Venture capital firms have pledged not to take money from Russia or China, and Databricks has raised a massive round
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This week has been full of news, probably because it’s also the last “real” week of 2024. This is another way to say goodbye for now, and see you in 2025!
The most interesting startup stories of the week
This week brought us some mergers and acquisitions, but also some reminders that it’s always worth looking closely at things, whether it’s potential LPs or glossy announcements.
Clean capital: More than 20 venture capital firms, many investing in defense technology, Signed a clean capital certificateThey themselves attest that they have not and will not take money from US geopolitical rivals such as China and Russia.
Those who do not have: AI hype distorts aggregated venture capital data. Digging deeper, the fundraising landscape is Radically different for non-AI startupsMany who raised a Series A round 18 months ago will likely face challenges raising Series B funding, Brian Hirsch, co-founder of Tribeca Venture Partners, told TechCrunch.
Big deal with warnings: Nuclear startup Oklo, which is backed by Sam Altman, has signed an agreement A large but non-binding agreement with data center operator Switch. The deal is also subject to the startup receiving approval from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission after its previous application was rejected in 2022.
AI productivity: Grammar is Get the Productivity Startup Code To expand its scope. In an unusual move, Coda CEO and co-founder Shishir Mehrotra will become Grammarly’s new CEO, replacing Rahul Roy Chowdhury, who will move into an advisor role.
Informed answers: Confusion Carbon gaineda Seattle-based startup that connects LLMs to external data before they create an answer. This could help Perplexity leverage “internal databases, cloud storage, or document repositories,” the company said.
Most interesting fundraiser this week
As startups rush to reveal the latest fundraising news before the holidays, there have been plenty of deal announcements this week.
Mammoth pre-IPO round:Data templates Raised $10 billion In one of the largest rounds in venture capital history. The giant’s Series J may be its last fundraising campaign before its upcoming IPO; But although its CEO is not ruling it out for 2025, it could be the case It will also be in 2026He said.
Africa’s newest unicorn: South African fintech group Tyme Group has raised the profile $250 million Series D round. Led by Nu Holdings, the parent company of Latin American fintech Nubank, Tyme was valued at $1.5 billion.
Ring maker: Finnish wearable startup Oura has teased $200 million Series D funding round With a value of $5.2 billion. It included participation from Fidelity Management and glucose device manufacturer Dexcom. With which Oura recently entered into a partnership.
Travel is back: Canadian travel startup Hostaway, which makes software for vacation rental operators, It raised $365 million With a value of $925 million. General Atlantic led the round and will help the company double growth.
Momentum for accessibility: Evinced, which helps businesses comply with online accessibility requirements, Raised a $55 million Series C round To expand into Europe, where new regulations will come into effect in June.
Rapid financing: Artificial intelligence startup Decart, which is based in San Francisco but has operations in Israel, has secured the security $32 million in new financing At a valuation of $500 million, just two months after coming out of stealth.
Find money: Agave Games, the Turkish startup behind the highly entertaining mobile game Find the Cat, It raised its first funding round of $18 million It will be used to build his team and work on upcoming titles.
The most interesting venture capital and funds news this week
Pendulum swing: Marcy Venture Partners, Jay-Z’s venture capital firm, has merged with Pendulum Opportunities To form MarcyPen Capital Partnerswhich now has $900 million in assets under management.
Go behind the scenes: Backstage Capital founder Arlan Hamilton announced it was Move into an advisory role; 360 Venture Collective will “acquire a significant stake in Backstage’s management entity” and join the joint management of the operators and provide capital to the company, which has previously faced criticism And conflicts.
Vote of confidence: G2 Venture Partners, a spin-off from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers that invests in climate and sustainability startups, is raising… $750 million for the third fund That would confirm LP’s upside for his thesis.
Last but not least
We leave you with a list The 51 most disruptive startups of 2024 – A team effort with contributions from many members of the TechCrunch team. Go read it, and happy holidays!
