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Published: 06-04-2018 16:44:00 | By: Nico Scherphuis | hits: 3789760 | Tags:

San Francisco, London among most developed venture capital cities in the world, report
Published: 23-04-2024 | 17:25:53 | By: Bob Koigi
This dashboard leverages PitchBook data and PitchBook Institutional Research Group methodology to provide a consistently updated ranking system for the size, maturity, and growth rates of the VC ecosystem in leading cities around the world.


Global co-working spaces market to reach $48.1 billion by 2030, study
Published: 23-04-2024 | 17:23:55 | By: Bob Koigi
The global market for coworking spaces is experiencing rapid growth, driven by the evolving dynamics of today's workforce, technological advancements, and shifts toward more agile work cultures.






[Kenya] Livestock sector players review investment opportunities, challenges in unique forum
Published: 01-03-2024 | 13:15:00 | By: Bob Koigi
With the demand for livestock products projected to grow by up to 50% by 2030, there’s a clear opportunity for strategic investments to drive growth and innovation in the sector.


Rwandan female researchers selected for food systems policy fellowship
Published: 21-02-2024 | 08:30:00 | By: Bob Koigi
The AWARD Policy Fellowship is cultivating a growing pool of African women in the policy field to catalyze the design and implementation of gender-responsive agricultural policies across Africa.




Kenya startups raised the highest amount of funding in Africa in 2023, report
Published: 11-01-2024 | 16:27:44 | By: Bob Koigi
For some time now, Nigeria has always received the biggest share of startup investments, however, in 2023, Kenya overtook the West African country, gaining the highest amount of tech funds on the continent. 




Investor-founder disconnect poses major threat to African tech funding
Published: 11-09-2023 | 11:39:00 | By: Pie Kamau
African tech investors will not invest follow-on funding in a startup failing to provide regular reporting updates.


Generative AI has become an emerging risk for enterprises, Gartner survey
Published: 14-08-2023 | 15:33:00 | By: Pie Kamau
The availability of generative AI became a top concern for enterprise risk executives.


Closing the capital gap on impact investment in Africa, report
Published: 08-08-2023 | 11:35:00 | By: Pie Kamau
African fund managers face unique obstacles that impede their access to capital for social impact.


German healthcare investor SHS Capital acquires majority stake in CAM Bioceramics
Published: 07-07-2023 | 15:56:00 | By: Pie Kamau
German healthcare specialist SHS Capital is investing in CAM Bioceramics to fuel growth


New PitchBook survey finds majority of venture capitalists have invested in AI
Published: 03-07-2023 | 11:47:00 | By: Pie Kamau
PitchBook has released findings from a new survey in partnership with Collision.


Africa among top 3 regions prone to mobile financial scam, report
Published: 12-06-2023 | 14:58:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Throughout 2022 and the first quarter of 2023, 14% of installs of potentially unwanted mobile financial apps on Android phones were made.


7 in 10 UK tech workers consider hybrid working a key factor when considering a future employer, report
Published: 17-05-2023 | 12:47:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Techspace has released The Scaleup Culture Report, a national report diving into the current state of workplace culture across the UK tech industry.


Dairy Runway program launches to provide education and support for early-stage dairy innovators
Published: 10-05-2023 | 15:09:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Cornell University's Center for Regional Economic Advancement (CREA) and the Northeast Dairy Foods Research Center have launched the Dairy Runway program, an entrepreneurship curriculum for dairy innovators.


GRASP fellowship invests in African women researchers
Published: 06-04-2023 | 12:15:00 | By: Bob Koigi
The Kenyan women, and others selected for the GRASP Fellowship, are set to participate in a series of interventions, including leadership and mentoring training, designed to enable them to become more effective policy practitioners


Fertility treatments aren't just for the 1%, Sunfish
Published: 28-03-2023 | 11:23:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Sunfish, a fintech company founded last year, aims to make fertility treatments more accessible and has recently designed a new product to help reduce the cost of In Vitro Fertilization (IVF).


5 innovation metrics (KPIs) every CEO should care about, Plug and Play
Published: 08-03-2023 | 12:27:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Are your innovative strategies paying off? As a CEO, innovating is part of the job description - but do you know if it's actually making a difference in your company? It’s time to get down to data-driven business.


Mexican TV audiences back AI dubbing over subtitles, report
Published: 07-03-2023 | 11:59:00 | By: Pie Kamau
The world's biggest entertainment distributors could win over millions of TV viewers currently swerving non-domestic content by deploying AI dubbing, new research suggests.


To stay competitive, startups must combat gender diversity debt, study
Published: 17-02-2023 | 10:25:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Entrepreneurship is booming, but women are underrepresented among its founders, investors and employees. A recent study investigates entrepreneurship's gender "diversity debt," a demographic disparity that can be difficult and costly to remedy.


[Interview] Seyi J. Matanmi, Founder, Hosteet, Nigeria
Published: 13-02-2023 | 11:21:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Seyi J. Matanmi is a technology product developer and entrepreneur. Educated in software development, research and analytics, he currently leads the cloud services outfit, Hosteet, operating out of Lagos, Nigeria.


Startup Genome partners with Endeavor to research the Detroit region's entrepreneurial ecosystem
Published: 31-01-2023 | 09:51:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Startup Genome and Endeavor are working together to study and support the Detroit region's entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystem development.


Michigan State University biotech startup Iaso Therapeutics closes $1.25m equity series seed preferred financing
Published: 26-01-2023 | 13:02:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Iaso Therapeutics closed the first tranche of the company's $1.25 million series seed preferred round of financing.


African tech ecosystem raised $6.5 billion in 2022, report
Published: 25-01-2023 | 12:40:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Partech Africa, the VC fund dedicated to technology startups in Africa, has issued its annual report on Africa Tech Venture Capital, which reveals that despite the global VC downturn, the African tech ecosystem grew faster than all other markets globally. 


5 key insurance industry trends in EMEA region according to Plug and Play
Published: 23-01-2023 | 13:50:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Insurance industry trends over the past year have been significant, especially across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) region.


YouBiz research reveals key trends and challenges facing Southeast Asian SMEs in 2023
Published: 19-01-2023 | 11:00:00 | By: Pie Kamau
YouBiz, the SME spend management platform by YouTrip, launched its first whitepaper studying emerging business spending trends and key business priorities for SME in 2023.


Innovation scale-up Wazoku launches Mindpool SME to help small businesses capture employee insights
Published: 19-01-2023 | 10:41:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Innovation scale-up Wazoku announced it has launched Mindpool SME, an employee insights dashboard that makes it simpler & faster for SMEs to listen to, understand, and act on employee insights.


Healthcare venture capital fundraising and investment remained strong in 2022, SVB reports
Published: 11-01-2023 | 11:42:00 | By: Pie Kamau
SVB released its 12th annual Healthcare Investments and Exits Report which shows venture capital fundraising and investment persisted in 2022.


For women entrepreneurs, the West is the new promised land, report
Published: 04-01-2023 | 16:40:00 | By: Pie Kamau
America's original Westward Expansion was led by entrepreneurs of the day noticing great economic opportunities out of the West. A study by MerchantMaverick.com shows that a new slew of opportunities are appearing in Western states for women entrepreneurs.


AWARD selects 50 African women for fellowship on improving policy in the agri-food systems
Published: 30-11-2022 | 14:00:00 | By: Bob Koigi
Inspired by the flagship AWARD Fellowship Model, the Gender Responsive Agriculture Systems Policy (GRASP) Fellowship, aims to grow a pool of confident and capable African women to lead policy changes to improve African smallholders’ livelihoods.


New Adevinta Ventures report reveals that B2B Marketplaces outperform other tech segments in VC funding
Published: 25-11-2022 | 09:19:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Adevinta Ventures, the early-stage investment arm of Adevinta, an online classifieds specialist, is launching a new B2B marketplaces report.


[Column] Natalia Ahmadian: Four ways to accelerate tech transfer in Europe
Published: 23-11-2022 | 10:27:41 | By: Pie Kamau
The importance of university spin-offs has been recognized for decades. Several studies showed that Tech Transfer is beneficial for social welfare and entrepreneurial activity


Fintech emerging as Africa’s most vibrant sector, study
Published: 28-10-2022 | 13:42:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Fintech startups in Africa grew 81% in 2021, with South Africa, Nigeria, and Kenya emerging as key hubs on the continent, found a Mastercard study on the state of fintech in African markets.


Meet female scientists who develop cellular and gene therapies in China, Jiang and Zhang
Published: 27-10-2022 | 12:16:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Inside Namtai Inno Park in Guangming District hides a low-profile biomedical development firm; Shenzhen Wingor Biotechnology company.


Novo Seeds portfolio company NMD Pharma reports positive top-line Phase I/IIa data in myasthenia gravis
Published: 11-10-2022 | 12:46:12 | By: Pie Kamau
Novo Holdings announced that its portfolio company NMD Pharma, reported positive top-line results from a Phase I/IIa clinical trial for its lead asset, NMD670.


London-based Pheon Therapeutics launches with $68m financing to advance novel ADC for treatment of solid tumors
Published: 28-09-2022 | 10:49:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Pheon Therapeutics (Pheon), an ADC specialist developing next generation ADCs for a wide range of hard-to-treat cancers has launched, following the closing of a $68 million Series A financing.


French biotech startup Tridek-One closes €16m to develop first-in-class immune checkpoint agonists
Published: 16-09-2022 | 12:07:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Tridek-One, a Paris-based biotech startup specialized in the research and development of CD31 agonists to restore the immune balance, announced it has closed a €16 million financing round led by the Swiss VC Pureos Bioventures.


Finnish biotech startup Onego Bio secures €4.5m additional funding to accelerate Research & Development
Published: 12-09-2022 | 11:57:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Business Finland, a public organization under the Finnish Ministry of Employment and the Economy, has awarded a grant of additional €4.5 million for Onego Bio's research and development work.


BioInnovation Institute announces new cohort of companies entering the Venture Lab program
Published: 07-09-2022 | 12:43:00 | By: Pie Kamau
BioInnovation Institute (BII), an international commercial non-profit foundation incubating and accelerating world-class life science research, announced the latest cohort of participants in its Venture Lab acceleration program for early-stage startups.


Early-stage startups don't stand to benefit from Inflation Reduction Act, Kruze Consulting
Published: 22-08-2022 | 13:01:00 | By: Pie Kamau
The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 doubles the R&D Tax Credit from $250,000 to $500,000, a popular tax credit used by unprofitable startups. However, an analysis by Kruze Consulting shows that the earliest-stage startups will likely not benefit from this increased credit.


Immigrants have started more than half of America's billion-dollar startup companies, study
Published: 27-07-2022 | 16:37:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Immigrants have started more than half (319 of 582, or 55%) of America's startup companies valued at $1 billion or more, according to a new study from the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP), a nonpartisan research organization.


Alien Invasive Fruit Flies project comes to the rescue of Southern Africa mango farmers
Published: 20-06-2022 | 10:45:00 | By: Bob Koigi
In a bid to tame the voracious flies, the Alien Invasive Fruit Flies project in Southern Africa has come up with five technologies as part of an integrated pest management (IPM) package.


[Interview] Michelle Matthews, Director, Viridian, South Africa
Published: 14-06-2022 | 17:14:50 | By: Bob Koigi
Following the rising levels of unemployment among young South Africans, the UK-South Africa Tech Hub Launch League initiative undertook a research project.


African tech startup funding will double by 2025, research
Published: 14-06-2022 | 15:18:00 | By: Bob Koigi
African business leaders are forecasting a surge in spending on tech start-ups as foreign direct investment and improved internet connectivity helps establish the continent as a tech superpower, new research for blockchain-based mobile network operator World Mobile shows.


Birmingham-based startup Astound raises $1m seed round to improve university access to corporate-sponsored research funding
Published: 01-06-2022 | 09:56:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Astound, a Birmingham-based startup, secured $1 million in seed funding to develop the first marketplace to allow research institutions and universities to easily find corporate sponsors.


Biotech startup Transine Therapeutics closes £13.7m seed round to accelerate its platform and portfolio development
Published: 31-05-2022 | 12:01:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Transine Therapeutics (Transine), a biotechnology company, announced it has successfully raised £4.6 million in additional seed funding.


Breakthrough Properties raises $3b to develop next-gen life science ecosystems
Published: 03-05-2022 | 16:46:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Breakthrough Properties, a joint venture of Tishman Speyer and Bellco Capital, announced the final closings for the Breakthrough Life Science Property Fund.


French AI startup Kryptview raises $650k in pre-seed to develop community-driven crypto research platform
Published: 25-04-2022 | 13:48:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Kryptview, a collective intelligence platform that provides peer-reviewed research for digital assets, announced the closure of its pre-seed round, raising $650,000 from crypto technology companies.


Startups increasingly use memorable, key-word rich descriptive domain names to stand out from competitors, study
Published: 20-04-2022 | 13:06:00 | By: Pie Kamau
TrueName, a global leader in descriptive domains, announced that more startups are choosing descriptive domains than in previous years per recent data by Marc Köhlbrugge.


What Africa requires to attain sustainable and effective food systems
Published: 07-04-2022 | 11:00:00 | By: Bob Koigi
A variety of factors constrain those who are reliant on farming for their livelihoods – particularly smallholders, including women and youth – from stepping up or stepping in to agriculture.


Swiss edtech startup Alphacruncher raises €1.45m for global rollout of research cloud workspace product
Published: 16-03-2022 | 13:36:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Swiss edtech startup Alphacruncher has raised €1.45 million funding from Austrian venture capital firm Alpine Equity, NGM, private investors and existing users, to enable the global rollout of its education and research cloud workspace product, Nuvolos.


Achieving inclusive cocoa and palm oil commercialization in West Africa
Published: 11-02-2022 | 11:30:00 | By: Bob Koigi
Abugre also noted that questions remain with regards to the future of cocoa production given global price trends, climate change, farmers stepping into the sector, and income distribution effects at the local level.


Israel tech startups raised $25.4 billion in 2021, report
Published: 03-01-2022 | 09:54:13 | By: Bob Koigi
The unprecedented figure represents a 136% increase over last year, which concluded with a full-year total of $10.8 billion raised.


African scientists make a case for home grown research on continent’s food systems
Published: 24-12-2021 | 12:00:00 | By: Bob Koigi
A storytelling event organized by African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD), saw four accomplished African researchers working on agriculture and food security share their personal journeys in agricultural research, and discuss how they are working to transform farming on the continent.


Nigeria tech startups raised $1.7billion in 2021, report
Published: 20-12-2021 | 14:38:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Since the beginning of 2021, Africa-based tech startups have raised more than $2.9 billion with Nigerian startups which are creating new products, services, and platforms raising $1.7 billion of this total or about 60% of it, a new report has found.


The University of Nairobi and Elgon Kenya to develop agriculture technology and innovation centre
Published: 17-12-2021 | 17:40:11 | By: Bob Koigi
The agriculture sector in Kenya has received a major boost following a partnership between two leading institutions to set up a technology and innovation centre, the first of its kind in East Africa.


Netherlands emerging as 'Hottest Tech Hub' in Europe, not reaching its full potential yet, report
Published: 07-12-2021 | 15:31:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Atomico, an international investment firm that focuses on helping disruptive technology companies scale globally, announced that the Netherlands is emerging as Europe's hottest tech hub.


Agritech startup FarmSense receives $2.2m SBIR funding for development of biosecurity measures against native and invasive pests
Published: 24-11-2021 | 08:27:00 | By: Pie Kamau
FarmSense, the agritech startup and creator of Smart Flight Sensors, announced it has been awarded Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) funds in the amount of more than $2.2 million.


Retail media research startup Future Commerce announces launch of weekly podcast
Published: 20-11-2021 | 12:00:56 | By: Bob Koigi
Infinite Shelf recognizes that digital media and eCommerce tactics and strategies are no longer confined to traditional eCommerce channels and direct-to-consumer.


Illumina and Sequoia Capital select first startups to join Genomics Incubator in China
Published: 18-11-2021 | 08:56:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Illumina and Sequoia Capital China, an investment firm, jointly announced the selection of the first two startup companies joining the Sequoia Capital China Intelligent Healthcare Genomics Incubator, Powered by Illumina.


Robert Bosch Venture Capital GmbH joins Variantyx's $26m Series C funding round
Published: 17-11-2021 | 12:20:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Robert Bosch Venture Capital GmbH, the corporate venture capital company of the Bosch Group, has completed an investment in Variantyx, to improve personalized oncology treatment.


North Carolina's SAS and Pappas Capital partner to propel agritech startups with analytics
Published: 21-10-2021 | 13:04:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Two North Carolina companies, analytics leader SAS and venture investment firm Pappas Capital, are joining forces to help advance the state as a global leader in agricultural technology.


Biotech startup Elevian raises $40m Series A to advance treatments for stroke recovery and age-related diseases
Published: 17-09-2021 | 12:24:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Elevian, an emerging biotech company developing medicines that restore youthful regenerative capacity with the potential to treat and prevent multiple age-related diseases, announced it raised $40 million in an oversubscribed Series A round led by Prime Movers Lab.


ITRI partners with Arm to provide resources for innovative IC design startups in Taiwan
Published: 15-09-2021 | 16:49:37 | By: Pie Kamau
To promote Taiwanese local IC design startups, the Industrial Development Bureau (IDB) under the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) is supporting the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) and Arm, in providing critical resources.


Israeli startup Quantum Machines raises $50m to make quantum computers ubiquitous and disruptive across all industries
Published: 07-09-2021 | 15:07:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Tel Aviv based startup Quantum Machines, creator of the Quantum Orchestration Platform, announced it has secured $50 million in Series B funding to expand its growth into quantum cloud computing and drive its worldwide distribution.


CB Insights launches algorithm to score the quality of startup's founding and management team
Published: 02-09-2021 | 13:05:15 | By: Pie Kamau
CB Insights, which enables world's leading companies to make smarter technology decisions, announced Management Mosaic, the first-ever algorithm to demystify the quality of a startup's founding and management team.


Next-gen research platform Litmaps closes $125K seed-stage investment from Quidnet Ventures
Published: 02-09-2021 | 12:55:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Litmaps, a Science software company based in Wellington, New Zealand has received NZ$125,000 in funding from Quidnet Ventures, a New Zealand-based venture capital fund with operations in Auckland, NZ, San Francisco and New York.


Financials, ICT remain the most attractive sectors for VC investment in Africa, report
Published: 07-07-2021 | 08:34:56 | By: Bob Koigi
Mapping Africa’s startup landscape between 2014 and 2020, the report provides data and analysis on venture capital (VC) deal activity in Africa in 2020 along with information about the types of investors that have participated in those deals.


AI startup LLENA (AI) partners with Southern University to support (USDA/NIFA) Agriculture and Food Research Initiative
Published: 29-06-2021 | 14:24:00 | By: Pie Kamau
LLENA (AI) Health Solutions, announced a partnership with Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana to support their "Center of Excellence for Nutrition, Health, Wellness, and Quality of Life" initiative to address diet-related health disparities.


The nexus between gender-responsive research and agricultural productivity in Africa
Published: 27-05-2021 | 11:15:00 | By: Bob Koigi
Smallholder farmers across Africa are looking to science to boost farm productivity and to tackle emerging threats, partiuclarly with regards to climate change and pandemics as demonstrated by COVID-19, the report further noted.


Fact.MR redefines the way startups access market research
Published: 21-04-2021 | 12:54:00 | By: Pie Kamau
The number one reason for startup failure isn't lack of funding or stiff competition. The main reason is 'misreading market demand'. Therefore, it becomes important for startups to thoroughly research the market.


CRIO secures Series A financing to accelerate growth, platform development
Published: 16-03-2021 | 15:10:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Clinical Research IO (CRIO), a Boston-based technology firm offering clinical research sponsors and sites a platform to streamline clinical trials, announced the completion of a $3.5 million Series A round led by Rally Ventures.


From grass to cash: Harnessing the power of climate smart forage grasses in Western Kenya
Published: 25-02-2021 | 08:45:00 | By: Bob Koigi
Kenyan researchers have been working with farmers in Western Kenya to test new varieties of fodder grasses known to have higher protein, low fiber and are fast maturing.


Investment in Forward BIOLABS paying off for bioscience startups
Published: 19-02-2021 | 12:02:04 | By: Pie Kamau
Forward BIOLABS, a co-working life science lab that helps bioscience startups grow, is celebrating early successes and honoring the companies that support the organization.


Boast.AI secures $100m to fuel R&D tax credit-based financing for startups
Published: 18-02-2021 | 09:14:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Boast.ai, a software innovator whose flagship product automates the complex process of applying for R&D tax credits, secured a $100 million credit facility from Brevet Capital, a leading alternative credit investment and specialty finance firm.


Kinyungu Ventures calls for changes to cut-and-paste VC strategy in Africa
Published: 18-01-2021 | 16:14:00 | By: Pie Kamau
A new White Paper published by East African venture advisory firm Kinyungu Ventures shows there continues to be a wide misalignment between traditional venture capital models and the African market.


US venture exit value achieved $290 billion in 2020 alongside record years for investment and fundraising activity, report
Published: 14-01-2021 | 11:10:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Though the past year had a lot of uncertainty brought on by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the US VC industry demonstrated its resilience and long-term mindset, achieving new records in total exit value, deal value and capital raised by VC funds.


Egypt’s life science startup Nawah Scientific raises $1m round for market expansion
Published: 13-01-2021 | 08:22:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Egyptian life science startup Nawah Scientific announced the the closing a second pre-series A round of $1 million in mixed equity and debt capital, raising its total funding to $2 million.


October Startup Sentiment Index shows three-month trend in advancing startup timelines
Published: 12-11-2020 | 12:57:50 | By: Pie Kamau
The number of respondents agreeing that now is a good time to start a business reached a three-month high at 60.6% in October.


Medtech startup Immertec partners with Orthopaedic Foundation to demonstrate effectiveness of VR surgical training
Published: 12-11-2020 | 12:42:56 | By: Pie Kamau
Orthopaedic Foundation has partnered with medtech startup Immertec, to conduct research to evaluate the effectiveness of VR for remote surgical training.


Nearly 60% of startup founders say operating costs are their top spending priority in the first quarter
Published: 11-11-2020 | 14:03:00 | By: Pie Kamau
While the long-term economic effect of the COVID-19 pandemic is still unknown, the remote work period has forced startups to adjust their spending priorities, according to a new survey from Clutch, a B2B ratings and reviews platform.


Mohammed VI Polytechnic University partners with Plug and Play to launch accelerator programme in Morocco
Published: 09-11-2020 | 09:13:33 | By: Pie Kamau
Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P), an academic and research institution, has partnered with global innovation platform, Plug and Play, to launch an Open Innovation Hub in Morocco, with the support of OCP Group.


[Algeria] Sonatrach invests in university incubator for startups
Published: 22-10-2020 | 08:17:00 | By: Bob Koigi
Algeria state owned oil company Sonatrach has partnered with the National Agency for the Promotion of Research and Technological Development Results (ANVREDET), to establish a university incubator for start-ups.


Amsterdam based startup Zeta Alpha launches AI platform to help experts navigate new research
Published: 22-09-2020 | 13:00:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Amsterdam based startup Zeta Alpha is launching AI Research Navigator, a new deep learning-based search platform, to help AI experts navigate new research.


Enygma Ventures invests R4.2m in South Africa’s human resources startup Job Crystal
Published: 31-08-2020 | 17:06:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Enygma Ventures has made a R4.2 million investment into Job Crystal, South Africa’s premier recruitment company.


British legal tech startup Thirdfort raises £1m in seed-plus funding round
Published: 31-08-2020 | 16:27:00 | By: Pie Kamau
British Legal tech startup Thirdfort secured £1 million in its latest fund raising, as the security specialist looks to capitalise on increasing demand from law firms.


Developer platform Turing.com announces $14m Seed funding round led by Foundation Capital
Published: 31-08-2020 | 16:02:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Turing.com, an automated platform that lets companies cut the time it takes to hire software engineers from months to days announced a $14 million seed funding round.


Tech startup MITO Material Solutions announces oversubscribed $1m Series Seed funding round
Published: 31-08-2020 | 15:44:00 | By: Pie Kamau
MITO Material Solutions, a cutting edge developer of additives that enable polymer manufacturers to enhance product performance, announced an oversubscribed $1 million Series Seed funding round.


Ada Labs to launch four startups by December to provide solutions for Africa
Published: 31-08-2020 | 15:18:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Ada Labs Africa with headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya announced that since it’s launch earlier this year, the fusion lab has acquired six startups. The Lab currently has two in the market with the other four launching in the coming months.


Swiss startup Olympe raises €2.3m investment round to accelerate growth
Published: 28-08-2020 | 15:49:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Olympe, a disruptive software development platform for large companies announced the closing of €2.3 million funding round.


Healthtech startup Emme closes $2.5m seed round, launches integrated technology enabled birth control solution
Published: 28-08-2020 | 14:30:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Emme, a healthcare technology company focused on women's health, announced the launch of the Emme Smart Case, an integrated solution designed to reduce the 9% failure rate of birth control pills.


102 startups selected for Plug and Play's fall 2020 batches
Published: 28-08-2020 | 14:00:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Silicon Valley headquartered global innovation platform Plug and Play has announced the selection of 102 new startups into its fall 2020 batches.


Canadian startup OpenUnit raises $150K pre-seed funding from Y Combinator
Published: 28-08-2020 | 13:43:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Toronto-based OpenUnit announced it has raised $150,000 in pre-seed funding from US accelerator Y Combinator.


Belgian startup Ampacimon raises €4m to further accelerate growth through innovative projects
Published: 26-08-2020 | 15:50:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Belgian startup Ampacimon has raised €4 million with Korys as lead investor, with existing shareholders Gesval and Creos also taking part in this financing round with a view to strengthening their historical link with Ampacimon.


Organizational Management startup ChartHop raises $14m Series A financing led by a16z
Published: 26-08-2020 | 15:22:00 | By: Pie Kamau
ChartHop, the world's first organizational management platform built to help companies plan for the future, announced it raised $14 million in a Series A financing led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z).


AI startup Fiddler secures investment from Amazon Alexa Fund to accelerate explainable monitoring solution
Published: 26-08-2020 | 15:01:00 | By: Pie Kamau
AI startup Fiddler announced a strategic investment by the Amazon Alexa Fund to advance its explainable monitoring solution.


HR tech startup Incluzion connects diverse talent to remote work and upskilling during pandemic
Published: 26-08-2020 | 14:33:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Incluzion, the first online platform connecting companies to Black and Latinx talent for freelance work announced the launch of Incluzion Learning, and the Incluzion Remote Jobs.


Finnish startup Quuppa raises €20m to accelerate growth
Published: 25-08-2020 | 15:38:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Quuppa, a global provider of Real-Time Locating Systems (RTLS), announced its first ever round of funding, worth €20 million to accelerate growth.


Swedish startup Voi steps up its safety game with next generation scooter
Published: 25-08-2020 | 15:07:30 | By: Pie Kamau
Swedish startup Voi unveiled its safest ever scooter model - Voiager 4 - the world’s first sharing scooter with indicators, allowing riders to alert other road users.


Sporttrade, Twin River Worldwide Holdings partner to offer online sports betting in New Jersey
Published: 25-08-2020 | 14:41:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Sporttrade, Philadelphia based sports betting startup has entered into a multi-year partnership with Twin River Worldwide Holdings, for the launch of Sporttrade's proprietary sports betting exchange product in the state of New Jersey.


MURAL raises $118m Series B funding to scale visual collaboration across global enterprises
Published: 25-08-2020 | 14:19:00 | By: Pie Kamau
MURAL, the leading digital workspace for visual collaboration in the enterprise, has closed $118 million in Series B funding, led by Insight Partners and joined by Tiger Global, Slack Fund, World Innovation Lab, and existing investor Gradient Ventures.


RNAimmune closes $2.35m seed funding for development of mRNA therapeutics and vaccines
Published: 24-08-2020 | 15:44:00 | By: Pie Kamau
RNAimmune announced the completion of its $2.35 million seed round financing from multiple venture capitalists including Terra Magnum Capital Partners.


Health startup BuddyCheque inks deal with Select Ortho to enhance employee, customer safety
Published: 24-08-2020 | 15:30:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Health startup BuddyCheque has joined forces with Select Ortho to ensure that their employees and customers remain safe during COVID-19.


SBT Alliance named Most Promising IoT Startup 2020
Published: 24-08-2020 | 15:12:00 | By: Pie Kamau
StartUp City Magazine recognizes Smarter Building Technologies (SBT) Alliance as Most Promising IoT Startup in 2020.


Gaming startup Lootcakes raises $2m to expand rewarded data sharing for VIP gamers
Published: 21-08-2020 | 11:58:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Lootcakes, world's first network devoted to spenders in free-to-play games, announced the closing of a $2 million seed round led by Konvoy Ventures, with other participants including SOSV and GAN Ventures.


3D printed home builder ICON lands $35m funding led by Moderne Ventures
Published: 21-08-2020 | 11:35:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Developer of advanced construction technologies including robotics, software, and building materials ICON announced it has completed a $35 million series A round of financing led by Moderne Ventures.


Connectus Global closes venture funding round from Texas based CSL Ventures
Published: 21-08-2020 | 11:10:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Canadian based Connectus Global (Connectus), closed its Seed Round of financing led by Houston, Texas based CSL Ventures, the venture capital arm of energy services private equity firm CSL Capital Management.


AI startup SupportLogic raises $12m to accelerate its intelligent support platform
Published: 21-08-2020 | 10:47:00 | By: Pie Kamau
SupportLogic, world's first intelligent support platform for customer support/success teams, announced it has raised $12 million of seed and series A funding, led by Sorenson Ventures.


Fintech startup Kira closes oversubscribed $2.2m private round led by blockchain investors
Published: 20-08-2020 | 16:32:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Kira, a decentralized finance technology company, successfully closed its Seed round backed by the private equity firm Ascensive Asset Management and Alphabit Fund.


Chili Piper raises $18m Series A funding to instantly connect remote sales team to customers
Published: 20-08-2020 | 16:05:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Chili Piper, the leader in Inbound Revenue Acceleration, announced it has raised $18 million in Series A funding led by Base10 Partners with participation from Gradient Ventures, Google's AI-focused venture fund, and Flashpoint Venture Capital.


Creative Chaos, RallyCry Ventures announce $2.5m forgivable loan program for pre product startups
Published: 20-08-2020 | 12:40:00 | By: Pie Kamau
With pre product startup founders struggling to raise capital due to the COVID pandemic, Creative Chaos along with RallyCry Ventures launched a MVP Financing Program to help founders build their ideas during these difficult times.


Oregon based cannabis e-commerce startup Dutchie completes $35m Series B funding round
Published: 19-08-2020 | 15:13:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Dutchie, the world's largest and fastest-growing e-commerce solution for cannabis dispensaries announced the completion of its $35 million Series B funding round, bringing Dutchie's total funding to $53 million to date.


Traveltech startup Omio raises $100m to strengthen position as global travel platform
Published: 19-08-2020 | 14:40:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Omio, formerly GoEuro, Europe’s leading multi-modal travel booking platform, announced it has secured $100 million in investments from existing and new investors.


German traveltech startup Omio launches 'Open Travel Index' to navigate new travel era
Published: 19-08-2020 | 14:23:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Europe’s leading multi-modal travel booking platform Omio is reigniting travel by launching a new online resource to help travellers easily understand where they can travel to within Europe.


Seed stage investing and why it matters for Africa’s startup and innovation community
Published: 19-08-2020 | 08:46:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Startup entrepreneurs are working to harness Africa’s potential. Together they represent a critical pipeline of innovation that is driving high growth high impact solutions on the continent.


U.S. fintech startup Robinhood closes $200m in Series G funding
Published: 18-08-2020 | 14:49:00 | By: Pie Kamau
U.S. fintech startup Robinhood announced a $200 million Series G funding at an $11.2 billion valuation from D1 Capital Partners.


Estonian fintech startup EvoEstate secures €320K pre-seed round for global expansion
Published: 18-08-2020 | 14:26:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Estonian fintech startup EvoEstate announced a €140K pre-seed extension to close its €320K pre-seed round, backed by Lithuanian Startup Wise Guys, a Hong Kong-based stealth investment fund, and business angels from France and the Baltics.


Fintech startup Robinhood to expand customer experience team with new employees across the U.S.
Published: 18-08-2020 | 13:59:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Financial services startup Robinhood announced that this year, the company plans to hire hundreds of additional registered financial representatives in Southlake, Texas, and Tempe, Arizona.


CaixaBank launches open innovation program to support startups in Spain and Portugal
Published: 18-08-2020 | 12:49:00 | By: Pie Kamau
CaixaBank has launched a new open innovation program to support startups in Spain and Portugal called the DayOne Open Innovation Program.


Zipp Mobility gets green light for UK e-scooter trials
Published: 17-08-2020 | 15:37:50 | By: Pie Kamau
Zipp Mobility, the Irish micromobility startup, announced the UK Department for Transport (DfT) has approved the company’s e-scooter model for use in trials across the UK.


Dublin based startup Blafar secures ISO 13485:2016 certification
Published: 17-08-2020 | 15:20:18 | By: Pie Kamau
Blafar Ltd announced it has secured an internationally recognised quality management system standard certification specific to the medical device industry.


Irish agtech startup MagGrow raises €6m Series A round
Published: 17-08-2020 | 14:37:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Irish startup MagGrow, the agtech innovator that specialises in delivering crop protection products where they matter most while protecting the environment, has completed a €6m Series A round.


U.S. startup Mission Bio raises $70m to accelerate development of cancer therapies
Published: 14-08-2020 | 15:59:00 | By: Pie Kamau
California based startup Mission Bio, pioneer in high-throughput single-cell DNA and multi-omics analysis announced $70 million in its Series C financing led by Novo Growth, the growth equity arm of Novo Holdings.


Kenyan women and youth agritech startups invited to apply for $100k FoodTech Africa accelerator
Published: 14-08-2020 | 15:40:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Kenyan youth and women-led agribusinesses have been awarded an opportunity to access $100,000 as investment for their companies through the FoodTech Africa accelerator.


Ukrainian startup Liki24 raises $5m from Horizon Capital, existing investors to fuel European expansion
Published: 14-08-2020 | 14:46:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Liki24, Ukraine-based e-commerce platform for medicine delivery, raised a $5 million round from Horizon Capital and existing investors, bringing total funding raised to date to $6 million.


Online document US startup Coda raises $80m Series C round
Published: 13-08-2020 | 16:24:00 | By: Pie Kamau
US online document startup Coda raised $80 million Series C round led by Mamoon Hamid from Kleiner Perkins.


US startup Atomo Coffee raises $9m to bring molecular coffee to the market
Published: 13-08-2020 | 15:54:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Seattle based startup Atomo Coffee announced it has closed an additional $9 million in Seed funding to bring its molecular coffee to market.


[Startup Interview] Mangaldas Gupta, CEO, Magma Ash Tech, India
Published: 13-08-2020 | 12:13:00 | By: Bob Koigi
Magma Ash Tech is an Indian startup involved in the procurement, processing and export of Flyas, one of the residues produced during combustion of coal. Fly ash is used mainly as a bonding agent mainly in cement plants, ready mix concrete units, manufacture of blocks, bricks and boards.


Seattle based fintech startup Routable raises $12m for efficient business payments
Published: 12-08-2020 | 15:57:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Seattle based fintech startup Routable has raised $12 million in Series A funding from Founders Co-op, Lee Fixel, Y Combinator, Box Group, Liquid 2 Ventures, Jason Gardner, Gokul Rajaram, Aaron Schildkrout, Sam Hodges, Immad Akhund, and many others.


Finland VR/XR startup Varjo secures €46m Series C funding
Published: 12-08-2020 | 15:01:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Helsinki-based startup Varjo, a leader in industrial-grade VR/XR hardware and software, announced it has closed a €46 million round of Series C funding.


Kenyan retail-tech startup MarketForce 360 selected for Y Combinator Summer 2020 Batch
Published: 12-08-2020 | 14:17:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Kenyan retail-tech startup MarketForce has been selected for the Silicon Valley based Y Combinator Summer 2020 batch.


[Startup Interview] Tracy Mapfumo, CEO, Eny's Treats, Zimbabwe
Published: 11-08-2020 | 12:04:00 | By: Bob Koigi
Eny's Treats, a startup based in Zimbabwe, manufactures seed-based gluten free snacks that are topped up with natural and unrefined sweeteners for the upmarket urban health-conscious consumers. The startup’s CEO Tracy Mapfumo elaborates.


UK startup Omnipresent raises $2m seed funding to provide solution for remote work revolution
Published: 11-08-2020 | 10:39:00 | By: Pie Kamau
UK startup Omnipresent Group has raised $2m in a seed round led by Playfair Capital and Episode 1. The fundraise was closed within six weeks during the height of the pandemic.


[Startup Interview] Emmauel Nabuora, CEO, ParteUp, Kenya
Published: 11-08-2020 | 05:10:00 | By: Bob Koigi
Emmauel Nabuora is the CEO of Kenya-based ParteUp, an online application that gives users the opportunity to discover, create, find and share parties within their locality while allowing them to host and stream their parties to live attendees.


[Startup Interview] Kaxton Kabogoza, Founder, Kenda Interlocking Bricks, Kenya
Published: 08-08-2020 | 09:43:09 | By: Bob Koigi
Kenda Interlocking Bricks is a Kenya start up in the manufacturing sector that is championing the use of eco-friendly and affordable construction materials as it seeks to bridge the housing deficit in Kenya and the East African region. Engineer Kaxton Kabogoza the founder explains.


U.S. startup WiBotic receives industry-first FCC approval for high power wireless charging
Published: 07-08-2020 | 14:56:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Seattle-based startup WiBotic received equipment authorization from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for its high power transmitters and receivers.


Polish healthtech startup Infermedica raises $10.25m in Series A funding for global expansion
Published: 06-08-2020 | 16:15:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Polish healthtech startup Infermedica has raised $10.25 million in Series A funding with participation from existing investors Karma Ventures, Inovo Venture Partners, and DreamIT Ventures, as well as two new co-lead investors, EBRD and heal capital.


German computer vision startup Segmentive closes €2m seed round to breakthrough whole-body mobile segmentation
Published: 06-08-2020 | 15:41:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Deep-tech computer vision startup Segmentive closed final funds in €2m seed round in a bid to deliver whole-body video segmentation, in real-time and on mobile.


Nigerian mobility startup Plentywaka raises $300,000 investment as it expands into Abuja
Published: 06-08-2020 | 15:19:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Nigerian mobility startup Plentywaka secured a pre-seed investment led by Emfato, Microtraction, and Niche Capital worth $300,000.


San Francisco edtech startup Springboard raises $31 million Series B funding
Published: 05-08-2020 | 15:42:00 | By: Pie Kamau
San Francisco edtech startup Springboard has raised $31 million in Series B funding led by Mark Sherman and Albert Bielinko from Telstra Ventures, Arrun Kapoor from SJF Ventures, and YB Choi from Vulcan Capital.


Seattle based startup Minnow raises $2.2 million to meet demand for contact free pickup solution
Published: 05-08-2020 | 14:34:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Minnow Technologies, a Seattle based IoT startup that has developed a contact free food delivery and pickup solution has raised $2.2 million in an oversubscribed seed round.


French startup DNA Script expands Series B funding to $89 million
Published: 05-08-2020 | 13:16:00 | By: Pie Kamau
French startup DNA Script announced a $50 million extension to its Series B financing, bringing the total investment of this round to $89 million led by Casdin Capital.


Austrian startup kompany accelerates growth with new funding, brings total raised to €14 million
Published: 05-08-2020 | 12:19:00 | By: Pie Kamau
kompany, an award winning RegTech platform for Business KYC (KYB) announced new investment of almost €6 million to accelerate growth and expand its new product lines.


Lithuanian AdTech startup RedTrack raises $500 000 from Genesis Investments and Iron Wolf Capital
Published: 03-08-2020 | 16:18:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Lithuania based AdTech startup RedTrack has received $500 000 in Seed funding from Genesis Investments and Iron Wolf Capital to make ads spend more efficiently.


British startup Planet Smart City partners with UN-Habitat on slum upgrading initiatives in Kenya
Published: 03-08-2020 | 15:56:00 | By: Pie Kamau
British startup Planet Smart City has joined forces with the United Nations Human Settlements Programme, UN-Habitat to provide digital tools, community management and social innovation to help improve lives in informal settlements in Kenya.


U.S. startup Ossia partners with Toyoda Gosei to deliver wireless power over the air in vehicle cabins
Published: 03-08-2020 | 15:39:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Toyoda Gosei Co, a Toyota Group company, has concluded a joint development agreement with Ossia Inc, a U.S. startup that leads the world in the field of wireless power solutions.


VC4A announces 2020 ‘Venture Showcase - Seed’ for African early stage startups
Published: 03-08-2020 | 14:59:00 | By: Pie Kamau
VC4A, in collaboration with technical partner AWS Activate, and network partners AfriLabs and ABAN is calling for African startups looking to raise between $150K and $1M.


London based health tech startup Closed Loop Medicine secures £250,000 Innovate UK continuity funding
Published: 24-07-2020 | 15:46:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Closed Loop Medicine (CLM), London based therapeutics and health tech company has secured a £250,000 COVID-19 Innovate UK Continuity Funding award to support its ongoing clinical research programme.


Quantum technology startup Q-CTRL enters global partnership with Advanced Navigation
Published: 22-07-2020 | 10:40:33 | By: Bob Koigi
Q-CTRL, a startup that applies the principles of control engineering to accelerate the development of quantum technology, has partnered with Advanced Navigation, a leader in AI-based navigational hardware.


AI startup Deep Longevity launches with Series A financing
Published: 22-07-2020 | 10:31:00 | By: Bob Koigi
Deep Longevity, a biotechnology company transforming longevity R&D through AI-discovered biomarkers of aging, has come out of stealth from Insilico Medicine with financing from prominent investors worldwide.


Dutch online startup, scale-up community funds international research into COVID-19
Published: 20-07-2020 | 15:56:00 | By: Pie Kamau
Eighteen entrepreneurs from the Dutch online startup and scale-up community are joining forces to finance an international study by Erasmus MC into the clinical picture of COVID-19.