Get details below on recent funding deals: In the past week, six companies reported a combined total of nearly $73 million million in funding secured. These kinds of deals are a useful gauge of a company's evolution, and are sources of leads for real estate pros and other service providers.
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Union, a company making software used by bars and restaurants include point-of-sale tools, announced Dec. 8 it had raised a $22 million series B funding round led by Miami-based consumer tech-focused firm Clerisy, as well as new investors Roth Capital and Aquila Capital Partners and previous investors NEA, Wellington, Fiserv and Tony Catalfano, former CEO of WorldPay.
Union, which launched in 2017, has raised a total $35 million, including a $13 million series A round in 2019. The company operates legally as ATX Innovation Inc.
The company employs 72, including 27 based in Austin, with plans to add 20 new employees in Austin after the new funding. It will also use the fresh funding to expand its reach — Union's platform is used at nearly 1,000 venues nationwide, but that should surpass 4,000 next year, CEO Alex Broeker said.
Austin-based trucking startup AI Fleet Inc. said Dec. 6 it raised $21 million in new funding. The series A round was led by San Francisco-based Obvious Ventures, with participation from Compound, Ibex Investors and Tom Williams. The round is one of the first big announcements to come from AI Fleet, which launched last year. This brings its total funding to $24.5 million, a company spokesperson said.
Led by co-founder and CEO Marc El Khoury, AI Fleet is a carbon-neutral carrier that plans to scale its operations and expand driver benefits with the new round of financing. The company uses data science and a proprietary algorithm to manage its operations and make transportation more efficient.
AI Fleet has 60 employees, most of whom are drivers. Of that, 20 are Austin-based. The company, which has an office at Sixth Street and Congress Avenue and plans to hire 10-15 people per month.
AI Fleet also aims to have an impact on the truck driver shortage that's currently playing a role in the global supply chain crisis. Part of the strategy there is pleasing drivers. The company's website says it has a minimum guaranteed salary of $67,000.
NadaMoo, an Austin startup that makes plant-based and dairy-free ice cream, said Dec. 7 it closed a $10 million series B funding round. The investment was led by Calgary-based District Ventures Capital and Toronto-based InvestEco, as well as new investor Killam Investments, a family office in South Texas. The new funding follows a $4 million series A round in 2017.
The company, which is a B-Corp and operates legally as Little Red Rooster Ice Cream Co., got its start back in 2005 and soon found its way to the shelves at Whole Foods Market. NadaMoo, led by CEO Daniel Nicholson, says the new funding will help it increase marketing and product development.
Maev Inc., an Austin-based startup making what it calls "human-grade" raw dog food, announced Dec. 10 it had raised $9 million in a round led by Austin's Springdale Ventures. Prior rounds included investment by VMG Partners, Willow Growth and Bolt. Maev plans to expand its team and its product lines with the investor funding.
Founded by CEO Katie Spies in 2018 and launched in 2020, Maev says its raw dog food has no preservatives and comes with the nutrients veterinarians recommend. It also make doggie snacks and bone broth.
Mio, an Austin-based work collaboration and chat startup, said Dec. 9 it has raised an $8.7 million series A funding round led by Zoom Video Communications Inc. and Cisco Systems Inc. Those are two of the platforms that Mio helps connect for cross-platform messaging. The startup, co-founded by CEO Tom Hadfield and Chief Technology Officer James Cundle in 2015, previously raised $8.2 million in a 2018 seed round, according to Crunchbase. Its prior investors include Capital Factory, Y Combinator, Kholsa Ventures, Eniac Ventures and others. Mio operates legally as Message.io Inc.
Artificial intelligence-powered animation platform Aquifer Inventions Inc. has raised a $2 million seed round led by New York City-based LDV Capital. Other investors included Boost VC, Geekdom Fund, Wedbush Ventures, Techstars, Capital Factory, Gurtin Ventures, Scott Wood, Gerald Youngblood and Tom Impallomeni. The startup, led by co-founder and CEO Chen Zhang and co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Matt Udvari, helps content creators with no technical animation skills create high-quality animated content. That includes short TikTok-type videos, GIFs and other animation.
An earlier version of this post incorrectly spelled Tom Hadfield's name. The company also noted it was founded in 2015 and that its seed round came in 2018. The story has been updated.
