Feature

Heard Around Town: The Week of January 12-16, 2026

A snippet of what happened and notes on companies to keep an eye on.

We are slightly revamping our weekly round up (previously called Friday Fund Days). Below are snippets of what happened and notes on companies to keep an eye on.

Funding News

Fleetzero (Auburn, Alabama) - Battery technology: $43 million Series A

Klearly (Raleigh, North Carolina) - MarTech/SaaS: $14 million Series A

Tilt (Miami, Florida) - PropTech: $2.5 million seed round

Render (Franklin, Tennessee) - FinTech: $500k seed round

Acquisition News

Atlanta-based Cherry Street Energy acquired 16 solar sites from fellow Atlanta company Inman Solar. Details on Hypepotamus.

Accelerator News

Some upcoming deadlines include:

Square One Startup School - Feb 13

Center for MedTech Excellence (Atlanta) - rolling

RevTech Labs Accelerator - Spring 2026

In Other News

A new angel investing network, called Dooley's Angels, launched to provide capital to Emory University to support Emory-born innovation. More details here.
Atlanta-based PadSplit, the country's largest coliving marketplace, announced a new partnership with Atlanta-based SmartPath, a leading financial wellness platform, giving all current PadSplit members free access to live classes, on-demand education, and interactive financial tools. This partnership expands PadSplit's suite of membership benefits.
Tampa's Embarc Collective announced a new partnership with local startup Spontivly to centralize its data operations, per The Tampa Bay Business Journal.
Art Pharmacy, an Atlanta startup that has been featured in Hypepotamus previously, was highlighted in and article Inside Higher Ed.

On The Corporate Side...

Hisense USA (television, audio, appliances, and HVAC giant) announced it will officially begin operations at its new U.S. headquarters located in Alpharetta, Georgia, following a ribbon cutting ceremony this week.