Sourcery (12/5-12/9)
SBF ~ Setpoint, 9fin, X1, Cardiosense, Infinimmune, Juno, Pebble, CrowdHealth, Turtle Health, ImVitro, Anduril, Fanatics, Drata, RunwayML, Slingshot Aerospace, GameOn, Loft Dynamics, Archive
Headlines
[Video] Major Nuclear Fusion Energy Announcement: How to Watch, NYT
What the $6B Coupa Acquisition Means for Software Startups, Tomasz Tunguz
PLG & Profitability : More Product Doesn't Necessarily Mean Greater Profits, Tomasz Tunguz
Amgen said it will buy biotech Horizon Therapeutics for ~$28 billion. Private equity firm Thoma Bravo will acquire management software company Coupa for $8 billion. And grillmaker Weber is going private through a $3.7 billion deal with BDT Capital Partners.
Sam Bankman-Fried has been arrested following FTX collapse. Here’s what happens next, CNBC
Praying to the God of Valuation, Both Sides of the Table
E107: The Twitter Files Parts 1-2: shadow banning, story suppression, interference & more, All-in Podcast
(2:17) Twitter Files Part 2: shadow banning and blacklisting entire accounts and topics; how content moderation was handled at other tech giants
(33:09) Twitter Files Part 1: Suppressing the New York Post's Hunter Biden laptop story
(47:30) China effectively ends Zero-Covid policies; Iran, China, and Japan demographics
(58:27) Kevin O'Leary defends FTX on CNBC, was paid $15M as a spokesperson; Sinema flips to Independent
. . .
Last Week (12/5-12/9):
Relevant deals include the 60+ deals across stages below.
I've categorized the deals below into four categories, Fintech, Care, Enterprise & Consumer, and Sustainability, and ordered from later-stage rounds to early-stage rounds. Highlighted deals include Setpoint, 9fin, X1, Cardiosense, Infinimmune, Juno, Pebble, SaVia Health, CrowdHealth, Turtle Health, ImVitro, Anduril, Fanatics, Drata, RunwayML, Slingshot Aerospace, GameOn, Loft Dynamics, Archive, Strangeworks, Arena Club, Factor, Cacheflow, Flow Engineering, MoveEasy, Shibuya, Mezo, Amplio, Komi, GigFinesse, Operative Intelligence, Einride, GoBolt, BeeHero; IBM/Octo, GoStudent, Animoca Brands, Gorillas
Final numbers on ChatGPT’s Meteoric Rise at the bottom.
Deals
Fintech:
- Setpoint, an Austin-based fintech platform for asset-backed lending, raised $43 million in Series A funding. Andreessen Horowitz led the round and was joined by investors including Stonecroft, 75andSunny, Fifth Wall, 645 Ventures, NextView Ventures, LiveOak Venture Partners, Vesta Ventures, and ATX Venture Partners.
- 9fin, a London, U.K.-based analytics platform for debt capital markets, raised $23 million in Series A+ funding. Spark Capital led the round and was joined by investors including Redalpine, AI Seed, Seedcamp, 500 Startups, and Ilavska Vuillermoz Capital.
- Pactum, a Mountain View, Calif.-based autonomous negotiations platform for companies, raised $20 million in funding. 3VC led the round and was joined by investors including NordicNinja VC, Maersk Growth, Atomico, Project A, Metaplanet, and Taavet+Sten.
- Bitwave, a San Francisco, CA-based enterprise-focused platform for management of cryptocurrency tax, accounting and compliance, closed a $15 million Series A funding round led by Hack VC and Blockchain Capital, with participation from SignalFire, Valor Equity Partners, Arca, Pulsar Trading and Alumni Ventures Blockchain Fund. More in VC News Daily
- X1, a San Francisco-based credit card company, raised an additional $15 million in Series B funding. Soma Capital led the round and was joined by investors including The Points Guy founder and CEO Brian Kelly and Cruise CEO Kyle Vogt.
- Carputty, an Atlanta-based vehicle financing company, raised $12.3 million in Series A funding co-led by Fontinalis Partners and TTV Capital.
- Prophia, a San Francisco-based lease abstraction and commercial real estate data management provider, raised $10.2 million in Series A funding. Cercano Management led the round and was joined by investors including SignalFire and others.
- 9Fin, a London-based debt analytics platform, raised $23m in new Series A funding led by Spark Capital, per Axios Pro. https://axios.link/3BlmQe2
- Uplinq, a Scottsdale, Ariz.-based bookkeeping solutions provider, raised $5.6 million in seed funding. AZ-VC led the round and was joined by investors including Live Oak Ventures, Merus Capital, and members of the Kuwaiti Royal Family.
- SION, an Oceanport, N.J.-based payment SaaS platform for travel agents and agencies, raised $3.2 million in seed funding. TIA Ventures led the round and was joined by investors including SmartFlyer and Virtuoso.
. . .
Care:
- Lokavant, a New York-based clinical trial intelligence company, raised $21 million in funding led by Edison Partners.
- Sonde Health, a Boston-based developer of vocal biomarker tech, raised $19.25m in Series B funding, as first reported by Axios Pro. Partners Investment led, and was joined by NEOM Investment Fund, KT Corp. and insiders PureTech Health, M Ventures, MP Healthcare Venture Management, Neoteny and Evidity Health Capital. https://axios.link/3iBxIOf
- Alio, a Broomfield, CO-based medical technology company reinventing the management of chronic disease, raised $18 million in the initial close of a Series C financing, including the conversion of all outstanding convertible notes, led by the Widjaja Family Investment Office, with participation from the company's existing investors, including Chase Field, LLC, bringing the total amount the company has raised to over $50 million. More in VC News Daily
- Cardiosense, a Chicago, IL-based digital health company leveraging AI and multi-sensor devices to enable early detection of cardiovascular disease, raised $15.1 million in Series A funding co-led by Broadview Ventures and Hatteras Venture Partners, with participation from Laerdal Million Lives Fund, OSF Ventures, UnityPoint Health Ventures, and Portal Innovations. More in VC News Daily
- Infinimmune, a San Francisco-based antibody drug discovery and development company, raised $12 million in seed funding. Playground Global led the round and was joined by investors including Pear VC, Civilization Ventures, Axial VC, and other angels.
- Juno, a New York-based primary care startup focused on underserved communities, raised $12m led by Serena Ventures, per the NY Times. www.juno.care
- Pebble, a Seattle-based health benefit plans provider to startups, raised $12 million in seed funding. XYZ Venture Capital led the round and was joined by Founders’ Co-op.
- SaVia Health, a Salt Lake City-based health care SaaS company, raised $8.5 million in seed funding. Intel Capital led the round and was joined by investors including Kickstart, Peterson Ventures, Health Catalyst founder Tom Burton, and Stanford professor Dr. Brent James.
- Dae Hair, a beauty brand founded by influencer Amber Fillerup Clark, raised $8m in Series A funding led by Verity Venture Partners. https://axios.link/3UTpj6x
- CrowdHealth, an Austin, TX-based community-focused alternative to traditional health insurance, secured $6 million in Series A funding from Next Coast Ventures and Activate Venture Partners. More in VC News Daily
- Turtle Health, a Boston-based at-home/virtual fertility clinic, raised $5.4 million in funding. Switch Ventures, Blue Seed Collective, NextGen Venture Partners, Mayo Clinic Ventures, and US Fertility invested in the round.
- ImVitro, a Paris-based IVF fertility imaging B2B SaaS platform, raised $2.5 million in seed funding. LDV Capital led the round and was joined by investors including MMC Ventures, Tiny VC, Fly Ventures, and Compound VC.
- WeWalk, a London, UK-based startup developing a “smart cane” for visually impaired people, raised $2.4 million in a venture funding round led by Nesta Impact Investments, King’s Health Partners (KHP Ventures) and APY Ventures, with participation from several angel investors. More in TechCrunch
- Enthea, a Boston-based psychedelic healthcare insurance provider, raised $2 million in seed funding led by Tabula Rasa Ventures.
. . .
Enterprise & Consumer:
- Anduril Industries, a Costa Mesa, Calif.-based defense technology company, raised $1.48 billion in Series E funding. Valor Equity Partners led the round and was joined by investors including Founders Fund, Andreessen Horowitz, General Catalyst, 8VC, Lux Capital, Thrive Capital, DFJ Growth, and others.
- Fanatics, a Jacksonville, FL-based sports platform company, raised $700 million, at a valuation of $31 billion, led by a new investor, Clearlake Capital, with participation from Silver Lake, Fidelity and Softbank. (More in CNBC.com) Check out career opportunities with Fanatics
- Drata, a San Diego, CA-based startup automating Governance, Risk and Compliance workflows, locked up a $200 million Series C co-led by ICONIQ Growth and GGV Capital at a $2 billion valuation, doubling Drata’s valuation from its $100 million Series B in November 2021. More in Crunchbase News
- Runway ML, a New York-based creation suite for content editing, raised $50 million in Series C funding. Felicis Ventures led the round and was joined by investors including Madrona Ventures, Amplify Partners, Coatue, Compound, and Lux Capital.
- Slingshot Aerospace, an El Segundo, Calif.-based space simulation and analytics products producer for space sustainability, raised $40.85 million in Series A2 funding. Sway Ventures led the round and was joined by investors including C16 Ventures, ATX Venture Partners, Lockheed Martin Ventures, Valor Equity Partners, and Draper Associates.
- GameOn Technology, a San Francisco-based chat platform for sports teams and fans, raised $35 million in Series B funding co-led by Mirae Asset Venture Investment, Mighty Capital, and B3 Capital.
- Second Front Systems, a Wilmington, Del.-based software delivery for U.S. national security missions, raised $32 million in Series A funding. Moore Strategic Ventures and AEI HorizonX co-led the round and were joined by investors including ARTIS Ventures, 8VC, Gula Tech Adventures, Abstract Ventures, Pallas Ventures, Gaingels, and Kleiner Perkins.
- Chattermill, a London-based customer intelligence platform, raised $26 million in Series B funding. Beringea led the round and was joined by investors including DN Capital, Ventech, Runa Capital, btov Partners, SVB, and Blossom Street Ventures.
- Loft Dynamics, a Zürich, Switzerland-based virtual reality flight simulation company, raised $20 million in funding. Craft Ventures, Sky Dayton, and Up Ventures co-led the round.
- Maergo, an Austin-based shipping carrier for retailers and DTC brands, raised $20 million in seed funding. Deep Lake Capital, funds managed by Neel Shah, and ACR Strategic Credit co-led the round and were joined by RyderVentures.
- Wasabi Technologies, a Boston-based cloud storage company, raised an additional $15 million in Series D funding. Azura, SiS Cloud Global Tech Fund 8, Prosperity7 Ventures, and others invested in the round.
- Archive, a San Francisco-based resale operating system developer for brands, raised $15 million in Series A funding. Lightspeed Venture Partners led the round and was joined by Bain Capital Ventures and others.
- Strangeworks, an Austin, Texas-based quantum computing software development company, raised $14.75 million in Series A funding. Hitachi Ventures led the round and was joined by investors including Raytheon Technologies, Lightspeed Ventures, IBM, Ultratech Capital Partners, InQTel, and others.
- Vaultree, a Cork, Ireland-based encrypted data processing company, raised $12.8 million in Series A funding. Molten Ventures led the round and was joined by investors including Ten Eleven Ventures, SentinelOne, Elkstone Partners, CircleRock Capital, Cyber Club London, and others.
- Twelve Labs, a San Francisco based, video search and understand platform, raised $12 million in seed funding. Radical Ventures led the round and was joined by Index Ventures.
- Expeto, a Vancouver-based mobile networking platform, raised $12 million in Series B funding. Sorenson Capital led the round and was joined by investors including 5G Open Innovation Lab, Samsung Next, and Mistral Venture Partners.
- Apromore, a Melbourne, Australia-based process mining software provider, raised $10.3 million in Series B funding. Salesforce and GBTEC invested in the round.
- Arena Club, a Los Angeles-based sports trading card platform, raised $10 million in Series A funding. M13, defy.vc, Lightspeed Ventures, Elysian Park Ventures, and BAM Ventures co-led the round.
- XFactor, a San Francisco-based go-to-market and annual operations planning provider, raised $10 million in seed funding led by Lightspeed Venture Partners.
- Cacheflow, a Los Altos, Calif.-based SaaS sales platform, raised $10 million in funding. GV led the round and was joined by investors including GGV and Pelion Ventures.
- Rezonate, a Boston-based cloud identity protection platform, raised $8.7 million in funding. State of Mind Ventures, Flybridge, toDay Ventures, Merlin Ventures seed fund, and others invested in the round.
- Makers, a London, U.K.-based tech talent provider, raised £7 million ($8.56 million) in funding. BGF led the round and was joined by investors including Forward Partners and Educapital.
- Interpres Security, an Arlington, Va.-based defense surface management platform, raised $8.5 million in seed funding led by Ten Eleven Ventures.
- Flow Engineering, a London-based collaboration platform for hardware engineering teams, raised $8.5 million in seed funding. EQT Ventures led the round and was joined by investors including Backed VC and other angels.
- MoveEasy, a Columbus, OH-based home management platform and concierge service, raised $7 million in a Series A funding round led by Moderne Ventures, with participation from The Travelers Companies, bringing total investment to date to $10.5 million. More in VC News Daily
- Shibuya, a New York-based storytelling platform, raised $6.9 million in seed funding. Variant and a16z crypto co-led the round and were joined by angels including Joe Tsai, GMJP, Kevin Durant, Paris Hilton, and others.
- Protopia AI, an Austin-based data transformation company, raised $6 million in seed funding. ATX Venture Partners led the round and was joined by investors including Galaxy Interactive, Silverton Partners, and DNX Ventures.
- Mezo, a Chicago-based property maintenance platform for home maintenance, raised $6 million in seed funding. Chicago Ventures and Building Ventures co-led the round and were joined by The 81 Collection.
- Amplio, a remote-based holistic supply chain management company, raised $6 million in seed funding led by Construct Capital.
- Komi, a Los Angeles, CA-based personalized website page builder tool for influencers and creators, closed a $5 million Seed round led by Contour Venture Partners. More in TechCrunch
- GigFinesse, a New York-based platform that connects live music venues with artists, raised $3.6 million in seed funding. Bessemer Ventures Partners, Cosmic Venture Partners, and Masterclass executive vice president Matthew Rutler invested in the round.
- Operative Intelligence, a Los Angeles-based customer insights platform, raised $3.5 million in seed funding. Bonfire Ventures led the round and was joined by Wonder Ventures.
. . .
Sustainability:
- Einride, a Stockholm, Sweden-based freight mobility technology company, raised $200 million in Series C funding. AMF, EQT Ventures, Northzone, Polar Structure, Norrsken VC, and Temasek invested in the round.
- GoBolt, a Toronto, Canada-based sustainable supply chain network developer, raised $75 million CAD ($54.96 million) in funding. Yaletown Venture Partners and Export Development Canada co-led the round and were joined by investors including BDC Capital, Northleaf Capital Partners, Whitecap Venture Partners, MIG Group, BMO Capital Partners, and Ingka Investments.
- BeeHero, a Fresno, CA-based precision pollination company, raised $42 million in a Series B funding round led by Convent Capital, with participation from General Mills, Cibus Capital (formerly ADM Capital), Rabobank, MS&AD, Firstime, J-Ventures, Plug&Play, iAngels, Gaingels, UpWest and others, bringing total raised to date to $64 million. More in VC News Daily
- Plant Prefab, a Rialto, Calif.-based sustainable building technology company, raised $30 million in Series C funding. Gerdau Next Ventures led the round and was joined by investors including Asahi Kasei, Brown Angel Group, ICT Capital, and Unreasonable Collective.
Acquisitions & PE:
- IBM agreed to acquire Octo, a Reston, Va.-based digital modernization solutions provider to the federal government, from Arlington Capital Partners. Financial terms were not disclosed.
- GoStudent, a Vienna, Austria-based late-stage tutor marketplace which has raised $686.3 million to date and has been valued at $3+ billion, acquired Studienkreis, a Bochum, Germany-based traditional tutoring company, on undisclosed terms. TechCrunch
- Animoca Brands, a Hong Kong-based software developer and operating company, acquired a majority stake in Pixelynx, a Los Angeles, CA-based music metaverse gaming platform company. VentureBeat
- Getir, an Istanbul, Turkey-based grocery delivery startup, acquired Gorillas, a Berlin-based grocery delivery startup that had raised $1.3 billion in funding from Tencent, DST Global, Coatue and others TechCrunch
. . .
IPOs:
Nothing to see here…
. . .
SPACs:
Nothing to see here…
Funds:
- 645 Ventures, a New York and San Francisco-based venture capital firm, raised $347 million across two funds. $194.5 million was raised for their fourth fund to invest in seed to Series A rounds. $153 million was raised to write later stage checks up to $15 million.
- Union Square Ventures raised $200m for its second climate tech fund, per The Information. https://axios.link/3BqpXkP
Final Numbers
ChartGPT
On Wednesday the Chartr office party was in full swing, but instead of heading for drinks — as originally planned — we found ourselves still in the office, writing increasingly funny prompts into ChatGPT, a chatbot from OpenAI.
Built on the architecture of GPT-3, with some ~175 billion parameters, the key innovation of ChatGPT relative to other AI breakthroughs is that it’s super easy to interact with. You type something, it spits something back to you. “Tell me a joke”, “write a recipe for pecan pie in the style of a pirate”, “explain long division to a ten-year-old”... ChatGPT has a — pretty convincing — response for all.
That functionality has gone viral, with OpenAI reporting that ChatGPT had hit 1 million users in just 5 days. Searches for ChatGPT rocketed, surpassing those for “lensa”, another AI app making waves this week, but ChatGPT is undoubtedly the much, much bigger story.
The possible uses for ChatGPT, and the future versions of it to come, are equal-parts exciting and daunting. If optimized further, it’s not hard to see a way it could threaten the dominance of search giant Google for certain queries, with the potential to revolutionize some manual tasks in nearly every knowledge-based industry. It is, however, currently pretty expensive. CEO Sam Altman has reported that each individual chat currently costs “single-digit cents” to run — a cost that stacks up pretty quickly.
Ethical concerns and worries over lost jobs due to automation are very real — and although there are guard-rails in place, designed to limit the chance the tool spews hateful content, some have exposed some unfortunate responses.
. . .
The material presented on Molly O’Shea’s website are my opinions only and are provided for informational purposes and should not be construed as investment advice. It is not a recommendation of, or an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy, any particular security, strategy, or investment product. Any analysis or discussion of investments, sectors or the market generally are based on current information, including from public sources, that I consider reliable, but I do not represent that any research or the information provided is accurate or complete, and it should not be relied on as such. My views and opinions expressed in any website content are current at the time of publication and are subject to change. Past performance is not indicative of future results.