GeekWire
GeekWire provides technology news, analysis, and resources for tech professionals, entrepreneurs, and enthusiasts. It covers developments in the technology industry, produces events and podcasts, and offers tools such as job boards and startup rankings to support the tech community. Its mission is to inform and connect people interested in technology and startups.
Facts
- HQ
- Seattle
- Sectors
- Online Audio and Video Media
- Founded
- 2011
- Type
- LLC Seattle business license
- Employees
- 26
- Registered name
- GeekWire LLC Seattle business license
- Founders
- John Cook, Todd Bishop
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Publication
- Last published Oct 15
Authors & Editors
Stackline raises $130M Series B from TA Associates after $50M raise last November; serves 2,000+ brands
Seattle-based e-commerce software company Stackline raised $130 million from TA Associates in a Series B, less than a year after a $50 million round; the firm serves over 2,000 brands, has been profitable since 2014, and grew headcount 75% this year.
Bain Capital and Crosspoint Capital to buy Seattle cybersecurity firm ExtraHop for $900 million; founders stay
Private equity firms Bain Capital and Crosspoint Capital will acquire Seattle cybersecurity startup ExtraHop for $900 million; the 14-year-old company, with about 1,000 customers and 500+ employees, reported $100 million ARR and expects 40% growth this year. Founders and current leaders will remain, the deal aims to accelerate growth and is expected to close this summer.
Zenoti raises $80M extension from TPG Capital, total funding $330M and valuation near $1.5B after December Series D
Zenoti raised an $80 million extension to its December Series D led by TPG Capital, bringing total funding to $330 million and valuing the company near $1.5 billion; the enterprise software serves over 12,000 spas, salons and wellness businesses across 50 countries. The company, founded by Sudheer and Dheeraj Koneru, charges per-store subscriptions, has a growing payments arm, saw revenue double in 2020, expects 120% growth in 2021, and plans expansion into pet grooming and fitness.
Astra to Go Public July 1 via Craig McCaw’s Holicity SPAC in $2.1B Deal; Proxy Voting Starts
Astra plans to go public on Nasdaq on July 1 via a merger with Craig McCaw’s SPAC Holicity, a deal that values Astra at $2.1 billion and follows recent launches and business moves including a planned acquisition of Apollo Fusion worth up to $145 million. CEO Chris Kemp said proxy statements for the June 30 shareholder vote are being mailed, and Astra has secured multi-launch work for Planet and aims to use Apollo Fusion propulsion on Spaceflight Inc.’s Sherpa tug.
MetaVC Partners raises debut fund to back metamaterials startups with investments from Bill Gates and Nathan Myhrvold
MetaVC Partners, a San Francisco venture fund founded by physicists Chris Alliegro and Conrad Burke, is raising its first fund to back early-stage metamaterials startups, with investors including Bill Gates and Intellectual Ventures founder Nathan Myhrvold.
Brad Evans launches Contrib to auction athlete memorabilia online and boost charity fundraising
Former Seattle Sounders defender Brad Evans has launched Contrib, a digital fundraising startup that auctions athlete memorabilia and leverages social media and game-time hype to raise more money for charities than traditional in-person donations. Evans says building the tech company has been a steep learning curve and is giving him new, sometimes sleepless, challenges compared with his 12-year pro soccer career.
iContact (J2 Global subsidiary) acquires Seattle SEO firm Moz; terms undisclosed
Seattle SEO software startup Moz, founded in 2004 by Rand Fishkin and Gillian Muessig, was acquired by iContact (a J2 Global subsidiary); terms were not disclosed and Moz will keep its brand while joining J2’s email marketing portfolio. Moz, which employs 177 people, is profitable, serves clients like Alaska Airlines and Zillow, and will pair resources with iContact for combined search and email marketing solutions.
MicrobiomX raises $1M pre-seed to commercialize stool collection, processing and capsule-encapsulation device
Seattle startup MicrobiomX raised $1 million in a pre-seed round to develop a device that collects, processes and extrudes stool into capsules for clinical fecal microbiota transplantation and offers microbiome analysis services. The company, launched in 2020 from UW and Seattle Children’s Hospital research after a $50,000 CoMotion grant, aims to simplify messy current stool-processing methods used for FMT and autologous FMT.
Ganaz raises $7M Series A led by Trilogy Equity to expand ag workforce software and launch Mastercard Payroll Card
Seattle-based Ganaz raised $7 million in a Series A led by Trilogy Equity to expand its workforce-management and emerging financial tools for the agricultural sector, serving over 175,000 workers and 75 employers across the U.S. and Mexico. The company plans to roll out a Mastercard Payroll Card to digitize pay and paperwork, expand into eight Latin American countries this year, and grow headcount by 30+.
Factal raises $3.3M Series A after doubling 2020 revenue to expand AI-and-journalist breaking-news alerts for corporate risk
Seattle startup Factal, which uses AI and journalists to monitor and verify breaking-news threats for corporate clients, raised $3.3 million in a Series A after doubling revenue in 2020. Its tools provide verification, proximity mapping, customized alerts and real-time collaboration for functions like security, risk intelligence and supply-chain continuity.
Outreach raises $200M, valuation climbs to $4.4B as Seattle sales-software firm expands AI products
Sales software startup Outreach raised $200 million in venture capital, pushing its valuation to $4.4 billion as the 10-year-old Seattle company expands AI-driven sales products and serves over 4,600 customers. The company reported $100 million in annual recurring revenue in fall 2020 and has now raised a total of $489 million.
Electric Era, founded by ex‑SpaceX engineers, raises $3M seed from REMUS Capital to build battery systems for fast EV chargers
Seattle startup Electric Era, founded by former SpaceX engineers, raised a $3 million seed round led by REMUS Capital to build lithium battery storage systems that buffer grid demand at fast EV charging stations; the company expects initial customer deployments in coming months and can manufacture 40 units per week.
Seattle’s Safeology, spun out of Electric Mirror, launches UV-C lights and purifiers to kill SARS-CoV-2 as schools and businesses reopen
Seattle-area company Safeology, spun out from Electric Mirror in March 2020, is selling UV-C lighting products and air purifiers intended to kill viruses including SARS-CoV-2 as schools and businesses reopen. Company leaders Jim and Aaron Mischel say their lighting expertise made the transition to UV-C logical, citing tests showing UV-C can inactivate coronaviruses.
Frazier Healthcare Partners raises $1.4B tenth Healthcare Growth Buyout Fund, up from $780M
Seattle-based Frazier Healthcare Partners raised $1.4 billion for its tenth Healthcare Growth Buyout Fund, a significant increase from its prior $780 million fund and one of Washington state's largest institutional raises. The fund will invest $50–$150 million in 10–12 middle-market healthcare companies focused on pharmaceutical services, hospital outsourcing, and data analytics/AI, leveraging executive placements to drive consolidation.
TerraClear Raises $25M to Advance AI-Powered Rock-Picking Farm Technology with Fully Autonomous Version in Development
TerraClear, an ag tech startup founded by Brent Frei, has raised $25 million to advance its AI-powered rock-picking technology that helps farmers clear rocks from their fields efficiently. The company’s robotic Rock Picker can handle rocks up to 300 pounds, working with minimal soil disturbance, and is currently on its 14th prototype.
Betacom raises $15M to launch Betacom 5G-as-a-service and manage enterprise private 5G networks
Betacom raised $15 million to launch Betacom 5G-as-a-service, a fully managed private 5G offering built on Microsoft Azure that it will design, deploy and operate for enterprises via a subscription model.
Eliem Therapeutics raises $60M to advance Phase 2a pain and depression drugs, two months after $80M round
Seattle neurology startup Eliem Therapeutics raised $60 million to advance two Phase 2a drug candidates for chronic pain and depression two months after an $80 million raise; the company is led by CEO Bob Azelby and backed by Intermediate Capital Group and others.
Phaidra raises $4M led by Flying Fish with Mark Cuban among investors to scale AI for industrial automation
Phaidra, a 15-person startup founded in 2019 that builds AI agents to analyze sensor data and optimize industrial facilities, raised $4 million led by Flying Fish with participation from Section 32, Character, Starshot Capital and Mark Cuban. The company — led by ex-DeepMind engineers Jim Gao and Vedavyas Panneershelvam and industry veteran Katherine Hoffman — will use the funding to expand in process heating/cooling, chemical manufacturing and paper and pulp.
Madrona Venture Group’s Steve Singh Details Six Post-COVID Tech Trends and Reasons for Hope on GeekWire Podcast
Steve Singh, managing director of Madrona Venture Group and former CEO of Docker and Concur, joined GeekWire to discuss reasons for hope and six technology trends to watch as the Pacific Northwest emerges from the pandemic, in a special episode tied to the 2021 virtual GeekWire Awards.
Icertis names ex‑SAP marketer Gretchen Eischen as CMO amid $2.8B valuation; Apollo partner David Sambur exits Expedia board
Icertis hired former SAP marketing executive Gretchen Eischen as CMO while moving Seth Nesbitt to a newly created culture role; Icertis was valued at $2.8B after an $80M round. Apollo partner David Sambur resigned from Expedia Group’s board after a $1B investment, and Remitly named Vishal Ghotge EVP of North America.
GeekWire names winners at 2021 Awards; SeekOut wins Startup of the Year after $65M raise
The 2021 GeekWire Awards returned as a virtual event honoring over 60 finalists across 14 categories from the Pacific Northwest tech community, featuring celebrity cameos and performances. Winners included SeekOut as Startup of the Year, and among 16 winners eight were women and five were people of color and/or immigrant entrepreneurs.
Creative Destruction Lab to launch nine-month, equity-free Seattle accelerator with Microsoft and UW for 20–25 computational health startups this November
Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) is launching a Seattle hub this November at the University of Washington to run a nine-month, equity-free accelerator for 20–25 computational health startups in partnership with Microsoft and UW’s business, engineering, and computer science schools; UW students can shadow the program. The program is funded by founding members, enforces objective milestones with the possibility of booting nonperforming companies, and stems from UW’s Innovation Roundtable efforts led by Emer Dooley and others.
Esper raises $30M Series B led by Scale Venture Partners to expand DevOps platform for Android IoT fleets
Seattle-based Esper raised $30 million in a Series B led by Scale Venture Partners to expand its DevOps platform for managing fleets of company-owned Android IoT devices; the 100-person startup says revenue, customers and device installs surged in 2020. Total funding to date is $40.6 million and Esper targets industries using point-of-sale tablets, connected fitness gear and kiosks.
Zap Energy raises $27.5M Series B to develop magnet-free commercial fusion reactor
Seattle startup Zap Energy raised $27.5 million in a Series B to advance a magnet-free fusion reactor that stabilizes plasma with sheared flows, aiming to lower costs and speed deployment of low-carbon fusion. The company, founded in 2017 and rooted in University of Washington and Lawrence Livermore research, has now raised over $34 million total.
Educative raises $12M Series A to expand coding-learning platform, plans to grow headcount to 300 by end of 2021
Seattle-based coding education startup Educative raised a $12 million Series A to expand its interactive platform used by more than 550,000 developers and enterprise customers like LinkedIn, Samsung and Ford, bringing total funding to $14.6 million.
People
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John Cook Founder, Co-founder and Publisher, GeekWire
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Jonathan Sposato Founder, Chairman & co-founder
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Todd Bishop Founder, Co-Founder
