Helical Closes $10M Seed to Turn Bio Foundation Models Into Systems
Helical, a London‑based pharma‑AI startup, closed a $10 million seed round led by redalpine, with AI leaders from Cohere and HuggingFace among angel investors. The funding will expand its dual‑surface platform—Virtual Lab for biologists and Model Factory for data scientists—across more top‑20 pharma programmes. Helical is already in production with Pfizer and Tanabe Pharma America, claiming to shrink drug‑discovery cycles from years to weeks. The round follows a €2.2 million (~$2.4 million) raise in 2024, underscoring investor confidence in bio‑foundation model infrastructure.
What Founders Still Get Wrong About AI
Founders are rushing to adopt AI after boardroom mentions and competitor launches, but many pour billions into tools without clear ROI. A McKinsey study shows AI use rising to 88 % of firms, yet startups often see no revenue lift or...
Why some Entrepreneurs Start More Firms
New research on Chinese firms finds that serial entrepreneurs account for about one‑third of all firms and hold nearly half of registered capital. Those who stay in the same industry are dramatically more productive—up to 75% higher—while those who switch...
Helical Secures $10M to Advance Virtual AI Lab for Pharma Research
Helical, a biotech startup founded in early 2024, announced a $10 million seed round led by redalpine with participation from Gradient, BoxGroup, Frst and AI industry angels. The company’s virtual AI lab combines foundation model outputs with biological validation to create...
Orbital Raises Funding and Makes Plans to Put AI Data Centers Into Space
Orbital has closed a new funding round and announced plans to launch its first AI‑focused data center satellite in April 2027. The startup argues that the biggest limitation to scaling artificial‑intelligence models is not chip supply but the massive power...
Four-Person Dutch Startup Launches Europe’s First Sovereign AI Platform – Beyond the Reach of US Cloud Law
GLBNXT, a Dutch startup founded by four engineers, has launched Europe’s first sovereign AI platform built exclusively on European infrastructure. The platform is ISO 27001 certified and designed to meet the EU AI Act, GDPR, NIS2 and the EU Data Act...
Primepoint Raises $10M to Scale Construction Intelligence Platform
Primepoint announced a $10 million seed round, split into an initial $4 million and a follow‑on $6 million, led by Penny Jar Capital, NextView Ventures and Navitas Capital. The capital will accelerate its AI‑driven construction intelligence platform that reads drawings, links them to...
Be the Least Intelligent Person in the Room – Varun Bhanot, CEO, MAGIC AI
Varun Bhanot, co‑founder and CEO of Magic AI, discusses scaling one of the UK’s leading AI firms and how its AI‑enabled mirror is disrupting the fitness industry. The mirror delivers real‑time coaching and personalized workouts, creating a new revenue stream...
Global Capital Shifts Beyond Silicon Valley – and SA Benefits
Global investors are moving capital beyond traditional US tech hubs, with South Africa emerging as a key destination. The country secured $715 million in venture funding in 2025, the second‑largest in Africa, and total deal volume rose 25% YoY to $4.1 billion...
The Challenges of Scaling a Technology for Social Good
The Harvard Business School case study on the Single User Reinvented Toilet (SURT) examines how a breakthrough off‑grid sanitation technology, funded by the Gates Foundation, struggles to move from prototype to market. Engineers and academics debate three commercialization routes—independent pilots, licensing to appliance...
Community Event Platform Wygo Secures Nearly $1.6 Million Pre-Seed
Toronto‑based Wygo, an event‑planning app that encourages offline gatherings, announced a CAD 1.6 million (≈$1.2 million USD) pre‑seed round. The platform, launched by CEO Jocelyne Murphy and CTO Christopher Oka, has already sold more than 10,000 tickets for in‑person events. Investors such as Shopify...
Miami Mogul David Grutman on Turning Hospitality Into a Cultural Empire
David Grutman, founder of Groot Hospitality, has turned Miami’s nightlife into a cultural empire, overseeing iconic venues such as LIV, Komodo and Papi Steak. He credits a personal brand built on social‑media storytelling and authentic relationships for scaling his businesses....
SB Meets… Paolo Dalla Mora, Liquid Ventures
Liquid Ventures has launched as Europe’s first venture builder dedicated to the fast‑growing no‑ and low‑alcohol sector. Unlike traditional incubators, it co‑creates brands with full operational infrastructure, from branding to distribution, and backs them with capital. The firm sees untapped...
Seeds of Bravery, €12M in Grants and 300+ Ukrainian Startups
The European Innovation Council’s Seeds of Bravery program wrapped up its 2.5‑year mission, channeling roughly €12.2 million (about $13.1 million) into 318 Ukrainian deep‑tech startups. Over 80 documented success stories emerged, and the initiative delivered market‑discovery workshops, demo days, and legal‑lab webinars...
The Biggest Misconception Fast-Scaling Companies Have About Marketing
Fast‑scaling companies often mistake a scaling bottleneck for a marketing failure. The tactics that drove the first million become obstacles at ten million, as teams either over‑engineer processes or cling to scrappy tactics. The article argues that the real problem...
IPO-Bound Practo Appoints Srijesh Kumar As Global CPTO
Practo, the Bengaluru‑based healthtech platform preparing for a 2027 IPO, has hired former Salesforce VP Srijesh Kumar as its global chief product and technology officer. Kumar will unify product and engineering to scale the service as Practo pursues a $100‑125 million...
Ex-Flutterwave Executive Awa Koné Joins Cauridor as Chief Operating Officer
Cauridor, a Guinea‑based cross‑border payments platform, has hired former Flutterwave Global Head of Operations Awa Koné as chief operating officer. Koné brings over five years of experience scaling payment infrastructure across Africa, Europe, the Americas and Asia, plus a stint as...
A New Baby Broke My Startup
Varun Bhanot, CEO of Magic AI, discovered that his meticulously engineered time‑management system collapsed when his second child arrived. The newborn’s unpredictable schedule exposed the fragility of routines that were optimized for a single‑parent scenario. Bhanot likens this personal breakdown...
TraqCheck Raises $8 Mn Series A Led by IvyCap Ventures
TraqCheck, an AI‑driven HR enterprise startup, announced an $8 million Series A round led by IvyCap Ventures with participation from IIFL. The capital will fund the company’s push into European markets, enhance its AI‑agent suite, and accelerate go‑to‑market efforts for enterprise clients....
Leegality Crosses Rs 80 Cr Revenue in FY25, Profit Jumps over 2X
Leegality, the Gurugram‑based digital documentation and e‑signature platform, posted FY25 revenue of Rs 81.1 crore (≈$9.8 million), a 2.4‑times increase from FY23. Operating revenue grew 30% YoY to Rs 81.08 crore, while total revenue reached Rs 86.6 crore including other income. Profit surged to Rs 3.7 crore (≈$445 k), more...
Emergent Launches VibeCon India, Offers Direct YC Interview to Winning Team
Emergent is launching VibeCon India, a high‑signal AI hackathon in Bengaluru on April 16‑17, after filtering more than 20,000 applicants. The event offers winners a direct interview with a Y Combinator partner and cash prizes, plus mentorship and credits from top...
Kelluu Raises €15m to Secure Europe’s Skies with Autonomous Airships
Finnish autonomous‑airship startup Kelluu raised €15 million ($16.3 million) in a Series A round led by the NATO Innovation Fund, its first Finnish investment. The company operates the world’s largest fleet of hydrogen‑powered, unmanned airships that can stay aloft for more than 12 hours...
BharatPe Co-Founder, Shashvat Nakrani Steps Back to Build Something New
BharatPe co‑founder Shashvat Nakrani announced he will step back from day‑to‑day operations on May 1, moving into a strategic advisor role while remaining a board director and the company’s largest individual shareholder. The fintech unicorn, valued at $2.7 billion, has raised $584 million...
Transcript: OpenAI Investors Question Its Valuation
Investors are scrutinising OpenAI’s roughly $850 bn valuation as the company pivots toward enterprise AI tools. The shift follows strong consumer performance with ChatGPT but raises doubts about competing with Anthropic and Google in the business market. OpenAI’s planned public listing...
DryFlow Magnetics Ramps up Manufacturing for Waterless Iron Ore Tech
DryFlow Magnetics, an Adelaide‑based industrial tech firm, has secured an additional seed‑funding round following a $10 million AUD (~$6.6 million USD) raise in December 2025. The capital will fund manufacturing and installation of its first commercial pilot plant at a South Australian...
Deals in Brief: Three Singapore Startups Raise AI Funding; SC Ventures Leads Keyrock’s Series C Round; Six China Investments; and...
Singapore’s AI ecosystem saw a flurry of capital this week, with Muun AI closing a $700,000 pre‑seed round, OnSite raising $1.3 million seed funding for its construction‑focused communication platform, Injewelme securing $1.2 million to broaden contactless health‑monitoring capabilities, and NeuBird AI attracting...
Nollywood Needs to Get on the Microdrama Train Now
Microdramas are exploding worldwide, with China’s revenue soaring from $500 million in 2021 to $7 billion in 2024 and global earnings projected at $9.5 billion by 2030. The United States alone generated $800 million in 2024, while Nigeria’s Nollywood cinema made a modest $10 million...
KhetiBuddy Is Turning Fragmented Farm Data Into Business Intelligence
Indian startup KhetiBuddy offers a modular SaaS platform that unifies fragmented farm data across crop management, supply chain, ERP, and sustainability. Launched in 2021, its Verdnt upgrade adds weather alerts, satellite monitoring, and pest identification, enabling real‑time decision‑making for mid‑to‑large...
AI Will Automate Work. India’s Next Startup Wave Will Sell Experiences
Artificial intelligence is rapidly automating routine tasks—from code generation to marketing copy—raising concerns about job displacement. However, the article argues that AI cannot replace human‑centered experiences, which remain valuable as consumers shift from owning goods to buying moments. In India,...
Ultralight Raises $9.3M to Launch AI-Native Operating System for Healthcare
Ultralight, formerly Vibrant Practice, secured $9.3 million led by The General Partnership to develop an AI‑native operating system tailored for Direct Primary Care. The platform aims to replace fragmented legacy EHRs with a unified, “invisible” infrastructure that reduces clinician charting time....
Once More Into the Valley of Death: Navigating SBIR/STTR Funding for Tech Startups After 2025
The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs were reauthorized through September 2031, adding a new Strategic Breakthrough Awards tier of up to $30 million for transformative technologies. Annual federal non‑dilutive capital now exceeds $4 billion, with cumulative...
MENA Startup Funding Slips to $941 Million in Q1 2026 Amid Heightened Geopolitical Risk
Startup funding in the Middle East and North Africa slipped to $941 million in Q1 2026, a 21.5% quarter‑on‑quarter decline and a 37% drop year‑on‑year as geopolitical tensions escalated. The UAE dominated the market with $625.8 million across 46 deals, while Saudi Arabia...
Tamwilcom Launches $69 Million Venture-Building Programme to Support 800 Moroccan Startups
Moroccan public financing institution Tamwilcom has unveiled a $69 million (MAD 700 million) venture‑building programme aimed at nurturing 800 early‑stage startups over the next three years. The initiative blends capital, monthly founder stipends, grants and loans of up to $220,000 with hands‑on mentorship...
Raedbots Launches as Egypt’s First Industrial Robotics Manufacturer
Raedbots launched in Cairo as Egypt’s first locally designed and manufactured industrial robotics company. Founded in 2026 by Mohamed Ibrahim and Hamza El‑Sahiti, it builds AI‑powered robotic arms for welding, material handling and warehouse automation entirely in‑house. The startup is...
Aria Networks Snares $125M Funding
Aria Networks announced a $125 million financing round led by Sutter Hill Ventures, Atreides Management, Valor Equity Partners, and Eclipse Ventures. The capital will fund the general availability of its AI‑native platform, the Networks that Think, which the company touts as...
Modus Scores $85M in Seed & Series A Funding
Modus, an AI‑native audit technology platform and holding company, announced an $85 million financing round that combines seed and Series A capital. The round was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners with participation from Comma Capital and entrepreneur Garry Tan. The capital will...
Vivatides Therapeutics Raises $54M for RNA Expansion
Vivatides Therapeutics announced a $54 million Series A round, led by Qiming Venture Partners and backed by several other investors. The funding will accelerate its proprietary extrahepatic delivery platform, designed to transport RNA molecules such as siRNA and antisense oligonucleotides beyond the...
Critical Loop Scores $26M Series A
Critical Loop, an industrial power solutions firm, closed a $26 million Series A round led by Conifer Infrastructure Partners and Hanover, with participation from Better Ventures, Climate Capital, Adapt Nation Capital, and Cyrus Ventures. The financing lifts the company's total committed equity...
Scope Of Startup India FoF 2.0 Expanded To Support Deeptech, Manufacturing Investments
The Indian government’s Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has launched Startup India Fund of Funds 2.0 with a ₹10,000 crore (~$1.2 billion) corpus, expanding its mandate to deep‑tech, tech‑driven manufacturing and micro‑VC backed early‑stage startups. Disbursements to SEBI‑registered...
Singapore’s Own AI Company Agnes AI Expands AI Infrastructure Platform and Confirms Series A Funding
Singapore‑based Agnes AI announced a $10 million Series A round led by Look Forward VCC and said its AI infrastructure platform is nearing $20 million in annual recurring revenue. The company markets a model‑first, agentic AI system that it claims delivers about 90%...
Government Pledges £28.5m for UK Games Fund to Boost Industry
The UK government announced a £30 million (≈$37.5 million) Games Growth Package, allocating £28.5 million (≈$35.6 million) to the UK Games Fund. The fund is divided into three tracks—Entry (£20 k/~$25 k), Emergent (£100 k/~$125 k), and Expansion (£250 k/~$312 k)—to support studios at different stages. Additionally, £1.5 million (≈$1.9 million) will...
Tofu Raises $12M to Consolidate Campaign Execution for GTM Teams
Tofu announced a $12 million Series A round to accelerate its AI-powered unified platform for go‑to‑market (GTM) teams. The funding, led by SignalFire with participation from HubSpot Ventures and other investors, will fund new product capabilities and deeper integrations. Tofu’s...
Airhart Takes Off
Airhart Aeronautics, founded by former SpaceX avionics engineer Nikita Ermoshkin, unveiled a four‑seat prototype that consumes just 7.4 gallons of fuel per hour and features a dual‑touch “electronized” cockpit that automates routine tasks. The company raised $4.56 million in venture capital...
Insurteam Raises $1.3m to Expand MGA Ops in Europe
Swiss InsurTech Insurteam closed a $1.3 million round to accelerate its Managing General Agent (MGA) rollout across Europe. The capital will fund the deployment of its AI‑driven platform that can slash claim‑handling costs by up to 80% and shrink processing times...
Replenit Raises $2.5M to Bring Real-Time AI Decision-Making to Retail
Replenit, an AI decision engine that converts customer signals into real‑time, individualized actions, closed a $2.5 million pre‑seed round co‑led by Movens Capital and Vastpoint. The Warsaw‑based startup adds a reasoning layer to existing retail data stacks, enabling brands to move...
Indian Spacetech Startups Shift Gears From R&D to Scalable Manufacturing
Indian spacetech startups are moving from pure research to large‑scale manufacturing as demand for low‑Earth‑orbit constellations accelerates. Bellatrix Aerospace, Agnikul Cosmos and Red Balloon Aerospace have each built regulated, additive‑manufacturing and assembly‑line processes to shrink build cycles from months to...
AI Compliance Startup Haast Closes $12m Series A
AI‑native compliance platform Haast announced a $12 million Series A round, bringing its total US capital to $17.05 million. The round was led by Peak XV Partners with participation from DST Global and Airtree, among others. Haast will use the funds to scale its agentic...
2026 Leaders Interview – Paweł Zakielarz – Shopreturns
Shopreturns, founded by Paweł Zakielarz, provides a streamlined cross‑border return service for UK retailers selling into the EU, addressing the post‑Brexit landscape. The interview outlines how the removal of de‑minimis thresholds and the new €3 (≈$3.30) import fee have reshaped...
Citra Space Raises $15 Million Series A to Expand Platform for Identifying Objects in Orbit
Citra Space announced a $15 million Series A round led by Washington Harbour Partners to scale its space‑domain‑awareness platform. The Colorado startup, founded by former U.S. Space Force officers, aggregates data from ground and space sensors to create persistent fingerprints of orbital...
BharatPe Cofounder Shashvat Nakrani Steps Down To Launch New Venture
BharatPe co‑founder and COO Shashvat Nakrani will step down from daily duties, moving to a strategic advisor and board director role while remaining its largest individual shareholder. The transition comes as the fintech unicorn finalises its leadership overhaul, with CEO...