Telegraph Obtains $10MM Series A Funding
Written by William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-Chief
Chicago-based Telegraph, a provider of cloud-based operating systems for railroads, shippers, logistics service providers and railcar leasing companies, has obtained $10.1 million in Series A funding from Crosslink Capital. The deal includes participation from new investors Slow Ventures, 9 Yards Capital, Motivate Venture Capital and Extra Credit Ventures, as well as returning investors Construct Capital, 8VC and BoxGroup.
“The funds will be used for hiring across all roles to enable expansion of new features and functionality of our existing innovative platform, which provides price transparency, shipment visibility and proactive business intelligence, empowering customers and making shipping by rail easier and more effective,” Telegraph said. “With increased pressure placed on supply chains over the past few years, Telegraph’s cloud-based solution for railroads, shippers, logistics providers and railcar lessors is a highly attractive opportunity for supply chain innovation. On any given day, more than 40% of all goods in North America travel on a freight railroad, and the pressure to move those goods more efficiently via a single, modernized platform is what Telegraph offers customers. Telegraph’s solutions also lower the barrier for shippers and logistics companies to work with freight railroads, which remains the most cost-efficient and environmentally friendly way to move goods.”
Telegraph was founded in July 2020 by Harris Ligon, CEO and a former railroader; Amaro Luna, Chief Product Officer; and Shachar Astor, Chief Growth Officer. All three were employees at Uber Freight in its early days, helping launch the business and expand into new modes. While at Uber, the team incubated the Emerging Products division and was responsible for designing, launching and scaling enterprise SaaS (software as a service) solutions. The broader Telegraph team consists of “top-tier talent across tech, rail and logistics domains,” with employees from Uber, Outdoorsy, Microsoft, Bloomberg, Coyote, Norfolk Southern and BNSF.
Since the company’s $3.2 million seed funding, the Telegraph team has launched its suite of software products across railroads, logistics companies and shippers in the U.S., Mexico, and Canada, “saving customers thousands of hours in manual work and millions of dollars in accessorial charges.”
“We are extremely fortunate to serve a transportation vertical that has been categorically overlooked,” said Ligon. “The past few years have been extremely challenging for global supply chains. Through it all, freight railroads never stopped working. This round of funding is for our customers and the industry. We’re grateful for the support of our investors as we continue to build technology for the unaddressed needs of a transportation mode that is core to keeping our economy moving.”
