Trump praises Bezos | Seattle vaccine maker raises $110M 

Vote for Workplace of the Year: The five finalists for this 2025 GeekWire Award are finding a balance of inclusion, accountability, professional development and personal support that makes their businesses hum and keeps employees happy. Learn more about Overland AI, Humanly, Armoire, Foundations and Acumatica.

• Read more coverage from other Awards categories and get tickets to the April 30 event.

Latest Seattle-area startup fundings: 

• Curevo, a biotech startup developing a shingles vaccine, raised $110 million in a Series B round. 

• Gradial raised $13 million for its AI marketing tech that helps automate content operations. Madrona led the round, and Gradial plans to double its team of 20 employees to accelerate product development and customer acquisition. Read more.

• Homeostasis, which captures carbon and transforms it into graphite, landed $600,000. Read more.

• Check out Pacific Northwest funding updates here.

President Trump praised Jeff Bezos and the Amazon founder’s recent changes at The Washington Post. “He’s trying to do a real job,” Trump said of the paper’s owner. Read more.

“It’s sort of like a Delayed Blast Fireball, if you’ve ever played Dungeons & Dragons.” With the news of Redfin’s pending acquisition by Rocket Companies, we compiled a list of Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman’s (above) greatest quips from the company’s earnings calls. It’s a case study in using levity, candor, and humility to lead a business. Read more.

• We discussed the deal on this week’s GeekWire Podcast with Stephanie Reid-Simons of RealEstateNews.com and Tim Ellis, former Redfin market analyst. Read more and listen here, and subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. 

Join us this Thursday for Microsoft@50, a GeekWire event marking the company’s milestone anniversary and featuring conversations with former CEO Steve Ballner, Microsoft President and Vice Chair Brad Smith; and former CTO Nathan Myhrvold. Read more and get tickets to the event at Town Hall in Seattle.

Hot Links:

• Amazon will introduce a premium tier for a new line of hardware powered by Alexa+. (Bloomberg)

• Qualtrics, co-headquartered in Seattle, rolled out new AI agents aimed at boosting employee experience. (Qualtrics)

• The City of Seattle announced 14 community organizations that will receive $540,000 as part of the annual Technology Matching Fund. (City of Seattle)