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Based in Fresno, California, Bitwise Industries operated as a technology workforce training, custom software development, and commercial real estate company focused on revitalizing underserved communities. At its operational peak, the enterprise managed 200,000 square feet of workspace, trained approximately 4,500 workers through its Geekwise Academy, and employed nearly 1,000 staff members. The organization generated an estimated $20 million in revenue during 2019 and reached a $100 million valuation in 2020 after securing $27 million in venture capital from backers including Kapor Capital and the New Voices Fund. Despite expanding its custom software division, Shift3 Technologies, the business abruptly collapsed in 2023 following a massive $115 million wire fraud scheme that ultimately resulted in lengthy federal prison sentences for its executive leadership. Bitwise Industries was founded in 2013 by Jake Soberal and Irma Olguin Jr.
Bitwise Industries has raised $237.0M across 4 funding rounds.
Bitwise Industries has raised $237.0M in total across 4 funding rounds.
Bitwise Industries was a technology company founded in 2013 in Fresno, California, specializing in Salesforce and DocuSign integrations, custom software development, coding bootcamps, and real estate revitalization to uplift underserved communities.[1][2][3] It aimed to activate human potential in America's poorest zip codes through workforce training (e.g., Geekwise Academy), industry services via its Shift3 Technologies division, and infrastructure by renovating blighted buildings into tech hubs, training over 5,000 students—80% of whom secured high-wage tech jobs.[1][2][3] The company raised $157.78M, reaching Series C stage, but collapsed in 2023 amid financial woes, furloughing 900 employees, entering Chapter 7 liquidation, and seeing its co-founders plead guilty to wire fraud in 2024.[1][2][5]
Bitwise Industries emerged from Geekwise Academy, a 2012 coding bootcamp founded by lawyer Jake Soberal and tech instructor Irma Olguin Jr. to serve underprivileged communities in Fresno.[2][5] Officially launched in July 2013, it expanded by acquiring and renovating an 8,000 sq ft building for workspaces leased to tech startups, followed by a major 50,000 sq ft former car dealership turned into Bitwise South Stadium with offices, a coffee shop, and theater in 2015.[2] Early traction came from workforce programs placing trainees—often 26-year-old Latinx women from low-wage jobs—into tech roles, alongside software services and real estate growth into cities like Bakersfield, Toledo, and El Paso.[3][5] Pivotal moments included national recognition for poverty alleviation, but cash flow issues and unpaid taxes since 2021 led to its 2023 downfall.[2][5]
Bitwise rode the edtech and workforce reskilling trend, capitalizing on demand for accessible tech training amid skills gaps in underserved areas, aligning with movements to diversify tech beyond coastal elites.[1][3] Timing was ideal post-2010s bootcamp boom and pre-2023 layoffs, as market forces like remote work and digital transformation favored its model for cheap, diverse talent pools.[2][5] It influenced ecosystems by reigniting forgotten downtowns, challenging hiring biases, and proving scalability of poverty-to-tech pipelines—training demographics ignored by traditional programs—though its fraud scandal underscored risks in impact-driven scaling.[2][3]
Bitwise's story warns of overambition in social tech ventures: rapid growth masked fraud, leading to liquidation and prison sentences for founders (9-11 years, $115M restitution).[1][2] No revival is possible post-Chapter 7, but its legacy shapes edtech by highlighting sustainable models for inclusive training. Trends like AI-driven reskilling and urban renewal could inspire successors, evolving influence toward verified, transparent impact firms—echoing its original hook of transforming underserved lives through tech, now as a cautionary tale.
Bitwise Industries has raised $237.0M in total across 4 funding rounds.
Bitwise Industries's investors include Mitchell Kapor, Motley Fool Ventures, Citi, Hillel Moerman, Kapor Center, Andreessen Horowitz, Backstage Capital, Evolution VC Partners, Firstminute Capital, Flucas Ventures, Shawn Modarresi, Kapor Capital.
Bitwise Industries has raised $237.0M across 4 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $80.0M Other Equity in February 2023.
