Factory Raises $150M at $1.5B Valuation to Scale AI Coding Agents for Enterprises
Factory, an AI‑driven coding platform founded in 2023, raised $150 million in a Series B round at a $1.5 billion valuation. The round was led by Khosla Ventures with participation from Sequoia Capital, Insight Partners and Blackstone, and veteran investor Keith Rabois joined the board. The capital will be used to scale AI agents that operate across multiple foundation models, including Anthropic and DeepSeek. Existing enterprise customers such as Morgan Stanley, Ernst & Young and Palo Alto Networks signal strong demand for AI‑assisted development.
Upscale AI Targets $2B Valuation in Latest Funding Talks Despite No Product Launch
Upscale AI is in talks to raise $180‑$200 million, aiming for a $2 billion valuation in its third funding round within seven months. The company has already secured a $100 million seed and a $200 million Series A, backed by Tiger Global, Xora Innovation and...
Hocco Raises ₹100 Cr in Series C, Crosses ₹530 Cr Revenue in FY26
Indian ice‑cream brand Hocco secured a ₹100 crore ($12 million) Series C round led by Sauce VC, lifting its valuation to roughly ₹2,500 crore ($300 million). The company closed FY 26 with net sales of over ₹530 crore ($64 million), beating its ₹450 crore target. Growth was driven by...
Plazza in Talks to Raise $15 Million to Scale Quick Medicine Delivery Play
Plazza, a Bengaluru‑based quick‑medicine delivery startup, is in advanced talks to raise about $15 million, with roughly $4 million each expected from Accel, Elevation Capital and Nexus Venture Partners and $3 million from existing backers. The capital would value the company near $50 million...
BOND Raises $2M to Automate SME Accounting in Brazil with AI
Brazilian fintech BOND announced a $2 million pre‑seed round led by Propel Venture Partners, with participation from Kiara Capital, Norte Ventures, Hypersphere and angel investor Patrick Sigrist. The startup uses artificial intelligence to automate core accounting tasks for small and medium‑sized...
KELLEY WILLIAMSON LAUNCHES KELLEY KOUTURE, A MODERN LUXURY FOOTWEAR BRAND REDEFINING FASHION AND FUNCTION
Kelley Kouture, a modern luxury footwear brand handcrafted in Italy, launched its e‑commerce site kelleykouture.com on April 17, 2026. Founded by Virginia entrepreneur Kelley Powell Williamson, the line blends high‑fashion silhouettes with orthopedic‑grade comfort, featuring an adjustable two‑piece “K Heel”...
Valencia-Based GuruSup Raises €1.3 Million Seed Round for AI Customer Service Platform
GuruSup, a Valencia‑based SaaS startup that builds AI agents for customer service, closed a $1.4 million seed round led by 4Founders Capital with Addendum Capital and several Spanish angels. The funding will fund a headcount doubling and a five‑fold increase in...
The 7 Virtues: An Activist-Founded, B Corp-Certified Fragrance Brand
The 7 Virtues, founded by activist Barb Stegemann, is a B Corp‑certified fragrance brand that transforms orange‑blossom oil sourced from Afghan farmers into clean‑beauty perfumes. Leveraging a Dragons’ Den investment, the company scaled its social‑enterprise model and now sells across...
Zenskar Raises $15 Million Series A to Expand Agentic Capabilities for B2B Revenue Automation
Zenskar announced a $15 million Series A round led by Susquehanna Venture Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, Shine Capital and Rho. The funding will accelerate its agentic capabilities, especially the Agents Marketplace that lets finance teams deploy AI‑driven billing agents without engineering effort....
UK Tech Funding Roundup: This Week’s Deals From Wayve to The Little Loop
UK tech investment surged 45% week‑on‑week, reaching £76.7 m (≈$96 m) across seven rounds from 13‑17 April. The headline deal was Wayve’s £44 m (≈$55 m) Series D extension, backed by AMD, Arm and Qualcomm Ventures, to accelerate its autonomous‑driving software. Other notable raises included Altilium’s...
Brilliant Travel
Brilliant Travel has launched a self‑employed homeworking model for travel specialists, offering a dedicated website page, no joining fee and low monthly costs. Specialists earn up to 75% commission on bookings with payments made about eight weeks before departure. The...
‘A Fancy Deck and a Round of Funding Doesn’t Make a Law Firm’
AI-native legaltech startups are drawing sizable venture capital by promising AI‑driven efficiency and lower costs for corporate legal departments. Norm Law, backed by more than $140 million from investors such as Blackstone and Bain Capital, employs 40 attorneys alongside engineers to...
From Scottsdale to São Paulo: Speedbird Aero’s Long Flight Back to America
Speedbird Aero began as a backyard drone project in Scottsdale before relocating to Brazil in 2018 to exploit a more favorable regulatory climate. Leveraging Brazil's ANAC approval for routine BVLOS flights, the company built purpose‑designed DLV‑1, DLV‑2 and DLV‑4 VTOL...
How a UNILAG Student Won Red Bull Basement with a Livestock Tracker that Detects Illness Early
Jesutofunmi Oniyide, a final‑year Mechatronics student at UNILAG, won the Red Bull Basement Nigeria 2024 competition out of more than 3,000 entrants with his Vital‑Tag, an IoT collar that monitors livestock temperature, heart rate, and jaw movement. The device transmits...
Meet The 10 Startups Selected For Second Cohort Of IndiaAI Startups Programme
IndiaAI Mission announced the second cohort of its Global Acceleration Programme, selecting ten Indian AI startups for a three‑week online prep and a three‑month residency in Paris. The programme, run with Station F and HEC Paris, aims to give Indian...
FixEd Podcast: Making Local Media Work, with Mill Media's Joshi Herrmann
Mill Media, a UK reader‑funded local news network, has scaled from a single Manchester newsletter to a six‑city operation employing 25 full‑time journalists. The company relies on a “publish less” strategy, sending only four curated emails per week per city...
ADIOS First Order Tops $1 Million as Supply Risks Rise
ADIOS Electronics, the new outsourcing and broker unit of Anglia Components, secured its first $1 million order less than a year after launching. The company positions itself as a hybrid between traditional authorised distributors and flexible brokers, holding stocked inventory of...
Standard Chartered Foundation, Village Capital and Enterprise Development Centre Open Applications for This Year’s Women in Tech Accelerator in Nigeria
Standard Chartered Foundation, Village Capital and the Enterprise Development Centre have opened applications for the 2026 Women in Tech Accelerator in Nigeria, the program’s seventh cohort. The accelerator will distribute more than $600,000 in grant funding to women‑led, tech‑enabled startups...
ZoloStays Reports Rs 342 Cr Revenue in FY25; Margins Improve
ZoloStays, the Bengaluru‑based co‑living platform, posted FY25 revenue of Rs 342.3 crore (≈$41 million), a 67% jump from the prior year’s Rs 204.4 crore. The firm’s operating loss narrowed 38% to Rs 35.2 crore (≈$4.2 million) and, after a one‑off Rs 100.47 crore (≈$1.2 million) gain from selling its student‑housing unit,...
CEE Startup & Tech Weekly: Two Polish Startups Raise Fresh Funding
Polish AI‑focused startups Replenit and Graftcode announced fresh funding rounds, with Replenit closing a $2.5 million pre‑seed round and Graftcode raising €2.1 million, bringing its total to €6.5 million. Both companies aim to accelerate product launches—Replenit’s real‑time retail decision engine and Graftcode’s low‑code...
Ted Pantone on Building Turaco, Surviving Covid, and Aiming for a Billion People
Turaco, a Kenyan insurtech founded by Ted Pantone, has insured roughly five million low‑income customers by leveraging partnerships with fintechs, banks and micro‑finance institutions. The company proved demand when more than half of farmers contacted through One Acre Fund signed...
Definely Founder: For the Cause, Not the Applause
Definely, founded by Nnamdi Emelifeonwu, offers an AI‑powered platform that automates legal document creation and review. The founder stresses staying mission‑focused over seeking hype, highlights the strategic value of an early head of people hire, and details how the company...
Inside Wealthsimple’s “Simple” Effort to Bring Canadian Talent Home
Wealthsimple launched the North Star program to lure Canadian tech talent back from abroad, starting with a Thanksgiving dinner in San Francisco. The initiative posted an evergreen job listing that drew over 6,000 applications, resulting in seven offers, five hires,...
How to Build a Business when You Don’t Have a Physical Product
WonderDays proves that a brand can thrive without owning a physical product by selling curated experiences and the emotions they generate. The company builds its offering through carefully vetted partner suppliers, treating them as extensions of the brand rather than...
Bigbasket Appoints Arpit Jaiswal as Chief Growth Officer
BigBasket, the Tata‑owned online grocery platform, has hired Arpit Jaiswal as Chief Growth Officer to drive profitable expansion across products, user acquisition, retention, and new markets. Jaiswal arrives from Google Pay, where he oversaw AI‑led user growth and disciplined P&L...
Eindhoven’s ONWARD Medical Raises €40.6 Million in Capital Increase to Advance Spinal Cord Injury Therapies
ONWARD Medical, the Dutch neurotechnology firm behind the ARC‑EX spinal‑cord stimulation system, completed a €40.6 million (≈$44 million) accelerated book‑build private placement, issuing 13.5 million new shares at €3 each. The round includes a €25 million (≈$27 million) commitment from EQT Life Sciences and other...
Oslo’s Robots Aren’t yet Taking over, but Are Already Punching Above Their Weight
Oslo’s robotics scene, anchored by deep‑tech expertise in sensors and autonomy, is delivering industrial‑grade solutions despite being a small community. Soniar introduced ADAR, the world’s first compact 3D ultrasound safety sensor, while Saga Robotics deploys autonomous UVC‑light robots to farms...
Doctolib, AP-HP, and Roche Launch Startup Programme to Bridge Healthtech–Clinical Gap
Doctolib, AP‑HP’s Hôtel‑Dieu, and Roche have launched Care Forward, a health‑tech accelerator housed at Station F. The program pairs Doctolib’s software know‑how, AP‑HP’s hospital network access, and Roche’s regulatory expertise to help European startups test and scale solutions that measurably...
Argobio: The Venture Model Building Europe’s Next Biotech Champions
Argobio, led by Thierry Laugel, raised roughly $54.5 million in 2021 to launch a venture‑builder focused on European biotech. The model has already spun out three companies—Enodia, Laigo Bio and Elkedonia—that together secured over $46.9 million in seed funding for platforms in protein degradation...
Cosine Goes From Benchmark Leader to Cornerstone of UK Sovereign AI Strategy
The UK government has earmarked a £500 million (≈ $635 million) Sovereign AI programme to develop home‑grown artificial intelligence, naming Cosine as a flagship partner. Cosine, founded in 2022, has outperformed OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral and DeepSeek on coding benchmarks for two years and...
Stockholm’s BioLamina Secures €20 Million EIB Loan to Scale Cell Therapies for Chronic Diseases
Swedish biotech scale‑up BioLamina secured a €20 million (≈$22 million) venture‑debt loan from the European Investment Bank to accelerate its laminin‑based cell‑culture platform. The financing will fund expansion of manufacturing capacity, broaden the product portfolio and reinforce the company’s technology base for...
OTP Ventures Leads Pre-Seed Round in Fragrance Brand FIFTH SENSE
FIFTH SENSE, a Gurugram‑based D2C fragrance startup, raised a pre‑seed round of ₹6.3 crore (≈ $760,000) led by OTP Ventures, with participation from Sadev Ventures, ISV Capital and angels including Swiggy CEO Rohit Kapoor. The funding will fuel expansion of its product...
PR Consultancy Impact Metrics Launches in the GCC
Karim Geadah has launched Impact Metrics, a PR consultancy in the GCC that embeds key performance indicators into every communications strategy. The firm promises measurable business impact by aligning storytelling with metrics such as visibility quality, audience relevance, and engagement...
C8Rtech Launches as Standalone Airline-Catering Technology Company
C8Rtech has launched as an independent airline‑catering technology firm after spinning out of LSG Group in Frankfurt. The company brings 25 years of industry expertise and two integrated platforms—Catering Suite and Inflight Suite—to digitize shop‑floor operations and airline‑caterer collaboration. Its mobile‑first,...
Adam Weitsman: From Scrap Yards to Industry Leader
Adam Weitsman transformed a modest family yard in Owego, New York, into Upstate Shredding, now one of the East Coast’s largest privately held scrap‑metal processors. After a risky $10 million loan left the new plant idle during a market collapse, he faced...
Funding the Future of European Biotech
In a BioSpace Insights “Denatured” podcast, host Jennifer C. Smith‑Parker talks with Edoardo Negroni of AurorA‑TT and Naveed Siddiqi of Novo Holdings about Europe’s world‑class biotech science and the venture ecosystem needed to commercialize it. The guests argue that Europe’s research...
Pocket FM Claims EBITDA Profitability, Crosses $400 Mn ARR
Pocket FM announced that its annualised revenue rate (ARR) hit $430 million in March 2026 and is projected to reach $450 million by April, doubling year‑over‑year from $198 million in March 2025. The company also reported near‑5% EBITDA margin and free‑cash‑flow positivity, attributing...
Sennos Scoops Up $20M
Sennos, a Durham‑based AI‑driven sensing and automation firm for fermentation and fluidics, announced a $20 million raise in its second funding round this year, pushing total capital raised above $50 million. The round was led by TomEnterprise, the Stockholm investment firm founded...
Joyful Health Scores $17M Series A Financing
Joyful Health, an AI-driven financial infrastructure startup for healthcare revenue operations, announced a $17 million Series A financing round led by CRV. The round brings the company’s total capital raised to $22 million, with existing seed backers XYZ Venture Capital, Designer Fund, Inflect...
Worki Raises $2.75 Million in Pre Seed Funding
Worki, a healthcare‑technology startup, announced a $2.75 million pre‑seed round aimed at easing the administrative burden of workforce operations in modern medicine. The capital will support the development of AI‑powered tools for scheduling, compliance, and analytics across clinical staff. In the...
Slash, a Ramp Competitor Founded by Teenagers, Raises $100M at $1.4B Valuation
Slash Financial announced a $100 million Series C round that lifts its valuation to $1.4 billion. The fintech, founded by 19‑year‑old Victor Cardenas and Kevin Bai, now 24, offers business‑banking, corporate cards, transfers and crypto services. It reports $300 million in annualized revenue and...
$10B Bank Team Advisors Break Out to Form RIA Prairie View
Three senior advisors from The First National Bank’s $10 billion wealth team have launched Prairie View Wealth Partners, a fee‑only registered investment advisor based in Sioux Falls. The founders—Adam Cox, Kyle Cipperley and Paula Bindert—aim to reach $250 million in assets under...
IEEE Entrepreneurship Connects Hardware Startups With Investors
IEEE Entrepreneurship has launched a series of Hard Tech Venture Summits in 2024 to connect hardware‑focused startups with investors, service providers, and mentors. The two‑day events, held in locations such as Menlo Park, Boston, and Toronto, combine pitch competitions, round‑table...
Why the Quietest Person in the Room Might Build the Best Startup
The article argues that startups should look beyond charismatic founders and tap the quiet, analytical talent already on their teams. It cites research showing employees are interrupted 275 times a day and highlights how this fragmentation hampers deep thinking. Practical...
Jayco-AlUla Founder Gerry Ryan Says 2027 Will Likely Be His Last Season
Jayco‑AlUla, Australia’s only WorldTour cycling squad, is actively seeking fresh investment as founder Gerry Ryan signals his likely departure after the 2027 season. Ryan, who launched the team in 2012, announced on the Stanley Street Social podcast that the next 18...
SBQuantum Secures $4M USD Seed Round, Names New CEO and Expands to the US
Sherbrooke‑based quantum sensor maker SBQuantum closed an oversubscribed $4 million USD seed round led by Quantonation and Quantacet, marking its first private investment. The company appointed Eric Giroux as its new CEO to accelerate commercial growth, leveraging his defense‑sector background. SBQuantum also launched...
Sage Haven Launches AI-Moderated Chat App for Kids
Sage Haven, a public‑benefit startup founded by sisters Kate Doerksen and Anne Pizzuti, has launched an AI‑moderated messaging and voice‑calling app for children after a beta phase and a $3 million pre‑seed round. The app assigns each child a dedicated phone...
Want to Build a Startup that Gets Acquired? This Founder Shares 5 Proven Tips
Fintech veteran Jem Walters co‑founded the money‑saving app Snoop in 2019 and sold it to banking group Vanquis in July 2023. Drawing on a 23‑year career at Virgin Money, Walters outlines five proven tactics for founders who aim for an...
As DPDPA Kicks In, Are Startups Ready For Privacy Compliance Burden?
India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA) 2023 and the DPDP Rules 2025 set an 18‑month compliance timeline ending May 2027, creating a $1.2 bn compliance‑as‑a‑service market. Startup IDfy, backed by Blume Ventures and others, won a government‑run privacy‑platform competition and is...
London-Based Startup Lua Raises €4.9 Million to Scale Its Human-Agent Collaboration Platform
London‑based startup Lua announced a €4.9 million ($5.8 million) Series A led by Norrsken22 to accelerate its human‑agent collaboration operating system. The round also includes Flourish Ventures, 20VC, P1 Ventures, Phosphor Capital, Y Combinator and several high‑profile angels. Lua’s platform lets technical and non‑technical...