VC PULSE
Monday, March 2, 2026
Market Intelligence for Venture Capital Professionals
🎯 Today's Venture Capital PulseUpdated 58m ago
What's happening: AI fuels record $119.5B venture fundraising despite fewer rounds
Venture capital fundraising jumped 16.9% to $119.5 billion in 2025, the strongest recovery since the 2022 market reset. The total number of rounds fell 41% to 4,859, concentrating capital in larger AI‑focused financings, with AI startups capturing 58% of Series D cash and median valuations rising across all stages.
Also developing:
By the numbers: OpenAI raises $110B in corporate funding
🚀 Top Venture Capital Headlines
cargo.one Acquires Ocean Platform Cargofive, Launches AI-Native Operating System for Multimodal Logistics
cargo.one acquires ocean rate platform Cargofive to unify air and ocean rate data, creating the industry’s most comprehensive multimodal rate infrastructure The AI-native operating system builds upon integrated air and ocean rate infrastructure and enables agentic workflows to work alongside teams cargo.one raises $20M from Bessemer Venture Partners and other leading technology investors to accelerate […] The post cargo.one acquires ocean platform Cargofive, launches AI-native operating system for multimodal logistics appeared first on Air Cargo Week.
Air Cargo Week
Exclusive: Turiyam.ai Raises $4 Mn To Build Full-Stack AI Hardware Platform
Bengaluru-based Turiyam.ai has raised $4 Mn (about ₹36 Cr) in its pre-seed funding round led by Ankur Capital and Axilor’s…
Inc42
FoodOp Raises £4.4m to Bring AI to Professional Kitchens Still Running on Paper and Spreadsheets
Combining an intuitive interface with AI-driven automation, FoodOp is expanding internationally to make kitchen operations significantly easier FoodOp, the SaaS co-pilot for professional chefs, has raised £4.4m to expand internationally and make kitchen operations significantly easier. The round was led by US venture capital firm MK Capital, with participation from existing FoodOp investor, the Footprint Fund. The investment will support FoodOp’s expansion into the UK and US. Foodservice is a £2.3t global industry, yet up to 70% of businesses still manage procurement, menu planning, and budgeting manually using spreadsheets, Word documents, or pen and paper. At the same time, food waste is one of the world’s largest climate challenges, accounting for an estimated 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions and costing £700b annually. By combining an intuitive interface with AI-driven automation, FoodOp simplifies kitchen operations while reducing the administrative workload, food costs, and CO2e emissions through reduction of food waste. “One of the most motivating aspects of scaling FoodOp is that we are simultaneously scaling our environmental impact. In the past year, FoodOp has helped reduce 4,500 tons of CO₂e through lower food waste and more sustainable menu planning,” says Nichlas Saul, co-founder and CEO of FoodOp. Strong adoption in the Nordics and the UK FoodOp has more than doubled its revenue and user base in each of the past two years and works with leading contract caterers and hotel groups. Today, more than 2,000 chefs across 700+ professional kitchens use FoodOp daily. Among its early UK customers is Thomas Franks, a leading family-owned contract caterer, operating more than 350 sites across the UK and Europe. “FoodOp is the first food management platform that scales well with our chef teams and has been immensely helpful in supporting our sustainability goals” says Gavin Young, group culinary lead, and Genevieve Boast, group head of sustainability. FoodOp makes kitchen operations simple Running a professional kitchen has never been more demanding. Staff shortages, rising costs, and manual workflows leave chefs spending too much time on administration instead of delivering great food. “Menu management systems are not a new, but when 70% of kitchens still rely on pen and paper, it’s clear that existing solutions haven’t been accessible and intuitive enough,” says Saul. “Our role model is Canva. Canva made design accessible to everyone, not just specialists. FoodOp does the same for kitchens; giving every chef a simple, intuitive way to save time, reduce costs, and focus on great culinary experiences.” Looking to the US market It is no coincidence that the investment round is led by US venture capital firm MK Capital, which will support FoodOp’s expansion into the US. North America is rife with opportunities for FoodOp to add value with its proven platform. “Foodservice is one of the largest and least digitised industries globally, and FoodOp is uniquely positioned to change that. We believe FoodOp has the potential to become the Canva for professional kitchens and a category-defining company,” says Mark Koulogeorge, managing partner at MK Capital. FoodOp expects to double its team over the next 12 months to support its growth and invest heavily in building the best product for professional kitchens.
The Caterer (UK)
Asia-Pacific Fintech Funding Hits Decade-Low in 2025 as Investors Stay Cautious: KPMG
Fintech investment in the Asia Pacific fell to levels not seen in more than a decade in 2025, as geopolitical tensions, uneven growth, and a cautious funding environment kept dealmaking subdued, according to a report by KPMG. Deal value and volume in the region slipped... Read More
Crowdfund Insider
💰 Venture Capital Fundraising
Horizon Minerals Raises $175M in Institutional Placement to Fund Black Swan Hub
Horizon Minerals announced a $175 million institutional placement, complemented by a $10 million share purchase plan, to fund the refurbishment and conversion of its Black Swan gold processing hub near Kalgoorlie. The placement includes a $55 million fully underwritten tranche and a $120 million tranche pending shareholder approval at an AGM on April 7, 2026. Petra Capital acted as sole lead manager and underwriter, with Euroz Hartleys as co‑manager.
Growth StageHorizon Minerals
Machina Labs Secures $124M Series C to Build Intelligent Factory
Machina Labs announced the closing of a $124 million Series C round to scale its intelligent manufacturing infrastructure for defense, aerospace and advanced mobility. The round was led by Woven Capital, Lockheed Martin Ventures, Balerion Space Ventures and Strategic Development Fund. The funding will be used to launch a 200,000‑square‑foot Intelligent Factory in the United States.
Series CMachina Labs
💬 Top Venture Capital Social Posts
Tweet by @Nic_detommaso
5 mistakes aspiring VCs keep making (and nobody tells them): 1. Leading with resume instead of edge 2. Thinking all VC firms are the same 3. Networking to find a job instead of to add value 4. Not translating operator experience into investment language 5. Trying to move too fast Read a deeper dive in comments
by Nicole DeTommaso•
