It's not uncommon for an Austin startup to have several Austin investors -- or even two of its top VC firms. AlertMedia's new $8 million Series B, however, seems to be an example of Austin VCs teaming up in an interesting way.
AlertMedia, which makes mass communication emergency and threat-monitoring alerts for large-scale, logistics-heavy companies like DHL and H-E-B, announced it raised $8 million led by Next Coast Ventures and with continued investment from ATX Seed Ventures. Its other prior investors include Silverton Partners and Capital Factory, and it also attracted significant angel investment in Austin.
It might have worked differently, according to a Next Coast Ventures blog post: "AlertMedia had interest from just about every venture capital firm - both locally and across the country," it says.
So, the deal represents the Austin-heavy investment in a fast-moving startup with a big, scalable product that much of the local tech community likes to see.
"Adding Next Coast to the investment group is proof of not just how vibrant the Austin investment ecosystem is for great companies like AlertMedia, but how local investment dollars can support these businesses throughout their lifecycle," Mike Smerklo, co-founder and managing director of Next Coast Ventures, said in the blog post.
It competes with companies like Regroup that offer similar products that have become seemingly more important during events like Hurricane Harvey and other disruptive events.
AlertMedia, founded in 2013, was founded by CEO Brian Cruver and has raised about $17 million to date. The new money is focused on product development and sales. It already has several notable clients, including The Salvation Army, Greyhound and several state and local agencies.
With the SafeSignal app, an organization can offer its employees a small tether that attaches to their phone to use when they feel they're in danger. It makes it easy to know if something might have gone wrong -- without the user needing to tap their screen -- so the organization can quickly respond. AlertMedia's mass communication platform, meanwhile, makes it easier for organizations to chat during critical situations.
“At a time when the news seems to be dominated by emergency after emergency, it’s becoming a necessity for corporations – of all sizes and across all industries – to have modern notification systems in place,” Smerklo said. “We feel strongly that AlertMedia represents the future of emergency mass communication and has the right team in place to successfully scale this product.”
