AMP Robotics uses AI technology to sort recyclable materials. The company raised $71.2 million in funding last month, the most of any Colorado startup. (Photo courtesy of AMP Robotics)
Startup funding was up $100 million last month compared to July 2021.
According to a tally of Form Ds filed with the SEC, 34 startups around the state raised a total of $293.7 million last month, compared to July 2021’s $188.5 million and July 2020’s $78.5 million. (You can see our sortable spreadsheet here.)
Although funding was up year-over-year in July, it was down $112 million from June 2022’s $405 million.
BusinessDen defines a startup as a business that’s less than 10 years old and excludes publicly traded companies, real estate ventures and funds.
Startups outside of Boulder and Denver raised the most with $137.3 million across 18 deals, followed by Denver startups with $113 million among 12 deals. Boulder startups raised $43 million.
Here are some highlights from July:
AMP Robotics (Broomfield): $71 million
Broomfield-based AMP Robotics, which creates robotic technology that sorts recyclable materials, raised $71.2 million last month.
The raise comes on the heels of AMP Robotics’ largest purchase order of its robots by waste handling company Waste Connections, which bought 24 learning-enabled robotic recycling systems in July, according to a news release.
AMP technology can be used to recover plastics, cardboard, paper, cans, cartons and other packaging materials for raw material processing, according to the company. It can tell the difference between high-density polyethylene and polyethylene terephthalate, low-density polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene, as well as sort for color, clarity, opacity, shapes and even brands.
The startup raised $55 million in December 2020. The latest funding round brings the company’s total to $147.3 million, according to SEC filings.
Sierra Space’s Dream Chaser spaceplane will perform cargo supply and return missions for NASA in late 2022 and could make its first flight with people on board as soon as 2025. (BusinessDen file photo)
Sierra Space (Louisville): $24 million
Sierra Space has had a large appetite for capital in the first seven months of 2022.
Following a record-setting $1.4 billion raise in December, a $9 million raise in February, a $19 million raise in March and another $21 million in April, the aerospace startup raised another $24.4 million last month from 32 investors, according to SEC filings.
The Louisville-based aerospace company, founded in 2021, is a subsidiary of Sierra Nevada Corp. and has about 1,100 employees and an office at 1722 Boxelder St.
In June, Sierra Space made a deal with Wichita-based Spirit AeroSystems to help design and build its space vehicles. And in February, Sierra Space announced plans to double its headcount and said that it had leased space in Centennial, according to a news release. It’s also starting a space launch operation in Florida.
The startup is staffing up to launch “the world’s only winged commercial spaceplane,” the Dream Chaser, which will perform cargo supply and return missions for NASA.
GloveBox offers an app that streamlines the customer experience for independent insurance agencies. (Image courtesy of GloveBox Technologies)
GloveBox Technologies (Englewood): $8.4 million
Englewood-based GloveBox Technologies, which connects independent insurance agencies with policyholders and carriers, raised $8.4 million last month from nine investors, according to SEC filings.
Customers can use GloveBox through the desktop or mobile app, and do things like access policy documents, pay a bill or file a claim.
GloveBox was founded in 2019 by Ryan Mathisen, Andy Mathisen, Sean Mulhern and Alex Rolex, a team of insurance professionals.
This brings GloveBox’s total raised to $8.7 million.
Agile Space Industries specializes in propulsion, test rockets, and space exploration. (Photo courtesy of Agile Space Industries)
Agile Space Industries (Durango): $6.8 million
Agile Space Industries raised $6.8 million in July, a month after it announced it would consolidate its design, manufacturing and operations into a new 6,100-square-foot facility in Durango.
The startup, founded in 2019, is an aviation and aerospace company that specializes in propulsion, test rockets and space exploration.
In 2021, Agile acquired Tronix3D, a Pittsburgh-based additive manufacturer, and created an Agile Additive division to reduce propulsion lead time and speed up the design-iteration process.
Agile Space Industries has raised a total of $13.9 million since its founding.
Pomp Beauty matches customers with professional estheticians, who recommend specialized skincare products. (Photo courtesy of Pomp Beauty)
Pomp Beauty (Denver): $2 million
Denver-based Pomp Beauty raised $2 million last month to grow its staff, according to founder Shannon Erley.
Erley started Pomp Beauty in 2019 after personally struggling with adult hormonal acne. She visited an esthetician that cherry-picked products for an at-home routine.
“I was confused why there weren’t more people getting skincare recommendations from professional estheticians,” Erley said. “I wanted to bring more awareness to independent estheticians, who quite frankly have been crushed by the mass beauty industry, and bring them tooling to help them better service their clients in person or virtually.”
Pomp Beauty allows customers to connect in-person or virtually with an esthetician for free, who can recommend skincare products for a variety of skincare issues.
The startup works with a medical director, Dr. Ritvik Mehta, who owns a San Diego-based cosmetic practice called Blue Illusion Beauty. Dr. Mehta gives the startup access to brands that many estheticians can’t always provide at their own personal business. The skincare brands give Pomp Beauty wholesale margins and drop ship the products, and Pomp Beauty collects 50 percent of that margin, Erley said.
“A lot of independent estheticians, if they don’t have medical director oversight, they can’t get access to the brands we offer,” Erley said.
Pomp Beauty has a full-time remote staff of eight with plans to hire two more employees.
AMP Robotics uses AI technology to sort recyclable materials. The company raised $71.2 million in funding last month, the most of any Colorado startup. (Photo courtesy of AMP Robotics)
Startup funding was up $100 million last month compared to July 2021.
According to a tally of Form Ds filed with the SEC, 34 startups around the state raised a total of $293.7 million last month, compared to July 2021’s $188.5 million and July 2020’s $78.5 million. (You can see our sortable spreadsheet here.)
Although funding was up year-over-year in July, it was down $112 million from June 2022’s $405 million.
BusinessDen defines a startup as a business that’s less than 10 years old and excludes publicly traded companies, real estate ventures and funds.
Startups outside of Boulder and Denver raised the most with $137.3 million across 18 deals, followed by Denver startups with $113 million among 12 deals. Boulder startups raised $43 million.
Here are some highlights from July:
AMP Robotics (Broomfield): $71 million
Broomfield-based AMP Robotics, which creates robotic technology that sorts recyclable materials, raised $71.2 million last month.
The raise comes on the heels of AMP Robotics’ largest purchase order of its robots by waste handling company Waste Connections, which bought 24 learning-enabled robotic recycling systems in July, according to a news release.
AMP technology can be used to recover plastics, cardboard, paper, cans, cartons and other packaging materials for raw material processing, according to the company. It can tell the difference between high-density polyethylene and polyethylene terephthalate, low-density polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene, as well as sort for color, clarity, opacity, shapes and even brands.
The startup raised $55 million in December 2020. The latest funding round brings the company’s total to $147.3 million, according to SEC filings.
Sierra Space’s Dream Chaser spaceplane will perform cargo supply and return missions for NASA in late 2022 and could make its first flight with people on board as soon as 2025. (BusinessDen file photo)
Sierra Space (Louisville): $24 million
Sierra Space has had a large appetite for capital in the first seven months of 2022.
Following a record-setting $1.4 billion raise in December, a $9 million raise in February, a $19 million raise in March and another $21 million in April, the aerospace startup raised another $24.4 million last month from 32 investors, according to SEC filings.
The Louisville-based aerospace company, founded in 2021, is a subsidiary of Sierra Nevada Corp. and has about 1,100 employees and an office at 1722 Boxelder St.
In June, Sierra Space made a deal with Wichita-based Spirit AeroSystems to help design and build its space vehicles. And in February, Sierra Space announced plans to double its headcount and said that it had leased space in Centennial, according to a news release. It’s also starting a space launch operation in Florida.
The startup is staffing up to launch “the world’s only winged commercial spaceplane,” the Dream Chaser, which will perform cargo supply and return missions for NASA.
GloveBox offers an app that streamlines the customer experience for independent insurance agencies. (Image courtesy of GloveBox Technologies)
GloveBox Technologies (Englewood): $8.4 million
Englewood-based GloveBox Technologies, which connects independent insurance agencies with policyholders and carriers, raised $8.4 million last month from nine investors, according to SEC filings.
Customers can use GloveBox through the desktop or mobile app, and do things like access policy documents, pay a bill or file a claim.
GloveBox was founded in 2019 by Ryan Mathisen, Andy Mathisen, Sean Mulhern and Alex Rolex, a team of insurance professionals.
This brings GloveBox’s total raised to $8.7 million.
Agile Space Industries specializes in propulsion, test rockets, and space exploration. (Photo courtesy of Agile Space Industries)
Agile Space Industries (Durango): $6.8 million
Agile Space Industries raised $6.8 million in July, a month after it announced it would consolidate its design, manufacturing and operations into a new 6,100-square-foot facility in Durango.
The startup, founded in 2019, is an aviation and aerospace company that specializes in propulsion, test rockets and space exploration.
In 2021, Agile acquired Tronix3D, a Pittsburgh-based additive manufacturer, and created an Agile Additive division to reduce propulsion lead time and speed up the design-iteration process.
Agile Space Industries has raised a total of $13.9 million since its founding.
Pomp Beauty matches customers with professional estheticians, who recommend specialized skincare products. (Photo courtesy of Pomp Beauty)
Pomp Beauty (Denver): $2 million
Denver-based Pomp Beauty raised $2 million last month to grow its staff, according to founder Shannon Erley.
Erley started Pomp Beauty in 2019 after personally struggling with adult hormonal acne. She visited an esthetician that cherry-picked products for an at-home routine.
“I was confused why there weren’t more people getting skincare recommendations from professional estheticians,” Erley said. “I wanted to bring more awareness to independent estheticians, who quite frankly have been crushed by the mass beauty industry, and bring them tooling to help them better service their clients in person or virtually.”
Pomp Beauty allows customers to connect in-person or virtually with an esthetician for free, who can recommend skincare products for a variety of skincare issues.
The startup works with a medical director, Dr. Ritvik Mehta, who owns a San Diego-based cosmetic practice called Blue Illusion Beauty. Dr. Mehta gives the startup access to brands that many estheticians can’t always provide at their own personal business. The skincare brands give Pomp Beauty wholesale margins and drop ship the products, and Pomp Beauty collects 50 percent of that margin, Erley said.
“A lot of independent estheticians, if they don’t have medical director oversight, they can’t get access to the brands we offer,” Erley said.
Pomp Beauty has a full-time remote staff of eight with plans to hire two more employees.
