The Texas capital was bursting with energy last week. Several tech startups raised millions in funding, including Jasper, who reached unicorn status with a Series A raise. Austin-based Tesla also confirmed plans to open a lithium refinery in Texas. Catch up on the latest tech news with the Built In Austin Weekly Refresh.
Tesla confirmed plans for a battery plant. Plans to open a lithium refinery near Texas’ Gulf Coast were confirmed last week by Tesla CEO Elon Musk. The refinery will be useful to speed up the production of batteries for the company’s electric vehicles. According to Musk, Tesla was also considering a location in Louisiana. [Bloomberg]
SubjectWell raised $35M. SubjectWell helps pharmaceutical companies find participants for clinical studies by placing digital ads and recruiting patients with chronic health conditions. SubjectWell will use the new Series B funding to continue working with pharmaceutical companies to recruit participants for studies. It also wants to further its cancer research. [Built In Austin]
Austin Tech Quote of the Week
Jasper became a tech unicorn. Jasper uses AI to generate text and images based on short prompts. The company was founded less than a year ago and last week raised $125 million in a Series A round at a $1.5 billion valuation. With the new capital, Jasper will continue to improve its products. [Built In Austin]
Six tech companies opened Austin headquarters this year. We compiled a round-up of some of the tech companies that have opened new headquarters in Austin this year. AlertMedia, Ooni Pizza Ovens, DISCO, [redacted] and Ownwell all opened their headquarters here in the last year. [Built In Austin]
GOLF+ secured investments. Golf+ is a virtual reality golfing platform that recently secured investments from PGA Tour, NFL, NBA and MLB. Golf+’s platform allows players to golf anywhere and anytime. The platform is currently in a paid beta, but with the new funding, it will work to make its tech available to as many people as possible. [PR Newswire]
