Startups soar: Pawprints Inspired, Upworth, BeeX raise funding; Indonesia’s VC shift; and TômTex’s US$4.15M boost

In a dynamic week for startups, Pawprints Inspired, an Indonesian insect-based pet food company, secured a substantial US$1.7 million funding round, coupled with the acquisition of a Japanese pet food company. Meanwhile, Australian fintech Upworth completed an AUD 1 million funding round, aiming to democratize money management. Singapore-based BeeX closed a US$2 million bridge funding round for its autonomous robotics solutions.

Additionally, RISE announced the return of its Corporate Innovation Summit with a focus on sustainable development. Indonesia’s VC landscape, as per a report by AC Ventures and Bain & Company, signals a recalibration with cautious optimism, while startup investments in Southeast Asia experienced a notable 205% jump in October. New York-based biomaterial company TômTex secured $4.15 million in a seed investment round led by Happiness Capital.

Pawprints Inspired raises US$1.7M financing

Indonesian insect-based pet food company Pawprints Inspired secured US$1.7 million in a funding round from Creative Gorilla Capital (lead), Altrui, Tujuh Bersaudara Investindo, and several individual investors participated.

In addition, Pawprints Inspired also acquired an unnamed Japanese pet food company to expand its portfolio.

Formulated in accordance with AAFCO (the Association of American Feed Control Officials) standards, Pawprints Inspired is a nutrition company supporting the digestive health and overall well-being of pets. It harnesses the power of the superfood insect protein (black soldier fly) to offer quality novel protein that is hypoallergenic, along with essential amino acids and minerals crucial for the health of cats and dogs. The products are available on Tokopedia and Shopee platforms and can also be found offline in select pet shops.

Australian fintech firm Upworth attracts funding

Upworth, an Australian fintech company that aims to democratise money management for all, has completed its AUD 1 million (US$650,000) funding round from unnamed business angels and entrepreneurs.

Sydney-headquartered Upworth provides an online platform to empower users with tools to track all their assets and liabilities in one place, plan their financial independence and grow their wealth.

The platform features a dashboard for users to track all their assets and liabilities in one place (bank accounts, investment accounts, superannuation funds, real estate, cryptocurrencies, mortgages, personal loans and alternative assets). It also gives users free access to 170,000 securities across 70-plus global exchanges and the ability to see the breakdown and evolution of their wealth.

BeeX closes US$2M bridge round

Singapore-based BeeX, which provides autonomous robotics solutions to safeguard underwater infrastructure, has closed a US$2 million bridge funding round.

Earth Venture Capital and ShipsFocus Ventures co-led the round, with the participation of SEEDS Capital, NUS Technology Holdings, and Infinita VC.

BeeX is the developer of the Hovering Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (HAUV) — A.IKANBILIS. Its robots and software solutions help energy developers, ship owners, and governments save costs to inspect their critical structures and protect their people from risky operations.

By the end of 2024, BeeX aims to launch the next-gen HAUV, BETTA, to address the demands of offshore wind inspection. The startup claims BETTA will have 10x greater power, 3x more endurance and 4x higher computing prowess. The system will leverage the fast iteration of autonomy on its smaller sibling, A.IKANBILIS.

RISE summit to promote sustainable development

RISE, one of the largest tech conferences in Southeast Asia, announced the return of its Corporate Innovation Summit (CIS) 2023. The event is scheduled for November 14-15 at Bangkok’s True Digital Park.

Themed “Accelerating Growth While Saving the World,” Corporate Innovation Summit underscores the crucial role of corporations in sustainable development. This aligns with RISE’s commitment to contribute 1 per cent of Southeast Asia’s GDP and reduce global carbon emissions by 1 per cent.

Indonesia’s VC space signals imminent upturn

Indonesia’s VC industry has experienced a significant transformation in recent years, with the past 12 months witnessing a market recalibration mainly driven by global macroeconomic headwinds, according to a new joint report by AC Ventures and Bain & Company.

While deal flow picked up quickly in 2021, increasing macroeconomic uncertainty urged caution in investing momentum, and the spillover effect from H2 2022 saw a lower number of deals and a decline in deal sizes.

The Indonesia Venture Capital Report 2023 offers deep insights into the industry’s prevailing trends, challenges, and future outlook.

Despite a degree of cautious optimism at that time, projections for 2023 are now sobering, with an anticipated 70-80 per cent decline in deal value compared to the preceding year. The funding pace in 2023 remained sluggish through Q3, standing at 0.3x compared to Q3 2022.

Startup investments in SEA in Oct see 205% jump

Tech companies in Southeast Asia secured US$684 million across 36 rounds in October 2023, according to a report by startup research platform Tracxn. This is a 205 per cent jump over the total investments raised in September and a 5.26 per cent drop from October 2022.

Seed-stage rounds dominated the overall deals with 22 deals, followed by early-stage (13) and late-stage rounds (4). In terms of the deal size, Investree topped the chart with a US$231 million raise, followed by Gojek (US$150 million), Qosmosys (US$100 million), YouTrip (US$50 million), and Inteluck (34 million).

TômTex raises US$4.15M

New York-based biomaterial company TômTex secured US$4.15 million in a seed investment round led by Happiness Capital.

Earth Venture Capital, SOSV, Parley for the Oceans, and MIH Capital also participated.

The funding will support the growth of TômTex’s Brooklyn team, fill key leadership roles, and enhance manufacturing capabilities.

Founded by Vietnamese entrepreneur Uyen Tran, TômTex aims to craft innovative materials mimicking natural life cycles, providing eco-friendly alternatives to production methods contributing to the environmental crisis.

The post Startups soar: Pawprints Inspired, Upworth, BeeX raise funding; Indonesia’s VC shift; and TômTex’s US$4.15M boost appeared first on e27.