Milwaukee, Madison and Wisconsin

  • SPN Top 10:  Corporate Innovators that the region should know are here

    SPN Top 10: Corporate Innovators that the region should know are here

    In doing research for the Annual Report, Silicon Prairie News compiled corporate and university patent holders in each MSA. This led us to the discovery that there were a ton of innovative companies in the Midwest. Unfortunately, many in our region don’t know that these companies are doing so much research and are so innovative.…

  • Omaha based Faithbox® raises capital

    Omaha based Faithbox® raises capital

    Subscription box company Faithbox Inc. has recently completed a $1.35 million seed round to rapidly scale their core Faithbox product, which helps Christians stay on track with their faith. The funding will also support the explosive growth of their new “Powered by Faithbox” line of subscription boxes created in collaboration with Christian musicians, authors and…

  • Understory continues to grow

    Understory continues to grow

    On October 10, 2018, Understory, the Madison, Wisconsin based weather company, filed paperwork with the SEC recording a $6.5 million dollar raise. The company which relocated from Somerville, Massachusetts in 2016 provides real-time weather microgrids that help provide accurate information for geo-specific places. This technology can be used by insurance carriers to better understand localized…

  • 8Qs with a Silicon Prairie Founder: Alice Dittman

    8Qs with a Silicon Prairie Founder: Alice Dittman

    Alice M. Dittman began a long and successful career in banking in 1948, starting with a summer check filing job at what was then First National Bank of Lincoln, at fifty cents an hour. Alice received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Nebraska Lincoln in 1952; graduated from the Program of Business…

  • Madison-based TCare raises $385K of convertible debt funding

    Madison-based TCare raises $385K of convertible debt funding

    TCare, founded in 2014 and based in Madison, Wisconsin, has raised $385,000 in convertible debt funding from undisclosed investors in August. The company’s co-founders are Ali Ahmadi and Rhonda Montgomery, Ph.D. At a glance…. TCARE provides evidence-based software solutions aimed at helping caregivers of elderly and disabled loved ones, by improving the overall health of…

  • Health Myne raised $15M in series B venture capital in August

    Health Myne raised $15M in series B venture capital in August

    Health Myne raised $15 million in Series B venture capital in August, 2018.  The deal was led by Ascension Ventures, and 4490 Ventures. Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation and Venture Investors also participated in the round. HealthMyne plans to use the funds to expand its global commercialization efforts (1). The company was founded in 2013; Arvind…

  • Football season in America: Which Big 5 conference school reports the most research dollars?

    Football season in America: Which Big 5 conference school reports the most research dollars?

    In honor of the football season’s start, Silicon Prairie News did a quick review of the Association for University Technology Manager’s STATT database. This database contains the total research dollars reported by university campus (and/or system). SPN used this information to build averages of the amount of research done by university participant in the Big…

  • Engineered Propulsion Systems, Inc. receives VC funding

    Engineered Propulsion Systems, Inc. receives VC funding

    Engineered Propulsion Systems, Inc. (EPS) raised $1.52 million in venture capital in July 2018 from undisclosed investors. The raise included an undisclosed amount of convertible debt financing. The company, headquartered in New Richmond, Wisconsin, was co-founded in 2006 by Michael Fuchs, President and CEO, and Steven Weinzierl, Vice President and CTO. At a glance: EPS…

  • Gravy turns shopping into an interactive gaming experience

    Gravy turns shopping into an interactive gaming experience

    Gravy, a Madison, Wisconsin-based startup, is transforming mobile entertainment and brand advertising while donating money to nonprofits. And they’re doing it through a live shopping game for mobile devices. Innovating a new media format Gravy turns shopping into an interactive gaming experience by giving users the chance to compete for huge discounts on the newest…

  • Never Idle announces acquisition of Lincoln-based FleetRight, Inc.

    Never Idle announces acquisition of Lincoln-based FleetRight, Inc.

    Never Idle, a Wisconsin-based equipment marketplace designed by contractors, for contractors, recently announced the acquisition of FleetRight, Inc., which is now operating under that company name. Financial details of the acquisition were not disclosed. Founded in 2015 by Zach Schreiber, FleetRight, Inc. was established as Lincoln’s first trusted online community marketplace and auction platform dedicated…