Alaska Airlines
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BuyWander moves HQ from Spokane to Seattle area, adds four executives as it expands warehouses nationwide
BuyWander, a Spokane-founded auction marketplace for returned and overstock retail goods, is moving its headquarters to the Seattle area and expanding its warehouse network nationwide while adding four executives. The Kent-based company, founded in 2023 with 45 employees, plans market entries including Denver and Chicago and sells items starting at $1 auctions with local pickup.
Rick Turoczy’s Silicon Florist (Jul 31, 2026) Reviews Portland Startup News, Angel Oregon Finalists and LLM Insights
Rick Turoczy's July 31, 2026 Silicon Florist episode recaps a 'quiet-ish' week in Portland startup news, highlighting five Angel Oregon finalists, how LLMs discuss startups, community support tips, and local ecosystem critiques.
Former Salesforce/Tableau EVP Teri Hatfield named CRO at Iterable; Gates Foundation lawyer Ken Miller joins Arnold & Porter; AIM and Gravitics add C-suite hires
Teri Hatfield left Salesforce/Tableau to become chief revenue officer at Iterable; Gates Foundation legal director Ken Miller joined Arnold & Porter as partner; and Seattle startups AIM and Gravitics appointed new C‑suite executives including AIM's CMO Ben Reed.
Hydrogen Aviation Startup ZeroAvia Scales Back U.S. Operations, CEO and Several Executives Depart Amid Strategic Shift
ZeroAvia, a hydrogen aviation startup backed by Bill Gates and Amazon, has scaled back its ambitions by ceasing most operations in Washington and California, shifting product development to the UK, and experiencing executive departures, including CEO Val Miftakhov. Despite these setbacks, the company maintains its mission to advance hydrogen-electric powertrains for aviation and seeks to adjust its pace and focus according to market conditions.
Amazon Lays Off 14,000 Amid Seattle AI Boom; GeekWire Podcast Debates Tech Bubble and Cascadia Rail Plan
Amazon announced layoffs of 14,000 employees amid an AI boom reshaping Seattle's tech scene, raising questions about whether the AI surge is a true revolution or a bubble. The GeekWire Podcast also discussed the vision and challenges of the proposed Cascadia high-speed rail connecting Portland, Seattle, and Vancouver, B.C.
Seattle's Adora Startup, Founded by Marco Matos and Kabir Shahani, Uses AI to Boost Marketing Efficiency for Major Brands
Seattle-based AI marketing startup Adora, co-founded by Marco Matos and Kabir Shahani in 2023, helps enterprise brands like Alaska Airlines and Brooks Running create and optimize marketing content faster and more efficiently. Adora's platform uses AI trained on each client's brand data to generate on-brand ad variations and measure performance across multiple channels.
UW Startup Voltair Wins $15,000 Prize for AI Self-Charging Drones Inspecting Power Lines to Boost Grid Reliability
University of Washington startup Voltair won the $15,000 grand prize at the UW Environmental Innovation Challenge with AI-powered self-charging drones that inspect power lines to prevent outages. Their drones recharge from power lines and detect vegetation threats, aiming to improve grid reliability amid rising energy demands and workforce retirements.
Former Salesforce Exec Tony Alika Owens Named CEO of $1B-Valued Customer Data Startup Amperity
Tony Alika Owens, a former Salesforce executive, was appointed CEO of Seattle-based customer data platform startup Amperity, which reached a $1 billion valuation in 2021. Owens plans to expand Amperity's AI-driven product offerings and target more technical users and smaller customers.
ZeroAvia Raises $150M to Advance Hydrogen-Electric Aviation with Over 2,000 Engine Orders
Sustainable aviation startup ZeroAvia announced a $150 million funding round, bringing its total raised to over $250 million, to advance hydrogen-electric airplane technologies and expand manufacturing. The company has over 2,000 engine orders and partnerships with firms like Alaska Airlines and Airbus while working on powertrains for aircraft up to 80 seats.
American Airlines to Buy 100 Hydrogen Electric Engines from ZeroAvia for CRJ700 Jets
American Airlines plans to purchase 100 hydrogen electric engines from clean aviation startup ZeroAvia to power its regional Bombardier CRJ700 jets, supporting the development of zero-emission aircraft propulsion. ZeroAvia, founded in 2017, is advancing certification of its ZA600 and ZA2000 hydrogen fuel cell engines and has opened a large manufacturing facility in Washington.
Daydream Raises $50M Seed to Launch AI-Driven Online Clothing Shopping Platform Led by Julie Bornstein
Daydream, a startup led by e-commerce veteran Julie Bornstein, raised a $50 million seed round to develop an AI-powered platform aimed at transforming online clothing shopping. The platform, launching in beta later this year, partners with nearly 2,000 brands to offer a more intuitive and personalized shopping search experience.
Seattle Chef Joel Gamoran’s Homemade Raises $1.5M to Expand Culinary Medicine Vision and PBS Cooking Series
Seattle chef Joel Gamoran's startup Homemade has raised about $1.5 million to expand live online cooking classes and develop a 'culinary medicine' product aimed at improving health through cooking. Homemade also produced a PBS cooking series and plans to launch a second season this summer.
ZeroAvia Opens 136,000 sq. ft. Manufacturing Facility in Everett, Washington to Sell Hydrogen-Electric Aviation Components
ZeroAvia opened a 136,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Everett, Washington, to produce and sell hydrogen-electric airplane engine components. The company is pursuing certification for engines powering 20- to 90-seat aircraft and aims to lead in commercial aviation propulsion systems.
Pacific Northwest Startups in GeekWire Awards Finalize Sustainable Innovations Tackling Carbon, PFAS, and Waste Chemicals for 2024
The 2024 GeekWire Awards Sustainable Innovation finalists include Pacific Northwest startups developing technologies to address environmental issues such as PFAS contamination, carbon removal, and eco-friendly chemicals. Winners will be announced on May 9, with community voting open until April 12.
University of Washington’s AgroFilms Wins $15,000 at 2023 Alaska Airlines Environmental Innovation Challenge
University of Washington students competed in the Alaska Airlines Environmental Innovation Challenge, with AgroFilms winning the $15,000 grand prize for their biodegradable solution. The event showcased innovative climate tech startups integrating various technologies to tackle environmental challenges.
Alaska Airlines and UP.Labs Launch Airline Venture Lab to Incubate Aviation Startups by 2024
Alaska Airlines has partnered with Los Angeles-based UP.Labs to launch Airline Venture Lab, an aviation-focused startup incubator aiming to produce its first new startup by next year, targeting innovations in consumer aviation travel. UP.Labs, which works under UP.Partners and develops startups with corporate partners in mobility, focuses on improving travel and transport through new technologies.
ZeroAvia Raises Largest Funding Round with Investment from Airbus, Amazon, Bill Gates, Alaska Airlines to Develop Hydrogen Aircraft Engines
ZeroAvia, a clean aviation startup developing hydrogen-electric aircraft propulsion, has raised its largest funding round co-led by Airbus and others to support engine certification. The company is partnering with Alaska Airlines to retrofit planes and aims to offer engines for 20-seat aircraft by 2025.
ZeroAvia Expands Hydrogen Aviation R&D in Washington with $350K State Grant; Twelve Builds Low-Emission Jet Fuel Plant
ZeroAvia is expanding its hydrogen-powered aviation R&D in Everett, Washington, supported by a $350,000 state grant and a partnership with Alaska Airlines. Meanwhile, Twelve is building a commercial synthetic jet fuel facility in Moses Lake, aiming to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 90% using renewable energy.
University of Washington Startup Freyr Wins $15,000 for Autonomous Fertilizer Monitoring and Application System at 2023 Environmental Innovation Challenge
Freyr, a student-led ag-tech startup from the University of Washington, won $15,000 as the grand prize at the 2023 Environmental Innovation Challenge for developing a system to monitor and apply fertilizer efficiently using data analytics and plans for an autonomous plane to reduce environmental runoff. The startup aims to minimize fertilizer waste on farms, protecting waterways from toxic runoff caused by excess fertilizer.
KKR-Backed Alchemer Acquires Seattle Startup Apptentive to Expand Mobile Feedback Tools
Alchemer, backed by private equity firm KKR, acquired Seattle-based Apptentive to integrate mobile customer feedback capabilities into its survey platform. Apptentive CEO Robi Ganguly will join Alchemer's executive team while most Apptentive employees transition to Alchemer.
Amperity CEO and co-founder Kabir Shahani steps down; Barry Padgett named CEO as company scales after $100M round
Amperity CEO and co-founder Kabir Shahani has relinquished the CEO title seven months after the company raised $100 million and reached unicorn status; president and COO Barry Padgett becomes CEO and Monica Pool Knox is named chief people officer. The company called 2021 a record year, offered no explanation for Shahani's departure, and said it will focus on scaling its customer-data software business.
ZeroAvia opens R&D center at Everett’s Paine Field; $5.5M refit and $350K Washington grant support hydrogen-electric powertrain work
ZeroAvia is opening an R&D center at Everett’s Paine Field near Seattle to develop hydrogen-electric aircraft powertrains, with plans to begin customer rollouts in 2024 and potentially build a North American manufacturing hub there. The Paine Field site converts warehouse space into offices and labs, received a $350,000 Washington grant, and will employ 20–30 people initially while ZeroAvia pursues larger-scale manufacturing and powertrains for bigger aircraft.
Amazon’s $2B Climate Pledge Fund Invests in Hippo Harvest and Amogy to Cut Grocery and Shipping Emissions
Amazon’s $2 billion Climate Pledge Fund has invested in two climate tech startups — Hippo Harvest, which develops closed-loop greenhouse systems using robotics and ML to cut water use and emissions, and Amogy, which converts ammonia into power for heavy transport — part of Amazon’s push to reach net zero by 2040. The moves aim to reduce emissions across Amazon’s grocery stores and shipping operations amid rising company emissions.
Madrona and Goldman Sachs Publish Inaugural IA40 of Top 40 Private AI Business-App Startups; Four Seattle Firms Included
Madrona Venture Group and Goldman Sachs released the inaugural Intelligent Applications Top 40 (IA40) list of private companies building business AI applications, based on votes from 40 venture firms plus Amazon and Microsoft and narrowed by 50 judges from over 220 nominees. Four Seattle-area companies — Amperity, OctoML, SeekOut, and one unnamed here — made the list; Amperity recently raised $100 million to reach unicorn status and OctoML raised $85 million.
Amperity raises $100M Series D, becomes Seattle’s newest unicorn with $187M total funding
Seattle-based marketing startup Amperity raised $100 million in a Series D round, valuing it above $1 billion and bringing its total funding to $187 million. The company’s customer data platform helps brands like Alaska Airlines, Kroger and Starbucks unify fragmented first-party customer data to improve targeted marketing amid cookie restrictions and rising digital adoption.
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Bernadette Berger Director of Experience Strategy and Design, Director of Innovation
