Northeast Ohio startups landed nearly twice as many venture capital dollars in 2022 as in the prior year, bucking the national slowdown in investing following a blockbuster 2021.
Startups in the Cleveland, Akron, Canton and Youngstown areas raised more than $560 million last year, up 93% from 2021, according to Venture Monitor, a report published by PitchBook and the National Venture Capital Association.
That excludes many investments of less than $1 million that are not captured by Venture Monitor, which tracks only the top deals.
Even after subtracting Society Brands' whopping $204 million investment round in March, local startups raised $356 million last year — a nearly 23% increase over 2021, according to Venture Monitor data.
Earlier-stage deal activity and fundraising totals show remarkable resiliency in 2022, given the significant economic headwinds caused by rising interest rates and "frozen avenues for startup liquidity," said John Gabbert, founder and CEO of PitchBook, in a statement.
Northeast Ohio startups raised $88 million in the fourth quarter, up 17% from $75 million in the same 2021 period.
Binary Defense Systems Inc. in Stow led the fourth-quarter list with $36 million — its first fundraise — in November, according to Venture Monitor. The company plans to use its new capital to speed sales and marketing of its technology that uses "a proactive, hacker’s mindset" to guard computers against cyber attacks.
Sundays for Dogs Inc. in Solon was next on the list, raising $13 million in October, Venture Monitor reported. The maker of human-grade, air-dried dog food that is sold online by subscription also raised $10 million in March, according to Crunchbase.
And Remesh, the AI-powered digital-conversation platform that's used by companies for market research and human-resource management, raised $12 million in December, according to Venture Monitor. Remesh was one of 16 companies in Cleveland Inno's inaugural Inno Madness bracket competition in 2022.
Here's a list of the top investments in Northeast Ohio startups during the latest quarter:
