Munch.
Concept: Doordash but for Tic Tacs. Target addressable market is probably like $7 bucks. But who knows? I ordered a meal off of Doordash last night and somehow paid around $19 for a burger. If that can fly, anything can.
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🥄 Today's Spoonful
Tesla is forced to recall 158,000 vehicles 🚨
Last night, the feds crashed Tesla’s $800B celebration party by asking Musk and Mates to recall a chunk of their EV units due to touchscreen failures.
More specifically, the NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation found that the media control unit failures responsible for the touchscreen malfunctions are also responsible for ensuring that features like defogging, defrosting, and chimes for various signals work. I’ll spare you the details, but if you’re interested in learning more, then head on over here.
Do keep this in mind as more and more PR is given to EVs. While 158,000 vehicles may not seem like a ton, there were only about 7.2 million units out in the wild at the end of 2019!
Airbnb nixes all bookings in DC during inauguration week
The move was supposedly made in response to various local, state, and federal officials asking people not to travel to the capital. However, in Airbnb’s announcement, it also noted reports of armed militias and known hate groups traveling to DC, aiming to disrupt the Inauguration. In fact, since the announcement, it looks like the company has banned several individuals who are/were either associated with known hate groups or otherwise involved in the criminal activity at the Capitol Building. 😌
Webflow cashes in on a $140M Series B
Webflow — that no-code website hosting platform with an obnoxiously unusable CRM — just raised a massive Series B, led by Accel and Silversmith. It’s no surprise that Accel led the round, after committing to several other no-code platforms like DashDash. In fact, Steven Loughlin (partner at Accel) even said the following:
“…the business necessity of having to move fast has led to this explosion of turning people into citizen developers, who normally wouldn’t have the ability to build these applications.”
That’s right. For just $19.99/month, you too can become a citizen developer.
Uber, Moderna, Dippin’ Dots, and Pfizer: One, big, happy family
Say what?
Uber and Moderna announced last night that they would be partnering on a number of initiatives centered around COVID-19 vaccination. While the partnership seems to extend simply to vaccine awareness at the moment, additional options being evaluated include :
Incorporating ride scheduling directly into the immunization appointment process
Integrating with vaccine providers’ systems to text reminders
Enabling patients to book rides in advance of their first or second immunization appointments.
One of the major roadblocks for the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine is literally a matter of logistics. Pfizer’s vaccine, for example, needs to be stored at a frosty -94°F (which is 34-ish degrees in Celsius) ❄️ in order to remain efficacious.
Luckily, businesses like Uber and Dippin’ Dots are around to give Mama Moderna and Papa Pfizer a chance. Dippin’ Dots in particular operates a series of freezers that could keep Pfizer’s vaccine intact as it’s distributed nationwide. Their freezers which have to dip (heh) down to -122°F to help the company’s flagship product maintain its shape could prove to be key for vaccinating the United States.
Dippin’ Dots… to the rescue?
🥣 Cereal of the Day
Look at this branding 😩 I mean, what color is that? Chartreuse? I don’t know.
But I do know that Moku is a sick company with a sick product line. Let’s check em out.
Moku Jerky looks like bacon, tastes like jerky, and is made from ‘shrooms.
No, silly, not those shrooms 😏
Moku uses King Oyster mushrooms, along with tomato, pineapple, coconut, chickpeas, and maple syrup, to create their alternative meat jerky. Not only is their product meat-free, it’s also Gluten-free, non-GMO, and soy-free.
Laundry list recipes like that often make you wonder just how effectively alternative meat products can sub in for traditional meats.
The answer is… surprisingly effectively.
Would you believe me if I told you that the average American consumed over 200 pounds of red meat and poultry a year in 2018? That’s a ridiculous amount of meat.
And it’s not sustainable! And that’s where companies like Moku come in. But on top of reducing unhealthy meat consumption (with a nifty jerky product, no less), they also provide options for more sustainable protein choices and even efficient supply chain.
Don’t just take it from me — take it from the dozens of VCs out there that are bullish on the industry and taking chances on advances in plant-based and cell-based alternatives. Even on the consumer side, we’re seeing awesome retail partnerships and massive IPOs. It’s a big year for meatless meats!
The other day, I spent a good chunk of Cereal Intern real estate talking about alternative meats, supply chain innovation, and the effect COVID-19 would have on the industry. Check it out here!
Coolness meter: ‘shroooooooooooms
🍳 A Healthy Serving of...
I was browsing through some old multimedia the other day when I came across a video of younger Jeremy reciting a poem. (No, I will not share it!)
I was wobbling at the knees, gripping my paper with inhuman finger strength, and speaking in a shaky voice. In fact, I was shaking so much that you could see my bowl cut bouncing up and down from the back of the classroom.
Worst of all, poor, eighth-grade, 5’7” Jeremy didn’t know at the time that he definitely wasn’t growing that much taller.
But fast forward 8 years and I’m now a public speaking coach at Middlebury, where I also finished as a runner-up in a school-wide public speaking competition! And I’m 5’8” and proud.
The point here is not to gloat about how much I’ve changed, but it is to show you:
Lesson #18: Chances are if you think you have a weakness, it’s actually an asset, a strength, or something you can turn into one.
While I was deathly afraid of public speaking as a child, being on stage and in front of an audience has now become integral to my identity as not only a performer, but also an operator who enjoys building in public and as a writer with consistent viewership.
Don’t let your own notions of weakness define your limits, and definitely don’t let external factors or communities do so!
And as a token of appreciation for reading this far, here’s that video of me reciting my poem :)
That’s all I’ve got for you today, team. Thanks for joining in as always! 😎
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Munch.
The Cereal Intern.019