Midwest Startups

?? IT’S THAT TIME AGAIN! ?? #MidwestMadness2025 is BACK for its fifth year—and we’re ready for another round of startup ecosystem showdowns. ???? Which Midwest city will take home the title this year? Will a past champ rise again? Or are we in for another Cinderella story? ?? ?? 3/17: Selection Monday—official bracket is revealed! ?? 3/18: Round of 64 begins ?? 4/7: Championship showdown ?? 4/9: The 2025 Midwest Madness CHAMP is crowned! Need some intel before making your picks? Scrub up on the #2024BestofMidwest City Rankings to see how your city stacks up before the bracket drops! ?????? https://lnkd.in/gYDACJk Get your game faces on, rally your community and prepare to cast your votes right here on LinkedIn! Who’s ready to win? ???? #MidwestStartups

Chicago-based Vermillio raised a $16M round led by Sony Music Entertainment and DNS Capital: https://lnkd.in/gQ2wbB5b

Grand Rapids-based Shoulder Innovations raised a $40M Series E led by U.S. Venture Partners: https://lnkd.in/g7zFMKn4

Kansas City-based Daupler raised a $15M Series B led by Aqualateral: https://lnkd.in/ggZ4khuX

Chicago-based Across Protocol raised a $41M round led by Paradigm: https://lnkd.in/g7zxdZ8d

Overland Park, KS-based dScribe AI raised a $1.2M Pre-Seed from Abstraction Capital, Flyover Capital, Redbud VC, KCRise Fund and EquipmentShare: https://lnkd.in/gtdbuuS3

Minneapolis-based GEM HEALTH raised a $7M Series A co-led by?HealthTrend Capital?and?LFE Capital: https://lnkd.in/gmxrBXCm

Have you checked out the latest opportunities on the #MidwestStartups job board? Chipp is on the search for a Senior Applied AI Engineer. In this remote-friendly role, interested candidates should have extensive fullstack Next.js/TypeScript experience. Learn more + apply below: https://lnkd.in/gxPpryQG

Columbus-based Arrellio raised a $2.6M Seed led by M25 with participation from Cambrian and industry-leading optometrists: https://lnkd.in/g7txQtGX

?? Did you hear? The NFL Draft is back in the Midwest for the third year in a row—this time in Green Bay! TitletownTech, in partnership with the Green Bay Packers and Microsoft for Startups, is hosting the Startup Draft—where early-stage companies can land a $1M investment + $350K in Azure credits during the NFL Draft! ?? Mark your calendars and apply now—this is one opportunity you don’t want to miss! https://lnkd.in/gxKzeWZv