S|W: The SaaS Weekly – Global rules for the internet?

Plus: Inside Twitter, Fears That Musk’s Views Will Revisit Past Troubles.

The SaaS Weekly is a weekly newsletter covering major SaaS news from Canada and around the globe.

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Shipfusion secures $51.2 million CAD to expand warehouse network to Dallas, New Jersey (BETAKIT)

Toronto-based fulfillment tech startup Shipfusion has secured $51.2 million CAD ($40 million USD) in a growth equity investment from Kayne Partners. As part of this financing, Leon Chen of Kayne Partners will join Shipfusion’s board of directors.


Canada, U.S. join 54 nations in signing commitment to set new global rules for the internet (THE GLOBE AND MAIL)

The United States and 55 other nations on Thursday signed a political commitment to push rules for the internet that are underpinned by democratic values, at a time when the U.S. has accused Russia of wielding internet disruptions as a part of its escalating attacks on Ukraine.


Userful secures $10 million for tech that centralizes brands’ visual network (BETAKIT)

Calgary-founded visual networking platform provider Userful has secured $10 million CAD in an all-equity investment round comprising new and returning investors.


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Harness Wrangles Up $3.7B Valuation After $230M Raise As Developer Tools Market Stays Hot (CRUNCHBASE)

San Francisco-based software delivery platform Harness closed a $230 million Series D at a valuation of $3.7 billion—more than doubling its valuation from January 2021.


Nasdaq-listed Thoughtworks acquires Toronto software product development firm Connected (BETAKIT)

American technology consultancy firm Thoughtworks has acquired Connected (formerly Connected Lab), a Toronto-based product development service company. Thoughtworks did not disclose the financial details of this transaction.


Inside Twitter, Fears That Musk’s Views Will Revisit Past Troubles (NEW YORK TIMES)

Content moderators warn that Elon Musk doesn’t appear to understand the issues that he and the company will face if he drops its guardrails around speech.


Yamaha Motor Ventures leads Verge Ag’s $7.5 million Series A round to scale precision farming tech (BETAKIT)

Yamaha Motor Ventures, the strategic business development and investment arm of Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd., has led Lethbridge-based Verge Ag’s $7.5 million Series A round.


Later acquired by US influencer marketing platform Mavrck (BETAKIT)

Mavrck used part of a recent $135 million strategic investment round to fund the deal. The capital came from Summit Partners and represents a follow-on to the equity investor’s $120 million investment to Mavrck in December.


SonarSource raises $412M to scan codebases for bugs and vulnerabilities (TECHCRUNCH)

Maintaining source code is one of the toughest challenges that software developers face. In a 2020 survey from Sourcegraph, 51 percent of developers said that they have more than 100 times the volume of code they had 10 years ago while 92 percent said the pressure to release software faster has increased.


How being open to feedback helped Stephany Lapierre scale TealBook (BETAKIT)

On the #CIBCInnovationEconomy podcast, Lapierre explained how feedback became critical to her success with TealBook and her response to critics who say she listens to too much feedback.


Hockey Canada partner Spordle acquires Vancouver-based HiSports (BETAKIT)

Sports management SaaS startup Spordle has acquired its British Columbia competitor HiSports. The move will make Spordle a leading provider of all minor hockey in BC.


Netflix Employees Press for Extra Grants as Stock Drop Wipes Out Option Value (THE INFORMATION)

Netflix’s stock collapse this week has wiped out the value of all stock options issued to company employees since 2018. It didn’t take long for employees to complain: At a staff meeting the day after the company’s earnings report on Tuesday, employees pressed the company to consider issuing extra option grants to offset losses, as a morale booster, according to people familiar with the situation.


Part3 closes $625,000 to help architects manage construction projects (BETAKIT)

Toronto-based Part3 is part of a growing group of Canadian tech startups that have sought to service the historically slow to innovate construction sector. Part3 targets a group it believes is underserved by existing solutions: architects.


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