Pittsburgh fuels a unicorn surge
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Pittsburgh's unicorns are on a stampede.
Why it matters: The city now boasts seven startups valued at more than $1 billion, putting it on the map as a serious contender in the U.S. tech economy.
- Four of those have earned unicorn status within the last 12 months.
Driving the news: North Side-based Gecko Robotics became the region's latest unicorn after securing a Series D valuation of $1.25 billion this month, doubling a previous valuation from 2024.
- Gecko uses AI and develops robots that inspect critical energy infrastructure, such as power plants, to identify structural damage.
What they're saying: "The lack of quality data that exists on our built world is why there has been a huge surge towards Gecko," said co-founder and CEO Jake Loosararian.
Context: Pittsburgh's first unicorns were language-learning app Duolingo and autonomous vehicle company Aurora, both earning the status in 2019.
- Since then, they have been joined by health care scribe Abridge AI, robotic AI company Skild AI, medical device manufacturer Krystal Biotech, and autonomous truck builder Stack AV.
- Humanoid robot maker Agility Robotics, based in Oregon, has offices in Pittsburgh and was recently valued at $1.75 billion.
State of play: The region is competing with Miami in terms of unicorns and has overtaken Detroit, said Sean Luther, president and CEO of InnovatePGH, an organization that supports startup growth.
- Pittsburgh still has a ways to go to catch up to American tech powerhouses like the Bay Area and New York City, each home to hundreds of unicorns, and even the likes of Seattle and Boston, which have fostered dozens.
Between the lines: Momentum has grown here later than in other tech markets because most of Pittsburgh's tech companies have focused on commercializing tech innovations with significant scientific or engineering advancements, like robotics and AI transcription, said Luther.
- "The downside is this takes a lot longer and more energy, but the upside is there is more maturity and stability once it's achieved," he said.
Friction point: Just because unicorns are built in Pittsburgh doesn't mean they will stay.
- Pittsburgh-based shoe-fitting software company Shoefitr was acquired by Amazon in 2015, which Luther said didn't create wealth for the region, but rather just for Shoefitr.
- He said Pittsburgh needs to foster an ecosystem that allows emerging tech companies to grow and even expand to other regions while maintaining corporate headquarters and growing in the region, as seen with companies like Duolingo.
What's next: That could help the Steel City shed some of its reputation as being obsessed with its past, which Luther acknowledged is harder when steel continually hogs the headlines.
- However, he noted there are dozens of other new tech companies that could emerge from Pittsburgh soon.
- "We have 20-30 companies at $100 million valuations or higher. I don't think that Gecko and Abridge are the end of the cycle. They are the beginning," he said.