Today's Venture Capital Pulse
Qorelo secures $3.5M seed round to accelerate AI‑driven SAP migrations
AI‑focused startup Qorelo announced a $3.5 million seed round led by HPI Ventures and Caesar Ventures. The funding will be used to develop its AI‑powered layer that automates functional workstreams in SAP S/4HANA migrations, which the company says can cut project timelines by up to 45 percent ahead of the 2027 SAP migration deadline.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Sygaldry Technologies raises $139M in seed and Series A round
Exergy3 Raises £10m to Shake up the Clean Heat Market
Exergy3, a University of Edinburgh spin‑out, has closed a £10 million (≈$12.7 million) seed round to commercialise its ultra‑high‑temperature thermal‑energy storage platform. The technology converts surplus renewable electricity, such as curtailed wind power, into high‑temperature heat for industrial processes that are hard to decarbonise. Funds will boost manufacturing capacity, grow the team and support the opening of a Munich office to accelerate deployment across Europe. The round was led by Axeleo Capital with participation from Bayern Kapital, Kibo Invest and existing backers including Scottish Enterprise.
Cosaic Bags $6M to Replace Industrial Additives with One-Size-Fits-All Yeast Ingredient
Swiss food‑tech startup Cosaic secured a $6 million seed‑extension round led by DSM‑Firmenich Ventures to scale its yeast‑derived emulsifier, Cosaic Neo, and push regulatory approvals in the U.S. and Europe. The funding brings total capital to $12.5 million and will fund scale‑up...
Amazon Commits up to $25bn Investment in Anthropic
Amazon announced a commitment of $5 bn to Anthropic, with an option to add up to $20 bn tied to commercial milestones, raising its total potential stake to $33 bn. Anthropic will spend more than $100 bn on AWS technologies over the next decade,...
Benchmark, Foundation and Eclipse Poised for Win with Cerebras IPO
AI chipmaker Cerebras Systems is preparing for an initial public offering, positioning its early backers Benchmark, Foundation and Eclipse for substantial gains. The venture firms were the first investors, providing the $27 million Series A round in 2016. Since then, Cerebras has...
Polish Warsaw Equity Group Leads €5M Series A Alongside Porsche Ventures
Polish investment firm Warsaw Equity Group led a €5 million (≈ $5.45 million) Series A round in German EV‑charging tech company &Charge, with Porsche Ventures and existing backers InnoEnergy and Redstone also participating. The funding aims to close the data gap in Europe’s fragmented...
Tea Café Chain Chaayos in Talks to Raise $50-70 Million, Appoints Banker
Mumbai‑based tea‑café chain Chaayos has engaged Avendus to help raise fresh capital. The company aims to secure between $50 million and $70 million in the round. This follows its 2022 Series C that brought in $53 million and placed a $250 million valuation on the...
ARK’s SpaceX IPO Guide Makes a Compelling Case on Why $1.75T May Not Be the Ceiling
ARK Invest released a detailed guide arguing that SpaceX’s upcoming IPO could be valued well above the $1.75 trillion baseline. The case rests on Starlink’s projected 2026 revenue exceeding $20 billion and a $160 billion annual satellite connectivity market. Launch costs have plunged...
Fintech Funding Surges in 2026: From Unicorn Milestones to AI-Powered Infrastructure Bets
Fintech investment rebounded strongly in early 2026, with global venture capital pouring an estimated $45 billion into the sector during the first half of the year. The surge includes multiple unicorn milestones, such as a payments platform crossing the $1 billion valuation...
PopArabia Acquires Viral Wave, Marking A15’s Ninth Exit
Egyptian venture capital firm A15 recorded its ninth exit as PopArabia acquired Viral Wave, a UAE‑based digital music distribution platform founded in 2023 under ARPUPlus. Viral Wave manages a catalog that has generated more than 55 billion streams across major streaming...
Ray Launches in Dubai with $1.2 Million Investment in Hand
Ray, a UAE‑based powerbank‑sharing startup, closed a $1.2 million seed round led by private angels to launch its service in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The company’s portable charging stations let users rent a powerbank and return it at any network location,...
KRAFTON, Naver Launch Rs 6,000 Cr India-Focused Unicorn Growth Fund
South Korean tech giants Krafton and Naver, together with Mirae Asset Venture Investments, have launched a Rs 6,000 crore (≈ $720 million) India‑focused Unicorn Growth Fund. The fund, announced during the South Korean President’s official visit to India, will be managed by Mirae Asset...
Unknown Knowns: Techboard Dug up Unannounced Startup Investments – and Discovered It’s Potentially the Majority of Funding
Techboard's new report reveals that only about one‑third of Australian startup funding is publicly disclosed, with more than 750 unannounced investments identified. The analysis, based on ASIC share‑issuance filings and internal data, estimates 1,100 startups received external capital in 2025,...
Health QSR Chain Acai Theory Raises Funds From All In Capital, TDV Partners, Others
Acai Theory, a Bengaluru‑based health‑focused quick‑service restaurant, closed a pre‑seed round of Rs 4 crore (about $480,000). The round was led by All In Capital with participation from TDV Partners and several high‑profile angels. The capital will fund expansion to 8‑10 stores, a central kitchen,...
27 Physical AI Startups Secure $50M+ Funding, Hiring
list of 27 physical AI startups which raised > $50M in Q1 2026 , all likely hiring. Credit: Ivan Landabaso's "Startup Riders" website.
Lawyered Raises $2.5 Mn To Expand Legal Assistance Beyond Mobility
Lawyered, a Delhi‑NCR legal‑tech startup, secured about $2.5 million (₹23.2 cr) in a pre‑Series A round co‑led by Rainmatter and Turbostart, with existing backer Finvolve participating. The funding will fuel scaling of its AI‑enhanced SaaS platform, broaden product features, and accelerate user acquisition....
Current Seed Investing Landscape Unveiled Live From SF
The state of seed investing today. Reporting live from San Francisco.
AI Co NudgeBee Secures Funding; Startups Reimagining Breast Cancer Treatment in India
NudgeBee, an AI‑powered cloud‑operations platform, secured $3 million in seed funding led by Kalaari Capital to accelerate its enterprise context layer and partnership‑driven rollout. The capital will fund AI‑SRE agents that help large firms monitor multicloud environments more efficiently. Meanwhile, India’s...
Deepseek’s Funding and What It Means
DeepSeek, a Chinese open‑source AI startup, is reportedly raising at least $300 million, valuing the company around $10 billion. The capital infusion reflects the high costs of scaling compute, deployment, and reliability despite the firm’s efficient, low‑cost model. The round also highlights...
Gyde Acquires Benavest, Expands AI-Driven Medicare Brokerage
Gyde, the AI-native insurance brokerage launched in January with $60 million in funding, announced the purchase of national health‑insurance agency Benavest. The deal, Gyde's second acquisition in two weeks, adds Medicare Advantage, individual ACA and ICHRA capabilities to its platform and...
Investors Pump $200 Million Into Amber Kinetics’ Long‑Duration Flywheel Storage
Investors have committed $200 million to Amber Kinetics to scale its four‑hour kinetic energy storage units. The funding signals a renewed focus on flywheel technology as a practical, long‑duration alternative to lithium‑ion batteries for grid‑scale renewable integration.
Slash Financial Secures $100 Million Series C, Hits $1.4 B Unicorn Valuation
Slash Financial announced a $100 million Series C funding round that lifts its valuation to $1.4 billion, marking the largest U.S. fintech raise in Q2 2026. The capital, led by Ribbit Capital, will fund product expansion, international growth and a new AI‑driven “Twin”...
INVIA Secures $1.2M Seed Round to Launch AI‑Powered Financial OS for Egyptian SMEs
Cairo‑based fintech INVIA announced a $1.2 million seed round to accelerate its AI‑powered financial operating system for small and medium‑sized enterprises. Founded in 2023 by Yehia Ashour, Ahmed Zeinhom and Omar Aboulmagd, the startup will use the capital to expand engineering,...
Corporate Giants Back $19M Ho Chi Minh City VC Fund to Spark Startup Growth
A coalition of ten leading Vietnamese and regional corporations has launched the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund with an initial charter capital of VND500 billion ($19 million). The city contributes 40% of the capital and plans to expand the fund...
RobCo Unveils Alfie Modular Robot, Backed by $100M Funding, to Tackle Variable Factory Work
RobCo introduced Alfie, a modular two‑arm robot that uses AI to adapt to changing factory conditions, and announced a $100 million funding round to scale the platform. The launch targets a large segment of manufacturing still reliant on human labor due...
Salmon Group Secures $100 M to Accelerate Philippines Digital Banking
Salmon Group announced a $100 million funding round, comprising $60 million in equity and $40 million in debt, to scale its digital banking and lending operations in the Philippines. Led by US venture firm Spice Expeditions, the oversubscribed raise underscores investor confidence in...
Last Week in ConTech - 20 April 2026
Construction robotics is entering a rapid growth phase, with 22 funding rounds delivering $250 million in 2025—13% more than 2024—and an additional $144.3 million raised for autonomous excavator solutions. The surge is driven by three converging forces: commoditization of hardware components, AI...
Ideally, the Kiwi Consumer Insights Startup Google and Telstra Use, Raises $13.4 Million Series A
New Zealand‑based consumer insights startup Ideally secured a A$13.4 million (~$8.8 million USD) Series A round, valuing the AI‑driven platform at roughly $83 million. The funding, led by Shearwater Capital, will fuel a rapid U.S. expansion after the New York office drove a 350% revenue...
Wells Fargo, Citi and Goldman Lead in AI Venture Investment
Large banks are accelerating AI venture investments, posting a 21% compound annual growth rate since 2023, according to Evident AI’s report on the 50 biggest global banks. Wells Fargo, Citi and Goldman Sachs lead U.S. activity with 81, 77 and 70 deals...
Suffolk Technologies Invests in Speckle to Power AI-Ready Design Intelligence
Suffolk Technologies announced a strategic investment in Speckle, the AEC design‑intelligence platform, to turn fragmented BIM data into AI‑ready assets. The move targets the 95.5% of project data that remains unused and could reduce the average $860,000 rework cost per...
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Volume 26 [Members Edition]
The Collective’s latest edition spotlights several ecosystem moves: Andreessen Horowitz’s a16z Speedrun SR007 program opened to fast‑track early‑stage startups, and Y Combinator launched its Summer 2026 batch. MIT staged a high‑visibility dorm‑Tetris event that highlighted student‑led innovation, while the emerging...
HockeyStack Raises Funding, Pushes Total Capital Past $50 Million for AI Revenue‑agent Platform
San Francisco‑based HockeyStack announced a new financing round that lifts its cumulative capital to over $50 million. The round, led by Bessemer Venture Partners, Y Combinator and Uncorrelated Ventures, will fund product development and broader rollout of its AI‑driven Revenue Agents....
AI M&A Surpasses $155 B in 2023, with Small Startups Driving Half of Q1 2024 Deals
AI‑focused mergers and acquisitions reached $155 billion in 2023, and almost half of the deals recorded in the first quarter of 2024 involved small or mid‑sized startups. Bankers at San Francisco‑based Axom Partners are fielding the bulk of inquiries from Big...
Vietnam Accelerates Crypto Exchange Pilot, OKX to Fund $380 Million Platform
Vietnam's government will launch a pilot for crypto exchanges in the second quarter of 2026. OKX, through its venture arm, is injecting capital to help the Vietnam Prosperity Crypto Asset Exchange meet the 10 trillion VND ($380 million) minimum capital rule, signaling a...
Energy Grid Startup Gets $26 Million Fundraise
Critical Loop, a Long Beach‑based energy firm, closed a $26 million Series A round led by Conifer Infrastructure Partners and Hanover, with participation from Better Ventures, Climate Capital, Cyrus Ventures and Adapt Nation Capital. The capital will fund its mobile microgrid solution that...
SynBioBeta Fuels Boom Capital’s Top Biotech Deals
@SynBioBeta draws one of the densest concentrations of biotech investors of any conference in the world. So what keeps them coming back? Celestine “Cee Cee” Schnugg has the answer. Cee Cee is the Founding Managing Partner of Boom Capital, an early-stage deep...
Veteran Ventures Capital Announces Investment in Hybron Technologies as Hybron Technologies Closes $25M Seed Round
Hybron Technologies announced the closing of an oversubscribed $25 million seed round on April 9, 2026, with Veteran Ventures Capital as a key investor. The U.S.-based firm develops lightweight composite materials for aerospace and defense, targeting components such as turbine blades, airframes, and...
AI & Capital Weekly Snapshot
The first quarter saw venture capital activity surge to a record $330.9 billion, driven largely by AI, which captured $242 billion or 80% of all VC dollars. Late‑stage funds alone raised $23.6 billion, setting a new quarterly high. Meanwhile, capital is concentrating: the...
AXIAN’s Benjamin Toulouze Says CVCs Can Move Faster than VCs
Benjamin Toulouze leads AXIAN Investment’s corporate venture arm, one of Africa’s first CVCs, with a four‑person team split between Dubai and Madagascar. Since its 2021 launch, the unit has invested in 33 startups and taken stakes in 38 funds, targeting...
Polymarket in Fundraising Talks that Could Value the Prediction Platform at $15bn
Polymarket, a US‑based prediction‑market platform, is in talks to raise $400 million, which could push its valuation to about $15 billion. The company’s weekly trading volume has surged past $1 billion, driven largely by bets on the Middle‑East conflict and other geopolitical events....
CuspAI Raising $200m at Unicorn Valuation, Reports Say
CuspAI, a 2024‑founded AI startup that speeds material design, is in talks to raise at least $200 million, which would lift its valuation above the $1 billion unicorn threshold. The platform functions as a search engine for materials, generating chemical compositions from...
Plata Raises $405M Series C at $5B Valuation
Mexican fintech Plata closed a $405 million Series C round, pushing its valuation to $5 billion. The round was led by Bicycle Capital with participation from Kora, Qatar Investment Authority and BTG Pactual. Plata, now a fully licensed digital bank, plans to expand lending,...
Jambaar Capital Invests in Trashcoin
Jambaar Capital announced an investment in Trashcoin, a Nigerian digital waste‑management platform that rewards users with credits for recyclable material. The credits are stored in a digital wallet and can be exchanged for cash or used to pay utilities, health...
Apply Now: A16z Speedrun Offers $1M Funding & $5M Credits
ok - dropping big dates/news for a16z speedrun: - starting TODAY, founders can apply for the 2026 program that runs July 27 to Oct 11 in SF here's the link: https://t.co/opkX4cIaCF - we will be investing up to $1M and funding 70+ companies...
Deep‑tech Founders Shift to Physical World for Lasting Impact
The venture industry spent a decade perfecting SaaS. Meanwhile, the physical world: automotive, manufacturing, construction, logistics, just sat there. Trillions of dollars. Barely touched by software, just waiting. @Bznotes didn't wait. In Episode 3 of Deployed, he breaks down why the...
Fusion Founders and Investors Clash Over IPO Timing and Side‑Business Strategies
TAE Technologies and General Fusion announced high‑profile mergers that could bring $200 million and $335 million respectively, sparking a debate among founders, investors, and scientists about whether the fusion sector is moving to market too soon and whether ancillary revenue streams distract...
Due Diligence Tests a Founder’s Recruiting, Leadership, and Vision
Due diligence is so much about testing a founders abilities. Can they recruit? Do people follow them? Will they figure it out when everything breaks? Are they visionary?
Series A Success Depends on Metrics, Not Narrative
Raising a Series A? Your metrics matter more than your story. Here are the key SaaS metrics investors actually care about 👇 https://t.co/ImAd3fx5j5 #SaaS #Startups https://t.co/RVFImcoHQM
Fintech Platform Plata Secures $405M Series C, Valued at $5B
Plata, the Mexico‑based digital bank, closed a $405 million Series C funding round led by Bicycle Capital and Qatar Investment Authority, lifting its valuation to $5 billion. The capital will fund the rollout of full banking services across Latin America, where the firm...
Venrock's Kelonia Bet Yields 45x Return, Potential 100x
Venrock landed a 45x return on Kelonia -- turned $20M into $900M, @ky_lahucik + I learned. Could grow to 100x if the milestones hit. https://t.co/09QgHeDRgw
STAT+: Eli Lilly’s $3.25 Billion Acquisition of Kelonia Therapeutics Caps Startup’s Tortuous Ride
Eli Lilly announced a $3.25 billion acquisition of Kelonia Therapeutics, a small biotech focused on cell therapies for cancer and autoimmune diseases. The deal may include additional payments if Kelonia meets clinical, regulatory, and commercial milestones. Kelonia, formerly Elcano Therapeutics, survived on...