Archives

Mission Bancorp Surpasses $2 Billion In Assets As Second-Quarter Earnings Rise 162%

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Mission Bancorp reported second-quarter 2026 net income available to common shareholders of $8.2 million, or $2.73 per diluted share. This compared with $3.1 million, or $1.05 per diluted share, during the same quarter last year and $7.7 million, or $2.58 per diluted share, in the first quarter of 2026.

Hilo Launches Blood Pressure Monitoring System In The U.S. Following $19 Million Funding Extension

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Hilo, a health technology brand developed by Aktiia, has launched Hilo Core in the United States. The system is designed to provide long-term blood pressure trends rather than relying exclusively on occasional cuff-based measurements.

Cascade Raises $3.5 Million To Help Construction Firms Predict And Win Projects

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Cascade has raised $3.5 million to expand its artificial intelligence platform for architecture, engineering and construction firms. The financing included Andreessen Horowitz Speedrun, Ada Ventures, Blitzscaling Ventures, Indico Capital, shuckerVC, G2C Ventures and Snowball VC.

Humanoid Raises $152 Million Series A At $1.35 Billion Valuation To Scale Industrial Robots

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Humanoid has raised $152 million in Series A funding at a $1.35 billion post-money valuation to accelerate the development and commercial deployment of its industrial humanoid robots. The financing brings the UK-based company’s total funding to $270 million.

Alocity Raises Series A To Expand AI Operating System For Physical Security

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Alocity has completed a Series A financing round to expand its artificial intelligence platform for managing physical spaces. The round was led by a private investor group alongside founder and CEO Marco Quintero.

Augustus Raises $180 Million Series B At $1 Billion Valuation To Expand Global Dollar Banking Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Augustus has raised $180 million in a Series B financing round at a $1 billion valuation to expand its banking infrastructure for international financial institutions. The round was led by Tiger Global and brought the company’s total funding to $210 million.

Google Launches Gemini 3.6 Flash And 3.5 Flash-Lite For Scalable AI Agents

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Google has introduced Gemini 3.6 Flash and Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite, two models designed to improve the speed, cost and reliability of production AI agents. The company also unveiled Gemini 3.5 Flash Cyber, a specialized cybersecurity model that will operate through Google’s CodeMender security agent.

Capitol Meridian Partners Raises $1.9 Billion For Second Fund At Hard Cap

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Capitol Meridian Partners has closed its second private equity fund with $1.9 billion in commitments, exceeding its original fundraising target by 50% and reaching the vehicle’s hard cap. The fund is focused on investments spanning national security, defense, government technology and commercial aviation.

Ponda Awarded £2.4 Million Project To Produce Biomaterials Through Wetland Farming

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Ponda has been awarded a £2.4 million project to demonstrate how restored wetlands can produce commercially valuable biomaterials while reducing emissions and generating new income opportunities for farmers. The project is supported by a £1.9 million grant through the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and Innovate UK Farming Innovation Programme.

Circular Materials Raises €11.8 Million To Recover Critical Metals From Industrial Wastewater

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Circular Materials has secured €11.8 million in financing to expand its technology for recovering critical and strategic raw materials from industrial wastewater. The round included CDP Venture Capital, the European Innovation Council Fund, EIT RawMaterials, 360 Capital, Corbites and Lumar.

SROA Capital Targets $750 Million For Fund X To Acquire Self-Storage Properties

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

SROA Capital has launched SROA Capital Fund X with a target of $750 million in capital commitments. The value-add real estate fund will acquire and improve self-storage properties and portfolios across the United States.

Ohio University Faculty Explain AI Slop And The Importance Of Responsible GenAI Use

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Ohio University faculty members are examining the rise of “AI slop,” a term commonly used to describe low-quality, low-effort digital content produced at high volume with generative artificial intelligence. Examples can include misleading images, disposable videos, poorly written books, fake news and other material created primarily to attract attention rather than provide meaningful information.

FamilyWell: Interview With Founder & CEO Dr. Jessica Gaulton About The Virtual Mental Health Services Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

FamilyWell is a company that embeds comprehensive, insurance-covered virtual mental health services—including coaching, therapy, and psychiatric support—directly into OB-GYN clinics to support women throughout their reproductive journey, from fertility through menopause. Pulse 2.0 interviewed FamilyWell founder and CEO Jessica Gaulton to learn more.

AeroVironment Awarded $117.3 Million U.S. Army Contract For 82 P550 Drone Systems

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

AeroVironment has received a $117.3 million production contract from the U.S. Army for its P550 electric vertical takeoff and landing unmanned aircraft system. The order supports the Army’s Long Range Reconnaissance and Battalion Reconnaissance programs.

Air Canada And Airbus Plan C$13.7 Million Platform To Support Canadian Sustainable Aviation Fuel

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Air Canada and Airbus intend to establish a jointly funded Sustainability Co-Investment Platform to support the development of commercial-scale sustainable aviation fuel production in Canada. The companies share an objective of investing up to approximately C$13.7 million, equivalent to about US$10 million, through the platform.

Aptyx Appoints David Price As CEO To Lead Next Phase Of Medical Device Manufacturing Growth

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Aptyx has appointed David Price as Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. Price previously served as the medical device contract development and manufacturing organization’s Chief Financial Officer.

Stellantis Appoints Matt VanDyke To Lead Ram And Branden Coté To Lead Jeep

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Stellantis has appointed Matt VanDyke as CEO of the Ram brand and Branden Coté as CEO of the Jeep brand. The appointments are part of CEO Antonio Filosa’s strategy to strengthen the automaker’s leadership team and accelerate growth across its North American brands. VanDyke’s appointment became effective July 20. Coté will begin leading Jeep on August 3.

Littlejohn Promotes Brian Michaud To Managing Partner As Michael Klein Becomes Chairman

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Littlejohn has promoted Brian Michaud to Managing Partner as part of a planned transition in the private investment firm’s senior leadership. Michaud will oversee the firm alongside Managing Partners Antonio Miranda and Steven Raich and Chief Operating Officer Shant Mardirossian.

Knox Lane Completes Acquisition Of Cross Country Healthcare And Appoints Joel Tremblay CEO

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Knox Lane has completed its acquisition of Cross Country Healthcare, transitioning the healthcare workforce solutions company into private ownership. Financial terms of the completed transaction were not disclosed.

CapVest Completes Acquisition Of Majority Stake In TSG Solutions

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

CapVest Partners has completed its acquisition of a majority stake in TSG Solutions following the receipt of all required approvals. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Starco Brands Acquires Custom Bakehouse, Adding Approximately $20 Million In Annual Revenue

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Starco Brands has completed its acquisition of Custom Bakehouse, expanding its manufacturing capabilities and consumer product portfolio. The transaction closed on July 15, 2026, and is expected to add approximately $20 million in annual revenue.

Venerable And Guardian Agree To Transition $4.5 Billion In Assets To Venerable Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Venerable Holdings has reached an agreement with The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America to transition approximately $4.5 billion in separate account assets to Venerable’s investment advisory platform. The assets are currently held in Guardian’s variable products trust. Under the proposed transaction, the affected funds will be reorganized through a series of mergers into a variable insurance mutual fund trust managed by SunAmerica Asset Management, a Venerable subsidiary.

Altana Acquires Cervo AI To Create End-To-End Customs Brokerage Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Altana has acquired Cervo AI to expand its agentic artificial intelligence platform for customs brokerage. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Cary Street Partners Acquires Seneca House Advisors, Expanding To 22 Offices And More Than $13 Billion In Client Assets

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Cary Street Partners has acquired Seneca House Advisors, expanding its wealth management presence in Richmond, Virginia. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

AI Digital Acquires Barcelona Creative Agency To Expand AI Creative Studio

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

AI Digital has acquired a Barcelona-based creative agency to expand the design and art direction capabilities of its AI Creative Studio. The name of the acquired agency and financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Bendon Acquires School Zone Publishing To Expand Into K-6 Educational Products

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Bendon has acquired School Zone Publishing Company, adding a teacher-developed educational brand to its portfolio of children’s coloring, activity and learning products. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Riverview Landscapes Acquires B&B Landscaping In 27th Acquisition

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Riverview Landscapes has acquired B&B Landscaping & Gardening, a commercial and residential landscaping and snow management company based in Cortlandt Manor, New York. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Wildflower Health Acquires Every Mother To Expand Pelvic Floor And Core Care

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Wildflower Health has acquired Every Mother, a digital platform providing pelvic floor and core health programs for women during pregnancy, postpartum recovery and midlife. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Four Corners Property Trust Acquires Novant Health Urgent Care Property For $2.8 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

Four Corners Property Trust has acquired a Novant Health urgent care property for $2.8 million. The transaction expands the real estate investment trust’s portfolio beyond its traditional concentration in restaurant and retail properties.

SmartBear: Interview With CEO Dan Faulkner About Application Integrity And Agentic QA

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 22, 2026

SmartBear provides software development tools spanning API lifecycle management, test automation, test management and quality governance, and production observability. Its portfolio is unified through the SmartBear Application Integrity Core, which connects the API catalog and test repository as a foundation for software quality. Pulse 2.0 interviewed SmartBear CEO Dan Faulkner to learn more.