Onfleet is a tech startup that uses logistics management software and route optimization to power last mile delivery services for thousands of companies across a wide range of industries. We recently spoke with Mikel Carmenes Cavia—Onfleet’s Co-Founder and VP of Engineering—to learn more about his company’s work optimizing last mile delivery operations, policy concerns related to the legal delivery of cannabis, and how a European court decision last year invalidating the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield has impacted their business.
#StartupsEverywhere: Bellevue, Wash.
#StartupsEverywhere: Durham, N.C.
Courtroom5 is a Durham-based startup that provides automated legal support to people representing themselves in civil court. We recently spoke with the Co-Founder and CEO, Sonja Ebron, to learn more about her background, the company’s use of artificial intelligence, and what policymakers can do to address funding disparities.
#StartupsEverywhere: Detroit, Mich.
Based in the Motor City, Alerje is a health management startup focused on improving the lives of people living with food allergies. We spoke with Javier Evelyn, the Founder and CEO of Alerje, to learn more about his startup’s efforts to help people coping with food allergies, his experiences as a Black founder, and his thoughts on what makes Detroit such a unique city in which to launch a startup.
#StartupsEverywhere: Atlanta, Ga.
With Georgia becoming a global destination for film and television production, an Atlanta-based startup named Productions.com (formerly known as Film Connx) is working to promote diversity and simplify the hiring process within the production industry—in the Peach State and beyond—by connecting stakeholders with local and vetted production professionals. We recently spoke with Carolyn Pitt, the CEO and Founder of Productions.com, to learn more about her startup’s role as a job marketplace for productions, the challenges she’s experienced as a Black founder, and the steps that policymakers should take to support more equitable investments in early-stage companies.
#StartupsEverywhere: Traverse City, Mich.
SampleServe is a startup that’s helping field technicians, laboratories, and consultants streamline the collection and testing of environmental samples by using a digital chain of custody process to quickly turn testing data into reports. We recently spoke with Russell Schindler, the Founder and CEO of SampleServe, to learn more about his startup’s work, his thoughts on crowdfunding, and his plans for branching out into new markets.
#StartupsEverywhere: Iowa City, Iowa
Journimap L3C is a social enterprise startup and cloud-based application that uses qualitative research methods and ethnography concepts to map out the experiences and journeys of patients, customers, service workers, and others. We spoke with the Founder and CEO of Journimap, John Corrigan, to learn more about his startup’s work, how the pandemic has affected his business, and why net neutrality and social business models are important.
Startup News Digest 12/11/20
The Big Story: Congress must act after Privacy Shield rollback leaves startups without certainty. A Senate panel held a hearing this week to examine ways of creating a new transatlantic data transfer pact after Europe’s top court struck down the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield earlier this year. The cross-border data pact allowed U.S. companies to process and store European users’ data in America, and the rollback of the agreement is already having adverse effects for thousands of startups and tech companies.
Digital Services Taxes Will Harm Startups Across the World
TLDR: As intergovernmental organizations and countries continue to discuss implementing their own digital services tax (DST) frameworks on multinational Internet companies, France has notified large online platforms that they must begin paying the country’s levy this month while Canada recently announced plans to impose its own DST. Although most DSTs under consideration—as well as those that have already been implemented—target large, mostly U.S.-based tech companies, the startup community remains concerned that the burden of the taxes will be passed on to smaller companies and users in the form of increased costs for products and services.
Startup News Digest 12/04/20
The Big Story: Courts deal blows to White House policies limiting foreign-born talent. Two court rulings this week struck serious blows to the Trump administration’s efforts to restrict legal immigration and limit U.S. companies’ access to foreign-born talent. But while the incoming Biden administration is likely to reverse course on many of President Donald Trump’s immigration policies, entrepreneurs and U.S. tech companies remain concerned about the White House’s ongoing efforts to clamp down on visa programs for high-skilled workers—like H-1B visas—that are vital to the U.S. tech sector.
#StartupsEverywhere: Las Vegas, Nev.
Based in Las Vegas, Door to Door Health is an early-stage healthcare startup that’s using technology integrated with in-person medical care to improve primary medical care services for lower-income households. We spoke with David Crane—the CEO of Door to Door Health—to learn more about his startup’s mission, how technology can be used to improve healthcare, and the steps that policymakers can take to incentivize more private investments in startups.
Limiting High-Skilled Visas Hurts U.S. Startups
TLDR: As the technology industry looks to President-elect Joe Biden to overturn the Trump administration’s immigration policies limiting access to high-skilled foreign talent, startups are continuing to pressure Congress to defend and expand the H-1B visa program. Tech companies rely upon the contributions of high-skilled foreign-born workers to drive innovation, but limiting access to this talent—particularly during the pandemic—could harm the long-term growth of U.S. startups.
Startup News Digest 11/20/20
The Big Story: FCC opens up unlicensed spectrum for Wi-Fi. The Federal Communications Commission voted this week to free up spectrum in the 5.9 GHz band for unlicensed use, a move that will add 45 MHz to the 5GHz spectrum band currently used for Wi-Fi networks. The spectrum had been allocated to the U.S. Department of Transportation nearly two decades ago but had been largely unused. The move to open up spectrum in the 5.9 GHz band will increase Internet speeds and connectivity once devices are able to support it, largely because it’s near the portion of the 5GHz band already used for Wi-Fi. And, as FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly noted in a statement, “most equipment will be able to take advantage of this spectrum with only a quick software upgrade.”
#StartupsEverywhere: Broomfield, Colo.
Broomfield-based startup niolabs provides a platform for users and companies to create, design, and deploy their own distributed computing systems. We recently spoke with niolabs’ CEO, Doug Standley, to learn more about the startup’s work, the importance of application programming interfaces (APIs) and interoperability, and how policymakers can work to reduce unnecessary administrative burdens on early-stage companies.
Despite Big Tech Focus, Startups Stand to Lose in 230 Debate
TLDR: A Senate panel is holding a hearing this morning with the CEOs of Facebook and Twitter to discuss Section 230 and allegations of political bias in the context of the 2020 presidential election. Although policymakers are continuing to scrutinize Section 230 because of supposed censorship by the largest tech companies, any changes to the law would have an outsized impact on U.S. startups that rely on the bedrock Internet law in order to host and moderate user content without the fear of potentially crippling lawsuits.
#StartupsEverywhere: Warner Robins, Ga.
Infiltron is a veteran-founded startup that uses software and other solutions to safeguard personal information—especially biometric data and data on Internet-connected devices—from outside intrusion. We recently spoke with Infiltron’s Founder and CTO, Chasity Wright, to learn more about her startup’s work, how her experience in the Air Force shaped her entrepreneurial journey, and how her company is working to mitigate some of the risks and concerns associated with the use of facial recognition.
Congress Turns Attention Back to COVID Relief During Lame-Duck Session
TLDR: As Congress returns to work following President-elect Joe Biden’s victory last week, policymakers may finally be turning their attention back to providing economic relief to Americans affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Small businesses and U.S. workers have already waited months for policymakers to offer a viable stimulus package, and it’s well past time for lawmakers to unite behind a proposal that provides long-term support for the nation’s startup ecosystem.
Startup News Digest 11/06/20
The Big Story: Online platforms in the spotlight over election claims. With temperatures running high over the election, Internet companies have found themselves again in the spotlight for their content moderation decisions, especially amid premature claims of victory and unsubstantiated claims about voter fraud.
#StartupsEverywhere: Fresno, Calif.
Fresno-based startup BeeHero uses sensors and machine learning to monitor the health of beehives and help farmers maximize their crop yields by tracking the pollination process. We spoke with BeeHero CEO and Co-Founder Omer Davidi to learn more about his startup’s work, how the pandemic has upended the farming industry, and why it’s important for policymakers to provide access to the capital startups need to reach consumers and hone their products.
Startup News Digest 10/30/20
The Big Story: Where Trump and Biden stand on tech policy. With the election in full swing, President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden are wrapping up their respective campaigns. Ahead of the impending election, we wanted to take a look at where the major party candidates stand on some critical tech and startup issues.
