Modernize wins 2018’s Austin Startup Games
Austin Startup Games took place last Saturday for its seventh annual charity event held at Fair Market in East Austin. Fifteen tech startups participated this year, competing for a charitable cause of their choice. This year’s winner was Modernize, taking gold in foosball, flip cup, Liar’s Dice, dodgeball and trivia for the nonprofit Girlstart. Level Up Games, for tech companies with over 250 employees, will take place on Feb. 3. [Press Release]
Art startup Twyla announces new CEO
Twyla announced on Tuesday that Thomas Galbraith will sign on as the online art company’s new CEO. Brian Sharples, acting CEO and co-founder, will return to his role as company chairman. Galbraith joins Twyla from online auction company Paddle8, where he served as managing director. Twyla also announced its new financing options, allowing art buyers to pay for their pieces over time. [Press Release]
Spiceworks hires new chief operating and financial officer
J. Scott Di Valerio joins Spiceworks as the company’s new chief operating and financial officer. In his role, Di Valerio will lead Spiceworks’ revenue and financial scaling efforts and daily operations. Di Valerio has over 30 years of leadership experience supporting tech companies. His previous roles include CFO at RetailMeNot, CEO at Outerwall and president of the Americas for the Lenovo Group Limited. He also held executive roles at Microsoft and The Walt Disney Company. [Press Release]
MVF acquires Tech.co
MVF, a digital marketing firm based out of London with its global headquarters located in Austin, announced on Tuesday that it has acquired US-based media and publishing company Tech.co. This follows MVF’s acquisition of startups.co.uk in February 2017. MVF’s fastest growing market is in the U.S. They hope to leverage this acquisition as a means to continue its path of rapid growth in America. [Press Release]
HNI welcomes new president
Following last week’s $32.6 million funding news, HNI announced Michael Saunders as its new president on Tuesday. Saunders’s resume boasts 23 years of experience in the healthcare management industry. Prior to joining HNI, he served as chief operating officer at Pinnacle (Anesthesia) Partners. In addition to the leadership news, HNI also announced that it has expanded its services to post-acute hospitals and now offers alternative payment models. [Press Release]
WeWork shares plans of fifth Austin site
WeWork will open its fifth Austin location in a new mid-rise off Barton Springs Road across from the Palmer Events Center. The company plans to open the new 90,500-square-foot building by the summer. This announcement comes after WeWork shared in October the opening of its fourth location in the downtown Chase Tower. [Austin Business Journal]
