🤝 Patents, Partnerships, Unicorns
Celebrating wins for LatAm: Funding Rounds, Partnerships, and Patents
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In the past two weeks…
🛒 DEUNA raises $30M in Series A: DEUNA is a checkout ecommerce startup founded by Roberto Kafati and Jose Maria Serrano. Started in 2020, the company just raised $30M led by Activant Capital, with participation from angel investors from relevant companies such as Plaid, Kavak, and Xepelin.
📚 Colombian EdTech UBits partners with TED and Wobi: UBits, a B2B Education Technology startup that aims to train the workforce of the biggest companies in LatAm, has partnered with two of the most important educational content companies of the world to launch Spanish-speaking LatAm’s biggest learning hubs. These partnerships are the result of a desire to train LatAm’s workforce with a variety of formats, including books and podcasts.
🌱 NotCo announces patents to explore the re-creation of aromas in food using AI: Giuseppe, NotCo’s patented AI technology, now has the ability to develop scents and aromas in food using exclusively plant-based ingredients. It does this by understanding taste at the molecular level and interpreting the emotion our brains associate with it.
🦄 Stori becomes a Unicorn: Stori, a startup that aims to bring credit to the unbanked, has achieved unicorn status after their Series C!
📊 In response to layoffs: The wave of layoffs that has happened in LatAm due to the economic crisis has given rise to multiple platforms which allow former employees to upload their data, and current employers to look for talent in the needed fields. Some of these initiatives are Pivot.build, Startups Alumni, and Scholarships for new beginnings (by Talently), which provides free access to all software engineers who have been layed off.
Spotlights : The Four F’s!
Every week, we spotlight one of each: a firm, a fund, a founder, and a food item. This week, we look at Alphaa.io, its founder Manuela Seve, Bossa Nova Investimentos, and Conchas!
🖼️ Firm: Alphaa.io
Alphaa.io is a startup founded by Brazilian Manuela Seve, focusing on helping artists and collectors register, authenticate, and transfer artwork ownership via NFTs. Growing more than ever, alphaa.io is revolutionizing the way artists sell and trademark their work.
🇧🇷 Founder: Manuela Seve
Manuela Seve is a Brazilian entrepreneur who founded a blockchain startup named alphaa.io. Starting off her career, Manuela was a equity analyst at Gavea Investments and she was heading towards the finance track. Later, she started a think tank in 2014 called Quinto. She led a team that developed an art application that would later become Alpha’a. Now she is dedicated full time to alphaa.io and continues to use the power of blockchain for artists.
💰 Fund: Bossa Nova Investimentos
Bossa Nova Investimentos is a venture capitalist firm based in Brazil. Founded in 2011 by Joao Braga and Pierre Schurmann, the fund has made over 1,600 investments and continues to grow every year. The fund focuses on pre-seed and early stage technology startups in Latin America.
🥯 Food: Conchas
A traditional Mexican dish, Conchas are a sweet bread roll which get their name from their seashell-like appearance. The roll and topping are usually the same flavor. However, the top layer may have different flavorings or colors (strawberry, coffee, chocolate, etc.). Conchas are eaten either for breakfast or as a snack across Mexico.
💡 This week’s reads:
🌎 Which Latin American cities are the strongest seedbeds for startups
💸 Pix revolution: how instant payment put Brazil at the forefront of global financial innovation
🛒 Mercado Libre leads the charge as e-commerce blooms in Latin America: Beyond Borders 2021/2022 study
💳 Buy Now, Pay Later ignites e-commerce in Latin America and Beyond
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