Startups

Cyclops Raises $20 Million Series A To Build Stablecoin Infrastructure For Payments Companies

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Cyclops, a stablecoin infrastructure company built exclusively for the payments industry, has raised a $20 million Series A led by Nava Ventures, with participation from Castle Island Ventures, Coinbase Ventures, Circle, Lasagna Ventures, and Global PayTech Ventures. Kevin Chenault of Nava Ventures joined the Cyclops board as part of the round. Global PayTech Ventures is helmed by Javier Perez, former President of Mastercard and founding investor in Adyen.

Hemispheric Raises $52 Million To Launch Descartes NeuroAI Model For Decoding The Human Brain

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Hemispheric emerged from stealth with $52 million in early-stage funding to launch Descartes, a frontier NeuroAI model designed to decode non-invasive brain activity and translate it into objective, actionable insights for clinicians and researchers. The funding came from Hanaco Ventures, OneMind/Awareness Capital, Protocol Labs, L Catterton, Arkin Capital, Howard Morgan, Naomi Azrieli, Yasmin Lukatz, Scott Belsky, and other investors. Hemispheric was co-founded by computational neuroscientist Hagai Lalazar, Ph.D., and Gidi Littwin, who previously co-founded RealFace, which was acquired by Apple and contributed technology to Face ID.

Nous Raises €2.315 Million Seed Round To Commercialize Botanical Energy Ingredient Koncentra

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Nous, an Italian functional ingredient company, has closed a €2.315 million seed investment to advance the commercialization of Koncentra, its branded botanical ingredient targeting the energy, focus, and mood category in food, beverage, and nutraceutical applications. The round was led by dsm-firmenich Ventures, with participation from Accelera Ventures — through Eatable Adventures — and CDP Venture Capital through its Fondo Acceleratori, part of the National Accelerator Network's foodtech program FoodSeed.

ORANGE JUICE Raises $40 Million To Launch Permanent Capital Company Backed By Bitcoin Treasury

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

ORANGE JUICE announced it has raised $40 million to launch a permanent capital company focused on acquiring, improving, and permanently owning American businesses while maintaining a Bitcoin treasury. Unlike traditional private equity firms, the company says it is designed without fund expiration dates or pressure to exit investments, allowing it to take a long-term ownership approach.

Lumin Digital Raises $115 Million In New Capital To Further Invest In Product Innovation And Reaches $1.6 Billion Valuation

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Lumin Digital, the Compounding Growth Platform for banks and credit unions, announced more than $70 million in new investment from its own clients, reflecting continued confidence in the company's vision, execution, and long-term growth. This follows a recent $45 million growth equity financing led by Light Street Capital, bringing the business's total fresh capital to more than $115 million.

Keyper Raises $11 Million Series A To Expand Monthly Rent Payments Across The UAE

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Keyper, a digital real estate technology company, has raised $11 million in Series A funding to accelerate the adoption of monthly rent payments and build digital infrastructure for the rental market across the United Arab Emirates. The financing included participation from Speedinvest, Mashreq NEO Ventures, Middle East Venture Partners, Dubai Future District Fund, Property Finder, Ellington Properties Development, anb capital and Dar Ventures.

e-peas Raises $22 Million To Expand Ambient IoT Technology

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

e-peas, a developer of ultra-low-power energy-harvesting and power-management technology, has raised $22 million in financing to expand its presence in the rapidly growing Ambient Internet of Things market. Crédit Mutuel Equity led the financing through its venture capital subsidiary Crédit Mutuel Innovation, with support from the group’s Belgian subsidiary. SFPIM, the Belgian federal investment and holding company, also participated. Existing investors supporting the financing included the European Innovation Council, Wallonie Entreprendre, KBC Focus Fund, Otium, Nomainvest, The Faktory and Invest BW.

Emergent Raises $130 Million Series C At $1.5 Billion Valuation For Software Creation Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Emergent has raised $130 million in Series C funding at a $1.5 billion valuation to expand its AI-powered software creation platform for entrepreneurs, small businesses, and non-technical founders. Creaegis led the round, with participation from Claypond and Sentinel Global. Existing and additional investors participating included Khosla Ventures, SoftBank Vision Fund 2, Lightspeed, and Y Combinator.

Auxilium Health Raises $3.4 Million Seed Round To Advance Aer Biomaterial Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Auxilium Health has raised an oversubscribed $3.4 million seed round to advance its Aer biomaterial platform toward U.S. Food and Drug Administration clearance and first-in-human clinical studies. The financing was completed approximately one year after the company’s pre-seed round and more than doubles the amount raised in its previous financing.

CerraCap Ventures Invests In MazeBolt To Advance AI-Era DDoS Resilience

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

CERRACAP, a global venture capital firm investing in transformative technologies across artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, healthcare, advanced computing, defense, aerospace, and enterprise innovation, announced its investment in MazeBolt, a leader in AI-powered DDoS resilience and continuous security validation.

Think Raises $8 Million In MENA’s Largest AI Infrastructure Pre-Seed Round

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Think, a Riyadh-based artificial intelligence infrastructure company, has closed an $8 million-plus pre-seed funding round, which the company and its backers describe as the largest AI infrastructure and deep-tech pre-seed round in the MENA region to date. The round was co-led by RAED Ventures and Wa'ed Ventures, with participation from the venture capital arm of Dhahran Techno Valley and strategic angel investors. Proceeds will fund team expansion, manufacturing scale-up, product development, and international growth across the GCC and selected global markets.

Starlight Engine Raises JPY 6.06 Billion To Advance Fusion Power Project

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Starlight Engine has raised JPY 6.06 billion, equivalent to approximately $37.4 million, in its first external financing round to accelerate the development of its Fusion by Advanced Superconducting Tokamak project.

Gauntlet Raises $125 Million Series C To Expand On-Chain Risk Infrastructure

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Gauntlet Networks, a New York-based digital asset risk and optimization firm, has closed a $125 million Series C financing led by SBI Holdings through its U.S. subsidiary, SBI Holdings USA.

Augmodo Raises $21 Million At $350 Million Valuation To Scale Physical AI Assistants

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Augmodo has raised an additional $21 million in financing at a $350 million valuation to expand its artificial intelligence assistants for workers operating in retail, manufacturing, automotive, logistics and other physical environments. Existing investor TQ Ventures led the financing after approaching Augmodo to increase its investment in light of the company’s recent growth and customer adoption.

Rime Raises $24 Million Series A To Build Enterprise-Ready Speech-To-Speech AI Models

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Rime has raised $24 million in Series A funding to expand its enterprise voice AI platform and support the development of speech-to-speech models designed for complex and regulated environments. The round was led by M13, with participation from Twilio Ventures, Corazon Capital, Unusual Ventures and other existing investors. Morgan Blumberg, a partner at M13, will join Rime’s board of directors in connection with the financing.

Float Raises €4.5 Million Series A To Build AI-Native Financial Platform For European Tech SMEs

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Float has raised €4.5 million in Series A funding to expand its revenue-based financing business and develop an AI-native financial platform for European technology companies. The round was led by Hamburg-based CHAPTERS Group AG.

AdvanCell Closes $315 Million Series D Financing To Advance Targeted Alpha Therapies

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

AdvanCell, a clinical-stage radiopharmaceutical company developing targeted alpha therapies for cancer, announced the closing of an oversubscribed and upsized $315 million Series D financing. The round was led by Ally Bridge Group and co-led by Alpha Wave, alongside new investors Bain Capital Life Sciences, Fidelity Management & Research Company, funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., a leading sovereign wealth fund, Eventide Asset Management, and Velosity Capital, with existing investors including Morningside, Eli Lilly and Company, SV Health Investors, Sanofi Ventures, Abingworth, SymBiosis, Tenmile, Brandon Capital, Piper Heartland, Catalio Capital Management, Proto Axiom, and Time BioVentures also participating.

Walden Robotics Raises $300 Million At $1.1 Billion Valuation To Deploy General-Purpose Robots

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Walden Robotics has launched from stealth with $300 million in seed funding to develop and deploy general-purpose robots that can learn continuously while performing useful work in manufacturing, logistics and other industrial environments. The financing values the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based physical AI company at $1.1 billion. Toyota and Deviation Capital co-led the round. Toyota participated through Toyota Motor Corporation, Toyota Invention Partners and Toyota Ventures. Other strategic investors included NVIDIA, Boeing, AE Ventures, Samsung Ventures, Prologis Ventures and CoreWeave Ventures. Financial investors participating in the financing included Calibrate Ventures, Colle Capital, Shine Capital, NextView Ventures, Squarepoint Capital, One Madison Group, KAS Venture Partners and Menlo Ventures, among others.

Linker Finance Secures $5 Million Seed To Accelerate Growth Engine for Community Banks

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Linker Finance, a modular platform purpose-built for community banks, announced it has secured an additional $5 million in Seed funding, bringing its total Seed funding to $8.7 million following its previously announced $3.7 million round. The financing includes continued participation from existing investors Chingona Ventures, Ten One Ten Ventures, Audaz Capital, and Angeles Investors, alongside new strategic investment from 22nd State Banking Company.

Skalar Raises €12 Million To Build AI-First Tax Advisory Firm

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Skalar has raised €12 million through its pre-seed and seed financing rounds to expand an AI-first tax advisory firm designed to address Germany’s growing shortage of tax consultants. Headline led the financing, with participation from futurepresent, QED Investors, Repeat Ventures, MS&AD Ventures, Foreword Fund, and several angel investors.

Nopan Raises €7.2 Million To Expand Account And Wallet Payments Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 15, 2026

Nopan, a performance platform for account and digital wallet payments, has raised €7.2 million in total funding, including a new investment round led by Newion. Existing investors Crane and Seedcamp participated in the latest financing, along with a group of angel investors with experience across merchant payments and financial technology.

BRINC Raises $125 Million To Put A 911 Response Drone On Every Police And Fire Station Roof

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 14, 2026

BRINC, a public safety drone technology company, announced a $125 million financing round led by Motorola Solutions, with participation from Index Ventures and Dylan Field, Figma's CEO and founder. The investment brings BRINC's total capital raised to well over a quarter billion dollars and will support the company's goal of deploying 911 response drones at the 80,000 police and fire stations across the United States.

Draig Therapeutics Raises $65 Million Series B To Advance Neuropsychiatric Therapies

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 14, 2026

Draig Therapeutics announced the closing of an oversubscribed $65 million Series B financing to accelerate development of its pipeline of neuropsychiatric therapies. The round was led by new investor Deep Track Capital, with participation from Janus Henderson Investors, Marshall Wace, British Business Bank, and Jefferson Life Sciences.

State Affairs Raises $70 Million To Advance Policy And Regulatory Intelligence Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 14, 2026

State Affairs announced $70 million in total funding to accelerate its AI-powered intelligence platform for policy and regulatory markets. Investors in the funding include Founders Fund, Khosla Ventures, Tru Arrow Partners, Alumni Ventures, Marcus Brauchli, Alex Mather and Adam Hansmann, and Richard Sarnoff. Brauchli is the former Executive Editor of The Washington Post and former Managing Editor of The Wall Street Journal; Mather and Hansmann founded The Athletic; and Sarnoff is Chairman of Media, Education and Entertainment at KKR.

Flex Raises $70 Million Series B1 To Launch Flex Global, An AI-Native Private Banking Platform For HNW Business Owners Worldwide

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 14, 2026

Flex, a San Francisco-based AI-native private banking platform for high-net-worth business owners in the middle market, has raised a $70 million Series B1 led by Halo Fund, the investment platform co-founded by Utah Jazz and Utah Mammoth owner and Qualtrics founder Ryan Smith and Accel general partner Ryan Sweeney. Portage Ventures, Wellington, Crosslink Capital, 53 Stations, Titanium Ventures, Spice, Florida Funders and others also participated. The round comes just months after Flex's $60 million Series B in December 2025 and brings total equity raised to $180 million and total capital including debt to $300 million. Annualized revenue has grown 3x since the December round, and Flex is now at a nine-figure annualized revenue run rate with more than $10 billion in annualized total payment volume, growing roughly 4x year over year.

ZeroEyes Announces $10 Million Investment In AI R&D, Plans To Hire 100-Plus Philadelphia-Area Veterans

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 14, 2026

ZeroEyes, creators of a multi-analytics weapons-detection and threat-intelligence platform, announced a planned $10 million U.S. investment in AI and machine-learning research and development. The investment includes a commitment to hiring more than 100 veterans in Southeastern Pennsylvania over the next 24 months to fill roles including Technical Program Managers, MLOps Engineers, and AI Solutions Specialists. The company made the announcement at Senator Dave McCormick's 2026 Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit, held at Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

410 Medical Secures $12 Million In Growth Financing To Scale LifeFlow Commercial Expansion And Next-Generation Device

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 14, 2026

410 Medical, a North Carolina-based medical device company focused on advanced resuscitation technologies for emergency and critical care, has completed an oversubscribed $12 million financing round. Orlando Health Ventures led the round, with participation from Hatteras Venture Partners, Ballad Health, OSF Healthcare, Rex Health Ventures, CU Healthcare Innovations Fund, Sarnova, Catalyst by Wellstar, Tampa General and a new undisclosed strategic investor. The capital will be used to scale commercial operations and support the launch of a next-generation LifeFlow infuser planned for 2027.

Singularity Raises $80 Million Series A At $400 Million Valuation To Deploy Air Defense At Scale

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 14, 2026

Singularity emerged from stealth with an oversubscribed $80 million Series A financing at a $400 million valuation. The company is focused on deploying low-cost air defense systems at scale for the U.S. and its allies. The round was led by Khosla Ventures and Felicis. Seed investors AE Ventures and NEA also participated, along with Long Journey, Harpoon, Menlo Ventures, Y Combinator, Decisive Point, New Vista, Sunflower, and Soma.

TerraFirma Raises $115 Million To Scale Semi-Autonomous Construction Robotics For Critical Infrastructure On Earth And Beyond

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 14, 2026

TerraFirma, an Austin-based tech-enabled, vertically integrated construction company founded by former SpaceX engineers, has raised approximately $115 million, including a $100 million Series A led by Kleiner Perkins, with participation from Bain Capital Ventures, Glade Brook Capital Partners, BANNER VC, Saga Ventures, Trust Ventures, Definition, PEAK6, Magnetar Capital and Ravelin Capital. Angel investors include founders, executives and engineers from SpaceX, Anduril, Base Power, Shinkei and Hadrian. The funding will support expansion of TerraFirma's engineering, manufacturing, operations and construction teams, and the continued development of its semi-autonomous heavy equipment systems.

Feathery Raises $30 Million In Series A To Scale AI Operating And Decisioning System For Financial Services

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 14, 2026

Feathery, the AI operating and decisioning system for financial services, announced that it has raised $30 million in total funding, including its recently completed Series A, from Portage Ventures, Index Ventures, Allstate Strategic Ventures, Clocktower Ventures, Erie Strategic Ventures, and Bain Capital Ventures. The company is one of the fastest-growing AI platforms for financial services, serving more than 300 firms across insurance and wealth management.