Innovation

Hotel Engine: Travel Technology Company Raises $140 Million At $2.1 Billion Valuation

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 25, 2024

Denver-based travel technology company Hotel Engine announced a $140 million Series C growth investment led by Permira Growth Opportunities II, a fund advised by global private equity firm Permira.

Apptega: Interview With CEO Dave Colesante About The Cybersecurity Compliance Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 25, 2024

Apptega is a market-leading end-to-end cybersecurity compliance platform that security-focused IT providers and in-house teams use to build and manage cybersecurity and compliance programs simply, quickly and affordably. Pulse 2.0 interviewed CEO Dave Colesante to learn more about the company.

ChargeLab: Interview With CEO Zak Lefevre About The EV Charger Software Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 25, 2024

ChargeLab is a company that builds software for managing electric vehicle chargers. Pulse 2.0 interviewed ChargeLab CEO, Zak Lefevre, to learn more about the company.

Sware: Interview With CEO Ellen Reilly About The Digital Validation Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 25, 2024

Sware is a leading digital validation and process automation across the healthcare, life sciences, and medical device industries. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Sware CEO Ellen Reilly to learn more about the company.

Device Authority: Interview With CEO Darron Antill About The Zero Trust Security Automation Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 25, 2024

Device Authority is a company that secures the connected future by automating Zero Trust security at scale, and is a recognized global leader in Identity and Access Management (IAM) for Enterprise IoT ecosystems. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Device Authority CEO Darron Antill to learn more about the company.

Letta: UC Berkeley GenAI Spin Out Raises $10 Million (Seed)

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

Letta, a new GenAI startup spun out of UC Berkeley's AI research lab, has emerged from stealth with a $10 million seed round led by Felicis with participation from Sunflower Capital and Essence VC. And notable angels include Jeff Dean (Chief Scientist at Google DeepMind), Clem Delangue (CEO of HuggingFace), Cristobal Valenzuela (CEO of Runway), Jordan Tigani (CEO of MotherDuck), Tristan Handy (CEO of dbt Labs), Robert Nishihara (co-founder of Anyscale), and Barry McCardel (CEO of Hex).

Meridian: Decentralized Liquidity Marketplace Secures $4 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

Meridian - a decentralized liquidity marketplace and liquid staking protocol built on Movement - announced it has raised $4 million in seed funding. The funding round, co-led by ParaFi Capital and Borderless Capital, saw participation from Amber Group, Saison Capital, Interop Ventures, and Oak Grove Ventures. And Meridian aims to spearhead the Move-based DeFi ecosystem on Movement, a network of blockchains created by Movement Labs.

Crosshatch: Personalization Identity Layer Company Secures $2.7 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

Crosshatch - an identity layer for personalization - announced its platform's public beta launch and an initial fundraising round of $2.7 million. And Crosshatch enables users to bring their data and context directly into apps, unlocking hyper-personalized experiences without compromising data control.

HavocAI: End-To-End Maritime Autonomy Solutions Company Raises $11 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

Trousdale Ventures and Scout Ventures have co-led a $11 million investment round in HavocAI, a developer of low-cost, collaborative, autonomous surface vessels. And HavocAI's fleet of uncrewed boats represents a game-changing solution, with capabilities delivered at incredibly low costs in an era where threats to global shipping and security intensify daily.

Baseload Capital: €53 Million (Series B) Closed For Advancing Geothermal Energy Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

Baseload Capital, a Swedish company scaling up geothermal energy worldwide, announced the closing of its €53 million Series B round of funding.

DELLI: Food And Drink Platform Company Secures $6 Million (Seed Extension)

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

DELLI, an online platform for independent food and drink, announced a $6 million seed extension to capitalize on recent momentum. Launched by Depop alumni Marie Petrovicka and Simon Beckerman, DELLI has seen 16 times growth in sales since last year. Offering thousands of new products and hundreds of thousands of items sold, customers doubled their basket size on the platform and returned twice as often.

Jus Mundi: $22 Million (Series B) Raised And Jus AI Launched

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

Global legal AI company Jus Mund announced the launch of Jus AI, its research and productivity assistant for global legal professionals. The company has also secured €20 million (US $22 million) in Series B funding, one of the largest rounds of funding for a European legal tech company.

University Of California Advances Life Science Research Procurement With Labviva Partnership

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

The University of California (UC) has recently picked Labviva, a leading AI procurement platform for life sciences, to enhance procurement efficiency and research-related purchasing across all UC campuses. And the initial Labviva deployment occurred at UC San Diego in 2022, with UC Merced going live in September 2024.

DefectDojo: $7 Million Raised For Scaling AppSec Innovation

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

DefectDojo, a pioneer in scalable application security, announced a $7 million funding round to respond to demand and accelerate its mission of connecting security strategy with execution for smarter risk management. This latest funding round, led by Iolar Ventures and Aspenwood Ventures, will drive innovation, product development, and market expansion.

Smartsheet To Be Acquired By Blackstone And Vista Equity For $8.4 Billion

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

Smartsheet - an enterprise platform for modern work management - announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by funds managed by Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners in an all-cash transaction valued at about $8.4 billion.

Level AI: Interview With Founder & CEO Ashish Nagar About The Innovative Customer Service Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

Level AI is a state-of-the-art AI-native solutions company that was designed to drive efficiency, productivity, scale, and excellence in sales and customer service. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Level AI founder and CEO Ashish Nagar to learn more about the company.

Datricks: AI-Based Compliance Platform Company Raises $15 Million (Series A)

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

Datricks, a pioneering financial integrity platform, announced $15 million in Series A funding led by Team8’s venture capital arm. And SAP, the global leader in enterprise resource planning (ERP) software, made a strategic investment in the round, along with participation from existing investor Jerusalem Venture Partners. This funding round follows Datricks' recent expansion of its commercial partnership with SAP, which included the launch of Datricks for Risk Mining as an SAP Endorsed App.

Morpheus Space: Interview With CEO Daniel Bock About The New Space Breakout Pioneering In-Space Mobility

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

Morpheus Space is a company that is spearheading innovation in satellite control systems with both their Journey simulation software as well as their GO-2 propellantless thruster system. And Morpheus aims to help as many companies in the commercial space sector get their missions into orbit. The company’s innovations enable satellites to move easily in orbit as well as re-enter orbit at the conclusion of their missions. With the new space race in full swing, Morpheus has big visions for the future of satellite missions. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Morpheus Space CEO Daniel Bock to learn more about the company.

Visual Lease: The Story Behind This Rapidly Growing Lease Optimization Provider

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

Visual Lease is the leading lease optimization solution provider empowering organizations across the globe to leverage their lease portfolios for strategic financial and operational outcomes. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Visual Lease CEO Robert Michlewicz to learn more about the company.

RoundShield: Fund V Closed At Over $1 Billion

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

RoundShield, a private investment firm focused on European asset-backed private credit opportunities and capital solutions, has successfully closed RS Fund V with over $1 billion in investor commitments. This is the largest fund in RoundShield’s 11-year history and is nearly $150 million above its fundraising target.

Sequent: Interview With Co-Founder & CEO Shai Bargil About The Cryptographically-Secure Online Voting Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 23, 2024

Sequent is a company that is pioneering the world's first open-source and cryptographically-secure online voting platform for private and public sector elections. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Sequent co-founder and president Shai Bargil to learn more about the company.

GetSetUp: Interview With Co-Founder Lawrence Kosick About This Senior-Focused Learning Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 23, 2024

GetSetUp is a mission-driven technology company dedicated to empowering older adults through learning and services. Pulse 2.0 interviewed GetSetUp co-founder Lawrence Kosick to learn more about the company.

Koltin: Mexican Senior Healthcare And Insurance Company Secures $7.3 Million (Series A)

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 23, 2024

Koltin, which is the first company in Mexico to offer private health insurance coverage to seniors, announced the closing of a $7.3 million Series A funding round led by Left Lane Capital. This funding round, which includes participation from previous investors, will fuel Koltin's mission to improve the health and financial resilience of aging Mexicans and their families.

Twelve: Carbon Transformation Company Raises $645 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 23, 2024

Twelve, a carbon transformation company that converts captured carbon dioxide into valuable chemicals, fuels, and other essential products typically made from fossil fuels, announced $645 million in funding. This funding is based on a strategic mix of capital which includes $400 million in project equity led by TPG Rise Climate, $200 million in Series C funding, and an additional $45 million in credit facilities from leading funders in the renewable energy sector marking this as one of the largest financing rounds to date in the e-fuels space.

Canopie: Prevention-Focused Maternal Health Company Raises $3.7 Million (Seed)

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 23, 2024

Canopie—a prevention-focused maternal health company—announced it has raised a $3.7 million seed funding round, co-led by Beta Boom and Aeroflow Health. Additional investors include the Sorenson Institute, Luminary Impact Fund, Symphonic Capital, Techstars, and a family office. These funds will be used to expand personalized, virtual mental health care covered by insurance and address social drivers of health (SDoH) for moms across all levels of risk in the US.

Era Ventures: $88 Million Fund Closed To Invest In Positive Change Startups

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 23, 2024

Era Ventures, a VC firm focused on investing in a broad range of business model innovations to catalyze positive change in the built world, announced the launch of its inaugural $88 million fund. And Era Ventures will deploy capital across multiple stages and a full spectrum of sector-focused innovations, from enablement technologies that improve existing processes to truly disruptive platforms that reshape the industry.

Aerospike: Interview With CEO Subbu Iyer About The Real-Time Database Scaling Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 23, 2024

Aerospike is a real-time database built for infinite scale, speed, and savings. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Aerospike CEO Subbu Iyer to learn more about the company.

Marstone: Interview With Founder & CEO Margaret Hartigan About The Wealth Planning Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 23, 2024

Marstone is a leading digital investment and goal-based firm that aims to enhance financial literacy, deepen financial inclusion, and humanize finance for all. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Marstone's Founder and CEO, Margaret Hartigan, to learn more about the company.

CliniComp’s Cutting-Edge Electronic Health Record (EHR) Solution Suite: Interview With VP Of Sales Kem Graham

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 23, 2024

The CliniComp solution suite is an integrated web-based EHR with an architectural framework conquering ever-evolving interoperability, scalability, adaptability, and real-time performance data challenges to provide a longitudinal patient record. Pulse 2.0 interviewed CliniComp VP of Sales Kem Graham to learn more about the company.

arqu: Wholesale Insurance Brokerage Company Raises $10 Million (Series A)

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 23, 2024

arqu, a tech-focused wholesale insurance brokerage transforming how large-scale, complex commercial risks are transacted, announced a $10 million Series A funding round, led by Crosslink Capital with participation from Intact Ventures. arqu also saw continued support from all existing investors, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Foxe Capital and Nationwide Ventures.