Stealth Startup Spy #52
Ex-Paypal Senior Director unveils B2B fintech platform (raises $24M seed), Ex-Uber engineer debuts compliance startup for the trucking industry, & Ex-Goldman Sachs Director is building in stealth mode
Stealth Startup Spy is a data-driven newsletter for investors, journalists and tech enthusiasts interested in uncovering the next big move for key talent, real-time stealth company launches and technology advancements not in plain sight. We leverage the technology built at Gravity to track billions of data points to help you identify tomorrow's opportunities that are currently hiding in the shadows. These signals include tracking the inflows and outflows of talent who work at “Stealth Startups”, bios and profile changes to “building something new” and monitoring press releases to shine a light on the hidden world of stealth startups.
In this issue of the Stealth Startup Spy, here is what we will uncover:
Former Insurtech exec launches platform to overhaul the insurance industry
Ex-Paypal Senior Director unveils B2B fintech platform to “empower intentional commerce” (raises $24M seed)
Ex-Uber engineer wants to simplify DOT compliance for the trucking industry
Ex-Goldman Sachs Director is building something new in stealth
VMware Head of Blockchain Go-To-Market leaves to become CEO of a stealth fintech startup
And more…
Now let’s shine the spotlight… 💡💡💡
🕵️♂️Founders Coming Out of Stealth
Real-time updates from founders who debut what they’ve been working on under stealth mode
David Zhang - CEO & Co-Founder at Chestnut
FounderDNA: Masters Degree, Top 10 University
Prior Experience: Ex-Chief Strategy Officer at Ethos Life (raised over $400M from SoftBank, General Catalyst, Google Ventures, Accel, Sequoia Capital) , Stanford MBA
Connect on: LinkedIn
Chestnut is a purpose-made producer compensation system for insurance Carriers, IMOs, and BGAs.
HQ: Seattle, Washington, United States
Industry: Software Development | Team Size: 10
Key Investors: Andreessen Horowitz, Liquid 2 Ventures, Detroit Venture Partners
Time Spent in Stealth Mode: 19 months
Ben Schuldenfrei - Co-Founder at Factored
Prior Experience: Ex-COO at Lendingblock ($10M raised), Ex-EY/Accenture/Informa
Connect on: LinkedIn
Factored empowers landlords to unlock capital by selling their future rental income rights.
HQ: London, England, United Kingdom
Industry: Financial Services | Team Size: 3
Latest Funding: $350K Pre-Seed Round on 4/5/2023
Key Investors: SFC Capital
Time Spent in Stealth Mode: 6 months
John Klose - CTO & Co-Founder at Croissant
FounderDNA: Serial Founder, Technical Founder, Former FAANG, Masters Degree
Prior Experience: Ex-Paypal Senior Director, Credit Technology, Ex-CTO at Swift Capital (acquired by Paypal), Ex-Amazon Head of Technology Programs
Connect on: LinkedIn
Croissant is a fintech platform with a mission to empower intentional commerce in today’s fractured retail environment.
HQ: United States
Industry: Technology, Information and Internet | Team Size: 23
Latest Funding: $24M Seed Round on 7/27/2023
Key Investors: Portage Ventures and KKR co-founders George Roberts and Henry Kravis
Time Spent in Stealth Mode: 15 months
Kevin Huang - Founder at Drivingforce
FounderDNA: Serial Founder, Technical Founder, Top 10 University
Prior Experience: Ex-Software Engineer at Uber, ex-Software Engineer at Vineti, On Deck Fellow
Connect on: LinkedIn
Drivingforce is a fully managed service for DOT compliance.
HQ: San Francisco, California, United States
Industry: Software Development | Team Size: 4
Time Spent in Stealth Mode: 10 months
Elay Gueta - Co-Founder & CTO at Cyclops Security
FounderDNA: Technical Founder
Prior Experience: Ex-R&D Group Leader at the Office of the Prime Minister of Israel, Ex-Research Team Lead at Cynet Security, ex-Security Reseacher at Cellebrite
Connect on: LinkedIn
Cyclops is the first Contextual Search Platform for cybersecurity.
HQ: Tel Aviv, Israel
Industry: Software Development | Team Size: 18
Latest Funding: $6.4M Seed Round on 7/26/2023
Key Investors: CrowdStrike Falcon Fund, Insight Partners, Merlin Ventures and Tal Ventures
Time Spent in Stealth Mode: 11 months
🕵️♂️Key Talent Going Under Stealth
Illuminating clues left behind by world class talent and influential innovators who just went into stealth mode
Wei G. - Founder at Stealth Mode
FounderDNA: Masters Degree
Prior Experience: Ex-Director Of Revenue at Bright Machines, ex-Controller at Escalon Services, Inc., ex-Senior Financial Reporting / Technical Accountant at Corsair
Connect on: LinkedIn
HQ: San Francisco Bay Area
Time Spent in Stealth Mode: 9 months
Amit Kumar Jain - Co-Founder at Stealth Startup
FounderDNA: Technical Founder, Masters Degree, Prior Exit
Prior Experience: Ex-Global Head, Data Analytics & Director (Software R&D) at Diebold Nixdorf
Connect on: LinkedIn
HQ: India
Time Spent in Stealth Mode: 5 months
Ian Dodd - Founder at Stealth Startup
FounderDNA: Doctorate Degree
Prior Experience: Ex-Managing Director, Global Recruiting at Goldman Sachs, ex-VP Talent Acquisition at Expedia Group, ex-Microsoft
Connect on: LinkedIn
HQ: London, England, United Kingdom
Time Spent in Stealth Mode: 7 months
Joshua Lory - Co-Founder & CEO at Stealth
FounderDNA: Technical Founder, Top 10 University
Prior Experience: Ex-Senior Director, Head of Blockchain Go-To-Market at VMware, ex-Information Technology Infrastructure Consultant at Accenture
Connect on: LinkedIn
HQ: Palo Alto, California, United States
Time Spent in Stealth Mode: 1 month
Andrew Ma - Founder at Stealth Startup
FounderDNA: Top 10 University
Prior Experience: Ex-Chief Operating Officer at Stitch ($27M raised), ex-Strategist at X, the moonshot factory, ex-Strategy - Growth & New Markets at JUMO.WORLD
Connect on: LinkedIn
HQ: New York, New York, United States
Time Spent in Stealth Mode: 1 month
Stay Stealthy,
Drake
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