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Throughout his time as a lead product manager at Google and for the Affirm launch on Amazon.com, Tikue Anazodo noticed that checkout products – including the ones he helped build – were primarily catering to merchants, not consumers. New solutions were aimed at solving problems and easing pain points for merchants, and “the consumer in this equation had been, in a sense, left behind,” he said. That realization sparked a conversation with Ahmad Ismail – who shares a similar background of working at Google and Affirm – about how to create a consumer-focused smart wallet. After a few months of daily conversations about the idea, the two cofounded Kudos in 2021. Martech Record

I’m sure it’ll come as no surprise to you that, as former pastry chef and lover of all things delicious, I too am a MAJOR Brightland fan. So, I pulled a few strings (wink wink) and got a sneak peak (or should I say sneak taste) of this all new vinegar. And let me tell you folks, in just a few days, I’ve already used up a fourth of the bottle! Yes, it is that good. It is that unique, and that dynamic, and that fresh! Kitchn

A pair of Houston-based founders hit a major milestone as their digital creator platform went live out of its beta stage at the end of January. Clutch co-founders Madison Long and Simone May told the Houston Business Journal they are seeing immediate growth. Houston Inno

Female-focused telehealth startup, Teal Health, is popping up today to announce an $8.8 million seed round with a roster of heavy hitting investors on board — including (Serena Williams’) Serena Ventures, (Chelsea Clinton’s) Metrodora Ventures, and (Laurene Powell Jobs’) Emerson Collective. TechCrunch

These days it’s hard to imagine an experience in the digital world without some form of personalisation, whether it’s modifying your Google page, curating a specific playlist or a game character, we all want a personal experience that reflects who we are. In fact the idea of personalising your digital space has been around since the days of Winamp music players where you could modify the interface to your liking, and when games such as Sims were introduced to the world, the industry changed. As much as we have advanced in creating digital versions of ourselves, we still are yet to get a platform that represents our truest self…One company that is making strides in the digital world is Idoru. AFROPUNK

Notch has raised $10 million in its efforts to help the hospitality sector go digital. The company, which makes software for the food service industry, announced the funding — led by investment platform Portage — in a news release Thursday (Jan. 18). It comes as the restaurant industry is stepping up its efforts to drive digitization. PYMNTS

Phil Libin has already launched and sold several startups. His latest venture is mmhmm where he is working with his team to take virtual meetings to another level. On the Dealmakers Show Libin shared his journey of creating things, selling his first company for $26M, fundraising, and bringing efficiency to making new products. Plus, his insight on the main thing to unlocking team productivity, remote work, and the future of work. Alejandro Cremades Blog

As Courtney Caldwell stood more than 19,000 feet above sea level, she felt at peace. She was surrounded by glaciers and pure white snow. The scene looked like uncharted territory with few people and no sense of time or a reason to rush, just like heaven. Buffalo Inno

Four Sharks Circle This Eco-Friendly Outdoor Protection Company – Shark Tank ABC

Just short of a year after first demonstrating its autonomous hybrid-electric cargo vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft called the Chaparral, San Francisco Bay-area startup Elroy Air’s order book just grew by more than $100 million, the company announced Wednesday. Forbes

Engineer saw how diapers were made, thought she could do better—now she has a $250,000 ‘Shark Tank’ deal. CNBC

Influent’s founder, Julia Montgomery, was featured in Forbes 30 Under 30 2023: Marketing & Advertising. Forbes

Finix was named as one of Comparably’s best 100 companies for diversity for small & mid-sized businesses in 2022. Comparably

Drew Barrymore featured Marriage Pact on her show, and, spoiler alert, she likes it (starts about 3 minutes in). The Drew Barrymore Show

Many creators struggle to make enough, or consistent, income from their creative pursuits. Today, we’re speaking with Madison Long, CEO and Co-Founder of Clutch, and Simone May, CTO and Co-Founder of Clutch, about why the creator economy is the future of work and how Clutch is helping creators build sustainable careers. Net Influencer

Reacting to growing demand and interest, Bitcoin storage company Casa plans to expand by introducing Ethereum “self-custody” options for users in early 2023. Fortune

I’m proud to announce that we have acquired Pulse, an incredible team that has developed some truly novel machine learning approaches to help streamline the digital workplace. The products that Raj, Jag, Rolf, and team have built are a great demonstration of their creativity and skill, and we’re incredibly excited to bring their expertise into our organization. They will spearhead our efforts in applied ethical machine learning, as we invest to make Mozilla products more personal, starting with Pocket. Mozilla

In 2016, Andrew Hoag, formerly a senior manager at Verisign and a web project lead at NASA’s Ames Research Center, founded Teampay, a platform that attempts to automate the software purchasing process for companies. Hoag’s insight was that the way businesses spend money is changing, particularly as they embraced digital transformation, and that visibility into — and control over — spend was becoming increasingly important with the economy’s ups and downs. TechCrunch

Just days after a bill that would codify same-sex marriage in the U.S. cleared a key hurdle in the Senate, Daylight, a digital bank that pitches itself as LGBTQIA+-friendly, announced a $15 million Series A round led by Anthemis Group with participation from CMFG Ventures, Kapor Capital, Citi Ventures and Gaingels. TechCrunch

A new app that allows users create realistic, lifelike avatars of themselves is providing a level of representation rarely seen in the gaming and digital world. DAZED