Startups

Cogent Security Raises $42 Million Series A To Automate Vulnerability Remediation

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 19, 2026

Cogent Security, an AI-driven cybersecurity platform, announced it has raised $42 million in Series A funding to accelerate development of autonomous AI agents designed to help enterprises remediate vulnerabilities at machine speed. The round was led by Bain Capital Ventures, with participation from existing investors Greylock Partners and Definition. Founders and executives from OpenAI, Abnormal Security, and Datadog also invested personally.

Resurrect Bio Raises $8.1 Million Initial Close Of Series A Led By Corteva

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 19, 2026

Resurrect Bio announced the $8.1 million initial close of its Series A funding round, led by Corteva through its Corteva Catalyst platform. Additional participants in the round include Calculus Capital, Pymwymic, UKI2S, SynBioVen, and AgFunder.

Stake: $31 Million Series B Raised For Digital Real Estate Investment Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 19, 2026

Stake, a digital real estate investment platform focused on democratizing cross-border property investing, has raised $31 million in an oversubscribed Series B round, bringing its total funding to date to $58 million. The Series B round was led by Emirates NBD, alongside a mix of regional and international backers. Participating investors include Mubadala Investment Company through its MENA Venture Capital Fund, Middle East Venture Partners, Property Finder, STV NICE, Wa’ed Ventures, GFH Partners, and Ellington Properties.

Kavak Raises $300 Million In Series F To Expand Financing And Trust Across Latin America

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 19, 2026

Mexico City-based Kavak announced it has secured $300 million in Series F funding to accelerate access to car ownership, financing, and marketplace trust across Latin America and other emerging markets. The round was led by Andreessen Horowitz, with $200 million coming from its a16z Growth fund. The investment was co-led by WCM Investment Management and included participation from Lingotto Innovation, Foxhaven, Galdana Ventures, Stelac, and Allen & Company, among others.

Night Media Raises $70 Million To Build Internet-First Media Company

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

Night Media, a talent management company representing some of the internet’s biggest creators, has raised $70 million in new financing from investors including StepStone Group, Founders Fund, House Capital, K5 Global, and PagsGroup as it looks to expand its footprint across media and entertainment.

Braintrust: $80 Million Series B Raised To Power Production AI Infrastructure

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

Braintrust, an AI observability platform focused on production environments, announced it has raised $80 million in Series B funding as it looks to become the infrastructure layer for production AI systems. The round was led by ICONIQ, with participation from returning investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Greylock, Elad Gil, and Basecase Capital, among others.

Databricks Surpasses $5.4 Billion Revenue Run-Rate And Secures Over $7 Billion In Equity And Debt Financing

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

Databricks announced it has surpassed a $5.4 billion revenue run rate, achieving more than 65% year-over-year growth in the fourth quarter. Alongside this milestone, the company is completing investments totaling more than $7 billion, including approximately $5 billion in equity financing at a $134 billion valuation and roughly $2 billion in additional debt capacity.

FancyAI Secures Funding From The Shipyard

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

The Shipyard announced a strategic investment in FancyAI, a Generative Engine Optimization platform designed to help brands improve their visibility and credibility across AI-powered discovery environments.

NuuEnergy Raises €4.3 Million Seed Round To Scale Regional Heat-Pump Installation Model

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

Munich-based EnergyTech startup nuuEnergy has raised €4.3 million in a seed funding round to accelerate the expansion of its regional heat-pump installation businesses and further digitize its operations. The round was led by amberra, the corporate venturing studio of the Cooperative Financial Network Volksbanken Raiffeisenbanken, with participation from EnjoyVenture and existing investors High-Tech Gründerfonds, Vireo Ventures, better ventures, and Bynd Venture Capital.

Lightworks: Up To $12 Million Secured For Advancing Deployment For Highly Regulated Enterprises

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

Canadian enterprise AI consultancy Lightworks has secured up to $12 million in financing to fast-track the large-scale deployment of AI solutions for some of the world’s largest and most highly regulated enterprises. The round was led by Round13 Capital.

Realta Fusion Secures $9.5 Million Growth Capital Facility From Silicon Valley Bank

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

Realta Fusion has secured a $9.5 million growth capital facility from Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First Citizens Bank, to advance its magnetic mirror fusion technology toward commercialization.

NANDO Secures €3.3 Million To Advance AI-Powered Waste Management Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

NANDO has announced the closing of a €3.3 million funding round aimed at accelerating the transformation of waste management through artificial intelligence. The round was led by Maia Ventures through the Maia I fund and CDP Venture Capital SGR via the Acceleratori Fund. Additional participation came from Fondo Piemonte Next and existing investors, including Club degli Investitori, LA4G, and EMBA Capital Partners.

SatVu Raises £30 Million In NATO Innovation Fund-Backed Round To Scale Multi-Satellite Constellation

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

SatVu, a UK-based thermal intelligence company that reveals operational activity and infrastructure performance from space, has closed a £30 million ($40 million) funding round, bringing its total equity funding to £60 million ($80 million). The round includes a strategic investment from the NATO Innovation Fund, alongside the British Business Bank, Space Frontiers Fund II (managed by SPARX Asset Management Co. Ltd.), and Presto Tech Horizons. Existing investors also participated, including Molten Ventures as the lead investor, Adara Ventures, Ridgeline Ventures, NOA, Lockheed Martin, Seraphim Space Fund, and Stellar Ventures. The raise supports the company’s transition from a single-satellite demonstration to the execution of a multi-satellite constellation.

SurrealDB: $23 Million Series A Extension Raised For Advancing Infrastructure Designed For AI-Native Systems

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

SurrealDB has raised an additional $23 million in a Series A extension, bringing its total funding to date to $44 million and expanding its Series A round to $38 million. The new capital brings Chalfen Ventures and Begin Capital into the round, joining existing investors FirstMark and Georgian. As part of the investment, Mike Chalfen, Founder of Chalfen Ventures, has joined SurrealDB’s board.

Circuit: $30 Million Raised For Manufacturing And Service AI Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

Circuit, an Austin-based company building a purpose-built AI platform for manufacturing and service organizations, announced it has raised $30 million from individual investors in one of Texas' largest angel rounds. The funding comes as manufacturers contend with increasing product complexity and a growing skills gap driven by retirements and workforce shortages.

99 Kids Holdings Raises $5 Million Series A To Relaunch THE 99 Superhero Franchise

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

99 Kids Holdings Co., a dual Canada–UAE entertainment company, announced it has closed a $5 million Series A funding round led by Exponential Ventures to reboot THE 99, the comic book and animated franchise that introduced Islam-inspired superheroes based on universal values when it first launched in 2006.

Pharmacelera Raises €6 Million To Expand In U.S. And Advance Quantum-AI Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

Pharmacelera, a deep tech company applying Quantum Mechanics and Artificial Intelligence to drug discovery, announced it has closed a €6 million investment round to accelerate its expansion into the United States and further develop its proprietary platform.

Sitegeist Raises €4 Million Pre-Seed To Automate Concrete Renovation Across Europe

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

Sitegeist, a Munich-based construction robotics startup, has raised €4 million in pre-seed funding to deploy automated, AI-enabled modular robots on construction sites and address Europe’s mounting infrastructure repair backlog. The round was co-led by b2venture and OpenOcean, with participation from UnternehmerTUM Funding for Innovators and angel investors including Verena Pausder, Lea-Sophie Cramer, and Alexander Schwörer, alongside additional strategic backers from the construction and robotics sectors.

Rivage: €2.6 Million Pre-Seed Raised For Modernizing Payroll For Accounting Firms

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

France-based payroll software startup Rivage has secured €2.6 million in pre-seed funding in a round led by Partech, marking the company’s first institutional raise since its founding in July 2025.

The Bland Company Raises $2.67 Million Pre-Seed Round To Replace Eggs In Food Manufacturing

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

The Bland Company has raised a $2.67 million pre-seed round led by Initialized Capital, with participation from Entrepreneurs First, Alumni Ventures, Transpose Platform, Behind Genius Ventures, and Vento.

Temporal: $300 Million Series D At $5 Billion Valuation Secured For Open-Source Durable Execution Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

Temporal, the open-source platform powering agentic AI applications, has raised $300 million in a Series D financing round at a $5 billion valuation as companies accelerate efforts to move AI systems from pilot projects into production environments. The round was led by Andreessen Horowitz, with participation from Lightspeed Venture Partners and Sapphire Ventures. Existing investors, including Sequoia Capital, Index Ventures, Tiger Global Management, GIC, Madrona Venture Group, and Amplify Partners, also participated.

ChipAgents: $74 Million Closed For Agentic AI Platform For Semiconductor Design

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

ChipAgents, an agentic AI platform focused on accelerating semiconductor design workflows, announced it has closed an oversubscribed $50 million Series A1 round, bringing its total capital raised to $74 million. The round was led by Matter Venture Partners, a TSMC-backed hardtech venture capital firm, with participation from existing investors Bessemer Venture Partners, Micron, MediaTek, and Ericsson.

VulnCheck: $25 Million Series B Raised For Exploit Intelligence Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

VulnCheck has raised $25 million in Series B financing to meet surging demand for its exploit intelligence solutions, bringing the company’s total funding to $45 million. The round was led by Sorenson Capital, with participation from National Grid Partners and existing investors including Ten Eleven Ventures and In-Q-Tel.

Certivo: $4 Million Seed Funding Raised For AI-Native Compliance Automation Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

Certivo, an AI-powered supply chain compliance management platform, announced it has raised $4 million in seed funding to accelerate the launch of what it describes as the AI-native compliance automation category. The round was led by Suffolk Technologies with participation from Pioneer Square Ventures and other investors.

Sphinx: $7.1 Million Seed Funding Closed To Scale Browser-Native Agents For Financial Institutions

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

Sphinx, a compliance automation platform that builds browser-native agents for financial institutions, announced it has raised $7.1 million in seed funding to expand its agent workforce and support growing demand from banks and fintechs managing anti-money laundering and onboarding operations. The round was led by Cherry Ventures, with participation from Y Combinator, Rebel Fund, Deel Ventures, and Singularity Capital.

QuadSci: $8 Million Series A Raised For Customer Intelligence AI Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

QuadSci, a predictive and prescriptive AI platform for customer intelligence, has raised $8 million in a Series A financing round to accelerate product development and expand its go-to-market operations. The round was led by Crosslink Capital, with participation from Alumni Ventures, Correlation Ventures, and angel investors Shail Jain, Peter Gibson, Tom Roloff, and Rob Eberle.

Fireplace: $1.5 Million Pre-Seed Funding Raised For Prediction Market Trading Terminal Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

Fireplace, a professional trading terminal for prediction markets, has raised $1.5 million in a pre-seed funding round aimed at bringing institutional-grade trading infrastructure to one of the fastest-growing asset classes in financial markets. The round was led by Frachtis, with participation from White Star Capital and several other venture capital firms and angel investors, including syndicate rounds on Legion and Echo.

Mundi Ventures: €750 Million First Close For Kembara Fund

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 18, 2026

Mundi Ventures has announced a €750 million first close for Kembara, described as Europe’s largest dedicated deep tech growth fund, as it works toward a €1 billion target. The fund is now actively investing in breakthrough deep tech science and engineering companies across the continent.

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.

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.