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May 6, 2020
Wednesday! (We will admit to thinking it was Tuesday for half of today.)
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Top News
People -- a growing number of them, judging by today's numbers -- like their Pelotons. More here and here.
Uber said today it is cutting about 14% of its workforce. In an SEC filing, it said the layoffs are part of a planned reduction in operating expenses “in response to the economic challenges and uncertainty resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the company’s business.”
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Sponsored By ...
With 30% more stretch than regular denim, a signature gusset, and antibacterial properties, DUER jeans are made to help you stay cool and comfortable throughout the day and night, without restricting your movement.
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Massive Fundings
Bought By Many, a nine-year-old, London-based pet insurer, has raised $98 million in growth equity funding led by FTV Capital. More here.
GigaSpaces, a 20-year-old, New York-based in-memory computing platform, has raised $12 million in funding from earlier backer Fortissimo Capital, which was joined by other return backers Claridge Israel and BRM Group. Calcalist has more here.
LetsGetChecked, a five-year-old, New York-based at-home health testing startup focused right now on the coronavirus, has raised $71 million in new funding co-led by Illumina Ventures and HLM Venture Partners. TechCrunch has more here.
Pulmonx, a 25-year-old, Redwood City, Ca.-based developer of minimally invasive treatments for severe emphysema, has raised $66 million in funding led by Ally Bridge Group. Other backers in the round include Adage Capital Management, HealthQuest Capital, Partner Fund Management, and Rock Springs Capital. Mass Device has more here.
RWDC Industries, a five-year-old, Athens, Ga.-based bioplastics manufacturing startup that's hoping to help replace plastic packaging, has raised $133 million in Series B funding from Vickers Venture Partners, Ikea’s investment company; a Swiss pension fund; a Northeastern energy provider; and an industrial chemical company owned by Koch Industries. TechCrunch has more here.
Big-But-Not-Crazy-Big Fundings
Covariant, a three-year-old, Berkeley, Ca.-based developer of autonomy solutions for industrial robotics, has raised $40 million in Series B funding. Index Ventures led the round, joined by Radical Investments and earlier backer Amplify Partners. TechCrunch has more here.
Smaller Fundings
AskRobin, a three-year-old, Estonia-based financial marketplace for underbanked consumers in Latin America, has raised $1.7 million from Change Ventures, Vereeni Early Stage Fund, BENE Asia Capital, and Lemonade Stand. TechCrunch has more here.
Banked, a two-year-old, London-based open banking startup focused on account-to-account payments at checkout (it's ostensibly cheaper and faster than using credit cards), has raised £2.35 million in seed funding. Force Over Mass led the round, joined by Backed and Acrew Capital. TechCrunch has more here.
Embody, a five-year-old, Norfolk, Va.-based developer of medical devices for soft tissue repair, has raised $9.3 million in Series A funding. Litigit led the round, joined by Cultivate(MD) and 757 Angels. More here.
Every Mother, a two-year-old, New York- and San Francisco-based company whose streaming fitness app aims to help pregnant and post-natal women regain their core strength, has raised $1.5 million in seed funding. Courtside Ventures led the round, joined by Serena Ventures, Techstars Ventures, and The Fund. TechCrunch has more here.
First Dollar, a year-old, Austin, Tex.-based health care savings platform, has raised $5 million in seed funding led by Next Coast Ventures, with participation from Meridian Street Capital. More here.
Helium Health, a five-year-old, Lagos, Nigeria-based startup whose product suite enables telemedicine for health care systems in Nigeria, Liberia, and Ghana, has raised $10 million in Series A funding co-led by Global Ventures and Africa Healthcare Masterfund, with participation from Tencent and Y Combinator. TechCrunch has more here.
Invisible AI, a two-year-old, San Francisco-based next-generation computer vision company that monitors body posture and ergonomics within manufacturing facilities to give operators real-time feedback and ensure processes are done correctly and safely, has raised $3.6 million in seed funding. 8VC led the round, joined by iRobot Ventures, K9 Ventures, Sierra Ventures and Slow Ventures. TechCrunch has more here.
Limbix, a four-year-old, Palo Alto, Ca.-based developer of digital treatments for adolescent mental health disorders, has raised $9 million in Series A funding. GSR Ventures led the round, joined by earlier backers Sequoia Capital, Storm Ventures, NextGen Venture Partners, and Bixink Therapeutics. MobiHealthNews has more here.
Postal.io, a nine-month-old, San Luis Obispo, Ca.-based sales and marketing engagement platform, has raised $9 million in Series A funding led by Mayfield. Crunchbase News has more here.
Vndly, a three-year-old, Cincinnati, Oh.-based maker of contractor recruiting, on-boarding, and full lifecycle management software, has raised $8.5 million in Series B-1 funding led by Madrona Venture Group. GeekWire has more here.
Not-Saying-How-Much Fundings
Burst Oral Care, a four-year-old, Venice, Ca.-based maker of direct-to-consumer electric toothbrushes that boast charcoal bristles and 33,000 sonic vibrations per minute, has raised a Series C of undisclosed size led by Goldman Sachs Growth Equity. TechCrunch has more here.
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New Funds
Autotech Ventures, a three-year-old, Menlo Park, Ca.-based early-stage venture firm that backs ground transportation startups, has closed its second fund with $150 million in capital commitments, including from both financial and corporate investors. Among them: Volvo Group Venture Capital AB, Lear, Bridgestone and Stoneridge. The outfit closed its debut fund with $120 million and has since funded 26 startups, a few of which -- Xnor.ai, DeepScale and Frontier Car Group -- have exited already. TechCrunch has more here.
Bracket Capital, a three-year-old outfit with one cofounder operating out of Beverly Hills, Ca., and another in Doha, Qatar, is raising its second fund, per an SEC filing first flagged by Axios. TechCrunch wrote about the unconventional firm in late 2018. More here.
Melitas Ventures, a three-year-old, New York-based venture firm focused on early-stage food and beverage startups, is raising $60 million for its second fund, shows an SEC filing. More here.
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People
Samsung Group heir Jay Y. Lee, embroiled in a bribery scandal, today made a rare apology over controversial succession plans and said he will not hand over management rights to his children at the family-controlled conglomerate. Reuters has more here.
The Libra Association, the group behind the proposed digital currency invented by Facebook, today named former U.S. Treasury Department official Stuart Levey as its first CEO. He has been the chief legal officer at London-based bank HSBC Holdings since 2012, notes Bloomberg.
Uri Pomerantz has joined Jackson Square Ventures in San Francisco as a venture partner. Pomerantz was most recently the head of new ventures and strategic partnerships at John Hancock. More here.
Steven Sinofsky, the former Microsoft executive and current Andreessen Horowitz board partner, has been working on a book chronicling what he learned during his decades at Microsoft.
Google employees who typically enjoy a plethora of food and other perks can't expense these same things while working from home, reports CNBC, suggesting some had been trying.
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Sponsored By . . .
TechCrunch is bringing Disrupt online for the first time this year with the addition of the Disrupt Digital Pro Pass, which gives founders and investors who really want to engage as fully as possible with Disrupt, including all the programming on the primary stages and lots of real-time interaction with fellow attendees, founders in Startup Alley, engaging Q&A sessions and our all important exhibitors and partners. There are only a few left at the price of $245. Prices go up after they're gone. Get yours today!
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Essential Reads
Twitch, the online video site popular among gamers, plans to fund a slate of original, unscripted series that would be live and interactive, airing two to three times a week, according to an internal document seen by Bloomberg. Its preferred genres are game shows, dating shows, sports, music and talk.
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Retail Therapy
Louis Vuitton foosball table. It's possibly the very last thing a startup needs right now (though we are open to your other suggestions).
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