Meta is shutting down a video speed-dating service it had tested over a good part of last year, the company informed the service’s users via a recent email. Last April, the company formerly known as Facebook confirmed it was testing a new dating service called Sparked, which was developed by its in-house incubator, the NPE […]
Amazon workers at two Chicago warehouses walk out to demand better treatment
This morning, dozens of warehouse workers at two Amazon facilities near Chicago staged a pre-Christmas walkout during the busiest time of the year to demand better treatment and higher wages. “We have been passed over for raises. We are being overworked, even when there is sufficient people to work here,” a worker at the DLN2 […]
Stacked raises $35M to bring passive investing tools to retail crypto traders
Stacked, a web-based platform that provides passive investment tools for retail investors interested in crypto, just announced it raised a $35 million Series A co-led by Alameda Research, a crypto trading firm owned by FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried. Bybit and BitDAO partner Mirana Ventures co-led the round alongside Alameda. Fidelity International Strategic Ventures, DRW Venture […]
ThreeFlow raises $45 million to scale its employee benefits placement software
ThreeFlow, which provides software for insurance brokers selling employee benefits, announced today that it raised $45 million in Series B funding. New investor Accel led the round alongside existing investors Emergence Capital, Equal Ventures, and First Trust Capital Partners. The Chicago-based company, formerly known as WatchTower, raised $8 million for its Series A round in […]
UserGems raises $20M to take on ZoomInfo to help with prospecting and sales intelligence
Finding a way to connect with people who might buy from you, while spending less time pursuing those who will never be interested, is something akin to a holy grail of the world of sales and marketing. Now, a startup called UserGems, which has built a platform that combines AI with data mapping to help […]
An insurgency of its own making at Bloodshot Records
After sexual misconduct allegations, mounting unpaid royalties, one of its founding partners resigning and another “walking away,” Chicago independent music label Bloodshot Records seemed to be shutting down. Independent music company Exceleration Musi…
Vertical Oceans aims to grow sustainable shrimp in huge ‘aqua towers’ inside cities
John Diener, the CEO of an aquaculture nutrition and genetics company, would visit hundreds of shrimp farms as part of his job. But gradually he became frustrated by some of the environmentally unsustainable practices used in many locations. One night, his wife bought some frozen shrimp to cook for dinner and he realized the industry […]
Stable raises $46.5M in Greycroft-led round to help businesses manage ‘volatile’ commodity prices
Stable, an insurtech aiming to help minimize a businesses’ risk due to volatile commodity prices, today announced it has raised $46.5 million in a Series A round of funding led by Greycroft. Notion Capital, Anthemis, Continental Grain and existing backers Syngenta and Ascot also participated in the financing, which brings the Chicago-based startup’s total raised […]
Bear Down, Arlington Bears
The Chicago Bears announced their purchase of the former Arlington International Racecourse with the intention of building a new stadium in the city’s northwest suburbs. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot considers the announcement a negotiating tactic and s…
The Great Calamity of the Age
An oral history of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, compiled from eyewitness accounts by Robert Loerzel.