Tech roundup: Uber to make a truckload of Chicago hires, WiSTEM announces ninth cohort, and more

by Alton Zenon III
March 7, 2019
Man using photo in front of big rig
image via shutterstock

Uber plans to haul in hundreds of new positions to Chicago office

Uber recently detailed its plans to double its employee headcount in its freight division, which currently has “several hundred” employees according to Sagar Shah, director of carrier operations, in a statement given to the Chicago Tribune. Official news on when the hires are expected to truck in are nil, but sources told the Tribute that the company is aiming to lease hundreds of thousands of additional square feet to its current 185,000 square foot office. [Built In Chicago]

 

chicago river bridge
Image via shutterstock.

DocuSign is bolstering its Chicago presence

DocuSign, a San Francisco-based tech company specializing in digital transactions and electronic signatures, announced on Wednesday that it is expanding its presence in the Windy City. The announcement follows last year’s acquisition of Chicago’s SpringCM — but a company spokesperson said DocuSign was eyeing an office in the city even before it was in talks with the Chicago company. DocuSign, which currently has 200 local employees, plans to expand its marketing, engineering and sales teams here.

 

Chicago river and buildings of River North in background
image via shutterstock

League opens Chicago headquarters with plans to hire

Toronto-based digital benefits platform League Inc. announced its plans to open a 12,089 square foot headquarters in River North. The company was previously operating from a 2,700 square foot coworking space and along with the office move, it also detailed plans to add an additional 32 team members across a wide range of roles — almost doubling its 34-person staff. [Press release] 

 

1871's office space
image via 1871

WiSTEM’s ninth cohort is announced

1871’s 12-week accelerator program WiSTEM, which provides resources and valuable connections to the women-led or founded companies it enrolls, announced the members of its ninth cohort. The 10 companies chosen for this spring class are diverse, ranging from an aggregation service for women’s clothing to an e-commerce site that sells products intended to boost memory and an after-school cooking course provider for children. To date, the program has graduated just shy of 100 companies and we recently featured six that we are keeping an eye on. [Built In Chicago

 

TV camera next to soccer field
iamge via shutterstock

STATS bring AI to broadcast video with AutoSTATS

Sports analytics and data provider STATS unveiled a new service named AutoSTATS — a system that collects deep layers of player and team data directly from broadcast video with AI and machine learning. The product is currently being used to gather data during  certain college basketball games this season and the Orlando Magic recently signed an exclusive partnership with the company to use the functionality, specifically for scouting purposes. [Business Wire]

 

Men and looking at spreadsheets
iamge via shutterstock

Walker Sands has a number of executives changing titles

PR and communications company Walker Sands moved a handful of its executives into new positions in one swoop. Andrew Cross, an eight-year employee who spent the last year overseeing the strategy and growth of the Chicago team, was appointed to senior vice president. Two team members were each made vice president and partner — Erin Jordan, a seven-year employee who served as the PR lead for clients like CloudCraze and Acquity Group, and Allison Ward, a six-year team member who recently helped initiate the company’s new family leave policy. The final promotion belongs to Robert Chilver — a 12-year company veteran newly made vice president of PR. [Press release] 

 

ErisX adds new member to executive business development team

Kyle Unterseher
business development executive • ErisX

Kyle Unterseher was recently appointed to the team of business development executives at the cryptocurrency trading platform ErisX. Unterseher previously held executive positions at 3PH and Roughrider Resources, in addition to holding a director position at Wells Fargo Securities. “We were impressed with Kyle’s wide range of global experiences working with Futures Commission Merchants as well as in managing and operating critical growth departments,” said Kelly Brown, chief commercial officer, in a statement. [Business Wire]

 

Former Atari COO is new exec at Level Ex

Todd Shallbetter
senior vice president of technology partnerships • Level Ex

Level Ex, a developer of video games for physician training purposes, hired Todd Shallbetter as its new senior vice president of technology partnerships. Shallbetter spent the previous 14 years at famed video game company Atari — most recently serving as chief operating officer where he oversaw business development, marketing and operations functions. “With his broad relationships across the video games industry, Todd is exceedingly qualified to identify best-in-class game technologies and help Level Ex unleash them onto the field of medicine,” said Sam Glassenberg, Founder and CEO, in a statement. [Business Wire]

 

Chicago startup guides

LOCAL GUIDE
Best Companies to Work for in Chicago
LOCAL GUIDE
Coolest Offices in Chicago Tech
LOCAL GUIDE
Best Perks at Chicago Tech Companies
LOCAL GUIDE
Women in Chicago Tech