Slow week on M&A front

DEAL OF THE WEEK: TRACE MACHINA

?? Trace Machina, a San Francisco, CA-based simulation infrastructure platform for physical-world AI, raised $4.7 million in a Seed round led by Wellington Management with participation from Samsung Next, Sequoia Capital Scout Fund, Green Bay Ventures, Verissimo Ventures and industry leading angel investors.

How can you win being "picked as the lead" when a founder has a lot of choices?

As their seed round came together Trace Machina's Founders had to make a choice:

Were the Partners entrepreneurs themselves?

LAST WEEK'S MOST POPULAR LINK

???Napkin,?a Los Altos, CA-based?provider of visual AI for business storytelling, raised?$10 million?in a?seed funding?round led by?Accel?and?CRV.

UNDER-THE-RADAR SOURCING IDEAS,?POWERED BY HARMONIC

Prior VC-backed founders, top school alums, and seasoned operators who recently started working on "stealth" startups.

????Amaury Soviche, recently went back into Stealth as a?Co-Founder for an AI startup. Amaury is a?multiple-time founder, with the most recent of his companies being a?venture-backed startup which exited?via acquisition to Incode Technologies earlier this year. Amaury also holds a degree from?Stanford in Computer Science & Robotics,?and?published 2 research papers?while at?Stanford CSAIL (Computer Science and AI Lab),?applied to the field of?robotics/neuroscience.

????Giulio Cantoro, began working as a?Founder?on a?Stealth?startup in?May 2024. Giulio is a?former?YC-backed?and?Techstars-backed?CEO?and?co-founder, and holds a?Masters?degree in?engineering. During his Masters program, he won the "Amazon Innovation Award” for creating a last mile delivery solution.

???Mark Clift, began working as a?Founder?on a?Stealth AI?startup in?April 2024?. Mark is a?multi-time founder,?and also served as the?Group Chief Product Officer?for?Snapp!, a leading "super app" in the Middle East. Mark also holds an?MBA?from the?London Business School.

???Ruijie (RJ) He, an?engineering leader?and?prior founder with an exit?started working on a?stealth startup?in?June 2024. RJ has?over a decade of?robotics and AV engineering?leadership experience,?including stints at companies like?Google. In addition, RJ served as a?researcher at MIT?multiple times, and was a?Major in the Singapore Armed Forces. RJ holds?2 Bachelors, 2 Masters and a PhD?from?MIT?in?Political Science, Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering, and Autonomous Systems.

M&A

???Revnest,?a Boise, ID-based?marketplace for vacation homes, acquired?Hungry Robots, a real estate data provider. The acquisition will give Revnest access to over 30 million global hotel and rental listings, expanding its data capabilities.

???Ark,?a Gaithersburg, MD-based?cloud and cybersecurity solutions provider, acquired?Vantyr, a San Francisco, CA-based company focused on securing non-human identities across cloud and SaaS environments. The acquisition strengthens Ark’s position in the SaaS security domain, focusing on critical business applications.

???Scandit,?a Zurich, Switzerland-based?smart data capture company, acquired the shelf audit automation technology of?MarketLab, a Polish AI software company specializing in retail image recognition. The acquisition enhances Scandit’s retail analytics solution, ShelfView.

VC DEALS

???Mudstack,?a Seattle, WA-based?file versioning and asset management platform for game developers, raised?$4 million?in funding led by?Anthos Capital?with participation from?Khosla Ventures,?A16Z Games,?Pioneer Square Labs,?and Hyperplane.

???Kiteworks,?a Palo Alto, CA-based?secure data transfer platform, raised?$456 million?in a?growth equity round?led by?Insight Partners?and?Sixth Street Growth.

??Grid Status, a Chicago, IL-based?modern data and analytics platform for the electric grid,?raised?$8 million?in funding led by?Energize Capital?with participation from?Nat Friedman, and Daniel Gross (NFDG Ventures),?and?others.

???WSPN,?a Singapore-based?stablecoin infrastructure provider, raised?$30 million?in a?Seed funding round?led by?Folius Ventures?and?Foresight Ventures?with participation from?Hash Global,?Generative Ventures,?Redpoint Capital, and others.

???Eschatology Entertainment,?a Nicosia, Cyprus-based?gaming studio, raised?€10.2 million?in funding led by?KRAFTON, with participation from?GEM Capital?and?The Games Fund.

???Photon Health,?a New York City, NY-based?e-prescription platform, raised?$9 million?in a funding round co-led by?Notation Capital?and?Flare Capital Partners?with participation from?Floating Point,?GG1, and others.

???SongPush,?a Berlin, Germany-based?creator marketing platform, raised?€2.94 million?in Seed funding. Investors were not disclosed.

???TEAMology,?a University Park, PA-based?provider of K-8 social-emotional learning solutions, raised?$1.2 million?in Seed funding led by?C 414, with participation from?Supes' Fund,?White Rose Ventures,?1855 VC,?and Product 10X.

????Soulbound,?a Web3-based social gaming platform, raised?$4 million?to expand its gaming ecosystem. Investors include a mix of Web3-focused funds.

???ModelOp,?a Chicago, IL-based?AI governance software provider, raised?$10 million?in a Series B round led by?Baird Capital, with participation from existing investors.

???DocPro,?a Hong Kong-based?legal technology company, raised?$500K?in?Pre-Seed funding?from?Multiway Industries.

??SportAI,?an Oslo, Norway-based?B2B sports technology company, raised?$1.8 million?in?Seed funding?led by?Skyfall Ventures?with participation from?MP Pensjon,?Dekel Valtzer, and?Sverre Munck.

???Power to Hydrogen,?a Columbus, OH-based?electrolysis technology company, raised?over $18 million?in?Series A funding?led by?Rev1 Ventures?and?Worthington Enterprises?with participation from global investors like?Finindus,?JERA, and others.

???Bone Index,?a Kuopio, Finland-based?medical technology company, raised an undisclosed amount in a financing round led by?Lynx Financial (HK) Limited.

???Allstacks,?a Raleigh, NC-based?software engineering intelligence platform, raised?$10 million?in?Series A funding?led by?Quadri Ventures, with participation from?M12?(Microsoft’s VC fund),?Companyon Ventures, and others.

???Fabric Cryptography,?a San Francisco, CA-based?verifiable processing unit (VPU) startup, raised?$33 million?in?Series A funding?co-led by?Blockchain Capital?and?1kx?with participation from multiple investors including?Protocol Labs,?Polygon, and others.

??Apheros,?a Zurich, Switzerland-based?thermal management company, raised?CHF1.6 million?in funding led by?Founderful.

???Orderly Network,?a remote-based?Web3 liquidity layer developer, raised?over $5 million?in funding led by?OKX Ventures, with participation from?Manifold Trading, Presto Labs, LTP, Nomad Capital,?and?Origin Protocol.

???Clarium,?a New York City, NY-based?healthcare technology company focused on hospital supply chain operations, raised?$10.5 million?in funding led by?General Catalyst?with participation from?Kaiser Permanente Ventures, Texas Medical Center Venture Fund,?and others. The funds will enhance the company’s product development and market reach.

???Fortera,?a San Jose, CA-based?materials technology company, raised?$85 million?in?Series C funding?led by?Khosla Ventures?and?Temasek?with participation from?Wollemi Capital,?NOVA by Saint-Gobain, and others.

???Starpath,?a San Francisco, CA-based?lunar resource company, raised?$12 million?in a funding round led by?8VC?and?Fusion Fund, with participation from?Day One Ventures, Balerion Space, and?Indicator Ventures.

???Reliant AI,?a Montreal, Canada- and Berlin, Germany-based?provider of generative AI-powered data analytics software, raised?$11.3 million?in?Seed funding?led by?Tola Capital?and?Inovia Capital?with participation from angel investor Mike Volpi.

???Pathalys Pharma,?a Research Triangle Park, NC-based?biopharma company focused on kidney disease, raised?$105 million?in?Series B funding?led by?TCGX?with participation from?JP Morgan Life Sciences,?Samsara BioCapital, and others.

???Defcon AI,?a McLean, VA-based?defense technology firm, raised?$44 million?in?Seed funding?led by?Bessemer Venture Partners?with participation from?Fifth Growth Fund,?Red Cell Partners, and others.

???Talus Bioscience,?a Seattle, WA-based?drug discovery company, raised?$11.2 million?in?Seed+ funding?led by?Two Bear Capital?with participation from?WRF Capital,?NFX, and others.

???Mindset Care,?a NYC-based?platform simplifying social security disability applications for individuals with mental illnesses, raised?$13 million?in funding led by?Science Inc.?with participation from?Wellington Management,?Tubbs Ventures, and others.

???Enteligent,?a Morgan Hill, CA-based?developer of solar-powered DC-to-DC chargers for EVs, raised?$6 million?in funding led by?Taronga Ventures.

????David,?a NYC-based?food startup focused on products that increase muscle and reduce fat, raised?$10 million?in?Seed funding?led by?CEO Peter Rahal,?with participation from?Valor Siren Ventures,?Peter Attia, M.D., and?Andrew Huberman, Ph.D.

????Trunk Tools,?a NYC-based?AI platform for the construction industry, raised?$20 million?in?Series A funding?led by?Redpoint Ventures?with participation from?Innovation Endeavors.

???Kubiya,?a San Jose, CA-based?provider of conversational AI solutions for DevOps teams, raised?$6 million?in extension funding led by?Heavybit?with participation from?Hyperwise VC. The funds will be used to accelerate development and expand operations.

???zkMe Technologies,?a Hong Kong-based?provider of zero-knowledge identity verification solutions for Web3, raised?$4 million?in?Seed funding?led by?Multicoin Capital?with participation from?OKX Ventures?and?Robot Ventures. The funds will help develop its Web3 identity layer.

???BeyondMath,?a San Francisco, CA-based?engineering simulation company, raised?$8.5 million?in?Seed funding?led by?UP.Partners?with participation from?Insight Partners?and?InMotion Ventures.

???Eppo,?a San Francisco, CA-based?experimentation platform, raised?$28 million?in?Series B funding?led by?Innovation Endeavors?with participation from?Icon VC,?Menlo Ventures, and?Amplify Partners.

???Bookbot,?a Prague, Czech Republic-based?online platform for second-hand books, raised?€4 million?in?Series A funding?led by?Genesis Growth Equity Fund I?with participation from?Miton. The round values the company at over €20 million.

???Waza,?a Lagos, Nigeria-based?international payments startup, raised?$8 million?in funding, consisting of?$3 million?in equity led by?Y Combinator, with participation from?Byld Ventures, and others, and?$5 million?in debt financing.

???Ambrosia Biosciences,?a Boulder, CO-based?biotechnology company, secured?$16 million?in?Series A funding?round led by?BVF Partners?and?Boulder Ventures.

???Cassidy,?a NYC-based?business automation platform, raised?$3.7 million?in?Seed funding?led by?The General Partnership?with participation from?Neo,?Comma Capital, and others.

???DealPotential,?a Stockholm, Sweden-based?investment intelligence platform, raised?$1 million?in?Seed funding?from undisclosed backers.

???Botanical Solution,?a Davis, CA-based?biotech company, raised?$7.6 million?in?Series A funding?form undisclosed investors.

???Optiml,?a Zurich, Switzerland-based?provider of a digital platform for Net Zero real estate investment and renovation planning, raised?$4 million?in a?Pre-Seed Extension?funding round led by?BitStone Capital?with participation from?KOMPAS VC,?Innovation Endeavors, and?Planet A Ventures.

???TransBnk,?a Mumbai, India-based?transaction banking platform, raised?$4 million?in a?Series A?funding round led by?8i Ventures?and?Accion Venture Lab, with participation from?GMO Venture Partners,?Ratio Ventures, and others.

???Agrizy,?a Bangalore, India-based?B2B agri-processing platform, raised?$9.8 million?in a?Series A?funding round led by?Accion?and?Omnivore, with participation from?Capria Ventures,?Thai Wah Ventures, and?Ankur Capital.

???Vandria,?a Lausanne, Switzerland-based?mitochondrial therapeutics company, raised an undisclosed amount in its second?Series A?funding round, bringing the total to?$30.7 million. The round saw participation from?Hevolution Foundation?and?Dolby Family Ventures?alongside?ND Capital.

??♂??Fresha,?a London, UK-based?beauty and wellness marketplace, raised?€27.8 million?in?debt financing?from?J.P. Morgan. The funds will be used to expand into new markets and enhance AI-powered features on its platform.

??Piclo,?a London, UK-based?provider of software solutions for energy flexibility markets, raised an undisclosed amount in a funding round co-led by?EDP Ventures?along with?Clean Growth Fund?and?Future Energy Ventures.

???ALLCITY Network,?a Denver, CO-based?operator of multi-platform local sports networks, raised an undisclosed amount in?Series B?funding led by?TEGNA?with participation from?Mosaic General Partnership?and?Bullpen Capital.

???Skyfire Systems,?a San Francisco, CA-based?provider of a payment network for AI, raised?$8.5 million?in funding led by?Neuberger Berman, with participation from?Brevan Howard Digital,?Intersection Growth Partners,?and others.

???Admiral,?a NYC-based?visitor relationship management (VRM) company, raised?$19 million?in funding led by?Harbert Growth Partners?with participation from?Bridge Bank?and others.

???Onebrief,?a Honolulu, HI-based?provider of a software platform for military staff workflows and collaboration, raised an undisclosed amount in?Series B?funding, bringing its total funding to?$53 million. The round was led by?Human Capital?with participation from?9Yards Capital?and?Caffeinated Capital.

???AstroForge,?a Huntington Beach, CA-based?asteroid mining startup, raised?$40 million?in a?Series A?funding round led by?Nova Threshold?with participation from?776,?Initialized, and others.

???Your Money Line,?an Indianapolis, IN-based?provider of employee financial wellness benefits, raised?$4.5 million?in a?Series A?funding round led by?Allos Ventures?with participation from?First Trust Capital Partners,?CareSource, and others.

???Story Protocol,?a San Francisco, CA-based?IP-focused blockchain startup, raised?$80 million?in a?Series B?funding round led by?a16z, with participation from?Polychain?and others.

??Grid Status,?a Chicago, IL-based?modern data and analytics platform for the electric grid, raised?$8 million?in funding led by?Energize Capital?with participation from?Nat Friedman?and?Daniel Gross (NFDG Ventures), and others.

???XII Medical,?a Union City, CA-based?clinical-stage medical technology company, raised?$45 million?in?Series B?funding led by?Omega Funds?with participation from?Intuitive Ventures,?Cleveland Clinic,?Ajax Health, and others.

???SleekFlow,?a Singapore-based?provider of an omnichannel conversational AI suite for customer engagement, raised?$7 million?in?Series A+?funding led by?Atinum Investment?with participation from?Gobi Partners GBA,?Transcend Capital Partners, and?Moses Tsang.

???Lettuce Financial,?a San Francisco, CA-based?provider of automated accounting and tax solutions for solopreneurs, raised?$15 million?in?Series A?funding led by?Zeev Ventures.

???Great Many,?a NYC-based?company creating a dedicated platform for hair growth solutions, raised?$3.6 million?in?Pre-Seed?funding led by?BrandProject?with participation from?Midnight Venture Partners,?Tonic Ventures, and others.

???PreciseDx,?a NYC-based?innovator in AI-powered oncology diagnostics, raised?$20.7 million?in a?Series B?funding round led by?Eventide Asset Management?with participation from?Labcorp,?Quest Diagnostics, and?GenHenn Capital Venture.

???The Rounds,?a NYC-based?inventory management platform for recurring grocery and household essentials delivery, raised?$24 million?in a?Series B?funding round led by?Moderne Ventures.

???Fanton Fantasy Football,?a Tel Aviv, Israel-based?blockchain-based fantasy sports platform, raised?$1 million?in?Seed?funding led by?Animoca Brands, with participation from?Delphi Ventures,?Kenetic Capital, and others.

???Efficient Capital Labs,?a NYC-based?revenue-based financing provider, raised?$11 million?in?Series A?funding led by?QED Investors?and?645 Ventures?with participation from?Riverside,?Generalist,?FJ Labs, and?Eudemian Ventures.

???Human Longevity,?a San Francisco, CA-based?longevity-focused tech company, raised?$39.8 million?in a?Series B?funding round led by?TVM Capital Healthcare?with participation from?Panacea Venture?and?Emerging Technology Partners. The funds will accelerate AI-driven health risk and recommendation systems.

???Pitchit,?a San Francisco, CA-based?AI-powered lead qualification platform, raised?$2.5 million?in?Seed?funding led by?Silicon Road Ventures?with participation from?Gray Ventures,?Plug and Play, and?Alchemist Accelerator. The funds will be used to enhance AI capabilities and expand the platform.

???Workpay,?a Nairobi, Kenya-based?HR, payroll, and benefits platform provider, raised?$5 million?in?Series A?funding led by?Norrsken22?with participation from?Visa,?Y Combinator, and others. The funds will drive further expansion across Africa.

???Nadmed,?a Helsinki, Finland-based?biotech company developing NAD testing methods, raised?€3.5 million?in?Series A?funding led by?Nordic Science Investments?with participation from existing investors?Voima Ventures,?University of Helsinki Funds, and?Business Finland.

???Root Global,?a Berlin, Germany-based?provider of a climate operating system for the food and beverage industry, raised?€8 million?in?Seed?funding led by?Point Nine?with participation from?Project A,?HelloWorld, and?Arc Investors.

???Adelaide,?a NYC-based?company specializing in attention-based media quality measurement, raised?$1.4 million?in a?Seed Expansion?round led by?AperiamVentures?with participation from?GOAL Ventures,?Nishat Mehta,?BlueTree, and?Human Ventures.

???Depot,?a company focused on speeding up software builds by 40x, raised?$4.1 million?in funding led by?Felicis, with participation from?Y Combinator,?Aviso Ventures,?Tokyo Black, and others.

????Tilt,?a London, UK-based?live-shopping app, raised?$18 million?in a?Series A?funding round led by?Balderton Capital.

???Creatopy,?a Romania-developed, U.S.-based?ad automation platform powered by AI, raised?$10 million?in a?Series A?round led by?3VC?and?Point Nine.

???Arch Lending,?a NYC-based?crypto-backed loan provider, raised?$75 million?in funding led by?Morgan Creek Digital?and?Castle Island Ventures?with participation from?Galaxy Ventures,?BitGo Ventures, and others.

???Harmonyze?(formerly Legal Hat),?a NYC-based?AI platform aimed at increasing franchisor profit margins, raised over?$2 million?in?Pre-Seed?funding led by?Bowery Capital?with participation from?Focal.VC?and industry leaders.

???Siepe,?a Dallas, TX-based?provider of software and technology services for private credit and CLO managers, raised?$30 million?in?Series B?funding led by?WestCap.

???BeMe Health,?a Miami, FL-based?digital behavioral health startup, raised?$12.5 million?in funding led by?Flare Capital?and?Polaris Partners?with participation from?Fiore Ventures,?BCBS of Kansas, and the?California Health Care Foundation.

???Opkey,?a San Francisco, CA-based?provider of an AI-powered continuous test automation platform for enterprise systems, raised?$47 million?in a?Series B?funding round led by?PeakSpan Capital?with participation from existing investors.

???Revenew,?a platform for managing payments and optimizing margins for marketplaces, raised?$4.55 million?in funding led by?Fika Ventures, with participation from?Dash Fund?and?TTV Capital.

???TMRW,?a Miami-based?Bitcoin startup, raised?$1.3 million?in?Pre-Seed?funding led by?Maple VC?with participation from prominent Bitcoin investors.

???VividQ,?a Cambridge, UK-based?deep tech innovator in computational holography, raised an additional?$7.5 million?in?Series A?funding, bringing its total to over $30 million. The round was led by?Foresight Group, with participation from?GameTech Ventures,?Ruttenberg Gordon Investments, and others.

???Deep Fission,?a Berkeley, CA-based?nuclear energy company, raised?$4 million?in a?funding round?led by?8VC.

???Otto,?a Seattle, WA-based?AI-powered travel agent for business travelers, raised?$6 million?in?Seed funding?led by?Madrona Ventures?with participation from?Direct Travel, and industry angels.

???Flowit,?a Zurich, Switzerland-based?digital coaching platform for personnel development, raised?€4.2 million?in?Seed funding?co-led by?Vi Partners?and?Alstin Capital.

???Fabrication Bazar,?a New Delhi, India-based?manufacturing platform, raised?$3 million?in?Pre-Series A funding?led by?Physis Capital?with participation from?ICMG?and?Inflection Point Ventures.

We will be back same time next week to report on how the month of August rounded out.

Until then.

John Gannon // Venture5 Media

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