Archives

Voiijer (pronounced ‘voyager’) is a new social media platform for people to experience, be inspired, and participate in the natural world. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Voiijer chief product officer Michelle Excell to learn more about the company.

Dakota Lithium is a company that creates practical sustainable energy products to help people across the planet with affordable transportation and long-lasting energy storage. And Dakota Lithium batteries use a lithium iron phosphate chemistry which is extremely stable and not prone to thermal runaway. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Dr. Yong Hou, vice president of research and development at Dakota Lithium to learn more about the company. 

As part of a new consortium, the University of Notre Dame researchers will help establish the advanced measurement techniques required to identify the risks associated with current AI systems and to develop new systems that are safer and more trustworthy.

Renesas Electronics (a supplier of advanced semiconductor solutions) and Altium Limited (a global leader in electronics design systems) announced they have entered into a Scheme Implementation Agreement (SIA) for Renesas to acquire Altium by way of a Scheme of Arrangement under Australian law.

H1 is a company focused on creating a healthier future worldwide by unlocking and democratizing global access to critical expertise, HCP information, claims data, research and discoveries, and connected insights for all: pharma and life sciences companies, academic medical centers, insurance companies, researchers, doctors, and patients – bringing everyone closer together to advance medicine and clinical outcomes. Pulse 2.0 interviewed H1 CEO and co-founder Ariel Katz to learn more about the company.

Amazec Photonics - a photonics-based medical technology company - announced it has secured a €1.5 million seed round of funding to develop its pioneering minimally invasive diagnosis devices. The funding round was led by PhotonDelta (a cross-border growth accelerator and ecosystem of photonic chip technology organizations) with a number of private investors also contributing. The funding round will be used to develop devices for clinical trials.

Innsena - a health tech consultancy focused on improving care outcomes for underserved communities - announced a partnership with CancerX, a public-private partnership by The White House as a national accelerator to boost digital innovation in the fight against cancer as part of the reignited Cancer Moonshot. Innsena joins the initiative as its first Impact Supporter.

Medivant Healthcare is a pioneer in the pharmaceutical industry that provides high-quality products reliably, efficiently, affordably, and at scale for hospitals, healthcare providers, and their patients. Launched in 2015 and based in Phoenix, Arizona, Medivant Healthcare operates two fully automated Current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) FDA-registered facilities in Arizona that produce single-dose liquid injectable vials and pre-filled syringes. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Medivant Healthcare CEO Viraj Gandhi to learn more.

Cambridge Mechatronics Limited (CML) – a world leader in the design and control of Shape Memory Alloy (SMA) actuators – announced the closing of a funding round totaling over $40 million to enable rapid expansion of its actuator and controller IC product portfolios. 

ProfoundBio - a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing novel antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) therapeutics for patients with cancer - announced an oversubscribed $112 million Series B financing supported by a syndicate of top healthcare dedicated and mutual fund institutional investors. The funding round was led by Ally Bridge Group, with substantial contributions from new investors including Nextech Invest, funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Janus Henderson Investors, RA Capital Management, OrbiMed, Surveyor Capital (a Citadel company), Medicxi, Logos Capital, Octagon Capital, Piper Heartland Healthcare Capital and LifeSci Venture Partners, as well as continued support from existing investors Lilly Asia Ventures (LAV) and LYFE Capital. 

CDPQ announced an investment of C$125 million to support the acquisition strategy of Levio, which is a leading consulting firm that leverages its expertise to achieve digital transformations, tailoring new technologies to ever-changing business realities.

Camus Energy – a grid orchestration platform for a 100% electrified future - announced it has surpassed $25 million in Series A funding after closing its $10 million extension. These are the details.

Coretrax has marked the latest phase of its ambitious growth strategy by entering an agreement for Expro to acquire the business in a multi-million-dollar deal. This acquisition will accelerate the availability of Coretrax’s innovative, high-value-adding tools by utilizing Expro’s global operating footprint. The total consideration to be paid at closing is approximately $210 million. 

Meter – a company that builds internet infrastructure for businesses - announced $35 million in funding that will be used to propel growth and development across the company. And Sam Altman and Lachy Groom led the new funding round. The existing investors include industry leaders like Sequoia, Meraki co-founders John Bicket and Sanjit Biswas, and VMware founder Diane Greene. 

Eden (a leader in sustainable natural resource recovery) announced that it has been selected to receive $1.4 million in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) for two projects titled “Electric-based Mechanical and Thermal Stimulation to Increase Geologic Hydrogen Reaction Rates in the Samail Ophiolite in Oman” and “Engineered Geologic Hydrogen Battery for Long-Term Energy Storage.” 

Five years after its launch, venture capital firm Wingman Ventures has rebranded as Founderful and is announcing it has quickly raised $85 million for its new fund, aiming to reach a final close at $120 million in the coming months. 

PingSafe is a company that has built a unified platform and has advanced components to safeguard your multi-cloud environment. Earlier this month, SentinelOne completed the acquisition of PingSafe. Pulse 2.0 interviewed PingSafe founder and CEO Anand Prakash to learn more.

PatientFi - a company offering medical practices a comprehensive technology suite of payment and subscription solutions to help patients pay for elective procedures - announced the closing of a significant growth equity financing led by new investor Questa Capital (a venture growth equity firm focused on expansion-stage healthcare companies), with participation from the company’s existing investors.  

Seal Security announced it has emerged from stealth with a $7.4 million seed funding round led by Vertex Ventures Israel, with participation from Crew Capital, PayPal Alumni Fund, and Cyber Club London.

HiBob (the company behind Bob, the modern HR platform for midsized multinationals) announced the acquisition of the cloud-based UK payroll automation platform Pento, subject to closing conditions.

Inyarek Partners announced it has launched with a mission to identify and cultivate compelling asset development opportunities in support of the energy transition. Inyarek will look to capitalize opportunities via both direct investment vehicles and traditional commingled funds. Inyarek completed its first investment in partnership with high-quality institutional investors. 

LPL Financial Holdings announced that the firm has entered into a definitive purchase agreement to acquire Atria Wealth Solutions (a wealth management solutions holding company headquartered in New York). Atria supports about 2,400 advisors and 150 banks and credit unions, managing approximately $100 billion of brokerage and advisory assets. Launched in 2017, Atria operates a network of broker-dealer subsidiaries focused on supporting independent financial advisors and institutions nationwide.  

Rimere (a climate solutions company with proprietary plasma technology) announced the closing of a $10 million strategic investment from Clean Energy Fuels. The funding round will accelerate the development and field testing of Rimere’s two independent devices, the Reformer and the Mitigator, that reduce climate change emissions and enable using natural gas to accelerate the transition to a clean hydrogen future.

Mercer Global Advisors - a national Registered Investment Adviser (RIA) firm - announced the recent hiring of multiple experienced executives to bolster the firm's inorganic growth strategies, including key hires on the firm's M&A teams. 

Global investment firm Carlyle has announced the launch of a new semi-liquid European Private Credit strategy (ETAC) - which offers a single entry point for individuals to access Carlyle’s Global Credit platform.  

Vector search company Marqo announced it had closed a $12.5 million Series A funding round led by Lightspeed with participation from Blackbird VC, January Capital, and Chronosphere founder and CTO Rob Skillington.

Sudo Biosciences - a biopharmaceutical company committed to designing and developing best-in-class precision TYK2 (tyrosine kinase 2) inhibitors - announced that during January 2024, it completed a second close of its Series B financing, raising an additional $30 million from new investors Dementia Discovery Fund (DDF, a SV Health Investors Fund), Leaps by Bayer, and UPMC Enterprises (the innovation, commercialization and venture capital arm of UPMC). This brings the total funding round in this upsized round to $147 million. 

BioAge Labs - a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing novel therapies for obesity and metabolic diseases by harnessing the biology of aging - announced the completion of an oversubscribed Series D financing round of $170 million led by Sofinnova Investments. New investors - including Longitude Capital, RA Capital, Cormorant Asset Management, RTW Investments, SV Health Investors, OrbiMed Advisors, Sands Capital, Pivotal bioVenture Partners, Osage University Partners, Lilly Ventures, and Amgen Ventures - also participated in the round along with existing investors including Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) Bio + Health. 

Anatomy Financial announced the launch of their AI-powered financial automation solutions for medical, dental, digital health, and healthcare billing companies. And Anatomy has raised $7.6 million in funding to build a financial operating system for healthcare from Lightspeed, Meridian Street Capital, Live Oak Ventures, Cambrian Ventures, Peterson Ventures, and angel investors with expertise across healthcare and fintech. 

Bain Capital Real Estate and Cherry Tree Capital Partners announced the formation of BCT Development, a strategic joint venture focused on the ground-up development of premier rental townhome communities throughout Southern California. And the joint venture launches with the objective of deploying several hundred million dollars of gross capital over the next several years.