personalize my Email →]( Holy Cow [cow]( A smart collar for cows could revolutionize farming WHAT’S THE DEAL? - There were [93.6m]( cattle and calves on US farms in January 2021 - The total US farm income from dairy products in 2020 was [$40.4B]( - Halter aims to save farmers 20-40 hours per week and increase pasture utilization by up to 10% A high-tech system that can control your farm from your phone? Holy cow! New Zealand agtech startup [Halter]( is bringing farming into the future with GPS-enabled solar-powered collars for dairy cows that connect to a smartphone app. Through their phones, farmers can lead herds. The collars gently vibrate to lead the cows, and the company says cows can be trained to navigate using the collar within 4-5 days. Virtual fences keep the cows in designated areas, and audio cues from the collar will alert cows if they’re nearing a fence -- a short pulse will stop a cow from exiting should they keep moving. Total automation over cows’ movements allows farmers to save 20-40 hours per week and increase pasture utilization by up to 10%. The collars also send real-time alerts. The app can let a farmer know if a cow is sick or in heat. Best of all, all these insights are made possible by the company’s unique set of algorithms aptly named... Cowgorithm (can’t make this sh*t up). Halter just [raised]( a $32m round of funding and is expanding to farms in another region of New Zealand. By the way, in case you’ve ever wondered why cows have hooves instead of feet... It’s because they lactose. (Have an idea for a Cool AF Business story? [Tell us about it here.]() [Share on Facebook]( [Share on Twitter]( [Send as email to a friend](mailto:?subject=The%20Hustle%20wrote%20something%20I%20think%20you%27ll%20like...%0A&body=A+smart+collar+for+cows+could+revolutionize+farming%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fthehustle.co%2F11192021-cow-smart-collar%3Futm_campaign%3DChrome%26utm_content%3D11192021-cow-smart-collar%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_source%3Ddaily%0A%0AYou%20can%20subscribe%20with%20my%20link%20here%20to%20get%20the%20latest%20in%20tech%20and%20business%20daily:%0A [View on our website]( Weed Tech [dispensary products]( Mobile cannabis dispensaries are coming Californians who enjoy cannabis may no longer have to go to the dispensary. Instead, the dispensary will come to them. Once-illegal cannabis sure has come a long way. In 2020, weed sales were worth [$4.4B]( in California alone, an increase of 57% from 2019. And it’s never been easier to get. Instead of covert cash sales, many patients and recreational consumers can now get it delivered straight to their door -- which 60% of them did in 2021, [per]( WeedMaps. But can it get even easier than that? Typically, ordering cannabis would mean choosing items from a local dispensary’s online shop, then waiting for someone to drop it off. But this can take a while, especially if the nearest dispensary isn’t close by. Bay Area startup [Meadow]( provides POS systems specifically for cannabis retailers, processing $1B+ in sales since 2014. Its “dynamic delivery” offers the tools for faster on-demand, mobile delivery, [per]( TechCrunch. It can: - Dispatch drivers - Manage real-time inventory - Process payments - Help ensure compliance with local laws Delivery vans can carry up to ~$3k in merchandise, per California law, or $5k if preorders are included. Meadow can also set up specific zones to vend near (e.g., near events or neighborhoods without dispensaries), and send notifications and discounts to customers within those zones. Stuff like this may be fun for recreational consumers, but will be greatly appreciated by medical cannabis patients who can’t easily leave their homes or travel far. Meadow is starting with California, but may also expand to Michigan, Massachusetts, and New York. Fun fact: California consumers ordered 12% more weed on Election Night 2020, [per]( Eaze. [Share on Facebook]( [Share on Twitter]( [Send as email to a friend](mailto:?subject=The%20Hustle%20wrote%20something%20I%20think%20you%27ll%20like...%0A&body=Mobile+cannabis+dispensaries+are+coming%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fthehustle.co%2F11192021-Mobile-cannabis-dispensaries%3Futm_campaign%3DChrome%26utm_content%3D11192021-Mobile-cannabis-dispensaries%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_source%3Ddaily%0A%0AYou%20can%20subscribe%20with%20my%20link%20here%20to%20get%20the%20latest%20in%20tech%20and%20business%20daily:%0A [View on our website]( AROUND THE WEB 🎙 On this day: In 1990, pop duo Milli Vanilli [lost]( the “Best New Artist” Grammy they’d won after it was revealed they did not actually sing their songs. 💡 How to: You have a great idea. Should you patent it? If so, how do you get started? Researchers and intellectual property specialists offer their best tips [here](. 💄 Haha: YassifyBot is a Twitter account that takes photos of various people (celebrities, fictional characters, etc.) and uses an app to give them an [extreme makeover](, contour and all. 🛶 That’s interesting: In 2003, a new record was set for canoeing the Mississippi River: 18 days. This is the [fascinating story]( of 2 ex-teammates, racing against the record and each other. 🌅 Chill out: [This website]( is your window to live cams all over the world, including scenic vistas, wildlife refuges, and puppy rescues. 🐒 Aww: And now, [booping snoots]( with the Austin Aquarium. And it’s not only aquatic creatures. We’ve got sloths and capybaras in here! IN CASE YOU MISSED IT (A roundup of our best reads from the last couple weeks…) 🚔 [Visual explainer:]( Why thieves love stealing catalytic converters. 🤏 [Feel the metaverse:]( Meta is working on VR gloves. ☕ [Tea Mogul:]( Our convo with David Segal on the future of tea. 🗓️ [To reinvent work](, we have to destroy the clock. 🎃 [The economics of]( pumpkin patches, explained. Shower Thoughts - [“You can use social media DMs of dead people as a notepad / free storage.”]( - [“We have collectively accepted the standard of tying shoelaces, while there are so many other different ways to tie.”]( - [“You really start to feel old when you realize professional athletes are younger than you.”]( - [“A soup can't go bad if you just never stop boiling it… ”]( - [“Your fridge is a small morgue for the dead body parts of plants, animals, or fruits that you plan on eating later.”]( [via Reddit]( How did you like today’s email? Refer friends. Help us grow. 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