Innovation

VerbaFlo: $7 Million Seed Funding Raised By Conversational AI Platform For Real Estate Businesses

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

VerbaFlo, a conversational AI platform focused on transforming customer engagement for real estate businesses, has raised $7 million in seed funding. The round was led by Pi Labs, with participation from Haatch, Navigate Ventures, Old College Capital, the University of Edinburgh’s venture investment arm, and a group of global family offices, along with follow-on commitments from existing investors. With this latest round, the company’s total funding to date has reached approximately $9 million.

Icelandirect Acquires SOMA LABS To Expand Pet And Human Supplement Manufacturing Capabilities

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Icelandirect, a U.S.-based contract manufacturer and portfolio company of New Heritage Capital, announced it has acquired SOMA LABS, a New Jersey-based supplement manufacturer specializing in solid dosage form production.

Lauletta Birnbaum Acquires Harty Williams To Expand Litigation Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Lauletta Birnbaum has acquired Philadelphia-based litigation boutique Harty Williams, strengthening its capabilities in complex commercial disputes and expanding its national litigation platform.

RDM Partners: Sale Of LilyAna Naturals To Beauty Platform Skyline Beauty Group

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

RDM Partners announced the completed sale of LilyAna Naturals to Skyline Beauty Group, marking a successful exit for the investment firm and its capital partners.

Crossbow Therapeutics: $77 Million Raised To Advance TCR-Mimetic Antibody Cancer Therapies

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Crossbow Therapeutics announced it has raised $77 million in a Series B financing to advance the development of its TCR-mimetic antibody therapies designed to treat a broad range of cancers. The funding round was co-led by Taiho Ventures and Arkin Bio Capital, with participation from several new and existing investors, including Sixty Degree Capital, Hamilton Square Partners Management LP, LifeLink Ventures, Libbs Ventures, Blood Cancer United’s Therapy Acceleration Program, MPM BioImpact, Pfizer Ventures, BVF Partners, Polaris Partners, Eli Lilly and Company, and Mirae Asset Venture Investment.

Spellman Care: 3D Printed Food Study With University Of Leeds Targets Improved Nutrition For Dysphagia Patients

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Spellman Care has announced its participation in a collaborative study with the University of Leeds and PRINTFOODS UK to explore the use of 3D printed food in care home settings, focusing on improving nutrition and meal experiences for elderly residents on texture-modified diets.

BMW: Electric BMW i3 Debuts As Neue Klasse Sedan With Up To 900 Km Range

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

BMW AG has officially unveiled the new fully electric BMW i3, marking the second model in its next-generation Neue Klasse lineup and signaling a major evolution of its best-selling 3 Series sedan into the electric era.

PhaseWell Research: Acquisition Of Chase Medical Research Expands Clinical Trial Capabilities In Connecticut

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

PhaseWell Research, a multisite clinical research company headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, announced it has acquired Chase Medical Research, a Connecticut-based clinical research site with locations in Waterbury and Hamden.

Ideal Group Of Companies: Multi-Asset Acquisition Of Hospitality Development Group Expands Real Estate, Mining, And Technology Portfolio

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Ideal Group of Companies has announced the acquisition of Hospitality Development Group (HDG) in an all-stock transaction, marking a significant expansion of its diversified asset portfolio across real estate, natural resources, and technology.

Tweet Garot Mechanical: Wisconsin Mechanical Contractor Acquires Prime Specialty Contracting

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Tweet Garot Mechanical, a Wisconsin-based mechanical contractor, has acquired Prime Specialty Contracting, expanding its footprint into Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and strengthening its regional presence across the state.

Kinectify: Interview With Joseph Martin About The Anti-Money Laundering Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Kinectify is an anti-money laundering (AML) risk management technology company that empowers the gaming industry with a modern, AI-powered platform and advisory services to detect suspicious activity and streamline compliance. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Kinectify founder and CEO Joseph Martin to learn more.

Armis: Cyber Exposure Management Company Appoints Simon Mouyal As Chief Marketing Officer

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Armis, a cyber exposure management and security company, announced the appointment of Simon Mouyal as Chief Marketing Officer. In this role, Mouyal will lead the company’s global marketing strategy and execution, with a focus on accelerating category leadership and driving demand for Armis Centrix, the company’s cyber exposure management platform.

Obin AI: $7 Million Seed Funding Raised By Enterprise AI Company Building Agentic Workforce For Financial Institutions

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Obin AI, an enterprise artificial intelligence company focused on financial services, has emerged from stealth with $7 million in seed funding to build what it describes as an agentic workforce for financial institutions. The round was led by Motive Partners, with participation from angel investors and advisors, including Dr. Fei-Fei Li and Lukasz Kaiser.

Duravent Group: Strategic Growth Investment Secured To Expand HVAC And Air Quality Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Duravent Group, a Detroit-based climate technology company specializing in venting and air quality solutions, has secured a strategic growth investment from Bain Capital. The investment, made alongside existing investor Egeria, is aimed at accelerating the company’s expansion through both organic initiatives and strategic acquisitions. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Excalipoint Therapeutics: $68.7 Million Raised For Next-Generation T-Cell Engager Therapies

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Excalipoint Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on next-generation T-cell engager therapies, announced the close of an oversubscribed $68.7 million seed financing round to advance its proprietary platforms and pipeline targeting cancer and autoimmune diseases.

Agency Capital Partners Launches To Acquire Small Digital Marketing Agencies Across The U.S.

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Agency Capital Partners (ACP) has officially launched as a holding company focused on acquiring small digital marketing agencies across the United States, targeting a segment of the market that has historically lacked viable exit opportunities.

Beautiful.ai: $45 Million Raised For AI-Powered Presentation Software Expansion

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Beautiful.ai, an AI-powered presentation software company, announced the launch of a new context-aware AI workflow alongside securing $45 million in funding from General Catalyst to accelerate its global growth and product development.

RAVEN.IO: $20 Million Raised For Runtime Cybersecurity Platform Targeting AI-Driven Attacks

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

RAVEN.IO, a cybersecurity company focused on protecting applications at runtime, announced it has raised $20 million in funding to accelerate product development, expand its U.S. go to market efforts, and grow its engineering and research teams. The round was led by Norwest, with additional investment from Elron Ventures and participation from RedSeed, UpWest, SentinelOne, Jibe Ventures, Dnipro VC, Unusual Ventures, CyberFuture, and Descope CEO Slavik Markovich.

MassRobotics: Physical AI Fellowship Program Announces Second Cohort With AWS And NVIDIA Support

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

MassRobotics has announced the second cohort of its Physical AI Fellowship, a virtual program powered by Amazon Web Services Startups and NVIDIA Inception, designed to help high-potential robotics startups build, refine, and scale physical AI solutions.

Connection Capital Appoints Sam Kemp As CEO To Lead Next Phase Of Growth

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Connection Capital, a London-based private markets investment firm, has appointed Sam Kemp as Chief Executive Officer and Partner, a newly created role designed to support the firm’s continued expansion as demand for private market investments grows.

XBOW: $120 Million Raised To Scale Autonomous Offensive Security Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

XBOW, an autonomous offensive security company, announced it has raised $120 million in Series C financing, valuing the company at over $1 billion. The funding round was led by DFJ Growth and Northzone, with participation from Sofina, Alkeon Capital, Altimeter, NFDG Ventures, and Sequoia Capital.

Owkin: Interview With Co-Founder & CEO Dr. Thomas Clozel About The Patient Data Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Owkin is a TechBio company that uses AI and federated learning to analyze decentralized patient data, aiming to improve drug discovery, clinical trials, and diagnostics. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Owkin co-founder and CEO Dr. Thomas Clozel to learn more.

Miracle Chain: $200 Million Oil-Backed Initiative To Build African Capital Gateway

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Miracle Chain has announced a new blockchain-based initiative aimed at expanding global access to African markets through tokenized assets and integrated payment infrastructure. The project centers on building a scalable financial framework designed to make African economic opportunities more accessible, structured, and investable for international participants.

Linux Foundation: $12.5 Million Raised For Open Source Security Initiative

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

The Linux Foundation announced $12.5 million in grant funding from a coalition of major technology companies to strengthen the security of the open source software ecosystem, as artificial intelligence accelerates both software development and vulnerability discovery.

CometChat: $6.5 Million Raised To Expand AI Agent Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

CometChat announced it has raised $6.5 million in strategic funding from Run Ventures as it accelerates the expansion of its next-generation AI agent platform. The company has now raised a total of $21.1 million to date.

Advanced Inhalation Rituals: Interview With CEO Stuart Brazier About The Global Social Inhalation Leader

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Advanced Inhalation Rituals (AIR) is a leader in social inhalation and the world’s largest flavored hookah producer by volume, owning the iconic Al Fakher brand. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Advanced Inhalation Rituals CEO Stuart Brazier to learn more.

Transform Iran: Interview With Lana Silk About The Faith-Based Outreach

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Transform Iran is a Christian ministry that aims to transform Iranian society by planting underground churches, developing leaders, and spreading the gospel through media outreach and humanitarian aid. The organization focuses on long-term, structural, and spiritual change across Iran. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Transform Iran CEO Lana Silk to learn more.

Beanstack Acquires Comics Plus To Launch Joyful Reading Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Beanstack announced it has acquired Comics Plus, bringing together a reading motivation platform with a digital content library to form a new brand, Joyful Reading Company. The combined entity aims to increase reading engagement by pairing Beanstack’s motivation tools with Comics Plus’s catalog of comics, graphic novels, manga, and picture books.

Podpage Acquires School Of Podcasting To Expand Education With Free Tier And Coaching

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

Podpage announced that it has acquired the School of Podcasting, a long-running podcast education platform founded in 2005 by Dave Jackson, as part of a broader push to expand access to podcasting education and integrate learning more deeply into its ecosystem.

SuperSeed: £50 Million Fund III Launched For Physical AI Startups With British Business Bank Backing

By Amit Chowdhry ● Mar 18, 2026

SuperSeed has launched its third fund, securing a cornerstone commitment of up to £50 million from the British Business Bank to invest in seed-stage companies focused on physical AI. The fund, backed through the Enterprise Capital Funds programme, will target B2B AI and SaaS startups applying artificial intelligence to industries such as manufacturing, energy, construction, and autonomous systems.