Potomac Tech Wire - April 10
DC-based Gallatin AI Emerges from Stealth With $15 Million Seed Round
o DC-based Gallatin AI Emerges from Stealth; Raises $15 Million
o Silver Spring-based Din Din Raises $250,000 from TEDCO
o DC-based Bezos Earth Fund Backs Methane Reduction Program
o UMD Launches Free AI Certification For Federal Workers
> Tech Wire Event: AI Outlook 2025 - May 1 (Reston)
o Briefly Noted: Leidos - Moveworks, SAIC
DC-based Gallatin AI Emerges from Stealth With $15 Million Seed Round
Washington, DC – Gallatin AI, a DC-based military logistics technology startup, announced that it has emerged from stealth mode with a $15 million seed investment. The round was led by 8VC with participation from Silent Ventures, Moonshots Capital, Timeless Partners and Banter Capital. The company’s platform, called Navigator, is used by military logistics professionals to plan and execute complex operations.
"Gallatin was founded on the conviction that military logistics urgently needs to evolve beyond outdated tools to effectively respond to modern threats," said Woody Glier, CEO of Gallatin. "Navigator enables logisticians to leverage software-driven practices already proven in global commercial sectors, such as real-time data integration, predictive analytics, and workflow automation, to dramatically improve the quality and speed of critical logistics decisions.”
Silver Spring-based Din Din Raises $250,000 from TEDCO
Silver Spring, Md. – Din Din, a Silver Spring-based “meals-as-service” startup, has raised $250,000 from TEDCO. The funding came from the TEDCO’s Venture funds. Din Din was first backed by TEDCO in 2021.
“During the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw over 110,000 restaurants close nationwide. In an effort to support the local chefs affected, we wanted to build a tool that would allow them to continue employment as micro-entrepreneurs,” said John Aggrey, co-founder and CEO of Din Din.“With TEDCO’s support, Din Din was able to pivot coming out of the pandemic and build a suite of proprietary software to support Human Resource managers’ mission in attracting and retaining talent by providing gourmet ‘heat and serve’ meals to their employees as a benefit or to support life events.”
DC-based Bezos Earth Fund Backs Methane Reduction Program
Washington, DC – The DC-based Bezos Earth Fund, a philanthropic fund backed by Jeff Bezos focused on climate change, is providing $19.3 million to fund research to help herds emit less methane. In addition to the Bezos Fund, Global Methane Hub is providing $8.1 million to the program. Methane is a major contributor to climate change.
“Methane is a potent greenhouse gas – more than 80 times as powerful as carbon dioxide over a 20-year period. Cattle are the largest contributors to livestock-related methane emissions,” the Bezos Fund said in a news release about the fuding. “But even within a single herd, some animals emit up to 30% less methane than others. Scientists say selecting and breeding for these traits – just as farmers have done for centuries for milk yield, fertility, or disease resistance – can lead to substantial, permanent emissions reductions across the industry.”
UMD Launches Free AI Certification For Federal Workers
College Park, Md. – Amid a major shakeup and reduction of the federal workforce under the Trump Administration, The University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business announced that it will launch a free certificate program in Artificial Intelligence and Career Empowerment for federal workers. The certificate, being offered by the university’s Center for Artificial Intelligence in Business and the Office of Executive Education at the Robert H. Smith School of Business, will consist of 10 modules taught by 10 business school faculty. More information is available here.
> AI Outlook 2025 Event - May 1 (Reston)
Potomac Tech Wire’s AI Outlook 2025 breakfast event will take place on May 1 in Reston. Join us for a morning of networking, insights, and forward-looking discussions with leading voices in artificial intelligence and venture capital.
Event Highlights:
Presentation:
“The Future of AI: Insights from Reviewing 18,000+ Startups”
Phil Bronner, Co-Founder, Ardent Venture Partners
Fireside Chat:
Fahad Hassan, Co-Founder & CEO, Range
Interviewed by Amias Gerety, Partner, QED Investors
(Range recently raised $28 million in Series B funding)
Panel Discussion: Steven Aberle, Founder, Rohirrim AI; Harsha Mokkarala, Founder, e:cue; Reilly Herrewig, CTO, Thoras AI; (Moderator) Paul Sherman, Editor, Potomac Tech Wire
Briefly Noted:
(Reston, Va.) Leidos, the Reston-based government contractor, announced that it has formed a partnership with agentic AI company Moveworks to help governments adopt AI technology. Leidos helped Moveworks get U.S. government security certification.
(Reston, Va.) SAIC, the Reston-based defense and government contractor, hase named Kathleen McCarthy as its new chief human resources officer. McCarthy was formerly the chief human resources officer at GE Aerospace.