Innovation

Apple Pledges $500 Million To MP Materials

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Apple pledged $500 million to MP Materials, the U.S.'s only fully integrated rare earth producer. This multi-year deal involves purchasing American-made rare earth magnets from MP's Independence facility in Texas. They will also develop a rare earth recycling line in Mountain Pass, California, and create new magnet materials and technologies to improve performance. As part of Apple’s plan to invest over $500 billion in the U.S. over four years, this initiative builds on its history of supporting American innovation and promoting tech recycling.

Rokt Buying Canal To Expand E-Commerce Offering

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Global e-commerce leader Rokt announced the acquisition of Canal to expand its product offerings. This enables partners to access third-party inventory from premium DTC brands without handling logistics, increasing relevant offers during transactions. The acquisition enables brands to reach new customers through performance-driven channels, enhancing Rokt’s existing suite with high-performing third-party products powered by Rokt Brain. Canal's network includes 1,900 brands, such as Macy's and SHEIN.

JA Mining: $17 Million Series A Raised For Expanding Green Mining Infrastructure

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Ja Mining, a blockchain infrastructure company, has closed a $17 million Series A round, funded by investors with experience in blockchain and renewable energy. The money will expand renewable-powered cloud mining across North America, Europe, and Asia.

SL Green: Over $1 Billion Raised For Opportunistic Debt Fund

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

SL Green Realty, Manhattan’s largest office landlord, announced it had surpassed its $1 billion goal for the SLG Opportunistic Debt Fund. The fund, backed by global institutional investors including pension funds and insurance companies, received over $500 million in new commitments this week, with more expected soon.

Talen Energy Buying Two Plants In $3.5 Billion Deal

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Talen Energy announced it will acquire Caithness Energy’s Moxie Freedom Energy Center in Pennsylvania and Caithness Energy and BlackRock’s Guernsey Power Station in Ohio, both located in the PJM market.

Nordstrom: Kelly Dilts Named As Chief Financial Officer

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Nordstrom has announced the appointment of Kelly Dilts as Chief Financial Officer, effective August 29. Dilts joins Nordstrom from Dollar General, where she has served as executive vice president and chief financial officer since 2023. In this role, Dilts will oversee all core financial functions, as well as real estate, store development, and strategic sourcing.

Governor Whitmer Reveals Michigan Advanced Air Mobility Initiative

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced a new executive order establishing the Michigan Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) Initiative to expand Michigan’s AAM capabilities, ensure safe integration across sectors, and position the workforce, manufacturers, and infrastructure as national assets. Four projects will receive over $4.1 million to support AAM research and infrastructure through the second round of the AAM Activation Fund.

SAHAM BANK: €55 Million Raised From EBRD To Invest In Morocco

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

SAHAM BANK has reaffirmed its commitment to green finance through a partnership with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), under the Green Economy Financing Facility Plus (GEFF Plus). Supported by the Green Climate Fund (GCF), EU, and Canada’s HIPCA fund, the initiative will mobilize €55 million for SAHAM BANK through two credit lines to boost Morocco’s private sector green transition.

Fleetworthy Buying Predictive Tolling Company commercelogic

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Fleetworthy, the industry’s only comprehensive fleet safety, compliance, and efficiency platform, announced it acquired commercelogic, a leader in predictive tolling and GPS analytics.

ghSMART: Significant Minority Investment Raised From KKR

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

ghSMART (a global leadership advisory firm) and KKR (a global investment firm) announced that KKR funds will acquire a significant minority stake in ghSMART. The firm partners with CEOs, boards, and investors to develop effective leadership teams and support high-stakes decisions. ghSMART’s founder, partners, and employees will retain majority ownership, while CEO Jeff McLean and the current management team continue to lead. The financial details weren't disclosed.

Stocktwits Buying Thematic For AI-Based Research Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Stocktwits announced the acquisition of Thematic, an AI-based research platform, to enhance its use of AI by analyzing 17 years of data, including community conversations and investor sentiment.

The Riverside Company: Value Fund II Closed At $750 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Global investment firm The Riverside Company announced the final close of its Riverside Value Fund II (RVF II) at $750 million, more than doubling its predecessor RVF I, which closed at $350 million in June 2023. RVF II, launched in February 2025, was significantly oversubscribed and closed five months later.

re:cap: €125 Million Raised For Scaling Capital OS

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

re:cap, a Berlin-based fintech firm known for its Capital Operating System (Capital OS), is expanding into the UK market and has secured a €125 million credit facility from HSBC Innovation Banking and Avellinia Capital. This funding will enable the company to offer more flexible financing options to tech firms.

Flyer One Ventures: €50 Million Fund V Launched For Investing In Ukrainian Startups

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Ukrainian venture capital firm Flyer One Ventures has launched Fund V, a €50 million fund, with significant backing from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). This fund will focus on early-stage tech companies in Ukraine and Central and Eastern Europe (CEE).

bp Selling Onshore Wind Business As Part Of $20 Billion Divestment Initiative

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

BP has agreed to sell its U.S. onshore wind business, BP Wind Energy North America to LS Power, a leader in North American power and energy infrastructure.

Blue Owl Buying Fiber Provider South Reach Networks

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Intermetro Fiber, operating as South Reach Networks (SRN), a leading Florida-based fiber infrastructure provider, has been acquired by a fund managed by Blue Owl Capital's Digital Infrastructure strategy.

Lucid, Nuro, And Uber Partnering To Launch Robotaxis

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Lucid Group, Nuro, and Uber Technologies have formed a partnership to launch a premium robotaxi program exclusively on the Uber platform, set to debut in a major U.S. city in late 2026.

Wealthbox Integrating With Envestnet For Investment Management

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Wealthbox has introduced a new integration with Envestnet, enhancing investment management capabilities within the Wealthbox CRM platform for financial advisors. This integration enables advisors to easily access Envestnet account information and navigate between platforms using single sign-on (SSO), all from Wealthbox.

BrightAI: $51 Million Raised For Bringing AI Into The Physical World

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

BrightAI, a company specializing in integrating AI into physical infrastructure, has raised $51 million in Series A funding, co-led by Khosla Ventures and Inspired Capital. With previous funding from Upfront Ventures, BrightAI's total funding now stands at $78 million.

Ballmer, Gates, Stand Together, Valhalla, And John Overdeck Partnering To Launch NextLadder Ventures With Over $1 Billion

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

A coalition of foundations and philanthropists, including the Ballmer Group, Gates Foundation, Stand Together, Valhalla Foundation, and John Overdeck, has launched NextLadder Ventures, a $1 billion initiative aimed at expanding economic opportunities for low-income individuals.

Appian: David Crozier Named As Chief Marketing Officer

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Appian has officially announced the appointment of David Crozier to the role of Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), effective July 21, 2025. In this pivotal position, Crozier will report directly to Appian’s Chief Executive Officer, Matt Calkins, marking a new era for the company’s marketing strategy.

Keystone Agency: Majority Stake Acquired By Warburg Pincus

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Warburg Pincus, a global leader in private equity growth investing, plans to acquire a majority stake in Keystone Agency Partners, a prominent insurance broker network. While financial details remain undisclosed, the investment aims to boost Keystone's innovation and expansion. Bain Capital, which launched Keystone in 2020, will retain a minority stake through a new investment from Bain Capital Insurance.

Hadrian: $260 Million Raised For Building AI-Based Factories For America

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Hadrian, an advanced manufacturing company specializing in AI-powered factories for the American defense sector, has announced the acquisition of $260 million in capital. This investment will facilitate significant expansions in California and Arizona, adding nearly five football fields of manufacturing space. The funds will enhance research and development (R&D) capabilities and create specialized teams for shipbuilding and naval defense.

Chevron: $55 Billion Deal For Hess Completed

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Chevron Corporation has completed its acquisition of Hess, following the successful resolution of all closing conditions, including a favorable arbitration outcome regarding Hess' offshore assets in Guyana.

TechVision: Fund II Closed At Over €50 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

TechVision Fund (TVF) II has successfully completed its final closing, raising over €50 million. As the fourth generation of venture capital funds managed by TVF Management GmbH, TVF II focuses on investing in tech startups at the pre-seed and seed stages, primarily in the Rhineland/North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) region and the Euregio Meuse-Rhine (Netherlands/Belgium).

Q.ANT: €62 Million Secured For Photonic Processing Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Q.ANT, a leader in photonic processing, has secured €62 million in a Series A financing round to accelerate the commercialization of its energy-efficient photonic processors for artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC). The funding was co-led by Cherry Ventures, UVC Partners, and imec.xpand, includes participation from various deep tech investors. This significant investment aims to transform AI computing.

Exein: €70 Million Series C Raised For Building Digital Immune System For IoT Devices

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2025

Exein, a leader in embedded IoT security, has secured €70 million in a Series C funding round to advance its mission of developing a digital immune system for connected devices, providing real-time security solutions. The funding, led by Balderton with contributions from Supernova, Lakestar, and previous investors, will enable Exein's global expansion into key markets, including the United States, Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea.

Receive: $4 Million Seed Funding Raised For Democratizing Financial Access For SMBs

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 18, 2025

Receive, a fintech startup focused on democratizing financial access for small businesses, has emerged from stealth mode with a $4 million seed funding round led by NGVP, raising its total funding to $7.1 million. Supported by investors like Blank Ventures and Insight Partners, Receive addresses issues such as delayed payouts and high capital costs that hinder SMB growth.

Blockskye: $15.8 Million Secured For Overhauling Corporate Travel

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 18, 2025

Blockskye, a global travel infrastructure company focused on modernizing enterprise travel, has raised $15.8 million in a funding round led by Blockchange, with participation from United Airlines Ventures, Lightspeed Faction, and others.

Social Mobile Buying Sonim Technologies In Deal Valued Up To $25 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 18, 2025

Social Mobile, a leader in custom enterprise mobility solutions, has announced an agreement to acquire the assets and current liabilities of Sonim Technologies, known for its mission-critical mobile devices. Valued at $20 million, the all-cash transaction includes a potential $5 million earn-out.