Get details below on deals from the past week, including an eight-figure infusion for a company using drones to install power lines and a couple of seed rounds.
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Companies
Infravision Holdings Pty Ltd., a company that uses drones to install and monitor power lines, said Sept. 27 it secured $23 million in series A funding. The investment was led by New York-based Energy Impact Partners. Other backers included Equinor Ventures and Edison International. The startup, which operates out of Austin, San Francisco and Australia, was founded in Australia in 2018 by CEO Cameron Van Der Berg and Chief Revenue Officer Chris Cox.
The company's primary product, TX System, replaces traditional electrical line stringing done by helicopters and line workers on large, high-power transmission lines. The drone-enabled hardware and software is also used to make repairs on power lines. The system, including a tension generating machine, packs up into a customized trailer that can be pulled behind a pickup truck.
Infravision said it will use the new funding to expand throughout the U.S. and hire new employees. It currently has more than 10 openings for roles in its Austin and Buda offices.
"It is estimated that 10 million miles of new power lines are required by 2030 to reach net-zero targets, which is roughly equivalent to building the entire U.S. and Canadian power grids again, which took us a century, in seven years," Van Der Berg stated. "We’re confident Infravision’s proven technology is the solution for today, and for the future of power line construction automation and grid efficiency."
Whiskey maker Fierce Whiskers Distillery LLC has raised more than $5.6 million. Co-founders Tim Penney and Tri Vo plan to use the money to add employees, produce more spirits and build out a music venue at their six-acre facility in Southeast Austin.
The money came from friends, close business partners and personal investment. The company produced its first barrel three years ago and already has shelf space at major retailers in Austin including Spec’s, Twin Liquors and The Austin Shaker. Distribution is growing and Penney expects Fierce Whiskers' product will be in 100 retail stores by the end of the year.
Axial Shift Inc., an Austin-based company making software for restaurants, announced last week $4 million in seed funding. The round was led by local venture firm Silverton Partners.
Created by Ellis Winstanley, owner of El Arroyo and other restaurants, Axial Shift makes software that allows restaurants to gamify sales, for example by having servers compete to see who can sell the most queso. Its tools also handle tip pooling, scheduling and other administrative tasks.
Fake users and bots abound in our online world, and an Austin startup has raised new funding to help spot them and keep them out apps, sites and free software trials. Verisoul Inc., founded in 2022 by CEO Henry LeGard, said Sept. 28 it raised $3.25 million in seed funding. The round was led by San Francisco-based Bitkraft Ventures with participation from King River, Third Prime, Hashkey and AcuityMD CEO Mike Monovoukas.
The startup says its platform, ZeroFake, helps businesses understand an application's fake user prevalence and one of its features uses biometrics and zero-knowledge techniques to verify users are authentic. Its customers include gaming, software, dating and research companies.
"As artificial intelligence has advanced and Web3 technologies have emerged, the prevalence and sophistication of botting in online games and virtual worlds have increased, making botting activities more profitable," Bitkraft Ventures investor Nico Vereecke stated. "This has detrimental effects on the gaming experience, undermines the integrity of gaming environments, fosters unfair competition, and devalues the efforts of legitimate players."
Investment firms
Austin-based, minority-led venture firm TXV Partners said Sept. 28 it has a new strategic partnership with Houston-based CAZ Investments that will help it launch a new fund to invest in growth-stage sports tech companies and teams. The resulting Evolution Fund will channel cash to sports tech companies, adding to its existing investments in tech used by pro leagues including the NFL, NBA and Premier League.
The Wall Street Journal, citing a person familiar with the deal, reported that the firm plans to raise $500 million for the new fund, and that the fund could grow to as much as $750 million. That would follow TXV's first fund, which topped out around $30 million.
The firm is led by co-founder and Managing Partner Marcus Stroud, a Kauffman Fellow who worked at a couple of Dallas-area investment firms and played football at Princeton University, and co-founder and Managing Partner Brandon Allen, who also attended Princeton and was appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott to the Texas Board of Chiropractic Examiners.
"It was always our goal to grow TXV into a thematic investment firm with expertise across various asset classes, creating a cohesive ecosystem at the nexus of human performance: emerging technology, health and sports," Stroud stated. "We are grateful to partner with a firm like CAZ, who has already helped transform us in so many ways."
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.
