The Crescent Newsleter #16
Web3 x social media, a student newsletter feature, and more
*ICYMI, here's last week’s issue.
Good morning! Welcome back to this week’s issue of the Crescent Newsletter. Here’s what we’ve cooked up for the week:
Partner highlight on Web3 and social media
LA-based music and food-tech startups on the rise
An upcoming student newsletter feature
Sincerely,
The Crescent Team
*If you’re a student building something cool, want to join Crescent, or just want to chat, reach out to us at ops@crescentfund.vc.
Crescent Partner Highlights
On Web3 and Social Media
Giant tech companies like Twitter and Facebook own a lot of user data, providing them with tremendous power, such as the ability to ban users based on their terms. As awareness of this has grown, there’s been greater user pushback — particularly from those who make a living off of creating content on these platforms.
One potential solution may lie in the realm of Web3, by storing one’s online presence on a decentralized blockchain. Crescent Partner Anupam Batra writes more about the potential for this type of technology moving forward.
Peer Into Our Campuses
Here’s an inside look at what’s been happening at our campuses:
USC:
Yelp meets Instagram; USC alum Nathan Levitt has launched TruDine, a social media app that allows foodies to share their favorite dishes and local restaurants, into public beta.
UCI:
Agricultural-tech startup Radgard is gearing up for UC Davis’s 22nd annual Big Bang! Business Competition.
Newsletter Feature: The Serial Startup Student
The Serial Startup Student is a tri-weekly newsletter authored by Pomona College junior Sophia Augustine that aims to make the world of VC and technology startups readily available to all.
Though the newsletter is still in its early stages, we are excited to see where the Serial Startup Student is headed.
More from Sophia:
You are a college student who has repeatedly heard the buzzwords "venture capital", "boot-strapping", "Silicon Valley", and "unicorn" tossed about.
You are interested, but also super busy and don't have time to read an exhaustive 1300+ word newsletter every day.
The Serial Startup Student is a free newsletter for busy students dedicated to making the worlds of VC and technology startups accessible to everybody with short and digestible 1 minute reads.
New posts Monday, Wednesday & Friday. We only take up 3 minutes in your inbox every week!
The Southern Californian Tech Landscape
Newport Beach-based Chipotle has just launched The Cultivate Next Fund, investing $50 million in early-stage food-tech startups. The food-tech sector raised $39.3 billion in funding in 2021, with many new startups looking to help the restaurant industry address supply and labor shortages.
Superjoi is a platform that enables fans to contribute to and invest in upcoming projects from their favorite content creators. The West Hollywood-based fintech startup recently raised $2.5 million in pre-seed funding and plans to launch in May.
Music-tech startup Stem works with independent record labels to provide musicians and artists with financial management tools to oversee revenues and payments. Stem has raised $20 million in its most recent round of funding.
Career Opportunities
*If you want a job or listing featured in this newsletter, please reach out to us at ops@crescentfund.vc.
Startups
Software Dev + Engineering:
Marketing + Content:
Advertise Purple (Full-time)
Outer (Internship)
StackCommerce (Internship)
Product:
FIGS (Full-time)
Collab (Internship)
StackCommerce (Internship)
VC:
Anthos Capital (Internship)
Knockout Capital LLC (Internship)
*If you’re interested in helping out Southern California student founders through advising or becoming an LP feel free to reach out to ops@crescentfund.vc.
Thanks for checking out this week’s newsletter. We’ll see you all next time.
Signing off,
Crescent Fund