Venture Capital

Whatnot Raises $545 Million Series G At $20 Billion Valuation To Expand Live Shopping Platform And AI Tools

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 7, 2026

Whatnot has raised $545 million in Series G funding at a $20 billion valuation to accelerate the expansion of its live shopping marketplace and provide additional tools, services and buyer acquisition support for sellers. The round was led by ICONIQ, Lightspeed and Avra and included a mix of new and returning investors. New investors included Kleiner Perkins, Wellington Management and Standard Capital, the new investment firm founded by former Y Combinator partner Dalton Caldwell. Returning investors included Andreessen Horowitz, Bond, DST Global, Greycroft, Y Combinator and Alphabet’s CapitalG.

StepStone Group: Total Capital Reaches $913 Billion As Fee-Earning AUM Climbs 21%

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 7, 2026

StepStone Group’s private markets platform reached approximately $913 billion in total capital responsibility as of June 30, 2026, reflecting continued growth across assets under management, assets under advisement and its fee-generating capital base.

Greenstone Biosciences Receives NIH Grant To Develop Cardiac Fibrosis Treatments For Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 7, 2026

Greenstone Biosciences has received a Catalyze R61 award from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute to support the discovery of new drug candidates targeting myocardial fibrosis and dilated cardiomyopathy in Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute is part of the National Institutes of Health.

Prime Capital Financial Secures $600 Million Carlyle Investment At More Than $1.8 Billion Enterprise Value

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 7, 2026

Prime Capital Financial has entered a strategic partnership with Carlyle through an approximately $600 million hybrid capital solution that includes a minority ownership investment in the independent wealth management firm.

Yukon Partners Provides Mezzanine Financing For Second Nature Brands’ Acquisition Of Tillamook Country Smoker

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Yukon Partners has made a mezzanine investment in CapVest-backed Second Nature Brands to support its acquisition of Tillamook Country Smoker. Financial terms of Yukon’s investment and the acquisition were not disclosed.

X-Caliber Rural Capital Provides $25 Million USDA Loan For Plantible Foods’ Texas Expansion

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

X-Caliber Rural Capital has closed a $25 million USDA OneRD Business & Industry Guaranteed Loan for Plantible Foods. The financing represents the maximum amount available through the program and will support the expansion of Plantible’s commercial production facility in Eldorado, Texas.

Eldridge Provides $278 Million Loan To Refinance Blackstone And Portman’s Ten Twenty Spring

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Eldridge Capital Management has provided a $278 million loan to refinance Ten Twenty Spring, a Class A office building in Atlanta owned by Portman and funds affiliated with Blackstone Real Estate.

Lumilens Emerges From Stealth With Over $900 Million Raised At $5.51 Billion Valuation

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Lumilens has emerged from stealth with more than $900 million in total funding as it develops optical connectivity systems for large-scale AI data centers. The company announced more than $700 million in new financing co-led by Atreides Management, Bain Capital Ventures, Meritech, Seligman Ventures and Spark Capital. The round values Lumilens at $5.51 billion.

Talcott Financial And Goldman Sachs Launch West Grove Re With About $1 Billion In Capital

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Talcott Financial Group has established West Grove Re, a Bermuda-based reinsurance sidecar formed in partnership with Goldman Sachs.

Gryphon Investors Raises More Than $770 Million For Gryphon VI Co-Investment Fund

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Gryphon Investors has completed the final closing of Gryphon VI Top-Up Co-Investment Partners with more than $770 million in total commitments. The oversubscribed fund exceeded its original $650 million target.

JJ Watt Invests In Base Power Through $1 Billion Series D And Becomes A Customer

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Former professional football player JJ Watt has invested in Base Power as part of the Texas energy company’s $1 billion Series D financing. Watt has also become a Base customer and said switching his Houston home to the company’s service reduced his power bill by more than 20%.

Solar Landscape Secures Up To $150 Million From Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners For 250 MW Solar Portfolio

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Solar Landscape has secured a development financing facility of up to $150 million from Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners through its Green Credit Fund II.

Charles River Associates Expands Credit Facility To $400 Million

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Charles River Associates has increased and extended its credit facility through a six-bank lending syndicate. The five-year facility provides up to $400 million of financing, consisting of a $75 million term loan and a $325 million revolving credit facility.

ReCode Therapeutics Secures Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Funding And Names Heather Clark CEO

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

ReCode Therapeutics has secured new funding from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and entered a research collaboration with an undisclosed gene editing company to develop potential genetic medicines for cystic fibrosis.

Francisco Partners To Acquire Majority Stake In Command Alkon From Thoma Bravo

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Francisco Partners has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Command Alkon from Thoma Bravo, supporting the construction technology company’s continued expansion and development of AI-powered capabilities.

Hadrian Raises $1.37 Billion Series D At $7.87 Billion Valuation To Expand Automated Defense Manufacturing

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Hadrian has raised $1.37 billion in Series D equity financing to build additional highly automated factories and expand production of critical U.S. defense, aerospace and industrial systems. The financing values the advanced manufacturing company at $7.87 billion. The round was co-led by WCM Investment Management, Washington Harbour Partners, Valor Equity Partners, 137 Ventures and Baillie Gifford.

Naïve Raises $28.5 Million Series A To Build Infrastructure For Autonomous Companies

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Naïve has raised $28.5 million in Series A funding to develop infrastructure that enables AI agents to operate businesses through a unified application programming interface. The round was led by Nexus Venture Partners, with participation from Y Combinator, Zetta Venture Partners and Liquid 2 Ventures.

LuminArx Capital Management And Bridge Launch $500 Million Financing Program For Retail Suppliers

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

LuminArx Capital Management and Bridge have formed a partnership to provide up to $500 million in financing to consumer packaged goods brands and suppliers fulfilling orders for major U.S. retailers.

Celestica Announces $3 Billion Equity Offering To Accelerate AI Infrastructure Growth

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Celestica has announced a proposed $3 billion common stock offering to finance investments supporting increased customer demand across its global AI and data center infrastructure business.

Energy Capital Partners Raises $8.1 Billion For ECP VI

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Energy Capital Partners has completed an $8.1 billion fundraising for ECP VI, the investment firm’s sixth flagship equity strategy focused on energy transition infrastructure. The fund reached its hard cap, which was increased during the fundraising process to accommodate investor demand. ECP VI significantly exceeded its original $5 billion target.

SoftBank Invests $2 Billion In Intel To Support U.S. Semiconductor Manufacturing And AI Infrastructure

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

SoftBank Group entered into a definitive agreement to invest $2 billion in Intel common stock as the companies expanded their commitments to U.S. semiconductor innovation and advanced technology.

NavVis Raises $85 Million Series D To Build Spatial Data Foundation For Physical AI

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

NavVis has raised $85 million in Series D funding to expand its spatial data platform and accelerate the development of AI products for industrial facilities, construction sites and other physical environments. The round was led by U.S. private equity firm The Jordan Company, with participation from existing investors Yttrium and its consortium of industrial family offices, KOZO KEIKAKU ENGINEERING and Cipio Partners.

Omilia Raises $67 Million Series B To Expand Agentic Customer Experience Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Omilia has raised $67 million in Series B funding to accelerate the international expansion of its self-learning agentic customer experience platform. The round was led by Expedition Growth Capital, a transatlantic investment firm specializing in software and artificial intelligence companies.

UWM: Oaktree And Ishbia Family Commit $2.05 Billion As Company Suspends Dividend

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

UWM Holdings announced a $2.05 billion equity capital investment from Oaktree Capital Management and an investment vehicle owned by the Ishbia family as the mortgage lender moves to strengthen liquidity and reduce balance-sheet pressure.

Nextalia: Private Equity II Reaches Over €1.1 Billion First Close From More Than 200 Investors

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Nextalia has completed the first close of Nextalia Private Equity II at more than €1.1 billion, securing commitments from over 200 investors within five months.

Proxy Foods AI Raises $6 Million Seed Round To Expand AI-Native Food R&D Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Proxy Foods AI has raised $6 million in seed funding to expand its artificial intelligence platform for food and beverage research and development. The round was led by Ted Leonsis, founder, chairman, managing partner and CEO of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, with lead participation from Robert G. Hisaoka and SWaN & Legend Venture Partners.

LifeMine Therapeutics Raises $263 Million To Advance LIFE-001 For Organ Transplantation

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

LifeMine Therapeutics has secured $263 million in financing to accelerate the clinical development of LIFE-001 and advance its broader pipeline of transplantation and immunology therapies. The financing includes an oversubscribed $188 million Series E round led by Milky Way Investments. New investors included Bezos Expeditions, Gates Frontier and RA Capital Management, while GV, LoLa Capital Partners, GlaxoSmithKline, Invus and ARCH Venture Partners continued their support.

Vedanta Biosciences Raises $60 Million To Advance Phase 3 VE303 Study

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Vedanta Biosciences has secured $60 million in funding to advance its pivotal Phase 3 RESTORATiVE303 study evaluating VE303 for the prevention of recurrent Clostridioides difficile infection. The financing includes a $40 million investment round led by existing investors AMR Action Fund and BNP Paribas Asset Management Alts. Vedanta received approximately $18 million during the first quarter and another $22 million during the second quarter.

Sapiom Raises $35 Million Series A To Scale AI Agent Infrastructure

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Sapiom has raised $35 million in Series A funding to expand its infrastructure platform for deploying, operating and scaling artificial intelligence agents.

Opal Therapeutics Secures $1.25 Million NSF Award To Expand Uterine Organoid Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 6, 2026

Opal Therapeutics has secured a $1.25 million Phase II award through the National Science Foundation’s Small Business Innovation Research program.