Last week, Chicago tech companies saw innovations in finding parking spaces as well as virtual gift giving. Read more to find out what else is new in the Chicago tech space. This is the Built In Chicago weekly refresh.
Amount pulled in $81M. The fintech startup closed on its Series C round led by Goldman Sachs, bringing the company’s total funding to $140 million. Amount provides financial institution customers with tools to digitize their personal loan operations, run fraud prevention, verify consumer claims and more. With the new capital, the company plans to upscale its sales and marketing efforts and invest in research and development. Amount is now recruiting for open positions on its software engineering, product development and branding teams. [Built In Chicago]
Rheaply wins a $1M prize. The recommerce startup just won the investment after placing first in the annual Rise of the Rest Equity Tour Pitch Competition, an initiative that aims to fund Black-led startups headquartered outside of the dominant coastal tech hubs of San Francisco, Boston and New York. CEO Garry Cooper says he hopes his company’s win will inspire other people of color to launch their own businesses. [Built In Chicago]
Quote of the Week
EarlyBird gets a $2.4M worm. This fintech startup believes there should be more options for gifts for kids than toys or clothes, and that the best gift their loved ones can give them is an investment in their financial future. With plans to launch its mobile gifting platform later this month, EarlyBird will use the new capital to hire more team members. The company is looking to hire for open roles in engineering, growth marketing and customer success. [Built In Chicago]
Keeper Security is aggressively hiring. With cyber threats on the rise since the start of the pandemic as more employees work from home, the company is working to help users create and manage strong passwords. Currently, Keeper’s staff consists of 204 members, and the startup is planning to double in size over the next year with available roles in engineering, software development and sales. [Built In Chicago]
SpotHero launched Apple CarPlay. By integrating its parking reservation tech to the display screens of users’ cars, the company is enabling customers to secure a place to park without ever touching their phones. With the new capabilities, users are able to book and pay for nearby parking spots, rebook at a recent parking facility and pull up an existing parking pass while on the way to their destination. [Press Release]
Kin + Carta found a new VP in Cameron Turner. The digital transformation company appointed Turner as its VP of data science on the first of this month. Within the company, this team provides customers with data products and data-powered digital experiences. In his new position, Turner plans to address customers’ growing demand for data science and AI systems and focus on how these elements will serve the world’s future after the COVID-19 pandemic. [Press Release]
