The LA tech scene was busy last week with news coming from big names like SpaceX, Amazon and Whole Foods. Several other tech companies announced funding rounds that will be used to expand their teams. Catch up on the latest news with the Built In LA weekly refresh.
SpaceX exceeded a valuation of $125B. Hawthorne-based space exploration company SpaceX is making headlines again. According to reports, Elon Musk’s SpaceX is set to become the most valuable U.S. startup. Due to the company’s ongoing share sale, its valuation jumped from $100 billion in October to more than $125 billion. [Reuters]
Mahmee raised $9.2M. The maternal health startup based raised a Series A round led by the growth equity business of Goldman Sachs Asset Management. Founded in 2016, Mahmee’s app is a place to manage maternity care and offers a nationwide network of birth professionals, such as in-house nurses. The fresh funding will go toward growing the startup’s team and provider network. [Business Wire]
LA Tech Quote of the Week
Greater Good Health got $10M. Greater Good employs nurse practitioners and provides them with training to provide value-based care to patients. The company’s latest $10 million Series A will go toward broadening its digital solution, which allows members to participate in learning modules and build camaraderie among each other. Greater Good currently works in northern and southern California but plans to expand into 10 new regions over the next 18 months. [Built In LA]
ChargeFUZE brought in $5M. ChargeFUZE provides high-speed mobile charging on the go by letting users rent a portable charger rather than purchasing a battery or bringing a charging cord with them. The $5 million seed round will be used to grow ChargeFUZE’s internal team and build new partnerships. The startup currently partners with Live Nation Entertainment, Simon Property Group and Brookfield Properties. [Yahoo!]
Whole Foods launched palm scanning in LA. Shoppers at select Whole Foods in Silver Lake and Irvine can now pay with the palm of their hand thanks to the Amazon One’s palm reader. The technology allows shoppers to hover their palm over the Amazon One reader and pay for their items. Signing up to use this tech takes less than a minute and is intended to make shopping easier and more convenient. This technology was also recently rolled out in Austin. [RetailWire]
