Much like neighboring Phoenix, Scottsdale has become one of the nation’s most coveted tech capitals. In recent years, the city has shirked its resort town status to take on the tech industry. But that doesn’t mean Scottsdale has been entirely unacquainted with the tech scene until recently. In fact, the city hosts the headquarters for platform giant GoDaddy in addition to satellite offices of companies like PayPal, Yelp and Turo. While this desert metropolis may take up a smaller corner of the tech space when compared to cities like New York and Chicago, its strong tech community makes it a true force to be reckoned with.
As more tech tycoons flee traditional tech cities to start a new life in sunny Scottsdale, the city’s tech ecosystem continues to flourish. In a way that feels similar to San Francisco, the city’s startup culture spans a diverse range of sectors including transportation, cryptocurrency and recruitment. Whether they’ve been a part of the tech scene for a while or consider themselves newcomers, Scottsdale’s tech contenders are reshaping the fabric of Arizona’s economy. Here’s a look at 18 tech companies in Scottsdale pushing the Grand Canyon State further into the throes of a tech revolution.
Tech Companies in Scottsdale to Know
- YellowBird
- Emerge
- Paradox
- SmartRent
- Aspireship
- RaisinBread
- Token IQ
- Hypur
- Realtor.com
- Workiva
Founded: 2008
Focus: File transfers
What they do: Files.com makes a SaaS product for electronically transferring large files that is highly secure, accessible and can integrate with a long list of commonly used apps, from Amazon Web Services to Zapier. The company’s Scottsdale headquarters serves as a home base for the sales team, with remote employees Zooming in from across the country.
Founded: 2016
Focus: Enterprise Web + Marketing Tech
What they do: Crafting the perfect first impression is key to B2B relationships, so Sendoso has developed the ideal sending platform. Companies can submit requests for personalized gift packages, and Sendoso’s warehouse teams handle the details. Businesses can also track the sending process, so they know when to reach out to recipients and follow up their gifts with timely communication.
Founded: 2012
Focus: Real estate
What they do: Finding the perfect fit isn’t always easy when it comes to housing, but Zumper is working to change that. The organization specializes in matching customers with their dream homes, serving as a search platform for renters and an ad space for landlords and multifamily communities. This way, all parties benefit from discovering a match that satisfies their needs and wants.
Founded: 2008
Focus: Data Management
What they do: Gone are the days when data became lost in the shuffle, thanks to the solutions of Workiva. The company enables businesses to gather data from multiple sources on a single cloud platform, making it easier than ever to track information and complete repetitive tasks through automation. Because of this transparent and convenient technology, organizations can spend less time worrying about data and more time focusing on achieving their goals.
Founded: 1995
Focus: Real estate
What they do: Realtor.com is a hub for all things housing-related, helping people find homes that meet their personal preferences and satisfy their budget. Whether someone wants to calculate their mortgage amount or find a reliable realtor, Realtor.com has the tools and resources to connect people to what they need most. Seeking to buy or rent a space becomes seamless with an accessible support system.
Founded: 2016
Focus: AI Recruiting Assistance
What they do: Paradox is an AI company dedicated to reinventing how companies recruit candidates. The company’s AI recruiting assistant, Olivia, is designed to screen candidates, schedule interviews, answer candidate and employee questions and onboard new hires. Paradox’s assistant also supports remote hiring events, referrals and personal candidate engagement.
Founded: 2018
Focus: Small Business Onboarding
What they do: Founded by Chris Ronzio, Trainual offers an intuitive training and process management platform for small and growing businesses. The platform is designed to assist teams with onboarding, business documentation, employee training and tracking, and training accountability. Serving organizations in more than 100 countries, Trainual is driven by the aim to transform the way businesses train and scale across the globe.
Founded: 2017
Focus: Digital Freight Marketplace
What they do: Emerge offers a digital freight marketplace designed to provide access to the lowest rates on live capacity. Shippers can use the company’s marketplace to connect to pre-vetted carriers, access their network, support traditional and digital brokers and compare guaranteed live rates. On the other hand, Emerge provides carriers access to custom lane alerts, detailed dashboards and faster payments.
Founded: 2019
Focus: On-Demand Health + Safety Staffing
What they do: Launched by Michael Zalle and Michelle Tinsley, YellowBird has created a platform that makes it easier for businesses to be connected with environmental health and safety professionals. Companies can post projects needed to be filled on the platform in order to be connected with professionals by way of an internal matching algorithm. YellowBird takes care of management, scheduling, communication, billing and payment on behalf of each business in addition to vetting each professional through a four-step process.
Founded: 2017
Focus: Smart Home Hardware
What they do: Founded by Lucas Haldeman, SmartRent develops software and hardware designed to help renters and property owners and managers in multi-family communities. The company’s suite of smart home devices includes thermostats, locks, plugs, lights, voice control and leak sensors, all of which can be controlled through a mobile app. SmartRent aims to help property owners and managers more effectively monitor and protect their assets while driving ancillary revenue.
Founded: 2019
Focus: Sales Training
What they do: Aspireship operates a platform that allows people to train online for sales careers within the SaaS industry. The company offers a program designed to teach people how to become an Account Executive, enabling them to learn on their own schedule and complete virtual job simulations to display their skills to prospective employers. Aspireship partners with a variety of B2B software companies such as Zoom, Mindbody and Hownd.
Founded: 2016
Focus: Remote Team Management + Engagement
What they do: Xmetryx offers relationship management software built for remote teams. The company’s software enables teams to quickly receive feedback, identify issues, build trust and measure progress. Xmetryx is dedicated to developing a culture of shared leadership among remote teams by uncovering behaviors that cause trust gaps.
Founded: 2019
Focus: Small Business Insurance
What they do: RaisinBread has created an application that helps small businesses easily purchase insurance. The company grants business owners the ability to manage their risks and exposures in a transparent environment, matching them with the insurance policy that best fits their business’ needs. RaisinBread covers a variety of insurance types including commercial property, general liability, employment practices and commercial auto.
Founded: 2017
Focus: Dental Practice Optimization
What they do: MiniDentist is dedicated to helping dentists spend less time assessing a patient’s dental issues so they can spend more time improving their practices. Patients who use the platform are asked to fill out a detailed questionnaire and predictive diagnosis tool, which grants them more time to ask in-depth questions while allowing dental teams to speed up the assessment process. MiniDentist aims to foster stronger relationships between dentists and patients, reduce patient turnover and boost dental practices’ success.
Founded: 2017
Focus: Cryptocurrency
What they do: Token IQ has developed a SaaS distributed ledger platform for the tokenization of securities and asset-backed investment contracts. The platform enables users to convert rights to an asset into smart and fully-compliant digital tokens on a blockchain, thus ensuring a frictionless environment while removing the need for a middleman. Token IQ’s mission is to help companies of varying sizes launch a digitized offering and seek investments with confidence.
Founded: 2014
Focus: Mobile Banking
What they do: Hypur is dedicated to helping businesses within the cannabis industry gain access to basic banking services. The company’s mobile platform provides electronic payments for businesses that lack traditional payment methods, removing the need for card networks while mitigating the risk of service shutdowns or rejected transactions. On the other hand, Hypur allows banks and credit unions to empower commerce in their communities, enabling them to view real-time sales activity, automate tasks and manage risks.
Founded: 2010
Focus: University Collaboration
What they do: Activeclass is focused on driving classroom engagement and fostering community involvement on university campuses. The company’s platform enables users to communicate their thoughts, ask questions, share files and images, manage assignments and generate discussion. Activeclass also allows users to share announcements about social activities, clubs and organization events, making it easier for students to connect with each other.
Founded: 2015
Focus: Brain Health Monitoring
What they do: Aural Analytics specializes in creating applications that use speech to detect subtle changes in brain health. Combining speech signal processing with cognitive linguistic analysis, the company’s platform enables patients to leave samples from anywhere in the world. Aural Analytics’ mission is to provide clinical decision makers with non-invasive and actionable insights regarding patients’ neurological health.
Founded: 2018
Focus: Cannabis + Data Management
What they do: Thalo Technologies has developed data management software for cannabis and hemp processing. The company’s software allows users to track every hardware setting, input and output from every extraction, analyze their business processes, and deliver higher throughput with fewer errors. Thalo Technologies’ ultimate aim is to help cannabis and hemp growers optimize each run, improve their yields and generate higher profits.
Founded: 2011
Focus: Trucking management
What they do: OTR Solutions offers a cloud-native platform for trucking solutions like factoring, fuel and business management. The company aims to maximize the success of trucking companies. It helps both new and existing companies to get access to the funds needed for daily operations.
