From helping students expand their knowledge to helping collectors expand their inventory, several innovations are underway for companies in the LA tech space. Read more to learn how they’re investing their latest funding rounds. This is the Built In LA weekly refresh.
Whatnot secured $50M. Having seen plenty of growth over the past year, Whatnot and its platform for buying and selling collectibles announced the close of its Series B funding round. The raise was led by Y Combinator Continuity’s Anu Hariharan. Now, it’s focusing on scaling and growing its product. Whatnot is looking to increase its 40-person headcount to 120 by the end of the year. [Built In LA]
Pathmatics acquired by Sensor Tower. By combining their digital marketing intelligence and mobile analytics tech, the companies merged with the purpose of providing brands with an expanded array of actionable advertising insights. Conjoined under Sensor Tower Inc., the organization is currently hiring to fill 50 roles across product development, engineering, sales, marketing, client support and more. [Built In LA]
LA Tech Quote of the Week
Emile raised $5.3M. The edtech company developed a learning platform for high-schoolers that allows them to take courses outside of a strict schedule. It pulled in a seed funding round led by Kleiner Perkins. Currently offering AP and core courses, Emile is looking to spend the capital on adding more classes, aiming to launch more than 15 new courses over the next year. [Built In LA]
OneOf raised $63M. The NFT platform is specifically geared to the music industry and will launch to the public later this month. Music legend Quincy Jones is a founder of the company and a leading investor in this seed funding round. Other participating musicians include Doja Cat, John Legend and H.E.R. [Built In LA]
Poparazzi is raising funds and generating buzz. The Marina del Rey-based photo-sharing app just launched but is already a popular download on the App Store. It’s also reportedly already attracting VC interest to the tune of between $15 million and $20 million in new funding that would bring its valuation to about $135 million. The app doesn’t allow selfies, and instead encourages its users to share pictures of their friends — like a paparazzo. It was developed by TTYL. [Forbes]
Park Place Payments got $1.5M. This women-led company is aiming to help more women find employment and take charge of their financial future with its payment processing tech. The company closed on its seed funding round led by Curate Capital. Now, it’s looking to fuel its growth and provide more opportunities and financial stability to its users. [PR Newswire]
CMX got $50M. With Series A funding led by Morgan Stanley Expansion Capital, San Diego-based CMX is well-equipped to fuel its growth. The company’s cloud-based software enables enterprises across a variety of industries to digitally transform their programs, from quality and risk to safety and compliance. It currently serves over 40 brands including Burger King, Arby’s and Taco Bell. [Globe Newswire]
