Amazon to acquire iRobot in $1.7B all-cash deal – TechCrunch

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TechCrunch Top 3

• Double “ring” ceremony: Amazon and iRobot’s relationship went to the next level today when the pair announced they were getting hitched, Brian reports. Robot vacuum mapping your home takes on new meaning.
• Double the number of layoffs: Natasha M noticed a trend among startup layoffs — that certain companies were making multiple announcements in quick succession — and got to work. She outlines what this means and why it’s troubling. 
• Double the entertainmentThe streaming world is also experiencing a pair-up. The merging of Discovery+ and HBO Max will be a big deal for Discovery+ fans. Ivan writes.

Startups and VC

• Sparking interest in electricityBeacon Power was given a boost by new capital to help improve electricity access in sub-Saharan African countries. Tage writes.
• Making upFollowing a policy update that included third-party Microsoft tracking scripts and Internet privacy company DuckDuckGo, Microsoft is now on more friendly terms. Natasha L reports.
• Million-dollar milestone: TechCrunch+ is now available Alex examines Databricks’ news that it has reached $1 billion in annual run rate and what that means for its valuation.
• Magnetic attractionZenno Astronautics has raised capital to expand its technology for moving spacecraft using electromagnets. Aria writes.
• It’s getting personal: Kenya’s shift to protecting personal data will have some startup implications. Annie These are the possible outcomes.
• More action out-of-this worldLiveEO received some additional funding to help further develop its big-data approach to make raw geospatial data from satellites more useful. Ingrid reports.

How to run growth marketing through a recession

Credits for the image: Mihaela Rosu Getty Images

Janet Yellen, U.S. Treasury secretary, died last month. said the economy is “in a period of transition,” on the grounds that “we have a very strong labor market. When you are creating almost 400,000 jobs a month, that is not a recession.”

Today, we found out that the U.S. added 528,000 additional jobs last month and that the unemployment rate is now at 3.5%. But, for many tech professionals, this is not a significant distinction: According to layoffs.fyi 467 startups have fired 64,518 employees by 2022.

Marketing can’t cure everything that ails a company, but it is the easiest channel to make iterative changes that produce immediate results.

In his latest TechCrunch+ column, Jonathan Martinez says it’s time to “re-forecast, re-prioritize and refine” strategies to move key growth metrics like ARPU and LTV.

He uses multiple examples to show how companies can project their revenue over shorter time frames.

“If new channels and major experiments were in the picture, it’s probably best to shelve those for when the markets recover,” he advises.

TechCrunch+ is our membership program that helps founders and startups get ahead. Register here.)

Big Tech Inc.

• Part 1,254: Elon Musk vs. TwitterTwitter has gone a little snarky. Ivan, in its response to Elon Musk’s countersuit. It doesn’t do it justice for me to lay it all out — it’s better if you just take it all in yourself. You can also follow us on Twitter. Zack According to reports, the security flaw was fixed by social media giants.
• A place at the table: India doesn’t want to be left out of merger and acquisition deals, so it has crafted some antitrust proposals aimed at getting the country on par with other regions, Manish writes.
• We’re all “Super”: We are only a hundred people. That’s how many influencers are getting a sneak peek at Meta’s new livestream platform, Super, Aisha reports.
• Don’t be shy: Rebecca discusses five takeaways from Tesla’s Cyber Roundup, also known as its annual shareholder meeting. Some attendees suffered blisters on their feet.