Facts
- HQ
- Redmond
- Sectors
- Virtual Reality, Haptics, Hardware
- Stage
- Startup
- Founders
- Jake Rubin, Dr. Bob Crockett
GeekWire revises GeekWire 200: firms >15 years old and majority PE-owned ineligible, rankings shift to quarterly in 2022
GeekWire is changing the criteria for its GeekWire 200 startup rankings: beginning in 2022, majority private-equity-owned companies and companies 15 years or older will be ineligible, and the index will move from monthly to quarterly updates, which will reshape the top ranks including removing Blue Origin.
Upbound raises $60M Series B led by Altimeter; total funding $69M — Klue secures $62M
Seattle-based Upbound raised $60 million in a Series B led by Altimeter Capital to expand its Universal Cloud Platform and Crossplane open-source project for multi-cloud management, bringing total funding to $69 million. Vancouver-based competitive intelligence startup Klue also raised $62 million to aggregate competitor data for enterprise customers.
HaptX alleges Meta’s Reality Labs haptic glove is “substantively identical” to its patented microfluidic technology
Seattle startup HaptX says Meta’s new haptic glove prototype uses microfluidic feedback technology that is "substantively identical" to HaptX’s patented design, and HaptX’s CEO Jake Rubin says the company has not heard from Meta but seeks a fair, equitable arrangement. Meta announced microfluidic advances in its Reality Labs Research blog, and declined to respond to HaptX’s assertions when contacted by GeekWire.
HaptX raises $12M from existing investors, bringing total to $31M, and relocates HQ back to Seattle
HaptX raised $12 million from existing investors to meet demand for its DK2 haptic gloves, bringing total funding to $31 million, and is moving its headquarters back to the Seattle area into a new 15,000 sq ft space while maintaining offices in Redmond and San Luis Obispo.
HaptX wins $1.5M NSF grant to build ForceBot full-body haptic exoskeleton with Virginia Tech and UF
Seattle startup HaptX won a $1.5 million National Science Foundation grant to develop a full-body haptic system called ForceBot over four years with Virginia Tech and the University of Florida, combining its microfluidic touch-feedback gloves with a robotic exoskeleton. The 20-person company, which raised $12 million in December and leases VR gloves to customers like Volkswagen, says production remains on track despite pandemic-related challenges.
