Innovation

Midi Health: Women’s Midlife Healthcare Company Closes $25 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 9, 2023

Midi Health - an emerging digital leader in women's midlife healthcare - recently announced the closing of a $25 million Series A funding round led by GV (Google Ventures). And investors Frederique Dame and Cathy Friedman from GV were joined by current investors Felicis, Semper Virens, Icon, 25M, and Operator Collective, bringing the company's total funding raised to $40 million.

Cyara Reveals Expansion In Leadership Team

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Cyara - a leading AI-led Customer Experience (CX) Transformation Platform provider - recently announced the appointment of Jeff Romano as Chief Customer Officer (CCO) and the promotion of Cyara’s Executive Vice President of Product, Max Lipovetsky, to Chief Product Officer.

Axial Shift: Restaurant Operations Software Provider Company Raises $4 Million

By Noah Long ● Oct 5, 2023

Axial Shift - a restaurant operations software provider that is transforming the restaurant industry by providing all-staff level data access and team member competitions and rewards, recently announced a new partnership and $4 million in seed funding from Silverton Partners.

Passage: Event Ticketing Company Hits 8 Million Tickets Told

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Passage - a cutting-edge event ticketing company launched in Detroit in 2014 - recently announced it has sold 8 million tickets, with customers in all 50 US states and as far afield as Australia and Canada. Last year, the company powered over $40 million in ticket sales across 3,327 events and generated $2.8 million in revenue.

Gritstone bio Receives BARDA Contract Valued At Up To $433 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Gritstone bio - a clinical-stage biotechnology company working to develop the world’s most potent vaccines - recently announced that it was awarded a contract by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) to conduct a Phase 2b comparative study evaluating Gritstone’s self-amplifying mRNA (samRNA) vaccine candidate containing Spike plus other viral targets to protect against COVID-19.

How Fairmarkit Is Utilizing Generative AI For Simplifying Strategic Sourcing

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Fairmarkit - an autonomous sourcing solution transforming the procurement of goods and services for enterprises - recently announced the launch of a new generative AI-powered tool that automates the process from intake to sourcing, thus saving an immense amount of time for enterprise procurement teams and unlocking a seamless end-user experience for buyers, suppliers, and business requesters.

VDO.AI Launches Dexter To Redefine Brand Engagement

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 4, 2023

VDO.AI - a leader in the advertising tech industry recently unveiled Dexter, a creative feature poised to redefine brand engagement by harnessing the power of innovative Generative AI algorithms. Dexter was designed to change how brands connect with their audiences.

How Hitachi Is Helping Organizations Achieve Critical Environment And Decarbonization Goals

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 4, 2023

Hitachi Vantara - the modern infrastructure, data management, and digital solutions subsidiary of Hitachi - recently announced new Sustainability Solutions and Services to aid organizations in achieving critical environmental and decarbonization goals.

Newegg Now Offers A Graphics Card Trade-In Program

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 4, 2023

Newegg Commerce - a global e-commerce leader for technology products - recently announced the launch of Newegg’s GPU Trade-In program, enabling customers to trade in an eligible GPU device and receive a trade-in value credit toward the purchase of a new qualifying graphics card, also known as a graphics processing unit (GPU).

Withings Confirms Average Heart Rate Decreases As Daily Steps Increase

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 4, 2023

French connected health pioneer Withings recently conducted a comprehensive study in which they analyzed the nighttime heart rate (NHR) of over 160,000 Withings users worldwide between the ages of 18 and 70 over a year between 2022 and 2023.

ACMI Federal: $75 Million DoD Contract Secured For Munitions Campus

By Dan Anderson ● Oct 4, 2023

An affiliate of the American Center for Manufacturing and Innovation (ACMI) recently announced that it has been awarded a $75 million contract through a competitive process.

Adela: $48 Million Secured To Develop Early Cancer Detection Platform

By Noah Long ● Oct 3, 2023

Human8: Camille Nicita Named As New Global CEO

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 2, 2023

Human8 (previously called InSites Consulting) - the new human-driven consultancy - recently announced that Camille Nicita, currently Managing Director for North America, will accept the CEO role from current CEO and co-founder Kristof De Wulf.

airSlate Study Unveils SMBs Are Ready To Utilize AI And Automation

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 2, 2023

airSlate - a leader in document workflow automation solutions - announced that it had released new research that reveals that small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are ready to tap into the power of automation and artificial intelligence (AI) to scale and compete effectively in today's business landscape.

Aviat Networks: Wireless Transport And Access Solutions Company Closes $50 Million In Orders

By Noah Long ● Oct 2, 2023

Aviat Networks - a leading expert in wireless transport and access solutions - recently announced it has received orders totaling over $50 million with two separate U.S. State governments for statewide public safety networks.

Cecilian Partners: Proptech Company Closes $11 Million In Series A

By Annie Baker ● Sep 28, 2023

Cecilian Partners - a leading proptech firm providing end-to-end digital solutions for home builders and land developers - recently announced that it has raised $11 million in its first institutional equity round led by Resolve Growth Partners. And Cecilian plans to use the growth funding to accelerate product innovation, expand headcount in critical areas, and continue developing the industry's most client-centric customer success team.

Centinel: How This Financial Firm Assists Families And Businesses Accumulate Wealth

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 28, 2023

Centinel Financial Group is a select team of financial advisors and professionals with backgrounds in finance, business, insurance and investments. And many individuals, families and businesses have chosen to work with Centinel Financial Group for the relationships and trust that they build. With a team of more than 70 advisors and representatives, Centinel Financial Group assists individuals, families and businesses in the accumulation and protection of their wealth. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Centinel Financial Group financial advisor Greg Fortier to learn more.

Boston Scientific To Buy Relievant Medsystems For Over $850 Million: Details

By Noah Long ● Sep 27, 2023

Boston Scientific recently announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Relievant Medsystems. These are the details.

Dragonfly Energy Successfully Uses Lithium Hydroxide From Aqua Metals To Manufacture Battery Cells

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 25, 2023

Dragonfly Energy (the maker of Battle Born Batteries and an industry leader in energy storage), in collaboration with Aqua Metals (a pioneer in sustainable lithium battery recycling), has successfully used high-purity lithium hydroxide that recovered by Aqua Metals from recycled lithium-ion batteries to manufacture a lithium-based battery cell using Dragonfly Energy’s patented dry battery electrode coating technology.

Indxx: A Leading Index Provider Offering Innovative Solutions To The Investment Industry At Large

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 25, 2023

Indxx is a company that endeavors to deliver innovative solutions to the investment management community at large, ranging from end-to-end indexing solutions to index services and technology products. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Indxx President and Co-CEO Rahul Sen Sharma to learn more.

Kettering University: Over 70 High School Robotics Teams Competing At Annual Kickoff Event

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2023

Kettering University became the center of the robotics universe this weekend when it hosted the annual Kettering Kickoff. Over 70 FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) high school teams from Michigan, Illinois and Ohio have registered to compete in the two-day event.

Why GXO Is Buying PFSweb For $181 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 18, 2023

GXO Logistics (the world’s largest pure-play contract logistics provider) and PFSweb (a tech-enabled e-commerce order fulfillment platform based in the US) recently announced they have entered into a definitive agreement pursuant to which GXO will acquire PFSweb for $7.50 per share in cash, representing an equity value of approximately $181 million. The enterprise value is $142 million and includes PFSweb’s cash balance of $39 million at June 30, 2023.

HP Reveals Spectre Foldable PC

By Annie Baker ● Sep 17, 2023

HP recently announced the HP Spectre Foldable PC, a 3-in-1 device with a foldable screen that integrates the best features of a laptop, tablet, and desktop for an ultimate hybrid experience.

Pitango: First Closing Of $175 Million Second HealthTech Fund Completed

By Noah Long ● Sep 12, 2023

Pitango HealthTech - which is Pitango VC's dedicated healthcare fund - recently announced the first closing of its second dedicated healthcare fund Pitango HealthTech II. And Pitango HealthTech II, a $175 million fund, will be dedicated to investing in entrepreneurs utilizing data science, AI, medical devices, and novel biology at the forefront of healthcare transformation. The $9 trillion global healthcare market is undergoing dramatic shifts, and Israeli entrepreneurs are building companies that are spearheading this transition.

GlobalFoundries: $4 Billion Expansion Facility Opened In Singapore

By Noah Long ● Sep 12, 2023

GlobalFoundries (GF) recently announced the official opening of its US$4 billion (S$5 billion) expansion fabrication plant (fab) in Singapore. The 23,000 sqm fab will create 1,000 high-value jobs in Singapore, 95% of which will include equipment technicians, process technicians, and engineers. The official opening ceremony was graced by Lawrence Wong, Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, along with Ahmed Yahia Al Idrissi, Chairman of the GF Board of Directors, additional GF Board members, and GF executives, including President and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Thomas Caulfield, Chief Manufacturing Officer Kay Chai (KC) Ang, and Senior Vice President and General Manager of GlobalFoundries Singapore Tan Yew Kong, among others.

Intel Selling Minority Stake In IMS Nanofabrication To TSMC For $430 million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 12, 2023

Intel Corporation recently announced that it agreed to sell a 10% stake in the IMS Nanofabrication business (IMS) to TSMC. TSMC’s investment values IMS at approximately $4.3 billion, consistent with the valuation of the recent stake sale to Bain Capital Special Situations. Intel will retain majority ownership of IMS, which will continue to operate as a standalone subsidiary under the leadership of CEO Dr. Elmar Platzgummer. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Certa: Third-Party Compliance Company Secures $35 Million

By Noah Long ● Sep 12, 2023

Certa - an all-in-one third-party management platform - recently announced it has raised a 2x oversubscribed Series B led by Fin Capital and Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India, with participation from Tru Arrow Partners. And existing investors Point72 Ventures, BDMI (part of Bertelsmann's corporate venture arm Bertelsmann Investments), the family office of Bernard Arnault’s Aglae Ventures, The Chainsmokers-backed Mantis VC, and GOAT Capital also participated in the round. This funding round brings the total institutional investment in Certa to $50 million.

Qualcomm Is Now Supplying Apple With 5G Chips Until 2026

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 11, 2023

Qualcomm Technologies announced today that it agreed with Apple to supply Snapdragon 5G Modem‑RF Systems for smartphone launches in 2024, 2025, and 2026. And the company said that this agreement reinforces Qualcomm’s track record of sustained leadership across 5G technologies and products.

Ibex: AI-Powered Cancer Diagnostics Company Secures $55 Million In Funding

By Annie Baker ● Sep 8, 2023

Ibex Medical Analytics - a leader in AI-powered cancer diagnostics - recently announced it has closed a $55 million Series C financing round led by 83North. And additional participants in the round were Sienna Venture Capital and existing investors in the company, Octopus Ventures, aMoon, Planven Entrepreneur Ventures, and Dell Technologies Capital. The round brings total funding to over $100 million since Ibex's inception in 2016.

Google Previews Pixel 8, Pixel 8 Pro, And Pixel Watch 2

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 8, 2023

Google has updated the Google Store website with information about its new flagship smartphone devices: Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro. These devices will be available for purchase on October 4, 2023.