A rare cool front has blown through Texas—it’s in the low 60s and breezy in Houston in mid-May—so here’s a quick-and-dirty roundup of innovation news so you can spend the rest of your time outside and enjoy the weather.
—Compare Metrics in Austin, TX, announced it had completed a $3.8 million fundraise Wednesday. The company, which has a software platform that it says helps retailers better connect with their customers, has raised a total of $8 million since its founding in 2012. Investors included Austin Ventures, Julie Allegro of Allegro Venture Partners, and Bob Greene of Contour Ventures.
—Cypress Growth Capital, a Dallas-based investment management firm, said last week it had raised a $50 million royalty-based fund. The firm said it was looking to make investments in the $1 million to $5 million range in technology companies with revenues of $3 million to $20 million.
—Zebra Imaging last week completed a $5 million fundraise. The Austin, TX-based company, founded in 1996, produces technology that allows 3-D images to be seen without special glasses. Its first customers were in the automotive industry and the company has since branched out into military and retail applications.
