Delaware’s 2024 RealLIST Startups raised a median of $400k this year

Delaware can be a challenge for small businesses — and our RealLIST startups are up for it.

Despite pain points like relatively little access to VC funding and few resources for scaling, startups can thrive in Delaware, and the annual RealLIST Startups showcase some of the best and most promising in the state. 

This year’s list included startups in life sciences, healthcare and AI. Recently, we sent out a survey to the ten listees, and six (60%) responded, sharing details about the last six months which shows Delaware startups stack up next to startups in markets like Philadelphia, Baltimore and Pittsburgh. 

Half of the Delaware respondents reported that they had secured new funding over the past six months, in amounts ranging from a $100,000 VC raise for AI photo company Rush Roto to $400,000 in grants for software-based medicine company Toivoa to $700,000 to immunotherapy healthtech Cellergy Pharma in a combination of VC and grants. 

Other successes cited by founders include launching a clinical trial, creating preclinical data and even the RealLIST recognition itself.

“Sharing this recognition with friends, family, potential investors, and future customers has been a rewarding experience,” said Christopher DiMarco, cofounder of research and development firm Sindri Materials. “This recognition motivates our team by highlighting the importance of our work as a startup. Being named to the RealLIST has also sparked positive conversations within our network.”

Delaware startups raised less than the cross-market average 

Across Technical.ly’s markets, nearly 9 in 10 responding startups on the 2024 RealLIST secured new funding or revenue streams since February. The median funding secured was $460,000. 

About a quarter of the startups across markets secured venture capital funding, a third received grants or awards and nearly half added new clients, customers or contracts. 

As a result, 53% of startups saw tier valuation increase, with about half saying it increased by more than 50%. 

In Delaware, 50% of responding startups secured new funding since February — lower than the across-market percentage. The median funding secured was not far off from the cross-market median, at $400,000.

A third of the responding Delaware startups secured VC funding and a third secured grant funding. Of the startups that received funding in the last six months, two-thirds saw an increase in valuation under 50%. One startup, Sindri Materials, cited an increase in valuation over the last six months without securing VC funding or grants.

While the number of startups securing funding in the last six months is less than other markets, optimism among the Delaware RealLIST Startups is high: About 66%, of responding Delaware startups said they would be announcing new funding in the next year, well over the 22% across all markets. 

Two-thirds said they expected to announce new products or services in the next year, and 100% said they planned to announce a new partnership over the next year.

Delaware startups adding staff at a slightly lower rate than others

Half of the responding Delaware startups reported that added staff over the last six months. One, Cellergy Pharma, which also reported the highest amount of funds secured at $700,000, decreased its headcount. 

Still, Cellergy plans to announce new hires over the next six months to a year, along with two-thirds of the Delaware startups. 

Across Technical.ly’s markets, nearly two-thirds of startups added staff since February, with only a few companies decreasing headcount. But across the board, more than 80% of startups expect to add employees over the next year. 

In Delaware, two-thirds of the respondents work primarily hybrid. Just one, digital inventory platform Infra AI, reported employees work in a physical office only, and one, Rush Roto, reported remote only. 

Across markets, a higher number of startups are remote only. The number of life sciences startups on the 2024 list may explain why the number is lower on the Delaware list. 

“Research work must occur in the company’s lab.,” said Ryan Dudek, founder of Cellergy Pharma. “Other work can be done remotely.”

Still, the flexibility of hybrid work remains popular, even for nanotechnology manufacturing company Sindri Materials.

“Of course, being a manufacturing company, manufacturing process personnel will need to be on location as appropriate,” said DiMarco. “Employees appreciate having the freedom to choose what works best for them, leading to higher satisfaction and productivity.”