Good morning!
Sadly, this will be the last VBT Newsletter from me to hit your inboxes. I’d like to say thanks to everyone who’s been reading over the last year, it’s been insanely fun! Let’s stay in touch, @Ewolkstein.
This edition features:
More than 1,000 tech jobs are slated for Downtown Miami
The 30% app store tax is collapsing
There’s a “Grand Theft Auto” trilogy coming in November
Deloitte released the fourth edition of its State of AI in the Enterprise report
And Microsoft reversed a controversial change
It’s Monday, October 25, 2021.
1. #MiamiTech
More than 1,000 tech jobs are slated for Downtown Miami. Here’s who they could hire (Miami Inno)
Seventeen businesses are committed to bringing 1,858 jobs to Miami over the next three years, according to the Miami Downtown Development Authority, including 1,069 technology positions. The DDA told Miami Inno that 286 of those jobs have been created at this point.
The economic development group recruited those companies through its "Follow the Sun" campaign, which offers up to $50,000 in cash incentives and support to businesses that relocate to or expand downtown. Those new jobs pay an average salary of $128,000, 96% above the city of Miami's average salary of $65,000.
The Follow the Sun incentives are open to businesses with at least 10 employees that earn a minimum salary of $80,000. Participating companies can earn up to $500 per employee for the first 50 people hired in Miami; $350 per employee for the next 50, and $250 per employee for each job created over 100. Companies can receive up to $150,000 over a three-year period.
The campaign offers an additional $125 per employee if the new hire received a degree from a university or technical school based in Miami-Dade County. Employers can also receive $125 per employee if they hire someone who was previously unemployed or earning less than a living wage, or if they hire someone who lives within the Miami DDA district, an area that includes downtown Miami's Central Business District and the Brickell Financial District.
So far, the Miami DDA has deployed $940,000 in economic incentives since the Follow the Sun campaign's launch in September 2020. The agency did not confirm the names of the 17 companies approved for funding, citing confidentiality in accordance with Florida law.
2. App Store
The 30% app store tax is collapsing (Protocol)
Google made a major announcement last week regarding its Play Store commission, and in doing so it dealt what may be a major blow to the standard 30% cut the company and its rival Apple have struggled to defend in recent years.
While both companies compete for developer talent and mobile app revenue, both Apple and Google have always agreed on one important point: a flat 30% commission on all digital goods, with only a few exceptions. Google is now breaking stride with Apple.
Google will now charge a flat 15% for certain apps. Qualifying will be those that rely on subscription billing, as well as some media apps like music streaming services and e-book sellers. The new rate takes effect on Jan. 1.
This is just the latest knock against the 30% cut. Apple and Google have fought for years to maintain the arrangement, knowing that many developers, especially mobile gaming and media firms, were growing disgruntled. Yet the last few years have seen that once-standard commission rate under full-blown assault.
3. Gaming
“Grand Theft Auto” trilogy coming in November (Axios)
Rockstar is celebrating the 20th anniversary of "Grand Theft Auto III" with news that its upcoming bundle, "Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy — The Definitive Edition," launches Nov. 11. The Definitive Edition includes modern upgrades to its controls, visuals, and more.
The Trilogy — which packages "Grand Theft Auto III," "Grand Theft Auto: Vice City," and "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas" — will be available via PlayStation Store, the Microsoft Store on Xbox, Nintendo eShop, and the Rockstar Games Launcher. A physical release is set for Dec. 7 on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 4.
The “Grand Theft Auto” series is the best-selling videogame franchise of all time. "Grand Theft Auto III" was Rockstar’s breakout success, dominating as the best-selling game in 2001 and paving the way for open-world games. Rockstar is also planning "special surprises" for the anniversary of "GTA III" in "GTA Online."
4. AI
AI-driven strategies are becoming mainstream, survey finds (VentureBeat)
Deloitte just released the fourth edition of its State of AI in the Enterprise report, which surveyed 2,857 business decision-makers between March and May 2021 about their perception of AI technologies. Few organizations claim to be completely AI-powered, the responses show, but a significant percentage are beginning to adopt practices that could get them there.
A PwC whitepaper found that 52% percent of companies have accelerated their AI adoption plans, with global spending on AI systems set to jump from $85.3 billion in 2021 to over $204 billion in 2025, according to IDC.
However, only 40% of respondents to the Deloitte survey agreed that their employer has an enterprise-wide AI strategy in place. While 66% view AI as critical to their success, only 38% believe that their use of AI differentiates them from competitors and only about one-third say that they’ve adopted “leading operational practices” for AI.
Organizations with an enterprise-wide strategy and leaders who communicate a bold vision are nearly twice as likely to achieve high-level outcomes, Deloitte reports. Furthermore, businesses that document and enforce MLOps processes are twice as likely to achieve their goals “to a high degree,” four times more likely to be prepared for AI risks, and three times more confident in their ability to deploy AI products “in a trustworthy way.”
MLOps, a compound of “machine learning” and “information technology operations,” is a newer discipline involving collaboration between data scientists and IT professionals with the aim of productizing machine learning algorithms. MLOps essentially aims to capture and expand on previous operational practices while extending these practices to manage the unique challenges of machine learning.
5. Open-Source
Microsoft reverses controversial .NET change after open-source community outcry (The Verge)
Microsoft is reversing a decision to remove a key feature from its upcoming .NET 6 release, after a public outcry from the open-source community. Microsoft angered the .NET open source community earlier this week by removing a key part of Hot Reload in the upcoming release of .NET 6, a feature that allows developers to modify source code while an app is running and immediately see the results.
It’s a feature many had been looking forward to using in Visual Studio Code and across multiple platforms until Microsoft made a controversial last-minute decision to lock it to Visual Studio 2022 which is a mostly paid product that’s limited to Windows. Microsoft has now reversed the change following a backlash, and anger inside the company from many of Microsoft’s own employees.
Microsoft’s blog post doesn’t address this controversial decision. Instead, it suggests it was simply a mistake to remove the code instead of simply disabling it, and not a business decision. While the reversal will be a welcome one for the .NET community, the explanation and circumstances around this incident won’t sit easy with those who value transparency around such decisions.
6. Funding, IPOs, M&As
💰 Brex Lands $300 Million: The fast-growing San Francisco-based fintech is now valued at over $12.3 billion.
👩💻 Rippling Brings In $250 Million: The HR tech company was founded by Parker Conrad. It’s now valued at $6.5 billion.
🤖 SoftBank In Talks To Sell Robotics Business: SoftBank owns a Paris-based robotics business and is in talks to offload it.
👩💻 Olo Acquires Wisely For $187 Million: Olo’s acquisition of the customer intelligence platform is expected to go through soon.
☁️ Rossum Raises $100 Million Series A: Rossum is used by enterprises to automatically process and understand inbound documents.
⚕️ Zerigo Health Beams Up $43 Million: Zerigo Health is an FDA-approved maker of ultraviolet light therapy to treat diseases.
🪙 XanPool Raises $27 Million Series A: The Hong Kong-based fintech startup has a decentralized payment network.
☁️ Metrolink.ai Scoops Up $22 Million: Tel Aviv-based Metrolink.ai has a data transformation platform.
📷 Deep North Brings In $16.7 Million: The startup uses AI to track people from camera footage.
☁️ Hyperproof Lands $16.5 Million: The compliance software provider has raised an A round led by Toba Capital.
🚘 AirGarage Raises $12.5 Million: AirGarage is a full-stack parking operator. It raised funds led by a16z.
☁️ Toolio Bags $8 Million: New York-based Toolio has cloud-based merchandising and inventory planning software.
☁️ Socratic Nabs $3 Million Seed: The startup wants to bring data to bear on a developer-focused task management system.
Cheers!
Eric
#BeAmbitious