We’re ending the week with a quick round up on all the funding, acquisitions, and other startup news from across the Southeast you need to know. Know of a headline we missed? Let us know!
Funding News
North Carolina: JupiterOne
JupiterOne, out of Morrisville, North Carolina, raised $19 million in Series A funding from Bain Capital Ventures. According to a statement, the cybersecurity automation company will use the funds to increase their go-to-market strategy.
Louisiana: Ready Responders
New Orleans-based Ready Responders, which has grown a network of on-demand healthcare workers, raised $54 million in Series C financing from the VC arm of Alphabet Inc. GV, Deerfield Management Company, City Light Capital, and Town Hall Ventures. According to Crunchbase, the company has raised over $107 million since launching in 2016. Currently, Ready deploys healthcare workers across Louisiana, DC, New York, Las Vegas, and Reno.
Who Was Moving…and Exiting…Across the Southeast
Atlanta: Gradschoolmatch Gets Acquired
Gradschoolmatch, the Switchyards-based platform designed to bring prospective grad students and programs together, announced this week they reached a definitive agreement to be acquired by ETS. Those who have taken gone through the grad school application process will know ETS as the name behind the GRE and TOEFL exams. Read more here about the company and the exit.
Atlanta: BIG Language Solutions Adds California Translation Company
Atlanta-based BIG Language Solutions acquired California-based ISI Language Solutions, a translation service company that focuses on healthcare, insurance, and sciences. The details of the deal were not disclosed.
Atlanta: Asia Orangio named to Seattle-based Moz’s Board
DemandMaven CEO and Atlanta Tech Village advisor Asia Orangio was named to Seattle-based SEO darling Moz’s board.
Hypepotamus caught up with Orangio after the announcement. “There’s a few things about the Moz opportunity that drew me in. The first has to do with the legacy of Moz and the immeasurable impact Rand Fishkin, Sarah Bird, and other “Mozzers” have had on the SEO community, and the SaaS community as a whole,” Orangio said.
“The second has everything to do with the other board members. I’m thrilled to serve alongside Sarah Bird, Michelle Rosenberg, Brad Feld, and Tara Reed. Finally, it’s because of TAGFEE — Moz’s culture code and acronym for its core values: transparent, authentic, generous, fun, exceptional, and empathetic. Years earlier, I learned about TAGFEE through Rand’s book “Lost and Founder”, and deeply resonated with its message.”
Louisville & Atlanta: Papa John’s Brings New Global HQ to ATL
Pizza Giant Papa John’s announced they would move its headquarters from Kentucky to the Metro Atlanta area, according to a company statement. The new Atlanta office will house the company’s marketing, customer experience, HR, diversity & inclusion, and communications teams.
Covington, Georgia: Facebook Expands in Metro Atlanta
Facebook is expanding into its footprint in Georgia, announcing this week a $1 billion investment in a 1.5 million square foot new facility in Newton County data. The office will support an additional 200 jobs. This comes days after Facebook chose Spelman, Georgia State University and Georgia Southern to pilot their new Facebook Campus platform designed specifically for college students.
North Carolina: OpiAID Earns NIH Grant
OpiAID, a Wilmington-based startup looking to use technology to fight the opioid epidemic, won a $275,000 federal grant to increase their machine learning capabilities.
