During a particularly nasty wildfire in 2019, Google product manager Winston Mok became dissatisfied with the air purifier products on the markets. Like any enterprising product manager, he decided to build his own.
Bay Area
CBS 5: Downtown Redwood City Sees Boost As Startup Grind Tech Conference Returns
The Startup Grind Global Conference returned to the Fox Theatre in Redwood City this week, bringing a badly needed boost to the city’s downtown.
Built in SF: Newfront Hits $2.2B Valuation With $200M Goldman Sachs Investment
Newfront, a digital insurance brokerage platform, announced a $200 million investment co-led by Goldman Sachs’ Growth Equity business and B Capital this week.
Built in SF: Seso Pulls in $25M to Help Bridge the U.S. Agricultural Labor Shortage
One company trying to help farmers better manage their workforce is Seso, which on Thursday raised a $25 million seed funding round. The round was led by Index Ventures.
Built in SF: Surf’s Up! 4 Companies to Get Stoked About in San Francisco.
Ready to take the plunge? The following quartet of companies are among the rising tide in the Bay Area guaranteed to get you stoked about the local tech scene.
Forbes: Plaid’s Billionaire Cofounder Is Back With A New Startup–A Fintech-Friendly Bank He’s Running With His Wife
In 2019, Plaid, a San Francisco company that connects fintech apps to customers’ bank accounts, was climbing the ranks of startups. It had already become one of the top ten most valuable fintechs in America with its $2.7 billion valuation. But in June of that year, William Hockey, the company’s cofounder and CTO, made a surprising move. With little public explanation, he left his executive job, although he stayed on Plaid’s board of directors.
Built in SF: Glacier Launches With $4.5M for AI-Powered Recycling Robots
One local company is trying to make a difference amid the country’s recycling crisis. Glacier, which launched out of stealth with $4.5 million in seed funding on Tuesday, builds AI-powered recycling robots capable of sorting over 30 different item types.
Financial Post: Shopify in talks to buy tech startup Deliverr
Shopify Inc. is in talks to buy technology startup Deliverr, according to people familiar with the matter, a move that would help the Canadian e-commerce company expand in fulfilment services.
Axios: Climate tech comes to YC’s Demo Day
Y Combinator’s Demo Day on Tuesday and Wednesday featured 31 startups focused explicitly on addressing climate change in some way.
Built in SF: Demostack Lands $34M to Invest in R&D, Global Expansion
Just two years ago, local SaaS platform Demostack launched to help businesses develop product demos in remote settings. Now, the startup is ready to expand following its latest funding round.
