Overseas:
1. Amazon plans to close its marketplace for Chinese consumers
2. Salesforce is buying MapAnything, a startup that helps companies build location-based workflows
3. Twitter acqui-hires highlight-sharing app Highly
4. Lyric raises $160 million in debt and equity to power the next generation of hospitality
5. Esports organization Gen.G just raised $46 million, and its investors include Will Smith
6. Acting as the data integrator between hospitals and digital health apps brings Redox $33 million
7. Armory Square Ventures Raises $31M To Invest In Upstate NY
8. Enterprise events management platform Bizzabo scores $27M Series D
9. Aidoc, the AI solution for medical imaging analysis, raises $27M Series B
10. Alsid raises $14.7 million to secure your Active Directory installation
11. Airbase launches with $7M Series A to simplify spending control systems
12. Slingshot Aerospace Raises $5M For AI-Driven Data Analysis
13. Co-Star raises $5 million to bring its astrology app to Android
14. NuvoAir raises $3M to help patients monitor respiratory diseases with AI
15. Sweden’s Engaging Care raises €2.5M seed to scale patient communication and improve outcomes
16. NatWest unveils biometric payment system for businesses
17. How artificial intelligence is making better basketball shooters, with just your iPhone
China:
1. WeChat Leads the Future of Luxury Social E-commerce with Mini Program
2. Huawei to Work with Navinfo on 5G Autopilot, Internet of Vehicles (IoV)
3. Taobao Food 淘宝吃货 channel officially launched, will release 150 city food maps
4. Meituan 美团 downsizes fresh grocery business a year after launch
5. VIPKID seeks to raise $500 million in financing, with a target valuation of up to $6 billion
8. Yu’e Bao 余额宝 operator seeks diversification in overseas markets
Cross-border:
1. Alibaba Teams Inked a 3-Year Deal With Singapore Tourism Board to Attract More Tourists
2. TikTok disappears from India’s Google and Apple app stores
3. Graph analytics platform TigerGraph to expand Chinese presence in 2019
Mobile:
1. FCC set to block China Mobile bid to provide U.S. services
Blockchain:
1. Japan plans to increase internal security in crypto exchanges
2. Coinbase launches in 11 countries with crypto-to-crypto conversions only
3. Proof of Capital is a new $50M blockchain fund that’s backed by HTC
Emerging Market:
1. Myanmar lending startup Daung Capital raises series A ahead of fintech boom
2. A fast-growing Vietnamese ecommerce site Sendo is leaping into education
Cover picture credits to chozan.