Today's Venture Capital Pulse
Sarvam secures $234M Series B, becoming India’s newest AI unicorn
Sarvam announced a $234 million Series B raise, valuing the Bengaluru‑based startup at $1.5 billion. The round was led by HCLTech, which contributed a $150 million strategic investment, and also included Bessemer Venture Partners, Khosla Ventures and Peak XV Partners. The funding will accelerate Sarvam’s full‑stack AI roadmap and cement its unicorn status.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Sygaldry Technologies raises $139M in seed and Series A round
Linx Security Raises $50M Series B as Identity Becomes Security’s Biggest Failure Point
Linx Security announced a $50 million Series B round led by Insight Partners, bringing its total capital to $83 million. The New York‑based startup offers an AI‑native identity governance platform that continuously maps, monitors and automates control of human, machine and AI‑agent identities. With identity‑related flaws implicated in roughly 90 % of security breaches, Linx introduced its autonomous Autopilot agent to provide real‑time detection and remediation. The new capital will fund global expansion, go‑to‑market scaling and further product development.
Nomadic Raises $8.4 Million to Wrangle the Data Pouring Off Autonomous Vehicles
NomadicML raised an $8.4 million seed round at a $50 million post‑money valuation to commercialize its vision‑language platform that auto‑annotates autonomous‑vehicle video. The tool transforms terabytes of archived footage into searchable, structured datasets, enabling rapid identification of rare edge‑case events for training...
Novastar Ventures Closes $147 Million Third Fund to Drive Pan-African Ambitions
Novastar Ventures closed its third fund, the Africa People and Planet Fund III, at $147 million, targeting climate‑focused and impact‑driven startups across Africa. Japanese investors such as SBI Holdings, SMBC, Mitsubishi and JICA joined returning partners like Norfund and British International Investment....
Jimini Health Secures $17M to Scale Clinician-Supervised Behavioral Health AI
Jimini Health, a New York‑based behavioral health startup, announced a $17 million seed round, bringing its total capital to more than $25 million. The funding, led by M13, Town Hall Ventures and Zetta Venture Partners with backing from former CMS Acting Administrator...
Autonomous Vessel Innovator Saronic Series D Round Raises $1.75BN
Austin‑based Saronic Technologies closed a $1.75 billion Series D round, valuing the autonomous‑vessel maker at $9.25 billion. The funding, led by Kleiner Perkins, adds Advent International, Bessemer, DFJ Growth and others to its investor base. Recent milestones include acquiring Gulf Craft’s shipyard, a...
Variance Raises $21.5M Series A to Automate Financial Crime Investigations
Variance, a San Francisco AI risk‑compliance startup, closed a $21.5 million Series A led by Ten Eleven Ventures, bringing its total funding to $26 million. The round will fund expansion of its agentic AI platform that automates KYC/KYB investigations, delivering auditable decisions in...
Clinical AI Platform Avo Secures $10M, Announces EBSCO DynaMed Partnership
Avo, a clinical AI platform that overlays major EHRs, closed a $10 million Series A led by Noro‑Moseley Partners and backed by AlleyCorp. The company announced a strategic partnership with EBSCO’s DynaMed to embed evidence‑based guidelines directly into its AI copilots. Avo’s...
Harvey Secures $200 Million Funding at $11 Billion Valuation, Boosting AI Legal Infrastructure
San Francisco‑based Harvey closed a $200 million financing round that lifts its valuation to $11 billion. Backed by GIC, Sequoia Capital and other top investors, the capital will fund AI‑agent expansion and global legal‑engineering teams, cementing Harvey’s position as a leading legal‑infrastructure...
Ex-Blackstone Team Raises $25 Million for Valinor, Blockchain Private‑credit Platform
Valinor, founded by former Blackstone private‑credit investors Connor Dougherty and Lily Yarborough, closed a $25 million seed round led by Castle Island Ventures. The funding will accelerate the startup’s plan to use blockchain smart contracts for private‑credit loans, a move that could...
Snap Acquires Rec Room Assets as Social Gaming Platform Shuts Down, Ending $3.5B Unicorn
Rec Room announced it will cease operations on June 1 after failing to find a sustainable profit model, despite 150 million users and a $3.5 billion valuation. Snap Inc. confirmed it has purchased select Rec Room assets and will absorb some staff into...
Starcloud Secures $170M, Becomes Fastest YC Unicorn at $1.1B Valuation
Starcloud announced a $170 million financing round that lifts its valuation to $1.1 billion, making it the fastest Y Combinator graduate to reach unicorn status. The capital, led by Benchmark and EQT Ventures, will fund next‑generation satellites and expand manufacturing as the company...
Debt Intelligence Platform 9fin Scores £130m Round
AI‑driven debt intelligence platform 9fin has become a unicorn after closing a $170 million (≈£128.8 million) Series C round, pushing its valuation to $1.3 billion. The funding, led by HarbourVest and joined by CPP Investment Board and other investors, will fund AI enhancements, dataset...
NODWIN Lines Up $100 Mn Pre-IPO Round For Its Next Act
NODWIN Gaming is raising a $100 million pre‑IPO round to pivot from pure esports into a broader youth‑media business. The capital will fund IP expansion and new monetisation layers rather than aggressive geographic growth, as the firm already operates in over...
Brickken Secures €3M to Expand Tokenisation Infrastructure
Barcelona‑based Brickken, a tokenisation infrastructure provider for financial institutions, closed a €3 million (≈$3.3 million) pre‑Series A round. The round attracted strategic European investors, including Dedagroup founder Marco Podini and venture firm GRX. Brickken’s platform enables banks, asset managers and issuers to tokenise equity,...
DoorDash Invests in EV Startup with Plans to Automate More Deliveries
DoorDash is investing in Also’s $200 million Series C round and launching a multi‑year partnership to develop autonomous electric‑vehicle delivery units. The collaboration builds on DoorDash’s earlier Dot robot rollout and aims to create purpose‑built, small EVs that can navigate bike lanes...
Finnish Startup Test of Things Lands €1.2 Million Pre-Seed to Automate Connected Device Security
Finnish cybersecurity startup Test of Things secured €1.2 million (about $1.3 million) in a pre‑seed round led by Vendep Capital, with participation from Business Finland and several angel investors. The company is developing an AI‑driven platform that automates security testing and regulatory...
Blackstone Closes $6.3B BXLS VI Fund, Making It the Largest Life Sciences Vehicle
Blackstone announced the final close of its Life Sciences VI fund at a hard cap of $6.3 billion, roughly 40% larger than the prior vehicle. The BXLS platform, launched in 2018, now manages about $15 billion and invests across the entire drug...
Belgium Crypto Startup Keyrock Hits Unicorn Status, Says Valuation Quadrupled
Belgium‑based crypto infrastructure firm Keyrock announced it has reached unicorn status after a Series C round that lifted its valuation to roughly $1.1 billion. The round, led by SC Ventures – the venture arm of Standard Chartered – includes participation from Ripple...
How VCMint Fast-Tracks Investments in Early-Stage Startups
Serial entrepreneur Aditya Vuchi launched VCMint, a venture fund that has deployed roughly ₹40 crore (~$4.8 million) across 60 early‑stage startups in under two years, targeting ₹100 crore (~$12 million) by 2028. The fund concentrates on infrastructure and financial products for gig workers, digital‑safety...
From Brooklyn to $500M Exits: 7 Capital Raising Secrets | Centimillionaire Strategy Talk
Jody Chapnick, a serial entrepreneur who grew up in Brooklyn, outlines the playbook behind his $500 million REIT IPO, a $250 million pharma exit, and multiple insurance roll‑ups. In a Centimillionaire Strategy Talk he breaks down how he raised hundreds of millions...
Semarion Raises $3.8M to Scale Cell Assay Technology
Semarion, a Cambridge spin‑out, secured $3.8 million (≈£2.9 million) in a Series A round led by Parkwalk to scale its SemaCyte cell‑based screening platform. The funding follows a $2.89 million seed round in 2022 and will be used to expand manufacturing, field support,...
VC10X - The Legal Landmines Hiding Inside Your Fund Docs - Yoni Tuchman, Partner, DLA Piper
In this episode, DLA Piper partner Yoni Tuchman walks listeners through the legal pitfalls that can cost venture capital general partners millions, focusing on mis‑drafted management fee clauses, distribution waterfall nuances, and key‑person provisions. He explains how fees are calculated—often...
On the Journey with 9fin From Day One to Their $1.3 Billion Valuation.
9fin announced a $170 million Series C round that lifts its valuation to $1.3 billion, bringing total capital raised since its 2017 launch to over $250 million. The AI‑native platform tackles the decades‑old data fragmentation in debt capital markets by centralising documents, emails and...
Allbirds Sells for $39 Million, a Fraction of Its $348 Million IPO Raise
Allbirds will sell all assets and intellectual property to American Exchange Group for $39 million, a price far below the $348 million it raised in its 2021 IPO. The deal, pending shareholder approval, sparked a 32‑36% jump in the stock and highlights...
Starcloud Raises $170 M Series A, Hits $1.1 B Valuation to Build Solar‑powered Space Data Centers
Starcloud announced a $170 million Series A led by Benchmark and EQT Ventures, valuing the Redmond‑based orbital compute startup at $1.1 billion. The funding will finance next‑generation satellites and a planned 88,000‑satellite constellation, positioning the company at the forefront of venture capital...
Saronic Closes $1.75B Series D Funding
Saronic Technologies announced closing a $1.75 billion Series D round, valuing the company at $9.25 billion. The round was led by Kleiner Perkins with participation from Advent International, Bessemer Venture Partners, DFJ Growth and existing backers such as Andreessen Horowitz. Funds will accelerate...
Eloelo Burns Rs 59 Cr on Ads to Generate Rs 69 Cr Revenue in FY25
Eloelo, an Indian social‑entertainment platform, posted FY25 revenue of about Rs 69.5 crore (~$8.4 million), driven entirely by in‑app purchases and a modest Rs 6.3 crore (~$0.8 million) non‑operating income. Advertising and promotions were the biggest expense, rising 46% to Rs 59 crore (~$7.1 million), while creator payouts jumped...
Enkei Raises a Pre-Seed Round to Scale a Material Made From Construction Waste that Replaces Marble and Concrete
Enkei, a Stockholm startup, closed a pre‑seed round at a €3 million (~$3.3 million) valuation to commercialise ReCeramix™, a surface material made from over 90 % recovered construction and ceramic waste. The composite can replace concrete, marble and terrazzo while cutting cement use...
Chip Maker Fractile in Talks to Raise $200m at Unicorn Valuation, Reports Say
London‑based AI chip maker Fractile is courting $200 million in new capital at a $1 billion unicorn valuation. The round is being led by Accel and early backer Oxford Science Enterprises, with interest from other investors. Fractile, founded in 2022, develops AI...
Wealthtech Startup Bachatt Raises $12 Mn in Series A Led by Accel
Bachatt, an AI‑driven savings and wealth platform focused on India’s self‑employed, closed a $12 million Series A round led by Accel, with Lightspeed and Info Edge Ventures also participating. The funding follows a $4 million seed raise last year and will be used...
Beiersdorf to Boost Its Innovation Agenda With New, 100 Million-Euro Venture Capital Fund
Beiersdorf has launched a second‑generation Skin Care Innovation Fund with a €100 million ($109 million) commitment, doubling the size of its 2020 venture capital vehicle. The fund will back early‑ to growth‑stage startups worldwide in skin‑care, life sciences, sustainability, AI‑enabled technologies and...
Standing Ovation Raises €30M to Scale Precision Fermentation Dairy Proteins Globally
Standing Ovation, a French precision‑fermentation startup, closed a €30 million Series B round (≈$32.5 million) led by the France 2030‑backed Ecotechnologies 2 fund and Crédit Mutuel Innovation, with participation from Danone Ventures, Bel Group and other investors. The financing includes €25 million in equity (≈$27 million) and...
Japanese Firms Back VC Fund Targeting African Startups
Japanese conglomerates Mitsubishi Corp., Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp., and Toyota Ventures LLC have pledged $147 million to a new Africa‑focused venture capital fund managed by Novastar Ventures. The fund also attracted capital from SBI Holdings, Mitsui OSK Lines, and the Japan International Cooperation Agency....
Swedish Endform Raises €1.5 Million to Speed up Web Testing for AI-Era Development
Swedish startup Endform announced a €1.5 million (approximately $1.6 million) Series A round led by Alliance VC and other investors. The funding will accelerate its platform that slashes Playwright end‑to‑end test execution from roughly 30 minutes to under two minutes by running thousands of...
Early-Stage Funding Value Ticks up 46 Pc, but Numbers Decrease
Early‑stage startup funding in India rose sharply in value, climbing 46% to $879 million in FY 2025‑26, even as the total number of deals fell from 192 to 129. The surge is driven by larger cheques in Series A and B rounds, which...
Why We Invested in Fanon
Kalaari Capital co‑led Fanon’s pre‑seed round, backing a platform that consolidates fragmented fan‑generated storytelling across text, comics, and video. The fan economy now exceeds $7 billion, with $2.7 billion in merchandise and $4 billion in advertising value, growing faster than the traditional studio...
Seed Funding Demands New Rules Beyond Pre‑Seed
Founders raise $100k-$200k pre-seed easily But raising a $1-2M seed round is playing the game at another level with different rules I’m doing a webinar on the difference between raising pre-seed and seed tomorrow. Want the replay? DM me “RAISING SEED”
US VCs Embed in Chinese Labs, Courting Scientists Early
U.S. venture capital firms are no longer waiting for Chinese biotech assets to surface before investing in them — they’re moving upstream, embedding themselves inside labs and courting scientists before they publish their research https://t.co/7kOlGh0sbu
AI-Generated Code Verification Startup Qodo Raises $70M
Qodo, operating as Codium Ltd., announced a $70 million Series B round, bringing its total capital to $120 million. The startup offers an AI‑driven code verification platform that inserts a governance layer into developers' CI/CD pipelines, using specialized agents to detect bugs, compliance...
Runway Unveils $10M Fund to Boost Early AI Startups
Exclusive: Runway launches $10M fund, Builders program to support early stage AI startups Part of a growing trend of young, upwardly mobile AI startups investing in early stage to cover areas of the biz they can't do in house. https://t.co/FcIMsDUTtK via...
Kandou AI Raises $225M to Speed Chip Data Transfer
Kandou AI raised $225M to solve one problem: data moving too slow between chips. Not the model. Not the GPU. The wire. The 448G barrier. Your cluster idles while data waits. Most AI teams haven't hit it yet. They will. https://t.co/eet96ho75l
Orbital AI's Starcloud Raises $170M, Hits $1.1B Unicorn Valuation for Space‑Based Data Centers
Orbital AI’s Starcloud announced a $170 million financing round that lifts its valuation to $1.1 billion, making it Y Combinator’s quickest path to unicorn status. The funding fuels the launch of its next-generation satellite data center, Starcloud‑2, and underscores growing venture interest...
Big Funding Elevates Established InsurTech Startups to Leadership
InsurTech leaders are emerging ! → https://t.co/Mi6qREt2U8 This reflects the largest rounds announced recently, which happened to come from startups on the market for a while. https://t.co/WSCHzLUKG4
Valinor Secures $25 Million Seed Round to Build Blockchain‑Based Private Credit Platform
Valinor, a fintech founded by former Blackstone private‑credit staff, closed a $25 million seed round led by Castle Island Ventures. The capital will fund a blockchain‑driven lending platform that seeks to automate private‑credit workflows and serve real‑economy borrowers. Investors see the...
Top 15 YC Startups We’re Excited About
we draft 15 YC startups that we're most excited about in the latter half of the episode https://t.co/EIo61wt3KI
Entrix and GridBeyond Secure €55M for European BESS Expansion
European BESS route-to-market optimisers Entrix, GridBeyond raise €55 million #energysky -- via Energy Storage News: https://t.co/0vPiFdrlwz
Coatue Projected $1.995 Trillion Valuation for Anthropic in 2030
Coatue Management disclosed a projection that AI safety startup Anthropic could reach a $1.995 trillion valuation by 2030. The firm’s model shows a $14 billion EBITDA loss on $18 billion revenue in 2026, rising to $48 billion EBITDA on $200 billion revenue by 2031. Recent...
Rebellions Secures $400 Million Pre‑IPO Funding, Valued at $2.34 Billion
Rebellions, the South Korean fabless AI inference chip maker, raised $400 million in a pre‑IPO round led by Mirae Asset and the Korea National Growth Fund, lifting its valuation to $2.34 billion. The cash will fund aggressive expansion into the United States,...
ScaleOps Raises $130M Series C to Slash AI Compute Waste
ScaleOps closed a $130 million Series C round led by Insight Partners, valuing the Israeli startup at over $800 million. The funding will accelerate its autonomous platform that promises up to 80% reductions in cloud and AI infrastructure spend, a move that...
As a VC, I Can Predict a Startup’s Success in Minutes — And It Comes Down to 3 Traits (Not...
A veteran VC argues that a startup’s fate can be judged in minutes by assessing three founder traits—clarity, context, and chemistry—rather than relying on a polished pitch deck. He explains that clear, jargon‑free storytelling reveals true problem insight, while deep...