Weird and fascinating. Recall Google needs a last mile solution to combat Amazon. This is TechCrunch:
According to one source, the deal was brought in by Google Ventures Partner Kevin Rose and led by Google Ventures co-founder David Drummond. Despite it being a later-stage investment, it was not a Google Capital deal, mainly because of the heavy Google Ventures involvement in sourcing and negotiating, we hear. The $258 million is an 86 percent chunk of Google Ventures’ $300 million dollar a year fund, and it’s unclear whether the firm will continue to make such sizable investments.
As both Google Ventures and Google Capital come out of Google’s balance sheet, this is purely a matter of semantics, and logo. We’ve also confirmed, like Swisher reported, that a meeting with Google CEO Larry Page sealed the deal — wherein Page outlined how Google’s resources could bolster Uber co-founder Travis Kalanick‘s grand plan to offer everything via iPhone.
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