Hey Reader,

Altitude Edition 018 is hot off the press from Cirrus Capital Partners ♾, the better way to finance your company.

As usual, here's our bird's eye 🦅 view of the most exciting news and insights around...

• Successful Companies and Founding Teams
• VC, PE, M&A, and Credit Transactions
• Growth Metrics, Benchmarks, Charts & Data
• New and Emergent Technologies
• Productivity Hacks

Created for founders, bootstrappers, VCs, angel investors, marketers, technologists, executives, and operators—everywhere.

Let’s get into it:

CIRRUS Updates

SaaStr was a BLAST!

We met some rad people IRL with special shoutout to Fuelfinance, Founders First Capital Partners, Deel, eighty2i, SaaS Capital, mmhmm and UppLabs LLC for the great company. The conversations haven't stopped and its already been a few weeks past!

Until next year...

The Courts Spare No One...

​Tiktok's Future Hangs in the Balance ​

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TikTok's future is uncertain in the U.S. as its legal battles intensify in federal court.

The platform faces scrutiny over national security concerns, with lawmakers pushing for a potential ban due to its ties to China. They are fighting to remain operational in the U.S., arguing that its data privacy policies are robust and that a ban would harm millions of American users and businesses that rely on the app. The outcome could set a precedent for future decisions on foreign-owned tech companies operating in the U.S.

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​The OG Growth Hacker, Sean Ellis, Reveals his Secrets. ​

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Sean Ellis is known for coining the term “growth hacking,” developing key frameworks like the ICE prioritization and the Sean Ellis Test for product-market fit (PMF). In this Substack, he shares insights on growth strategies from his time at Dropbox and Eventbrite, focusing on increasing activation, retention, and selecting the right North Star metric. The "Sean Ellis Test" measures PMF by gauging how disappointed users would be if they lost the product. His methods remain foundational for founders and growth teams alike.

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Show me the money, and I'll show you the behavior.

​The Biggest Rounds Of September​

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This week's largest funding rounds were in green technology and biotechnology, with companies like Seran and Twelve leading the way. Seran, a biomanufacturing company, raised a significant round to expand its capacity, while Twelve, which focuses on carbon capture technology, secured a major investment to scale its operations.

This round is a nice contrast from August rounds, which were AI heavy with defense tech startup Anduril leading big with a $1.5 billion round, followed by AI semiconductor company Groq’s $640 million.

Apart from the continued interest in AI, the trend suggests a renewed interest in defense, cybersecurity, as well as biotech innovations, with increasing valuations in these sectors. With two major international wars happening, it's not surprise to me that there is a strong appetite for innovation and tech-driven solutions across these industries to address pressing global challenges.
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​Keith Rabois says Miami is still a great place for startups, even as a16z leaves​

Keith Rabois, a prominent Miami-based investor, defends the city's startup ecosystem despite Andreessen Horowitz’s (a16z) decision to move its Miami office. He emphasizes that Miami remains a top location for startups, particularly due to its favorable business climate, lack of state taxes, and rising appeal to founders. Rabois dismisses the departure of a16z as insignificant and highlights Miami's growing community of successful entrepreneurs and investors as evidence of its enduring relevance.

I mean, palm trees and great Latin food doesn't hurt either.

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​Mark Zuckerberg is done apologizing​

Tech Marky Mark declares that he’s finished apologizing for past mistakes and is focused on Meta's future.

He reflects on the scrutiny Meta (formerly Facebook) has faced, especially regarding user data and privacy issues, but asserts that the company has learned and evolved. He also teases some of Meta’s future projects in the metaverse and AI, stating that he is confident about the company’s direction and less concerned with appeasing critics.

Let's just all remember not to bring up the past. Mark's trying to move on with our relationship and be better, right?

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​Mark Zuckerberg tries to buy Instagram ​

In this edition of Tech Emails "Mark Zuckerberg tries to buy Instagram" outlines email exchanges between Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram's co-founder, Kevin Systrom, in 2012.

Zuckerberg expresses his interest in acquiring Instagram, emphasizing the benefits of integrating Instagram’s photo-sharing capabilities into Facebook while maintaining its independence. Systrom, however, raises concerns about losing Instagram's autonomy and its distinct user experience. Strategic considerations and delicate negotiations were tantamount to power play between the two. It's fascinating in retrospect to pull the curtain back and read one of the most significant tech acquisitions of the past decade.

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Recent Term Sheets and Transactions from Cirrus

This newsletter is incomplete without a cool graph

The Carta Q1 2024 VC Fund Performance report (the first of its kind!) analyzes data from 1,803 U.S.-based venture funds across vintage years 2017-2022. There's been a slowdown in capital deployment, with 2022 vintage funds deploying only 43% of committed capital after 24 months. The report also notes declining graduation rates for seed startups and challenges in delivering distributions to LPs.

Smaller funds, typically under $25 million, dominate the data, reflecting the competitive environment and slower fundraising landscape since 2022 due to economic uncertainty. But despite the challenges, top-performing funds like AI and deep tech continue to attract capital.
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Our Visit To The Market

We want to note that as of Monday, the SOFR rate has changed to 4.83%, which is higher than the long-term average of 2.25%.

Federal Reserve's recent 50 basis point rate cut is intended to stimulate economic growth by making borrowing cheaper, but could also lead to inflationary pressures.

Investors seem largely unconcerned by the central bank’s forecasts. While the Fed signaled that large cuts aren't the new normal, markets are betting on further rate reductions. This disconnect reflects growing uncertainty about future inflation, economic conditions, and long-term interest rates. Despite these concerns, speculative stocks and lower-rated bonds surged, with investors embracing the Fed's dovish stance, even as potential risks like a recession loom.

This broader impact trickles down to potential effects on stocks, bonds and housing, and future monetary policy decisions.

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Fresh Fundings 🥧

Notable Equity Rounds from big to small

​SafetyCulture, a global workplace operations platform, closed a $165 million funding round, bringing its valuation to $2.2 billion. The round was led by Insight Partners, with participation from existing investors like Index Ventures and Blackbird. The company plans to use the funds to accelerate growth, invest in product development, and expand its team. SafetyCulture’s tools, such as iAuditor and EdApp, are used by companies worldwide to improve workplace safety, quality, and efficiency.

Travel tech startup Hotel Engine has been valued at $2.1 billion after its latest fundraising round. The Denver-based company, which offers a booking platform for businesses to manage hotel stays, raised $200 million in new funding. The round was led by funds and accounts managed by Blackstone Growth, with participation from existing investors. Hotel Engine plans to use the funds to expand its product offerings and enhance customer experience, capitalizing on the growing demand for corporate travel solutions.

​Akur8, an AI-powered insurance pricing platform, raised $120 million in a Series C funding round led by EQT Growth. The round also included participation from existing investors like BlackFin Capital Partners and MTech Capital. Akur8 plans to use the funds to accelerate global expansion and further enhance its platform, which helps insurers optimize pricing models through machine learning, aiming to improve efficiency and transparency in the insurance industry.

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Notable Credit Transactions from big to small

​Turning Rock Partners provided $30 million in expansion capital to 160 Driving Academy, a trucking school network. The funding will be used to expand the company's training facilities and capabilities, addressing the growing demand for commercial drivers. This investment supports the academy’s mission to meet the increasing need for trained truck drivers across the U.S.

​Bia Energy secured a debt financing round of $13.2 million. The company, known for its focus on providing healthier energy drinks, aims to utilize these funds to accelerate growth, expand distribution, and further develop its product line in the competitive energy drink market.

​SLR Business Credit provided a $2 million line of credit to 904 Security, a company specializing in security services. This credit facility will support the company’s working capital needs and help fuel its growth as it expands its operations in the security industry.

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Until our next flight,

Ryan, Sutheshna & your friends at Cirrus​

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