🎯Today's Venture Capital Pulse
Updated 1h agoWhat's happening: Machina Labs raises $124M Series C to build AI-driven intelligent factory
Machina Labs closed a $124 million Series C round led by Woven Capital, Lockheed Martin Ventures, Balerion Space Ventures and the Strategic Development Fund. The capital will fund a 200,000‑square‑foot Intelligent Factory in the United States, featuring up to 50 RoboCraftsman cells that produce complex metal assemblies for defense, aerospace and automotive customers.
Also developing:
By the numbers: OpenAI secures $110B corporate funding round
News•Feb 9, 2026
Harvey Reportedly Raising at $11B Valuation Just Months After It Hit $8B
Harvey, the legal‑AI startup, is reportedly negotiating a $200 million raise that would push its valuation to $11 billion, led by Sequoia and Singapore’s GIC. This follows a rapid funding series: a $300 million Series D at $3 billion, a $300 million Series E at $5 billion, and a $160 million round at $8 billion in December. In less than a year the company’s valuation has more than tripled, reflecting intense investor appetite for AI‑driven enterprise solutions. The firm also disclosed $190 million in ARR for 2025, nearly double its figure six months earlier.
By TechCrunch
News•Feb 9, 2026
Only 26 African Startups Raised $174 Million in January. Here’s What It Signals
African startups raised just $174 million in January 2026, $102 million less than the same month last year and far below the 12‑month average of $263 million. Only 26 companies secured more than $100,000, the lowest January count since 2020. Two deals –...
By TechCabal
News•Feb 9, 2026
UAE’s Omnispay Closes $2m Round to Expand AI-Native SME Payments and Credit Platform
UAE fintech Omnispay closed a $2 million pre‑Series A round led by Infinity Value Capital to accelerate its AI‑native SME finance platform. The company, which cut settlement times to 24 hours, has doubled its customer base, quadrupled processing volume and lifted revenue 5.5‑fold...
By Crowdfund Insider
News•Feb 9, 2026
Anthropic Closes in on $20B Round
Anthropic is nearing the close of a $20 billion financing round that values the AI startup at $350 billion, more than double its original target. The bulk of the capital is expected from strategic partners Nvidia and Microsoft, alongside a slate of...
By TechCrunch AI
News•Feb 9, 2026
SPAC Ecosystem Is Undergoing Significant Transformation : Analysis
The SPAC market, which exploded in 2021 with over 600 offerings raising $162 billion, has entered a maturation phase as of 2025‑2026. New SEC regulations introduced in 2024 have forced sponsors to adopt tighter disclosure, performance‑linked incentives and longer deal timelines,...
By Crowdfund Insider
Social•Feb 9, 2026
Avoid Exclusivity: Protect Your Deal Leverage
Buyers and investors will commonly request exclusivity as part of a transaction process. As a founder, you should be hesitant to grant that request. Exclusivity is a period of time in which a seller is locked into negotiation with just one...
By Michael Lyon
News•Feb 9, 2026
Physical AI Robotics Draws Millions in Funding as Digital Markets Face Correction
In 2025 venture capital redirected billions from speculative crypto to physical AI robotics, allocating $211 billion to hardware solutions. Global venture funding reached $425 billion, highlighted by Mimic Robotics’ $16 million seed round to develop dexterous robot end‑effectors for manufacturing. ETH Zurich researchers...
By Robotics & Automation News
News•Feb 9, 2026
Investors Believe AI Will Replace Labor Costs Instead of Just Software
Investors are increasingly betting that generative AI will replace labor costs rather than compete for traditional IT budgets. Lightspeed partner Sebastian Duesterhoeft argues AI captures the far larger pool of workforce spend, a view reinforced by Anthropic’s $350 billion valuation after...
By THE DECODER
News•Feb 9, 2026
Galux Raises $29M Series B; CSL Teams up with Memo
South Korean biotech Galux secured $29 million in a Series B round to accelerate its AI‑driven research platform that designs novel protein therapeutics. The funding, led by regional venture partners, will expand Galux’s computational pipeline and scale up pre‑clinical collaborations. In parallel,...
By Endpoints News
News•Feb 9, 2026
Veteran Investor Appointed as BBB’s Managing Director of Direct Equity
The British Business Bank has named Charlotte Lawrence as managing director of direct equity, tasking her with overseeing the bank’s direct and co‑investment activities. Her appointment follows 2025 reforms that require the bank to increase both the number and size...
By UKTN (UK Tech News)
News•Feb 9, 2026
Call for Speakers: TechCrunch Founder Summit 2026
TechCrunch is inviting seasoned founders, VCs, and operators to lead roundtable sessions at its Founder Summit on June 23, 2026 in Boston. The event will gather over 1,100 founders and investors to discuss real‑world scaling challenges. Roundtables are 30‑minute, slide‑free...
By TechCrunch Venture Feed
News•Feb 9, 2026
The Battle Begins: 2026 Startup Battlefield 200 Nominations Are Open
TechCrunch has opened nominations for the Startup Battlefield 200, the flagship competition at Disrupt 2026 in Boston. Early‑stage founders with an MVP can compete for a $100,000 equity‑free prize, free exhibit space, and extensive media exposure. The event draws world‑class VC judges...
By TechCrunch Venture Feed
News•Feb 9, 2026
Gather AI, Maker of ‘Curious’ Warehouse Drones, Lands $40M Led by Keith Block’s Firm
Gather AI announced a $40 million Series B round led by Keith Block’s Smith Point Capital, bringing its total funding to $74 million. The Boston startup equips warehouse cameras and autonomous drones with a Bayesian‑based AI that ‘gets curious’ to scan barcodes, expiration...
By TechCrunch Robotics
Podcast•Feb 9, 2026•44 min
375: How AI Is Changing Healthtech Investing, According to Define Ventures’ Lynne Chou O’Keefe
In this episode, Lynne Chou O’Keefe, founder and managing partner of Define Ventures, discusses how AI is reshaping health‑tech investing amid a fragmented healthcare system and the shift toward value‑based care. She outlines three phases of AI adoption—from streamlining administrative...
By AI and the Future of Work
News•Feb 9, 2026
Outtake Raises $40 Million to Bolster Digital Trust Against AI-Driven Threats
Outtake, a cybersecurity startup, announced a $40 million Series B round to accelerate its unified digital‑trust platform amid a surge in AI‑driven phishing and impersonation attacks. The round, led by ICONIQ and featuring investors such as Satya Nadella and Nikesh Arora, brings total capital...
By SecurityWeek
Podcast•Feb 9, 2026•30 min
M&A Earnouts for VC-Backed Companies
In this 30‑minute episode, the hosts break down how earnouts can bridge the valuation gap for VC‑backed companies during M&A transactions, emphasizing the need for solid legal structures rather than verbal promises. They walk listeners through the key clauses that...
By M&A Talk (Morgan & Westfield) site
Blog•Feb 9, 2026
Kyle Samani’s Hyperliquid Critique Sparks Speculation After Multicoin Exit
Kyle Samani departed Multicoin Capital and immediately launched a harsh critique of the decentralized exchange Hyperliquid, calling it “everything wrong with crypto.” On‑chain analytics revealed Multicoin‑associated wallets buying more than $40 million of Hyperliquid’s HYPE token around the same time. Samani’s...
By Laura Shin
News•Feb 9, 2026
Saudi FinTech Safqah Capital Raises $15.2m Seed Round
Safqah Capital announced a $15.2 million seed round, one of the biggest pure‑equity seed raises in Saudi Arabia. The round was led by anb Seed Fund, Shorooq and Rua Growth Fund, with participation from 500 Global and other regional investors. Safqah...
By Fintech Global
News•Feb 9, 2026
Bridging Continents: African Innovation at Web Summit Qatar
Web Summit Qatar has rapidly become the Middle East’s largest tech gathering, drawing a record 30,274 attendees from 127 countries in 2026. The event’s growth provides African startups—from fintech to agritech—direct access to Gulf investors, system integrators, and global partners....
By African Business
News•Feb 9, 2026
Poland’s VC Market Leans Heavily on Seed-Stage Funding
Poland’s venture‑capital market deployed €0.8 billion across 183 transactions in 2025, marking a 28% increase over 2024 when mega‑rounds are excluded. Seed‑stage deals dominated, with 134 rounds – a 20% year‑on‑year rise – and average ticket sizes steady at €1.5 million. Public...
By The Recursive
News•Feb 9, 2026
Biotech Startup Pandorum Technologies Raises $18 Mn in Series B Round
Pandorum Technologies, an Indian‑US biotech focused on exosome‑based regenerative therapies, closed an $18 million Series B round led by Protons Corporate. The round, completed in two tranches, values the company at roughly $91 million post‑money, bringing total capital raised to about $43 million. Proceeds...
By Entrackr
News•Feb 9, 2026
Grants Are Not Just for Nonprofits: Why For-Profit Operators Miss Out on Early-Stage Capital
Southeast Asian founders often chase equity financing even at the validation stage, leading to unnecessary dilution. The article argues that non‑dilutive grants—such as those from the Gates Foundation, UNICEF Innovation Fund, and Enterprise Singapore’s SLINGSHOT—can fund proof‑of‑concept work while preserving...
By e27
News•Feb 9, 2026
Elevate Now Raises Rs 18 Cr in Seed Round Led by Physis Capital
Elevate Now, a doctor‑led clinical weight‑loss platform, secured Rs 18 crore in a seed round headed by Physis Capital, with Inflection Point Ventures and Titan Capital also participating. The Bengaluru startup previously raised $2 million in a pre‑seed round from W Health Ventures,...
By Entrackr
News•Feb 9, 2026
How to Get Seed Funding for Startups Without Losing Focus Too Early
The article reframes seed‑stage fundraising as a disciplined, founder‑first process rather than a race for cash. It stresses validating the problem, gathering early user signals, and building a clear narrative before approaching investors. Investors at this stage care more about...
By TechBullion
News•Feb 9, 2026
Healthcare Startup Preventify Raises Rs 2 Cr in Pre-Seed Round Led by PedalStart
Preventify, a clinic‑led healthtech startup focused on preventive and chronic care, closed a Rs 2 crore pre‑seed round led by accelerator PedalStart. The funding will finance a first cluster of ten clinics in Kerala, expand chronic disease programs, and upgrade its tech...
By Entrackr
News•Feb 9, 2026
Global HealthX Crosses $15 Mn in Healthcare Investments, Unveils Startup Cohort
Global HealthX, the venture studio of the Global University Foundation, announced it has surpassed $15 million in investments across Indian healthcare and life‑science startups over the past two years. The latest cohort features five companies—TapHealth, Wellytics, Monitra Health, Merry Health and...
By Entrackr
News•Feb 9, 2026
In Southeast Asia, Cybersecurity Is Booming but Funding Is Not
Southeast Asia’s cybersecurity sector saw venture funding plunge to US$24 million in 2025, a 40 percent decline from 2024 and a stark contrast to the US$533.6 million peak in 2021. All three rounds were early‑stage, with no late‑stage deals recorded, reflecting a more...
By e27
Social•Feb 9, 2026
Navigating the ‘Second Desert’ Between Emerging and Established VCs
I wish I could write as well as Charles Hudson - 🙏 for talking about the 'second desert in venture capital'. It is much harder than people think to go from Fund IV - VIII or as Charles says... "no...
By Beezer Clarkson
Social•Feb 9, 2026
World‑Positive Progress Requires Business, Humanity, Planet Integration
👏 Great job James Joaquin Vishal Vasishth Andrew Beebe on your 1st World Positive Investor Summit. ❤️ the focus on on how economic, human, and planetary health function as connected systems. Fantastic entreprenerus in the portfolio. Throughline was clear: world-positive...
By Tina Sharkey
News•Feb 8, 2026
Atlassian’s First Investor Leads $8.55 Million Seed in Workflows Documentation Startup Fluency
Australian AI‑driven workflow documentation startup Fluency announced a $6 million seed round, led by Accel, Atlassian’s first external investor. The round, which also includes DST Global Partners and other venture firms, values the company at roughly $30 million. Proceeds will be used...
By Startup Daily (ANZ)
Social•Feb 9, 2026
FinTech Funding Soars: Over $1 B Raised in February
February FinTech funding off to flying start with over $1bn raised https://t.co/2EDie8Yh7q $1.02bn raised across 29 rounds. Past two-weeks Fintech funding topped $2.3bn.
By Efi Pylarinou
Social•Feb 9, 2026
Bug‑Fix Speed Reveals a Founder’s True Mastery
If you use any software, you will hit bugs. Only a tiny 5% of your users will ever report bugs. The speed at which those bugs are fixed is the true measure of a founder in mastery of their craft.
By Garry Tan
News•Feb 8, 2026
VCs Clash over Non-Financial Use Cases in Web3 and Crypto
Prominent crypto VCs are publicly sparring over the fate of non‑financial Web3 applications. a16z partner Chris Dixon blames years of scams, extractive behavior and regulatory pressure for the lack of traction, while Dragonfly’s Haseeb Quereshi argues the products simply failed...
By Cointelegraph
Social•Feb 9, 2026
Voice AI Startups Secured $650M+ Funding in January
Voice AI startups raised more than $650 million in January. The figure goes up if you count startups like Synthesia and Decagon. I am keeping a track of voice AI funding in a post on my newsletter. https://t.co/j5BU7tpGJx
By Ivan Mehta
Social•Feb 9, 2026
Real AI Wins: Speakers Reveal What’s Actually Working
We asked every speaker coming to SaaStr AI 2026 one question: 🤖"What's actually working with AI in your business right now?" No theory. No hype. Just what's shipping and what's converting. May 13-15 in SF Bay https://t.co/A02gn7heZm
By Jason Lemkin
News•Feb 8, 2026
US Energy Storage Startup Moves In On The Residential Market With Another $232 Million
Lunar Energy announced a $232 million Series C and D financing round, led by Activate Capital, B Capital and Prelude Ventures, with Sunrun among the backers. The capital will fund expansion of its AI‑powered residential energy‑storage system that learns household consumption patterns and enables...
By CleanTechnica
Social•Feb 9, 2026
Prioritize Strong Intro to Associate Over Weak Partner Intro
I’ve completely changed my mind about this. A strong intro to an associate is much better than mediocre intro to a partner.
By Rob Go
Social•Feb 8, 2026
AI Agent Deals Carry Built‑In Churn Risk
I was in a board meeting for a breakout AI B2B leader at $100m+ ARR and the team was excited … but stressed. Why? So many of their largest customers were happy to sign relatively large checks for the AI Agent....
By Jason Lemkin
News•Feb 8, 2026
Should Investors Join the Rush for Venture-Capital Trusts?
The UK Budget will cut the upfront income‑tax relief on new venture‑capital trust (VCT) shares from 30% to 20% starting April 2026, prompting a surge in investor demand this tax year. Sales have jumped to £140 million in the past three...
By MoneyWeek – All
Social•Feb 8, 2026
Build a Profitable, Buyer‑ready Business, Not Just a High Valuation
Most founders ask “how do I get a higher valuation?” The answer is boring and kinda annoying. Build a business buyers actually want. > Automate your processes and operations so growth isn’t tied to you. > Improve retention. CAC Be prepared...
By Andrew Gazdecki
Social•Feb 8, 2026
AI Social Listening SaaS Generates $63K ARR, 2000% Growth
Cool microSaaS finding high intent leads on social. Live on @acquiredotcom: AI-powered social listening that alerts you when people are actively looking to buy. > $63K ARR > $26K TTM profit > 2000% YoY growth Full listing: https://t.co/4n3HSzCddv https://t.co/nou58zuOi3
By Andrew Gazdecki
News•Feb 8, 2026
India Has Changed Its Startup Rules for Deep Tech
India has overhauled its startup framework, extending deep‑tech status to 20 years and raising the revenue eligibility threshold to ₹3 billion. The change dovetails with a ₹1 trillion Research, Development and Innovation fund and the $1 billion‑plus India Deep Tech Alliance, aimed at easing...
By TechCrunch Venture Feed
Social•Feb 8, 2026
VCs Push Startups to Scale Faster with AI
your VC board member who tells you to “grow faster” and asks “do we have an AI strategy?” https://t.co/zZEvCAtTTO
By Turner Novak
Social•Feb 8, 2026
Investors Fund SPV to Lock in Anduril Equity
how it feels raising an SPV at 5 and 20 to buy forward contracts on Anduril employee equity https://t.co/XjfQa1Z54u
By Turner Novak
News•Feb 7, 2026
SpaceX IPO Could Drive Investor Interest in Other Space Companies
Investor Kirk Konert said a potential SpaceX IPO this summer could unlock unprecedented capital for the space sector, with the launch expected to raise tens of billions at a valuation above $1.5 trillion. Recent IPOs of Firefly Aerospace and York Space...
By SpaceNews
Social•Feb 7, 2026
Avoid Boiling the Ocean: Prioritize Small, Impactful Wins
Boil the Ocean https://lnkd.in/gqrf2J2v
By Garry Tan
Social•Feb 7, 2026
Moltbook’s Hidden SKILL File Fuels Unstoppable AI Agent Growth
The growth engine behind Moltbook's explosion to 1.5 million AI agents is a bit sinister. Everyone's sharing screenshots of bots debating philosophy and having existential crises. Good content. Very shareable. But it's a distraction from what's actually happening underneath. Mason Hall, ex-a16z...
By Jason Lemkin
News•Feb 7, 2026
He Quit GTBank, His Startup Failed: This Founder Reinvented Himself to an Exit and Venture Scale in the Diaspora
Nigerian‑born entrepreneur Seyi Fabode left GTBank to launch Power2Switch, raising $3 million and later exiting after five years. He subsequently built an IoT water‑sensor startup that raised $4 million before shutting down, and now runs an AI‑driven energy‑infrastructure platform for investors in...
By Techpoint Africa
Social•Feb 7, 2026
Market Size Irrelevant; Success Can Exceed Initial TAM
One of my biggest takeaways from talking to @dugsong and @jonoberheide: Market size doesn't matter. They ultimately sold Duo to Cisco for $2.35B, which was bigger than the initial TAM when they started the company.
By Turner Novak
Podcast•Feb 7, 2026•53 min
20VC: From $6.2BN Market Cap to $2.8BN: What Is Not Translating About Navan's Public Story | Are Any Public Company...
In this episode, Ariel Cohen, co‑founder and CEO of Navan (formerly TripActions), discusses the company’s recent IPO, the sharp drop in market cap, and the strategic decisions driving its next phase. He explains why Navan rushed to go public, how...
By The Twenty Minute VC (20VC)