Infinitum Electric, an electric motor maker, announced Thursday that is has raised $12.5 million in funding.
The Austin-based
startup, founded in 2016, closed the Series B round of funding led by
Cottonwood Technology Fund with participation from Chevron Technology Ventures
and AJAX Strategies and other investors.
The latest funding follows
a $1.8 million Series A round of funding the company closed in January. To
date, Infinitum Electric has raised $15.2 million.
The company plans to
use the funds to hire new employees and open its global headquarters and
manufacturing facility in Austin.
Infinitum Electric has
six patents on its electric motor technology and another 15 patents pending.
The company’s motor technology is focused on the HVAC, oil and gas and
aerospace industries.
“Since participating
in the Series A round in December, we’ve seen Infinitum advance tremendously.
They’ve added key leaders to the team, signed multiple customer contracts and
are prepared to ramp their own manufacturing facility,” Dave Blivin, managing
director, CTF said in a news release. “We’re proud to have led the Series
B round, and we’re excited to see Infinitum attract the support of leading
investors who will further enhance their success in the growing electric motor
industry — one that is ripe for the type of disruptive innovation Infinitum
provides.”
“Our patented motor technology will completely transform the electric motor market, a market that has changed very little since inception more than 100 years ago,” Ben Schuler, CEO, Infinitum Electric, said in a news release. “With this latest round of funding, we’re well-positioned to replace traditional HVAC motors with our breakthrough motor technology, resulting in a smaller, smarter and more efficient offering for thousands of HVAC end users.”
Infinitum’s electric
motors are efficient, customizable, and cost 25 percent less and weigh 60
percent less than other motors. Infinitum’s motors also have Internet connectivity.
Cerebri AI, which
uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to improve customer relations
for companies, announced Wednesday that it has raised $7 million in venture
capital funding.
The Austin-based startup
raised the funds from new investor Arcris Capital Partners and existing
investors.
Cerebri AI has raised
$16.4 million to date.
The company, founded in 2016,
develops and sells CVX, a platform for customer service.
“CVX is a break-through product for banking,
insurance, telecom and other large-scale enterprises, and is especially suited
for the Asian market,” Afzal M. Tarar, Chairman and Managing Partner of Arcis
Capital Partners, said in a news release.
“We are
encouraged by the support of our new and existing investors in bringing our
revolutionary CVX platform to market,” Jean Belanger, Co-founder & CEO of
Cerebri AI, said in a news release.
“We are
incredibly pleased to welcome Arcis Capital Partners to the Cerebri AI team,” Arun
Prakash, CFO of Cerebri AI, said in a news release. “Arcis has extensive
experience in financing software companies like Cerebri AI, and in helping
bring complex solutions such as CVX v2 to market.”
Silicon Hills News named
Cerebri AI as one of its top 25 Startups to Watch in 2019.
Cerebri AI, an artificial
intelligence solutions company, is first tackling the automotive and financial
services industries with machine learning and artificial intelligence
technology to mine customer data for actionable insights.
The Artificial
Intelligence Market is expected to exceed more than $191 billion by 2024,
growing at a rate of 37 percent annually, according to Market Research Engine.
Amos Schwartzfarb, managing director of Techstars Austin
Techstars Austin
announced its 2020 class this week, including five Austin-based startups among
the ten participating in the program.
Another startup comes from Dallas and the remaining ones from New York, Florida, Ohio, and India.
Also, this is the 10th
Techstars program in Austin since it kicked off in 2014 and the fifth being run
by Amos Schwartzfarb, Techstars Austin managing director.
“We love experimenting in the Austin program and are constantly figuring out how to optimize and continually provide better and better experiences for our founders,” Schwartzfarb wrote in a Techstars blog post.
This year, Techstars
Austin will use two new tools, Maslo, a smart companion for coaches, and
Flexdocs, a collaboration tool for businesses created by WriterDuet. Both tools
were created by Techstars Alumni companies.
Techstars Austin also
changed the date of its program to start on Dec. 2nd and end on
March 11th. That’s so its companies can be prepared to fully participate
in South by Southwest, according to Schwartzfarb.
The following companies
are participating in the Techstars Austin 2020 program: (descriptions provided
by Techstars)
8base, Coral Gables, FL: a backend as a service that combines computing, application services and integrations for building SaaS and market-facing applications.
Aquifer Motion, Austin, TX: a SaaS platform that combines augmented reality and machine learning to make professional 3D animation accessible for all creators.
Binaize, Bangalore, India: a network intelligence software product for industrial IoT that helps minimize machine downtime and increase the operational efficiency of industrial control systems.
Boutiq, Austin, TX: Boutiq uses data science to buy and manage luxury vacation rentals.
Crave Retail, Austin, TX: Crave is a SaaS platform purpose-built to enhance the fitting rooms of premium enterprise retailers with modern digital experiences and analytics to optimize conversion opportunities.
EarBuds, Austin, TX: EarBuds allows people to listen along live with their favorite music curators in key moments.
Homebuyer, Cincinnati, OH: Homebuyer is a lead nurture system for mortgage lenders that reduces customer acquisition costs and increases per-loan profits.
Jolly, Austin, TX: Jolly is a professional social network for the gig economy, where freelancers and businesses connect to grow their networks, work together freely and build their reputations.
Propertymate, Brooklyn, NY: Propertymate is a SaaS platform that allows real estate agents to predict which property is most likely to be purchased by a client and helps to make deals within a brokerage or network.
SURVIVR, Dallas, TX: SURVIVR is a VR training platform to help first responders improve decision-making and response times.
Silicon Hills News will be at the 2019 MassChallenge Texas in Austin Holiday Party Tuesday night. Hope to see you there.
Dec. 3rd
2019 MassChallenge Texas in Austin Holiday Party
When: 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Where: Green Light Social, 720 West Sixth St.,
Austin, TX 78701
Why: Join us at Green Light Social for an evening of mingling and networking with top influencers from the Texas innovation community. Enjoy the end of the year festivities with cocktails, light bites and hear from MassChallenge Texas on what to expect for 2020. For more info.
Dec. 3rd
Austin Forum: Technology for Social Good
When: 5:15 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Where: Austin Central Library; 701 W. Cesar Chavez
Why: How tech professionals and companies can support social impact with Chelsea Collier and Jessica Sager. For more info.
Dec. 4th
A Transportation-Tech Talk with Randy Clarke by Austin Tech Alliance
When: :6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Where: Capital Factory, 701 Brazos Street, Austin,
TX 78701
Why: Randy Clarke, CEO of CapMetro, on Project Connect, its vision for a fully connected, high-capacity public transportation system. For more info.
Dec. 4th
Innovate Austin Launch Party
When: 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Where: Native Hostels, 807 East 4th
Street, Austin, TX
Why: “Meet the people, businesses, and organizations that grace the pages of Innovate Austin and come pick up your own copy. The book wouldn’t be the same without all our fantastic participants—top innovators and enablers—and the launch won’t be the same without you celebrating with us. Join the Austin Tech Council and Global Village Publishing for a fun evening of delicious snacks, drinks, and networking.” For more info.
Dec. 5th
ATC Roundtable Breakfast: Women in Tech
When: 7:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m.
Where: Galvanize, 119 Nueces Street, Austin, TX
Why: Monthly breakfasts targeted to specific
groups within the Austin technology community to come together in a small group
of 25-40. These events include a featured speaker who kicks off open
discussion amongst attendees. Women-only event. For more info.
Dec. 5th
Galvanize Holiday Bazaar
When: 4:00 p.m.to 8:00 p.m.
Where: Galvanize, 119 Nueces, Austin, TX 78701
Why: “Join the Galvanize Community to celebrate the season with a bazaar market of unique consumer brands, live music, food and spirits, and of course, holiday cheer. 2019 has been a wild, fantastic adventure, and we want to celebrate all that this community has accomplished with you.” For more info.
Dec. 5th
Austin Tech Happy Hour, December
When: 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Where: The Dogwood, 715 W. 6th, Austin,
TX
Why: It’s hard to believe that the end of the year is already upon us, but it’s time for our annual holiday party! Does anybody remember this event from two years ago when it legitimately snowed for 2 solid hours during happy hour at The Dogwood downtown? You could see the big flakes slowly drifting down from the sky against the downtown streetlights. A very strange sight for Austin, Texas which is probably why it was so memorable. For more info.
Dec. 6th
TAG Visits Yotta Energy: Building Electric
Utilities One Rooftop at a Time
Why: Yotta Energy has created solar panel systems for rooftops that are dramatically more energy-efficient, lower in cost, and longer-lasting by using their ingenuity as a team to innovate across multiple sciences and technologies. For more info.
Dec. 10th
Campfire Entrepreneur Networking: Tech Ranch and Duo Works Austin
When: 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Where: Duo Works Austin, 8920 Business Park Dr. Suite #250, Austin, TX 78759
Why: “Want to connect and network with local tech entrepreneurs? Validate your business idea? Interested in getting more involved with Tech Ranch? Come out for a Campfire! Campfire is all about connecting you to the larger tech startup community. We gather interesting, accomplished people from across Austin’s vast entrepreneur ecosystem so you can get the introductions, insight, and help you need to move your business forward, while also helping others.” For more info.
Dec. 11th
The Future of Health Summit
When: 7:45 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.
Where: Capital Factory, 701 Brazos Street, Austin,
TX 78701
Why: In a TED-Talk setting, thought leaders will discuss trends and applications that will impact the future of health. For more info.
Dec. 11h
Startup Grind Austin 2019 Holiday Happy
When: 5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Where: CU-29, 720 Brazos Street, Austin, TX 78701
Why: Party on, Wayne. Party on, Garth. Take a load off and join your fellow entrepreneurs for drinks and good conversation in downtown Austin. For more info.
Dec. 11th
Austin Technology Council: December Leadership Dinner
When: 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Where: Z’Tejas, 110 W. 6th St, Austin, TX
Why: Looking to expand your business and feel like you are ready to move forward in the international market? Business Finland/Invest in Finland’s expansion experts will help you understand what it takes to go international, best operational practices and lessons learned in moving into the international market. For more info.
Dec. 12th
Subscribed with Zuora
When: 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Where: Galvanize, 119 Nueces, Austin, TX 78701
Why: Welcome to this lunch and learn sponsored by Zuora, an enterprise software company that creates and provides software for businesses to launch and manage their subscription-based services. Zuora, based in San Mateo, Calif., has an Austin office and several local companies use its software. For more info.
Austin-based Cloudsnap announced recently that it has closed a $1.8 million funding round.
In addition, Matt Bradley, a former Rackspace
Chief Strategy Office, was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Cloudsnap.
Active Capital, based in San Antonio, led the investment round along with Houston-based Mercury Fund. To date, Cloudsnap has raised $4.1 million.
When Bradley worked at Rackspace as Chief
Strategy Officer, the company’s revenue grew from $500 million to $2.5 billion,
tripled its employment, and launched several new products.
Bradley has served as an advisor and board member to technology companies and worked as an analyst at Morgan Stanley. He earned a BS from the University of Virginia and an MBA from The Wharton School.
“Matt’s experience at Rackspace makes him a perfect fit for Cloudsnap’s future as a leader in the managed automation market,” Pat Matthews, CEO and founder of Active Capital, said in a news release. “Large enterprises and growth companies are leveraging dozens or even hundreds of siloed software apps today. Cloudsnap is well-positioned to help these companies integrate their software apps so they can perform at their best.”
Cloudsnap makes it easy for companies to seamlessly integrate business applications. Through technology and human expertise, Cloudsnap keeps a company’s business application data in sync. Cloudsnap integrates with nearly 100 business applications. Cloudsnap has more than 350 customers including Spindrift and Acronis.
“I feel very lucky to lead Cloudsnap. We have
an incredibly talented team and a marquee customer list full of modern
companies that are automating manual business processes,” Bradley said in a
news statement. “We have a unique do-it-with-you model because application
integration is hard. We don’t sell you a software platform and leave you to
figure it out on your own. Our automation engineers build with you.”
Rick
Barkley, previously CEO, moves to become the company’s Chief Technology
Officer.
Shotgun Seltzer, Austin’s first craft spiked seltzer, announced recently that it has received a $1 million investment from Unorthodox Ventures.
It is the second investment since Unorthodox Ventures moved to Austin. The firm, founded by Carey Smith, founder of Big Ass Fans, has also invested and acquired GoFish Cam.
Austin-based Shotgun Seltzer launched in July with its first flavor, Bramble, inspired by the botanical gin cocktail of the same name that uses blackberry liquor and lemon and it just introduced its second flavor, Ranch Water, inspired by a Texas cocktail. All flavors are natural with no artificial sweeteners. Shotgun Seltzer is now being served in nearly 200 Texas bars, restaurants, venues, hotels and resorts.
Shotgun Seltzer competes with the popular White Claw Hard Seltzer and a slew of other low-calorie naturally flavored hard seltzers, which have become popular with Millennials and Generation Z. Sales for hard seltzer are expected to reach $1 billion this year and $2.5 billion next year.
And it is part of an overall trend to healthier drinks with sparkling water sales reaching $2.5 billion in 2018, according to Nielsen. In the last four years, sparkling water sales have risen 54 percent, Nielson reported.
“With so many
national brands focused on canned spiked seltzers, we knew bringing the
experience on draft to the on-premise channel would be a way to stand out,”
said Shotgun Seltzer Co-Founder Brad Foster. “We also know that our Texas craft
seltzers allow consumers to experience more variety and unique flavors.”
The company is founded by the husband and wife team of Brad and Lori Foster. They have spent nearly 30 years in the alcohol industry.
“Brad and Lori have deep knowledge of their industry, and they’ve proven through Shotgun Seltzer’s rapid growth that they have more than an idea and a polished presentation — they have a real business with real growth,” Smith, Founding Contrarian of Unorthodox Ventures, said in a news statement. “We’re excited to roll up our sleeves and support Shotgun Seltzer’s continued success.”
Next Coast Ventures announced this week it has closed on its fund of $130 million.
The Austin-based venture capital firm previously raised an $85 million fund in March of 2017.
“Next Coast Ventures’
progress is a direct result of the hard work and dedication of the founders in
our portfolio,” Michael Smerklo, co-founder and managing director of Next Coast
Ventures, said in a news release.
Next Coast Ventures
focuses on funding early-stage ventures, primarily in Austin and Texas. The
firm has nearly doubled the size of its team and its Entrepreneurs Council in
the past six months.
Recently, Next Coast Ventures added Zaz Floreani to its deal team as a principal, Jonathan Kaplan as chief operating officer and Sarah Puil as entrepreneur-in-residence. It also added HomeAway Co-founder Brian Sharples, RetailMeNot Founder Cotter Cunningham and SaaS entrepreneur Julian Castelli to its growing Entrepreneurs Council to mentor and advise its portfolio leadership.
Next Coast Ventures announced its first investment out of NCV II in July, leading the $12.5 million Series C round in Austin-based software review platform, TrustRadius.
“We are very fortunate that our LPs have continued to invest in Next Coast Ventures, we’ve had big goals from the beginning and while we’ve already seen some indicators of success, we plan on continuing to keep our heads down, work hard and do everything we can to serve great entrepreneurs in Austin and other Next Coast markets,” Thomas Ball, co-founder and managing director of Next Coast Ventures, said in a news release. “We have seen incredible growth in these rising innovation hubs since we founded our firm in 2015 and know that cities like Austin will continue to be a prime example of what is possible outside the coasts.”
Next Coast Ventures’ first fund invested in over 30 portfolio companies located in Next Coast markets, including Texas, Montana, Utah, and Minnesota.
Next Coast Ventures’ portfolio includes Austin-based Phlur, EverlyWell, Tenfold, 101Commerce, AlertMedia, TrustRadius, and enboarder, ScaleFactor, OnRamp, LeanDNA, Dropoff, SeriesX, Rosso&Flynn, Dosh, Diligent Robotics, Swivel, Stoplight, Aceable, Osano, College Consortium, and Backtracks.
REX, a home buying startup that uses big data and artificial intelligence, announced this week that it has raised $40 million in a Series C funding round.
The company, founded
in 2014 in the Los Angeles area, moved to Austin a year ago. To date, REX has
raised $110.5 million in total funding.
REX plans to use the
additional funding to complete its nationwide expansion and to “broaden the availability
of mortgage, insurance, escrow and other services it offers,” according to a
news release.
REX now operates in 23
cities in 17 states. The company uses data science, machine learning and
artificial intelligence to price homes and then target them to qualified buyers
through Zillow, Google, Facebook, Trulia and other sites. It also only charges
a total commission of 2 percent on sales, compared to the standard 6 percent
for most real estate deals.
“REX is leading the
transformation of an industry that remains stuck in the past and doesn’t
provide the value for money that consumers expect,” REX board member Scott
McNealy, co-founder and former CEO of Sun Microsystems, said in a news statement.
“It’s shown impressive progress in building out its technology and
services this year and we’re pleased with the way consumers are
responding.”
“REX offers
buyers and sellers a less expensive, more effective and far easier way to
conduct the most important transaction of their lives,” REX co-founder and
President Lynley Sides said in a news release. “In contrast to the
outrageously high charges levied by the MLS realtor cartel, REX helps families
preserve their hard-earned savings.”
Since launching in
late 2015, REX has represented homes cumulatively valued at more than $2
billion. And it says it has saved customers more than $16 million in fees.
And for every 50 homes
it sells, REX builds one new home for a family in need.
REX’s investors
include McNealy, Griffin, Dick Schulze, founder of Best Buy, Gordon
Segal, founder of Crate and Barrel, Amit Singhal, former SVP of search at
Google, Diana Nelson, chair of Carlson, Jack Greenberg, former CEO of
McDonald’s, Jim Perry, co-founder of Madison Dearborn Partners, and Muneer
Satter, chairman of Satter Investment Management.
Flying a drone around a store to check for inventory is the big
idea behind Pensa Systems.
The Austin-based startup this week announced it has raised $10 million in additional seed-stage funding. To date, Pensa Systems, founded in 2016, has raised a total of $17.2 million.
As part of the latest funding round, ATX Ventures managing director Chris Shonk has joined Pensa’s board
of directors, and McCann and Ritter have joined the company’s advisory board.
Pensa Systems plans to use the money raised to
“accelerate delivery and deployment of Pensa’s retail inventory visibility
system, which uses advanced computer vision, patent-pending artificial
intelligence and autonomous drones to see and understand what’s on store
shelves.”
Pensa Systems’ technology can help stores do a better job of
keeping stock of items to keep popular items in stock and increase revenue.
Pensa launched its products in January at the National Retail
Federation conference. The company has completed pilots with Anheuser-Busch
InBev and other major retailers and global brands.
Photo Credit: Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead President Donald J. Trump tours the Apple manufacturing plant in Austin with Apple CEO Tim Cook
Apple has begun building its
new campus in Austin.
And on Wednesday
afternoon, Apple CEO Tim Cook and President Donald Trump flew into town to tour
Apple’s Mac Pro computer production facility.
The Mac Pro facility is near
where Apple is investing $1 billion to build its largest campus outside its
headquarters in Cupertino, California
Apple is constructing a 3 million-square-foot campus on 133 acres that will initially have 5,000 employees with the ability to expand to 15,000 employees. It is expected to open in 2022.
“Building the Mac Pro, Apple’s most powerful device ever, in Austin is both a point of pride and a testament to the enduring power of American ingenuity,” Cook said in a news release.
The 244,000-square-foot
Mac Pro facility employs more than 500 people in a range of roles, including
electrical engineers and electronics assemblers, according to Apple.
Already, Apple has 7,000
employees in Austin, up 50 percent in the last five years.
Apple said it is also working
with Austin-based Bartlett Tree Experts to preserve trees on the site of its
new campus. It is also designing the campus to maximize green space with a
50-acre nature and wildlife preserve that will be open to the public.
And the campus is slated
to run on 100 percent renewable energy, including from on-site solar power generators.
Apple has also partnered
with Austin Community College to offer app development with a Swift coding
program.
During the visit to
Austin, President Trump was asked about whether Apple should be exempt from
Chinese tariffs. Apple imports components from China to make its computers in
Austin.
“Well, we’re looking at that,” Trump said in a statement from the event. “And, you know, the problem we have is you have Samsung — it’s a great company, but it’s a competitor of Apple, and it’s not fair if — because we have a trade deal with Korea. We made a great trade deal with South Korea, but we have to treat Apple on a somewhat similar basis as we treat Samsung.”
Samsung has a fabrication plant in
Austin which is one of the largest in the world.
“Now, with all of that being said, we’re doing very nicely with
China, but I like it the way it is now, because we’re taking in billions and
billions of dollars, and we’re giving some of that money to farmers and others,”
Trump said. “But we are looking at Apple. When I wanted Apple to
do, from day one — from before I got elected — I said, “Someday we’re going to
see Apple building plants in our country, not in China.” And that’s
what’s happening.”
