Expand North Star 2023 accelerates global VC investment revival as deep tech game-changers choose Dubai as launch-pad for global growth

Record number of Indian start-ups to converge at four-day event’s new iconic Dubai Harbour venue

DUBAI, UAE, Oct. 12, 2023 — India’s burgeoning entrepreneurial spirit and proliferation of next-gen deep tech talent will take centre-stage next week in Dubai, as the world’s largest start-up event prepares to host the biggest showcase of Indian start-ups ever seen outside the south-central Asian nation. 

Hosted by Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, one of the three chambers under the umbrella of Dubai Chambers, Expand North Star 2023 together will feature more than 1,800 exhibiting start-ups from 100-plus countries at its new Dubai Harbour venue from 15-18 October. This includes 200 breakthrough Indian companies choosing the emirate as their launchpad to scale up globally.

From international award-winning Google accelerated gaming innovators, to producers of de-carbonised protein for the US$500 billion animal feed industry, game-changers from the world’s third-largest start-up ecosystem are gathering in Dubai to woo investors and secure customers for global expansion.

Sustainable Agri-tech the formidable foundation of future commerce

Among the pioneering start-ups at Expand North Star’s new India Central feature is Noval Sustainability, which is launching DE-Carbon, an animal feed protein recycled from waste that, according to Founder Siva Sankar, is formulated to substantially reduce the environmental footprint of the carbon-heavy feed and meat industries.

“We will showcase the tech behind recovering protein from waste,” said Sankar, who will demonstrate at Expand North Star how Noval Sustainability’s manufacturing process decarbonises one of the world’s largest and most-polluting industries.

“The world wastes more than 30 percent of the food that is produced, and the same ratio holds for the amount of proteins wasted from meat consumption.  We are bridging the gap with a solution, and there’s a humongous untapped economic value in this waste. With an inclusion of just one percent of alternative proteins in animal feed, we’re looking at a US$500 billion industry.”

Scaling-up through deep tech immersive gaming 

Elsewhere, investors in the US$300 billion gaming industry will see a fresh injection of deep tech gaming platforms, spearheaded by Tuttifrutti Interactive’s Sophia’s Adventures fantasy themed game that uses cinematic quality Unreal 5 Nanite technology.

Ajish Habib, CEO of Tuttifrutti Interactive, a Google-accelerated, Epic Games Mega Grant recipient, and winner of 15 international awards, said Sophia’s Adventures alpha version will redefine the female gaming market, propelling the company, and potential seed angel investors, to exponential growth. 

“With its official launch for Sony PlayStation and VR2 market, Tuttifrutti will grow a minimum four times by 2025, and with an upcoming half a dozen IP games, we’ll scale-up over 165 times by 2028, targeting revenues of US$80 million,” said Habib.

“Immersive game tech coupled with AI and deep tech will revolutionise the gaming market, and we’re leveraging AI in all aspects in our product development, from designing game emotions, and fine-tuning design, to marketing, and customer acquisition.” 

Unveiling growth roadmaps

Manifested through its power-packed conference programme, Expand North Star will present key Indian unicorn founders will unveil the critical global growth path to unstoppable success.

Headliners include Bhavish Aggarwal, CEO & Co-Founder of Ola Cabs & Ola Electric, India’s largest ridesharing company with over 1.5 million drivers; and Abiraj Singh Bhal, CEO & Founder of Urban Company, a Series F $2.8 billion company offering the largest home services platform in India and UAE.

Expand North Star’s 10X Stage will also feature Rajan Anandan, Managing Director of Peak XV and Surge, a rapid scale-up programme for start-ups in India and Southeast Asia. Anandan is focusing on developing Surge into the world’s top scale-up programme for start-ups by acting as an investment advisor and mentor to the programme’s founders. He will share his visions for India’s booming start-up ecosystem for 2023 and beyond.

Forging deep cross-border economic ties to accelerate growth

Ballooning to nearly double that of the previous year, Indian participation at Expand North Star 2023 comes as the UAE and India continue to amplify bi-lateral trade and investment opportunities.

Under the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, the UAE and India plan to double the value of non-oil trade from 2023 to 2030, reaching US$100 billion. According to Dubai Chambers, 30 percent of the emirate’s start-ups are Indian-owned, while 83,000 Indian companies are registered in Dubai. Indian firms and non-resident Indian owned entities have also created more than one million UAE jobs.

Expand North Star 2023 will intensify these achievements, convening more than 1,000 tech investors and Venture Capitalists from 70 countries with US$1 trillion of capital to inspire, and scale-up the world’s most sought-after start-ups. 

Expand North Star is the powerhouse start-up event inspired by GITEX GLOBAL, the world’s largest tech show, which takes place from 16-20 October at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC). The blockbuster duo, organised by DWTC, are spearheading the world’s biggest tech takeover in Dubai, spanning 2.7 million sq. ft. of exhibition space – a 40 percent increase over the previous year.

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About Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC):

A global business facilitator since 1979, Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) is home to region’s leading purpose-built convention and exhibition centre. DWTC provides a platform for connecting people, products, innovation and ideas from around the world through a dynamic calendar of international trade exhibitions and its own roster of sector leading mega events.  As a designated free zone, complemented by award-winning commercial real estate, DWTC plays an integral role in Dubai and the region’s growth story with an estimated total economic output of AED 200 Billion, attracting over 30 Million business visitors to Dubai over the past four decades.

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2245471/Expand_North_Star_Event_Dubai.jpg

SOURCE Expand North Star

THNDR’s game-changing wagering platform and API is reimagining competitive gaming on bitcoin.

NEW YORK, Oct. 12, 2023 — Today, THNDR announced its newest product, Clinch, an API that enables instantaneous, borderless, low-fee, peer-to-peer wagering using the Bitcoin Lightning Network. Created in response to the pain points of traditional competitive gaming platforms – including high buy-ins, cashout thresholds, slow payouts, and regional restrictions – Clinch makes global, limitless wagering a reality.

Targeting the $95B online gambling market, the Clinch API allows partners, such as online casinos, sports books, and competitive gaming platforms, to integrate global, high-frequency wagering without the restrictions, high fees, and slow processing of traditional gaming providers. Clinch is a revolutionary monetization tool for game developers and other businesses navigating ever-changing app store and developer platform policies.

Current competitive gaming typically enforces high buy-ins, often requiring users to deposit $20 or more to begin gameplay. These thresholds are untenable for the majority of global users, especially in emerging markets and developing regions, unable or unwilling to deposit such high amounts of funds. Clinch’s wagering rails make it possible for users to enter wagers for as little as one satoshi (1/100,000,000th of a bitcoin). Clinch not only opens the door for users globally, it also allows businesses using the API to reach and monetize this global audience.

As of the announcement, users can test out Clinch in THNDR’s portfolio of games, beginning with the cult-classic, Club Bitcoin: Solitaire, which reached #21 in the App Store and is the highest ranked bitcoin game of all time. Users can place a wager (in bitcoin) on a game of Solitaire against friends, and funds will be paid out instantaneously, peer-to-peer.

Select partners are currently testing out early API access and users should expect limitless Clinch wagering in an endless supply of games. Expanding the Clinch suite of offerings outside of skills-based wagering, THNDR is working with sports-betting and gambling companies to make high-frequency wagering globally accessible and more efficient while elevating the integrity and overall quality of the gameplay.

How it works: Clinch allows users to place wagers directly with peers, for exactly the desired amount – no upfront deposit required. Wagers can be placed for as little as one satoshi, or 1/100,000,000 of a bitcoin, and there is no upper limit on the wager size (although early Clinch versions will be capped as the tech is tested in production).

While similar wagering and betting innovations have been tested on other blockchain protocols, these are fraught with security vulnerabilities, negligent token issuance, centralization, and have garnered regulatory scrutiny. In light of the recent $41.3M hack of the online crypto casino and sports betting platform, Stake.com, Clinch offers a welcome alternative by giving users complete control of their funds. THNDR is the first company to launch a consumer wagering product and API on Bitcoin‘s Lightning Network.

Users can now test out early access, wagering bitcoin in near real-time, PvP Solitaire matches. Initial rollout is invite-only but users can sign up for rolling waitlist access. Developers interested in integrating the Clinch API are encouraged to visit api.clinch.gg for API documentation and access.

THNDR is a gaming infrastructure company focused on building products that enable competitive, connected play, frictionless rewards, and borderless wagering. THNDR’s newest product, Clinch, leverages the Bitcoin Lightning Network to enable instantaneous, depositless, peer-to-peer wagering.

Related Link:
https://www.thndr.games

This press release was issued through 24-7PressRelease.com. For further information, visit http://www.24-7pressrelease.com.

SOURCE THNDR Games

Startup creates security and compliance automation platform for gene and oligo synthesis providers

NEW YORK, Oct. 12, 2023 — Aclid, the security and compliance automation platform for the biotechnology industry, today announced it closed an oversubscribed seed financing of $3.3 million. The funding will enable Aclid to meet customer demand for its real-time screening and verification platform.

The financing was led by 2048 Ventures and IA Ventures.

“Before Aclid, DNA synthesis providers struggled with error-prone, time-consuming, and expensive manual approaches to biosecurity and compliance. We knew we could make an automated product that is simple to deploy, keeps security teams focused on the most important risks, and always up-to-date with the latest regulations,” said Kevin Flyangolts, Aclid Founder and Chief Executive Officer. “Gene synthesis providers using our solution already spend less time reviewing orders and managing compliance. We’re excited to have the support of 2048 Ventures, IA Ventures, and our advisors to help secure DNA synthesis, the foundation of the bioeconomy. “

Julie Wolf, Ph.D., principal at 2048 Ventures, commented, “DNA synthesis is rapidly growing and decentralizing – a great step toward building a better future with biology. As the industry grows, we must ensure that this critical technology is used for the benefit of humanity. Aclid’s biosecurity platform ensures the safe and rapid growth of the bioeconomy.”

Securing Gene Synthesis to Reduce Risks
In July 2023, Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) and Representative Anna Eshoo (CA-16) introduced the Securing Gene Synthesis Act that mandates DNA synthesis providers to comply with screening regulations.

Separately, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is strengthening its 2010 Screening Framework Guidance for Providers of Synthetic Double-Stranded DNA to cover oligonucleotides and gene synthesis equipment, including bench-top DNA synthesizers.

“In the 13 years since the release of the first DNA screening guidelines, security, and compliance have never been more important or more challenging for the gene synthesis industry,” said Harris Wang, Ph.D., Aclid Scientific Founder. “By automating the most time-consuming parts of the process – customer verifications and follow-up – Aclid makes it easy for gene synthesis providers to stay compliant.”

Aclid was founded by Columbia University Professor of Systems Biology Harris Wang, Ph.D., and Kevin Flyangolts. Bringing together their synthetic biology and engineering backgrounds, they formed Aclid to make genetic engineering safer.

About Aclid
Aclid is the security and compliance automation platform for biotechnology. Gene synthesis providers use Aclid to verify customers, screen DNA and RNA orders for pathogenic and toxic elements, and automate compliance checks. As the bioeconomy becomes more accessible and grows from the adoption of digital tools, lab automation, and AI, it also creates new security concerns. Aclid is growing the bioeconomy by making genetic engineering more accessible and safer. For more information, visit aclid.bio or follow on Twitter and LinkedIn.

About 2048 Ventures
2048 Ventures is a thesis-driven, earliest-stage venture capital firm that leads pre-seed and seed rounds in startups that are building businesses differentiated through technology and data. 2048 Ventures is a distributed team that invests across the US, Canada, and the UK. For more information, visit 2048.vc.

About IA Ventures
IA Ventures is a seed-stage venture capital firm investing in software businesses ahead of product-market fit. Since its founding in 2010, IA has backed more than 100 companies including Datadog, The Trade Desk, TransferWise, Flatiron Health, Komodo Health, DataRobot, DigitalOcean, and Recorded Future. For more information, visit iaventures.com.

SOURCE Aclid

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 11, 2023 — Intento, a leading machine translation and multilingual generative AI platform for global enterprises, announced an $8 million Series A funding round today. Led by Somersault Ventures, with additional participation from I2BF Global Ventures, Flint Capital, Scorpio Capital, Courtyard Ventures, Davidovs Venture Capital, and existing investors, the funding will be used to scale company operations amid significant growth, expand sales and marketing efforts, and introduce a new version of the Intento platform.

Meeting Marketing Demand Through Innovation

Intento is experiencing a two-fold growth in deal velocity in 2023, reflecting an expanding market appetite for its Enterprise Language Hub, which offers a seamless, customized language experience in over 650 languages.

“For the past five years, we’ve built our Enterprise Language Hub into a top choice for over 40 major enterprises. They rely on Intento for real-time translation of critical content, a feat made possible by our integration with over 40 Machine Translation platforms and early adoption of large language models like BERT and GPT. Our performance has surged with advancements in large language models in early 2023,” said Konstantin Savenkov, Intento’s co-founder and CEO. “Besides translation, we’ve found that our platform significantly improves Generative AI for non-English content, a key asset for our globally diverse clients. This investment will let us expand our tech and scale operations to meet rising demand.”

“Translation services and technologies is a crowded space for investors, and at Somersault Ventures, we love how the Intento team is building a truly unique product with a forward-looking approach to address what large enterprises need, giving them full control and easy deployment of machine translation and unparalleled ROI. We are also excited to see great synergies of the Intento platform with LLMs both in translation workflows and providing similar orchestration solutions for many other emerging applications,” said Alex Turbanov, Partner at Somersault Ventures.

Revolutionizing Language Solutions for Global Enterprises

Intento’s mission is to empower enterprise leaders to excel in providing best-in-class language experience for both customers and teammates. The company already serves over 40 global organizations, such as Agilent, Subway, Procore, Playrix, and the Government of Canada.

Intento’s Enterprise Language Hub allows these global teams to:

• Spend 20x less on translation by customizing Machine Translation models and automating source content improvement and post-editing.
• Make their best support articles, agents, and chatbots available 24/7 in over 650 languages
• Boost global productivity through language-inclusive digital workplaces
• Re-use and share the best prompts using the new GenAI portal and multiple software integrations.

A Leap Forward in Generative AI and Translation

The upcoming new version of the Intento platform will integrate generative AI natively into existing automatic translation workflows. This enhancement is expected to deliver up to a 90% improvement in translation quality, making it a game-changer in multilingual content accuracy.

For generative AI tasks, Intento multilingual orchestration yields an up to 40% increase in quality while reducing cost and processing time by up to 20-fold for non-English content. The new version of Intento Language Hub with a newly developed GenAI Portal will facilitate the integration of multiple generative AI models with machine translation in multilingual workflows across various software systems used by clients.

About Intento

Founded in 2016, Intento empowers enterprise leaders to excel in providing the best language experience to their customers and teammates using its advanced machine translation and multilingual generative AI technologies, in over 650 languages.

Intento Language Hub is ISO-27001 certified and integrates with existing software platforms, such as Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Translation Management Systems, to share MT/AI models across the enterprise and improve them based on feedback.

For more information, visit https://inten.to.

Media Contact:
[email protected]

SOURCE Intento

BELLEVUE, Wash., Oct. 11, 2023 — Media Partners Corporation, an eLearning provider committed to helping organizations build safe and respectful work environments, proudly unveils its rebrand to Atana Inc. With the successful completion of the final $6 million phase of the $16 million Series A financing, led by national family offices and members of the Seattle-based Alliance of Angels, Atana is poised to expand its market presence by offering groundbreaking AI-driven insights through a blend of high-quality training content and targeted behavioral assessments within each eLearning course.

Atana is the creator of the first comprehensive workplace learning experience backed by science and proven by data to deliver organizations measurable, meaningful behavior change at scale. This rebranding initiative aligns with Atana’s accelerated product innovation and evolution into a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) provider. The company’s name transition to Atana mirrors that of its cutting-edge AI-driven analytics engine, Atana Insights, emphasizing its commitment to helping organizations attain their desired workplace culture.

“At Atana, we seamlessly integrate behavioral theory, organizational psychology, and advanced data science to empower organizations to foster positive, lasting behavior change at scale,” says John Hansen, CEO of Atana. “This substantial funding amplifies our ability to help organizations quantify behavior change and validate the impact of their respectful workplace learning initiatives.”

The Atana experience blends engaging courses with Atana Insights—a proprietary AI-based analytics engine. This equips HR and Learning & Development professionals with insights and actionable feedback, enabling organizations to measure and validate behavior change. Atana aims to become the preferred supplier for organizations seeking to create better workplaces, improve their ability to attract and retain employees, and boost productivity and performance.

About Atana
Atana provides a comprehensive workplace learning experience backed by science and proven by data to deliver organizations measurable, meaningful behavior change at scale. By bringing together decades of experience, award-winning courses, and a powerful, proprietary analytics engine, Atana Insights, organizations have — for the first time — the ability to quantify and validate the impact of their respectful workplace training initiatives. For more information about Atana and its innovative approach to workplace training, please visit www.atana.com or connect with us on social media.

SOURCE Media Partners Corporation

Trait Biosciences (Trait), a leader in cannabinoid research, has developed technologies that transform water insoluble cannabinoids to water soluble materials

The new ingredients deliver unique benefits to multiple end-use consumer products

SANTA FE, N.M., Oct. 11, 2023 — Trait is pleased to announce that it has closed on a funding round led by Btomorrow Ventures (the corporate venture capital arm of BAT) and Gotham Green Partners. Both firms are already significant investors in Trait, and they have been closely involved in the company’s development and commercialization efforts.

Hanny Kanafani, President and COO at Trait says: “The collaboration between Btomorrow Ventures and Gotham Green Partners has been a powerful catalyst in advancing Trait’s development and commercialization activities. This financing will further the launch of unique first-generation cannabinoids, which when added to waters and other beverages, maintain beverage clarity and do not impart turbidity, even when added at competitive dosages. When added into cosmetic applications, our water-soluble materials do not require additives typically used in skincare products to maintain quality, and we will open the door for unique and differentiated infused cosmetic applications.”

The financing will support Trait’s partnerships with contract manufacturers and go-to-market partners, and Trait expects a 1Q 2024 launch of its first-generation water-soluble CBD.

To learn more about Trait’s technology and product offerings, please visit https://traitbio.com/. 

SOURCE Trait Biosciences

Perot Jain invested alongside Resolve Growth Partners as part of Cecilian’s recent Series A round. The investment goes beyond capital support, carrying an important distinction of being strategic and advisory.

NEW HOPE, Pa., Oct. 11, 2023 — On the heels of its recent $11M Series A raise, Cecilian Partners today announced that it has secured growth capital from Perot Jain, the leading Dallas-based venture capital firm focused on industry-disrupting companies and tech. Cecilian offers transformative, end-to-end digital solutions for homebuilders and land developers, with a fast-growing client base in Dallas Fort Worth. That base includes Hillwood Communities – one of the country’s largest community developers, a strategic partner of Perot Jain and Cecilian Partners’ largest client.

Fred Balda, President of Hillwood Communities, will join Cecilian’s advisory board, bringing 32 years of real estate domain expertise and community development knowledge to the organization. The alignment between the two companies, and their leadership teams, goes beyond a typical capital investment.

“It’s a natural fit – Perot Jain has always been committed to innovation that centers on people, and Cecilian Partners is delivering on that mission,” Balda said. “Hillwood Communities is excited to continue working with Cecilian to deliver exceptional online buyer experiences and to improve the overall performance of our business.”

Stewards of change 

Cecilian Partners is committed to bringing digital transformation to master planned communities (MPCs), a market with unique opportunities and challenges. Cecilian co-founder and CEO John Cecilian, Jr. noted that the ongoing partnership with Hillwood Communities has been instrumental for the category.

“Digital transformation is really difficult. It takes work to adopt new technologies and innovation, but it also requires the right partner to be the steward of that process from start to finish,” Cecilian said. “Hillwood Communities was ready for change. They empowered us to be that partner and allow innovation to happen. We are so grateful to have a client who is very much a beacon for other MPC developers around process management and technology adoption.”

At the same time, Perot Jain has a track record of helping early-stage companies drive industry-disrupting innovation. They provide patient capital, a strategic network and tech-enabled expertise. Aaron Pierce, Partner at Perot Jain, explained why Cecilian Partners is a good fit for their model.

“Cecilian Partners is revolutionizing the new home ecosystem, and Perot Jain is excited to support the company’s continued success alongside Hillwood Communities,” Pierce said.

A sense of place 

DFW is a core focus and high-growth market for Cecilian Partners. The Metroplex is on track to become the fifth fastest-growing large metro area in the US by 2028, with new home sales continually ranking among the top five in the nation.

This makes the region an excellent proving ground for Cecilian’s technology and approach. The expanded partnership with Hillwood Communities, along with the stamp of approval from Perot Jain, is key to the firm’s goal of driving real estate transformation for MPCs.

“MPCs build a sense of place for people of all ages and walks of life, but it’s a complex task. Technology and innovation are crucial in getting executives through the gauntlet of placemaking,” Cecilian said. “Technology is not a choice; it’s a critical part of what every land executive and developer should focus on right now.”

He continued, “It is Cecilian Partners’ job to be the steward of that change, and we are privileged that Hillwood Communities allowed us to take them through the other side of digital transformation.”

About Cecilian Partners

Cecilian Partners collaborates with land developers and homebuilders across the U.S. who aspire to modernize their digital footprint and ease everyday pain points associated with building and buying homes. The firm’s property development software, 3D mapping technology, and data management solutions simplify placemaking and transform the homebuying experience. For more information, visit cecilianpartners.com or the Linkedin Company Page.

About Perot Jain

Perot Jain is a Dallas-based venture capital firm founded in 2014 by longtime business partners Ross Perot Jr. and Anurag Jain. Since its inception, Perot Jain has made over 100 investments across five countries, primarily focusing on the US innovation ecosystem. Perot Jain aims to be a strategic partner to early-stage companies in sectors such as supply chain, real estate, government and defense, and healthcare technology. For more information, visit perotjain.com.

SOURCE Cecilian Partners

TORONTO, Oct. 11, 2023 – Snappy, a Canadian all-in-one restaurant management Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) company, today announced that it has closed an oversubscribed Series A funding round. The investment, led by Texas-based Golden Section Ventures, follows an investment by Celtic House Venture Partners and Celtic House Asia Partners in 2021. The funding will be used to expand Snappy’s market presence in North America as Snappy continues to power restaurants globally with its cost-effective and efficiency-driving restaurant software tools.

“We are at an exhilarating time on the restaurant digital transformation path when the need to improve operational efficiency, customer experience, and staff management has never been stronger,” said Ricky Wang, Co-founder & CEO of Snappy. “We are pleased to partner with Golden Section Ventures to continue the expansion of our business in North America through regional offices in the US and Canada, as we work with restaurateurs to streamline their operations and boost digital presence and customer experience. Snappy remains committed to finding innovative ways to help restaurant operators run their businesses more efficiently and become more profitable.”

“Even though the restaurant software vertical has some major players, it’s still an incredibly fractured market,” said Andrew Smith, Executive Director of Golden Section. “Snappy’s cloud-based, nimble, modular solution is a flexible option for independent restaurants and large chains alike. We think Snappy will be the market leader in short order.”

Snappy serves as a technology partner for restaurateurs, elevating the dining experiences through a suite of modules including point of sale, payment processing, omnichannel ordering, 3rd party delivery apps integration, reservation, loyalty and targeted marketing. Independent restaurants and chains can tailor their subscription to include any one or multiple modules ensuring a fit for their unique operational needs. Snappy continuously invests in technology, education, and training programs to contribute to the restaurant community. The Toronto-based technology firm operates in 8 countries, including the US, Canada, the UK, and Australia, and is excited to continue expanding. “We want our restaurateurs to focus on their food and services, leaving the rest to us,” said Ricky Wang.

“We are pleased to have Golden Section join the investor syndicate at Snappy,” said David Adderley, Partner at Celtic House Venture Partners. “Snappy’s ability to scale its operations in Canada and now expand into the US, while maintaining excellent performance metrics, has been impressive. All this has been done in a capital-efficient manner through innovation rather than buying market share with investor capital. This round’s additional funding will allow Snappy to continue its mission of providing restaurant operators with the most cost-effective and easy-to-deploy all-in-one restaurant management SaaS.”

“As Snappy’s first institutional seed investor, we are pleased to welcome Golden Section as a co-investor,” said Larry Liu, Managing Partner at Celtic House Asia Partners. “The restaurant industry is at a critical inflection point as it undergoes a massive digital transformation. Snappy’s cloud-based platform and pre-built modular solutions solve key challenges across numerous restaurant types and use cases. With this funding, Snappy is strongly positioned to execute amidst these market tailwinds.”

For more information about Snappy’s innovative restaurant SaaS offering, visit https://gosnappy.io/

About Snappy

Snappy offers technology products that allow restaurants to manage every touchpoint of the guest experience with ease. Streamline customer operations to one platform, increase direct sales through your online storefront, and build customer loyalty with improved means of restaurant-to-guest communication. You choose what you’d like to automate to serve your customers better and expect to be up and running in a snap. https://gosnappy.io 

About Golden Section

Golden Section is a B2B software investor based in Houston, Texas but investing globally in founders solving tangible problems for today’s workforce. Golden Section exists to journey together with entrepreneurs on the path to creating lasting companies, investing pre-seed to post exit. See more at https://www.goldensection.com

About Celtic House Venture Partners

Drawing from its 20 years of experience as an active investor in technology and innovation, Celtic House Venture Partners collaborates with exceptional founding teams with strong track records and a data-driven mindset to build category-leading technology companies. These collective efforts have resulted in over 25 IPO and M&A transactions. For more information, visit http://www.celtic.vc 

About Celtic House Asia Partners 

Celtic House Asia Partners is an active investor in technology companies across North America and China, with a focus on B2B SaaS, consumer marketplaces, FoodTech and digital health. Celtic House Asia’s investments include tech unicorns ApplyBoard, Cerebral, and GrubMarket, as well as Fantuan, Snappy, Mappedin, Uniuni and numerous other early and later-stage technology start-ups. For more information, visit http://www.celticvc.com

SOURCE Snappy

Series A Round Led by Fin Capital Will Be Used to Onboard and Support New Enterprise Partnerships and Further Advance the Company’s Unique Behavioral Engine

NEW YORK, Oct. 11, 2023 — Carefull, an AI-powered financial safety platform that helps banks and wealth advisors protect aging customers from scams and money mistakes, today announced that it has closed its Series A round with $16.5 million in funding. The round was led by Fin Capital and joined by Bessemer Venture Partners, TTV Capital, Commerce Ventures, Montage Ventures, and Alloy Labs, bringing the company’s total funding to $19.7 million.

Carefull is the financial ecosystem’s first Protect-Retain-Transfer (PRT) provider: a tech solution that enables banks, financial advisors, and insurers to protect older adults – their most valuable and vulnerable customers – from outside threats and even their own money mistakes, while the institution retains their assets and deposits for longer and builds relationships with next-generation family members ahead of wealth transfer. Carefull actively scans all customer account types for over 50 financial and behavioral issues unique to aging, catching unusual activity, suspicious patterns, and even bigger problems like financial exploitation by a loved one or signs of cognitive decline. The platform also integrates identity, credit and home title monitoring; $1M in identity theft insurance; a password and document vault; and a smarter Trusted Contacts system for banks to gain “share of family” in addition to share of wallet.

“There are now 45 million people across the country who are tasked with managing an aging loved one’s money, and older Americans lose $37 billion annually to fraud and money mistakes. The growing role of the financial institution to help families here cannot be understated,” said Todd Rovak, Co-founder and Co-CEO of Carefull.

“Banks, wealth advisors, and financial caregivers need a solution that customers actually want to use,” added Carefull Co-founder and Co-CEO Max Goldman. “Our approach of empowering and including the financial institution has led to tremendous growth over the past four years, so this new infusion of capital will help us reach even more aging Americans and their families.”

Over the past year, Carefull has rapidly expanded its footprint to include more than 35 financial institutions and advisor groups. The Cooperative Bank in Roslindale, Massachusetts recently won a 2023 Community Commitment Award from the American Bankers Association for its use of Carefull to protect older Americans from fraud and unusual account activity. As of Q3 2023, Carefull has been shown to reduce customer account churn and attrition by as much as 10x in partner banks, and has generated as many as 60 new leads per wealth advisor.

“Carefull has emerged as an instrumental solution for financial caregivers and banks alike, and we’re proud to support the company through the next phase of their growth,” said Christian Ostberg, General Partner at Fin Capital. “As younger family members step in to manage their loved ones’ finances, there is an estimated $84 trillion in wealth transfer underway. Financial institutions and advisors are actively seeking out ways to help families through this time of transition while building relationships with their next generation of customers. Carefull’s full-stack financial safety suite is a critical step in solving many of the acute issues in the category, and we’re excited about where the team is headed.”

Carefull’s new capital will be used to scale onboarding and support for new partners, enhance R&D efforts aimed at protecting older adults, and build capacity to meet new state regulations that require more protections for aging Americans. To learn more about partnering with Carefull, contact [email protected].

About Carefull 
Carefull is the financial ecosystem’s first Protect-Retain-Transfer (PRT) provider: a tech solution for financial institutions and wealth advisors to protect customers aged 55+ from financial threats, retain assets and deposits for longer, and bridge to the next generation ahead of wealth transfer. Founded in 2019, Carefull’s AI-powered platform actively scans all customer account types for over 50 financial and behavioral issues unique to aging by detecting unusual activity, suspicious patterns, and even bigger problems like financial exploitation by a loved one or signs of cognitive decline. Carefull was built from the ground up to serve both aging adults and financial caregivers, and is currently being used across banks, credit unions, wealth advisors and insurers. For more information, please visit https://getcarefull.com/.

SOURCE Carefull