Amplify Community Update 7/16/24

FloQast, the leading provider of accounting workflow automation and close management software, announced their $100M Series E led by ICONIQ Growth, with participation from BDT & MSD Partners, World Innovation Lab (WiL), Meritech Capital, and Sapphire Ventures. CEO Mike Whitmire emphasized the importance of this investment in driving the company’s mission to streamline the accounting industry through automation. “FloQast can be a catalyst for accelerated financial transformation, starting with the automation of routine, repetitive tasks to empower finance and accounting teams to increase efficiency, enhance accuracy, and minimize compliance risks.” Since 2013, FloQast's platform has been adopted by more than 2,600 teams globally and the company is now doing upwards of $100M in ARR. This new funding will allow FloQast to continue enhancing its platform capabilities and further broaden its market reach.

Volley, the leading creator of voice and AI-enabled games, announced their $55M Series C co-led by Microsoft’s M12 Ventures and Lightspeed Venture Partners, with participation from General Catalyst, Causeway Media Partners, the Amazon Alexa Fund, BITKRAFT Ventures, Y Combinator, and others. Volley has been growing rapidly of late - driven in part by an immense boom in voice modalities as a vector for AI usage and entertainment. Volley allows users to engage in the highest quality gaming content available across smart speaker platforms, connected TV, mobile, and more. This new funding will allow Volley to invest further in creating advanced LLM-powered non-player characters and best-in-class speech recognition. Volley's AI voice interface—rather than traditional touch screens or handheld game controllers—makes Volley's games instantly accessible to a broad audience and has been played in over 30 million homes and counting.

Lensabl, the one-stop-shop for all things optical online, has been strategically acquired by Visibly, a leading healthcare technology company. This acquisition is not just about expanding services but about enhancing the digital eye care offerings to benefit customers the most. “Having worked with Visibly for years, we believe by joining forces, our complimentary offerings can help their existing customers provide a more comprehensive range of vision services to the end-consumer” said Andy Bilinsky, CEO of Lensabl. This acquisition marks a significant step towards making quality vision care more accessible and efficient for everyone. 

Vendorflow, business texting and messaging automation for logistics, announced an exciting new client: The Port of Virginia, America’s Most Modern Gateway. Their partnership will help The Port of Virginia to further improve operational alerts and messaging capabilities that promote best-in-class safety and operational efficiency for the thousands of truck drivers and key stakeholders who work with the port every day. Together, Vendorflow and The Port of Virginia are delivering timely alerts leveraging texting tech that enhances leading customer service and operational excellence for the community.

Upwards, (formerly WeeCare), the leading national childcare network and care benefits company, announced the expansion of Upwards’ Military Childcare program to U.S. Army National Guard families in 20 states.This builds on the program’s success supporting United States Army Reserve families over the past 10 months, and aligns with their nearly 7-year commitment to ensuring quality childcare for all families.

SafeRide Health, a digital health platform that enables providers to facilitate medically qualified non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT) for patients, was highlighted on CNBC for its pioneering work with AI. When CNBC asked Primetime Partners Chairperson and Co-Founder Alan Patricof about companies leading in AI use, he cited SafeRide Health from their portfolio. “They have 99% [fulfillment] reliability,” he said. “How do they do it? With very sophisticated internal technology.” SafeRide Health employs a technology-first approach to NEMT, disrupting the industry with enhanced member experiences, best-in-class transparency, and continuous innovation.

Robbins Schrader, CEO and Co-Founder of SafeRide Health, was awarded the EY Entrepreneur Of The  Year® 2024 Gulf South Award! The Entrepreneur of the Year award is the preeminent competitive awards program for entrepreneurs and leaders of high-growth companies. "It's an honor to be named an Entrepreneur Of The Year," said Robbins Schrader, CEO and Co-Founder of SafeRide Health. "This is a reflection of the team at SafeRide Health—every line of code, ride dispatched, patient/member supported. This is a team win. SafeRide Health unlocks free, seamless transportation to life-sustaining care for millions of vulnerable Americans in partnership with the nation's largest health plans. We help America beat addiction, cancer, and so many other serious challenges. We're happy to be a part of the solution."

Paul Bricault was named to this year’s Los Angeles Business Journals LA 500 for the 9th time! Paul was recognized in the Tech section for his continued work as Amplify's co-founder and managing partner, along with his commendable work for USC’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism.

Dr. Jessica Nouhavandi, Co-Founder of Honeybee Health, was also awarded a spot on the Los Angeles Business Journal’s LA 500. A list of the year’s most influential people in L.A. Dr. Jessica Nouhavandi is featured in the Health Care section for her work as the co-founder and lead pharmacist of Honeybee Health, an accredited online pharmacy that, from 2020 through 2022, was the fastest-growing private company in Los Angeles County. 

Kory Kelly, CEO and Co-Founder of Legal Karma, was named Start-Up Leader of the Year in Austin,TX at DivInc’s 6th Annual Champions of Change Awards. Legal Karma is building a world where banks and credit unions are the providers of legal products (Wills, trusts, and LLC formations) and, by the end of summer, will serve over 3 million members US-wide. It’s no surprise that as Start-Up Leader of the Year, Kory Kelly credited his fantastic team! He said, “The best part of my job is working with my teammates (the Legal Karmanites!), and they're the real stars of the show. It meant even more to me that our all-star teammate Jo Moore accepted the award on my behalf. She's the perfect example of the team and culture we've built here -- she made us all proud!” Check out the acceptance speech here

The Amplify team has been busy connecting with the community over the past few months and growing our VC friendships across borders. We have hosted dinners in Austin, Canada, and LA, to name a few. We also want to bring attention to our ongoing quarterly event series in partnership with Struck Capital called “The Rising Venture Circle.” This event series is for non-partner-level people in the VC community to help foster relationships in dynamic event settings. At Amplify, we are dedicated to growing a community that amplifies everyone. 

Check out our latest Job Board on the Amplify Website! Find the latest job openings and positions throughout our entire portfolio. you can apply directly, or if you know anyone who could be a fit, feel free to pass it along!