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Accelerating the Rail Technology Curve: Telegraph Announces 10M Series A Funding

Scenic view of a green freight train winding through a forested mountain landscape beside a river, with the sun setting in the background

Few industries sit at the center of national infrastructure while teetering on the edge of a digital transformation. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world has seen increasing supply chain pressures coupled with a growing emphasis on logistics automation. These themes and events highlight the continued importance of transparency, usability, and resilience for transportation services that the population relies on every day. 

We founded Telegraph with a core belief that shipping by rail should be simple, efficient, and automated. We believe that the time is now to innovate railroads, shippers, third-party logistics firms, railcar lessors, and steamship lines. Today, we are publicly announcing a $10.1M Series A funding round for our customers and the freight rail industry. This round of financing was led by Crosslink Capital. Other investors include: Construct Capital, 8VC, BoxGroup, Slow Ventures, 9Yards Capital, Motivate VC, Extra Credit Ventures, and Flexport.

“This fundraising round is for the future of railroading. We are accelerating the opportunity for customers to incorporate more rail into their supply chain,” says Harris Ligon, Telegraph CEO. “Manufacturing, commodities, and consumption are all growing in North America. Rail is absolutely necessary for the long-term expansion of the economy.” 

With regard to the importance of sustainability, Amaro Luna, Telegraph Chief Product Officer, adds, “One of our core principles as a company is to create a more sustainable supply chain. By providing shippers with best-in-class technology when interfacing with railroads, more freight will convert over from trucks. We achieve a greener supply chain as a result since one train can manage the equivalent tonnage of 280 trucks. That’s 280 trucks we can remove from the North American highway system, directly reducing vehicle emissions.” 

Telegraph’s groundbreaking software helps railroads, shippers, logistics companies, and railcar lessors work more efficiently via a singular platform. Telegraph’s customer-centric approach has led to influential partnerships with highly diversified transportation companies such as Watco. 

“Telegraph’s tool helps us be more effective and efficient so we can focus on solving common rail issues for our customers. It’s quick, easy, and powerful,” said Watco Vice President Michelle Bowling. “We help our customers keep their freight moving and provide significant cost-saving opportunities such as rate negotiations and demurrage risk mitigation.” 

Location in seconds, pricing in minutes, and decisions that are just as quick. The best way to decrease trucks on the highway, drop greenhouse gas emissions, and reduce consumer prices in stores is to convert more shipments to rail. What is the best way to accomplish this? Make it easy with technology.

The Telegraph team is comprised of top-tier talent across tech, rail, and logistics domains, with employees from Uber, Outdoorsy, Microsoft, Bloomberg, Coyote, Norfolk Southern, and BNSF. With this round of funding, the focus is on expanding the existing high-caliber team, developing new technology and products for the industry, and disseminating the message that rail is the future. “We recognized a distinct need for software designed for the freight rail ecosystem,” explained Telegraph co-founder Shachar Astor. “The industry presents unique challenges our technology allows us to address. Together, we’re making rail a more compelling option for shippers.

Since the company’s $3.2 million seed round, which was led by Construct Capital, Telegraph has helped more than 30 railroads, shippers, logistics companies, railcar lessors, and steamship lines work more effectively together across the ecosystem. “The best is yet to come for rail, and this capital represents a commitment to the economy and industry,” says Ligon. “If you are interested in being a part of the effort to simplify freight rail, come join us.”

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