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This week’s newsletter is about startups, but it’s also about big tech companies expanding their reach, both through acquisitions and investments.
The most interesting startup stories of the week
With tech IPOs still rare in the US, M&A dominated exit news this week. Plus we have a new launch to watch.
Burning in the street markets: Blaize, an AI chip startup founded by Intel engineers in 2011 and focused on cutting-edge applications, went public on Tuesday after announcing its intention to do so through a SPAC the day before.
Buy now, pay now: Amazon is set to buy Indian startup BNPL Axio for over $150 million, according to sources. This will help the e-commerce giant accelerate its push into financial services in India, which is one of its fastest growing markets.
Car sales: eBay plans to acquire Caramel, a startup that helps car sellers and buyers complete the final steps of the transaction. It previously acquired Cargigi, an advertising and marketing technology company for car dealerships, as well as UK classifieds site Motors.co.uk.
Moody’s buys Cape: Moody’s has agreed to acquire geospatial AI startup Cape Analytics for an undisclosed sum. This will enable the financial services company to build a real estate database that it plans to use to provide local risk information to its insurance clients.
An idea for AGI: High-profile AI researcher François Chollet has teamed up with Zapier co-founder and head of AI Mike Knoop to launch Ndea, an AI research and science lab that wants to “develop and operate” artificial general intelligence (AGI).
The most interesting VC and funding news this week
Mammoth ambitions: Colossal Biosciences has raised a $200 million Series C funding round at a colossal $10.2 billion valuation with the equally ambitious ambition of bringing back the woolly mammoth and two other extinct species.
Take off: Fast-growing space infrastructure startup Loft Orbital has raised $170 million in Series C funding, led by Tikehau Capital and Axial Partners. He declined to disclose its valuation, but this is more capital in one round than the total $160 million it has raised to date.
Rise of avatars: Synthesia, a UK startup whose AI technology helps companies create avatar-based videos, has closed a $180 million Series D funding round led by NEA at a $2.1 billion valuation.
GPT for biology: French AI startup Bioptimus has raised $41 million to develop a foundational AI model for biology trained specifically for downstream biological applications.
Digital switch: With ambitions to become the largest fintech startup in the healthcare industry, Berlin-based startup Nelly has raised $51 million in Series B funding to help more medical practices switch to a digital workflow.
Quantum acceleration: Quantum computing startup SEEQC has raised a $30 million Series A round led by Booz Allen and NordicNinja to accelerate the commercialization of its chips and improve their capabilities.
Turning: Intel announced plans to spin off its corporate venture arm, Intel Capital, into a standalone fund, which will begin operating independently in the second half of 2025 with Intel as an “anchor investor.”
Founders and investors: Powerset, the investment program co-founded by AngelList alum Jake Zeller that acts as a kind of decentralized venture fund, will give five to 10 founders $1 million to invest in other startups.
Nvidia’s AI empire: Just days after TechCrunch rounded up Nvidia’s startup investment, another one has been added: MetAI, a Taiwanese company that creates Al-powered digital twins.
Last but not least
After more than two years of interviewing founders for TechCrunch’s recently concluded Found podcast, Rebecca Szkutak listened to their startup advice. In this post, he shared the five sentences that stood out the most. Some are controversial — “It’s better not to be first” — and all are worth reading.
