Catherine Shu
Senior Reporter
The Latest from Catherine Shu
Employee engagement platform Culture Amp raises $100M at a $1.5B valuation
Culture Amp was founded in 2009 to let companies conduct anonymous employee surveys, but since then, its focus has expanded to helping employers turn the data they collect into action.
Japanese sneaker platform SODA raises $56.4M, acquires rival Monokabu
SODA runs SNKRDUNK, one of Japan’s largest sneaker reselling platforms with about 2.5 million monthly users.
INKR draws in $3.1M to make more comics accessible to worldwide audiences
INKR is a digital comics platform that crosses cultural and language divides, enabling creators to reach global audiences with its proprietary localization technology. Previously bootstrapped, the com
Shikho, an edtech startup focused on Bangladesh’s students, gets $1.3M seed
In Bangladesh, students often rely on after-school learning centers for study help or test preparation, but many of the best ones are concentrated in major cities. Edtech startup Shikho was created to
Greywing launches Crew Change to help shipping companies navigate COVID-19 regulations
For fleet managers, managing shipping crew changes across different countries is an elaborate process even in the best of times — and now is definitely not the best of times. Greywing, a Y Combinato
Rocketium raises $3.2M to help creative teams create massive marketing campaigns
In between A/B testing, customizing targeted ads and formatting for different digital platforms, some design teams are tasked with campaigns that include thousands of images, videos and other visual c
Indonesia-based grocery app HappyFresh reaps $65M led by Naver Financial and Gafina
HappyFresh, the on-demand grocery app based in Indonesia, announced today it has raised a $65 million Series D. The round was led by Naver Financial Corporation and Gafina B.V., with participation fro
Freightify lands $2.5M to make rate management easier for freight forwarders
Freight forwarders often keep track of rates on spreadsheets they email to customers, but the pandemic has made that difficult because prices are constantly fluctuating. Freightify, a startup that ref
Indonesian B2B marketplace GudangAda raises more than $100M in new funding
GudangAda, a Jakarta-based marketplace that brings wholesalers closer to retail stores and other buyers, announced it has closed a Series B of more than $100 million. The company says the round was ov
Indonesia “sea-to-table” platform Aruna hooks $35M led by Prosus and East Ventures Growth Fund
When Aruna’s founders first met at university, they wanted to find a way to use their studies in information technology to help family members who were running small fisheries. Indonesia is one of t
Outplay gets $7.3M from Sequoia Capital India to help outbound sales team scale their campaigns
Outbound sales managers typically rely on high volumes of inquiries to find customers, but this means that their revenue is often in proportion to the size of their team. Outplay helps them scale more
UTEC launches a new initiative to help deep tech founders commercialize their work
The University of Tokyo Edge Capital Partners (UTEC) is launching a new program to address a problem the venture capital fund says many deep tech founders face. They may raise pre-seed capital from an
Employment Hero gets $140M AUD Series E led by Insight Partners, grows valuation to $800M AUD
Four months after announcing its last round, Employment Hero has closed another $140 million AUD (about $103 million USD) in funding. The Series E was led by Insight Partners, the venture capital firm
Fitness app HealthifyMe to expand worldwide after raising $75M Series C from LeapFrog and Khosla Ventures
People shopping around for a fitness app already have a plethora of choices from which to pick: MyFitnessPal, Noom and Lifesum, to name a few. Founded in India, HealthifyMe is betting that users aroun
Kdan Mobile gets $16M Series B for its cloud-based content and productivity tools
Kdan Mobile, a company that provides a wide range of cloud-based software, including AI-based tech for organizing documents, has raised a $16 million Series B. The round was led by South Korea-based D
Kamereo gets $4.6M to connect farmers and F&B businesses in Vietnam
While working as the chief operating officer of a pizza chain in Vietnam, Taku Tanaka saw how difficult it is for restaurants to connect with farmers. Many small F&B businesses can’t buy in larg
Singapore-based Tinvio raises $12M Series A to build financial services for supply chain merchants
First created to give supply chain merchants a streamlined way to communicate with buyers, Tinvio is now preparing to launch financial services, including financing and credit card issuing. The Singap
Easy Eat AI raises $5M to help Southeast Asian restaurants digitize their operations
Easy Eat AI, a Singapore-based startup that wants to “transform restaurants into technology companies,” announced today it has raised $5 million in funding. Easy Eat AI offers an operating system
YC-backed Deskimo, an on-demand coworking space app, launches in Singapore and Hong Kong
Part of Y Combinator’s current batch, Deskimo wants to make finding coworking spaces easier. Its on-demand booking app is currently available in Singapore and Hong Kong, with plans to enter more mar
Next Gen Foods to launch its plant-based chicken in the US after raising a $20M seed extension from investors like GGV
Singapore-based Next Gen Foods will bring its plant-based chicken alternative to the United States after raising a $20 million seed extension. Investors included GGV Capital, agriculture and food-tech