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The article states that some U.S. companies such as Visa Inc., Slack Technologies Inc., and Instacart Inc. were beginning to offer employees free or subsidized genetic marker tests associated with overeating, weight gain, and metabolism. According to the article, conditions related to obesity such as Type 2 diabetes make up a significant share of health-care costs.

The article discusses businesses such as Crossmark Inc. utilizing technological innovations and methods applied by the on-demand firms Uber, Instacart, and Postmates during the early 21st century. It examines the use of on-demand technology developed by the firm Gigwalk by Crossmark merchandiser Jarrel Gainer.

The article discusses the potential financial impact of several lawsuits filed in the U.S. concerning the reclassification of independent contractors working with startup companies as employees as of mid-July 2015. It states that the urban car-parking service Luxe Valet Inc. announced plans to convert parking attendants to employees and pay for expenses for full-time employees, and that delivery startup companies Shyp Inc. and Instacart Inc. planned to convert contractors to employment status. The article also discusses the shutdown of the housecleaning service Homejoy Inc. due to lawsuits.

The article discusses the use by venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, and other of special purpose vehicles (SPVs) to fund startup technology firms. SPVs allow venture capitalists such as FirstMark Capital and Andreessen Horowitz to commit more money to a single company than they otherwise could. Among startups that have received SPV funding are image-bookmarking Website Pinterest Inc. and grocery-delivery company Instacart Inc.

The article discusses people as the key infrastructure behind a variety of technology startup firms including parcel-delivery company Roady, ride-hailing service Uber, and grocery-delivery firm Instacart. The author notes this marks a break from previous new companies that have gotten large through productivity-increasing technology that eliminates the need for human workers. He questions whether companies like Roady and Instacart need humans for their unique skills, or because the cost of labor has fallen so much.

The article discusses the online grocery business with an emphasis on startup firm Instacart Inc. Details are presented about the company's valuation and operations, with commentary presented about how Instacart differs from Webvan Group Inc., a similar, earlier company once headed by George Shaheen that consumed over $800 million before going bankrupt. Compared to Webvan, Instacart has a lower cost structure that includes no warehouses.

This section offers business-related news briefs as of June 23, 2015 including same-day grocery startup Instacart to allow its contractor workers to become part-time employees and SoftBank Corp.'s selling of the entire stock of the world's first robot capable of understanding and reacting to human emotions.

This section offers business-related news briefs as of December 31, 2014, including the confirmation by oil giant Petroleo Brasileiro SA that it would publish its twice delayed third-quarter financial information in January 2015, the merger of state-run railcar makers China CNR Corp. and CSR Corp. and the 230 million U.S. dollars in funding raised by grocery delivery startup Instacart.