Tech roundup: Amazon’s new NYC office, acquisitions en masse and more

by Liz Warren
September 28, 2017

Amazon adds 2,000 jobs with new NYC office

E-commerce giant Amazon has announced it will open a new NYC office that will employ more than 2,000 people. This news follows a number of major strategic moves from the company, including an acquisition of Whole Foods, a search for a second headquarters and the opening of a warehouse in Staten Island. Its New York office will be located on the west side of Manhattan. [Built In NYC]

 

Vimeo acquires Livestream, Albertsons eats up Plated

This week, two well-known NYC tech startups were acquired within days of each other. Vimeo bought Livestream and will use it to offer live video streaming to its users. Meanwhile, grocery store chain Albertsons acquired NYC-based Plated for an estimated $200 million. Albertsons plans to sell the startup's meals at its 2,300 locations throughout the country. [Built In NYC]

 

ExecThread raises $6.5M to use AI for job sharing

Job opportunity sharing network ExecThread raised $6.5 million to expand its platform. Following the funding, led by Canaan Partners and Javelin Venture Partners, Jed Katz of Javelin and Warren Lee of Canaan will join the network’s board of directors. [Press release]

 

XO Group acquires wedding photo app Veri

XO Group bought wedding photo app Veri for $3.5 million. The app, which lets users share their wedding photos, will eventually integrate with The Knot — XO Group’s wedding-focused site. The app’s co-founders, engineers and designers have joined XO Group’s NYC team. [TechCrunch]

 

MongoDB files for IPO

Database-as-a-service company MongoDB filed for an IPO and hopes to raise $100 million when it goes public. As of January 2015, the company had a post-money valuation at $1.6 billion. MongoDB competes against enterprise companies like IBM and Oracle. [CNBC]

 

Managed By Q acquires Hivy

Managed By Q, the NYC-based startup that manages office maintenance services with technology, announced its first acquisition to date. The company bought Paris-based task management app Hivy. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. [New York Business Journal]

 

WeWork calls for entries for its Creator Awards

Coworking giant WeWork has announced it is accepting entries for The Creator Awards, a new global competition awarding startups a total of $20 million to build and grow their companies. Entrepreneurs, nonprofit leaders, small-business owners and freelancers are invited to submit applications to be considered for an award. The deadline for entries is Oct 24. [Press release]

 

Storytelling platform Playbuzz raises $35M Series D

Playbuzz, a storytelling platform that provides content for publishers, raised $35 million in series D funding. Led by Viola Growth, with participation from existing investors including Disney, Saban Ventures, 83North, Carmel Ventures, Firstime and angel investor Oded Vardi, the funding will help the company grow globally. [VentureBeat]

 

Images via Shutterstock.

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