TechCrunch Startup News

WhatsApp has long transcended its roots as a simple messaging app for friends, and is now a core communication tool for businesses seeking a direct channel to their customers’ pockets — both literally, and metaphorically. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Positive Food is going after the $34 billion fresh prepared foods market with its take on salads, heat-and-eat prepared meals and vegan overnight oats. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s not unusual for a tech company to be born by accident. Famously, Slack was created as a byproduct of a now defunct gaming company. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Her product is a hit with investors, the most notable of which include Morgan Stanley, The BFM Fund and Northwestern Mutual Futures Ventures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jiminny, a U.K.-based conversational intelligence platform that companies use to record, transcribe, and analyze communications from across sales and other customer-facing teams, today announced it has raised $16.5 million in a series A round of funding. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

FundamentalVR, an immersive simulation platform for medical and health care professions, has raised $20 million in a round of funding to “accelerate skill-transfer and surgical proficiency” through virtual reality (VR) and mixed reality (MR) applications. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Since the start of the pandemic, the global supply chain has undergone — and is undergoing — immense strain. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Convertedin, an Egyptian startup that operates a marketing operating system for e-commerce brands, has raised $3 million in a seed round led by Saudi Arabia-headquartered Merak Capital. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Mexico-based company enables retailers to bring their inventory relationships online, expand their product selection and get more favorable credit terms. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Spin Technology, a data protection software vendor catering to enterprise clientele, today announced that it raised $16 million in a Series A round led by Blueprint Equity with participation from Santa Barbara Venture Partners and Blu Venture Investors. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s easy to think about satellites as a bunch of mini-moons, orbiting the Earth seamlessly and without any (noticeable) movement. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The pandemic prompted countless companies to migrate to the cloud. By 2025, driven partly by the need for digital services, 85% of enterprises will have a cloud-first principle, according to Gartner. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On Deck, a tech company that connects founders to each other, capital and advice, has conducted another round of layoffs just three months after laying off a quarter of staff. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The duo aims to democratize the tools needed for everyone to become a content creator. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Employee benefits platform Ben today announced it has raised $16 million in a series A round of funding led by European VC giant Atomico. While salary is undoubtedly the main draw in a company’s compensation offer, additional “perks” can help sweeten the deal for current or would-be employees — this could be anything from gym […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Cera, a U.K. provider of healthcare inside people’s homes augmented by a platform that allows carers to monitor a patient’s health and potentially flag problems, has raised $320 million (£260 million) in an equity and debt financing round, split roughly 50/50. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Braxia Scientific is a Toronto-based company that focuses on depression, suicidality and related mental health conditions. T Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sprig, a startup offering tools for user and software product research, today announced that it raised $30 million in a funding round from Andreessen Horowitz, Accel, First Round Capital, Elad Gil and Figma Ventures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Large-scale and mid-sized enterprises and businesses are increasingly adopting — and offering — software-as-a-service platforms as they seek to increase their revenue and parlay their growth into greater efficiency. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Israeli lidar startup Innoviz will supply its lidar sensors and perception software to all vehicles with automated driving capabilities within Volkswagen group brands, the company said Tuesday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Bolt Mobility, the Miami-based micromobility startup co-founded by Olympic gold medalist Usain Bolt, appears to have vanished without a trace from several of its U.S. markets. Â Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hyundai Motor is considering increasing its stake in, or fully acquiring, the South Korea-based lidar-free autonomous mobility platform 42dot, the latest signal of its growing interest in the fast-growing space. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today, digital world maker Stadium Live Studios, Inc. announced its $10 million Series A funding round to continue its mission of bringing fantasy sports to a younger generation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When Leapfin founder and CEO Ray Lau was managing financial operations at the game company Zynga a decade ago, he saw just how hard it was for his team to get answers about the financial health of the company quickly. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Autonomous vehicle company Pony.ai is forming a strategic joint venture with Sany Heavy Truck, a subsidiary of Chinese heavy equipment manufacturer Sany Heavy Industry, to create an autonomous truck brand. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices