Luck of the Midwest startups! 🍀💰

⏰ Midwest Minute 

Startups are often a mix of strategy, timing and—let’s be honest—some good old-fashioned luck. The Midwest has had its fair share of “pot of gold” moments, from unexpected pivots to last-minute funding saves. Take ExactTarget, which started as a small Indianapolis email marketing firm before Salesforce scooped it up for $2.5B—one of the biggest tech exits in the region. Or Duolingo, which went from a free language-learning app with no business model to a public company worth billions. Whether it’s a chance investor meeting or a well-timed industry shift, sometimes even the best startup strategies need a little four-leaf clover magic. You can find all the biggest exits in the Midwest from the past several years in the Best of the Midwest Startup City Rankings.

Speaking of luck, the Midwest knows how to celebrate it. Cities across the region go all out for St. Patrick’s Day, with Chicago dyeing the river green, Kansas City’s Snake Saturday Parade and Dublin, Ohio’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade. And make sure to mark your calendar for their iconic Dublin Irish Festival in August (of course, tickets go on sale on the St. Patrick’s Day). Milwaukee’s historic Irish pubs fill up, while St. Paul, Minnesota—home to one of the largest Irish-American populations—keeps things lively with a parade. Whether you’re raising a Guinness to a successful quarter or just hoping your March Madness bracket doesn’t implode, the Midwest is a great place to chase both luck and opportunity.

Have any insights into the Midwest ecosystem or a funding announcement to share? Want to share your “splitting the ‘G’” success story? Send us an email: [email protected] 

📰 Notable News

Exits

• Louisville-based Alani Nu was acquired by CELSIUS for $1.8B

• Chicago-based Sertifi was acquired by Flywire for $330M

• Cincinnati-based 80 Acres acquired Kalera for an undisclosed amount

• Indianapolis-based Pillar was acquired by Employ for an undisclosed amount

• Cincinnati-based Medality was acquired by TrueLearn for an undisclosed amount

Startup Funding

• Across Protocol - $41M round led by Paradigm | Chicago

• Vermillio - $16M round led by Sony Music Entertainment and DNS Capital | Chicago

• Goose - $13.4M Seed led by B Capital | Chicago

• GEM HEALTH - $7M Series A co-led by HealthTrend Capital and LFE Capital | Minneapolis

• Jord Bioscience - $7M Series B led by Silver Blue | St. Paul

• Upwell - $6.5M Seed led by Vertical Venture Partners | Omaha

• Proximity - $3M Seed led by LRVHealth | Chicago

• Arrellio - $2.6M Seed led by M25 with participation from Rex Salisbury and others | Columbus

• SimCare AI - $2M Seed led by YC and Drive Capital | Chicago

• Swell - $1.6M round from Keyhorse, Bluegrass Angels, PeakState Ventures, defy and Fairwater Labs | Louisville

• dScribe AI - $1.2M Pre-Seed from Abstraction Capital, Flyover Capital, Redbud, KCRise Fund and EquipmentShare | Overland Park, KS

• DARO - $1.1M Seed led by Invest Nebraska | Lincoln

• Solis Agrosciences - Undisclosed Series A from Cultivation Capital | St. Louis

VC Funds

• GTCR - $3.6B Strategic Growth FII | Chicago

• Awesome Inc. - $5M fund | Lexington

Other News

• How 1871's move out of the iconic Merchandise Mart reflects the shifting Chicago startup landscape

• Scoop: General Catalyst is considering an IPO

• Microsoft hangs up on Skype: Service to shut down May 5, 2025

• Bluesky-based Instagram alternative Flashes launches publicly

• Venture firm eyes Louisville for tech investments

• NXTUS announces 4th annual Customer Traction Cohort

• 12 Chicago startups to watch in 2025

• Commercial auto insurer HDVI raises $40 million as CEO steps down

📆 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]