Latest Startups & Entrepreneurship News
Global Negotiators Secure Narrow E-Commerce Tariffs Agreement
19 major trading partners agreed not to impose customs duties on electronic transmissions after WTO failed to renew the global moratorium lapsed in March. This creates uncertainty for startups selling digital goods globally as other nations may impose tariffs.
Moonshot AI Closes $2B Round at $20B Valuation
Beijing-based Moonshot AI's funding surged to $20B valuation after a $2B round on May 7, driven by Kimi model's success and ARR doubling to $200M in April. It marks China’s most funded LLM startup, up from $4.3B six months ago.
Sierra Raises $950M for Customer Experience AI at $15B Valuation
San Francisco-based Sierra secured $950M led by Google Ventures and Tiger Global for AI-driven customer experience tools. It's the week's largest US funding round.
Blitzy Secures $200M for Autonomous Software Development AI
Cambridge, MA-based Blitzy raised $200M at $1.4B valuation led by Northzone for its AI platform automating software development. Ranked among top 10 weekly deals.
Corgi Insurance Lands $160M Series B for AI-Native Platform
San Francisco's Corgi Insurance raised $160M at $1.3B valuation led by TCV, targeting startups with its AI insurance platform. Part of week's biggest rounds.
AI Fuels New American Startup Boom with Rising Formations
US business formations surge driven by AI ventures, with early-stage deals accelerating and large rounds now 30% of activity. Apollo's Torsten Slok highlights transformative impact.
Panthalassa Raises $140M for Ocean-Powered AI Computing
Portland-based Panthalassa secured $140M Series B led by Peter Thiel to run AI inference at sea using wave-generated power. Featured in top funding rounds.
SDSU Partners with Launch Factory for Deeptech Startups
San Diego State University teams with Launch Factory venture studio to commercialize research into venture-backed startups, offering office hours and investment support. Aims to spawn transformative San Diego businesses.
Tessera Labs Gets $60M for Enterprise ERP AI Platform
San Jose-based Tessera Labs raised $60M led by Andreessen Horowitz for AI tools enhancing enterprise ERP systems and data. Among week's top 10 deals.
Astrocade Secures $56M for AI Game Creation Platform
Los Altos' Astrocade raised $56M including Series B from Sequoia and Series A from Sea for its AI platform to build and play games. Rounds week's top 10.
Marc Lore's Wonder Group Scales Restaurants with AI and Cloud Kitchens
Serial entrepreneur Marc Lore discusses Wonder's use of AI, robotics, and 'cloud kitchens' to scale restaurants like software, launching $10/month platform. Acquired GrubHub for delivery tech.