UrbanLeap, the startup that helps government-run pilot projects, has raised $4.2 million in seed funding led by StageOne Ventures with participation from existing investor Lool Ventures.
The financing will be used to develop further UrbanLeap’s leading marketplace and discovery solution, which connects governments with technology companies to accelerate innovation in the public sector.
The startup’s new Discover tool is a way for public-sector employees to search for tests other governments have run on technology and policies, and to connect them to share their knowledge.
Arik Bronshtein, co-founder and CEO of the company, said Discover launched a few weeks ago with a focus on transportation.
But with cases of coronavirus rising, the company is building in a piece of Discover for people to share what they’ve tried to deal with the public health crisis as well.
That could be a wide range of things, from libraries that want to provide more services people can access at home to building managers who want to help people avoid touching surfaces in bathrooms.
“It’s going to be groups of people with the same interests where they can share and learn in a very safe environment,” Bronshtein said.
UrbanLeap is software for managing those projects, handling their documentation, and tracking performance indicators, so some of the data come from governments that have opted to share those details. Other data comes from vendors and third-party databases that share with UrbanLeap.
It currently works with about 50 customers, including San Mateo County, Calif., Las Vegas, Pittsburgh, Urban Movement Labs in Los Angeles, and Michigan’s PlanetM.
The company also announced that Yoav Samet, managing partner at StageOne Ventures, and Yaniv Golan, general partner at lool Ventures, are joining the company’s Board of Directors, effective immediately.
“The private sector is generally effective at meeting a high standard of innovation for consumers, yet governments fall behind on innovating where it matters most: public services for its residents,” said Samet.
StageOne Ventures invests in early-stage companies in the fields of Software, Communications, and Internet Infrastructure. The fund is committed to providing its portfolio companies with top value creation through the technological and financial strength of its team.
Lool Ventures is a venture capital firm investing in early-stage startups, based in Tel Aviv. Lool works shoulder to shoulder with exceptional founders with huge dreams that, once realized, will make the world a better place.
