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 Rubica shuts down after raising $15 million but failing to secure further investment
Seattle cybersecurity startup Rubica, founded in 2016 and spun out of Concentric Advisors, shut down after raising $15 million but failing to secure further investment or reach profitability amid pandemic-driven revenue declines. CEO Frances Dewing said the company is liquidating assets and was unable to convince investors to back a pivot toward serving larger businesses.
Seattle startup Plunk raises $2M+ to power AI-driven home valuation and renovation recommendations
Seattle startup Plunk, founded by Brian Lent and David Bluhm, has developed an app that uses image processing, AI and machine learning to evaluate home condition, estimate renovation-driven value increases (a "Plunk Value") and recommend specific projects; the company has 15 employees and has raised over $2 million to date, including an initial $1M reported in 2019.
Community Brands acquires Seattle virtual-events startup Pathable after 20x revenue surge and rapid expansion
Seattle event-app company Pathable pivoted from near-shutdown when in-person events collapsed, rapidly building a virtual events platform that grew revenue 20x and expanded staff from 20 to over 120. In late September Community Brands acquired Pathable, which will operate as a standalone business to help organizations reimagine events during and after the pandemic.
Airbnb cleaning startup Neu raises $700,000 led by New Stack Ventures to fund Scottsdale expansion
Seattle startup Neu, which provides cleaning services to Airbnb hosts, adapted to pandemic-era demand by adding PPE and meeting Airbnb’s enhanced cleaning protocols and has raised $700,000 led by New Stack Ventures to support expansion including a planned move into Scottsdale, AZ.
Former Zillow Leaders Greg Schwartz and Carey Armstrong Raise $40M Seed for Tomo Networks to Build Tech-Driven Mortgage Platform
Former Zillow leaders Greg Schwartz and Carey Armstrong launched Tomo Networks, a fintech startup building a tech-driven mortgage and transaction platform, and raised a $40 million seed round led by prominent real estate investors. The company, founded a few months ago, is targeting agents and consumers while keeping specific business model details private.
Sana CEO Steve Harr Details Cell- and Gene-Therapy Plans After $700M+ Summer Raise
Sana Biotechnology CEO Steve Harr described the stealthy, Seattle-based gene and cell therapy startup’s plan to develop tools that repair and replace human cells to treat diseases and create new medicines, after raising more than $700 million this summer. Founded in 2019 by former Juno Therapeutics executives, the 250-person company emphasizes faster decision-making, focus, and communication as its competitive edge against larger rivals.
T-Mobile launches 'T-Mobile Ventures' fund to back startups building 5G tech, already invests in Mojio and Circle
T-Mobile launched T-Mobile Ventures, a venture capital fund to invest in startups building 5G-related products and services for its network, focusing on areas like edge compute, security, future of work, and industrial IoT. Portfolio companies will gain access to T-Mobile’s infrastructure and the fund has already backed startups including Mojio and Circle while also supporting the 5G Open Innovation Lab.
WestRiver Group CEO Erik Anderson and Riverstone launch Decarbonization Plus Acquisition SPAC, raising $200M to pursue global decarbonization targets
WestRiver Group CEO Erik Anderson and asset manager Riverstone launched Decarbonization Plus Acquisition, a SPAC that raised $200 million to target companies advancing global decarbonization across energy, agriculture, industrials, transportation and commercial/residential sectors.
Possible Finance raises $11M led by Union Square Ventures over Zoom and secures $80M debt to expand $500 loan app
Seattle fintech Possible Finance raised $11 million led by Union Square Ventures via Zoom and secured $80 million in debt from Park Cities Advisors to expand its small-loan app that offers up to $500 with installment repayments reported to credit agencies.
Fabric, led by ex-Amazon exec Faisal Masud, raises $9.5M seed from Redpoint to offer headless e-commerce for mid-market brands
Fabric, a Seattle-area startup led by former Amazon and Staples executive Faisal Masud, emerged from stealth and raised $9.5 million in seed funding led by Redpoint Ventures to provide a headless, API-first e-commerce platform for mid-market brands that have outgrown Shopify but aren’t ready for enterprise solutions.
Temporal raises $20M Series A led by Sequoia to commercialize open-source microservices orchestration
Temporal, a Seattle startup founded by former Uber engineers and cloud veterans, raised $20 million in a Series A led by Sequoia to commercialize its open-source microservices orchestration platform that improves developer productivity and reliability. Major customers include Snap, Box, Checkr, HashiCorp, and Coinbase, and investors include Madrona, Addition, Amplify and Snowflake ex-CEO Bob Muglia.
98point6 Raises $118M Series E Led by L Catterton and Activant After 274% Membership Surge
Seattle telemedicine startup 98point6 raised $118 million in a Series E led by L Catterton and Activant Capital after membership grew 274% this year; the company offers AI-supported virtual primary care to over 3 million patients and serves employers and health plans. The round follows a $43 million Series D in April and comes amid a surge in digital health funding during the pandemic.
PNW Startups Raised $1.1B in Q3 2020 Across 65 Deals as Investors Keep Funding Amid Pandemic
Pacific Northwest startups raised $1.1 billion across 65 deals in Q3 2020, with funding in July and August exceeding last year’s levels as investors continue backing tech despite the pandemic.
Seattle startup Genemod raises $1.7M led by Defy.vc to expand cloud-based lab inventory software
Seattle startup Genemod raised $1.7 million to expand its cloud-based inventory and lab management software for life sciences researchers, planning new product management features and serving customers like Fred Hutch and UW School of Medicine.
Picnic raises $3M from existing investors to commercialize pizza-making robot producing 300 12-inch pizzas/hour
Seattle startup Picnic raised $3 million from existing investors to accelerate commercial rollout of its pizza-making robot capable of producing up to 300 12-inch customized pizzas per hour, citing increased pandemic-driven demand and plans to use funds for development, hires, and marketing.
Skilljar raises $33M Series B led by Insight Partners as pandemic boosts demand for its customer education platform
Seattle-based Skilljar, founded by Sandi Lin and Jason Stewart, raised $33 million in a Series B led by Insight Partners as demand for its customer education software surged during the pandemic; total funding exceeds $50 million and the platform has delivered over 10 million instructional hours to 300+ customers including Tableau and Cisco. The company provides cloud-based training, assessments, certifications, analytics and integrations to help companies build onboarding and customer education programs.
Madrona leads $3.9M seed for Strike Graph to automate SOC 2 compliance, promises 45-day certification
Seattle startup Strike Graph, spun out of Madrona Venture Labs, raised $3.9 million in a seed round led by Madrona Venture Group to help B2B companies automate and accelerate SOC 2 compliance. The five-person team, led by CEO Justin Beals and co-founder Brian Bero, says its platform can deliver SOC 2 Type 1 certification in 45 days and save customers roughly $50,000 in consultant fees.
Startup CEOs optimistic despite pandemic; Amazon moves into virtual travel
Here’s what we’re talking about on the GeekWire Podcast this week: The results are in from the first-ever GeekWire 200 CEO Insights survey and they may surprise you. Startup CEOs in Seattle are generally optimistic about the state of the economy for the next 18 months. And they have some thoughts on who should be president. Amazon's latest offering is virtual tourism through its new Amazon Explore service. GeekWire's Todd Bishop went for a walk around Quebec City with a local guide and took a cooking lesson in Buenos Aires, all without leaving the office. Ex-Zillow CEO Spencer Rascoff jumps…
Uber Freight raises $500M led by Greenbriar, valuing the unit at $3.3B
Uber Freight raised $500 million in a funding round led by Greenbriar that values the trucking logistics unit at $3.3 billion, and the business reported $211 million in adjusted net revenue for Uber’s most recent quarter with a $49 million quarterly loss. The unit operates a digital freight marketplace with about 65,000 carriers and competes with startups like Convoy, which recently raised $400 million at a $2.7 billion valuation.
Boost Sport raises $1.3M seed led by TitletownTech to sell AI video-analysis to basketball teams
Seattle startup Boost Sport raised a $1.3 million seed round to expand its AI and video-analysis software for basketball teams, which extracts data insights from footage without in-venue cameras or wearables. TitletownTech led the round; Boost is led by CEO Mustafa Abdul-Hamid and co-founder Inga Nakhmanson, has run five pilots, signed Pepperdine, and is selling two-year contracts despite pandemic-related revenue impacts.
GeekWire 200 CEO Survey: Most Seattle-Area Startups Report Little or No Pandemic Impact and Plan Hiring
A GeekWire 200 CEO survey of nearly 50 Pacific Northwest startup leaders found most report little or no negative impact from the pandemic, many plan to hire, and significant optimism about the regional economy over the next 18 months.
Cardiac Dimensions Raises $17.5M Series C to Commercialize Carillon Mitral Contour System
Kirkland-based Cardiac Dimensions raised $17.5 million in a Series C to help commercialize its Carillon Mitral Contour System, a non-surgical device treating mitral valve regurgitation.
Ex-Zillow CEO Spencer Rascoff and dotloop Founder Austin Allison Launch Pacaso, Raise $17M Seed and $250M Debt to Fractionalize Second-Home Ownership
Former Zillow CEO Spencer Rascoff and dotloop founder Austin Allison launched Pacaso, a startup that fractionalizes second-home ownership and manages co-owned properties. The company announced a $17 million seed round led by Maveron plus $250 million in debt to buy homes and partners with agents to form LLCs for shared ownership.
Intelage raises $3.5M led by Blumberg Capital to grow commodity-trading software platform
Seattle-area startup Intelage raised $3.5 million to expand its commodity-trading software that automates risk control, documentation, logistics, inventory and communication for suppliers, buyers and partners. The 10-person company, founded in 2017 by John Han, says demand has grown during the pandemic for tools enabling remote work and collaboration.
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.
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
