Innovation

Odyssey Secures Investment From NVentures And Samsung Next For AI Research Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Odyssey, an artificial intelligence research company focused on frontier world models, has announced a new investment from NVentures, the venture capital arm of NVIDIA, and Samsung Next. The funding will support the company’s push to develop a general-purpose world simulator capable of generating infinitely long, interactive simulations from any starting point.

Fulcrum Acquires Environmental Compliance Software Company Wildnote

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Fulcrum has acquired Wildnote to expand its capabilities in environmental compliance and deepen its vertical expertise across regulated industries.

Render: $100 Million Series C Extension At $1.5 Billion Valuation Raised For Modern Cloud Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Render has raised $100 million in a Series C extension at a $1.5 billion valuation, bringing its total funding to $258 million as it doubles down on building infrastructure for AI-native software companies.

Diverse Logistics And Pulse Final Mile Complete Merger To Scale National Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Diverse Logistics and Pulse Final Mile have completed a merger to create one of the largest independent big and bulky final-mile third-party logistics companies in the United States, significantly expanding their combined national footprint and service capabilities.

Fiduciary Services Group Acquires Vermont-Based TPA Future Planning Associates

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Fiduciary Services Group (FSG), the parent company of DWC and PCS Retirement, announced that it has acquired Future Planning Associates, Inc. (FPA), a Vermont-based third-party administration and recordkeeping firm founded in 1974.

King Risk Partners Expands New York Footprint With Ten Eyck Group Addition

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

King Risk Partners, the 51st largest insurance brokerage in the United States, has expanded its presence in the Northeast through the addition of Ten Eyck Group as an affiliate.

Upside Robotics: $7.5 Million Seed Funding Raised To Advance Sustainable Farm Automation

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Upside Robotics has raised $7.5 million in seed funding to propel its next phase of growth, giving the Velocity-based startup momentum to deepen its partnerships with farmers and agricultural companies across Canada. The funding round was led by Plural, with participation from Garage Capital, Entrepreneurs First and the founders of Clearpath Robotics. The round brings Upside Robotics’ total funding to more than $11 million.

Wave Function Ventures Invests In Aerospace Company Natilus To Advance Sustainable Aviation

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Wave Function Ventures announced a strategic investment in Natilus, a San Diego-based aerospace company developing blended-wing-body aircraft aimed at transforming both cargo and passenger aviation through improved efficiency and reduced emissions.

GenNx360 Capital Partners Invests In TICC Platform NVI

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

GenNx360 Capital Partners, a New York City-based private equity firm focused on middle-market industrial and business services companies, announced an investment in NVI, LLC, a national testing, inspection, certification, and compliance platform, in partnership with the company’s management team.

Paragin Completes Exit To ECI Partners

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Paragin Group, a leading provider of exam and assessment software solutions, has completed a successful exit to ECI Partners, marking a significant milestone in the company’s growth journey.

Morgan Stanley Investment Management Closes $220 Million Consumer Loan-Backed Private Securitization

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Morgan Stanley Investment Management has closed a revolving and rated private securitization backed by consumer personal loans, marking the first asset-based finance securitization from its AIP Alternative Lending Group.

PRIME AE Group Acquires Klavon Design Associates To Expand Landscape Architecture And Federal Expertise

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

PRIME AE Group, a multi-discipline engineering and architecture firm and a Platform Holdings managed company, has acquired Klavon Design Associates, Inc., a Pittsburgh-based landscape architecture and planning firm known for its award-winning work across federal, state, local, and private-sector markets.

Elevate Patient Financial Solutions Acquires Centauri Health Solutions’ Health Systems Services Division

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Elevate Patient Financial Solutions (ElevatePFS), a leading revenue cycle management partner for health systems across the U.S., has completed a carve-out acquisition of the Health Systems Services division of Centauri Health Solutions (Centauri HSS).

Zeeco Acquires Japan-Based Applicot Corporation

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Zeeco has completed the acquisition of Applicot Corporation, strengthening its footprint in Japan and expanding localized support for Engineering, Procurement, and Construction customers across the region.

Cisco Expands AgenticOps Innovations Across Networking, Security, And Observability

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Cisco Systems has unveiled a new wave of AgenticOps innovations designed to reimagine how IT teams automate, scale, and simplify operations in the AI era. Announced at Cisco Live EMEA, the updates extend the company’s agent-first operating model across networking, security, and observability environments.

Gemdale Gold Secures C$2.4 Million Strategic Investment From Gold Producer Eldorado

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Gemdale Gold has closed a C$2.4 million strategic investment from Eldorado Gold Corporation through a non-brokered private placement, bringing a new strategic partner onto its share register as it advances its exploration portfolio in Finland.

Kigo Appoints Evelyne Forester As EVP Of Publisher Growth

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Kigo, a loyalty and rewards platform and subsidiary of Augeo, has appointed Evelyne Forester as Executive Vice President of Publisher Growth.

Bitwise Appoints Sarith Sabarinath As SVP And Global Head Of Marketing

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Bitwise has appointed Sarith Sabarinath as Senior Vice President and Global Head of Marketing, adding strategic marketing leadership to sharpen its go-to-market execution and support global growth.

Workleap Appoints Peter Dougherty As Chief Revenue Officer

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Workleap, a Montreal-based technology company behind the Workleap Platform and ShareGate, has appointed Peter Dougherty as its new chief revenue officer as it prepares for its next phase of global expansion.

The Stonewall Group Acquires Architectural Alliance To Expand Into Delaware

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

The Stonewall Group has acquired Architectural Alliance, Inc., establishing a foothold in Delaware and expanding its presence across the Mid-Atlantic region.

BayCare Health System Names Robert Carvajal As Chief Information Security Officer

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

BayCare Health System has appointed Robert Carvajal as its new chief information security officer, tasking the longtime cybersecurity leader with overseeing the organization’s enterprise-wide information security strategy as it advances digital health and innovation initiatives.

Carbon Appoints Jason Rolland As Chief Technology Officer

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Carbon has announced the promotion of Jason Rolland, Ph.D., to the role of Chief Technology Officer, elevating one of its earliest hires to lead the company’s broader product development and research and development efforts.

Zorro: Interview With Co-Founder & CEO Guy Ezekiel About the Company’s AI-Powered ICHRA Benefits Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Zorro is an AI-powered platform transforming employee health benefits by allowing employers to offer personalized, cost-effective, and flexible coverage through Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements (ICHRA) instead of traditional, one-size-fits-all group plans. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Zorro co-founder and CEO Guy Ezekiel to learn more.

Doctrine Acquires Maite.ai To Expand European Footprint

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Doctrine has acquired Maite.ai, marking its entry into the Spanish market and reinforcing its ambition to build a sovereign European leader in legal artificial intelligence.

Tozaro: £6 Million Secured To Cut Gene Therapy Manufacturing Costs

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Tozaro, a Bedfordshire-based developer of Smart Polymer technology for cell and gene therapy manufacturing, has secured £6 million in new funding to accelerate commercial partnerships and broaden access to gene therapies. The funding round was led by Mercia Ventures through the Midlands Engine Investment Fund II and Mercia’s own funds, with participation from existing investors. The latest investment brings the company’s total funding to £23.7 million since its inception. Mercia first backed the business in 2015 when it operated under its former name, MIP Discovery.

Worldwide Clinical Trials Completes Acquisition Of Oncology Specialist Catalyst Clinical Research

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Worldwide Clinical Trials has completed its acquisition of Catalyst Clinical Research, expanding its oncology capabilities, strengthening its functional service provider model, and broadening its global footprint as it scales its technology-enabled offerings for biopharma clients.

Hyper Appoints Anand Krishna As Vice President Of Product Management

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

U.S.-based digital infrastructure manufacturer Hyper Solutions, Inc has appointed Anand Krishna as Vice President of Product Management, adding more than three decades of product, engineering, and operational leadership experience to its executive team.

Catalyst Solutions Promotes Sas Mukherjee To Chief Executive Officer And President

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Catalyst Solutions has announced the promotion of President Sas Mukherjee to also serve as Chief Executive Officer, marking a leadership transition nearly three decades after the company’s founding.

Saphyre Appoints Damian Handzy As Chief Operating Officer To Scale AI-Powered Trade Infrastructure

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

Saphyre, a pre-trade through post-trade platform focused on accelerating trade-readiness and settlement cycles for major financial institutions, has appointed Damian Handzy as Chief Operating Officer.

inKind Closes $450 Million In Capital To Fund Up To 10,000 U.S. Restaurants In The Next Year

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 17, 2026

inKind has secured $450 million in capital to accelerate its restaurant commerce platform, which currently serves 6,000 restaurants across the U.S. The funding, a combination of equity and debt, is expected to expand the platform to an additional 10,000 U.S. restaurants over the next year.