Craft Ventures

Defense Technology Company, Allen Control Systems, Raises $12 Million Seed Capital to Build Counter-Drone Robotic Gun Systems

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, April 18, 2024
Robotics, Defense, Technology, Military, Government Technology, Drones, Contracts, Radio, POS, Machine learning, Software, Navy, United States Navy, ACS, Control system, DoorDash, Craft Ventures, Government

Allen Control Systems (ACS), a defense technology company, today announced it has raised $12 million in seed capital led by Craft Ventures with participation from Forum Ventures and Rally Ventures .

Key Points: 
  • Allen Control Systems (ACS), a defense technology company, today announced it has raised $12 million in seed capital led by Craft Ventures with participation from Forum Ventures and Rally Ventures .
  • Low cost, lethal, and increasingly autonomous drones are being deployed in large numbers by enemy forces around the world.
  • The only way to disable military drones is to physically damage them but up until now, that required expensive missiles.
  • ACS is developing novel technology capable of neutralizing large numbers of lethal drones at a much lower cost than any solution available today.

Northspyre Unveils “Northspyre AI”, Including Industry-First Generative AI Tool for Bidding Process To Drive Down Development Costs

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, March 5, 2024
Data Management, Commercial Building & Real Estate, Technology, Construction & Property, Artificial Intelligence, Craft Ventures, Multimedia, General partnership, Work, Sales

Northspyre , the leading real estate development platform for project delivery and capital management, today announced the launch of Northspyre AI – the first real estate-specific generative artificial intelligence (AI) tool designed to drive down costs by eliminating scope gaps in the construction bidding process and proactively flagging cost-saving opportunities on every line item.

Key Points: 
  • Northspyre , the leading real estate development platform for project delivery and capital management, today announced the launch of Northspyre AI – the first real estate-specific generative artificial intelligence (AI) tool designed to drive down costs by eliminating scope gaps in the construction bidding process and proactively flagging cost-saving opportunities on every line item.
  • View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240305365651/en/
    Northspyre AI is the first specialized real estate artificial intelligence tool that assists development teams in making data-driven decisions by identifying scope gaps in construction bidding and highlighting cost-saving opportunities.
  • Northspyre AI is highlighted by a functionality designed to eliminate scope gaps in vendor bid proposals, one of the most frequent causes of cost overruns in construction.
  • Using large language models fine-tuned and trained on thousands of vendor agreements categorized by specific scopes of work (i.e.

Notification Infrastructure Provider Knock Announces $12 Million Series A Led by Craft Ventures

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, February 15, 2024
Networks, Electronic Design Automation, Data Management, Technology, Software, Documentation, Engineering, Environment, DX, Craft Ventures, API, Workflow, Cryptocurrency

Knock , the leading notification infrastructure provider, announced it has raised a $12 million Series A led by Craft Ventures, bringing the total funding to $18 million.

Key Points: 
  • Knock , the leading notification infrastructure provider, announced it has raised a $12 million Series A led by Craft Ventures, bringing the total funding to $18 million.
  • As part of the round, David Sacks, co-founder and partner at Craft Ventures, will also join Knock’s Board.
  • We started Knock to provide developers and product teams with flexible, API-first customer engagement that's ready for production,” said Sam Seely, CEO and co-founder of Knock.
  • It would make a lot more sense for developers to outsource their notification infrastructure.

SmartBear Advances GenAI-Powered Development, Acquires Reflect to Innovate Intelligent Testing Solutions

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, January 25, 2024
Technology, Professional Services, Other Communications, Public Relations, Investor Relations, Security, Apps, Applications, Other Technology, Communications, Software, Networks, Other Professional Services, Internet, Mobile, Wireless, Electronic Design Automation, Data Management, Consulting, Artificial Intelligence, Y Combinator, API, Intelligence, Craft Ventures, TestComplete, Growth, Acquisition, UI, Battery Ventures, Automation, Medical device

SmartBear , a leading provider of software testing and visibility solutions, today announced the acquisition of Reflect , an AI-powered no-code testing platform for web applications.

Key Points: 
  • SmartBear , a leading provider of software testing and visibility solutions, today announced the acquisition of Reflect , an AI-powered no-code testing platform for web applications.
  • Reflect’s AI-based testing solutions bring new possibilities today, like natural language test creation and visual insight generation.
  • SmartBear is committed to steadily enhancing its solutions by leveraging AI in ways that create simplified, scalable testing for modern development teams.
  • With the integration of Reflect, SmartBear is well-positioned to extend its leadership through an AI-powered testing platform that intelligently meets the needs of modern development teams.

Vanta Names Enterprise Security Veteran Jadee Hanson as Chief Information Security Officer

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, January 10, 2024
Networks, Internet, Security, Technology, Software, Cloud, CISO, The Wall Street Journal, Philosophy, Target, Pharmacy, Sequoia, CrowdStrike, Trust, Multimedia, Y Combinator, Health, Application, CVS Health, Housing, Target Corporation, Craft Ventures, CIO, AI, Woman, Workplace, Sale, GRC, CNBC, Acquisition, Privacy, Risk management, Application security, Enterprise engineering, Risk, Online shopping

Hanson is the latest executive to join Vanta’s leadership team over the past year following the additions of David Eckstein, Chief Financial Officer and Jeremy Epling, Chief Product Officer.

Key Points: 
  • Hanson is the latest executive to join Vanta’s leadership team over the past year following the additions of David Eckstein, Chief Financial Officer and Jeremy Epling, Chief Product Officer.
  • View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240110078548/en/
    Security veteran Jadee Hanson joins Vanta as the company's CISO leading Security, Enterprise Engineering, Privacy and Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC).
  • I’m looking forward to Jadee’s leadership as we continue accelerating our enterprise momentum and pioneering the future of trust for global companies of all sizes.”
    Hanson has spent the past seven years at Code42, serving as both Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) and Chief Information Officer (CIO).
  • In these roles, she led security and technology strategy, overseeing Application Security, Detection and Response, Security Operations, GRC, and Enterprise Engineering teams.

Default Launches AI-Powered Inbound Sales Funnel for Lead Conversion, Reveals $6.6M Seed Funding

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, November 9, 2023
Software as a service, BoxGroup, System, Marketo, GTM, Jack, HubSpot, Salesforce, Marketing, Partner, Lead, Workflow, Craft Ventures, AI, Hygiene, SAN, Sales

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 09, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Default , the all-in-one platform for inbound sales, today announced the rollout of its AI-powered inbound sales funnel.

Key Points: 
  • SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 09, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Default , the all-in-one platform for inbound sales, today announced the rollout of its AI-powered inbound sales funnel.
  • Just when many sales leaders are straining to hit their targets, unintegrated sales software is losing track of leads.
  • When manually stitching together fragmented tools, sales leaders can’t holistically manage their funnels, cratering their inbound conversion rates.
  • “Default provides a long-overdue solution to a problem in sales, which is simplifying the inbound lead lifecycle.

Arch, a Digital Admin for Private Investments, Closes $20 Million Series A Funding Round

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, November 9, 2023
Finance, Banking, Accounting, Professional Services, Fintech, Legislation, Carta, Fraud, Citibank, Engineering, Risk, Craft Ventures, Investment, Focus Financial Partners, Menlo Ventures, Vanilla, Cryptocurrency, Financial services, Altruism

Arch , a private investment management platform modernizing K-1 workflows, automating operations and simplifying reporting for financial professionals, today announced that it has raised $20 million in Series A funding.

Key Points: 
  • Arch , a private investment management platform modernizing K-1 workflows, automating operations and simplifying reporting for financial professionals, today announced that it has raised $20 million in Series A funding.
  • Arch's next-generation portal currently tracks tens of thousands of positions, encompassing more than $60 billion in investments across the universe of alternative asset classes.
  • As technology and legislation democratizes widespread access to alternative investments, Arch will continue innovating to serve the growing need for private investment management.
  • Having nearly tripled its headcount over the past year, Arch intends to strategically onboard top talent across its operations, partnerships and engineering divisions.

Agentio Raises $4.25M, Launches First-of-its-Kind AI-Powered Ad Platform for Brands to Buy Creator Content at Scale

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, November 1, 2023
SoulCycle, Antler, DoubleClick, Spotify, Meetup, Expedia Group, Internet, Marketing, Magic, VCS, Craft Ventures, Automated Content Access Protocol, Music, Cryptocurrency, Media, Cameo, Jewish peoplehood

NEW YORK, Nov. 1, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Agentio, the first-of-its-kind AI-powered ad platform for sponsored creator content, launched today with $4.25M in seed investment funding. The round was co-led by Craft Ventures & AlleyCorp, with participation from additional institutional investors including Antler, Protagonist, and Permanent Capital.

Key Points: 
  • End-to-end automated ad platform starts with creator-led sponsored content ad reads on YouTube, attracting leading advertisers and top creators
    NEW YORK, Nov. 1, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Agentio , the first-of-its-kind AI-powered ad platform for sponsored creator content, launched today with $4.25M in seed investment funding.
  • The duo has now launched the first automated ad platform for creator content, starting with YouTube creator-led sponsored content ad reads, leveraging the team's firsthand experience with the pain points that both creators and marketers face.
  • Agentio's platform now makes it as easy to buy sponsored content as buying Facebook and Google ads.
  • The Agentio ad platform offers marketers direct access to a premium network of creators with bespoke and highly engaged audiences.

AgentSync Raises $50M in Funding to Drive Operational Efficiencies For Insurers and Distributors

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, October 26, 2023
Insurance, Craft Ventures, Growth, MGA, Software, Guy-wire, Partnership, Venture round, API, Software as a service, Cryptocurrency, Management

DENVER, Oct. 26, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- AgentSync, the leader in modern insurance infrastructure, today announced an additional $50 million fundraise, bringing the company's total funding to date to $161 million. The round was co-led by existing investors Craft Ventures and Valor Ventures. Since raising the Series B in Q4 2022, AgentSync has seen 3x ARR growth and more than 2x customer growth. AgentSync works with more than 200 insurance companies spanning carriers, MGAs, and agencies, covering all lines of insurance.

Key Points: 
  • Since raising the Series B in Q4 2022, AgentSync has seen 3x ARR growth and more than 2x customer growth.
  • AgentSync works with more than 200 insurance companies spanning carriers, MGAs, and agencies, covering all lines of insurance.
  • This round of capital allows AgentSync to double down delivering best-in-class products for the nation's largest and most respected carriers.
  • By establishing flexible, scalable connections between insurance distributors and underwriters, AgentSync powers and streamlines the delivery of insurance products.

EchoMark Launches AI-powered Solution to Safeguard Private Communications in the Digital Age

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, September 27, 2023
Christie, Communication, Software as a service, PDF, Craft Ventures, Dobbs, Privacy, Organization, Christie's, Trust, Risk, Supreme court, Law of the United Kingdom, Security printing, Cryptocurrency, Online shopping, Risk management

KIRKLAND, Wash., Sept. 27, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- EchoMark, the company pioneering an unprecedented approach to information protection, announced today the public launch of its AI-driven solution to keep private information private. EchoMark automatically embeds invisible forensic watermarks in emails and documents, enabling source identification within minutes. As the first enterprise-grade software of its kind, EchoMark's invisible watermarking is a proactive deterrent against leaks.

Key Points: 
  • EchoMark also announced a $10 million seed investment led by Craft Ventures, accelerating the company's mission to expand its forensic watermarking technologies across formats and workloads.
  • "¹
    "EchoMark is not just filling a critical and urgent market gap; we're creating a solution that never existed before," said Troy Batterberry, founder and CEO of EchoMark.
  • Customize privacy to enhance operations: EchoMark settings tailor the solution to diverse cohorts, use cases, and needs, promoting effective communication while safeguarding operations.
  • Leading organizations, including the global auction house Christie's and the venture capital firm Craft Ventures, use EchoMark to protect and enhance their private communications.