While news and transcript mentions have declined, patent activity about chatbots has held steady. IBM leads the pack in chatbot patents, followed by Microsoft and Kik Interactive.
Funding to chatbots has mostly been relegated to early-stage companies (seed/angel & Series A), with few breaking out despite many receiving initial funding.
What’s next for wellness? From private labels to smart refrigerators to personalized, next-gen nutrition, we take a look at the top 18 wellness trends to watch in 2018. See them all here.
Rest now, sweet prince
After running a successful Indiegogo campaign and raising over $60M in VC funding, the company behind Jibo the social robot is shutting down.
A video was posted yesterday showing Jibo the robot himself announcing his impending death.
Now valued at $1.5B, Chime is yet another unicorn added to our killer speaker lineup. We look forward to digging into the company’s plans for growth and efforts to reach underbanked and frustrated consumers.
Save over $2K with our group ticket here (more details coming soon on stages 2 and 3), or save $500 off a single ticket with code newunicorn.
Around the world
Total annual global VC funding increased by 21% to $207B in 2018. Deal activity rose 10% to 14,247.
We take a look at the most active global VCs from Q4’18. Check them out here.
Wag if you love wellness
Wellness isn’t just for humans anymore — it’s seeping into the world of pets with high-grade food, fitness trackers, and even cannabis-based supplements.
Pet pampering is one of the Experimental trends we discuss in our new What’s Next In Wellness report, which you can download here.
Get that bread
What does perfect toast look like to you?
Marie Claire
Per the hundreds of responses we got on Instagram, there are some clear favorites. It’s also unanimous that if you say J9, you are a psychopath.
Big tech loves unicorns
Facebook, Amazon, Microsoft, Google, and Apple have invested in unicorn companies across a wide range of industries, from diagnostics to ride-hailing to VR.