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Introducing: Wellfound's 10 of 10
10 groundbreaking teams across 10 trending industries
There's no doubt that 2022 was a tough year for many in tech. It may be remembered more for layoffs and a slowing VC money machine than any particular innovation (though, AI bots and AI-generated art did cause quite a stir.)
Not all industries felt the brunt of economic forces equally, though.
Here are some of the year’s top silver linings. Explore the winners →
Healthtech vitals remain strong
The healthtech sector saw better overall deal values than most this year. It’s little surprise, considering how healthtech companies proved their value during the global pandemic. They gained an important foothold in people’s lives and are poised to translate that into more success in 2023.
Young workers are accustomed to mental health checkups from the home coach and don’t want to give it up as their Big Tech bosses drag them back to the office. Preventative healthcare was a particular highlight, buoyed by innovations in detecting and managing chronic diseases.
Sustainability tech sustains momentum
Climate tech remains a hot category among young tech talent. While less capital flowed into the sector overall, median valuation grew 41% higher. The Inflation Reduction Act, which pledged $370B to combat climate change, should help the sector remain strong in 2023.
Across the globe, people are more focused than ever on environmental issues and committed to achieving net zero. Tech companies are responding with environmentally friendly products and processes that prove popular among consumers and talent alike.
Deloitte estimates that a “decarbonized economy” would save the U.S. $14T while adding another $3T to GDP. That presents a significant opportunity for new players in the sustainability space.
Keep an eye on AI
Artificial Intelligence is becoming more powerful, fast, and integrated into human lives by the day, with no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
Companies are utilizing AI to great success to increase productivity and profits, with 92% of large companies utilizing AI reporting returns on their AI investments.
AI also has the power to ease the stress felt by workers by eliminating menial tasks, in turn giving them the ability to focus on more thoughtful areas of their jobs.
Edtech’s pandemic boost
Edtech is one area that got a significant pandemic bump. That momentum continues as educators and families adapt to a generation of children familiar with remote learning. The industry is projected to grow to $100B by 2025.
More than 70% of colleges launched new online undergrad programs in the past couple of years and nearly two thirds of teachers in the U.S. use digital tools to teach every day. These trends are only expected to grow in the coming years.
From the Founders: Kristy Kim, TomoCredit
“We’re a very diverse team. We've been through the journey of not having a credit score at all and then building a 600, 700, 800 credit score... We're turning that learning into our current product. I think that really resonates with our audience. They can tell that we are building product for them.”
In this From the Founders interview, we hear from Kristy Kim from TomoCredit about her journey from first-generation American with no credit score, to investment banker, to startup founder leading diverse teams in fintech. Read more →
Companies in the news
- Boston, Mass.-based Foundation Devices, a computing company that develops Bitcoin accessibility tools, raised a $7M seed round led by Polychain Capital. The company offers a Bitcoin hardware wallet, a mobile app, and digital wallet which utilizes the Tor network for privacy.
- Monterrey, Mexico-based Kuona, a provider of an intelligent SaaS platform for consumer packaged goods and retailers, raised a $6M seed round led by Cometa. The company’s software allows users to optimize their pricing, trade promotions, and inventories using AI.
- Palo Alto, Calif.-based Ganymede Bio, a cloud infrastructure provider for life sciences and manufacturing industries, raised a $12.75M Series A led by Caffeinated Capital. The company’s Lab-as-Code technology integrates physical lab instruments, apps, data pipelines, and third-party partners together in a single cloud data layer.
- Munich-based Robco, a company building modular robots to automate processes, raised a $13.8M Series A led by Sequoia. Robco provides adaptable and connected full-stack robot automation solutions for repetitive manual worker tasks.
- Boston-based PaxeraHealth, a medical imaging, and AI developer, raised an undisclosed Series A led by Sopris Capital. The company’s medical imaging platform requires zero code and offers a means to expedite production of clinically validated imaging AI algorithms.
Hot startups hiring now
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