Dynamo Dispatch (21/11/22)

Issue 216 | Fulfilld, Butter, Pickle

Dynamo Dispatch. A weekly update from Dynamo Ventures covering the latest and greatest in supply chain, mobility, and building venture-scale businesses.

💥 Have you seen any interesting startups recently? Introduce us.
🗞️ If you were forwarded this and found it interesting, please sign up.
🎙 Check out Dynamo's podcast series, The Future of Supply Chain.

Weekly Commentary 💭

✈️ It’s nice to be back at Dynamo HQ after traveling to the EU to meet with investors, and founders as well as to attend Slush 2022 (a great event by the way). We’re grateful for the folks who took the time to meet up with us and can’t wait to get back out there in Q1 2023. We’re also thankful we have a few days off this week to catch up on sleep. Speaking of being thankful…

🦃 Happy Thanksgiving from the Dynamo team! Pace yourself with the stuffing and be sure to leave some room for that slice of pumpkin pie. 

🥰 Love reading the Dispatch? Be sure to forward it to a few colleagues that may find it interesting and share it on social media for some extra brownie points.

We Are Dynamo,

Clay, Santosh, Jon, and the rest of the Dynamo

Note: please add “dynamo@substack.com” to your email client, so you don’t miss future issues due to aggressive spam filters.

Supply Chain 📦

🌟 Railroad Strike Odds Increase As A Third Union Joins The Ranks. Members of the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers voted against a tentative labor deal this week, raising the chances of a 115K worker strike next month. Back in September, the potential for a strike was avoided when the Biden Administration stepped in to help with negotiations. The agreed terms included more pay over the next five years (equating to about $16K in added wages and bonuses), an additional day off, and some modifications to a strict attendance policy. The Association of American Railroads was left happy but a large share of workers remain discontent.

Considering that approximately 30% of freight is moved via rail, this adds another substantial risk to an already crippled national supply chain. If a loss were to occur, it could cost about $2B a day. Keep an eye out on how talks progress as it could have a substantial impact on the distribution of important commodities such as perishable goods that can spoil if not dealt with in a timely manner. Acquiring labor is quite the hassle at the moment so it will be interesting to see how the major US railways respond. For more on the state of the strike, check out A Third Railroad Union Rejects Proposed Contract, Further Raising The Odds Of A Strike.

---

Ukrainian Intelligence Reveals Western Supply Chain Involvement In Russian Drones. New intelligence from downed Iranian drones used in Russian attacks against Ukraine has revealed that more than 200 technical components were made by firms based in the US, and nearly a third by companies in Japan. The findings have stoked concern around Western sovereignties and prompted a US investigation. For more on Ukraine, check out Ukraine Grain-Export Deal Extended for Another 120 Days. In addition, consider reading A Reimagining Of The Global Economic Order Could Mean Supply Chains That Are Shorter And ‘More Regional,’ McKinsey Says In A New Report. 

Thanksgiving Costs To Rise More Than 20% Due To Continued Inflation And Supply Chain Constraints.  According to the latest Farmers Bureau Annual Survey, this year’s Thanksgiving feasts will cost 20% more in the US. Stuffing mix is the biggest jump in the basket, which is up 69% due to a flour shortage stemming from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. For further reading, consider The Hidden Emissions In The Global Food Supply Chain and Consumers Begin Pulling Back On Groceries As Rising Wholesale Costs For Food Portend Higher Prices.

Despite Freight Slowdown, Trucker Fleets Are Expanding. Bucking the headlines of a freight recession, in the last three months, manufacturers have delivered 81K trucks to fleets, up 30% from the same period last year, according to ACT. For more, check out Fading Supply-Chain Problems Signal Season of Plenty for Holiday Shoppers and Los Angeles Imports Keep Sinking As East Coast Gains More Ground.

Amazon Plans to Cut 10K Jobs in Largest-Ever Layoffs For eComm Giant. Amazon is the latest big player to join the fray of tech giants making personnel cuts. The world’s largest online retailer has spent much of this year adjusting to a sharp slowdown in eComm growth as shoppers resumed pre-pandemic habits. For more, read The Four Pillars Of B2B eComm Fulfillment and Alibaba Says 15% Of China Delivery Areas Were Disrupted During Singles Day Shopping Festival.

Microsoft Announces Supply Chain Platform For Data Management & Orchestration. This week, the tech giant announced the new solution, which seeks to help organizations maximize their existing supply chain investments with an open approach, bringing the best of Microsoft AI, collaboration, low code, security, and Software as a Service (SaaS) applications to a composable platform. For more, read How Maersk Designed a More Resilient Supply Chain.

Volta, Cake, And H&M To Turn Zero Trucks Into Mobile Micro-Hubs. This will enable Volta’s “Zero” Trucks to serve as mobile mini-warehouses and use Cake eBikes as the last-mile delivery solution. This new method of delivery will begin pilot testing in Paris in Q1 of 2023 in a partnership with H&M and remove the need for having trucks deliver parcels to Volta’s depots. For more information, consider reading Volta Trucks Builds Momentum For CV Electrification.

Retailers Well Positioned For Holiday Orders. The Global Supply Chain Pressure Index, compiled by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, approached its lowest level in two years in October, pointing to greener pastures ahead. For more, read 'Ban’ On Expensive Airfreight As Hard-Hit Retailers Review Supply Chains or Trucking Industry Heads Into Smoother Holiday Season.

Mobility 🚗

🌟 Carvana Cuts 1.5K Jobs On Slowing Used-Car Demand. The job cuts represent about 8% of Carvana’s overall workforce. “According to CNBC, which first reported the layoffs and cited an internal memo, the company faced economic headwinds from higher financing costs.”

The days of overly inflated used car prices could be in the rearview mirror. Inflation continues to rise which is waning consumer spending. And while used car prices are on the decrease, the average monthly payment has risen by 47% compared to last year. For Carvana, like other used retailers, this dip in demand will be a tough pill to swallow considering newly-acquired inventory was purchased at higher costs on top of dealing with “soaring expenses.” For more on the state of Carvana, check out Collapse of Carvana, The 'Amazon Of Used Cars', Continues. In related news, Automakers Emerge As Bright Spot Amid Recession Worries.

---

Tesla China Responds To Dramatic Crash That Kills Two. A Tesla Model Y crashed in Guandong China as it attempted to park and eventually malfunctioned, swerving into open lanes of traffic at high speeds and eventually crashing into a store 30 seconds and 2.6km later. This comes after multiple accusations of faulty brake pedals while Tesla’s response has remained that “there is no unintended acceleration in Tesla vehicles.” Learn more about Tesla’s safety concerns by reading Tesla Issues Another ‘Recall’ That Is Fixed With Software Update and Tesla Denies Malfunction To Blame For Deadly Crash Caught On Video In China.

The Map That Shows Which EV Battery Factories Will Be Built—And Which Won’t. The map, which was constructed by Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, has several key findings including that the most certain gigafactories to be built will be partnerships with traditional automakers and global battery companies while the least certain projects are typically backed by Chinese companies. To learn more, consider reading Gigafactories Are Recycling Old EV Batteries Into New Ones.

Bird Tells SEC It Overstated Revenue For Two Years. Bird’s Audit team reported that it missed Q2 revenue estimates with revenue of $76.7M and a loss of $310.4M due to its average fare and number of rides per vehicle having dropped. For more news on Bird, consider checking out eScooter Pioneer Bird Warns Over Future Amid Cash Squeeze and How Bird Clipped Its Own Wings.

Tesla Earns 8 Times More Profit Than Toyota Per Car. Despite being outsold by more than 7 to 1, Tesla reported $3.29B in net profit in Q3 while Toyota reported $3.15B in net profit. This comes largely due to Tesla’s net profit per vehicle being $9.5K while Toyota’s is nearly ⅛ of that at only $1.2K. Consider reading What Really Makes Toyota’s Production System Resilient for more on the Japanese automaker.

Ford Says Making Its Own Parts For Electric Vehicles Could Offset Job Losses. In order to negate the nearly 40% expected loss in labor with EV production, Ford will be building twin lithium-ion battery plants in Kentucky as well as Tennessee. To learn more about Ford’s movement towards EVs, consider reading Ford Will Build 4 Factories In A Big Electric Vehicle Push and How Gm And Ford Ev Plant Investments Compare: Billions Of Dollars, Thousands Of Jobs.

Livent Warns Of Lithium Roadblock To Rollout Of Electric Cars. According to Livent CEO Paul Graves, “If you take those forecasts of demand or conversion of sales, then we can never expand lithium supply quickly enough to catch up,” he told the Financial Times. “We see no situation where there will be enough lithium to supply all the corners of demand.”

Fundraises and M&A 💸

Impacked Raises $2.5M In Seed Funding. Impacked has built the first B2B marketplace for primary packaging. TenOneTen led the round which adds them to an impressive list of participating investors including SpringTime Ventures, FJ Labs, 2048 Ventures, Quiet Capital, and OneValley Ventures. The fresh capital will go towards expanding Impacked's network of suppliers.

Fulfilld Raises $3.2M In Seed Funding. Based in Denver, CO, Fulfilld.io is a subscription-based intelligent warehouse management system. Heartland Ventures led the round with participation from Matchstick Ventures, Dundee Capital, and TenOneTen Ventures among other angels. The fresh infusion of capital will be used to execute a plan towards $2M ARR in 24 months in prep for the Series A round.

Greenscreens AI Raises $5M In Series A Funding. Greenscreens is the creator and provider of a dynamic pricing platform that’s tailored specifically to an organization’s individual buying power rather than relying on data that’s based on market averages. Tiger Global led the round just 10 months after the startup raised its Seed. The capital will go towards team expansion and product development.

BasiGo Raises $6M In Seed Funding. BasiGo is on a mission to electrify Africa’s public transportation segment by building eBuses and charging infrastructure. Mobility54 and Trucks.vc co-led the round. “With this new funding, BasiGo is ready to bring the benefits of state-of-the-art electric transport to all people in Africa,” said BasiGo CEO Jit Bhattacharya.

Acerta Analytics $7.82M In Series B Funding. Acerta is an advanced analytics company that helps automakers and suppliers improve quality in manufacturing processes. BDC Capital’s Industrial Innovation and Thrive Venture Funds led the round which saw participation from OMERS Ventures and StandUp Ventures. The funds will go towards 

Butter Raises $9M In Series A Funding. Butter is an all-in-one food wholesale operating system attacking the non-digital habits of the US food supply chain. Gradient Ventures led the round with participation from Uncommon Capital and Notation Capital. The fresh capital will be used to grow its research, development, and operations team to better serve more customers in new regions.

Upstart Power Raises $17M In Series C Funding. Upstart is a leading developer and manufacturer of solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) power systems for on-demand backup power and distributed generation. ITOCHU Corporation led the round as part of a new strategic engagement and included participation from existing investors Enphase Energy, Sunnova, Rodgers Capital, H+ Partners, and Cricetus Felix Ventures. The newly secured funds will go towards accelerating the commercialization of its platform of solid oxide fuel cell generators.

RoadRunner Recycling Raises $20M In Series D Extension. Based out of Pittsburgh, PA, RoadRunner Recycling is a sustainable waste management company that raised a $70M Series D round in January of this year. The company will direct the funds toward growing its core business and expanding its enterprise offering. Fifth Wall led the extension.

GoFreight Raises $23M In Series A Funding. Based in both LA and Taipei, GoFreight helps smaller freight forwarders compete with the digital forwarding giants by providing the “Shopify” for freight forwarding. Flex Capital and Headline co-led the round with participation from new investors LFX Venture Partners and Palm Drive Capital.

Pickle Raises $26M In Series A Funding. Pickle builds robots that optimize the truck unloading process. Ranpak, JS Capital, Schusterman Family Investments, Soros Capital, and Catapult Ventures all participated in the round. The use of funds remains unclear at this time. 

Parallel Domain Closes $30M In Series B Funding. The San Fran-based startup has built a data-generation platform that allows autonomous companies to scale the AI that powers vision and perception systems. March Capital led the round with participation from Costanoa Ventures, Foundry Group, Calibrate Ventures, and Ubiquity Ventures. According to CEO Kevin McNamara, the company is ready to expand into drones and mobile computer vision.

JUCR Raises $33M In Seed Funding. JUCR develops easy-install EV chargers with over-the-air software updates and bi-directional charging. Vector Venture Capital led the round with support from 2bX and German Media Pool. Of the total $33M raised, about $25M is debt.

WeaveGrid Raises $35M In Series B Funding. WeaveGrid is ensuring grids can meet the increased demand caused by EV adoption through the use of machine learning. Salesforce Ventures led the round with participation from new investors Activate Capital, Collaborative Fund, Emerson Collective, and MCJ Collective. “The new funding will accelerate the development of WeaveGrid’s product roadmap while continuing to improve the charging experience for EV drivers.”

ISEE Raises $40M In Series B Funding. ​​ISEE is an autonomous driving tech company focused on logistic yards. Founders Fund led the round with participation from Maersk Growth, Eniac Ventures, and New Legacy. The funding will go towards automating 100 trucks for customers including BMW and Maersk. 

Attabotics Raises $71.7M In Series C Funding. The 3D robotics supply chain firm enables retailers to automate warehouse operations (after thousands of prototypes and millions of test cycles). Export Development Canada (EDC) led the round with support from Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board through Teachers’ Venture Growth. Previous funding has gone towards commercialization but this fresh infusion of capital is geared towards expanding within the market and achieving scale. 

Astera Labs Raises $150M In Series D Funding. Astera Labs provides data and memory connectivity solutions for some of the biggest chipmakers in the world. Fidelity Management and Research led both this round and the one prior. The new funds will go towards product and team expansion.

Who's Hiring? 👩‍💻

Be sure to check out our Careers page on our website for more job opportunities that have opened up at some of our portfolio companies!

Software Engineer In Test at SVT Robotics in Norfolk, VA (remote ok).

Product Owner at Amitruck in Nairobi, Kenya.

Software Engineer at Token Transit in San Fransisco, CA (remote ok).

Random Statistic Of The Week 📈

🦃 This statistic is in honor of all the turkeys who have lost a loved one due to Thanksgiving. 

According to the USDA, poultry producers have faced a number of challenges this year, including an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), which resulted in the loss of over 50 million birds, including over 8M turkeys. As a result, turkey prices are up around 28% compared to this time last year, USDA data shows. The price of an eight to 16-pound turkey has risen to $1.47 a pound, up from $1.15 last year.