Participated · Series B · Feb 2021

Interplay Learning is an Austin, TX-based provider of immersive career development and skilled trades training. Its platform combines hands-on 3D simulations, expert-led videos, knowledge checks, and personalized learning paths, delivering over 500 hours of courseware across multiple skilled trade paths. The company says its training enables rapid upskilling and job-readiness within weeks rather than years. Interplay plans to use the new growth investment to expand operations and development efforts and to move deeper into the industrial sector. It has acquired Industrial Training International (ITI) to support expansion into crane, rigging, and load handling training. Since 2016 Interplay has trained more than 250,000 people and worked with nearly 2,000 businesses and educational organizations. Interplay Learning develops and delivers online and virtual reality training simulations for the essential skilled trades, including HVAC, plumbing, electrical, solar, multi-family maintenance and facilities maintenance. Founded in 2016 and led by CEO Doug Donovan, the company offers a next-generation training platform used nationwide. It serves more than 2,000 customers and has over 110,000 users across the U.S. Products combine digital learning simulations with VR to prepare workers to be job-ready for trade roles. The company intends to use new funding to expand operations and broaden its business reach. Owl Ventures’ managing director Ian Chiu will join Interplay’s board following the financing. Interplay Learning delivers scalable training for mechanical, electrical and industrial workforces using virtual reality and 3D simulations. The company’s subscription-based platform offers monthly and annual pricing and targets industries including HVAC, electrical, energy auditing, solar install, manufacturing and construction codes. Interplay has developed simulation training expertise over the last eight years. The company plans to use new funding to hire talent for its Austin offices and to expand its customer success team. Management also intends to accelerate expansion into new markets and to develop new platform features. The business recently completed a Series A financing to support these initiatives. Interplay Learning is an Austin, TX-based training technology company that provides a 3D interactive training platform to education and professional markets. Led by CEO Doug Donovan, the company focuses on trades including HVAC, electrical, energy auditing, and manufacturing. It recently unveiled a virtual reality demo at the Solar Power International Show. The company intends to use new funding to accelerate its move into delivering 3D simulation-based and virtual reality training for middle-skills and professional trades. Interplay raised $1M in funding and also won a $1.25M cooperative award from the U.S. Department of Energy SunShot Initiative to develop an online solar training platform featuring 3D simulations and an intelligent learning system. The DOE award is intended to accelerate development and launch of the solar training platform to speed skill building for immediate on-the-job results.

Participated · Equity · Oct 2010

Passenger provides a Software-as-a-Service private online community platform that combines social networking, collaboration, media, research and analytics into a single interface. Its communities are targeted at marketers and social brands and the company counts clients such as JC Penney, Microsoft, Mercedes-Benz and Fox. Passenger was founded in 2005 and operates offices in Los Angeles, Palo Alto and New York City. The company said the new capital will support new product development, marketing efforts and sales as it enhances its platform and expands into new markets. In conjunction with the funding, Passenger appointed Dr. Bahram Nour-Omid as CEO and Steve Howe as Chairman. Dr. Nour-Omid is a partner at Shelter Capital Partners and brings prior product and leadership experience, including roles at Scopus Technology and StudioXchange. Passenger provides a suite of SaaS tools that let clients set up live sessions where users engage with brand representatives, plus Discussions, Polls, Activities, Message Centers for file exchange, dashboards, and a social network. Clients pay Passenger to build and manage these branded networks and recruit users via email invitations or banner ads. Notable clients include ABC, Coca-Cola, and Sara Lee; ABC Studios used Passenger to gather viewer opinions on shows such as Ugly Betty and Lost. The company charges clients to set up and run these engagement networks. Passenger recently completed a Series B and earlier Series A financing, bringing outside investment to support its operations and product growth. The article does not report revenue or user-count metrics.