It’s that time of year… 🎃

⏰ Midwest Minute 

From abandoned hospitals to ghostly hotels, the Midwest has more chills than a Lake Superior breeze. Iowa’s Villisca Ax Murder House still hosts overnight stays for anyone brave enough to sleep where a century-old mystery lingers. Chicago’s Congress Plaza Hotel has earned the title of most haunted in Illinois, allegedly home to Al Capone’s ghost and a few uninvited long-term guests. Over in Michigan’s Mackinac Island, visitors swear they hear phantom footsteps in the halls of the Grand Hotel. And if you’re up for a true road trip of terror, Ohio’s Ohio State Reformatory (aka the Shawshank prison) runs ghost hunts all October long.

Of course, not all haunts are truly haunted—some just have great drink specials and sticky floors. In Bloomington, it’s Nick’s English Hut where students and alumni will be piling in this weekend as IU looks to maintain it’s winning record. Madison students migrate to Wando’s for fishbowls to jump around, while Michigan State fans swear by Crunchy’s. Over in Columbia, Harpo’s remains a Mizzou legend, and in Champaign, KAMS is the unofficial headquarters for those wearing orange and blue. Everyone’s got their haunt—and a few Midwestern spots topped the list this year. Every Midwesterner has their own neighborhood haunt: the dive bar that never changes, the late-night diner that somehow still takes cash, that one Culver’s where they know your order by heart or the pothole that has eaten a couple hundred tires since April. Whether you’re chasing ghosts or just last call, the Midwest knows how to keep its haunts lively.

Have any insights into the Midwest ecosystem or a funding announcement to share? Want to share your favorite Midwest haunt? Send us an email: [email protected] 

📰 Notable News

Featured

• Qwyn AI is on a Mission to Empower Life Sciences Innovators to Deliver Life-saving Therapies and Devices

Exits

• St. Louis-based SteadyMD acquired by DocGo for an undisclosed amount

• Indianapolis-based OneCause acquired by Bonterra for an undisclosed amount

Startup Funding

• HistoSonics - $250M Growth Financing from Thiel Bio, Founders Fund and others | Minneapolis

• Peptilogics - $78M Series B2 led by Presight Capital, Thiel Bio and Founders Fund | Pittsburgh

• Sibel Health - $9M Series C Extension from strategic investors | Chicago

• MediView - $24M Series A led by GE Healthcare | Cleveland

• Gravwell - $15M Series A led by Two Bear Capital | Minneapolis

• Letter AI - $10.6M Series A led by Mark Roberge | Chicago

• NxLite - $9.2M Series A led by Crabtree Lane Alt | Canton, MI + Toronto

• Plastomics - $5.8M Series B from local investors | St. Louis 

• Sonic Fire Tech - $3.5M round from Khosla Ventures and Third Sphere | Cleveland

• Luster - $3M Seed co-led by Ivy Ventures and HIgh Alpha | Indianapolis

• Pavewise - $2.5M Seed led by C2 Ventures | Bismarck, ND

Other News

• Q3 2025 PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor

• 19 companies to share in $1.6M in Arch Grants funding

• Long Chicago revives local Techstars program — here's how

• UC Investments’ Big 10 offer allows teams to buy down ownership stakes

• Amazon identifies the issue that broke much of the internet, says AWS is back to normal

• Pittsburgh region’s nuclear industry preps for an AI-driven renaissance

• Job Interviews Are Broken

• I Test Drove a Flying Car. Get Ready, They’re Here.

• The Iron Bubble: Why defense tech might not be overhyped

• PitchBook Analyst Note: AI's Impact on Supply Chains

• Deel reaches $17.3 billion valuation amid ongoing legal battle

Have exciting news to share? If you're announcing a funding round, exit or other milestone, send your press release to [email protected] to be featured. While we can’t share everything, we love to feature great stories from across the region.

📆 Mark your Calendar

Need to fill your social calendar? We’ve scoured newsletters, scanned LinkedIn and found some of the latest tech + startup events in the region. Know of any upcoming events and want to share them in our next newsletter? Send us an email: [email protected]