Startups Weekly: There may be fewer founders, but there are no shortages of deals
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This week we showed more optimism among startups than any other corner of the world. The entrepreneurs were so confident they bought other companies, raised fresh funds, and even said no to money.
The most interesting startup story of the week
It’s not four weddings and funerals, but most of them.
Hinge: Hinge Health, a virtual physiotherapy startup that uses technology to treat chronic musculoskeletal conditions; Submitted for publicity And they hope to raise up to $500 million through this offer.
enthusiasm: Fervo Energy is a well-funded startup that works with Google and is reportedly working together on its first geothermal power plant. IPO planning Over the next two years.
I chosePeak.ai, a startup founded in Manchester, UK, builds “decision-making” AI. It was acquired by Uipathcurrently a public robot process automation (RPA) company. Peak raised $121 million in 2021, including a $75 million round backed by SoftBank.
Butterfly effectManus, the “agent” AI platform launched by Chinese startup Butterfly Effects, Generates a large amount of buzzsome early users warned that it wasn’t a panacea, but wrote TechCrunch’s newly appointed AI editor Kyle Wiggers. But the butterfly effect is still there. Using the browser, one of the tools that run the manual, It’s also viral.
end: Swedish battery manufacturing startup Northvolt filed for bankruptcy This week in Sweden. In November, he filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the United States.
Most Interesting VC and Funding News This Week
There are lots of deals, but there are other weeks when the round size doesn’t tell you the round letter.
Same as above: San Francisco-based startup raised a $82 million series b A $462 million money valuation will allow corporate clients to access data on edge devices, even when connectivity is unstable.
Good karma: Nirvana, an AI-based insurance platform that uses Telematics data to build and manage insurance contracts for truck drivers; raised $80 million Series C round funding valuation after $830 million.
bi: Omni, business intelligence platform that helps organizations to better analyze their data, shutting down $69 million Series B Round. The company also expects its annual recurring revenue to triple this year, up from nearly $10 million.
SlopePentera, founded in Tel Aviv, has grown up a cybersecurity startup based in Boston. 60 million dollar series d With an valuation of over $1 billion. The funds will be used for M&A and product development.
Problem zolved:Zolve, neobank for highly skilled foreigners moving to the US without credit history, raised $51 million in stock For Series B Round. It also plans to secure $200 million in debt and enter the new region.
New name, new money: Estonia-based startup Blackwall, formerly known as Botguard, is €45 million Series B Round (approximately $49.2 million) to protect SMBs from malicious online traffic through Midmarket hosting platforms and other service providers.
Predictive Maintenance: Indian startup Infinite Uptime helps factories optimize equipment use thanks to its sensor-based predictive maintenance solution. raised a $35 million Series C funding round Expand to the US and other markets.
Will Italians make it better? That’s what Vento, an Italian VC company, is in the early stages. Starting a fund worth 75 million euros It supports the founders of Italian startups, including those living abroad. This is Vento’s second fund. Its portfolio already includes around 100 startups.
Last but not least, it’s important
Y Combinator’s latest demo day shows a “shift in atmosphere” according to regular attendees. Terrence Rohan, a fund investor who has been investing in Y Combinator since 2010, said it is common for them to be able to raise less money intentionally, not because of the lack of interest in VCs. This caused a discussion like this Is that a good idea?.