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PortX: Open Banking Company Secures $16.5 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 9, 2023

PortX - a transformative leader in open banking and seamless core integration for community financial institutions - recently announced the successful closing of a $16.5 million Series B funding round. The funding round was co-led by FUSE, a Pacific Northwest-based venture capital firm and Curql, a collective of forward-thinking credit unions. They were joined by BankTech Ventures, EJF Capital, and the Btech Consortium – all financial services-focused investment firms representing nearly 200 community financial institutions. This announcement comes one year after the company secured $10 million to close its Series A funding.

UnitX: $5 Million Raised To Advance Robotics At The Forefront Of Manufacturing Yield Management

By Dan Anderson ● Oct 9, 2023

UnitX - a robotics company building next-generation AI vision systems at the forefront of quality and yield management in manufacturing - recently announced a $5 million investment from SE Ventures, a venture fund backed by energy and automation giant Schneider Electric.

Yaysay: Gamified Shopping App Closes $10.3 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 9, 2023

Yaysay is a company that recently launched in Beta mode. It is a first-of-its-kind shopping app that combines AI-driven personalization with gamification to transform the off-price shopping experience. Launched by retail industry pioneers, including two of the co-founders of Casper and executives from Gilt Groupe and Stitch Fix, Yaysay aims to make off-price shopping an exciting 5-minute daily habit while also providing a sustainable solution for excess inventory in the retail industry. The company also announced it secured a $10.3 million seed round of funding.

Machine Discovery: $6 Million Closed To Accelerate Compute-Intensive Optimization Tasks

By Annie Baker ● Oct 9, 2023

Machine Discovery - a software company that uses machine learning technology to accelerate compute-intensive optimization and simulation tasks - announced it has secured $6 million of funding. The funding round was led by BGF (one of the UK's largest investors) and East Innovate along with Foresight WAE Technology Funds, UK Innovation and Science Seed Fund (UKI2S), independently managed by Future Planet Capital (Ventures) Ltd and Oxford Technology.

Lumu: Continuous Compromise Assessment Cybersecurity Company Raises $30 Million

By Noah Long ● Oct 9, 2023

Lumu - the creators of the Continuous Compromise Assessment cybersecurity model that enables organizations to operate cybersecurity proficiently - recently announced it has closed a $30 million Series B round led by Forgepoint Capital, with participation from existing investors BIP Ventures, Exceptional Capital, and SIMMA Capital. Forgepoint Capital Managing Director Leo Casusol will join the Board of Directors. The new funding round brings the total funding raised to $38 million.

Gem Security: Cloud Detection and Response Closes $23 Million In Funding

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 9, 2023

Gem Security - a Cloud Detection and Response (CDR) company - recently announced $23 million in Series A funding led by GGV Capital and joined by IBM Ventures, Silicon Valley CISO Investments (SVCI), an array of notable angel investors, and existing investor Team8. This oversubscribed Series A funding round - which is hot on the heels of Gem's Seed funding round, reflects investor trust based on solid market validation. This funding round follows the seed round led by Team8 and brought Gem's total funding to $34 million.

Prompt AI: $5 Million Raised To Democratize Access To Computer Vision Technology

By Noah Long ● Oct 9, 2023

Prompt AI - a startup utilizing the power of large language models to democratize access to computer vision - recently announced that it has raised $5 million in seed funding led by prominent investors AIX Ventures and Abstract Ventures.

Stijn Hendrikse: A Discussion About T2D3

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 6, 2023

Stijn Hendrikse is a serial entrepreneur and marketing leader who has contributed to the success of Microsoft Office 365 as part of the launch team and numerous startups, including CRO of Acumatica and CEO of MightyCall, and Co-Founder of Kalungi. T2D3 is the product of Hendrikse’s decades of marketing experience and passion for B2B software start-ups. Hendrikse recently wrote a book called “T2D3: How some software startups scale, where many fail.” Pulse 2.0 interviewed Hendrikse to learn more.

Accredible: Digital Credentialing Platform Secures Series B Funding Round

By Noah Long ● Oct 5, 2023

Accredible - a leading digital credentialing platform - recently announced the closing of its Series B financing led by Frontier Growth with participation by new and existing investors, including The Stephens Group, PivotNorth, and Uncork Capital.

Evozyne: Novel Protein Systems Company Closes $81 Million In Series B Funding

By Noah Long ● Oct 5, 2023

Evozyne recently announced the closing of an $81 million Series B investment round that will fund the biotech’s generative AI-powered drug discovery platform and product development. Fidelity Management & Research Company and OrbiMed led the funding round with participation from NVentures (NVIDIA’s venture capital arm).

Cyara Reveals Expansion In Leadership Team

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Cyara - a leading AI-led Customer Experience (CX) Transformation Platform provider - recently announced the appointment of Jeff Romano as Chief Customer Officer (CCO) and the promotion of Cyara’s Executive Vice President of Product, Max Lipovetsky, to Chief Product Officer.

Why Capstreet Is Buying PlanetBids

By Annie Baker ● Oct 5, 2023

Capstreet - a Houston-based lower middle market private equity firm - recently announced that it has acquired PlanetBids, a provider of eProcurement software as a service (SaaS) solutions.

Geneos Therapeutics: Clinical-Stage Biotherapeutics Company Secures $5 Million

By Annie Baker ● Oct 5, 2023

Geneos Therapeutics - a clinical-stage biotherapeutics company focused on developing personalized therapeutic cancer vaccines (PTCV) - recently announced that it has completed its Series A3 financing round with an additional investment of $5 million, totaling $10 million.

Industry Ventures: Over $1.7 Billion Closed, Bringing Total Committed Capital To $7+ Billion

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Industry Ventures - a leading investment firm focused on private technology investments - recently announced the final closing of Industry Ventures Secondary X with over $1.45 billion of new commitments. The firm also closed Industry Ventures Tech Buyout II with over $260 million of new capital commitments across the Fund and affiliated entities.

TPG Completes Deal To Buy Forcepoint Government Cybersecurity Business From Francisco Partners

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Global security company Forcepoint announced the completed acquisition of the company’s Global Governments and Critical Infrastructure (G2CI) cybersecurity business by asset management firm TPG.

CellFE: $22 Million Raised To Advance Microfluidics-Based Cellular Engineering Platform

By Noah Long ● Oct 5, 2023

CellFE - a life sciences tools company developing a microfluidics-based cell engineering platform dedicated to transforming the development and manufacturing of advanced cell therapies - recently announced the completion of a $22 million Series A financing led by M Ventures.

Breezit: Event Planning Digital Marketplace Company Raises $2 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Breezit - a professional event planning digital marketplace - recently announced that it has now raised $2 million in funding. Practica Capital led the pre-seed round.

Axial Shift: Restaurant Operations Software Provider Company Raises $4 Million

By Noah Long ● Oct 5, 2023

Axial Shift - a restaurant operations software provider that is transforming the restaurant industry by providing all-staff level data access and team member competitions and rewards, recently announced a new partnership and $4 million in seed funding from Silverton Partners.

Avalyn: Targeted Inhalation Therapy Company Raises $175 Million

By Noah Long ● Oct 5, 2023

Avalyn Pharma - a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing targeted inhalation therapies for life-threatening pulmonary diseases - announced the closing of an oversubscribed $175 million Series C financing. Avalyn plans to use the funding to continue the development of its portfolio of inhalation therapies for interstitial lung disease that improve upon currently approved medications and advance lead clinical assets AP01 (inhaled pirfenidone) and AP02 (inhaled nintedanib) into mid-stage clinical trials.

Doceree: Physician-Only Platform For Programmatic Messaging Secures $35 Million

By Annie Baker ● Oct 5, 2023

Doceree - a leading global network of physician-only platforms for programmatic messaging - recently announced a $35 million Series B round led by Creaegis, the leading digital and technology investment firm. Existing investors Eight Roads Ventures and F-Prime Capital also joined the round.

Passage: Event Ticketing Company Hits 8 Million Tickets Told

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Passage - a cutting-edge event ticketing company launched in Detroit in 2014 - recently announced it has sold 8 million tickets, with customers in all 50 US states and as far afield as Australia and Canada. Last year, the company powered over $40 million in ticket sales across 3,327 events and generated $2.8 million in revenue.

Boisson: Non-Alcoholic Beverage Retailer Reveals New Funding Round And CEO

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Boisson - the largest non-alcoholic beverage retailer - recently announced the appointment of Sheetal Aiyer as CEO. In a parallel path, the brand has revealed that it has received funding in a $5 million bridge round from Convivialité Ventures, the VC arm of Pernod Ricard, and Connect Ventures, the investment partnership between entertainment and sports agency Creative Artists Agency (CAA) and global venture capital firm New Enterprise Associates (NEA).

Nord Security: Valuation Doubles With $100 Million Funding Round

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Nord Security - a global leader in internet privacy and security solutions - recently announced a $100 million funding round from Warburg Pincus, a leading international growth investor. The existing investors participating in the round include Novator Ventures and Burda Principal Investments.

Canvs AI: $15 Million Raised To Advance Consumer And Employee Feedback Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Canvs AI - a leading insights platform built to unlock consumer and employee feedback - recently announced that it has successfully raised $15 million in funding led by Fulcrum Equity Partners. Strategic investor Engage (an innovative corporate venture initiative from category-leading corporations like Coca-Cola, Delta Air Lines, Cox Enterprises, Inspire Brands, and The Home Depot) also participated in the round.

Gritstone bio Receives BARDA Contract Valued At Up To $433 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Gritstone bio - a clinical-stage biotechnology company working to develop the world’s most potent vaccines - recently announced that it was awarded a contract by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) to conduct a Phase 2b comparative study evaluating Gritstone’s self-amplifying mRNA (samRNA) vaccine candidate containing Spike plus other viral targets to protect against COVID-19.

How Fairmarkit Is Utilizing Generative AI For Simplifying Strategic Sourcing

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Fairmarkit - an autonomous sourcing solution transforming the procurement of goods and services for enterprises - recently announced the launch of a new generative AI-powered tool that automates the process from intake to sourcing, thus saving an immense amount of time for enterprise procurement teams and unlocking a seamless end-user experience for buyers, suppliers, and business requesters.

Aug X Labs: $3.1 Million Raised To Democratize Commercial Video Production for Businesses And Consumers

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Aug X Labs - a company dedicated to democratizing video creation through AI technologies - recently announced it has secured an over-subscribed seed funding round of $3.1 million. The funding round will be used to hire and retain staff, continue core technology development, and expand customer acquisition efforts for the flagship Augie product as it exits beta later this year.

Scentian Bio: Biosensor Platform Company Secures $2.1 Million In Seed Funding Round

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Scentian Bio - a biosensor platform innovator unlocking the power of insect-level smell and taste sensitivity - recently announced the closing of its $2.1 million seed round led by Finistere Ventures and Toyota Ventures, with participation from Icehouse Ventures and Our Crowd, etc.

Pexapark: Renewable Energy Intelligence Company Raises $21 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Pexapark - a specialist provider of Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) price reference, risk and portfolio management software, and advisory services for renewable energy - recently announced that it has secured $21 million in Series C funding to underpin its rapid growth in the global renewable energy markets.

Aampe: AI-Native User Engagement Platform Raises $7.5 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 5, 2023

Aampe - an AI-native user engagement platform - announced today that it raised a $7.5 million Pre-Series A funding round led by Matrix Partners India and Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia Capital India & SEA).