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Eric Feng : Analysis of PitchBook data since 2005 shows that in 2019, the number of enterprise-focused seed deals overtook consumer-focused seed deals for the first time   —  I recently wrote a recommendation letter for a former coworker who wanted to change careers by going back to school. from Techmeme https://ift.tt/2FdulWJ

Social media scandals dominate the list of the most-read news stories by the Tech desk this year. from RSSMix.com Mix ID 8290670 https://ift.tt/359u169

Huawei reported resilient revenue for 2019 on Tuesday as the embattled Chinese technology group continues to grow despite prolonged American campaign against its business, but cautioned that growth next year could prove more challenging. Eric Xu, Huawei’s rotating chairman, wrote in a New Year’s message to employees that the company’s revenue has topped 850 billion Chinese yuan ($122 billion) this year, a new record high for the Chinese group and an 18% increase over the previous year. Xu said Huawei, the second largest smartphone maker globally, sold 240 million handsets this year, up from 206 million last year. “These figures are lower than our initial projections, yet business remains solid and we stand strong in the face of adversity,” he wrote. He acknowledged that Huawei is confronting a “strategic and long-term” campaign against its business by the U.S. government . If the campaign persists for long, it would create even more “difficult” environment for the 32-year-old firm...

Brenda Goh / Reuters : Huawei's Rotating Chairman Eric Xu estimates the company's 2019 revenue grew 18% YoY to $122B, says it shipped 240M smartphones, but forecasts “difficult” 2020   —  SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Huawei Technologies on Tuesday said its full-year revenue would likely jump 18% in 2019 to 850 billion yuan … from Techmeme https://ift.tt/2ZBW7Wq

Bloomberg : Uber, Postmates sue CA to block AB5, days ahead of bill taking effect, say law unconstitutionally targets gig economy companies and benefits other industries   —  - Companies call labor rights measure unfair, unconstitutional  — A.B. 5 will qualify many contractors for employment benefits from Techmeme https://ift.tt/35cmpQn

Chris Welch / The Verge : Sonos should rethink its Trade Up program's “Recycle Mode”, which bricks old Sonos devices for a discount on newer ones, and consider a policy of reuse   —  An irreversible kill switch for a discount is a bad deal for the environment  —  Late last week, Sonos was called … from Techmeme https://ift.tt/2SFsamN

Funding for tech startups has been on an inevitable upswing for years, a result of a virtuous circle where wildly successful tech companies on the public markets whet the appetites of investors and investors’ backers to find more diamonds, a push met by a pull from the rush of talent with entrepreneurial aspirations out to put that money to work. 2019 has felt a bumper year in that longer trend, with 9-figure rounds ($100 million or more) and “unicorn” statuses so prevalent that the numbers have started to cease to be news items in themselves. With 2020 now just days away, a look at the 50 biggest funding rounds for start-ups in the past year draw out some trends. We’re pulling out the top five below for a closer look, but it’s interesting too to see some of the other trends emerging across the rest of the pack. Automotive remains a huge pull when it comes to raising big bucks: part of the reason is because the space is capital intensive, as it straddles both software and hardware (t...