I’m an investor Note A story that permeated the world of startups through the economic downturn, Specific startup type It is less susceptible to market fluctuations. global supply chain Major industrial casualties As such, companies addressing issues related to global supply chains should: remain an attractive proposition For otherwise hesitant venture capitalists.
In the last two months alone, we’ve seen IntegrityNext, which is based in Germany. ingest $109 million Helping companies audit their supply chains for ESG (environmental, social, and governance) compliance; Texas-based overhaul $73 million hauled For supply chain security platforms.Everstream based in San Marco Secure $50 million Bring predictive insights to your supply chain.French sesame get $37 million Provide ESG insights into a company’s supply chain.and indian bread withdraw $30 million Grow your cargo management platform.
Today is pre-waveBut now it’s time to demonstrate that global supply chains are still one of the hottest tickets to raising VC funding. The Austrian startup has revealed it has raised €18 million ($20 million) in what it calls a series A+ round. €11 million ($12.3 million) Series A round eight months ago.
With the latest cash injection, Prewave has also made headlines. European VC Heavyweight Crandomumwhich has previously backed Spotify, Klarna, iZettle, and more.
Risk factor
Prewave founders Harald Nissinger and Lisa Smith image credit: Pre-wave
Founded in 2017 in Vienna by Harald Nitschinger and Lisa Smith, Prewave is a comprehensive supply chain risk platform that spans “all stages of the risk lifecycle” through the identification, analysis, mitigation and reporting of these risks. I am proud of myself.
For example, companies such as BMW, Lufthansa, and PwC use Prewave to monitor all entities in their supply chain via channels such as social media, news reports, and other data sources, and Not only what is happening in the world, but also earthquakes, floods, political unrest, lawsuits, workers’ strikes, anything that can affect the global movement of goods.
front wave feed image credit: Pre-wave
The company says it has developed its own “crawler” that finds information published in dozens of languages.
“Using our own crawler allows us to continuously expand and improve our coverage, rather than purely relying on an external supply chain data provider,” Smith explained in an email to TechCrunch. “We also connect to some social media platforms and for certain types of events we use external data sources, for example. USGS (U.S. Geological Survey) seismic data or GDACS (Global Disaster Warning Coordination System) weather information. Combining all these data points provides broad coverage of both local and global supply chain risk events. ”
Prewave then processes all the data to provide a dynamic Supplier Risk Score that changes with all new data ingested.
Prewave supplier page with 360 degree scorecard image credit: Pre-wave
Supply (Chain) and Demand
The surge in demand for supply chain insights isn’t just about avoiding disruptions and improving bottom lines. These include legal obligations. Supply Chain Due Diligence Act Large companies are therefore responsible for tracking human rights abuses and environmental risks through their supply chains.a A similar directive is currently being proposed Also for the wider European Union (EU).
And then there’s the simple fact that consumers increasingly expect the companies they do business with to have at least some moral and ethical principles and not be swayed purely by shareholder sentiment.
“Supply chain technology has weathered the economic headwinds of recent years, as it has become increasingly important for companies to optimize operations, adapt to external risks, and reduce costs within their supply chains. ,” Nitschinger told TechCrunch in an email. “The pandemic, for example, has exposed critical vulnerabilities in global supply chains, enabling companies to improve visibility and sustainability, anticipate potential disruptions, and enable more agile and responsive strategies. “Supply chain risk management techniques will only become more important as companies continue to face economic challenges.”
Prewave plans to bank another $20 million to double its recent growth, increasing its workforce from 20 at the beginning of last year to more than 100 today. seen at the same time.
Besides lead backer Creandum, Prewave’s latest investments included contributions from Ventech, Kompas, Seed+Speed, Segnalita, Speedinvest, Working Capital Fund, and Xista Science Ventures.
