Atlanta had its first 100 degree day in nearly five years this week. To beat the heat, stay inside and catch up on this week’s headlines!
The Big Story
Atlanta-based Rainforest, an embedded payments fintech serving mid-market customers, raised a $20 million Series A from a mix of new and returning investors. Founder and CEO Joshua Silver talked us through the funding decision.
Startups On The Move
* Bedrock, a St. Petersburg, Florida-based startup, announced today that it is acquiring Protoco. The all-stock deal brings together two procurement software companies headquartered in St. Petersburg. Hypepotamus story here.
* Atlanta-based app startup Roots has officially launched…and it wants to help you stop scrolling aimlessly on social media.
* B2B enterprise SaaS startup cove.tool announced the launch of Vitras.ai. The platform leverages artificial intelligence to transform architectural and design workflows.
* Toptal has acquired Growth Collective, a leading freelancer marketing platform that gives businesses access to top freelance marketers specializing in digital marketing, SEO, content creation, social media strategy, and more. Hypepotamus previously covered Growth Collective when the Techstars Atlanta startup was first acquired in December 2021. Full announcement here.
* Improving Aviation (Tampa, FL) was named as one of the recipients for the 2024 Google for Startups Founders Fund. Hypepotamus covered Improving Aviation back in 2022.
* Healthcare services business Art Pharmacy and Mass Cultural Council announced the launch of the nation’s first statewide arts prescription solution, also known as arts-based social prescribing. Art Pharmacy’s services enable healthcare providers and other care team members to prescribe arts and culture participation to individuals with a range of health concerns. Hypepotamus coverage of Art Pharmacy here.
* The Zero Proof, the leading non-alcoholic beverage online retailer and wholesaler, announces its new partnership with Stord, the leader in high-volume fulfillment services and technology for omnichannel mid-market and enterprise brands. The partnership brings together big Atlanta-based companies. More about the announcement here.
* Switchyards, the “work club” concept that has expanded across the Southeast, announced it is opening its first club outside Atlanta’s perimeter. Details on the Switchyards Roswell location can be found here.
In Other News….
* The Atlanta Hawks, State Farm Arena and Quintar, a leading extended reality company, have announced a multi-year partnership to create entertaining immersive experiences and functional utilities for fans visiting the venue in Atlanta. The collaboration with Quintar, the Official XR Platform of the Atlanta Hawks and State Farm Arena, will focus on developing XR experiences in three key areas: In-game features like basketball shot heatmaps, player cards data and matchups; gamification experiences like contests and interactive components for partners; and functional utilities like finding the closest concession stand, security location or parking. All of them designed to create the most entertaining and purposeful experience for fans attending events at State Farm Arena.
* The Nashville mayor’s office has joined with Vanderbilt University to launch a new initiative, the Nashville Innovation Alliance, designed to bring together public, private, civic and education institutions to collaborate on improving the region’s ecosystem for innovation and research. Full announcement here.
* Buying a snack or premium beverage on Delta Air Lines flights just became quicker and easier for both flight attendants and passengers. Delta Air Lines and Atlanta-based Elavon, a wholly owned subsidiary of U.S. Bank and one of the largest payments processors globally, now offer Tap to Pay on iPhone across all U.S.-based domestic flights, allowing travelers to pay simply and easily with contactless credit cards credit and debit cards, Apple Pay and other digital wallets. Press release here.
* Car giant Volkswagen invested $5 Billion in EV Startup Rivian to form joint venture that could help bring the carmaker plant to Georgia, the AJC reports.
* Thinkific, the leading online course creation platform, has expanded its leadership team with key executive hires including Atlanta-based former Mailchimp Marketing Lead, Amanda Malko as Chief Revenue Officer (CRO).
