From their purchase of Instagram and WhatsApp in 2012 and 2014 respectively, Facebook has always demonstrated a real understanding of going where the attention is. I think their most recent move is no different. While the name switch seems random to some, it made perfect sense to me for the times we’re in. With their entrance into the VR space through innovations like Oculus Quest, and of course the current surge of NFTs and Web3 technology, rebranding as Meta is a timely decision that makes a lot of sense for where the company — and society — is ultimately headed.
Cool Tech
The Impact of AI-Enabled Smart Cities
“All kinds of automation are great, BUT a city is about satisfying the quality of life of its residents before everything. Integrated dashboards with AI and robots, and tech-supported decision makings are a life-long technical dream of all generations of urban professionals, engineers, architects, but most of the people would agree that there would not be worse governance than the one of scientist government. For the simple reason that humans are sensitive entities more than rational ones, highly unpredictable and so far never completely understood by any science.”
Geopipe Raises $2.4M for its Platform That Provides 3D Models of Cities Powered by AI
3D geospatial models are superior to 2D models when it comes to planning purposes as 3D is able to effectively capture terrain, sites, buildings, vegetation, infrastructure, and landscape elements. These can also be layered with additional data sets for use in presentations, planning, exploration, analysis, and management applications in a dynamic format that can readily adapt to changing conditions. However, building these 3D models has traditionally been expensive and time-consuming. Geopipe is a deep learning-powered engine that creates what the company calls “digital twins” that are constructed from raw sensor data and then combined with data processed through a semantic engine to add further context to create the Metaverse, a “massively multi-use environment that replicates our real world”. The platform is versatile as it can be applied to a variety of use cases including training simulations, city planning, coastal resiliency planning, construction, and even gaming. Geopipe’s models can be integrated into existing workflows that use 3D software or gaming/VR engines and can be accessed for as low as $100/mo for commercial use. AlleyWatch caught up with Geopipe CEO and Cofounder Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D. to learn more about the genesis of the company, future plans, latest round of funding from investors that include Village Global, Matrix Partners, the Alexa Fund, and AME Cloud Ventures.
Genvid Technologies Raises $113M to Create a New Category of Entertainment: Massive Interactive Live Events
When the live game-show HQ debuted in 2017 it was an instant hit with millions of users signing on concurrently to take a chance at winning in trivia. Although the company did not ultimately survive, the success of a new form of interactive entertainment did not go unnoticed. This NYC startup takes it a step further by focusing on the intersection of gaming, streaming, game shows, and broadcasting. Genvid is a technology infrastructure provider and now publisher focused on what the company calls massive interactive live events (MILEs). The company initially focused on building infrastructure tools for interactive streaming but saw there was a significant opportunity on the publishing side. For its first experience, it partnered up with Pipeworks Studios for Rival Peak, a 24/7 interactive reality show with AI characters participating in an elimination-style competition that was broadcasted on Facebook. Following the popularity of this new format, the company is now planning on building more MILEs both internally and with licensed IP owners as partners. Genvid will also continue to provide the infrastructure tools through its SDK for others to build their own MILEs.
AlleyWatch caught up with Cofounder and CEO Jacob Navok to learn more about the inspiration for the business, how the company has created a new category of entertainment, strategic plans, and latest round of funding from investors that include Valor Equity Partners, Atreides Management, Galaxy Interactive, Horizons Ventures, OCA Ventures, and Makers Fund, Valor, Atreides, Third Point, Cobalt Capital, LightShed Ventures, XN, and Lux Capital.
Norbert Health Raises Another $5M to Make Contactless Vital Sign Monitoring a Reality
Vital sign monitoring is critical for health care providers to gauge a patient’s health, well-being, and responsiveness to treatment. These vitals are also indicators of future illness in many cases. Technologies using video combined with ambient light monitoring, radar, and sound made possible by modern sensors allow vital sign monitoring to now happen without contact or even remotely. Norbert Health has developed a vital monitoring solution that provides continuous monitoring for a number of vitals including temperature, heart rate, heart rate variability, and pulse wave velocity (indicator of blood pressure) with readings for respiratory rate and oxygen levels coming soon. On the back end, the company offers a robust data platform to manage these readings whether it’s in a healthcare, workplace setting, or home setting, leading to an unprecedented understanding of health patterns and illness before the onset of any visible system. AlleyWatch caught up with CEO and Cofounder Alexandre Winter to learn more about how Norbert has built the technology to make contactless monitoring a reality, the company’s strategic plans, latest round of funding from investors that include Serena Capital, HCVC, Exor, C4 Ventures, LDV Capital, and Newlab.
Aetion Raises Another $110M to Empower the Healthcare Industry with Data to Make Informed Decisions and Reduce the Time to Market
While the growth of big data and analytics help businesses understand their customers, serve better ads, and sell more, in healthcare, these same methodologies and technologies have a real enduring, profound societal impact. Real-world data (RW) and real-world evidence (RWE), made possible by technology, are being used by pharmaceutical companies and the healthcare ecosystem to develop, evaluate, implement, and optimize new treatment approaches. Aetion is the RWD and RWE platform that enables the healthcare system to harness the power of data to shape the future of medicine. The platform is designed to accelerate the time to market without compromising scientific rigor. For example, the company partnered with the FDA to develop real-world analytics related to COVID and vaccines. AlleyWatch caught up with CEO Carolyn Magill to learn more about Aetion’s approach to RWD is enabling the healthcare system to make informed decisions, the company’s strategic, plans, latest round of funding, and much, much more.
Kumospace Raises $3M for its Immersive Video Chatting Platform That Mimics Real World Interactions
Zoom fatigue is real; so much so that researchers at the Virtual Human Interaction Lab out of Stanford (yes, this is a real institute) have come up with Zoom Exhaustion and Fatigue Scale. A growing number of startups have entered the space with creative twists on how to make video chatting more engaging. Kumospace has built an immersive video chat platform that focuses on spatiality that traditional video chatting platforms do not offer. Taking elements inspired by the gaming industry, Kumospace offers a video chatting experience that is more reflective of real-world interactions where multiple conversations are going on in the same space simultaneously. This functionality serves groups wells and can be used for video calls, virtual happy hours, meetups, or even holiday parties. AlleyWatch caught up with Cofounder and CEO Brett Martin to learn more about the future of video calls, the inspiration for the venture, and latest round of funding led by Boldstart Ventures.
KUDO Raises $21M for its Multilingual Video Conferencing Platform That Provides Real-Time Translation
The pandemic and the massive transition to video-conferencing solutions have made the world flat but what happens when there are language barriers? KUDO is a video-conferencing platform that provides real-time language interpretation for live meetings and conferences. Attendees can listen and speak in their native languages, while expert interpreters translate so that everyone else in the audience is able to participate and understand. The platform currently supports 100+ languages and experiences a 3500% increase in demand since the lockdown began. The company has recently launched an on-demand marketplace for conference interpreters as the world opens up and enters a new era of hybrid meetings. AlleyWatch caught up with Cofounder and CEO Fardad Zabetian to learn more about the company’s impressive progress since we spoke after the company’s seed round last June, future strategic plans, latest round of funding from investors that include Felicis Ventures, Maverick Ventures, Elephant VC, FJ Labs, Global Founders Capital, and Bill Ackman.
Fi Raises Another $30M for is Smart Connected GPS Collar for Dogs
According to the American Pets Product Association, Americans spent $99B on their pets in 2020. With the growing popularity of IoT, Americans also spent ~$10B on wearables last year. Fi, the company behind a proprietary GPS-enabled smart collar for dogs, fuses the two. Aside from tracking location, the collars monitor the movement, activity, and sleep patterns of the dog and the company is increasingly focused on using machine learning to address potential health issues that may arise and be detected from the data it collects. Fi’s Series 2 collar, which has a battery life of 3 months without a charge, retails at $149 and the GPS tracking service is $99/yr. AlleyWatch caught up with Cofounder and CEO Jonathan Bensamoun to learn more about the inspiration for the business, the company’s future plans, experience managing its supply chain during the pandemic, and latest round of funding from investors that include Longview Asset Management, Advance Venture Partners (AVP), Gokul Rajaram RRE Ventures, Lerer Hippeau, and Freestyle.
Parsec Raises $25M to Ensure You Can Connect to Any Computer in the World Remotely
Remote working has become the new normal but for some professions, having access to the powerful computing systems found at the office is difficult to replicate. Parsec is a platform that allows users to remotely access virtual machines and their powerful PCs from any device without any noticeable latency. The company got its start in gaming, where it was popular with gamers that wanted to play on the go, but since the pandemic, the technology is being used by animators, game developers, engineers, or anyone that needs enhanced processing power remotely. AlleyWatch caught up with Cofounder and CEO Benjy Boxer to learn more about the impact the company’s technology has had on working remotely, the company’s expansion plans, and latest round of funding from investors that include Andreessen Horowitz, Makers Fund, Notation Capital, NextView Ventures, and Lerer Hippeau.
Actasys Raises $5M for its Sensor Cleaning Technology Necessary for a Future with Autonomous Vehicles
There are approximately 22 billion sensors used in the automotive industry per year according to a 2017 study and the average automobile has at least 60 individual sensors. The push towards autonomous vehicles will only increase the number of sensors used exponentially. Actasys has built a critical sensor-cleaning technology for vehicles and smart mobility systems ensuring that these sensors can be operated continuously safely. ActaJet™ is an electronically controlled array of actuator cartridges that generates strong jets of air without the need for mechanical pumps or compressors. The company is partnered with automotive companies like Volvo and the technology is also being deployed in other use-cases such as robots, camera systems, traffic monitors, and more. AlleyWatch caught up with CEO Miles Flamenbaum to learn more about the core technology, its practical uses, and the company’s recent funding round.