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This week we’re taking a look at an AI startup that wishes to assist folks get inventive with video; Kudos, which raised $3 million to assist eliminate diaper rash; and VCs backing different VCs.
Most fascinating startup tales from the week
Buyers maintain pouring {dollars} and euros into startups that may assist defend the world from aggressive nations. Helsing, a protection startup that makes use of AI to enhance battlefield choices, has raised €450 million ($487 million). A few of that cash will go towards a brand new entity in Estonia to guard the Baltic states from its harmful neighbor, Russia. Based on Bloomberg’s sources, Helsing’s valuation jumped from $1.85 billion final 12 months to $5.4 billion. In the meantime, some U.S. enterprise funds with protection tech methods are arming themselves with new varieties of buyers: veterans and ex-Division of Protection officers.
Talking of hovering valuations, the newest numbers from PitchBook knowledge present that startup costs have hit an all-time excessive in 2024. Is it time to rejoice in regards to the finish of the downturn? Not so quick. Seems that costs are up just for one of the best corporations. Everybody else remains to be struggling to boost capital or is discovering a approach to obfuscate poor valuations.
Turning AI foe into buddy: Whereas Hollywood artists could also be nervous about AI tech stealing their livelihoods, DreamFlare, a startup based by a doc filmmaker and an ex-Googler, desires creators to make extra content material and a pleasant earnings with AI. The studio will assist animation artists work alongside an skilled inventive crew on story improvement after which will distribute the movies by its on-line platform.
Draw your nervousness away: Fears of conflict and the potential for AI changing folks’s jobs are solely including to the present psychological well being disaster. Scribble Journey created an app that helps customers discover their feelings by artwork remedy.
Most fascinating fundraises this week
The U.S. is brief on tech and different high-skilled professionals. Importing that expertise from overseas is likely one of the solutions. However getting a piece visa accepted by the U.S. Division of State is probably not only a operate of restricted slots. Immigration legal professionals typically give mistaken recommendation to people seeking to work within the nation. The Kyrgyzstan-born, Harvard-educated Aizada Marat based Alma, an AI-powered authorized tech startup that hastens and simplifies the visa obtainment course of for technologists, founders and researchers.
Sending cash overseas: Nala, an African funds startup, raised a $40 million Sequence A spherical led by Acrew Capital. The massive spherical reveals that worldwide remittances may very well be an enormous enterprise.
Knowledge-powered diagnoses: Busy docs don’t at all times have time to evaluate each knowledge level in a affected person’s chart, often resulting in missed diagnoses. Regard, a startup that simply raised $61 million at a $350 million valuation, does this for physicians with the assistance of AI.
Bye-bye, diaper rash: Child not sleeping effectively? She or he might hate the sensation of plastic on the bends of their diaper. Give Kudos, a startup that traces its diapers with 100% cotton and raised $3 million, a attempt.
Most fascinating fund information this week
Index Ventures restocks: Model identify funds appear to have no downside elevating enormous funds today. Index Ventures introduced $2.3 billion in contemporary capital. The agency’s fundraise is barely smaller than its earlier classic, however Index says it’s an applicable quantity for the present market.
Look to the celebrities: German-based Alpine Area Ventures has raised a $184 million (€170 million) fund to spend money on corporations serving the area trade within the U.S. and Europe.
VCs backing VCs: Kearny Jackson raised a $65 million third fund from pre-seed and seed B2B SaaS and fintech infrastructure startups. The agency’s LPs embody Sequoia, Bain Capital Ventures, Menlo Ventures and Marc Andreessen.
Final however not least
Arianna Huffington teamed up with Sam Altman on a brand new well being teaching startup, Thrive AI Well being. The corporate is backed by Huffington’s wellness firm Thrive and the OpenAI Startup Fund. The startup will supply an AI-powered assistant that nudges folks to steer a more healthy life-style. The query is, in fact, will or not it’s as profitable as a human coach in getting people to train and eat their greens? One other query is how a lot funding Thrive AI Well being obtained to develop its capabilities.
