TechCrunch Startup News
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AI startups are eating the venture industry and the returns, so far, are good; plus, Delve accused of misleading customers
AI startups accounted for 41% of the $128 billion in venture dollars raised by companies on Carta last year — a record-high annual share. Also, an anonymous Substack post accuses compliance startup Delve of “falsely” convincing “hundreds of customers they were compliant” with privacy and security regulations. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Geothermal startup Fervo catapults itself over the ‘valley of death’; K2 to launch its first high-powered satellite for space compute
Fervo landed a large new loan with terms that strongly suggest the company's most turbulent days are behind it. Also, K2's Gravitas is an ambitious project that aims to demonstrate the tech needed to build data centers in space. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Rebel Audio is a new AI podcasting tool aimed at first-time creators
Rebel Audio is a new all-in-one podcasting tool that allows creators to record podcasts, edit, clip content for social, and publish episodes, all without ever leaving the platform. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
H&M wants to make clothing from CO2 using this startup’s tech; plus, Niv-AI exits stealth to wring more power performance out of GPUs
Rubi has developed an enzymatic process to turn carbon dioxide into cellulose that's ready to be spun into lyocell or viscose. Also, Niv-AI raised $12 million in seed funding to measure and manage GPU power surges. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Fuse wants to disrupt aging loan origination systems used by US credit unions; plus, Another deep tech chip startup becomes a unicorn: Frore hits $1.64B
The startup also announced a $5M 'rescue fund' to help credit unions ditch legacy software for its AI-native platform. Also, at Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's urging, Frore developed liquid-cooling tech for chips. That shift helped it just raise $143 million. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The biggest AI stories of the year (so far)
Written by TechCrunch's Amanda Siberling. The AI industry is constantly churning out news, like major acquisitions, indie developer successes, public outcry, and existentially dangerous contract negotiations. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
A Chinese Brain-Computer Interface startup raised $21M just two months after launch; plus, Gumloop turns every employee into an AI agent builder
This is the largest early-stage funding in China’s brain computer interface industry. Also, Benchmark’s new patner Everett Randell, sees Gumloop's enterprise automation as the largest opportunity in AI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Rivian spin-out Mind Robotics raises $500M for industrial AI-powered robots
The startup, which was created by Rivian founder RJ Scaringe, is looking to train on data from, and deploy in, Rivian's factory. Plus, Replit raised a new $400 million round and said it hopes to have $1B in ARR by year's end. And, Breakout Ventures is finding growing success by backing early-stage startups in scientific fields such as biology and chemistry. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Canopii looks to succeed where past indoor farms have not; plus, Legora reaches $5.55 billion valuation as AI legal tech boom endures
Canopii's robotic farms can autonomously grow 40,000 pounds of herbs and leafy greens a year while being the size of a basketball court. Also, Legora, an AI platform for lawyers, is now valued at $5.55 billion following a $550 million Series D led by Accel to fuel its growth in the U.S. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Robinhood’s startup fund stumbled in NYSE debut, plus, AI network startup Eridu emerged from stealth, and ModRetro seeking funding at $1B valuation
-The fund currently offers retail investors exposure to eight startups, including Mercor, Ramp, and Stripe, with plans to expand its portfolio. -Unlike a vibe-coded product built by a college dropout, Eridu's co-founder, Drew Perkins, has been inventing networking tech since the dawn of the internet. -The company launched its first product, a Game Boy-style handheld device called the Chromatic, in 2024. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Zeno raises $25M to speed up production of its battery-swap motorbikes; plus, Lio raised $30M from A16Z and others to automate enterprise procurement
The startup, co-founded by Tesla and Apple alumni, has sold nearly 1,000 of its motorbikes so far. Also, AI procurement startup Lio announced a $30 million Series A in a round led by Andreessen Horowitz. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Science Corp raises $230M as it races to bring its brain implant to market
A source close to the company says the round assigns Science a post-money valuation of $1.25 billion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Decagon completes first tender offer at $4.5B valuation; plus, three companies dominated the $189 billion in VC investments last month
The AI-powered customer support startup is the latest example of a fast-growing, young company that's providing employee liquidity. Also, Crunchbase data shows a record $189 billion of global venture capital flowed to startups last month, with AI startups nabbing 90% of the capital. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Why AI startups are selling the same equity at two different prices?
Some AI founders are using a novel valuation mechanism to manufacture unicorn status. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Fig Security emerges from stealth with $38M to help security teams deal with change; plus, Cursor has reportedly surpassed $2B in ARR
Fig traces data flows in the security stack and then alerts security teams when changes at any point affect detection or response capabilities. Also, the four-year-old startup Cursor saw its revenue run rate double over the past three months, according to one Bloomberg source. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
MyFitnessPal has acquired Cal AI, the viral calorie app built by teens
After wooing Cal AI for months, MyFitnessPal has successfully acquired its up-and-coming rival, Cal AI, the app built by teens soaring on the apps stores. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Parade’s Cami Tellez announces new creator economy marketing platform, $4M in funding
Cami Tellez announces launch of new company, $4 million raise. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Hardware Why China’s humanoid robot industry is winning the early market
As TechCrunch's Kate Park writes, China’s push into humanoid robots is accelerating, with domestic firms shipping more units and iterating faster than U.S. competitors in a still-nascent market. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Deepinder Goyal returns with a $54M brain-monitoring bet; plus, Ultrahuman bets on redesigned smart ring to win back U.S. market
Zomato co-founder Deepinder Goyal's new wearable startup Temple has raised $54 million in a friends-and-family round at a post-money valuation of about $190 million. Plus, Ultrahuman’s Ring Pro promises 15-day battery life and a $479 price tag as the wearables maker expands its health-tech push. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Sophia Space raises $10M seed to demo novel space computers; plus,
Sophia Space's modular computer tiles offer a new vision for space data centers. Also, Trace is launching with $3 million in seed funding, including investment from Y Combinator, Zeno Ventures, Transpose Platform Management, Goodwater Capital, Formosa Capital, and WeFunder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Jest is challenging the app store status quo; plus, Self-driving truck startup Einride raises $113M PIPE
Jest, a marketplace for messaging games, emerged from stealth with $7 million in seed funding. Also, self-driving trucks startup Einride has raised an oversubscribed $113 million PIPE in advance of its SPAC merger scheduled for early 2026. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Y Combinator grad and AI insurance brokerage Harper raises $47M; plus, AI chip startup MatX raised $500M
Harper is an AI-native insurance brokerage that just raised a $45 million combined Series A and seed, after a member of YC's Winter 2025 cohort. Also, MatX, a chip startup founded by two former Google hardware engineers, has raised a $500 million Series B led by Jane Street and Situational Awareness, an investment fund formed by former OpenAI researcher Leopold Aschenbrenner. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Canva acquires startups working on animation and marketing; plus, Stripe, PayPal Ventures bet on India’s Xflow
With the new acquisitions, the company wants to bolster its position as a marketing solution by potentially adding video creation and more granular measurement. Also, Stripe and PayPal Ventures have participated in Xflow's $16.6 million round that gives it a post-money valuation of $85 million. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Ukraine’s startups keep building
In the four years since Russia’s full-scale invasion of their country, Ukrainian startups have done more than survive: they are still building and growing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Particle’s AI news app listens to podcasts for interesting clips so you you don’t have to
AI news app Particle can now pull in key moments from podcasts, letting readers instantly play short, relevant clips alongside related stories. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Quantonation’s double-sized second fund shows quantum still has believers; plus. Ali Partovi’s Neo looks to upend the accelerator model
Quantonation Ventures, a venture firm investing in quantum and physics-based startups, has closed its oversubscribed second fund at €220 million, or approximately $260 million. That’s more than twice the size of its inaugural fund, and comes in addition to other signals that the quantum winter isn’t coming yet. Also, Neo's new Residency program invests $750,000 in an uncapped SAFE for startups and provides a $40,000 no-strings-attached grant for college students. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Nvidia deepens early-stage push into India’s AI startup ecosystem; plus, General Catalyst commits $5B to India
Nvidia is working with investors, nonprofits, and venture firms to build earlier ties with India's fast-growing AI founder ecosystem. Also, General Catalyst's pledge marks a sharp jump from the company's earlier $500 million–$1 billion India earmark. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
A startup called Germ becomes the first private messenger that launches directly from Bluesky’s app
Social network Bluesky now offers private messaging by integrating the startup Germ's E2E encrypted messenger natively in its app. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Reload wants to give your AI agents a shared memory; plus, Mirai developing a framework for models to perform better on devices
Reload announces a $2.275 million raise in a round led by Anthemis and the launch of its first AI employee, Epic. Also, Mirai raised a $10 million seed to improve how AI models run on devices like smartphones and laptops. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Kana emerges from stealth with $15M to build flexible AI agents for marketers; plus, World Labs lands $200M from Autodesk
Kana, a new AI marketing startup from the founders of Rapt and Krux, has raised $15 million to build customizable, agent-based marketing tools. The partnership will see the two companies exploring how World Labs’ models can work alongside Autodesk’s tools, and vice versa, starting with a focus on entertainment use cases. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
SpendRule raises $2M, emerges from stealth to help hospitals track spending; Mistral AI buys Koyeb; and Thrive raises $10B for new fund, its largest yet
SpendRule, launched last summer, is an AI-powered platform that helps healthcare systems track their spending. Mistral AI has agreed to buy Koyeb, a Paris-based startup that simplifies AI app deployment at scale and manages the infrastructure behind it. Thrive Capital just raised $10 billion for its new fund-- nearly double the size of its last fund. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
African defensetech Terra Industries, founded by two Gen Zers, raises additional $22M in a month
Terra Industries, the African defense company, announced Monday that it had secured an additional $22 million in funding to further expand the business. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Fusion startup Helion hits blistering temps as it races toward 2028 deadline
Helion's Polaris device hit 150 million degrees C recently, a milestone that nudges the company toward its commercial power plant that will sell electricity to Microsoft. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Eclipse backs all-EV marketplace Ever in $31M funding round
The San Francisco-based startup says its AI-first approach has allowed it to scale faster. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Score, the dating app for people with good credit, is back
Two years ago, a controversial dating app was launched and quickly shuttered: for people with good-to-excellent credit. Now, the founder is relaunching it, open to anyone. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Didero lands $30M to put manufacturing procurement on ‘agentic’ autopilot; plus, AI inference startup Modal Labs in talks to raise at $2.5B valuation, sources say
Didero functions as an agentic AI layer that sits on top of a company’s existing ERP, acting as a coordinator that reads incoming communications and automatically executes the necessary updates and tasks. Also, General Catalyst is in talks to lead Modal Labs' next round for the four-year-old startup, according to our sources. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Complyance raises $20M to help companies manage risk and compliance; plus, Integrate raises $17M to move defense project management
Complyance raised a $20 million Series A led by GV for its AI-native compliance platform. Also, Integrate's round was led by FPV Ventures co-founder and managing partner Wesley Chan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Humanoid robot startup Apptronik has now raised $935M at a $5B+ valuation
Apptronik has sold another $520 million in a Series A extension to existing and new investors like Google and Mercedes-Benz. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Proptech startup Smart Bricks raises $5 million pre-seed led by a16z
Smart Bricks is an AI-powered proptech that helps investors find high-quality real estate investments Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Hauler Hero collects $16M for its AI waste management software
Hauler Hero has seen its customer base, revenue, and head count double since the company raised its seed round in 2024. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Anthropic closes in on $20B round; plus, Harvey reportedly raising at $11B valuation just months after it hit $8B
Anthropic raised $13 billion in equity funding just five months ago, but intense competition between frontier labs and the ongoing cost of compute have made them eager to raise as quickly as possible. Also, after announcing $190 million in ARR in December, Harvey may be raising again a big leap in valuation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Gather AI, maker of ‘curious’ warehouse drones, lands $40M led by Keith Block’s firm
Gather AI has closed funding from former Salesforce CEO's firm Smith Point Capital. Its warehouse AI system doesn't just scan. It seeks out specific data. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Sapiom raises $15M to help AI agents buy their own tech tools
The startup -- with backing from Accel -- is building a financial layer that handles the authentication and micro-payments required for AI agents. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Fundamental raises a Series A with a new take on big data analysis; plus, Stripe alumni raised a Series A for Duna
Fundamental has built a new foundation model to solve an old problem: how to draw insights from the huge quantities of structured data produced by enterprises. Also, having raised a €30 million Series A round led by CapitalG, business identity verification startup Duna is now among the most well-capitalized European startups founded by Stripe alumni. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Peak XV says internal disagreement led to partner exits as it doubles down on AI
Peak XV says internal disagreement led to partner exits as it doubles down on AI Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Exclusive: Positron raises $230M Series B to take on Nvidia’s AI chips; plus, Apeiron Labs gets $29M to flood the oceans with autonomous underwater robots
The investment comes from backers including the Qatar Investment Authority as demand for chips beyond Nvidia soars and as Qatar aims to build out its AI infrastructure. Also, To build and sell more of its autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), Apeiron Labs recently closed a $9.5 million Series A round led by Dyne Ventures, RA Capital Management Planetary Health and S2G Investments, the company exclusively told TechCrunch. Assembly Ventures, Bay Bridge Ventures, and TFX Capital participated. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Gradient’s heat pumps get new smarts to enable old-building retrofits
Gradient's heat pumps fit in windows, minimizing installation times. Now, it is introducing software to make those units more intelligent. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Linq raises $20M to enable AI assistants to live within messaging apps
Linq offers an API that lets companies offer their AI assistants via iMessage, RCS and SMS. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Carbon Robotics built an AI model that detects and identifies plants
Carbon Robotics' Large Plant Model will allow farmers to kill new types of weeds without having to retrain the machines. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Two Stanford students launch $2M startup accelator for students nationwide
Two Stanford students launch $2M startup accelator for students nationwide Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices