News/Fundraising
AI startup Enveda secures $130M for drug discovery
The convergence of artificial intelligence and pharmaceutical research continues to attract significant investment as companies seek to accelerate drug discovery and development. Major funding announcement: Enveda Therapeutics Inc., a Colorado-based AI drug discovery company, has secured $130 million in a fresh funding round to advance its AI-powered pharmaceutical research initiatives. The funding round was spearheaded by Kinnevik and FPV Ventures Notable investors including Baillie Gifford, Lux Capital, and the Nature Conservancy participated in the financing This investment comes shortly after a previous funding round, indicating strong investor confidence in the company's approach Clinical progress and focus: Enveda has reached a...
read Nov 21, 2024US semiconductor industry gets $300M boost from CHIPS for America
The Biden-Harris Administration has announced up to $300 million in funding for advanced semiconductor packaging research projects across three states, marking a significant step in strengthening domestic semiconductor capabilities and reducing dependence on foreign manufacturing. Core investment details: The U.S. Department of Commerce is initiating negotiations to distribute funding among three key institutions for advanced substrate development and research. Absolics Inc. in Georgia, Applied Materials Inc. in California, and Arizona State University are each expected to receive up to $100 million The federal funding will be matched with private sector investments, bringing the total investment to over $470 million Advanced...
read Nov 17, 2024Moondream secures $4.5M to develop compact yet powerful AI models
Moondream's revolutionary approach to AI: Moondream, a startup emerging from stealth mode, has secured $4.5 million in pre-seed funding to challenge the notion that bigger is always better in AI models. The big picture: Moondream's vision-language model operates with just 1.6 billion parameters yet rivals the performance of models four times its size, potentially disrupting the AI industry's focus on large-scale models. The company's open-source model has already gained significant traction, with over 2 million downloads and 5,100 GitHub stars. Moondream's approach allows AI models to run locally on devices, from smartphones to industrial equipment, addressing concerns about cloud computing...
read Nov 13, 2024Forerunner’s new $500M fund will focus on AI-driven consumer startups
The women-led venture capital firm Forerunner has secured significant funding to invest in AI-powered consumer technology companies, marking a strategic focus on the intersection of artificial intelligence and consumer markets. Fund details and strategy: Forerunner has successfully raised $500 million for its seventh flagship fund, demonstrating continued investor confidence in the firm's investment approach. The fund will specifically target consumer-focused companies that are incorporating artificial intelligence technologies into their business models Massachusetts Pension Reserves Investment Management Board (MassPRIM) made a notable $25 million commitment to the fund As a women-led venture capital firm, Forerunner's successful fundraise represents continued progress in...
read Nov 12, 2024AI startup Writer secures $1.9B valuation for enterprise super app
The rise of enterprise AI platform Writer marks a significant evolution in how companies are implementing AI solutions across their operations, moving beyond simple content creation to comprehensive business process automation. The funding milestone: Writer has secured $200 million in Series C funding, achieving a $1.9 billion valuation and projecting $50 million in annual recurring revenue by year's end. The funding round was co-led by Radical Ventures, Iconiq Capital, and Premji Invest The company has accumulated approximately $320 million in total funding since its founding in 2020 Writer currently serves more than 300 enterprise customers Technical foundation: Writer's proprietary Palmyra...
read Nov 12, 2024Saudi Arabia launches $100B initiative to become global AI powerhouse
Saudi Arabia's ambitious $100 billion AI initiative, Project Transcendence, represents a major strategic move to establish the Kingdom as a global technology leader while diversifying its economy beyond oil dependency. Strategic vision and scope: Project Transcendence aims to transform Saudi Arabia into one of the top 15 countries in AI by the end of this decade, marking a significant shift in the Kingdom's economic priorities. The initiative will focus on building state-of-the-art data centers, supporting tech startups, and expanding AI infrastructure The program mirrors the structure of Alat, another $100 billion Saudi fund targeting sustainable manufacturing Project Transcendence will emphasize...
read Nov 12, 2024Microsoft-backed startup unveils specialized AI models that run on CPUs
The emergence of task-optimized AI models that can run efficiently on standard CPUs marks a significant shift in enterprise AI deployment strategies, potentially making artificial intelligence more accessible and cost-effective for businesses. Core innovation: Fastino, a San Francisco-based startup backed by Microsoft's venture fund and Insight Partners, has developed specialized AI models that focus on specific enterprise tasks rather than general-purpose applications. The company has secured $7 million in pre-seed funding, with participation from notable investors including GitHub CEO Thomas Dohmke Fastino's models are built from scratch, not based on existing Large Language Models (LLMs), though they utilize transformer architecture...
read Nov 12, 2024What an Amazon-Anthropic deal would mean for competition, complexity and lock-in
AI startup Anthropic, creator of the Claude family of large language models, is reportedly in discussions with Amazon for a multi-billion dollar investment that would require exclusive use of Amazon's chips over competitor Nvidia's hardware. The investment landscape: Amazon's potential second major investment in Anthropic follows a $4 billion deal earlier in 2024 that made AWS Anthropic's primary cloud provider. Anthropic, valued at $40 billion, has raised nearly $10 billion since its founding three years ago The San Francisco-based startup currently uses both Nvidia chips and AWS' Trainium and Inferentia chips for model training The two companies recently partnered with...
read Nov 11, 2024How AI startup Connecty aims to help enterprises maximize their data value
The rapid growth of enterprise data has created challenges for companies seeking to extract meaningful insights, with traditional tools and large language models often falling short of expectations. The innovation: Connecty AI, a California-based startup, has developed a platform that personalizes data analysis by incorporating company-specific context and human inputs to automate data workflows. The company has secured $1.8 million in pre-seed funding led by Market One Capital, with participation from Notion Capital and various business angels CEO Aish Agarwal founded the company with Peter Wisniewski to address the limitations of generic large language models in enterprise settings The platform...
read Nov 11, 2024Northflank raises $22.3M to simplify cloud infrastructure for devs
The cloud infrastructure landscape is experiencing a significant shift as Northflank secures $22.3 million in funding to streamline developer workflows and simplify cloud deployments. Funding breakdown and company mission; London-based Northflank has secured a $16 million Series A round led by Bain Capital Ventures and a $6.3 million seed round led by Vertex Ventures US. The company's total funding now stands at approximately $25 million, with participation from Kindred Ventures, Tapestry VC, Pebblebed, and Uncorrelated Ventures Northflank's platform enables rapid deployment of applications, databases, and automated jobs across major cloud providers including AWS, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure, and Oracle Cloud...
read Nov 9, 2024AI startup funding soars to new heights in Los Angeles
AI investment surge in Greater L.A.: The Greater Los Angeles area has emerged as a significant player in the AI startup ecosystem, breaking records for funding in the third quarter of 2023. L.A. secured $1.8 billion in venture capital investment across 31 deals, positioning itself as the second-largest market for AI investments during this period. This surge in funding highlights L.A.'s growing importance as a tech hub, with AI potentially catalyzing growth in key industries such as manufacturing, entertainment, and healthcare. Major funding rounds and key players: The investment landscape was dominated by a substantial funding round for a defense...
read Nov 8, 2024Amazon plans multibillion-dollar investment in AI firm Anthropic
AI industry dynamics shift: Amazon's potential multibillion-dollar investment in Anthropic signals a significant strategic move in the rapidly evolving artificial intelligence landscape. Amazon is in talks to expand its investment in Anthropic, the maker of the Claude chatbot, potentially injecting billions more into the AI startup. The deal is contingent on Anthropic adopting Amazon-developed chips for training its AI models, marking a shift from its current use of Nvidia hardware. This potential investment builds upon Amazon's existing $4 billion stake in Anthropic, completed in March 2024. Strategic implications for Amazon: The tech giant's investment strategy aims to strengthen its position...
read Nov 7, 2024AI startup secures $400M to develop ‘physical AI’
Groundbreaking AI robotics startup secures major funding: Physical Intelligence, a San Francisco-based company developing general-purpose AI for robotics, has raised $400 million in a funding round that values the company at $2.8 billion. The investment round attracted high-profile backers including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, OpenAI, Thrive Capital, Khosla Ventures, Lux Capital, Sequoia Capital, and Bond Capital. Physical Intelligence aims to bring general-purpose AI into the physical world by developing foundation models and learning algorithms for robots and other physically actuated devices. The company's long-term goal is to develop artificial physical intelligence, enabling users to simply ask robots to perform any...
read Nov 6, 2024Microsoft’s $30B fund aims to vertically integrate AI infrastructure
Unprecedented AI infrastructure investment: Microsoft, BlackRock, Global Infrastructure Partners, and MGX have joined forces to create the Global AI Infrastructure Investment Partnership (GAIIP), a $30 billion equity fund that could mobilize up to $100 billion with debt financing. The fund aims to invest in new and expanded data centers and energy infrastructure, primarily in the United States, to support the growing demands of AI technology. This initiative represents one of the largest alternative investment funds ever raised, highlighting the significant opportunity Microsoft sees in AI infrastructure. The partnership's focus on both data centers and energy infrastructure addresses the critical challenge...
read Nov 1, 2024The global AI investment boom isn’t over yet as Q3 deal volumes surge
AI investment surge defies broader market trends: Global AI deal volumes reached 1,245 in Q3 2024, marking a 24% year-over-year growth and showcasing strong investor confidence in the AI sector despite slowdowns in the broader investment market. The number of AI deals in Q3 2024 reached levels not seen since Q1 2022, indicating a robust recovery and sustained interest in AI technologies. While the broader investment market experienced a 10% quarter-over-quarter decline, AI deals demonstrated resilience and continued growth. CB Insights' State of AI Q3'24 Report highlights the contrast between AI investment trends and the broader venture capital landscape. Funding...
read Nov 1, 2024DevRev secures $100.8M Series A to transform customer support with AI
AI startup secures major funding: DevRev, an AI-native enterprise software company, has raised $100.8 million in Series A funding, achieving unicorn status with a valuation of $1.15 billion. The funding round was led by Khosla Ventures, with participation from Mayfield Fund, Param Hansa Values, U First Capital, and various accelerators, family offices, and angel investors. DevRev's success highlights the growing potential and investor interest in AI-native enterprise software solutions. Revolutionizing customer support and product development: DevRev's AgentOS platform aims to transform how businesses integrate and benefit from AI in customer support and product development processes. The platform offers seamless 1-click...
read Oct 31, 2024GIIN survey shows impact investing is increasing but still hesitant towards AI
Impact investing landscape evolves: The Global Impact Investing Network's (GIIN) annual survey reveals significant growth and maturation in the impact investing sector, with larger investors driving expansion and a shift towards more complex asset classes. The survey included 305 impact investing organizations, each managing over $10 million in impact assets or having made at least five impact investments since inception. Approximately 92% of assets came from larger investors with more than $500 million allocated to impact investing strategies. Impact assets overall grew at a compound annual growth rate of 14%, slightly higher than the previous year. Changing investment patterns: The...
read Oct 30, 2024US launches $100M competition for AI semiconductor innovation
Groundbreaking AI initiative for sustainable semiconductors: The Biden-Harris Administration has launched a $100 million competition to accelerate research and development in sustainable semiconductor materials using artificial intelligence and autonomous experimentation technologies. The CHIPS AI/AE for Rapid, Industry-informed Sustainable Semiconductor Materials and Processes (CARISSMA) funding opportunity aims to demonstrate that new sustainable semiconductor materials and processes can be designed and adopted for industry testing within five years. The program will provide individual awards ranging from $20 million to $40 million to teams of universities, research entities, industry partners, and civil society organizations. This initiative is part of the broader CHIPS for...
read Oct 30, 2024AI gun scanners attract funding amid school safety concerns
Rise of AI-powered security in schools: The growing threat of gun violence and heightened public concern are driving a surge in investment in advanced security technologies for educational institutions across the United States. Lancaster County School District in South Carolina is considering allocating $2 million for AI-powered weapon detection systems following a recent hoax threat, reflecting a broader national trend. The US school-security industry, valued at $3 billion according to IHS Markit, has experienced rapid growth since the pandemic, fueled by public pressure and new funding streams. Evolv Technologies Holdings Inc., a provider of AI-powered scanning systems, has seen a...
read Oct 25, 2024Perplexity’s $8B valuation, Adobe’s updates, and drone racers recruited by the military
AI search startup secures massive funding round: Perplexity AI, backed by Jeff Bezos, is in talks to raise $500 million, potentially valuing the company at $8 billion. The funding would more than double Perplexity's valuation from $3 billion in June 2024, highlighting rapid growth and investor interest in AI-powered search technologies. Perplexity's conversational search engine handles approximately 15 million queries daily and generates around $50 million in annualized revenue. The company aims to use the funds to compete with industry giants like OpenAI and expand its enterprise services. Challenges and competition: Despite its growth, Perplexity faces legal hurdles and intense...
read Oct 21, 2024Microsoft and NVIDIA team up to accelerate AI healthcare startups
AI startup acceleration: A collaborative effort: NVIDIA and Microsoft are expanding their partnership to provide enhanced support for global AI startups, with an initial focus on healthcare and life sciences companies. The initiative combines NVIDIA's Inception global program for cutting-edge startups with Microsoft for Startups, offering cloud credits, AI development software, and expert technical and business support. The collaboration aims to broaden innovators' access to accelerated computing resources, enabling them to develop and scale their AI-driven solutions more effectively. Key benefits for startups: The partnership offers a comprehensive package of resources and support to help AI startups accelerate their growth...
read Oct 18, 2024Terray Therapeutics secures $120M for AI-driven drug discovery
Biotech innovation meets AI: Terray Therapeutics secures significant funding: Terray Therapeutics, a biotech company leveraging artificial intelligence for drug discovery, has successfully raised $120 million in a Series B funding round, marking a significant milestone in the intersection of biotechnology and AI-driven research. Funding details and investor confidence: The substantial Series B round underscores the growing investor interest in AI-powered drug discovery platforms and their potential to accelerate pharmaceutical innovation. • The $120 million funding was secured through a Series B round, indicating strong investor confidence in Terray's approach and potential.• While specific investors were not mentioned in the provided...
read Oct 17, 2024AI startup FullyRamped automates onboarding and training of sales reps
AI-powered sales training startup secures funding: FullyRamped, a California-based startup, has raised $2.3 million to develop its artificial intelligence solution for training new sales representatives more efficiently. The problem FullyRamped aims to solve: The company addresses the challenge of ramping up new sales hires quickly and effectively without risking customer relationships or overburdening managers. CEO and founder Aaron Marks identified this issue while working as a growth manager at a fast-growing scale-up. New sales representatives typically require time to develop phone skills, familiarize themselves with target customers, and practice go-to-market tactics. This "unprofitable ramping period" can be a significant hurdle...
read Oct 16, 2024Tech giants back AI search visualizer Tako with major investment
AI-powered data visualization startup secures significant funding: Tako, a startup leveraging generative AI to create interactive data visualizations from text queries, has raised $5.75 million in seed funding from prominent tech industry figures. The seed round was led by Eventbrite co-founder Kevin Hartz and included investors such as Stanley Druckenmiller, Naval Ravikant, Guillermo Rauch, and Joe Montana. Tako's technology transforms text queries into visually appealing, interactive charts and graphs called "knowledge cards" using public and licensed data. The startup has partnered with AI search engine Perplexity to integrate its knowledge cards into certain data-centric queries. Tako's vision and potential applications:...
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