Colossal Biosciences announced Tuesday that it has started the de-extinction process of the thylacine, a beloved Australian marsupial, also known as the Tasmanian tiger.

The company first announced plans to bring the woolly mammoth back to life last September. It is using breakthrough gene-editing technologies to recreate the woolly mammoth and thylacine.

The thylacine is a slim, striped keystone species that was native to Australia, including Tasmania and New Guinea, and went extinct in 1936.

“Colossal is committed to the de-extinction of keystone species that their return will result in a positive impact on the ecosystem they once thrived in as well as developing key technologies that can also be used for species preservation,” said Ben Lamm, Co-founder, and CEO of Colossal. “Of all the species proposed for de-extinction, the thylacine has arguably one of the most compelling cases. The thylacine was eradicated as a result of direct human influence less than 100 years ago, rather than through natural processes such as those that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs.”

“The thylacine was completely unique among living marsupials,” Lamm said. “Not only did it have its iconic wolf-like appearance, but it was also our only marsupial apex predator. Apex predators form extremely important parts of the food chain and are often responsible for stabilizing ecosystems. The habitat in Tasmania has remained relatively unchanged, providing the perfect environment to re-introduce the thylacine and enabling it to reoccupy its niche.”

By bringing back the thylacine, Colossal hopes it will help restore Australia and Tasmania’s ecosystem to its natural state before the marsupial went extinct as the result of a combination of human poaching and the introduction of non-native predators.  

To date, Colossal has raised $75 million in funding. It has more than 70 employees with offices in Dallas, Austin, and Boston and it is hiring for numerous positions, Lamm said.

Colossal’s Austin team is focused on computational biology and developing proprietary software to make it easier for comparative analysis of genomes for de-extinction leveraging AI and machine learning, he said.

Colossal’s woolly mammoth restoration team now has over 35 dedicated scientists spanning various functional areas including cell engineering, stem cell biology, embryology, computational biology, and genome engineering as well as three laboratories focused on the mission for mammoth de-extinction. Colossal is assembling an expert thylacine team and is near completion of its new dedicated thylacine laboratory.   

For the project, Colossal has partnered with the University of Melbourne and its Thylacine Integrated Genetic Restoration Research Lab, headed up by Andrew Pask Ph.D., the leading marsupial evolutionary biologist, and the world’s foremost Tasmanian tiger expert.

“This is a landmark moment for marsupial research and we’re proud to team up with Colossal to make this dream a reality,” Pask said in a news release. “The technology and key learnings from this project will also influence the next generation of marsupial conservation efforts.”

The rewilding of species to their original habitats has been shown to effectively restore and revitalize damaged ecosystems with examples such as the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone, and the Tasmanian Devil to Australia.. 

In addition to leading conservation partners, Colossal has attracted many like-minded impact investors, including nature gaming group Untamed Planet and local Australian non-profit WildArk, as well as Chris, Luke, and Liam Hemsworth. 

“Our family remains dedicated to supporting conservationist efforts around the world and protecting Australia’s biodiversity is a high priority. The Tassie Tiger’s extinction had a devastating effect on our ecosystem and we are thrilled to support the revolutionary conservation efforts that are being made by Dr. Pask and the entire Colossal team,”  Chris Hemsworth said in a statement.

Chris and his family have been major Australian conservation supporters over the years and worked with Wildark to help return the Tasmanian devil back to the mainland while creating a healthy population without the facial-tumor disease, Lamm said.

“I got connected to Chris and Luke when we were raising our Series A and decided to invest in the company,” Lamm said. “They were incredibly passionate about not just the return of the thylacine but how the technologies Colossal is developing can be used to help with marsupial conservation and gestation. We could not be more excited for their support and involvement.”

Colossal has set a timeline of five to six years to bring the woolly mammoth back from extinction, Lamm said. It has not publicly announced a timeline for the thylacine yet, he said.

“I will say though that marsupials have quite a shorter gestation period of weeks in the womb versus 22 months with elephants,” Lamm said. “Based on the numerous high quality samples preserved and the shorter gestation, the Tasmanian tiger has a potential to be one of the first animals to be returned from extinction.”

The process is very similar to the process the teams are leveraging for the de-extinction of the wooly mammoth, Lamm said.

First samples of the extinct species must be collected, which Dr. Pask has collected over the last decade, he said. Next, the sequencing of those samples and assembly of the thylacine genome must be completed and then compared to genomes of its closest living relatives – in this case, the dunnart as well as other dasyurids, Lamm said.

 The Colossal team of computational biologists then uses software to determine the right genes that need to be edited in the dunnart that will result in the phenotypes of the thylacine, he said.

“Our genetics teams then leverage CRISPR and other gene editing tools to make the edits and leverage cloning technologies to transfer the edited nucleus to an egg in order to create an embryo that can either be grown in a surrogate or an artificial womb,” Lamm said. “On the thylacine project, we are in the final analysis phase and will begin genetic engineering soon. Some edits have already started to take place and are being tested for efficacy.”

Right now, Colossal has dedicated teams on mammoth and thylacine.

“As we get further in our journey, we will evaluate other species that the world and nature could benefit from their return,” Lamm said.

At 23 years old, Camilo Nova started Axiacore, a software development firm in the South American country of Colombia.

But Nova taught himself to program in python at the early age of 14. He was lucky to have Internet access and a computer in a country where those resources were not readily available, he said.

“I grew up in the right neighborhood, in the right place,” Nova said.

He went on to study engineering and spent time at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California. He also worked in San Francisco, New York, Chicago, and Miami.

Through his travels, Nova realized that most small to medium-sized businesses do not have access to software development firms. That’s why he created Axiacore, founded in 2007. The company’s Austin office is based at Galvanize in the Second Street District downtown.

“Most companies fail because they are trying to put on someone else’s shoes,” Nova said. Axiacore is able to create custom-built technology solutions for small to medium-sized businesses, he said. So, businesses can get a custom-made pair of shoes, he said.

Most companies think that they can buy some software online or sign up for a subscription software service and they have solved all their technology needs, Nova said. But the one-size-fits-all solutions often don’t work, he said.

Axiacore consults, designs, and engineers digital products that solve a specific problem, Nova said. The firm even works with nonprofit organizations like the Saint Louise House, founded in Austin 21 years ago to help moms and children experiencing homelessness.

Axiacore created custom forms and online software in Spanish and English for Saint Louise House that allows staff to communicate in Spanish with its clients, said Robin Kamperman, director of operations at Saint Louise House.

“It gives our residents the ability to communicate easier,” Kamperman said.

Saint Louis House operates two apartment buildings and residents need to request maintenance for issues ranging from plumbing or clogged garbage disposal, she said. The online forms give them that ability, she said.

“The biggest asset to the software is its simplicity,” Kamperman said. “It is easy to use.”

Axiacore was able to design and build the software that helps Saint Louise give better service to the people they serve, Nova said.

“If you take the time and effort to understand the business you can build something just for them,” he said.

Companies that can’t afford to invest in technology have a much lower rate of growth, Nova said. The same is true of countries, he said. Colombia is known for its agricultural exports of bananas and coffee, sugarcane and cotton, Nova said. But it’s difficult to be competitive with just food exports, he said. That’s why he is focused on tapping Colombia’s knowledge workers to create software projects for companies, he said.

“Companies get better if they embrace diversity – not racial diversity but diversity in thinking,” Nova said.

Axiacore is a remote-first company with two employees in Austin and 30 more in Colombia, Mexico, Argentina, Peru, Honduras, and Costa Rica.

“Pretty much we are able to hire people from everywhere,” Nova said.

Steve Ward, an entrepreneur who runs two businesses in Austin including SailATX, a sailboat charter company, hired  Axiacore to help with his businesses. Then he joined the staff as a chief business development officer.

“Axiacore has incredible depth and knowledge of software development,” Ward said.

“The biggest value I think I’ve gotten from Axiacore is really peace of mind. Sort of trust of who I’m working with.”

Axiacore also gets tangible benefits for its clients like saving time, improving efficiency, and making them more effective.

“It’s hard to put a dollar figure on that,” Ward said.

The Austin Chamber of Commerce in partnership with South by Southwest honored its A-List Award winners last Wednesday night at a ceremony at the Long Center for the Performing Arts.

It’s the 11^th annual awards ceremony that shines a spotlight on homegrown startups. This year was the first time the chamber recognized local investors.

The winners were recognized in six categories.

In the bootstrapped category KungFu.ai, an artificial intelligence consulting firm won.

In the angel and seed stage category Afia, a consumer-packaged goods company that makes Mediterranean foods like three cheese falafel balls in grocery stores, won.

In the early-stage category FloorFound, which handles shipping logistics for retailers on large items that customers return, won.

In the later-stage category: AffiniPay, a payment processing business that serves legal, accounting, architectural, engineering and construction firms, won.

In the Angel Investor of the Year category Andrea Kalmans of Lontra Ventures won.

In the Venture Capital investor of the year category LiveOak Venture Partners won.

All of the finalists nominated for the 2022 A-List Awards can be found here.

There’s an urgency in Congress to pass legislation before Congress recesses for the month of August.
And chief among the bills under consideration is the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) for America Fund.

The CHIPS-Plus legislation includes incentives for domestic semiconductor manufacturing and investments in U.S. chip research and in total, the bill includes $79.3 billion in funding from 2022 through 2031, according to the Congressional Budget Office. The Senate is expected to vote on the bill this week and if passed, then it will go to the U.S. House of Representatives for approval.

Austin and San Antonio have a strong foothold in the semiconductor industry and a long history of chip manufacturing.  The central Texas region would benefit tremendously from the CHIPS legislation, according to local leaders.

Today, Austin is home to Samsung which is building a $17 billion plant in Taylor and has been producing chips at its Austin plant for 26 years. Samsung also recently filed papers with the state of Texas with plans for additional plants in Taylor and Austin and additional investments that could surpass $160 billion.

In addition to Samsung, Austin has NXP Semiconductors, which opened in 1991, Infineon Technologies, whose operations date back to 1995,  and Skorpios Technologies, dating back to 1989.

In fact, Austin got its start as “Silicon Hills” when it successfully recruited the headquarters of Microelectronics and Computer Technology Corp., known as MCC to Austin in 1983, followed by SEMATECH in 1988.

And Sony Corp. put its first U.S. chip-making plant in San Antonio in 1990 after acquiring a plant from Advanced Micro Devices. Sony eventually shut down the plant, which is now home to the National Security Agency in San Antonio.

Today, San Antonio has one chip plant TowerJazz, which has had many operators throughout the years but opened in 1989.

Overall, the U.S.’s share of the global semiconductor manufacturing market has shrunk from 37 percent in 1990 to 12 percent today, according to a 2021 report by the Semiconductor Industry Association.

“Mostly because other countries’ governments have invested ambitiously in chip manufacturing incentives and the U.S. government has not,” according to the report. “In fact, three-quarters of the world’s chip manufacturing capacity is now concentrated in East Asia, with China projected to command the largest share of the global product by 2030, due to its government’s massive investments in this sector.

The chip shortage is being felt by consumers throughout the economy with a shortage of automobiles and appliances available for purchase. The COVID-19 pandemic closed plants and led to a decrease, initially, in demand for chips. And that has led to a shortage today, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association.

The CHIPS Act of 2022 would create an average of 185,000 temporary American jobs annually and add $24.6 billion to the U.S. economy as new semiconductor manufacturing facilities, or fabs, are constructed from 2021- 2026. Currently, the semiconductor industry directly employs more than 277,000 workers in high-paying R&D, design, and manufacturing jobs across 49 states and supports 1.6 million additional American jobs.

There are all kinds of software programs and apps that help small businesses and startups handle human resource issues, but the best way is to hire a professional to work with a business to lay the foundation for human resources, Duncan said. That way the solutions can be tailored to fit your business’ problems and needs, she said. HR is not a one-size fits all solution, she said.

“HR is important because businesses need to have guidelines and policies to help their employees know how to perform properly,” Duncan said. “Moreover, managers need to have a guideline for what their employees’ performance looks like. It needs to be spelled out for them.”

Human resources keep all employees on track to achieve company goals, Duncan said.

“When you go from five to ten employees that’s not a lot to manage, but when you go from 10 to 20 to 50 employees, you really need to have a foundation in place,” Duncan said.  “That’s a lot of chaos and there is a lot of makeshifts going on. Without consistency, there is chaos. And then you do have the bad employee experience and bad culture.”

H.R. keeps a business in legal compliance with local, state, and national laws concerning the health and safety of employees, Duncan said. It also helps with recruiting, onboarding, training, and retaining employees, and it can help build a positive company culture and productive workplace, she said.

“A lot of times when you’re in a growth phase and you don’t have a person to handle human resources, you’re stretched too thin, and you may not get the best employees that you would like for your organization,” Duncan said.

And startup founders don’t necessarily have the bandwidth to do it all and that’s ok, Duncan said.

“That’s why you hire someone,” she said.

Duncan works with any company that has employees in a variety of industries from high-tech startups to restaurants and retail operations.

HR does help set a company’s culture with the founder and the people who are running the organization, Duncan said. With today’s work-from-home arrangements and remote working brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic, human resources can also help foster a culture virtually, she said. 

“HR is a partnership,” she said.

In today’s competitive marketplace, it’s also important to have H.R. in place to keep valued employees, Duncan said. To retain employees, you want to pay people what’s fair, but you also want to have employee development plans in place that allows them to grow within the organization through training and other valued experiences and perks, Duncan said. Some employees value flexible work schedules and paid time off over higher raises, she said. It’s important for employers to be in tune with their employees’ needs to succeed, she said.

Cambara Duncan Consulting offers a monthly consulting service as an HR department on call. Duncan assists with employee job descriptions, recruiting, retention, and employee development, and can create an employee handbook for the company.

Companies should not wait until they hit the 50-employee milestone to establish human resources within their organization, Duncan said. Those startups are most likely to struggle with recruiting and retaining the best employees, she said.

“Also, HR is a strategic business partner,” Duncan said. “HR can identify threats out there as well as new business opportunities. They can tell you what’s coming down the pipeline from a different perspective of looking at the business or industry.”

HR can identify a disruption coming to the industry, Duncan said.

Editor’s note: This is a sponsored story.

Last November, Samsung Electronics announced plans to build a new semiconductor manufacturing plant in Taylor and invest $17 billion.

But that may be just the beginning.

Last week, Samsung filed papers with the Texas Comptroller’s office outlining plans for “up to ten separate fabrication facilities” if the project were located in Williamson County. Fab 1 is
Samsung’s current Taylor project underway. Applications for Fabs 2 through 10 show two of the plants could be located in Travis County at Samsung’s Austin facility.

The proposed additional investment is $160.1 billion for the chip manufacturing plants known as Fab. 2 through Fab. 10 which would be built during the next two decades. And the projects are expected to generate more than 8,200 new jobs.

The projects are highly competitive, and Samsung is looking at national and global sites, plus sites in South Korea where Samsung Austin Semiconductor’s parent company is headquartered, according to the filings. Samsung is seeking tax abatements from Taylor and Manor Independent School Districts.

The most important factors for Samsung’s new facilities are access to talent, existing semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem, speed to market and strong public-private partnership.

“Because of its strong ties to the local community and the successful past 26 years of manufacturing in Texas, Samsung Austin Semiconductor would like to continue to invest in the region and state,” the company wrote in its filing.

FAB1 – Is the $17 billion plant underway in Taylor that will create 2,000 new jobs and is expected to be operational in the second half of 2024.

FAB2- Fab 2 investment would be approximately $15.1 billion dollars, and the project would result in the creation of at least 1,000 quality, net-new jobs. The proposed investment would be used to build a new semiconductor wafer fabrication facility and purchase new production machinery & equipment used in connection with manufacturing, processing, and fabricating semiconductors in a cleanroom environment. Should Samsung make its investment, Samsung Austin Semiconductor estimates that production would be up and running by 2034

FAB3 – If the new project were located in Austin, it would comprise two new separate fabrication facilities located on the company’s 640-acre site. The investment associated with Fab 3 would be approximately $12 billion dollars, and Fab 3 would result in the creation of at least 900 quality net-new jobs. Should Samsung make its investment, Samsung Austin Semiconductor would be up and running by 2034.

FAB4 –The investment associated with Fab 4 would be approximately $12.5 billion dollars, and Fab 4 would result in the creation of at least 900 quality net-new jobs. Fab 4 would consist of a new manufacturing facility for semiconductors. Should Samsung make its investment, Samsung Austin Semiconductor would be up and running by 2042.

FAB5- Fab 5 investment would be approximately $17.5 billion dollars, and the project would result in the creation of at least 900 quality, net-new jobs. Fab 5 would consist of a new manufacturing facility for semiconductors. If approved, it would be up and running by 2037.

FAB6 – Fab 6 investment would be approximately $18.5 billion dollars, and the project would result in the creation of at least 900 quality, net-new jobs. Fab 6 would consist of a new manufacturing facility for semiconductors. If approved, it would be up and running by 2038.

FAB-7 – Fab 7 investment would be approximately $19.5 billion dollars, and the project would result in the creation of at least 900 quality, net-new jobs. Fab 7 would consist of a new manufacturing facility for semiconductors. If approved, it would be up and running by 2039.

FAB-8 – Fab 8 investment would be approximately $20.5 billion dollars, and the project would result in the creation of at least 900 quality, net-new jobs. Fab 8 would consist of a new manufacturing facility for semiconductors. If approved, it would be up and running by 2040.

FAB-9 – Fab 9 investment would be approximately $21.5 billion dollars, and the project would result in the creation of at least 900 quality, net-new jobs. Fab 9 would consist of a new manufacturing facility for semiconductors. If approved, it would be up and running by 2041.

FAB-10 – Fab 10 investment would be approximately $23 billion dollars, and the project would result in the creation of at least 900 quality, net-new jobs. Fab 10 would consist of a new manufacturing facility for semiconductors. If approved, it would be up and running by 2042.

Beth White, founder, and CEO of MeBeBot, created a virtual assistant powered by artificial intelligence that can answer frequently asked questions for companies. MeBeBot, founded in 2018, was also one of twelve startups featured in Silicon Hills News’ 2022 Austin Technology Calendar. White recently did a Q&A with Silicon Hills News about her company.

Q. What motivated you to create MeBeBot?

A. I spent years working in HR, manually responding to employees’ needs at the expense of focusing on strategic tasks. And I know that employees are often frustrated, waiting for responses to their inquires/help desk tickets or spending countless hours looking for answers to their questions on outdated Intranets. When I saw how consumer-facing chatbots were providing quick answers to their customers’ questions, I realized that this same technology can be used within the workplace to provide 24/7 support and consistent communications to keep up with the constant changes in our world.

Over the past few years, the workplace has changed dramatically. We went from busy offices to working in our homes. Now, hybrid work and global teams are the norm. Yet, companies are not ready for the new “world of work” and they lack the solutions to support their employees’ needs while providing consistent communications. Now more than ever, there’s a need to free up valuable time while everyone is doing more with fewer resources and lower budgets. Providing companies with a cost-effective solution to provide automation for routine tasks and let people do what they do best (more meaningful work) just makes fiscal and business sense.

Q. What does MeBeBot do?

A. MeBeBot is like the “Alexa” for the workplace, automating answers to routine employee’ HR, IT, and Facilities FAQs. Our AI Intelligent Assistant installs as an app in Teams or Slack, so when employees have questions like, “How do I use the VPN?” or “What is our remote work policy,” or “When do we get paid,” MeBeBot provides them an instant answer to their question that is configured by each company to fit their business processes and policies, 24/7. And, best of all, we provide a curated knowledge base of hundreds of FAQs that are commonly asked by employees, for all areas of the business. Our customers simply personalize our suggested answers for their unique needs and the entire AI solution can be launched to employees in weeks…across the globe.

Last year, our customers needed to provide real-time updates to all the changes happening in our world, from return to workplace protocols to updates to benefits programs. We responded with push messaging that allows our customers to send messages, reminders, or notifications to select user groups, via MeBeBot in Slack or Teams. This gains higher visibility of messages, as email is overused and does not always get read by employees. We also added pulse surveys, delivered via Slack or Teams, so that employee feedback on hot topics can be gathered in real-time…with over 50% participation in 2-4 hours (well exceeding traditional survey results).

Q. This week, you won the 2022 “Digital Transformation Project of the Year” by Women in Cloud, an economic development agency based in Bellevue, Washington, can you explain what that award means to your company?

A. We were so honored to win this award, as the nominees were from across the globe and focused on various types of digital transformation solutions. The panel of judges is comprised of respected leaders from some of the most admired technology companies in the world. I believe they realized the value MeBeBot brings to companies of all sizes and to their employees. We designed an AI solution that’s a catalyst for change, reduces the high-cost barrier to entry, and allows non-technical business users to launch a sophisticated AI solution in weeks…and this is truly unique.

Q. Who are your customers?

A. MeBeBot has amazing customers:  Epicor, e2open, Ziff Davis (includes Spiceworks, RetailMeNot, IGN, etc.), HireVue, Abrigo, CrowdStreet, Terminal, Massage Envy, Toyota Insurance Management Solutions, Care.com and IGT. Over 22,000 global employees are paid users and we’re proud to say that all of our customers have renewed their subscriptions to MeBeBot, as they are experiencing significant gains in efficiency and are benefitting from the usage and feedback they receive from employees (all visible in our real-time customer dashboard).  We love seeing our customers shine and to help provide them with a quick win towards digital workplace transformation for the employee experience.

Q. Who is on your team?

A. We have a lean, yet dedicated team of talented people, all focused on solving real customer problems that exist in the workplace. Jana Wilson is our fractional CFO and Ellen Madonia is our Chief Marketing Officer. They both worked at PeopleAdmin and Vibe HCM, other successful workplace technology companies. We also have sales and marketing team members, customer success, and an amazing development team in Argentina. We are also fortunate to have some amazing advisors that provide ongoing support and guidance. And a shout out to the team at Capital Factory, who has also been so helpful to us in our growth.

Q. What are the biggest challenges you face in the marketplace today?

A. We evangelize for digital workplace transformation and educate on how using AI and automation to create efficiencies and streamline manual tasks is a strategic imperative. We want companies to understand that they don’t have to be a Fortune 100 company to reap the benefits from an AI solution like MeBeBot. Our technology is affordable, easy to install, and available today. We believe that now is the time for companies to act….and we do see that they’re motivated to make these changes to support hybrid work, as they must reduce employee turnover while “doing more with less.”

Q. How do you acquire customers?

A. Our target customers are companies that are between 250-10,000 employees (mid-market) as that’s when they may be experiencing growing pains that we can improve. We sell directly to them, and we are also an app in the Slack App Marketplace (we were the “brilliant bot” for May) and in the Microsoft Azure and Teams Marketplaces. We also have some strategic referral partners and we’re working towards channel/reseller sales opportunities as well.  We really love it when our customers recommend us to their network as well (our average rating on G2 is 5 out of 5).

Q. What is the business model?

A. We’re a software-as-a-services company, and our product includes an AI App or chatbot for Teams or Slack and a customer-facing portal. We sell on an annual subscription basis and our pricing is on a per employee per month basis.

Q. Are you bootstrapped, or do you have angel or VC financing?

A. We were bootstrapped for the first year of business, then kicked off fundraising an angel round at a “not so opportune” time in March of 2020 (the start of the pandemic). We did raise the angel round (late 2020) and we’re really excited to kick off a $3M seed round, to accelerate our growth.

Q. Why did you decide to start your company in Austin?

A. I’ve been part of the startup world in Austin since moving here in 1998. I worked with a dot com and then many emerging tech companies, so I was familiar with the ecosystem in Austin, and I have many connections and supporters here. Austin has a wonderful business community of people that are truly helping each other out and I’ve loved being a part of it for years.

Q. What has been your biggest win so far?

A. I believe if you can attract and bring on the best talent possible for your team (especially as an emerging company), that is always the biggest win. Our people make our solution great, they support our customers’ successes, and they help to attract new customers that are also passionate about solving real problems with smart solutions.

Q. What is your long-term vision?

A. We say we are like the “Alexa” for the workplace as we are expanding MeBeBot’s functionality to be each employee’s assistant, just like we all appreciate our consumer devices (mobile phones, GPS devices, health trackers, etc.) that help to make our lives easier. We want each employee to have personalized answers to their needs, use MeBeBot to help them facilitate work processes, and provide our customers a rich dashboard of information so that they can learn more about their people through actionable insights.

Q. You have a free online event you are doing at 10 a.m. CST next Tuesday on Jan. 26^th “Learn How Care.com Takes Care of Their Employees with AI.” Can you talk about who should attend this event?

A. Frankly, this event is great for anyone who wants to learn how business users can launch an AI solution within their company in weeks. We will have Lynn Pattin and Kristin Foxx, two of Care.com’s Senior HR team members, discuss what business challenges they had to manage employees’ needs and how they were able to solve their pain points with MeBeBot. We’ll also share information about how accessible AI can be to any company and the benefits that will be gained.

Q.  If you could put a billboard in downtown Austin, what would it say?

A. Work Smarter, not harder. MeBeBot’s your Intelligent Assistant for the workplace.

Austin Startups Raised $870 million in the second quarter of 2022, down 55 percent from $1.9 billion during the same quarter in 2021, according to the latest Pitchbook-National Venture Capital Association Venture Monitor report.

The deal volume also dropped 13 percent to 80 deals in the second quarter compared to 94 deals for the same quarter a year ago.

DealHub and SANA both raised $60 million each in the second quarter, tying for the two biggest deals of the quarter.

MicroTransponder raised $53 million, followed by Data.world with $50 million and Albedo with $49 million, according to the Pitchbook-NVCA report.

Overall, in Texas, 165 startups raised nearly $1.7 billion in the second quarter of 2022, 37 percent decrease compared to 201 startups raising $2.7 billion for the same quarter in 2021.

Overall, U.S. venture capital deal activity in the first half of 2022 was strong, according to the Q2 2022 PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor, the report jointly produced by PitchBook and the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) with support from Insperity and J.P. Morgan.

“While deal count remained strong when compared with the highs of 2021, deal value declined significantly across all stages,” according to the report.

“As the market continues to react to volatility over the past six months, the venture ecosystem demonstrates strength as dry powder reaches new heights and fundraising levels surpass more than $100 billion for the second consecutive year,” said John Gabbert, founder and CEO of PitchBook. “Exits remain extremely low while late-stage companies act with caution as a result of bearish public market activity. There are still uncertainties as to what to expect in the second half of the year, however, market indicators show resilience to weathering the potential economic downturn.”

Austin-Round Rock, TX MSA	1	DealHub		$60 million
Austin-Round Rock, TX MSA	2	SANA		$60 million
Austin-Round Rock, TX MSA	3	MicroTransponder		$53 million
Austin-Round Rock, TX MSA	4	Data.world		$50 million
Austin-Round Rock, TX MSA	5	Albedo		$49 million
Austin-Round Rock, TX MSA	6	WIN Reality		$46 million
Austin-Round Rock, TX MSA	7	Redbud Brands		$42 million
Austin-Round Rock, TX MSA	8	Onramp Funds		$40 million
Austin-Round Rock, TX MSA	9	Iris Telehealth		$33 million
Austin-Round Rock, TX MSA	10	Spot (Life and Health Insurance)		$31 million

Multicoin Capital, a crypto fund founded in 2017, announced last week its latest venture fund, $430 million Venture Fund III.

The Austin-based firm invests between $500,000 and $25 million in early-stage opportunities. It also finances later-stage projects up to $100 million or more.

“We’ve been investing in crypto for about 5 years now and have watched innovation slowly move up the stack,” according to a blog post. “While we continue to make deep tech and infrastructure investments, we are spending an increasing percentage of our time on things that directly face consumers and that are poised to reshape massive consumer-facing markets.”

Multicoin is most interested in investing in proof of physical work companies like its portfolio companies Helium and Hivemapper, DataDAOs like its portfolio company, Delphia, and creator monetization like its portfolio companies Metaplex, Aduius, Strata Protocol, and FanTiger. It is also interested in investing in consumer products, new business models for collaborating on IP, Web3 infrastructure and open finance, India, and DAO Tooling.

Multicoin, founded by Kyle Samani and Tushar Jain, has made 97 investments and had one exit, according to its Crunchbase profile.

1. High-tech salaries in Austin are up since 2020 by nearly 10 percent to an average of $150,026, compared to the average annual salary in Austin of $78,224 for all jobs.

2. Lots of companies have relocated to Austin from California, Illinois, New York, and other states. Today, Austin has 9,565 high-tech companies, up nearly 15 percent in 2021.

3. Austin outpaces the nation when it comes to high-tech industries, which make up nearly 17 percent of all jobs in the Austin metropolitan area, compared to 9 percent nationally.

4. Tech industry job growth in Austin shot up nearly 29 percent in the last five years.

5. Tech industry job growth in Austin grew by 58 percent in the last decade, compared to 19 percent nationally.

6. Today, 184,177 people work in tech in the Austin area, up 4 percent from 2020.

7. Most Austin high-tech jobs are in nonmanufacturing industries, which make up 78 percent.

Source: Austin Chamber of Commerce High Tech Industry Report