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Attabotics secures $95 million CAD from EDC, Ontario Teachers’ to scale its warehouse robots (BETAKIT)
Over the past six and a half years, Calgary-based 3D robotics supply chain firm Attabotics has focused its efforts on turning what began as a blank sheet of paper into a commercialized warehouse automation system for retailers.
With its tech finally ready and $95 million CAD ($71.7 million USD) in fresh “Series C-1” funding, Attabotics founder and CEO Scott Gravelle said the startup is prepared to start scaling.
Carvana Plans to Lay Off 1,500 Employees, Citing Economic Concerns (THE WALL STREET JOURNAL)
The workforce reductions come as the online used-car retailer faces economic headwinds and an uncertain future, Chief Executive Ernie Garcia said in the memo. The move also adds to the 2,500 employees the company, based in Tempe, Ariz., planned to lay off earlier this year after it overshot its growth strategy.
Former SkipTheDishes COO Howard Migdal steps up to the plate as food delivery firm’s new CEO (BETAKIT)
Migdal brings over 16 years of experience in food delivery to his new role at SkipTheDishes. He was one of two entrepreneurs who founded GrubCanada, which claims to be the country’s first national food delivery platform. He spent the last four years leading SkipTheDishes in the roles of COO and managing director.
E-scooter pioneer Bird warns over future amid cash squeeze (THE FINANCIAL TIMES)
Bird became the fastest start-up to reach a $1bn “unicorn” valuation in 2018, but is now fighting for survival after warning investors it had overstated its historical revenues by tens of millions of dollars.
Canadian tech layoffs continue as tough year comes to a close (BETAKIT)
Properly, TealBook, D2L, Symend, and League have all made layoffs in recent weeks. Along with recent cuts by Apollo Insurance, Faire, Swift Medical, VanHack, and Koho, these moves indicate that Canadian tech companies across verticals and geographies continue to feel the pressure of challenging market conditions.
Alibaba Posts Surprise Loss as China Covid Curbs Take a Toll (BNN BLOOMBERG)
China’s e-commerce leader reported a net loss of 20.6 billion yuan ($2.9 billion) versus projections for a profit of almost the same amount, after it marked down the value of investments across a portfolio that spans Didi Global Inc. to Indonesia’s GoTo. Its shares fell 3% in early trading in New York.
Amazon layoffs hit Canadian teams, according to LinkedIn posts (BETAKIT)
According to some LinkedIn posts, Canadians have been part of the cuts. The posts indicate that those affected include developers for Alexa, Amazon’s voice-controlled assistant device.
JD Reports Higher Quarterly Sales, Defying China Downturn Fears (BNN BLOOMBERG)
Sales rose 11% from a year earlier to 243.5 billion yuan ($34.2 billion) in the quarter ending in September, the company said in a statement on Friday. That compared to the average forecast of 243.1 billion yuan from analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. The Beijing-based company logged net income of 6 billion yuan, improving on a 2.8 billion yuan loss the previous year with cost-cutting efforts.
The painful changes that helped GSoft scale from zero revenue to $100 million ARR (BETAKIT)
GSoft is one such centaur, hitting $100 million ARR in 2021 and on track to grow that revenue base in 2022, with plans to hire over 200 new employees across Canada this year.
But hitting this rare startup milestone required making a lot of painful and difficult decisions.
Nobul, Hopper top Deloitte Canada’s fastest growing startups lists for 2022 (BETAKIT)
Anders McKenzie, a partner and national leader for the Technology Fast 50 program at Deloitte Canada argued that the 2022 companies stand as a testament to how the Canadian tech sector is currently thriving.
“Despite unpredictable economic and global climates, tech companies from around the country are seizing new opportunities and meeting rapidly evolving market demands,” he said.
Justice Dept. Is Said to Investigate Ticketmaster’s Parent Company (THE NEW YORK TIMES)
Members of the antitrust division’s staff at the Justice Department have in recent months contacted music venues and players in the ticket market, asking about Live Nation’s practices and the wider dynamics of the industry, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is sensitive. The inquiry appears to be broad, looking at whether the company maintains a monopoly over the industry, one of the people said.
Canada’s 2022 Developer 30 Under 30 (BETAKIT)
The Developer 30 Under 30 is a recurring list that recognizes some of the top developers based in Canada. WeaveSphere also added a new award for this year’s conference, which honours 20 technology leaders in the country.
Investors Cool on Internet-of-Things Startups, a Tech Conduit for Retailers (THE WALL STREET JOURNAL)
Many stores, which came to rely on software-connected systems during the Covid-19 pandemic, are now leveraging these capabilities to eke out efficiencies that can help keep prices down amid stubbornly high inflation and rising interest rates, industry analysts said.
WeaveSphere’s 2022 Tech Titans list names 20 tech leaders in Canada (BETAKIT)
Named Tech Titans: Top 20 of 2022, this new award honours people in the tech ecosystem that have disrupted the industry through technology, led a digital transformation to deliver business value, and enable growth in client relationships.
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