The 5 Hottest Startups of 2022
It’s hard to believe that the year is almost over, but the time has come to look back at the past 12 months and decide which startups made the biggest splashes in their respective industries. After combing through thousands of new companies, we narrowed it down to just 10 that made the biggest impact in 2022. Here are our top picks for the hottest startups of 2022!
Venmo
Venmo is a free digital wallet that lets you make and share payments with friends. It’s the perfect way to split the cost of dinner, pay for tickets to a show, or chip in for a group gift. All you need is an email address or phone number to get started. Plus, there are no fees to worry about when you use Venmo. You can also keep track of your transactions through the app.
Venmo has grown significantly this year as more people are using it for smaller transactions like splitting dinners and gifts. The company announced earlier this year that it reached $1 billion worth of payments processed on its platform in just seven months.
Venmo was founded by two friends who wanted to solve their own problem – how do they each pay back their share of money owed after a night out? Their solution was PayPal, but then they discovered that over 10% of all restaurant, checks were paid via credit card and not cash. They turned to other industries where this behavior existed and found even higher numbers – think air travel, concert tickets, rental cars, etc.
Luxe
Luxe is a San Francisco-based startup that’s shaking up the online fashion world. The company’s platform allows users to shop for designer clothes, accessories, and home decor from the comfort of their own homes. The app offers curated collections or customers can search by designer, product type or style name. Customers are given access to new collections every week and they can save their favorite items in a wish list or sign up for notifications when pieces become available. The app also provides shoppers with the opportunity to try on luxury goods without actually having to purchase them first. An additional perk: if you’re not satisfied with your purchase, you can return it within 30 days of delivery for a full refund.
Lyft
Lyft is a transportation network company that operates in more than 300 cities in the United States. It allows passengers to request rides using their smartphone app, and drivers use their own personal vehicles to give rides. Lyft was founded in 2012 and has since raised over $2 billion from investors. The startup boasts that it’s growing faster than any other mode of urban transportation. The ride-sharing service also received an award for being one of America’s Most Promising Companies from Forbes magazine. It’s been a very good year for the on-demand car service industry so far.
Lyft’s success may be attributable to its appealing non-confrontational approach: Drivers have no idea who they’re picking up and riders don’t know who’s driving them until they’ve arrived at their destination.
It is planning to expand internationally by 2020 with Canada as its first target market.
GoldieBlox
GoldieBlox is a toy company that helps girls learn about engineering and construction. The company was founded in 2012 by Debbie Sterling, an engineer who was frustrated with the lack of women in her field. GoldieBlox makes construction toys for girls ages 3-9, and the company has been praised for its efforts to get more girls interested in STEM fields. In 2015, GoldieBlox was named one of the hottest startups by Forbes and Inc. magazine.
Lulu
Lulu is a women-only social media app that allows users to rate and review men they know. It’s sort of like Yelp, but for dudes. And since it’s invite-only, it has a bit of an elitist vibe. But that just makes it all the more attractive to young, ambitious women who want to network and date smarter. Plus, with its new Ask Lulu feature, you can get real-time advice from your girlfriends about that cutie you just met.
