Archives

Davis Polk: Tax Partner Brian Grieve Added To New York Tax Practice

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Davis Polk has hired prominent tax lawyer Brian Grieve as a partner in its Tax practice in New York, strengthening a team that advises asset managers and corporations on complex transactional tax issues.

HarbourVest Closes $1.1 Billion Structured Solutions 2025 Vehicle For Private Market Secondaries

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

HarbourVest Partners announced it has closed HarbourVest Partners Structured Solutions 2025, an investment vehicle with the capacity to invest $1.1 billion in diversified private market secondaries spanning private equity and private credit.

Theorem: Interview With Founder & CEO Jay Kulkarni About The Digital Marketing Services Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Theorem is a global digital marketing services firm that provides flexible, full-service creative, media, and technical solutions to help major brands grow and improve marketing performance. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Theorem founder and CEO Jay Kulkarni to gain a deeper understanding of the company.

Noahs: Interview With Co-Founder & CEO Daniel Baven About The Food Tech Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Noahs is a rapidly growing Copenhagen-based food tech startup revolutionizing food inside service stations, supermarkets, and travel hubs. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Noahs co-founder and CEO Daniel Baven to gain a deeper understanding of the company.

StrongSuit: Interview With CEO Justin McCallon About The AI-Based Litigation Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

StrongSuit is an AI-powered litigation platform that helps attorneys with case law research, discovery analysis, and drafting motions/briefs (and related legal workflows), while keeping lawyers in control of the final strategic decisions. Pulse 2.0 interviewed StrongSuit CEO Justin McCallon to gain a deeper understanding of the company.

D-Wave Lands $10 Million Two-Year Quantum Computing Services Deal

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

D-Wave Quantum announced it has signed a $10 million, two-year enterprise Quantum Computing as a Service agreement with a leading Fortune 100 company, positioning the contract as a meaningful commercial validation for its annealing quantum computing offering and its broader push to bring quantum capabilities into day-to-day enterprise workflows.

Nerd Apply: $3.2 Million Seed Funding Closed To Power Outcome-Driven College Counseling

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Nerd Apply, a privacy-first platform focused on outcome-driven college counseling, announced it has raised $3.2 million in seed funding to expand distribution and strengthen its security, compliance, and data governance infrastructure. The round included participation from Riverpark Ventures, Alumni Ventures, 1.61 Ventures, and a group of angel investors that includes Gokul Rajaram and David Krane (CEO and Managing Partner of Google Ventures).

Risotto: $10 Million Seed Funding Raised To Automate The Help Desk

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Risotto, an AI-native autonomous help desk platform, has raised $10 million in seed funding to accelerate its effort to automate internal employee support workflows across large enterprises. The round was led by Bonfire Ventures, with participation from 645 Ventures, Y Combinator, Ritual Capital, Surgepoint Capital, and angels, including former Dropbox and HelloSign executives. Risotto says its platform integrates across a company’s technology, IT, and communications stack to autonomously resolve internal support tickets in seconds, and has already processed hundreds of thousands of tickets for customers, including Gusto and Jobber, helping automate up to 70% of IT requests.

Concourse: $12 Million Series A Raised And AI Agent Platform For Finance Teams Now In General Availability

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Concourse has raised $12 million in Series A funding and is expanding access to its enterprise-grade AI agent platform for finance teams, marking a major shift from a limited rollout to broad availability. The New York-based company said the round was led by Standard Capital, with participation from Andreessen Horowitz, CRV, and Y Combinator, as well as CFO angel investors from companies including Cursor, Vercel, and Carta.

Fulcrum: $25 Million Raised To Bring AI Agents Into Insurance Brokerage Workflows

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Fulcrum, an AI platform designed for insurance brokerages, has raised $25 million in combined Seed and Series A funding as it targets one of the industry’s most persistent bottlenecks: slow, manual back-office work tied to legacy systems, email-driven document flows, and outsourced servicing models.

Upexi: Interview With Chief Strategy Officer Brian Rudick About The Solana Treasury Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Upexi is a consumer-products brand owner that develops, manufactures, and distributes products, while also pursuing a Solana-focused digital-asset treasury strategy through its cryptocurrency portfolio. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Upexi Chief Strategy Officer Brian Rudick to gain a deeper understanding of the company.

Elbit Wins $228 Million Follow-On Contract To Supply Iron Fist Active Protection Systems For U.S. Army Bradley Upgrades

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Elbit Systems said it has been awarded a $228 million contract from General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems to supply its Iron Fist Active Protection System for U.S. Army Bradley Fighting Vehicle upgrade programs. The company said the award follows a U.S. government publication dated September 29, 2025, referencing an order to GD OTS for the Bradley vehicle active protection system effort, and that Elbit’s portion will be carried out over three years.

Google.org Names 12 Awardees For $20 Million AI For Science Fund

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Google.org has announced 12 recipients of its $20 million AI for Science fund, backing academic, nonprofit, and startup teams that are applying AI to accelerate discovery across health, agriculture, and biodiversity. The initiative is framed as a response to a widening gap between the growing complexity of global challenges and the slowing pace of scientific progress, with Google.org positioning AI as a way to help researchers achieve in years what previously took decades.

Shift5 Names Toby Magsig President And Interim CEO As Co-Founder Josh Lospinoso Shifts To Board

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Shift5, an operational intelligence platform serving U.S. defense and transportation systems, has appointed L3Harris executive Toby Magsig as president and interim CEO, placing him in charge of company strategy, operations, and execution. The leadership change moves Shift5’s co-founder Josh Lospinoso out of day-to-day operational leadership while keeping him involved as founder and board member, with a focus on long-term vision, major product initiatives, and key strategic engagements.

Micron’s Planned $24 Billion Singapore Wafer Fab Breaks Ground As AI-Driven NAND Demand Rises

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Micron Technology has broken ground on a new advanced wafer fabrication facility in Singapore, marking a planned investment of about US$24 billion (SG$31 billion) over the next decade as the company scales manufacturing to meet long-term demand for NAND technology tied to AI growth and data-centric computing.

ANTA To Buy 29.06% Of PUMA for €1.5 Billion

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

ANTA Sports Products Limited announced it has signed a share purchase agreement with Groupe Artémis, the Pinault family’s investment company, to acquire a 29.06% stake in PUMA SE for €1.5 billion in cash, a move the Hong Kong-listed sportswear group framed as a major step in its multi-brand globalization strategy.

Haus Of Brilliance: Interview With Founder Monil Kothari About The Jewelry Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

JonesTrading Enhances Private Markets Platform And Names Jon Jefferies Managing Director

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

JonesTrading Institutional Services announced it has launched an enhanced Private Markets platform designed to bring the firm’s agency trading approach into private market transactions, as competition to provide liquidity intensifies across a fragmented private markets landscape.

Versapay Names Emily Roccheggiani As Chief Sales Officer

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Versapay, an accounts receivable (AR) platform focused on simplifying B2B payments collection and reconciliation, has named payments industry veteran Emily Roccheggiani as its Chief Sales Officer. In the role, Roccheggiani will lead the company’s sales organization and commercial growth strategy as Versapay looks to expand within core verticals, deepen strategic partnerships, and scale its go-to-market engine for modern B2B commerce.

Compa: $35 Million Series B Raised To Scale Agentic AI For Enterprise Compensation

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Compa, an AI-driven compensation intelligence provider, announced it has raised $35 million in Series B funding to accelerate product development and growth as large companies modernize how they set pay. The round was led by Jump Capital, with participation from Crosslink Capital, Storm Ventures, Permanent Capital, HR Tech Investments LLC (an affiliate of Indeed, Inc.), and PagsGroup.

Pathlock Names Key Executive Leaders To Drive Next Level Of Growth

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Pathlock, an identity and access governance (IGA) solutions provider, has added two senior executives as it pushes deeper into enterprise identity security and partner-led growth. The company named James Davison as Chief Strategy Officer and appointed Scott Pruitt as Vice President of Global GSI Alliances, positioning both hires as central to its next phase of go-to-market execution and ecosystem expansion.

BabyBuddha: Interview With Co-Founder & Chief Growth Officer Matt Masiello About The Lactation Products Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

BabyBuddha makes portable, hands-free breast pumps and related accessories designed to help breastfeeding moms pump comfortably and efficiently at home or on the go. Pulse 2.0 interviewed BabyBuddha co-founder and Chief Growth Officer Matt Masiello to gain a deeper understanding of the company.

Midship: $4.15 Million Seed Funding Raised To Automate SOX Testing With Agentic AI

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Midship, an AI-native platform focused on automating Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) testing and internal audit workflows, has raised $4.15 million in seed funding as it looks to modernize one of the most time-intensive parts of public-company compliance. The round was led by Costanoa Ventures, with participation from Seguin Ventures and additional angel investors.

Alamo Group Completes Petersen Industries Acquisition, Expanding Grapple Loader Portfolio

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Alamo Group announced it has completed its acquisition of Petersen Industries, finalizing a deal the company previously announced when it signed a purchase agreement on December 10, 2025. Alamo Group is a global manufacturer of industrial and vegetation management equipment, and Petersen Industries produces specialized truck-mounted grapple loader equipment used by municipal and industrial customers.

Zinzino Merges It Works! Into Group In $30 Million All-Share Deal And Targets $60+ Million Added 2026 Revenue

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Zinzino announced it has entered into an agreement and simultaneously closed a merger to combine with U.S.-based direct sales company It Works! in an all-share transaction, expanding Zinzino’s distribution footprint across North America and Europe. As part of the deal, Zinzino acquired the operational assets of It Works!’ U.S. business, including inventory, distributor agreements, customer agreements, and intellectual property rights.

Franco-Nevada Agrees To $100 Million Gold Stream To Back Orezone’s Planned Purchase Of Hecla’s Casa Berardi Mine

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Franco-Nevada announced it has entered into a $100 million gold stream financing transaction with Orezone Gold Corporation to support Orezone’s planned acquisition of Hecla Mining Company’s producing Casa Berardi Gold Mine and Hecla’s other Quebec assets, including the Heva-Hosco Gold Project. The companies said the stream is expected to add immediate gold revenue exposure tied to an established Canadian operation, while giving Orezone additional capital to pursue a “transformational” expansion and exploration program around Casa Berardi and the broader land package.

Net At Work Acquires BHE Consulting To Expand Sage And Acumatica ERP Capabilities

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Net at Work, a North American technology advisory and services provider focused on small and mid-sized businesses, has acquired BHE Consulting, a Boston-based ERP solutions firm with a 28-year operating history. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Core & Main Closes Acquisition Of Pioneer Supply

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

Core & Main announced it has closed its previously announced acquisition of Pioneer Supply, adding a distributor focused on water, wastewater, and storm drainage products with operations in Moore, Oklahoma, and Weatherford, Texas. The closing moves the transaction from announcement to integration and positions Core & Main to deepen its reach in two infrastructure-heavy states where municipal replacement cycles, population growth, and new development can create steady demand for essential water and drainage materials.

JLL Partners Acquires PowerParts Group To Build Power Turbine Aftermarket Components Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

JLL Partners has acquired PowerParts Group, a provider of mission-critical replacement parts and field services for gas- and steam-turbine power plants. Terms were not disclosed.

KPS To Acquire Majority Stake In Novacel From Compagnie Chargeurs

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jan 27, 2026

KPS Capital Partners announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire a majority stake in Chargeurs Films de Protection SAS, which operates under the Novacel name, in a transaction that will position Novacel as an independent surface-protection solutions manufacturer. Compagnie Chargeurs Invest SA, the selling shareholder, will reinvest alongside KPS and keep a 25% ownership interest in the business. Financial terms were not disclosed.