Startup

Mammoth Project: Dallas’ Colossal Raises $60M to Advance Genetic Engineering and ‘De-Extinction’ Technologies

Colossal launched last September with a plan to "de-extinct" the woolly mammoth by using CRISPR genetic engineering to create a mammoth-elephant hybrid. With a total raise of $75 million to date, the startup aims to have its first set of mammoth-elephant hybrid calves "in 4 to 6 years," co-founder and CEO Ben Lamm told us. But Colossal's goals extend much further—with the potential "to advance human health, enhance food production, reduce environmental impact, and optimize animal health and welfare."
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‘A Healthy Eating Ecosystem’: Dallas Startup Aims to Help People Stay Healthy While Eating Out and In
by | Mar 9, 2022
The personalized meal planning startup, bitewell, is launching soon in Dallas with an app that offers "menu transparency" on around 600 local restaurants to help users find meals that meet their needs. It also offers a wide range of recipes for making personalized meals at home.

“Our mission as a business is to make healthy eating simple and accessible for all,” says co-founder and CMO Samantha Citro Alexander. Next up: Chicago, and then the world, the team says.
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The Shadow CEO:
Stock Classes and Raising Capital
by | Mar 9, 2022
Entrepreneur, investor, and corporate governance authority Dennis Cagan shares insights on seldom-taught things an entrepreneur needs to know about equity and governance—before making needless mistakes—in The Shadow CEO series. Part 7: Stock classes and raising capital
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Dallas Invents: 85 Patents Granted for Week of Feb. 8
by | Mar 9, 2022
Dallas-Fort Worth ranked No. 10 for patents out of 250 metros. Patents granted include: 7-Eleven's scalable position tracking system for tracking position in large spaces, Conduent Business Services' video-based automated detection of double-parking violations, Facebook Technologies' modifying a safety boundary for virtual reality systems, Magic Leap's object interactivity in virtual space, TI's protecting memory against unauthorized access, Toyota's sensor cleaning system and sensor cleaning method for vehicle, and Wells Fargo's processing nuances in natural language.
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Alto Expands Service to Silicon Valley as It Builds a New Dallas HQ and Aims to Go All‑Electric

by | Mar 8, 2022
Dallas-based ridesharing company Alto is entering its sixth market, after launching in Dallas and expanding to Houston, L.A., Miami, and Washington, D.C. With $60 million in funding since its 2018 launch, CEO Will Coleman talks about building a new HQ in the Dallas Design District, aiming to be in 25 metros over the next few years, and planning to be 100% electric by end of 2023.
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Follow the Money: Blue Star Invests in Payments Unicorn, Ryan Scoops Up Property Tax Firm in All-Local Deal, and TPG Co-Leads $160M Investment in Video Game Developer
by | Mar 8, 2022
What companies are finding funding or having a big exit? From startup investments to grants and acquisitions, Dallas Innovates tracks what’s happening in North Texas money.
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DI People: Jacobs, DRC, Dallas College, Megatel, JLL, ENO8, and More Make Moves
by | Mar 4, 2022
In this week's roundup of hires, promotions, and accolades in North Texas, you'll also find news from XpressDocs, Alternative Biomedical Solutions, Ventra Health, VAZATA, Medecision, Firehouse, Six Flags, TCU, nDivision, and Gamestop.

Plus, The Real Estate Council unveils its 2022 board and executive committee.
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Fetii, ‘the Uber for Large Groups,’ Plans to Roll Into Dallas As It Expands in 2022
by | Mar 4, 2022
Fetii, founded in 2020 by A&M and UTD grads, calls itself "the world's first group rideshare platform." Its 15-passenger vans allow groups to go places together instead of splitting into multiple vehicles, at an average cost of $5 per person per ride. Now operating in Austin, College Station, and Lubbock, Texas, it plans to expand to Nashville in April and Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio later this year. It's raising $500,000 on WeFunder—with aims to ultimately "go global."
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Dallas-Based ROBO Global Launches Emerging Tech Venture Fund

by | Mar 2, 2022
With around $4 billion total under management in its U.S. and Europe ETFs, ROBO Global tracks the performance of robotics, AI, and healthcare tech companies worldwide. Now it's leveraging that expertise to launch its first private fund in those areas, aiming to invest in early-stage startups "that are using innovation to grow the business."
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Aiming to Make Fort Worth a Hub of ‘Energy 2.0,’ Electric Motor Maker Launches Production with $17M Funding
by | Mar 2, 2022
With 95 patents issued or pending on its tech, Fort Worth's Linear Labs wants to bring manufacturing back to the U.S., seeing the electrification supply chain as a "national security strategic imperative."

Brad Hunstable launched Linear Labs in 2014 after incubating in the TechFW program. This year his company aims to produce 20,000 electric motors and intelligent drive systems—with twice the torque and half the size and weight of competitors.
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Dallas Invents: 135 Patents Granted for Week of Feb. 1
by | Mar 2, 2022
Dallas-Fort Worth ranked No. 10 for patents out of 250 metros. Patents granted include: A9.COM's visual search with attribute manipulation, Astrapi's transmitting and receiving data using non-periodic functions, AT&T's time-spaced messaging for facilitating network communications, Bank of America's digital passport with verified data provenance, Hunt Energy Enterprise's distributed energy control, Toyota's traffic flow prediction and more.
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Real Estate Tech Startup Nada Relocates Dallas HQ as it Looks to Quadruple Headcount
by | Mar 1, 2022
The startup's new digs in Oak Lawn will give it room to grow its workforce from 15 to around 50 by end of year. Enabling people to invest in single-family rental homes and fractionally invest in owner-occupied homes, Nada has attracted over $2 million from investors into its Cityfunds in Dallas, Austin, and Miami. Now it's expanding to Houston and other cities, launching a debit card, and expecting new funding soon.
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Hypertrucks being bought by GreenPath

Dallas’ Alternative Fuel Trucker GreenPath Logistics Orders 50 Electric/Natural Gas ‘Hypertrucks’

by | Feb 28, 2022
GreenPath uses only vehicles powered by alternative fuels to haul freight for Amazon, UPS, the USPS and more. Now it's ordering 50 Hypertruck ERX units from Texas-based Hyliion. The Hypertruck's electric powertrain is recharged by an onboard natural gas generator.
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New Dallas Regional Chamber VP of Innovation: ‘We’re only getting stronger’
by | Feb 28, 2022
Jorge Varela has spent decades building startups in Silicon Valley, San Antonio, and even in Central America—his place of origin. Now his efforts will center on North Texas' innovation economy.

“The shift from Silicon Valley and the East Coast to Texas and DFW is real,” Varela says.
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DI People: Techstars, Critical Start, VolunteerNow, Corganics, and More Make Moves
In this week's roundup of hires, promotions, and accolades in North Texas, you'll also find news from the Richardson Chamber, PICKUP, BPS Technology, the Frontiers of Flight Museum, UNT Health Science Center at Fort Worth, and Giving DNA. Plus, Governor Abbott appoints three North Texans to the Governor's Commission for Women.
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Techstars Seeks Physical Therapy-Focused Startups for Its First North Texas Cohort in Fort Worth
by | Feb 25, 2022
Applications opened to startups everywhere on Tuesday.
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