Trucking is the dominant mode of freight transport in the United States and the total addressable market exceeds $800B per annum. However, the logistics industry has traditionally relied on disparate means (faxes, emails, and spreadsheets) to manage the many moving parts involved with shipments. Loadsmart, a freight management platform and marketplace, automates how freight is priced, booked, and shipped. AlleyWatch caught up with Hunter Yaw, VP of product management, marketing, and sponsorships, to learn more about Loadsmart’s impact on the logistics industry, expansion plans, and recent round of funding from investors that include
BlackRock Inc.’s Innovation Capital, Chromo Invest, TFI International Inc., and shipping giants Maersk.
Startups
The AlleyWatch Startup Daily Funding Report: 12/4/2020
The latest venture capital, seed, pre-seed, and angel deals for NYC startups for 12/4/2020 featuring funding details for Resident Hospitality, Transmit.Live, and much more.
Hydra Studios Raises $3.8M for its Network of Wellness Spaces
The experience of COVID has brought wellness top of mind along with maintaining both physical and mental health during these trying times. Hydra Studios, an operator of wellness spaces in the city launched by two Goldman alums, is looking to serve this market through its network of spaces for people to relax, workout, and recharge at convenient locations throughout the city as we began pondering life post-COVID. The company’s first studio launched in 2019 within a Convene location in Midtown and now Hydra is ready to launch its flagship space in FiDi in the new year. AlleyWatch caught up with Cofounders Marie Kloor (CEO) and Dan Nielsen (COO) to learn more about the company’s vision, the experience of building a space in the middle of a pandemic, and the company’s recent funding round from investors that include Slow Ventures, CityRock Ventures, Courtside Ventures, Fifth Wall, and Outbound Ventures.
The AlleyWatch Startup Daily Funding Report: 12/3/2020
The latest venture capital, seed, pre-seed, and angel deals for NYC startups for 12/3/2020 featuring funding details for Hydra Studios, Supergreat, and much more.
The 11 Largest US Tech Startup Funding Rounds of November 2020
Everything you need to need to know about the largest US startup funding rounds of November 2020; broken down by industry, stage, investors, and more. Each of these companies raised at least $100M last month.
The AlleyWatch Startup Daily Funding Report: 12/2/2020
The latest venture capital, seed, pre-seed, and angel deals for NYC startups for 12/2/2020 featuring funding details for Bizzabo, Wellory, and much more.
The 15 Largest NYC Tech Startup Funding Rounds of November 2020
Reposite Raises $2.5M to be the All-In-One Resource for all Travel Industry Professionals
The pandemic has ravaged the travel industry; with travel decimated globally overnight. The industry’s ability to successfully recover will be rooted in the industry’s ability to adapt to new circumstances and adopt new technologies. Reposite, is an all-in-one-workspace tool for travel industry professionals, that’s hoping to accelerate the rebound. At its core, it’s a collaboration tool and marketplace that connects travel agents and event planners to suppliers and centralizes all their interactions from discovery to transactions. AlleyWatch caught up with Cofounder Jaime Getto to learn more about how the founding team’s experience at Vettery led to the formation of Reposite, the company’s experience helping a segment reliant on offline interactions transition into digital, and the company’s latest funding round led by Liberty City Ventures.
The AlleyWatch Startup Daily Funding Report: 12/1/2020
The latest venture capital, seed, pre-seed, and angel deals for NYC startups for 12/1/2020 featuring funding details for Reposite, Meet Cute, and much more.
Kustomer Acquired by Facebook for a Reported $1B Price Tag
Kustomer, the customer service messaging and management platform, has agreed to be acquired by Facebook. While the terms of the transaction were not disclosed, it has been widely reported that the transaction value is $1B.
Current Banks $131M to be the Challenger Bank That Brings Much-Needed Liquidity for Those Living Paycheck to Paycheck
The current banking system in the US isn’t structured to help the 130M+ Americans that are living paycheck to paycheck to succeed, instead banks focus on large depositors to support their lending businesses. Current is the digital challenger bank that directly addresses this mismatch by focusing on liquidity and providing access to banking services that include the ability to deliver paychecks up to two days early with direct deposit, no overdraft fees, and earn cashback. The company’s platform is designed to be inclusive for all Americans regardless of age or income level, especially the younger generation; the average age of a Current checking account member is 27 and approximately 50% of its members have never had a bank account before. AlleyWatch caught up with CEO and Founder Stuart Sopp to learn about Current’s response during the pandemic, simple mission to get money to its customers as fast as possible, impressive user growth, and recent funding round from investors that include Tiger Global Management, Sapphire Ventures. Avenir, Foundation Capital, Wellington Management Company, and QED Investors.