We’re wrapping up May and kicking off June with some big investments in Alabama startups. For starters, Help Lightning just secured $3M in funding, and that’s not all—keep reading for even more startup news in Alabama.

1. datacy receives investment from Alabama Futures Fund

Datacy: Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn

Two Alabama-based investment funds, the Alabama Futures Fund (AAF) & RedHawk Advisory, have recently invested in datacy, Inc. Although the firm is based out of London, UK and Dayton, TN, datacy is planning to move their headquarters to Birmingham soon.

But what is datacy? Led by Paroma Indilo (Founder and CEO) and Kaleb Wilson (Founder and CTO), datacy aims to flip the relationship between data collectors and normal, everyday users on the internet. Currently, data collectors sell their users’ data to third parties, a transaction in which the user has little to no say. With datacy, users can control their own privacy and decide how and when to sell their own information.

2. StreetMetrics secures $2.265M in seed funding

StreetMetrics: Website | Facebook | LinkedIn
Address: 1914 4th Ave North Birmingham, AL 35203

A Birmingham-based startup has recently secured $2.265M in seed funding. StreetMetrics, which works out of the historic Forbes Building in downtown Birmingham, helps businesses and advertisers better understand the efficacy of their out-of-house (OOH) advertising campaigns.

For reference, an OOH campaign is typically advertisements that are seen on the go. Examples include billboards, posters, ads on city buses and much more. Historically, it’s been difficult to track the efficacy of OOH campaigns—but StreetMetrics has developed a way.

By using geolocation data to measure the impact of OOH ads on cars, buses & bikes, StreetMetrics can give customers a tangible idea of the performance of their OOH campaigns. And with the $2.265M in seed funding, StreetMetrics will be able to accelerate their growth and provide even better service.

3. Help Lightning receives $3M investment

Help Lightning: 800.651.8054 | Website | Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter

The Birmingham-based startup Help Lighting has added on more funding in its Series A round from two separate investors. Mumbai-based Larsen & Toubro + Atlanta-based Engage have invested a combined $3M in equity into Help Lighting, a leading provider in remote visual assistance software. The $3M is the latest in a series of investments for Help Lighting, which raised $8M in Series A funding in August 2020.

When the COVID-19 pandemic took off, it became apparent that remote collaboration was desperately needed. For instance, what if your power goes out and you’re unable to call an electrician due to a worldwide pandemic? That’s where Help Lighting comes in.

With Help Lightning, users can use their augmented reality software to virtually bring those experts directly to the problem. The two parties—the user and the expert—can communicate in real time, and the expert can even reach out and virtually point at or touch the problem.