It's hard to imagine Tampa Bay's tech scene could have a stronger year than 2021, when many realized the potential that began to get the national spotlight in 2020.
But 2022 could prove otherwise if its first quarter is any indicator.
The region counts millions raised throughout the Q1, along with a new unicorn and other companies continuing to set up shop in Tampa Bay. We've got the highlights from first three months of the year you may have missed.
One company hits the $1 billion unicorn status
Pocket Network, a Tampa-based Web 3 developer, became worth more than $1.5 billion. It raised nearly $10 million in April 2021 and its total network revenue exceeded $56 million in December alone. In January, it sold its tokens at $3, bringing its value to more than $1.5 billion. Get the full story.
National pitch competition lands in Tampa
The year also kicked off by hosting Startup of the Year, a national conference that taps a different top tech city annually to host more than 80 startups for its three-day stretch. Keynotes, panels and networking all went down, but its pinnacle was the annual pitch competition. See the highlights from the days here.
Companies launch from stealth mode
- A University of South Florida professor teamed up with a local startup veteran to launch MARVL, which exited stealth mode in January. The company helps dual-language students learn English through augmented reality elements, all without leaving the classroom. Get the full story.
- Tampa healthtech startup Constellation4Health exited from stealth mode in February after launching in April 2020. It offers a data and subscription platform which insurance companies can utilize to clean and manage the data of health care providers. The company has more than 50 employees, national partnerships and funding plans in the works. Learn more.
More companies flock to town
- Spontivly, a formerly Canadian SaaS company that allows organizations to gain insights into their community, announced in January it would be moving to Tampa Bay. The company first became familiar with the region after participating in Tampa Bay Wave's TechDiversity cohort in 2021 and has joined startup hub Embarc Collective. Learn more about them here.
- International coding boot camp Ironhack selected Tampa as its second U.S. headquarters in February after the Spain-based company first expanded to Miami in 2017. See their plans for the city.
- Minneapolis-based fintech firm Branch tapped Tampa for its first office expansion. The company announced in March it will set up shop in the Industrious space in Ybor City with plans to hire 20 to 30 employees in the next few years. Get the full story.
The biggest fundings of Q1
- Red Rover, founded by a former PODS co-founder and improves upon that model, raised $35 million in February. It followed $15 million in December, with plans to raise another $5 million this spring. Get the story.
- New Tampa transplant Genesis Systems, which states it has technology to get clean drinking water out of the air's condensation, raised $10 million. The company expects to close its Series A by the end of Q2 or Q3 for an undisclosed amount, though CEO David Stuckenberg previously told Tampa Bay Inno it was aiming for $200 million. Learn more here.
- Nucleus Security, a B2B SaaS cybersecurity company, raised a $20 million Series B in March. The company was bootstrapped until it closed its $3.4 million Series A in February 2021 and has no plans for a Series C in the near future. Check out how they plan to grow here.
