Hi there,
 

Here is this week in charts.

What’s mine is yours. Two years ago, China was responsible for 75% of global bitcoin mining activity, according to one index. But when China’s government announced it would crack down on the industry in May 2021, it effectively wiped out bitcoin mining activity in the country by July. Now, the US commands one-third of the activity — or the top share globally.

A cloudy forecast. Supply chain disruptions are sending solar panel costs up after 2020’s record low. Consulting firm Rystad Energy estimates this could derail more than half of utility-scale solar projects planned for 2022. In recent years, solar has driven VC funding increases more than any other renewable, in part due to its relative ease of deployment and construction mandates in areas like California. 

Jab, jab, cross. Pfizer continues to upgrade 2021 sales estimates for its Covid-19 vaccine, bumping it to $36B this week. That's up 140% from its Q4’20 prediction of $15B. The pharma giant also expects to see $29B in 2022. Profits from sales are split evenly with BioNTech, which helped it develop the mRNA-based vaccine. As research and development costs rise, pharma companies are increasingly joining forces with startups to bring vaccines and other drugs to market.

Kids these days. As recently as 2 decades ago, 16% of the world’s primary-school-age children were not in school. That percent has since been slashed in half, with especially significant decreases in regions like Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. In the wake of Covid-19, which disrupted education and forced a wave of digitization in the sector, edtech companies are seeing strong interest from investors, raising a combined $20B since 2020.

Pool party. The pandemic has pushed new pool construction to reach a post-2008 high, as more consumers take on home renovation projects. Pool parts manufacturer Hayward estimates that 106K new pools will be built in the US this year — and that trends like deurbanization, smart pool adoption, and higher home ownership in the Sun Belt could keep this number growing steadily YoY.

Tied for 1st. The repeating 0.62s on the left suggest all those cities are equally affordable, even when the bars differ. Too bad someone copy/pasted the labels all the way down.
 

I love you.

Anand

@asanwal

P.S. There are just 5 days left to apply for the upcoming Blockchain 50, our list of the most innovative blockchain and crypto companies. Get started here.