In New York, as United Nations delegates adopted the Sustainable Development Goals this week, celebration met a stern reminder: the goals cannot be achieved without a way to monitor and measure progress toward them. And with that call to action, big data companies are racing to position themselves as ideal partners for development organizations seeking better analysis in real time.
Last week, Premise — a San Francisco-based company that collects economic data from a global network of contributors — might have pulled ahead in that race. Valor Equity Partners, building on a tradition of helping high-profile companies like Tesla and SpaceX scale, pitched in $35 million to a $50 million round of funding help Premise grow.
“We believe that infrastructure for data collection is being remade through the application of modern technology. We have invested heavily in this theme and believe that Premise is at the forefront of the transformation,” Antonio Gracias, CEO of Valor Equity Partners, told Devex.
About the author
Catherine Cheneycatherinecheney
Catherine Cheney is the Senior Editor for Special Coverage at Devex. She leads the editorial vision of Devex’s news events and editorial coverage of key moments on the global development calendar. Catherine joined Devex as a reporter, focusing on technology and innovation in making progress on the Sustainable Development Goals. Prior to joining Devex, Catherine earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Yale University, and worked as a web producer for POLITICO, a reporter for World Politics Review, and special projects editor at NationSwell. She has reported domestically and internationally for outlets including The Atlantic and the Washington Post. Catherine also works for the Solutions Journalism Network, a non profit organization that supports journalists and news organizations to report on responses to problems.
