INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
As slow-moving LinkedIn leaves room for startups to flourish, Elpha aims to create a tailored online network for women in tech.The company
is not only a graduate of Y Combinator, but was conceived of behind the scenes of the San Francisco accelerator program
Cadran Cowansage, the co-founder and chief executive officer of the startup, was a software engineer at YC from 2016 to early 2019
It was during that stint that she created Leap, a tool meant to help her and her colleagues communicate
Things like how do I get this promotion? Or my male peers, they are being paid more than me, what do I do about that? The conversations that
a dedicated space to communicate via public forums and direct messages, foster relationships and build their careers
The company, which completed YC this summer, is today announcing a $1.1 million round with participation from Y Combinator, the
Moxxie Ventures, JaneVC, Friale, Kabam co-founder and visiting YC partner Holly Liu, Block Party founder Tracy Chou and Breaker co-founder
Cowansage said the company currently has 20 paying customers, many of which are venture-backed startups like Lambda School and Webflow
The Elpha team plans to use the seed investment to hire, host events and continue the development of new products, including a mobile app
