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BLUF (Bottom Line Up Front): This is your weekly list of the latest deals and disrupters, insights and trends to keep you up-to-date on the startup scene.
70 new unicorns (valued at $1B) have been minted so far this year, 28 of which earned their horns after an early-stage funding round. [Crunchbase]
For the 10th year, Forbes is back with a list of 25 venture-backed startups it predicts will reach a $1B valuation. This year’s batch is, unsurprisingly, chock full of AI. Forbes has a pretty good prediction record: of the list’s 225 alumni, 58% (131) became unicorns, including DoorDash, Figma, Anduril, Benchling and Rippling. [Forbes]
While Canada’s VC activity across all stages declined during the first half of 2024, the largest drops took place at the pre-seed and seed-stage levels, as total dollars invested fell by 64% and 45%, respectively. “The persistent decline in seed deals raises concerns about the long-term pipeline of investment-ready companies.” [betakit]
Andreessen Horowitz, General Catalyst, and Khosla Ventures were the most-active U.S. investors leading Series A and B rounds globally in the first half of 2024. Nine of the 13 most-active investors increased their activity H1 2024 compared to H1 of 2023, meaning the venture markets could be picking up. [Crunchbase]
Customer relationship software firm DevRev has raised $100.8M in a Series A funding round that brings its valuation to $1.15B, marking its entry into the unicorn club. [Economic Times]
Plant-based cheese maker Plonts has raised $12M in seed funding and opened a pilot plant in California to start making its first product: an aged plant-based cheddar. [Food Busines News]
Citi and Wells Fargo join $31M funding round for loan startup Setpoint. [Fortune]
Budget hotel chain Oyo has raised roughly $174M in a Series G funding round, backed by Patient Capital, InCred Wealth, and J&A Partners. [PhocusWire]
Spline, a NYC-based provider of a collaborative 3D design platform, has raised $10M in a Series A funding round, led by Third Point Ventures. [Finsmes]
Quantum Circuits, a spinout from Yale University, has secured $60M in a Series B funding round led by ARCH Venture Partners, F-Prime Capital, Sequoia Capital, and Hither Creek Ventures. [Quantum Computing Report]
Startup Releaf Paper takes dead leaves from city trees and turns them into paper for bags and office supplies. They’re producing 3 million paper carrier bags per year from 5,000 metric tons of leaves and are already selling products to LVMH, BNP Paribas, Logitech, Samsung, and more. [Good News Network]
Syfe, a digital investment platform that offers users automated investment strategies and financial planning tools, raised $27M in Series C funding. [Finsmes]
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Your weekly list of the latest deals and disrupters, insights and trends to keep you up-to-date on the startup scene.
Your weekly list of the latest deals and disrupters, insights and trends to keep you up-to-date on the startup scene.
Your weekly list of the latest deals and disrupters, insights and trends to keep you up-to-date on the startup scene.
Your weekly list of the latest deals and disrupters, insights and trends to keep you up-to-date on the startup scene.