The number of corporations making either direct investments into startups or adding separate venture arms has grown steadily over the past few years. Now, a coterie of some of the most highly-valued startups is also joining in on the action.
Backed by big war chests, “unicorns” including Flipkart and Didi-Kuaidi, have participated in startup financings this year (in some cases, co-investing with their own investors). Others have partnered with their venture investors to launch investment funds. These include SkyFund, from DJI and Accel Partners; and TwilioFund, from Twilio and its venture investors DFJ, Bessemer Venture Partners, and Redpoint Ventures. Expensify, an automated expense-management startup backed by $25M in VC funding, actually launched its own corporate venture unit, Expensify Ventures, in July.
Using CB Insights data, we compiled a list of 15 startups that have received an investment from another currently private venture-backed startup or an entity affiliated with it in 2015 YTD. As the chart below highlights, startups have “gotten in” to other startups at all stages of the maturity spectrum.
| Company | Description | Startup Investor | Date | Round |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Online marketplace for home and room rentals |
|
Jul-15 | Series A |
| Zinka | Online marketplace for freight transportation booking |
|
Jun-15 | Series A |
|
Taxi-booking app |
 (Didi-Kuaidi) |
Aug-15 | Series E |
|
Mobile brand shopping app |
 (Snapchat) |
May-15 | Series B |
 |
Platform for tracking digital receipts |
|
Jul-15 | Seed VC |
|
On-demand drone services |
 (DJI-Accel) |
Jul-15 | Seed VC |
|
Mobile conference calling app |
 |
May-15 | Series A |
|
UAV inspection services for oil & gas |
 (Airware) |
May-15 | Seed VC |
|
Aerial data analysis and processing |
(Airware) |
Apr-15 | Seed VC |
| Tiger Brokers | Brokerage services for Chinese overseas investors |
|
Aug-15 | Series A |
|
P2P lending platform |
|
Apr-15 | Series C |
 (Lizhi.FM) |
Mobile app for radio and podcast programs |
|
Jan-15 | Series C |
|
Dining info and group-buying website |
|
Apr-15 | Series E |
|
Robot mobility equipment maker |
|
Apr-15 | Growth |
|
Cloud service platform & commercial and personal cloud storage |
|
Apr-15 | Series B |
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This report was created with data from CB Insights’ emerging technology insights platform, which offers clarity into emerging tech and new business strategies through tools like:
- Earnings Transcripts Search Engine & Analytics to get an information edge on competitors’ and incumbents’ strategies
- Patent Analytics to see where innovation is happening next
- Company Mosaic Scores to evaluate startup health, based on our National Science Foundation-backed algorithm
- Business Relationships to quickly see a company’s competitors, partners, and more
- Market Sizing Tools to visualize market growth and spot the next big opportunity