After a brief funding slowdown in D.C. during February, the tech scene in the DMV is back to business. Last month, the top five funding rounds brought in $207.8 million, an increase from February’s total of $139.25 million. Funding was fairly equally spread across industries from healthtech to edtech to greentech. Read on to learn about the top five tech funding rounds in the D.C. metro area during March.
#5. $9.3 million, March 31
Language barriers are one of the top reasons many Americans don’t receive adequate healthcare. Jeenie, a D.C.-based virtual language interpreting platform, aims to change that. Armed with $9.3 million in Series A funding, the company plans to expand its market reach to bring on-demand video and audio interpretation services to more patients. The platform connects small and large clinicians with 24/7 assistance in over 300 languages, including American Sign Language, rare and Indigenous languages.
#4. $15 million, March 1
Connecting learning with actual position career outcomes has always been a tricky task, especially in a constantly evolving world where industries move so fast it can be hard for curriculum to stay relevant. Pedago is one company trying to revolutionize how educators connect learning to careers. Its flagship online education program, Quantic School of Business and Technology, is an accelerated graduate school that uses technology to teach faster and more effectively than traditional education.
At the beginning of March, the Arlington company received a $15 million investment from Elephant which it will use to accelerate the development of additional degrees (currently it only offers an MBA) and institutions, AI-based innovation, and student experience improvements.
#3. $18.5 million, March 30
Synthesizing disparate information during medical research can be a tedious process that is subject to human oversight or mistakes. Artificial intelligence offers a solution for analyzing medical data in order to better serve patients and increase positive research outcomes.
Tysons Corner, Virginia-based Zephyr AI, which raised $18.5 million last month, uses a three-pronged approach to AI-powered medical research. It encompasses multi-dimensional data sets, transparent AI, and context analyses to build translatable insights toward better patient support and research. The company plans to use its new funds from Lerner Group Investments and M-Cor Holdings to expand Zephyr AI’s scope of datasets and refine its machine-learning models.
#2. $75 million, March 2
Decarbonation is important for a climate-secure future, and Reston-based GridPoint is aiming to help companies do their part in achieving this. Its energy management and optimization platform helps commercial buildings reduce energy use and costs through data analytics, intelligent automation and machine learning. The energy management system allows businesses to pinpoint areas where energy isn’t being used efficiently and make adjustments to take advantage of energy savings.
Last month, the company received $75 million from Goldman Sachs Asset Management's Sustainable Investing Group. The company plans to use its new funding to further develop its smart building energy platform and grow its team.
#1. (Placemakr) $90 million, March 15
Formerly known as WhyHotel, the top D.C. funding round last month went to Placemakr, an apartment-hotel hybrid hospitality company specializing in residential and short-term accommodations. The $90 million investment is just the first in what Placemakr hopes to eventually total $1 billion over the next year or two for property acquisitions. The company plans to bring its luxury hospitality experiences to more locations such as Nashville where it plans to begin expansion.
The company offers two main offerings: pop-up hotels which remain under the name WhyHotel and a collection of residential properties: Placemakr Premier, Placemakr and A Placemakr Experience.
