Girişimci Kafası archive

Ran out of cash

Ran out of cash: 77 startups that closed for this reason, with their stories and lessons.

Startups1,686
Known capital burned$31.2 billion
Average lifespan10.3 years
Most common causeBusiness model failed
Countries81
Biggest lossArgo AI ($3.6 billion)

77 startups

Closed2023 – 2026

IO Interactive Türkiye

The Istanbul studio Hitman maker IO Interactive opened to develop AAA games

TurkeyRan out of cash
Closed2018 – 2025

Bitay

A crypto exchange born as an R&D project at Yıldız Teknopark that issued its own token

TurkeyRan out of cash
Closed2016 – 2025

Builder.ai

The start-up that promised to make commissioning an app with SI as easy as ordering a pizza

United KingdomRan out of cash
Closed2017 – 2025

Canoo

The start-up building pod-shaped electric vans and delivery vehicles for commercial fleets

United StatesRan out of cash
Closed2015 – 2025

Lilium

The German company behind the Lilium Jet, an electric air taxi capable of vertical take-off

GermanyRan out of cash
Closed2020 – 2025

Pandion

The e-commerce parcel delivery network built by the founder of Amazon Air

United States$125 millionRan out of cash
Closed2012 – 2024

Bench Accounting

Subscription bookkeeping for small businesses, combining software with human bookkeepers

Canada$100 millionRan out of cash
Closed2017 – 2024

Ghost Autonomy

An OpenAI-backed start-up developing autonomous driving software for carmakers

United StatesRan out of cash
Closed2014 – 2024

Karhoo

The London taxi app that set out to rival Uber and went into administration twice

United KingdomRan out of cash
Closed2019 – 2024

Koo

The microblogging app born in India as a home-grown alternative to Twitter

IndiaRan out of cash
Closed2015 – 2024

Tally

The fintech valued at $855 million that managed credit card debt automatically

United States$172 millionRan out of cash
Closed2019 – 2023

54gene

A Nigerian start-up that set out to open up Africans' genomic data to drug research

Nigeria$45 millionRan out of cash
Closed2017 – 2023

AppHarvest

A company that grew soil-free crops in giant greenhouses in Kentucky's coal country

United StatesRan out of cash
Closed2013 – 2023

Boxed

The online retailer that delivered bulk-size goods to the door without a membership fee

United States$243 millionRan out of cash
Closed2019 – 2023

Britishvolt

The start-up that set out to build an electric-vehicle battery gigafactory in the north of England

United KingdomRan out of cash
Closed2018 – 2023

Lordstown Motors

The company that tried to build the Endurance electric pickup in GM's former Ohio plant

United StatesRan out of cash
Closed2009 – 2023

VanMoof

The Dutch brand that sold its own smart electric bikes direct to customers

Netherlands$100 millionRan out of cash
Closed2019 – 2022

Airlift

A Pakistani start-up that went from a shuttle bus app to 30-minute grocery delivery

Pakistan$110 millionRan out of cash
Closed2019 – 2022

Fast

The Stripe-backed fintech that wanted to bring one-click checkout to every e-commerce site

United States$124.5 millionRan out of cash
Closed2020 – 2022

Nimo TV Türkiye

The live-streaming platform through which China's Huya gathered mobile gaming streamers in Turkey

TurkeyRan out of cash
Closed2016 – 2021

Byton

The Chinese-German electric car brand that never reached series production

ChinaRan out of cash
Closed2016 – 2021

Element AI

The Montreal super intelligence company co-founded by Yoshua Bengio

CanadaRan out of cash
Closed2015 – 2021

Katerra

A construction technology company that built walls in a factory and assembled them on site

United States$2 billionRan out of cash
Closed2015 – 2020

Honestbee

The Singaporean platform that delivered groceries through personal shoppers

SingaporeRan out of cash
Closed2014 – 2020

ofo

The Chinese dockless bike-sharing company whose yellow bikes spread to 20 countries

China$2.1 billionRan out of cash
Closed2018 – 2020

OtoParlat

A mobile car-wash service that cleaned vehicles where they were parked, without using water

TurkeyRan out of cash
Closed2010 – 2019

Anki

The robotics start-up that made SI-powered toy robots and racing cars

United States$200 millionRan out of cash
Closed2014 – 2019

Coolest Cooler

The record-breaking Kickstarter cool box with a built-in blender and speaker

United States$13.3 millionRan out of cash
Closed2010 – 2019

DAQRI

The company building augmented reality helmets and glasses for industrial workers

United States$275 millionRan out of cash
Closed2012 – 2019

Tink Labs

A start-up that put smartphones in hotel rooms and collapsed within weeks of a billion-dollar valuation

Hong Kong$160 millionRan out of cash
Closed2011 – 2019

Utrip

A Seattle travel-planning start-up whose acquisition deal collapsed three days before signing

United StatesRan out of cash
Closed2006 – 2018

BuldumBuldum.com

An e-commerce site selling personalised products and quirky gifts

Turkey$6 millionRan out of cash
Closed2008 – 2018

Rethink Robotics

The Boston pioneer of collaborative robots that work side by side with people

United StatesRan out of cash
Closed2013 – 2017

Beepi

The marketplace that took used-car buying and selling out of the dealership and to the door

United States$150 millionRan out of cash
Closed2013 – 2017

Doppler Labs

The maker of Here One, the smart wireless earbuds that filtered the sounds around you

United States$50 millionRan out of cash
Closed2013 – 2017

Lily Robotics

An autonomous camera drone that you threw into the air and that then followed and filmed you on its own

United States$14 millionRan out of cash
Closed2012 – 2016

EVT Motor (EVT S1)

The home-grown, 100 per cent electric sports car start-up developed at Hacettepe Teknokent

TurkeyRan out of cash
Closed2012 – 2016

incir.com

The platform that let anyone open a virtual shop in a few clicks and sell on commission without holding stock

TurkeyRan out of cash
Closed2011 – 2016

Kitchit

A San Francisco start-up that sent a chef to your home and brought the restaurant experience to your kitchen

United States$8.1 millionRan out of cash
Closed2012 – 2016

Kliksa

Sabancı Holding's e-commerce site selling everything from technology to personal care

TurkeyRan out of cash
Closed2012 – 2016

Pebble

The e-paper smartwatch start-up that broke Kickstarter records

United StatesRan out of cash
Closed2006 – 2016

Rafter

The edtech start-up that raised $86 million promising to fold textbooks into tuition fees

United States$86 millionRan out of cash
Closed2014 – 2016

Shuddle

The Uber-style service for ferrying children to school and activities that could not find new funding

United States$12.2 millionRan out of cash
Closed2013 – 2016

Take Eat Easy

The Belgian food delivery start-up that closed after 114 funds said no and its last offer collapsed

BelgiumRan out of cash
Closed2014 – 2015

Alikolo

The Indonesian e-commerce marketplace founded without knowing Tokopedia existed

Indonesia$100KRan out of cash
Closed2014 – 2015

Dazo

The Bengaluru mobile start-up delivering food from daily changing menus

IndiaRan out of cash
Closed2010 – 2015

Evim.net

A vertical e-commerce site for home decor that raised $5 million

Turkey$5 millionRan out of cash
Closed2011 – 2015

LayerVault

The New York start-up that offered version control for designers and gave birth to Designer News

United StatesRan out of cash
Closed2010 – 2014

99dresses

The infinite-wardrobe start-up that gave women a virtual currency for swapping clothes

Australia$595KRan out of cash
Closed2004 – 2014

Céidot Oyun Stüdyoları

The pioneering Ankara game studio behind Hükümran Senfoni and Umaykut

TurkeyRan out of cash
Closed2011 – 2013

Admazely

The start-up that offered small online shops easy-to-install retargeting ads

DenmarkRan out of cash
Closed2011 – 2013

Everpix

The much-loved photo service that gathered all your photos in the cloud and picked out the best

United States$1.8 millionRan out of cash
Closed2009 – 2013

Formspring

The social network that started the anonymous Q&A craze and reached 30 million users

United States$14 millionRan out of cash
Closed2012 – 2013

Gurunzi

The curated shopping site selling, at a discount, products that celebrities had tried and recommended

TurkeyRan out of cash
Closed2009 – 2013

Totsy

The flash-sale site for mothers that went into liquidation a year after raising $23.5 million

United States$23.5 millionRan out of cash
Closed2010 – 2013

VIPDükkan

One of Turkey's first flash-sale sites, a branded-goods discount club that grew on TV advertising

Turkey$5 millionRan out of cash
Closed2011 – 2013

Wantful

A personalised gift recommendation start-up that shut down abruptly when Nordstrom's investment failed to arri

United States$5.5 millionRan out of cash
Closed2010 – 2012

Vimjo

A Turkish e-commerce site that set out to bring personal care and health products together in one place

TurkeyRan out of cash
Closed1998 – 2008

Estore

One of Turkey's first general online shopping sites, an e-store that also sold on television

TurkeyRan out of cashCorporate product
Closed2007 – 2008

Tio

The shopping guide that compared prices and let you buy from different shops with a single account

TurkeyRan out of cashCorporate product
Closed2000 – 2008

Weblebi.com

One of Turkey's first generation of general online shopping sites

TurkeyRan out of cash
Closed1998 – 2000

Boo.com

A European start-up that tried to sell branded sports and fashion clothing online with a 3D experience

United Kingdom$135 millionRan out of cash
Closed2016 – 2025

Air Belgium

Belgian airline

BelgiumRan out of cash
Closed1991 – 2025

MRP Matila Röhr Productions

Finnish film production company

FinlandRan out of cash
Closed2017 – 2024

Whim

Finnish mobility as a service app

Ran out of cash
Closed2004 – 2022

Masten Space Systems

American aerospace company

United StatesRan out of cash
Closed2005 – 2020

Compass DKD Czech

Czech company

CzechiaRan out of cash
Closed2000 – 2019

AlphaDream

Japanese video game developer

JapanRan out of cash
Closed1991 – 2018

Aspect

Video game developer

JapanRan out of cash
Closed2004 – 2018

Robowatch

Mobile security robot company from Berlin, Germany

GermanyRan out of cash
Closed2009 – 2013

Dicame

Finnish company

FinlandRan out of cash
Closed1999 – 2011

Monsterland

Gaming

SwedenRan out of cash
Closed2007 – 2009

GSM Suomi

Telecoms

FinlandRan out of cash
Closed1996 – 2004

GT Group Telecom Inc.

Canadian competitive local exchange carrier

CanadaRan out of cash
Closed1991 – 2004

O2 Interactive Media AB

Video game company

SwedenRan out of cash
Closed1997 – 2004

Vioma Digital Entertainment

Gaming

SwedenRan out of cash
Closed1994 – 2003

Korkeken Interactive Studio

Swedish video game developing company

SwedenRan out of cash

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This section is compiled from public sources (Wikidata, news archives and company announcements). Figures are given as they appear in those sources; unknown fields are left blank. If you spot a mistake in an entry, you can send us a correction.