Today's Venture Capital Pulse
Clip secures $500M to accelerate consumer wallet rollout
Mexican fintech Clip raised $500 million, pushing its valuation above $2.5 billion. The new capital will fund the rollout of a consumer‑focused wallet and broaden its financial‑services platform. Investors were not disclosed and the round remains under review.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Francisco Partners raises $18B for new tech funds
Anthropic Lands $1.8 Bn Akamai Cloud Deal as It Eyes $900 Bn Valuation in New Funding Round
Anthropic announced a $1.8 billion computing agreement with Akamai Technologies and is simultaneously courting investors for a $40‑$50 billion capital raise that could value the AI startup at up to $900 billion. The moves underscore the company’s push to lock in compute capacity and monetize its enterprise‑focused models.
VC‑Backed Favorite Secures $22B Valuation Raise
This is the company so many people in tech VC defend — and today it raises at a $22B valuation.
Uplift360 Names Alistair Donaldson CTO to Accelerate Advanced Materials Scale‑Up
Uplift360 has appointed Alistair Donaldson as chief technology officer, tasking him with scaling its low‑energy ChemR process for high‑performance fibre recovery. The hire follows a €7.4 million ($8.1 million) funding round backed by NATO, Innovate UK and Luxembourg, underscoring the firm’s role in...
Cryo‑EM CRO Baiaode Secures ¥200 Million Series B to Scale Drug Discovery Platform
Baiaode, a China‑based cryo‑EM structural CRO, closed a ¥200 million ($28 million) Series B financing led by Kangjun Capital and Junlian Capital. The funds will boost its cryo‑EM infrastructure and fast‑track the three‑year “千靶万苗®” target‑and‑lead‑compound program, positioning the firm for deeper global...
Send Deck First, Talk Naturally, Make Investors Excited
My favorite: 5. Don't pitch. Send the deck before. Have a real conversation. Your only goal: can this investor repeat what you do in a way that's exciting at drinks afterwards?
Defense AI Startup Helsing Plans $1.2 B Raise at $18 B Valuation, Dragoneer Leads
Helsing, the European defense‑AI specialist, is in advanced talks for a $1.2 billion financing round that would value the company at $18 billion. The round is being led by Dragoneer Investment Group with Lightspeed Venture Partners as co‑lead, while the cap table...
Davis Raises €4.6 Million ($5 M) to Deploy AI Model for Code‑Compliant Architectural Design
Paris‑based PropTech startup Davis announced a €4.6 million ($5 million) pre‑seed funding round led by Heartcore Capital and Balderton Capital. The capital will fund Gaudi‑1, the company’s first AI model that creates architect‑grade floor plans while respecting local building regulations. The raise...
Kalshi Secures $1 B Series F, Valued at $22 B
Prediction‑market platform Kalshi announced a $1 billion Series F financing that lifts its post‑money valuation to $22 billion. The round was led by a slate of marquee investors, including Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital and CapitalG. The funding underscores growing institutional appetite for regulated...
Fazeshift Secures $17 Million Series A to Automate B2B Accounts Receivable with AI Agents
Fazeshift closed a $17 million Series A round led by F‑Prime, bringing its total funding to $22 million. The AI‑native platform now automates more than 90% of manual accounts‑receivable work for dozens of enterprise customers, including eight unicorns, and has already helped...
Success in Tech Investing Means Ignoring Consensus Views
to succeed in building and investing in tech the first rule is to ignore the consensus view: @ROSSIntel, people didn’t understand neural nets + deep learning + moore’s law @flexpa, people didn’t understand digital health data + OAuth + interop + AI @maniacvc,...
Early‑stage Angels Win by Backing Frontier Founders
to be a good angel investor you need to spot great founders building on the frontier as early as possible and take the risk to back them before anyone else. high risk, high reward. by series A (esp these days)...
Saltbox Raises Series C Led by Packard Capital to Fund National Expansion and Entry Into Chicago Market
Saltbox, a startup that combines flexible warehouse space, logistics infrastructure, co‑working amenities, and on‑site operational support, closed a Series C round led by Packard Capital. The capital will finance the company’s national expansion, including a third Atlanta‑area hub in Chamblee that...
Global Millennial Capital Secures $100 Million IPO Opportunities Fund for Mid‑Cap Tech
Global Millennial Capital announced the final close of its inaugural IPO Opportunities Fund with $100 million of commitments from institutional and professional investors. The Boston‑based vehicle will back late‑stage technology companies valued between $5 billion and $20 billion as they approach IPO or...
AI Startups Capture 45% of May VC Activity with 37 Deals and $25 B Funding
In May 2026, AI startups accounted for 37 of 82 venture‑capital rounds, representing 45% of all activity and attracting $25 billion in disclosed funding. The surge was driven by mega‑deals in machine‑learning infrastructure and a wave of mid‑market rounds, underscoring investors’...
Nova Intelligence Raises $40 Million to Accelerate AI‑Driven SAP Modernization
Nova Intelligence announced a $40 million seed‑Series A financing round led by Chemistry, Accel, Conviction and SAP.iO. The capital will fund engineering, sales and marketing as the startup scales its AI agents that automate SAP development, migration and operations, already delivering 5‑fold...
Sydney’s Repeat Builders Launches with $3 M Fund to Back Early‑stage Founders
Former quant trader Andonis Sakatis has launched Repeat Builders in Sydney’s Tech Central, committing a $3 million fund to validate and back early‑stage startups. The model gives founding teams 30% equity, two years of embedded operational support and removes the need...
Pit Secures $16 Million Led by A16z to Accelerate AI‑Native Enterprise Ops Platform
Pit, the Stockholm‑based AI‑native enterprise operations platform, closed a $16 million seed round led by Andreessen Horowitz, with participation from Lakestar and executives from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Deel, Revolut and the Stena and Lundin families. The funding will fuel product expansion,...
Real Diligence Essential Amid Fundraising Shenanigans
the fud will really get you if you don’t do real diligence these days. more shenanigans in fundraising than I’ve ever seen. stay safe friends
Basata Secures $21 Million Series A to Automate U.S. Healthcare Operations
Basata announced a $21 million Series A, led by Basis Set Ventures and joined by Cowboy Ventures, PHX Ventures, Zenda Capital and Victoria Treyger, to expand its AI‑driven platform that automates referrals, scheduling and follow‑up. The funding brings total capital to $24.5 million...
Quantum Motion Secures $160 Million Series C to Scale Silicon Spin Qubits
Quantum Motion announced a $160 million Series C round, co‑led by DCVC and Mundi Ventures, to accelerate its silicon spin‑qubit chips and expand its team in Spain. The funding marks one of Europe’s biggest quantum‑computing raises this year, underscoring the race...
Wisdom Ventures Closes $77.7M Fund II Targeting AI‑Powered Wellbeing Startups
Wisdom Ventures announced the final close of its $77.7 million Fund II, aimed at early‑stage companies that use artificial intelligence to improve health, resilience and human connection. The fund, backed by Reid Hoffman, Evan Sharp, Stewart Butterfield and former U.S. Surgeon General...
London AI Startup CodeWords Secures $9 Million Seed Round to Build Autonomous Agent Platform
CodeWords, a London‑based AI venture founded in 2023, announced a $9 million (£6.6 million) seed investment to create fully autonomous AI agents that can learn a company’s day‑to‑day workflow and generate automations without technical input. Backed by Visionaries, Firstminute Capital, Sequel, Illusian...
Apis Partners Closes $1.23 B Fund III, Doubling Size of Prior Fintech Fund
Apis Partners announced the final close of its Global Growth Fund III and Growth Markets Fund III with combined commitments of $1.23 billion, 23% above target. More than 70% of existing limited partners returned, contributing roughly half of the capital, as...
What the Smart Money Just Bought in Healthcare and Life Sciences VC Over the Last Sixty Days
Between March 20 and April 21, 2026, venture capital poured $2.58 billion into ten healthcare and life‑sciences rounds, concentrating on companies that own scarce inputs rather than generic digital‑health apps. The biggest check was Earendil Labs' $787 million AI‑native biologics financing, followed...
Async Infrastructure Paved Path to AI Agent Era
https://t.co/EAT6n7xgeL lets developers add AI agents to their products with a simple SDK, handling execution, long-running workflows, and reliability so they don't have to. Over 90% of their usage now comes from agent workflows, and they recently announced their $16M...
Propy Secures $100 Million Credit Facility to Build AI‑Powered Blockchain Closing Platform
Propy, the Miami blockchain startup, closed a $100 million credit facility with Metropolitan Partners Group to develop an AI‑enabled, end‑to‑end closing platform on public blockchain. The funding aims to consolidate title and escrow services, speed transactions, and reduce fraud in real‑estate...
LPs Trim Return Targets, Yet Fundraising Remains Tough for Venture Firms
Limited partners are lowering the return expectations they set for venture capital funds, yet they do not anticipate an easier fundraising environment. The shift forces general partners to rethink terms and portfolio focus as capital becomes scarcer.
MiB: Howard Lindzon, Social Leverage
Howard Lindzon, co‑founder and CEO of StockTwits and founder of Social Leverage, joins the Masters in Business podcast to share his perspective on venture‑capital investing and the profit potential of human‑behavior trends. The interview, delayed after Lindzon suffered a severe...
European Tech Funding Slumps 32% in April as Investors Tighten Grip
European startups secured €5.1 bn ($5.6 bn) across 290 deals in April 2026, a 32% drop in capital from February’s €7.5 bn. Cleantech led the investment mix while the UK remained the top fundraiser, underscoring a shift toward greater selectivity among venture investors.
Lunar Outpost Secures $30 Million Series B to Mass‑Produce Moon Rovers
Lunar Outpost announced the close of a $30 million Series B round led by Industrious Ventures, funding the ramp‑up of its Pegasus and Eagle rover lines for upcoming Artemis‑era missions. The financing arrives as NASA readies a $20 billion, seven‑year push for a...
Robotera Raises over $200 Million to Accelerate Humanoid Robot Deployments
Robotera, the Beijing‑based humanoid robot maker, closed a financing round of more than $200 million led by SF Group. The capital will fund rapid commercialization across logistics, automotive, electronics and service sectors, expanding the company’s global footprint.
VCs Paying $0.45 per Fake GitHub Star
🚨 You can currently buy a Series A for $2,241 on Fiverr. A seed round is even cheaper at $1,282. Allow me to break this down. A study out of Carnegie Mellon identified 6 million fake GitHub stars distributed across 18,617 repositories. The...
Drone Start-Up Helsing Set for $18bn Valuation as Investors Pile Into Defence
Helsing, a Swedish drone start‑up specializing in autonomous, AI‑driven UAVs, has closed a financing round that lifts its valuation to about $18 billion as defence investors rush in. The funding, led by BAE Systems, SoftBank Vision Fund and Swedish sovereign investors,...
Isomorphic Labs Nears $2 Billion Funding Round Led by Thrive Capital
Isomorphic Labs, the DeepMind‑spun AI drug‑discovery startup, is negotiating a financing round of more than $2 billion. Thrive Capital will lead the round, with Alphabet also participating, positioning the company for global expansion and a next‑generation drug‑design platform.
CEE Startup & Tech Weekly: Estonian Skeleton Technologies Secures €33M Ahead of US IPO
Estonian energy‑storage specialist Skeleton Technologies announced a €33 million first‑close of a larger funding round, bringing its total venture capital to €392 million (≈ $421 million) as it prepares for a U.S. IPO slated for 2027. The round follows a wave of sizable European...
Modicus Prime Announces $8M in Funding to Enable AI Audit Readiness Across Pharma
Modicus Prime announced it has closed an additional $4.5 million financing round led by Frist Cressey Ventures, bringing its total capital to $8 million. The funds will be used to scale its Trustworthy AI Compliance Software, which embeds a compliance layer into...
From Skyroot To Pronto — Indian Startups Raised $132 Mn This Week
Indian startups raised $132.3 million across 18 deals from May 4‑8, a 35% drop from the prior week. The week’s headline was Skyroot’s $60 million round that pushed the spacetech firm to a $1.1 billion pre‑money valuation, making it India’s third unicorn of 2026....
VC Rounds Have Ballooned Tenfold in Just 18 Months
Not universally true by far, but a chunk of market has done an ~10x increase in the size of rounds in the last 12-18 months. $2m seeds are now $20m seeds. $20m large Series As are now $200m Series As....
Hg Capital Trust Writes Down Two‑thirds of Top Holdings, NAV Drops 5.4% in Q1
Hg Capital Trust, the listed vehicle for the private‑equity firm Hg, disclosed that it has written down two‑thirds of its 20 biggest software holdings, pushing its net asset value down 5.4% in the first quarter. The decline reflects a 9%...
Corgi Secures $160 Million Series B, Valued at $1.3 B, to Scale AI‑Native Insurance for Tech Risks
Corgi announced a $160 million Series B round led by TCV, pushing its valuation to $1.3 billion. The capital will accelerate the AI‑native platform’s move beyond startup insurance into trucking, payroll and other B2B verticals. The raise brings total funding above $268 million,...
Anthropic's Potential Round Sparks Massive Demand, Caution Advised
There may be 1T+ of demand for Anthropic for this (potential) round. Seeing so much broker activity claiming to have access (I've gotten at least 30 emails this week). Buyer beware. Companies like this are very tight on their cap...
Private Pre‑IPO Secondaries: Asymmetric Info Drives Reflexive Pricing
In the late 1990s, founders, employees and venture investors sold shares before IPOs through private transactions. It me! Buyers in sales were sourced informally. Private secondaries involve: asymmetric information illiquidity signaling optionality and reflexive pricing. https://t.co/SiLOMFYGJF
Balcony Secures $12.7M Seed to Build ‘Digital Rails’ for U.S. Property Data
Balcony closed a $12.7 million seed round, bringing its total funding to $14 million, to develop a nationwide “digital rails” data layer for U.S. property records. Led by Blockchange Ventures, the capital will expand engineering, go‑to‑market teams and government deployments, addressing a...
Isomorphic Labs Eyes $2B Raise, Biotech’s Second‑largest
Great scoop from @RebeccaTorrenc5 & @mhbergen on Isomorphic Labs in "advanced discussions to raise more than $2 billion in a new round of funding" led by Thrive Capital Would be second-largest VC raise ever in biotech, only behind $3B for...
AI‑Native Law Firm Moritz Secures $9 Million Seed Backed by Y Combinator and 20+ Unicorn Founders
Moritz, the AI‑native law firm, announced a $9 million seed round led by Y Combinator, 20VC, Urban Innovation Fund and Inception Fund, with backing from over 20 unicorn founders. The firm says its AI‑augmented lawyers have closed $2 billion in transactions at an...
CMBlu Secures €50M Series C for Organic Flow Batteries
Organic flow battery company CMBlu closes €50 million Series C #energysky -- via Energy Storage News: https://t.co/596pHjCFaJ
AI Turns Services Into $20T Software Market
"SaaS was Software as a Service. I believe it's going to be service as software." @generalcatalyst's Madhu Namburi on the AI roll-up thesis. Services is a $20 trillion market.... multiple times the size of software. not the PE playbook of debt and...
Nyobolt Closes Series C Round at $1B Valuation
Nyobolt announced a $60 million Series C round that lifts its valuation to $1 billion. The round was led by Symbotic, with participation from IQ Capital, Latitude, Scania Invest and CBMM. Funds will accelerate Nyobolt’s ultra‑fast charging technology for autonomous robots, AI‑intensive data...
DeepSeek Secures $7B Funding at $50B Valuation
DeepSeek is raising $7B at $50B valuation. Here is a rare English-language interview with one of the startup’s co-founders following a previous tech exit in the AI space. https://t.co/scR3D4ohM5
Novig Hits $4B Volume in Just 20 Months
Novig crossed 4 billion in cumulative volume...only 20 months in. Just getting warmed up. Well done @fawzitani, who led the A for Forerunner, and all of team @Novig ⚡️ https://t.co/9IYkcn2vza