We’re Relaunching (Again)

Hello Partiers!

Welcome to the new and improved How to Find a Party! We’re still focused on trends and happenings in consumer tech, media, and the creator economy, but we’re shifting things around.

When I first launched this blog, I wanted to write longer, in-depth articles, but I quickly realized that producing high-quality, long-form content on a recurring basis was unsustainable. As a result, How to Find a Party will be a weekly rundown of all things consumer tech, media, and the creator economy.

Don’t worry; I’m still going to write longer pieces, but they will live on Mirror rather than in a recurring newsletter. There, you can find my pieces on tech hype cycles, VC intern pay, and many others. This will give me enough time to produce work that meets my personal standards of quality. When I do post longer articles, you will be the first to know, as I’ll put previews in upcoming editions of How To Find a Party.

I appreciate your support and am excited to keep the party going!

Your Host and Resident Anti-Socialite,
Nia

Song of the Week

Lay Bankz is taking over my FYP, and this song is a certified bop.

News

Biden signed the TikTok ban into law. TikTok will have 270 days to sell the company. Earlier this week, the Senate passed the TikTok ban as a part of a series of foreign aid bills.

Don’t get too excited about the TikTok ban, Instagram - Gen Z still thinks you’re cheugy.

The former CEO of Barclays wants to compete with TikTok. Love that for him.

The FTC has banned noncompetes for workers. This is the agency’s first competition regulation in 50 years.

Spotify’s layoffs in December “[disrupted]” our day-to-day operations more than we anticipated,” according to CEO Daniel Ek (pretends to be shocked).

Nothing announced Ear and Ear (a), two models of ChatGPT-enabled earbuds.

Deals

Kiki, a beauty brand that gives users the power to choose what products are created, raised $7mm in early-stage funding. Investors include a16z, New Incubation Ventures, Advancit Capital, DoubleDown, OrangeDAO, RedDAO, and Two Punks Capital, LLC. Read more at TechCrunch.

The Rights, a New Jersey-based music platform connecting creators and licensors, raised $7.5mm in early-stage funding. Investors include Algorand Technologies, Spyglass Media, Endeavor, Boardeless Capital, and Grit Capital Partners. Read more at Billboard.

Hue, a Boston-based beauty technology platform intended to help e-commerce brands embed user-generated videos on their marketing channels, raised $3mm in early-stage funding. Read more at CityBiz.

Saakuru, a Singapore-based consumer-centric Layer 2 protocol with zero transaction fees, raised $2.4mm in early-stage funding. Investors include ARC the Community and Based VC. Read more at Chainwire.

New Internet City on May 16th

Live in NYC? Love consumer tech? Love culture? Come join us for the second installment of New Internet City! We’re bringing together technologists and creatives with the hope that both groups can work together to build out the consumer tech community in NYC! RSVP here. 

PS: I’m looking for sponsors for May’s meetup. If you're interested, please email me at [email protected] for more details.

Jobs

Catalog is looking for an Engineering Manager (Remote).

Story Protocol is hiring for multiple roles (SF):

• De-Fi Lead

• Head of Marketing

• Blockchain Engineer

• Check out their website for additional roles 

Wiress is looking for a part-time Chief of Staff

Create is looking for a Head of Growth 

Dirt is looking for short stories for their upcoming Fiction Week this summer

Party Favors

The horny Zendaya tennis movie is doing numbers at the box office. Does this mark the end of puritanical media? Are original movies finally back in style?

Curious about the future of UX in web3? Check out this article by Kyle McCullum.

Afro-indie music, anyone?

How is Gen Alpha interacting with brands? Check out this article by Bullish.

Disco Ball of the Week