LinkedIn Reveals the Top 10 Startups of 2018
Entrepreneurship isn’t just about having a dream. It’s about having a dream along with the will and courage (and, of course, the capital) to implement it.
For every Ray Kroc, Steve Jobs, or Henry Ford, there are thousands of entrepreneurs whose businesses don’t make it. The Small Business Association reports that 30 percent of businesses fail in the first two years. Fifty percent of them fail in the first five years.
LinkedIn just released the top 10 startups of 2018. (Actually, the released the top 50, but we’ll share the top 10 of them with you.)
10. Rubrik
Rubrik is a Palo Alto, California-based data management company launched in 2014. With offices in Kansas, North Carolina, India, and Ireland, Rubrik is valued at $1.3 billion.
Rubrik’s customer base quadrupled in 2017, and its clients have included the Tampa Bay Rays, the Department of Defense, Berkeley College, and Expedia.
Global headcount: 1,200 | Headquarters: Palo Alto, Calif.
Aurora had raised $90 million from investors in what could prove to be “a renaissance in the transportation industry.”
9. Aurora
Co-founded by Chris Urmson, the man who led Google’s driverless car initiative, Aurora “delivers the benefits of self-driving technology quickly and safely around the world.”
Aurora had raised $90 million from investors as of February, Fortunereported, in what could prove to be “a renaissance in the transportation industry.”
Global headcount: 160 | Headquarters: Palo Alto, Calif., Pittsburgh, and San Francisco
8. Glossier
A three-year-old brand, Glossier is “a people-powered beauty ecosystem” that specializes in beauty, skincare, and fragrance products.
The company recently raised $52 million in funding to improve its customer experience and added Stich Fix’s Katrina Lake to its board of directors.
Global headcount: 280 | Headquarters: New York City
Ripple uses blockchain technology to facilitate currency exchanges between banks and across borders.
7. Ripple
Launched in 2012, Rippleuses blockchain technology to facilitate currency exchanges between banks and across borders, providing “a frictionless experience to send money globally.” The company, which LinkedIn reports will add another 75 employees by the end of 2018, is headed by CEO Brad Garlinghouse, formerly of Hightail.
Global headcount: 250 | Headquarters: San Francisco
6. Robinhood
Robinhood is a commission-free stock trade service founded by former Stanford roommates Baiju Bhatt and Vladimir Tenev. Though just four years old, it has already attracted more than 5 million accounts, according to LinkedIn, putting the company ahead of E-Trade.
Global headcount: 250 | Headquarters: Menlo Park, Calif.
Bird already operates in some 30 cities and carries a $2 billion valuation.
5. Bird
You may have heard of Bird and not even know it. The company makes those cool little scooters that consumers love (they apparently bring them right to you) and cities seem to hate. Earlier this year Bird raised $400 million in what media dubbed an effort to “become the Uber of electric scooters.”
Founded by former Lyft and Uber exec Travis VanderZanden just last year, Bird already operates in some 30 cities and carries a $2 billion valuation.
Global headcount: 380 | Headquarters: Venice, Calif.
4. Noodle.ai
Noodle.ai specializes in “Math. Data. Supercomputing. Business expertise.” It does this to offer clients “a suite of interconnected AI Applications powered by learning algorithms to help enterprise executives out-calculate their competition.”
I don’t know precisely what that means. But it must be working. The two-year-old startup raised $35 million in June, tripling its total funding.
Global headcount: 130 | Headquarters: San Francisco
Coinbase is a digital currency platform that allows merchants and consumers to swap in various forms of digital currencies.
3. Coinbase
Coinbase, founded in 2012, is a digital currency platform that allows merchants and consumers to swap in various forms of digital currencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin.
According to the company’s site, it has logged more than 20 million users who’ve traded in excess of $150 billion—yes, billion—in large part, most likely, form the Bitcoin craze of 2017.
Global headcount: 500 | Headquarters: San Francisco
2. Halo Top
Halo Top makes the list by making money the old-fashioned way: through guilty pleasures (or somewhat guilty). This ice cream company launched six years ago and is already the top-selling brand in U.S. grocery stores, surpassing both Ben & Jerry’s and Häagen-Dazs in 2017. (Halo Top’s healthy treats are also sold in Australia, Singapore, the UK, Mexico, Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand.)
Halo Top maintains no “proper office,” the L.A. Times reports, allowing employees to work remotely, which no doubt has helped the company offer treats at more affordable prices.
Global headcount: 100 | Headquarters: Los Angeles
Lyft has been successful in capitalizing on some of Uber’s headaches.
1. Lyft
Lyft, Uber’s chief rival, is currently valued at $15.1 billion. Not bad for a company launched just six years ago.Founded by Logan Green(CEO) and John Zimmer (president), Lyft has been successful in capitalizing on some of Uber’s headaches. Following its 54-city launch in the summer of 2017, estimates suggested that Lyft facilitates about a million rides per day and is available to more than 90 percent of Americans.
Global headcount: 3,000+ | Headquarters: San Francisco