Analysis

May 23, 2019

Here's what you should read this week about European tech and startups

From big tech regulation to eating grasshoppers, here are the best reads picked by Sifted's team of reporters across Europe.


Smart thoughts

? Is Farfetch spending too much on customer acquisition? Great look at the luxury fashion platform from the Business of Fashion.

?‍♀️What should you do during your startup’s first 100 days? From the one and only Oussama Ammar.

? Do you want to regulate Big Tech? Ha, sorry, Europe has beat you to it.

? How to be a socially responsible founder. (If you don’t already know Sharmadean Reid, founder of beauty booking platform Beautystack, read this. If you do, you’re going to read anyway.)

? What financial institutions can, should and are doing to stop the vicious circle between poor financial health and poor mental health. From the brilliant Sarah Kocianski at 11:FS.

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?️ How to build a feminist city. Apolitical looks at initiatives to make urban environments from female-friendly from around the world — including (no surprise here) Sweden.

The big picture

?️ How Silicon Valley has gamed Europe’s privacy rules, from our friends at Politico.

?‍? What’s next for “cloud” kitchens? The FT’s Tim Bradshaw looks at the next big leap for the food delivery sector, following Deliveroo’s big raise this week. (€)

?German's are rich: Here is Europe's disposable income, mapped.

? The “agrifood” sector as a whole is seeing more activity at the earlier stages, as this new report highlights. AgFunder has identified $1.6bn of funding across 421 deals.

?? Why Greece — and its universities — are primed to become a thriving tech hub. (€)

The bizarre and brilliant

? French insect farm startup Ynsect has raised $125m: Its CEO eats guacamole with grasshoppers with Sifted and talks about the future of eating bugs.

? STOP EVERYTHING. This is the most important tale you will read all week. A British man has been hired by Elon Musk for his skills at tweeting sheep. Here is his story.

?Europe’s skeleton tech startups are 3D printing real bones.

? How automated decision systems work (explained via an avocado).