Innovation

DeepWay Raises About $173 Million Pre-IPO To Support Hong Kong Listing Plan

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

DeepWay, a Chinese developer of assisted-driving technology and freight solutions for heavy-duty electric trucks, has raised about RMB 1.2 billion (roughly $172–$173 million) in a Pre-IPO funding round as it prepares for a planned Hong Kong listing.

Microsoft Unveils Maia 200, A New Inference Accelerator To Cut AI Token Costs

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Microsoft has introduced Maia 200, a first-party AI accelerator designed specifically for inference workloads, positioning it as a step change in the economics of AI token generation and in the company’s broader heterogeneous AI infrastructure strategy.

Apple Unveils New AirTag With Longer Range, Louder Speaker, And Expanded Precision Finding

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Apple has introduced a new AirTag designed to make it easier to keep track of everyday belongings using the Find My app, adding a longer effective finding range and a louder built-in speaker while keeping the same pricing as the prior model. Apple positioned AirTag as an object-tracking accessory built on the Find My network and reiterated that it includes protections to guard against unwanted tracking.

Ricursive Intelligence: $300 Million Series A At $4 Billion Valuation Raised To Advance AI-Driven Semiconductor Design

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Ricursive Intelligence, a newly launched frontier AI lab founded by Dr. Anna Goldie and Dr. Azalia Mirhoseini, announced a $300 million Series A led by Lightspeed Venture Partners that values the company at a $4 billion post-money valuation. The round comes less than two months after Ricursive’s public debut and includes participation from DST Global, NVentures, Felicis Ventures, 49 Palms Ventures, Radical AI, and Sequoia Capital, among others.

Jelou: $10 Million Series A Raised To Build WhatsApp-Native AI Agents For Payments and Financial Workflows

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Jelou announced it has raised a $10 million Series A to expand Brain, its platform for building AI agents that can securely execute business and financial operations directly inside WhatsApp. The round was led by Wellington Access Ventures, with participation from Krealo, Credicorp’s corporate venture arm, and Collide Capital. Jelou said it has now raised $13 million in total funding, including a prior $3 million seed round led by Act One Ventures and Arca Continental Ventures.

Eclipsebio Acquires Terrain Bio To Build An AI-Driven Design, Make, Test Platform or RNA Therapeutics

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Eclipse Bioinnovations announced it has acquired Terrain Bio, adding AI and machine learning capabilities for RNA sequence design and manufacturing analytics to Eclipsebio’s sequencing-based analytics platform as the company pushes toward a fully integrated workflow for RNA therapeutic development.

CleanCapital Buys Majority Stake In Staten Island Battery Storage Portfolio In JV With Osaka Gas USA

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

CleanCapital has acquired a majority interest in a 7.7 MW and 30.8 MWh battery storage portfolio through a joint venture with Osaka Gas USA, positioning CleanCapital as the managing member and lead operator of the partnership. The deal expands CleanCapital’s ownership of distributed energy storage assets and deepens Osaka Gas USA’s footprint in the U.S. power market as both companies target reliability and resilience needs in constrained, high-demand regions.

XCF Global, Southern Energy Renewables, And DevvStream Sign Deal For Proposed Three-Party Merger

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

XCF Global, DevvStream, and Southern Energy Renewables Inc. said they have agreed to a binding term sheet outlining a proposed three-party merger that would combine the companies into what they describe as an integrated low-carbon fuels and environmental-attribute platform.

Blackstone To Buy Arlington Industries In Energy Transition Partners Deal

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Blackstone and Arlington Industries said they have entered into a definitive agreement for funds managed by Blackstone Energy Transition Partners to acquire Arlington, a U.S. designer and manufacturer of electrical products.

Simpro Group Acquires Delight To Add AI Customer Engagement And Drive Repeat Revenue

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Simpro Group announced it has acquired Delight, an AI-driven customer engagement solution built for field service and trade businesses, as it pushes to expand from traditional field service management into what it calls an AI-first operating platform that runs a trade business end to end.

Adams Outdoor Advertising Buys Parkway Outdoor Assets To Deepen Charlotte Billboard Footprint

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Adams Outdoor Advertising announced it has completed the acquisition of select assets from Parkway Outdoor, adding 15 billboard assets in the Charlotte, North Carolina market. The package includes 14 static faces and one digital display, bolstering Adams Outdoor’s inventory along key airport and commuter corridors.

Netmore Acquires Actility To Create LoRaWAN Network

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Maia Farms: $3.75 Million Seed Funding Closed To Scale Mushroom And Mycelium Ingredients

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Maia Farms, a Vancouver-based food technology company developing mushroom and mycelium-based ingredients, has closed an oversubscribed $3.75 million Seed equity financing as it looks to ramp up commercial production and expand partnerships with food manufacturers and distributors worldwide. The seed round was led by Active Impact Investments, with follow-on investments from Nya Planet, Ag-West Bio, PIC Investment Group, and Deep Checks. Separately, the company has also cited strategic and non-dilutive support from Genome BC, Natural Products Canada, Protein Industries Canada, and the National Research Council of Canada.

Aviwell: €11 Million Series A Raised To Scale AI-Driven Microbiota Platform For Sustainable Animal Nutrition

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Aviwell SAS, a Toulouse-based deep-tech animal nutrition company with operations spanning France and Boston, has closed a €11 million Series A financing to expand its AI-driven microbiome discovery and development platform and advance nature-based biological solutions for global agri-food markets, initially focused on poultry and aquaculture. The round brings in three new investors: Blue Revolution Fund (BRF), Blast.Club, and SWEN Capital Partners. Existing investors Elaia and MFS Investment Management also participated, according to the company.

Allied Gold Agrees To C$5.5 Billion All Cash Sale To Zijin Gold At C$44 Per Share

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Allied Gold announced it has entered into a definitive arrangement agreement under which Zijin Gold International Company Limited will acquire all issued and outstanding Allied Gold shares for C$44 per share in cash, valuing the equity at approximately C$5.5 billion.

Skrooge.ai: $1.85 Million Seed Funding Raised For Scaling AI-Based Accounting And Tax Services for UAE SMEs

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

skrooge.ai, an AI-enabled accounting and tax service provider focused on small and medium-sized businesses in the UAE, has raised $1.85 million in a seed round through SAFE notes from fintech-experienced angel investors. The Dubai based company said the funding will be used to expand product and engineering and to increase delivery capacity as it grows its managed service offering for local SMEs.

Whistle Performance: $2 Million Seed Funding Raised And Rebrand From GPS DataViz

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Whistle Performance (formerly known as GPS DataViz) has closed a $2 million seed investment round and rebranded, aiming to accelerate global expansion and step up product innovation. The San Diego-based company positions its software as a hub for sports and broader human performance programs, aimed at helping teams and organizations turn complex athlete and workforce data into faster, clearer decisions.

RelaDyne Expands Midwest Lubricants Footprint With Acquisition Of Dennis Oil Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

RelaDyne, a U.S. lubricant distributor that also sells fuel, diesel exhaust fluid (DEF), and industrial reliability services, has acquired Dennis Oil Company, a family-owned blender and distributor of commercial and industrial lubricants serving customers across Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas.

Continuent: Interview Founder & CEO Eero Teerikorpi About The Database Infrastructure Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Continuent is a database infrastructure company best known for its Tungsten products, which help organizations keep MySQL (and related) databases highly available and move data reliably between systems. Its flagship Tungsten Replicator is a high-performance replication engine that can replicate data across different database sources/targets and supports advanced replication topologies beyond native MySQL replication. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Continuent founder, CEO, and Chairman Eero Teerikorpi to gain a deeper understanding of the company.

Standard Nuclear Raises $140 Million Series A And Begins Production Of Advanced HALEU TRISO Fuel

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Standard Nuclear announced it has raised $140 million in Series A funding and has begun production of advanced HALEU TRISO nuclear fuel, positioning the company to scale domestic supplies of a key fuel form used in next-generation reactors. The round was led by Decisive Point, with participation from new investors Chevron Technology Ventures, StepStone Group, and XTX Ventures. Standard Nuclear said the financing also included support from existing investors Welara, Fundomo, Andreessen Horowitz, Washington Harbour Partners, and Crucible Capital, among others.

Lucend: $3.3 Million Seed Funding Closed And Rebrands From Coolgradient

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Lucend, formerly known as Coolgradient, has raised $3.3 million in Seed funding as it expands into the U.S. market with software designed to improve data center uptime and reliability while reducing energy and water consumption. The financing was led by Remarkable Ventures Climate (RVC) and included Mitsubishi Electric Innovation Fund, New Climate Ventures, Avesta, and Stepchange, with support from existing investor 4impact capital.

Mine: $14 Million Series A Raised To Launch MoneyGPT AI Money Agent And Rebrand From Fizz

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Mine, formerly known as Fizz, raised a $14 million Series A to support the launch of MoneyGPT, an AI-powered personal finance agent designed to help young adults feel more in control of their money as they navigate variable income, debt, and shifting financial goals. The round was led by 359 Capital, with participation from Kleiner Perkins and new investor FJ Labs, as well as existing backers Y Combinator and U.S. News & World Report. The financing brings Mine’s total capital raised to $28 million.

Barnwell Bio: $6 Million Seed Funding Raised To Bring Metagenomic Biosurveillance To Poultry Producers

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Barnwell Bio, a precision animal health intelligence company, has raised $6 million in seed funding to scale a metagenomic biosurveillance system that provides poultry producers with earlier warning of emerging disease threats. The round was led by Twelve Below, with participation from Max Ventures, Dorm Room Fund, Banter Capital, Planeteer Capital, AgVentures Alliance, Daybreak Ventures, Alumni Ventures, and AgLaunch Farmers.

GlassPoint: $20 Million Funding Raised To Fuel Expansion Of Solar Industrial Process Heat

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

GlassPoint, a provider of solar industrial process heat, announced it has closed a $20 million funding round led by N.I.S. New Investment Solutions, a Liechtenstein-based asset manager, with participation from returning investor MIG Capital. The company said the financing will support global expansion and advance large-scale deployments in its pipeline, with a near-term focus on projects in the U.S. Southwest, Southern Europe, the Middle East, and South America.

Zocks: $45 Million Series B Closed To Expand Privacy First Agentic AI For Financial Advisors

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Zocks, a privacy-first AI platform built for financial advisors, has raised $45 million in Series B funding to broaden its automation and analytics capabilities into what the company describes as a business growth engine. The round was co led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and QED Investors, with participation from Illuminate Financial and existing backers Motive Partners, Expanse Venture Partners, Entrée Capital, and 14Peaks Capital, bringing Zocks’ total funding to $65 million.

PTF Lab: Interview With Co-Founder & CEO Isa Mutaliev About The Virtual Ad And Logo Replacement Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

PTF Lab is a technology company specializing in AI and computer vision that provides real-time, cloud-based virtual advertising and logo replacement solutions for live sports broadcasts. Pulse 2.0 interviewed PTF Lab co-founder and CEO Isa Mutaliev to learn more.

The Clary Group: Interview With Founder Dr. Debra Clary About The Advisory Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

The Clary Group is a company that advises senior leaders, executive teams, and boards on judgment, decision-making, and trust in organizations by helping them replace over-reliance on certainty with disciplined curiosity. Pulse 2.0 interviewed The Clary Group founder Dr. Debra Clary to learn more.

PAR Technology To Buy Cardlytics’ Bridg Unit For Up to $30 Million In Stock

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

PAR Technology announced it has agreed to acquire Bridg, an identity resolution and shopper intelligence platform operated as a division of Cardlytics, in a deal valued at $27.5 million, subject to customary purchase-price adjustments that could raise the total consideration to as much as $30 million.

Visitt: $22 Million Series B Raised To Build A Single AI Interface For Commercial Real Estate Operations

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

Visitt, an AI native property operations platform for commercial real estate, has raised $22 million in Series B funding led by Susquehanna Growth Equity, with participation from existing investors Vertex Ventures Israel, Anfield, and Sarona Ventures.

The Footprint Firm Closes First VC Fund At €76 Million For Northern Europe Climate Deep Tech

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 26, 2026

The Footprint Firm announced it has reached a final close of its debut venture capital vehicle, Footprint Fund I, raising €76 million to back pre-seed and seed climate deep-tech and scale-up companies across Northern Europe.