Microgrants from Business Growth Collaborative Enable Pivots for Vulnerable Entrepreneurs
The Business Growth Collaborative, an organization comprised of 11 organizations supporting entrepreneurs of color, disbursed $100,000 in grants to 20 minority-owned small businesses in Northeast Ohio in response to the COVID-19 crisis. These contributions, called the Boost Fund, were released this month and were supported by a grant from the KeyBank Business Boost and Build
$1.5 million in grants going to 300 Summit County small businesses
More than 300 small businesses in Summit County will receive a total of more than $1.5 million in funding through a program created to provide emergency relief during the coronavirus pandemic. Summit County and the Greater Akron Chamber of Commerce announced Wednesday that 311 small businesses in the county will receive funding from the COVID-19
Colleges, wise to the need for better digital engagement, increasingly turn to Cleveland-based Wisr
Colleges are working hard to build better digital communities during the pandemic, according to this article from Forbes, and a Cleveland company is emerging as a leader in helping them do that. The ed-tech company at the heart of the piece is Wisr, which, as Forbes puts it, “helps colleges create private digital communities for
Online lending platform SoLo Funds opens spigot on interest-free peer-to-peer microloans for cash-strapped Americans
Sometimes it takes the worst of times to bring out the best in people. That’s what serial entrepreneur Rodney Williams is counting on. The co-founder of the peer-to-peer lending platform SoLo Funds is on a mission to help the millions of Americans that live paycheck to paycheck and can’t survive the money crunch caused by
Cleveland Rocks? Why MedPilot Chose To Relocate Its NYC-Founded Startup To Ohio
Jake Myers is all about the numbers. When he makes a decision, there’s usually a list of pros and cons. An array of percentages to compare. A side-by-side breakdown of all the facts, in a format that’s most easily read. So when he was considering relocating the startup he helped found from New York City
Mezu Supports Coronavirus Prevention Efforts Across The U.S. By Launching CDC Foundation Donation Campaign
Mezu, the leading payment app that enables people to use their money with efficiency, ease and total privacy today announced that it’s spearheading a national campaign to support the CDC in this time of crisis. Mezu will be foregoing any fees to donate 100% of the funds collected to the CDC Foundation. Mezu will be
BoxCast streaming company sees spike in demand while events across the world go remote during COVID-19
BoxCast, a Cleveland-based streaming company, has seen orders increase 10-fold in the last few days while events and gatherings are canceled around the world to try to stop the spread of the coronavirus or COVID-19. “We saw it start to come into effect two or three weeks ago,” said CEO and Co-Founder Gordon Daily. BoxCast
ReadySet Surgical Closes $5.5M Series A Funding Round
JumpStart NEXT Fund Leads Round, Senior Partner Rem Harris Joins Board of Directors ReadySet Surgical, a Healthcare IT company on a mission to drive efficiency and compliance within the surgical supply chain, has announced a $5.5 Million Series A financing led by Cleveland-based JumpStart Inc.’s NEXT Fund. Also participating in the funding round are all
Northeast Ohio AI startups want to hire people, not replace them
The Cleveland startup LIFTR uses artificial intelligence (AI) to help companies model how audiences will engage with ads, saving businesses the time and money of traditional A/B testing. Although it just released its first product in January, the company has already attracted a number of significant clients, said co-founder Ted Troxell. Still, as he looks
Rodney Williams gave up a six-figure salary for start-up debt, and succeeded. Here’s how.
Rodney Williams knows a lot about the fear that goes along with becoming an entrepreneur. Six years ago, Williams left his six-figure job at Procter & Gamble to co-found a business that required racking up six figures in debt. The risk paid off. Today, LISNR — which develops software that enables devices to communicate via
MedPilot lands $1.5 million from investors
MedPilot, a Cleveland software company that uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to transform patient billing, moved to Cleveland from New York in 2018 to bring two of its founders back home, and to become part of Northeast Ohio’s growing health care technology sector. Now, it’s heading to its own next stage of growth. MedPilot
EmployStream Raises $7 Million in Series B Funding for Onboarding Software
EmployStream, the leading provider of onboarding automation to the staffing industry, announced the close of its $7 million Series B funding round led by Plymouth Growth Partners, with support from several key investors including JumpStart, Rev1 Ventures, Ohio Innovation Fund and North Coast Angel Fund. EmployStream will use the capital to expand product development, increase