THE NEWS WRAP: VC Marc Andreesen warns big-spending startups could get caught “swimming without trunks on”

Prominent venture capitalist Marc Andreessen has warned that startups with high cash rates will burn out should the market turn, The New York Times reports.

Andreessen took to Twitter on the weekend to warn against excessive spending by startups that have attracted capital from investors.

He says new founders from the last 10 years have only been operating in an environment where money has been easy to raise at higher valuations, a circumstance that will not last. When that change occurs, he says “we will find out who has been swimming without trunks on”.

Alibaba purchases stake in hospitality tech company

E-commerce giant Alibaba has purchased 15% of Chinese hospitality technology provider Beijing Shiji Information Technology Co Ltd, for $US458.66 million ($A523.73 million), Reuters reports.

The transaction is the company’s first big investment since raising $US25 billion in its record-breaking initial public offering recently.

The deal is expected to allow the company to develop its Taobao travel business alongside Beijing Shiji, including back-office services, while helping to migrate customers to Alibaba’s website.

Secret unveils Ping

The startup behind the anonymous secret-sharing app Secret, has unveiled another app, Ping, Re/code reports.

Ping works by allowing users to select topics they wish to follow like “trending on twitter” and then sends notifications when new things pop up from that specific category.

Overnight

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 167.35 to 17,113.15. The Australian dollar is currently trading at US88 cents.