MassChallenge Texas in Austin announced five winners of its accelerator competition. The startups that received equity-free investments included a data connectivity innovator, an anti-trafficking nonprofit, a “big and tall” e-commerce store, a memory care phone service and a new technology for breathing tubes. [Built In Austin]
The Zebra moved to a new office with enough room to double its staff. The Zebra offers online quote comparison for auto insurance shoppers. Its new East Side office is four times the size of its former downtown space, with room for an additional 150 employees — and an in-house coffee bar and barista. [Press release]
Firefly Black won a (potentially) big contract from Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center to send payloads into space. Firefly Black is the national security and civil space arm of Firefly Aerospace. The contract could bring in anywhere from $50,000 to $986 million, but Firefly will have to compete with seven other contracted companies, including big names like SpaceX. [Press release]
Austin’s L7 Informatics will partner with Toronto’s CReATe IVF to streamline fertility research. L7 Informatics makes enterprise software for scientific research, and CReATe IVF provides fertility consultation and care. L7’s platform ideally will help CReATe IVF improve its outcomes by consolidating data and processes in one place. [Press release]
Austin-based Digital Turbine is expanding its teams in Texas and North Carolina. After doubling the size of its Raleigh-Durham team in the past year, the mobile technology company is looking for more growth. Digital Turbine has seen high demand for the Durham-based positions due to the cost of living, its executive vice president told Austin Business Journal. [Austin Business Journal]
