Brelyon will unveil its Ultra Reality immersive displays at CES 2024 — the massive consumer electronics conference (January 9-12, Las Vegas), the Silicon Valley startup has confirmed. The company also announced plans to extend its displays into the automotive market. Brelyon’s immersive displays provide a massive field of view without requiring users to wear headsets (i.e., Apple Vision Pro and Meta Quest Pro). Channel Angels is an early stage Brelyon investor (special thanks to Propel(x) for the opportunity to participate). Here’s a look at the launch video: Describing the launch, Brelyon CEO ..read more

You’re building a startup technology business — and you need funding in 2024. Admittedly, the early stage funding scene has changed quite a bit since 2011 to 2021 — when cloud expansion, ubiquitous mobility, low interest rates, and a decade of so-called “free money” fueled a venture capital valuation bubble. By 2023, heightened interest rates and multiple market corrections — stretching across crypto, cyber and other areas — pressured the VC scene quite a bit. Among the anecdotal proof points to note: Global venture funding was $19.2 billion in November 2023, down 16% from November 2022 — whic ..read more

Amid heightened interest rates and valuation pressure, many tech startups had a challenging year in 2023. Instead of running for the exits, Channel Angels maintained a disciplined approach to early stage and follow-on investing. As a reminder, we typically invest in early stage startups that sell to and through IT channel partners — particularly MSPs. While we typically don’t lead funding rounds, we do participate in Seed, Series A and follow-on rounds. And, we’re available to offer strategic advice to that startups we back. While some angel groups scaled back their funding activities in 2023 ..read more

Digital distractions and consumerized applications can drain employee productivity within MSPs and across all types of end-customer businesses. In this Channel Angels podcast, Produce8 CEO Joel Abramson describes how employees can begin to track their digital days and regain 90 minutes of daily productivity. Note: You can catch up with Abramson and Produce8 co-founders Chris Day and Mark Scott at the IT Nation Connect 2023 conference. Produce8 CEO Joel Abramson: How employees can avoid digital distractions & regain 90 minutes of productivity — or relaxation — per day. The conversation cov ..read more

The initial seeds for Channel Angels were planted in 2019, and our first group investment arrived in Q1 of 2020. That first deal involved seed funding for Zorus, a cybersecurity startup focused on the MSP industry. Four accredited investors — namely, Gerwai Todd, Kevin Blake, Lloyd Wolf and Joe Panettieri (that’s me) — embraced the Channel Angels funding model. Indeed, we pooled our money to invest in Zorus in early 2020, and we publicly announced the funding in June of 2020. Fast forward to July 2023. Channel Angels has now invested in more than 20 technology startups that sell to and through ..read more

Lightmatter has raised $154 million in Series C funding. The company develops power-efficient photonic processors — which allow cloud service providers to more efficiently scale generative AI (artificial intelligence) and HPC (high-performance computing) applications. Key Lightmatter investors include SIP Global, Fidelity Management & Research Company, Viking Global Investors, GV (Google Ventures), HPE Pathfinder and existing investors. Channel Angels Founder Joe Panettieri participated in the round. Lightmatter, founded in 2017, is based in Boston, Massachusetts. The company has 113 emplo ..read more

Dashbot, a conversational AI (artificial intelligence) startup, has raised $6 million in Series A funding led by Florida Funders, with participation from Bessemer Venture Partners. Channel Angels Founder Joe Panettieri participated in the round. Andrew Hong, CEO, Dashbot Dashbot’s software is a data platform that "ingests, cleans, stores, and processes any type of Conversation Data — such as from speaking to Alexa, talking to a customer service rep over the phone, or typing into a chatbot on a website,” the startup notes. From there, the software enables customers to optimize their chatbot re ..read more

Channel Angels continues to execute a long-term engagement and expansion plan. Indeed, we continue to fund technology startups that sell to and through MSPs and channel partners. And we continue to engage established and aspiring ang. What are the proof points? Here’s a look at some key numbers and stats for Channel Angels to date: Zero: There’s no cost to join Channel Angels. And there’s no cost to apply for funding. One: Engaging with us is a one-step process. Startups can apply for funding here. Established and aspiring angel investors can apply to join us here. Five: The number of Q1 ..read more

Togal.AI, a construction software startup, has raised $5 million in pre-series funding. The round was led by Florida Funders, with participation from Coastal Construction, along with executives from Meta, Goldman Sachs and Minitab. Channel Angels Founder Joe Panettieri participated in the round. Togal.AI, founded in 2019, is based in Miami, Florida. The company develops cloud-based estimating software that leverages deep machine learning technologies. The software can analyze construction drawings and blueprints, and provide quantity reports and associated estimates in just a few seconds ..read more

I’ve seen the potential future of cloud services and MSP software startups. It’s largely located in Tampa, Florida. From an angel investor viewpoint, I like much of what I see (at least so far). First, the background: Admittedly, I’m a New Yorker since birth. I’ve spent a half-century (well, a bit more…) calling Long Island my home. But friends and loyal readers know that my family and I plan to eventually relocate to Florida. Florida Technology Startups: The Angel Investor Scene With that realization in mind, I began to explore the Florida angel investing scene around 2018. My search led me t ..read more