Latest news with #TouringCapital
AU Financial Review
06-05-2025
- Business
- AU Financial Review
How digital business cards led to the creation of a $200m business
An Australian start-up that is trying to become the default option as a business card for the digital era has pulled in major US investment that values the company at $200 million, after global user numbers surged to over 2.5 million. It may sound like a simple idea, but Blinq has turned an entrepreneur's hunch that a dynamic digital contact profile could replace the centuries-old calling card, into a viable business that has just closed a $US25 million ($38.7 million) funding round, led by US-based Touring Capital.
AU Financial Review
06-05-2025
- Business
- AU Financial Review
How updating business cards has created a $200m Australian business
An Australian start-up that is trying to become the default option as a business card for the digital era has pulled in major US investment that values the company at $200 million, after global user numbers surged to over 2.5 million. It may sound like a simple idea, but Blinq has turned an entrepreneur's hunch that a dynamic digital contact profile could replace the centuries-old calling card, into a viable business that has just closed a $US25 million ($38.7 million) funding round, led by US-based Touring Capital.
TechCrunch
06-05-2025
- Business
- TechCrunch
Blinq lands $25M to further its mission to make business cards passé
It's 2025, but business cards are still in vogue — just visit any conference or industry expo and you'll end up with a pile that's likely to be discarded sooner than later. But as smartphones have become our repositories of information and contacts, people are understandably keen to try out digital alternatives to business cards. Blinq, a startup out of Melbourne, bet that trend would take off when it started off as a hobby project in 2017, offering a digital business card app with a QR-code widget. Today, the company is making off with a bag of gold: It now has more than 2.5 million users — both individual customers and across 500,000 companies in the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and Australia. Off the back of that progress, the startup has now raised a $25 million Series A funding round led by Touring Capital. Returning backers Blackbird Ventures and Square Peg Capital also participated in the round, as did new investor HubSpot Ventures. '[The Blinq's QR] was a simple, personal way to share who you are, and it worked well between iPhone users. But it wasn't until late 2019 when most Android devices caught up on QR scanning, and adoption started to grow,' Jerrod Webb, CEO and founder of Blinq, told TechCrunch. 'Then came COVID — QR codes went mainstream, in-person meetings became more intentional, and Blinq's focus on making those moments seamless and memorable started to take off.' The startup has taken the B2C2B route ever since. The app lets users create several customized digital business cards for different needs and connect with contacts using them. The app can also automatically capture details and sync them with CRM systems such as HubSpot or Salesforce by using QR codes, email signatures, NFCs, short links, or video call backgrounds. Blinq is used by individuals, small businesses, and global enterprises, and 80% of its customer base is located in the U.S., Webb said. Its team has scaled from five employees based in Melbourne to 67 across Sydney, Melbourne, New York, and San Francisco, supporting its product development and go-to-market efforts. 'Every time someone uses Blinq, they're introducing it to someone new. And further, we see more frequent usage by active users the longer they're on the platform,' Webb said. 'That built-in virality drives organic growth and keeps our customer acquisition costs low. On the business side, companies pay per seat. As more employees adopt the product, teams grow organically, creating expansion revenue over time.' Techcrunch event Exhibit at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot at TC Sessions: AI and show 1,200+ decision-makers what you've built — without the big spend. Available through May 9 or while tables last. Exhibit at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot at TC Sessions: AI and show 1,200+ decision-makers what you've built — without the big spend. Available through May 9 or while tables last. Berkeley, CA | BOOK NOW Blinq competes with several companies providing similar digital business card services, including Mobilo, Popl, Wave, and Wix. Of course, the app also has to contend with social networking platforms like LinkedIn, landing pages, and services like Linketree. But Webb feels Blink is more suited to building relationships, and provides users more ways to follow up and engage with new contacts. Webb sees digital business cards as more than just an endpoint. 'They're our wedge. Because when you are the trusted tool at the moment a relationship begins, you earn the right to shape what follows. We're focused on giving people everything they need to turn first impressions into real momentum — from dynamic, context-rich profiles to smart ways to stay top of mind. That means expanding into new markets, deepening our presence with businesses and enterprises, and continuing to evolve how people connect in a world that's changing fast.'
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Powered by $43M in Series C Funding, SafelyYou Tackles Senior Living's Critical Need for Predictive Care with AI Solution
Touring Capital leads the funding round SafelyYou to extend reach of world-leading AI offering, addressing acuity, staffing, and resident turnover in the senior living industry SAN FRANCISCO, January 28, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--SafelyYou, the leader in empowering safer, more person-centered care across senior living through world-leading AI, industry-changing hardware, and remote expert clinicians, has announced the close of a $43 million Series C financing round led by Touring Capital, a growth stage firm focused on AI-powered SaaS startups. The funding fuels SafelyYou's ability to help solve critical challenges in senior care, including how accurately and efficiently operators can predict residents' care needs. Foundation Capital, Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc., Founders Fund, Cross Creek, Samsung Next, and Qualcomm Ventures also contributed to the funding round. This brings the total funding raised by SafelyYou to over $100 million. Founded in 2016 by George Netscher, SafelyYou launched its first product, SafelyYou Respond™, to address falls in memory care, as those with cognitive decline fall twice as often as those without. Falls can be the beginning of serious health decline for seniors and are the leading cause of both fatal and non-fatal injuries for those over 65. SafelyYou Respond™ is proven to reduce falls by 40% and fall-related ER visits by 80%, improving outcomes for residents and reducing costs for families and communities. SafelyYou is trusted by 50% of the industry's largest providers. Justin Skiver, President of Senior Care at ProMedica, said, "SafelyYou has helped us create better outcomes for our residents. We firmly believe SafelyYou will become an industry norm, and we're leading the way in this improved quality of care. From our vantage point, predictive technology like what SafelyYou is currently creating will transform senior living, and we want to be an integral part of that change." Building off the success of its original world-leading AI solution, SafelyYou now offers a suite of products to address resident well-being, staffing challenges, and accuracy in billing for operators. This new round of funding will help support the expansion of these products, including SafelyYou Clarity™, which offers senior living's first and only choice for accurate care measurement without wearables, and SafelyYou Aware™, which leverages the company's unique dataset to provide unprecedented insight into resident wellness, significantly improving outcomes. Additionally, SafelyYou will use data to help operators predict residents' care needs, making care delivery in the industry more efficient and effective than ever before. And setting a new standard of care with a single solution. "We're so grateful for this funding at a critical juncture in care delivery for senior living, when SafelyYou's solutions are more important than ever," said SafelyYou founder and CEO George Netscher. "I started this company to help my mom and to help so many families like ours who have a loved one living with dementia. And we've grown to provide broader care support in senior living. Now, at a time when resident acuity is increasing, care demands are greater, and staffing continues to be a crisis, we'll be able to empower operators to predict care needs with unmatched speed and accuracy, revolutionizing how senior care is provided." "SafelyYou is revolutionizing senior living care by addressing one of the industry's most critical challenges—predictive care for an aging population," said Nagraj Kashyap, co-founder and general partner at Touring Capital. "Their innovative suite of AI-powered solutions, from fall prevention to care measurement, demonstrate unmatched precision and impact, driving key outcomes like extended resident stays and improved operational efficiencies. We're excited to support their mission as they redefine the standard for care and wellness in senior living communities." The funding comes on the heels of significant successes for SafelyYou, as leading providers StoryPoint Senior Living, Benchmark Senior Living, Midwest Health, and Senior Star have added the company's services to their offerings. SafelyYou has also recently released a landmark three-year study, proving that SafelyYou Respond™ increases length of stay by an average of more than four months for residents. These incredible results significantly reduce turnover for operators, and demonstrate for the first time a correlation between fall risk reduction and better occupancy rates in senior care. About SafelyYou Originating in 2015 as the doctoral research of CEO George Netscher—and inspired by his own family's experience with Alzheimer's disease—SafelyYou was spun out of UC Berkeley's Artificial Intelligence Research Lab, one of the top five AI research groups in the world. The company's passionate mission is to empower safer, more person-centered care across senior living through world-leading AI, industry-changing hardware, and remote expert clinicians. SafelyYou is solving critical challenges in senior living, from resident falls and ER visits to staffing concerns, LOS, and NOI. All helping ensure that communities reach both their clinical and financial goals. SafelyYou is used by skilled nursing facilities and assisted living communities all across North America—from the largest national organizations to regional and local ones, too. SafelyYou is one of five most innovative fall technologies referenced in the Senate Falls Report (2019), a winner of the McKnight's Tech Partner of the Year, and has been named to Fortune's Impact 20 list. For more on SafelyYou, visit: Connect with SafelyYou on LinkedIn: View source version on Contacts For media inquiries, please contact:Kristin Faulder (on behalf of SafelyYou)(586) 419.4652kristin@ Sign in to access your portfolio
