GovTech Biz

In this quarterly series, gov tech adviser Jeff Cook reflects on a particularly wild three months of market activity, including huge deals involving Granicus, Mark43, OpenGov, NEOGOV, CivicPlus and others.

With millions at risk of eviction, the company’s tools can help public agencies better target people in need of government assistance. The key? Neighborhood-level data that is updated quickly.

The pandemic and consumer trends have fueled fresh deployments of payment technology for bills, taxes and fees. Can local and state government find new savings via online and mobile transactions?

The company has been growing very quickly, reaching its Series D and operating in 40 states within four years of its founding. With a mountain of cash at its disposal, it plans on growing further.

Intentional or not, untrue information propagating on the Internet threatens democratic institutions and the public good. Emerging tech tools aim to help government combat the threat.

Through a new partnership, the 10,000-plus government members in the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center will be able to access Deloitte’s Cyber Detect and Respond Portal at no cost.

With DemandStar and other tech providers reporting big recent growth, the future shines brightly for digital procurement services at the state and local levels. But look out for Amazon — maybe.

Even amid calls to "defund the police," agencies are buying new technology, boosting efficiency and enabling new types of reporting. Mark43 aims to be a major global player in this industry.

As cities look beyond the pandemic, a Silicon Valley startup secures funding as it helps local officials better manage scooters, deliveries and other challenges. Data modeling combined with open source technology is key.

The company, which provides digital services and payments, has completed the deal after a year of skepticism and criticism from local tech vendors and advocates. It plans to make the first services live in the fall.

The pandemic stretched municipal revenues even further, but tech and financing provider Quantela aims to provide backing for Wi-Fi, LED streetlights and other projects. Now the company has $40 million of fresh capital.

The suite brings together a range of applications, allowing personnel to view 911 calls, dispatch activity, live video, records and jail activity in one place — part of a larger trend of unification in public safety.

The three former state leaders join three other state CIOs at AWS, which has been showing increased interest in government lately — along with other tech giants such as Google, Microsoft and Salesforce.

The startup has more than doubled its customer count during the pandemic as governments look for ways to stay in tune with residents. Now its investors are doubling down and Zencity is planning a new survey product.

The gov tech software firm has bought Data Preservation Solutions in a deal that will help Kofile offer more digital documentation services to local governments. Kofile already serves 3,000 government clients.

After forging public-private partnerships for the Georgia Technology Authority, Johnson will help the company build more SLED-related business. Spending on SLED-related tech projects could reach $100 billion in 2021.

It’s the first acquisition for ArchiveSocial, which stores public officials’ social media posts so they can be accessed later. It’s also the sixth gov tech acquisition to be announced or completed this month.

OpenGov is acquiring ProcureNow, a five-year-old startup, in order to expand its offerings so government customers can run budgeting, procurement and financial operations all using the same vendor.