Tag: invests

Categories
Politics

Tech exec invests in digital information start-up launched by veteran journalists

Tech exec invests in digital news start-up launched by veteran journalists

Stevica Mrdja / EyeEm | EyeEm | Getty Images

A digital news start-up that’s being launched by veteran journalists received an investment from a top tech executive.

The start-up, expected to launch in the fall, is led in part by longtime National Geographic executive Mark Bauman. The endeavor has received funding from tech entrepreneur Brian Edelman who runs RAIN, a firm that specializes in helping companies develop voice technology software.

RAIN lists on its website tech companies it has worked with in the past such as Amazon, Google and Microsoft.

Bauman told CNBC in an interview on Friday that Edelman was part of a series A funding round worth over $10 million. The other investor in the company is International Media Investments, a fund based out of the United Arab Emirates with a portfolio that includes other media ventures including The National, Euronews and Sky News Arabia.

Edelman’s LinkedIn page says he’s CEO and founding partner at RAIN. His company’s website notes it has offices in New York, Utah and Washington state. Bauman told CNBC that Edelman himself has investments around the globe, with a focus on technology and new media. Bauman also noted Edelman has done some work in the Middle East.

Edelman’s investment in the company gives a glimpse into how some executives see value in digital news businesses that have seen growth over the past year.

At the start of the coronavirus pandemic, CNBC digital posted a record 115 million unique visitors in March 2020 alone. The New York Times reported last April that traffic to its news site grew by more than 50 percent, as did The Washington Post’s. Saudi Arabia is funding a yet to be announced digital news site.

Bauman referred all other questions about Edelman’s investment to the tech entrepreneur. An email to RAIN was not returned.

Axios first reported on the new venture and International Media Investments being part of the recent round of funding but did not have the detail on Edelman’s investment.

Bauman confirmed to CNBC that he will be the president and CEO of the yet to be officially named news outlet and Laura McGann, who had stints at Politico and Vox.com, will take the lead on editorial. They will be reporting to board members Madhulika Sikka, David Ensor, Chris Isham, John Defterios and Alberto Fernandez. All of the board members have extensive experience in news and politics.

The job postings for the soon to be launched digital news business gives a glimpse into the topics readers will see on the site.

For instance, the company is hiring a reporter to cover China, with the goal of  “identifying the most important and interesting angles and issues, ranging from trade to territorial ambition; from climate change to the Belt & Road Initiative; and the many facets of the U.S.-China relationship,” according to the job posting.

A reporter covering politics and government “will be responsible for covering how existing shortcomings in the American political system and new attacks on it are posing a profound threat to the future of representative and responsive government in the United States.”

They also have a job for a misinformation reporter that will “cover the rise of misinformation, one of the most influential phenomena driving our public discourse and shaping our lives.”

Categories
Business

Ford invests $1 billion in German electrical car plant

Ford invests $1 billion in German electric vehicle plant

GEORGES GOBET | AFP | Getty Images

Ford is investing $ 1 billion in an electric vehicle production facility in Cologne. The European branch of the automotive giant is committed to going all-in for electric vehicles in the coming years.

In the plans announced on Wednesday morning, Ford said that its entire range of passenger cars in Europe would be “emission-free, fully electric or plug-in hybrid” by mid-2026 and an “all-electric” offering by 2030.

By investing in Cologne, the company is updating an existing assembly plant and converting it into a facility that focuses on the production of electric vehicles.

“Today’s announcement to rebuild our plant in Cologne, where we have been operating in Germany for 90 years, is one of the most significant that Ford has made in over a generation,” said Stuart Rowley, President of Ford of Europe in a statement .

“It underscores our commitment to Europe and a modern future, with electric vehicles at the heart of our growth strategy,” added Rowley.

The company also wants its commercial vehicle segment in Europe to be emission-free, plug-in hybrid or fully electric by 2024.

A “transformative” decade

With governments around the world announcing plans to move away from diesel and gasoline vehicles, Ford, along with several other major automakers, is looking to expand its electric offering and challenge companies like Elon Musk’s Tesla.

Earlier this week, Jaguar Land Rover announced that its Jaguar brand will be fully electric by 2025. The company, which belongs to Tata Motors, also said its Land Rover segment will introduce six “all-electric variants” over the next 5 years.

South Korean automaker Kia will launch its first dedicated electric vehicle this year. The German Volkswagen Group is investing around 35 billion euros in battery-electric vehicles and aims to bring around 70 fully electric models onto the market by 2030.

Last month, the CEO of Daimler told CNBC that the automotive industry was “in the midst of a change”.

“In addition to the things that we know well – to be honest, building the most coveted cars in the world – there are two technological trends on which we are doubling down: electrification and digitization,” Ola Källenius told CNBC’s Annette Weisbach.

The Stuttgart-based company has “invested billions in these new technologies,” he added, explaining that they would “drive our path to carbon-free driving.” This decade, he continued, was “transformative”.

Categories
World News

Apple invests $10 million in Harlem Capital VC agency

Apple invests $10 million in Harlem Capital VC firm

Early-stage venture capital firm Harlem Capital is receiving a $ 10 million investment as part of Apple’s Diversity Push.

Apple announced the investment on Wednesday as part of its plan to dedicate $ 100 million to racial justice and justice.

CEO Tim Cook originally announced the Racial Justice and Justice Initiative in June as one of several corporate responses to civil unrest following the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.

The funding will come over the next two decades and will help Harlem Capital achieve its goal of investing in 1,000 diverse companies in 20 years.

“We always try to get capital in relation to the population in the hands of the people,” said Jarrid Tingle, managing partner of Harlem Capital, in an interview on “Squawk Alley” of CNBC on Thursday.

The company currently has 21 investments in 11 cities and nine industries. Forty-three percent of companies are run entirely by women, and 47 percent by black or Latin American CEOs.

Companies in the company’s portfolio include black media company Blavity and government platform GovPredict.

The company previously received a portion of PayPal’s $ 50 million investment to fill the venture capital financing gap that black and Latin American entrepreneurs are facing.

According to a Crunchbase Diversity Spotlight report for 2020, the founders of Black and Latino accounted for only 2.6% of the total $ 87.3 billion in funding towards the end of 2020, though dollar amounts are increasing every year.

However, Tingle remained optimistic that the tide would turn.

“The time will come,” said Tingle. “The challenge is that they didn’t really get those opportunities until 2013 or 2014, so they never got the chance to get to the point where they would go public.”

While some experts point out a pipeline issue, Tingle said he doesn’t face it when identifying companies with different leadership skills. When Harlem Capital started an investment search, they found 200 women, black and Latino-run companies that had independently raised over $ 1 million.

“Our bet at Harlem Capital is that helping these entrepreneurs help them build businesses, create wealth, hire different people and then invest back when they are successful, and that happens,” said Tingle. “But we also believe that you cannot be what you cannot see.”