Get details below on funding deals from the past couple of weeks, including a rare nine-figure round during a venture capital slowdown.
Want daily updates on fundings, hires and other news of interest to the startup community? Subscribe to Austin Inno's Beat newsletter.
Companies
SpyCloud Inc. said Aug. 23 that is has raised a $110 million round led by California-based Riverwood Capital. The round also included additional investment from Austin-based Silverton Partners, which was among the company's earliest backers.
Now the company plans on hire new tech talent and is expanding its cyber intrusion detection capabilities.
CEO Ted Ross declined to share the company's valuation. He said the company's revenue has tripled since its last funding round, a $30 million infusion in 2020. SpyCloud has now raised a total of $168.5 million.
The startup currently has 185 employees, about 100 of whom are in Central Texas. The company's office is in a former theater on South Congress Avenue.
Earlier in the month, Austin-based electric delivery vehicle company Ayro Inc. (Nasdaq:AYRO) raised $22 million through a private stock deal with its existing investors.
Palladium Capital Group LLC was the placement agent.
The securities purchase agreement, which took the form of convertible preferred stock and warrants, was announced Aug. 8 and was expected to close Aug. 10.
Ayro reported Aug. 14 second-quarter revenue of nearly $140,000 — executives attributed the "minimal" figure to the sunset of the company's first-generation vehicle, the Club Car Current — and a net loss of $6 million. Meanwhile, it's gearing up to launch its new low-speed electric vehicle, the Ayro Vanish, according to statements by CEO Tom Wittenschlaeger.
He said the new funding will help Ayro with the launch.
"It should ensure we can complete the development, manufacturing ramp up and marketing of the Vanish, our lead low speed electric vehicle and meet its anticipated growth in demand," he stated. "It also should provide additional cash for exploring other initiatives including continuing R&D into newer LSEV models as well as the possibility of acquiring additional assets to enhance shareholder value should such opportunities present themselves."
Austin-based software testing platform Qase Inc. said Aug. 25 it has raised $7.2 million in seed and series A funding. The startup, led by founder and CEO Nikita Fedorov, said the round was led by London-based Chrome Capital with participation from Finsight Ventures and S16VC.
The startup's AI platform helps developers with manual and automated software testing. It says the new money will help it expand its team and build a Jira-like marketplace for test management tools. The company says it has processed over 27 million test results for over 100,000 developers.
Charles Thornburgh, known to many in the Austin startup community for his co-founding of Civitas Learning and educational-technology angel investing, has launched a new startup along with fellow Civitas co-founder Laura Malcom. And last week it announced it has raised a $6.5 million seed round. The company, Kinjo Learning Inc., has an app kids can download to access educational content and earn rewards. The investment was led by Austin venture firms LiveOak Venture Partners, Silverton Partners and Breyer Capital. California-based Roble Ventures also invested.
Kinjo says that about 20,000 kids are already using its app. Meanwhile, the company is planning to expand to new gaming and media platforms, and it is working on a version for parents that lets them see the skills their kids are building.
"As a career education entrepreneur and parent, I know firsthand how hard it is to build educational products that can compete with the games and videos that hold our kids’ attention,” Thornburgh stated. “At Kinjo, we flipped that model. Instead of trying to drag them away from the platforms they love, we are meeting kids where they are and rewarding them for building skills in the games and media that have already captured their imaginations.”
Investment funds
Austin-based LiveOak Venture Partners appears to be raising up to $20 million for a new fund it's calling LiveOak Select Fund I LP, according to an Aug. 17 securities filing. VCs typically can't talk about new funds before they start raising. But I suspect this will be used for special purposes, such as co-investing endeavors, given that LiveOak raised a $210 million fund in 2021.
For more local deals, check out another recent funding wrap. And subscribe to Austin Business Journal for startup resources such as lists of venture capital and private equity firms, incubators and accelerators, angel investors and coworking providers.
