The University of Michigan is partnering with Facebook parent company Meta to build a social media data archive. The project intends to make the aggregated data useful to social scientists studying the impact of social media on society.
Announcements, Funding
Columbus’s Branch Achieves Unicorn Status
Columbus insurtech startup Branch has achieved unicorn status with a total valuation of $1.05 billion with its Series C raise of $147 million this month. The round was led by Weatherford Capital, and brings Branch into the growing ranks of Midwest tech unicorns. Branch is a full-stack insurance company that uses data, technology and automation to make home and auto insurance more efficient. Participating new and existing investors included Acrew, AmFam Ventures, Anthemis, Gaingels, Greycroft, HSCM Ventures, Narya, SignalFire, and Tower IV.
Announcements, Environmental Tech, Funding, Uncategorized
Midwest Climate Tech Startups Find Funding through Evergreen
Evergreen Climate Innovation’s 501vc Investment Fund now invests $200k – $300k in early-stage climate tech startups in the Greater Midwest. This climate tech-focused investment fund is looking to support climate startups specifically in the tech space that are headquartered in places like Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and the surrounding states, a location that is historically under-funded for climate tech.
Announcements, Mobility Tech, Robotics, Security
Septentrio Partners with MicroPilot for Secure High-Accuracy Drone GPS
Septentrio, an industry leader in high-precision GNSS positioning solutions, has just announced a collaboration with MicroPilot, a creator of professional UAV autopilot systems.
Announcements, Tech Events
Ann Arbor’s a2tech360 Is Back in 2022
Have you been waiting for a2tech360, Ann Arbor’s tech week, to come back post-pandemic? This year, the week-long festival of all things Ann Arbor tech is coming back in October. Details below.
Announcements
Thank you for 400 Articles, Midwest Tech!
Thanks to the generous support and interest of those of you in the Midwest tech community and beyond, Cronicle Press has just hit another milestone: 400 articles covering the growth of Midwest tech hubs like Ann Arbor, Detroit, Columbus and Chicago.
Announcements, Funding
Pitch Your Startup at 2022 Pitch @ WCC
The Washtenaw Community College Entrepreneurship Center’s premier event of the year, Pitch @ WCC, is taking place this year in hybrid format, with virtual sessions leading to private in-person pitches on WCC’s Ypsilanti campus in May 2022. If you have a new business you’d like to pitch, check out the info below to get involved. Hurry, the deadline is approaching!
Announcements, Security
Security Startup Blumira Offers Free Edition of Business Security Service
Blumira has just announced a Free security monitoring service edition of the company’s business threat monitoring and response security services. This creates a starter option for businesses wanting to add security monitoring and explore having a threat response team on call for cybersecurity threats.
Announcements, Mobility Tech
LG Energy Solution To Invest $1.7 Billion in EV Battery Production in Michigan
LG Energy Solution announced this week that they will invest $1.7 billion and create 1,200 jobs at the company’s current location in Holland to expand investment in EV battery production. LGES’s expansion quintuples the plant’s capacity to produce battery components as Michigan’s stake in the future of electric vehicles grows.
Announcements, Tech Events
Visit Northern Michigan Startup Week or Pitch Your Business Idea
TC NewTech and other tech organizations including 20 Fathoms, Northern Michigan Angels, and Newton’s Road are about to host the Northern Michigan Startup Week from May 9-15, 2022.
