Taylor Soper
Taylor Soper is Director of Community and Programming at AI House and serves as a board member at the University of Washington, Board of Student Publications. He previously held editorial and reporting roles at GeekWire and Major League Baseball, with expertise in technology startups, programming, and community building.
Seattle Startup QA Wolf Raises $36M Series B Led by Scale to Expand Mobile Testing
Seattle startup QA Wolf raised $36 million in a Series B round led by Scale Venture Partners to expand its software testing capabilities into native mobile apps. Founded in 2019, QA Wolf automates quality assurance for web and mobile applications and has 130 employees.
Seattle Startup RevealDx Raises $4.25M to Improve Lung Cancer Diagnosis with AI Technology
Seattle startup RevealDx raised $4.25 million to enhance lung cancer diagnosis using machine learning to analyze chest CT scans, aiming to accelerate diagnosis and reduce false positives. The company, formerly Mindshare Medical, is expanding in Europe and pursuing FDA approval in the U.S.
Clarivate Acquires Seattle-Based Patent Automation Startup Rowan TELS Corp.
Clarivate, a London-based software company, acquired Rowan TELS Corp., the maker of an automated patent drafting tool, with Rowan’s development team remaining in Seattle. Rowan was founded in 2018 and merged with TurboPatent in 2019, backed by Seattle investors including Voyager Capital.
Seattle Venture Capital Firm Flying Fish Files for New Fund III to Continue Investing in AI Startups
Seattle-based venture capital firm Flying Fish is raising a new fund called Flying Fish Fund III, following previous funds of $37 million and $70 million raised in 2016 and 2022 respectively. The firm focuses on early-stage AI, machine learning, and robotics startups, initially in the Pacific Northwest but now with a broader geographic scope.
Seattle Startup Signify Raises $2.1M to Use AI for Simplifying Manufacturers' Regulatory Compliance
Seattle-based startup Signify, spun out from the AI2 Incubator, raised $2.1 million to develop AI-driven software that helps manufacturers manage complex regulatory compliance tasks. Led by CEO Martín Ramírez, the platform aims to streamline compliance processes for manufacturers facing evolving and diverse market regulations.
Seattle Startup Momento Raises $15M Series A Led by Bain Capital Ventures to Accelerate Software Infrastructure
Seattle startup Momento, founded by former AWS engineers, raised $15 million in a Series A round led by Bain Capital Ventures to accelerate software infrastructure tools. Momento's technology supports clients like Wyze Labs and ZigZaGame by enabling faster database access, messaging at scale, and cloud caching integration.
Bling Capital's Kyle Lui Critiques Seattle Startups for Low Ambition Compared to Bay Area
Kyle Lui, a longtime Silicon Valley venture capitalist and general partner at Bling Capital, says Seattle's startup ecosystem lacks ambitious founders aiming for large-scale industry leadership, favoring more modest, local outcomes instead. Lui believes this cautious mindset limits the growth of unicorns in Seattle compared to markets like the Bay Area and New York.
Former OfferUp CEO Nick Huzar and Ex-Auth0 CEO Jon Gelsey Lead Juicer Energy in Launching Affordable Residential EV Charging Startup
Juicer Energy is a new Seattle-based startup led by former OfferUp CEO Nick Huzar and ex-Auth0 CEO Jon Gelsey, aiming to convert residential properties into affordable public EV charging stations. The company recently filed for a new investment round and offers a 'charge anywhere' experience via an app and EV charging devices installed at homes and apartments.
Douglas Gourlay Named CEO of Seattle Data Storage Firm Qumulo, Succeeding Retiring Bill Richter
Douglas Gourlay, former Arista and Cisco executive, has been named CEO of Seattle-based data storage company Qumulo, succeeding retiring CEO Bill Richter. Gourlay aims to leverage AI demand and customer focus as Qumulo shifts from hardware to software solutions, serving over 1,000 customers with around 300 employees.
AI Expert Yinhan Liu Co-founds LeyLine to Accelerate Video Production with Generative AI Tools, Backed by Primavera Venture Partners
Yinhan Liu, an AI and NLP expert who sold her previous startup BirchAI, co-founded LeyLine, a Seattle-based company developing AI tools to accelerate video production workflows and connect studios with artists. LeyLine is in early customer trials, plans to generate revenue this year, and recently raised undisclosed seed funding led by Primavera Venture Partners.
PairUp Raises $2.8M to Enhance Corporate Knowledge Sharing with AI, Led by CEO Emily Harburg
Startup PairUp, led by CEO Emily Harburg, offers AI-powered software to improve how companies capture and access both documented and undocumented knowledge across employees. The company recently secured $2.8 million in funding to support its mission of enhancing internal knowledge sharing, especially amid challenges posed by remote work.
Remitly Signs Lease for Larger Seattle Headquarters at Rainier Square Tower, Plans Move in 2025
Remitly is relocating its Seattle headquarters to a larger office at Rainier Square Tower in downtown Seattle next year to enhance collaboration and in-person work. The company employs over 450 people in Seattle and aims to support return-to-office strategies amid a broader downtown recovery.
Seattle Startup Freightmate.ai, Founded by Ex-Amazon and Flexport Execs, Raises $650K to Revolutionize Freight Forwarding with AI
Seattle-based startup Freightmate.ai, founded by former Amazon and Flexport executives, launched with a $650,000 pre-seed round to develop AI-powered freight forwarding management tools. The company aims to modernize the $220 billion freight forwarding industry by automating document and task management, currently seeking its first customers.
Seattle Legal Tech Startup Clearbrief Raises $4M to Boost AI Software for Lawyers
Seattle-based legal tech startup Clearbrief raised $4 million to enhance its AI-powered software that helps lawyers find, verify, and summarize facts in legal documents. The software, used by hundreds of law firms and Microsoft’s legal team, generates litigation exhibits and detects citation errors.
Former Amazon and Unity Exec Marc Whitten Named CEO of GM-Backed Self-Driving Company Cruise Amid Recovery
Marc Whitten, former chief product and technology officer at Unity Software and ex-Amazon and Microsoft executive, has been named CEO of Cruise, a GM-backed self-driving company facing recent operational setbacks. Whitten will relocate to Austin and lead Cruise as it recovers from safety incidents, executive departures, and layoffs.
Tech Startups Shift to Profitability and Sustainable Growth Amid Tight 2023-2024 Venture Capital Market
Tech startups are shifting from growth-at-all-costs to focusing on profitability and efficient growth without relying on new investor funding amid tighter venture capital conditions and challenging market factors. This new approach, termed 'default alive,' emphasizes sustainable business models and cautious investment amid a decline in funding and more down rounds.
Chris Bee Joins AI Email Startup Superhuman as CTO; Getty Images Founder Departs Board; Xbox Veteran Larry Hryb Joins Unity
Chris Bee, formerly CTO at Lessen, has joined AI email startup Superhuman as CTO to help expand its enterprise offerings, while several other tech executives changed roles across Pacific Northwest companies. Notably, Getty Images founder Jonathan Klein left the board, and Xbox veteran Larry Hryb joined Unity as director of community.
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 Startup DeltaGen Develops Prompt-Free AI Platform for Enterprise Workflows, Backed by CEO Rene Bystron
DeltaGen, a Seattle startup led by CEO Rene Bystron, is developing AI software that enables enterprises to use generative AI without needing to write prompts, starting with financial workflows. The platform integrates multiple AI APIs to select the best model for specific tasks and is currently in beta, planning to adopt a SaaS revenue model.
Google Veteran Stephen Konig Leads Seattle-Based Mudita Studios Spinning Out B2B Software Startups
Stephen Konig, a former Google product leader, runs Mudita Studios in Seattle, a startup studio spun out from Detroit-based Mudita Venture Partners focusing on early-stage B2B software startups. The studio has launched four startups, including Official AI, Stellis AI, and Predict.law, and aims to reduce risk for entrepreneurs by testing and funding ideas, with a 95% idea rejection rate.
Seattle VCs Warn AI Startups Against Overusing 'AI' Buzzword, Urge Focus on Customer Problems
Seattle-area venture capitalists advise AI startups to avoid overusing the term 'AI' in pitches, emphasizing the importance of focusing on real customer problems instead of hype. Investors like Vivek Ladsariya and Heather Redman stress that credible companies should integrate AI soundly without overselling it.
Eric Berlinberg Leaves Amazon After 10 Years to Lead Program Management at Torc Robotics; Microsoft Vet John Montgomery Joins Meta
Eric Berlinberg, a decade-long Amazon Prime Air leader, has joined Torc Robotics to lead program management for their autonomous trucks development. Additionally, Microsoft veteran John Montgomery has joined Meta as vice president of product management on the infrastructure team.
Former Facebook and FanDuel Execs Launch Cypher, a Seattle AI Startup Connecting Buyers and Sellers of Cybersecurity Products
Seattle startup Cypher, led by former Facebook and FanDuel execs Vinay Narayan and Sachin Goyal, uses generative AI to help companies find suitable cybersecurity products by leveling the playing field between big and small buyers. The bootstrapped company generates revenue through premium buyer subscriptions and seller fees.
Seattle Venture Capitalists Say Founder Support, Not Local Money, Is Key Missing Piece in Startup Ecosystem
Seattle's startup ecosystem is often criticized for a lack of local venture capital firms, but experts highlight that the true opportunity lies in fostering greater founder-to-founder investment and community support to strengthen the scene. Panelists at the Seattle AI Investor Summit emphasized that being a net importer of investment capital is positive, and more connectivity among founders could boost the city's startup success.
Washington State Allocates $800,000 to Establish Seattle AI-Focused Startup Incubator Starting July
Washington state lawmakers approved $800,000 in funding to create a Seattle-based AI-focused incubator for startups, with involvement from the University of Washington and Seattle’s Chamber of Commerce. The initiative aims to support AI entrepreneurs by providing workspace, educational opportunities, and computing resources to boost Seattle as an AI hub.
Organizations
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AI House Director of Community and Programming 2026–present · current
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University of Washington, Board of Student Publications Board Member 2016–present · current
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AI House Director of Community and Programming · current
Education
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University of Washington Executive Development Program, Business Administration and Management, General · 2021–2022
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University of Washington Bachelor, Business, Journalism · 2008–2012
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Foster School of Business B.A., Business Administration · 2008–2012
