Wall Street is scratching its head over Iambic Therapeutics, an AI biotech that plans to go public this week.

• Either it's the bargain of a lifetime or the private markets are wildly overvaluing one of its top comps, Alphabet-backed Isomorphic Labs.

Catch up quick: Iambic has developed a platform that it believes will be able to identify, develop and commercialize drugs using AI — a feat that thus far has been more dreamed than demonstrated.

• It has a cancer candidate in early clinical trials with over 100 patients, and two more Phase 1 trials in the near-term pipeline.

By the numbers: Iambic would raise around $160 million at a $900 million valuation were it to price at the top of its IPO range, after having raised around $350 million from venture capital firms.

• Around $60 million of the IPO shares would be purchased by Stan Druckenmiller's Duquesne Family Office and existing investor Cathie Wood's ARK Investment Management.

The intrigue: One of the companies identified by Iambic as a competitor is Isomorphic, led by Google DeepMind co-founder Demis Hassabis. It has not announced any clinical trials.

• Last Thursday — the same day that Iambic launched its IPO roadshow — there was a Bloomberg report that Isomorphic "is in early talks to raise new funds at a valuation of at least $40 billion."

Behind the scenes: A source tells me that Iambic was floored by the Isomorphic report, and discussed whether or not to raise its target range.

• No word yet on if that will happen, but don't be surprised if it does.

Zoom in: The valuation disconnect seems to be multi-pronged.

• First, there seems to be a Google/Demis Hassabis premium on Isomorphic. Even if Alphabet board member and Nobel Prize winner Frances Arnold is on Iambic's scientific advisory board.
• Second, Iambic's founding team is viewed as more bio-first, whereas Isomorphic's is viewed as more AI-first. And we all know which one investors currently value more.
• Third, the public markets last year got burned by computational drug discovery setbacks at companies like Recursion and Schrödinger. Iambic would argue that it has an entirely different platform, and promising early data, but it must leapfrog memories that Isomorphic's private market investors don't share.

The bottom line: Biotechs keep going public despite a narrowed IPO window, but pricing remains an open question.

Koch Equity Development has agreed to acquire Getty Images via a prepackaged bankruptcy.

Why it's the BFD: Getty is the king of newswire photography, but its stock image business has been undercut by AI-generated images.

Catch up quick: Getty in June scrapped a $3.7 billion agreement to buy rival Shutterstock (NYSE: SSTK), after U.K. antitrust regulators insisted that Getty divest Shutterstock's editorial business.

• Getty then hired Guggenheim Securities to explore strategic alternatives. Three months later, its shares were delisted from the NYSE.

By the numbers: Koch and members of the Getty family will invest $533 million in equity, while lenders agreed to retire around $270 million of outstanding debt.

The bottom line: "The company was founded in 1995 by Mark Getty, an heir to the Getty Oil fortune, and South African businessman Jonathan Klein. Through a series of acquisitions and partnerships it came to control some of the most iconic photographic images of all time." — Josie Reich, Bloomberg

• TypeSafe AI (dba Jev), an SF-based composable AI startup led by OpenAI vet Diogo Almeida, raised around $870m at a $7.5b valuation. A16z led, joined by insiders DCVC and Sequoia Capital. axios.link/3ViVy4J

• Oxide Computer, an Emeryville, Calif.-based on-premise cloud computing company, raised $445m in Series D funding. Eclipse led, joined by US Innovative Technology Fund, Riot Ventures, Jane Street, Atreides Management, and AMD Ventures. axios.link/3VLqg6Q

⚡ Atlas Atomics, a nuclear startup cofounded by Vivek Ramaswamy, reportedly raised $400m at a $1.9b valuation. General Catalyst led, joined by a16z. axios.link/4y9gusw

🚑 Suki, a Redwood City, Calif.-based ambient scribe startup, raised $90m in Series E funding, per Axios Pro. Healthier Capital led, joined by Crosslink Capital and Hercules Capital, Hedosophia, Venrock, Flare Capital Partners, and Philips. axios.link/47linaO

🚑 Sabi, a Palo Alto-based brain-computer interface startup, raised $50m in seed funding. Khosla Ventures led, joined by Accel, Initialized Capital, DST Global, and Kevin Weil. axios.link/4ASmg4t

🚑 Scarlet, a London-based certification body for tech-enabled medical devices, raised $50m in Series B funding. Headline led, joined by Notion Capital and insiders Atomico, Creandum, Kindred Capital, and Entrepreneurs First. axios.link/3VGGgqM

• Mistlabs, maker of an AI app that always listens to the user, raised $26m led by Luminous Ventures. axios.link/4ykLQwK

⚡ Epyr, a French industrial heat storage startup, raised €15m in Series A funding. SlateVC led, joined by AENU, Daphni, WEPA Ventures, OVNI Capital and Aurum Impact. axios.link/4yHUiH9

• Ubitium, a German universal computing startup, raised $14m in seed funding. Ibex Investors led, joined by OpenOcean, KBC Focus Fund, Runa Capital, and Inflection. axios.link/4etAcrY

• Clueso, an agentic product demo video platform, raised $10m in Series A funding. Dharana Capital led, joined by Founders Future, Neotribe Ventures, YC, and f7 Ventures. axios.link/4ym2tbc

🌎 CarbonFarm, a French rice-farming decarbonization startup, raised €7m in Series A funding. Colom Impact led, joined by Proparco, Suma Capital, elea, Working Capital Fund, Albo and Bpifrance, Serena, Makesense, and Techmind. axios.link/4ylAKHJ

• Pathways, an NYC-based environmental reporting platform for manufacturers, raised $6m in seed funding. Sorenson Capital led, joined by Pi Labs, Zacua Ventures, Blue Lion, Positive Ventures, Great Wave, Titan Ventures, and Heidelberg Materials. pathwaysai.io

• Intellivisa, a clearance engine for international travel, raised $3m in pre-seed funding. Mu Ventures and Incisive Ventures led, joined by Uncommon Denominator, Recursive Ventures, P2S, and United Airlines Ventures. intellivisa.ai

• Winverse AI, a Chinese developer of AI for robotics, is in talks to raise "tens of millions of dollars" in seed funding at a $400m valuation led by DeepSeek, per Bloomberg. axios.link/3W62tP7

• Advantage Distribution Holdings, an HVAC platform backed by Tigertail Capital Partners and D1 Capital Partners, acquired Badger Metals, a distributor of HVAC equipment, parts, and supplies in Wisconsin. advantage-distribution.com

• Ardian and Oak Holdings are exploring a bid for INWIT (Milan: INW), Italy's largest mobile telco towers firm, per Reuters. axios.link/3W1my9e

• Aurelius agreed to buy the Enterprise Campus Edge business of Nokia (NYSE: NOK). axios.link/4yfU49i

• Bregal Milestone acquired a majority stake in Asolvi, a Norwegian provider of field services software. axios.link/4B4KtEL

🚑 BlackRock signed a joint venture with Humana (NYSE: HUM) to manage and operate nearly 150 CareWell Senior Primary Care clinics. As part of the deal, BlackRock's HPS Investment Partners will acquire Walsh Carson Anderson & Stowe's current equity stake, valued at around $2.8b. axios.link/4z4X5ut

• Dastex, backed by The Riverside Co., acquired Abovo, a Swiss distributor of cleanroom consumables. dastex.de

• GTCR and Elliott Investment Management are in advanced talks to buy car insurance software provider CCC Intelligent Solutions (Nasdaq: CCC), per Bloomberg. axios.link/4dBhsqp

• HR Path, a French portfolio company of Ardian, acquired SnapAI, a provider of regulatory compliance solutions. axios.link/4yOEGBQ

• Innovative Refrigeration Systems, backed by CCMP Growth, acquired QuickFreeze, a Fort Wayne, Ind.-based maker of blast-chilling products. axios.link/4zsllGo

• Ithaca Holdings is in talks to acquire dating app Bumble (Nasdaq: BMBL) for around $1b, per the WSJ. Blackstone holds around a 14% stake, stemming from its 2019 buyout. axios.link/4jTpRsY

⚡ One Equity Partners agreed to buy IT group Nexora from Ireland's DCC Energy (LSE: DCC) for $725m. axios.link/4e504KG

🚑 Sopris Capital acquired Blackford Analysis, a U.K. provider of AI orchestration for medical imaging, from Bayer. axios.link/4ygcbMm

• AirTrunk, an Australian data center operator owned by Blackstone and CPP Investment Board, is delaying a $1.5b REIT IPO until 2027, per Bloomberg. axios.link/4hKJPET

🚑 Aspen Neuroscience, a San Diego-based developer of stem cell therapies for Parkinson's disease, filed for an IPO. It plans to list on the Nasdaq (ASPE) and has raised $380m from OrbiMed (13.1% pre-IPO stake), Arch Venture Partners (12.3%), Gilead Sciences (8.4%), Frazier Life Sciences (6.8%), QIA (6.8%), ADIA (6.6%), Medical Excellence Capital (5.5%), Revelation Partners, S32, Axon Ventures, Lyfe Capital, and LifeForce Capital. axios.link/4B3GVTj

🚑 Bambusa Therapeutics, a Boston-based developer of bispecific antibodies for inflammatory diseases, filed for an IPO. The Phase 2 company plans to list on the Nasdaq (BBTX) and has raised $142m from firms like Salvia (24.3% pre-IPO stake), RA Capital (11.3%), BVF (8.1%), Dawn Biopharma (6.2%), Redmile Group, and Invus Group. axios.link/4jTuDXn

⚡ Base Electron, a power infrastructure company, said that it confidentially filed for an IPO. axios.link/4B3vw5O

🚑 City Therapeutics, a Cambridge, Mass.-based developer of RNAi medicines, set IPO terms to 9.7m shares at $17-$19. It would have a $1b fully diluted value at the midpoint and plans to list on the Nasdaq (CTY). The company has raised $240m from Arch Venture Partners (35% pre-IPO stake), Fidelity (10%), Invus (8.4%), Viking Global Investors (5.2%), Sofinnova Investments, Casdin Capital, NYBC Ventures, Slate Path Capital, Rock Springs Capital, Regeneron Ventures, and AN Ventures. axios.link/47glXD3

• OPay, an Africa-focused payments company founded by Norway's Opera, filed for an IPO that Renaissance Capital estimates could raise $500m. It plans to list on the NYSE (OPAY) and reports $91m of net income on $467m in revenue for the first half of 2026. The Lagos-based company has raised over $270m from firms like SoftBank, IDG Capital, HSG, GSR Ventures, and Source Code Capital. axios.link/3TO9Biw

🚑 TRex Bio, a South SF-based developer of precision immunoregulatory medicines, raised $117m in its IPO. It priced at the low end of its $14-$16 range and listed on the Nasdaq (TRXB). TRex had raised over $220m from firms like Eli Lilly (which is buying back in via the IPO), Janus Henderson, Balyasny Asset Management, Affinity Asset Advisors, Alexandria Venture Investments, Avego BioScience Capital, Delos Capital, J&J Innovation, Pfizer Ventures, Polaris Partners, and SV Health Investors. axios.link/4rKpAdQ

🚑 vVardis, a Swiss dental products maker backed by Apollo and OrbiMed, filed for an IPO. It plans to list on the NYSE (VVVV) and reports a $28m net loss on $29m in revenue for the first half of 2026. axios.link/3TVIVfz

• Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) is in talks to buy Decart, a developer of world models and chip optimization software, for around $7b, per the WSJ. Decart previously held sale talks with Anthropic and has raised over $450m in VC funding from Radical Ventures, Benchmark, Sequoia Capital, Aleph VC, and Zeev Ventures. axios.link/4ifJsCu

• Carnegie Learning acquired Ethiqly, a San Diego-based digital writing hub created in collaboration with IDEO, from Owl Ventures. axios.link/4Bg81H9

🥗 Crisp & Green is buying 33 restaurants from Coors family-owned Salad Collective, and the Coors family will become Crisp & Green's first outside investor, per Axios Pro. axios.link/4s79488

• Eliyan, a Santa Clara, Calif.-based chip connection startup, has held sale talks with Arm, per The Information. It's raised $252m, most recently at a $1b valuation, from firms like Seligman Ventures, Cisco, Lumentum, 1789 Capital, and Intel Capital. axios.link/4eiAt0P

• IonQ (NYSE: IONQ) agreed to buy Elisity, a San Jose, Calif. provider of identity-based network microsegmentation, for up to $1.3b in stock, per the WSJ. Elisity raised $78m from Insight Partners, Chevron Technology Ventures, TCV, Atlantic Bridge Capital, Rain Capital, Two Bear Capital, AllegisCyber, Hyperlink Ventures, and SaaS Ventures. axios.link/4zv0Fh7

• United Group, a Dutch telco owned by BC Partners, hired JPMorgan to find a buyer for its Croatian business at around a €700m price, per Bloomberg. axios.link/47NDbb3

Albertsons (NYSE: ACI) is asking a Delaware court to force Kroger (NYSE: KR) to pay more than $9b for their busted merger, arguing that Kroger didn't use its "best efforts" to secure regulatory approval.

🚀 CSG, a Czech arms maker, acquired a 9.5% stake in Canadian space-tech MDA Space (NYSE: MDA). axios.link/4hRr5lT

⚡ Drilling Tools International (Nasdaq: DTI) agreed to acquire Saltire, a Scottish provider of rental drilling tools, for around $80m in cash and stock. axios.link/4hFJl2W

• Lineage (NYSE: LINE) hired Drake Star to sell transportation management system subsidiary Turvo, per Axios Pro. axios.link/3TY9X5Y

🚑 Roche (SWX: ROP) signed an obesity drug licensing deal with VC-backed Chinese biotech Rona Therapeutics, including $100m upfront and up to $1.06b in earnouts. axios.link/47ctL8W

🚑 Solventum (NYSE: SOLV) is seeking to sell its Health Information Systems business for between $5.5b and $7b, per Axios Pro. axios.link/4hWUv2f

🚑 Steris (NYSE: STE) agreed to buy Xodus Medical, a New Kensington, Pa.-based maker of surgical products, for $2.1b. axios.link/4B3oDBx

• H.I.G. Capital is targeting $2.6b for its second infrastructure fund, per Bloomberg. axios.link/4ihX14c

• SoftBank is in talks to raise a $100b fund focused on AI, per the FT. axios.link/4zoLQwz

• Harry Brun joined Stifel as a managing director of tech banking, per Financial News. He previously was with Raymond James. axios.link/4duHThq

• Daniel Franke joined Cambium Capital as a general partner. He previously was with M Ventures. axios.link/4s1ajFK

• Sebastian Inger joined Searchlight Capital Partners as a London-based partner. He previously was with Investcorp. axios.link/4jR1Jan

• Sonya Li and Imran Ahmed joined Ancient Capital as a managing director and chief investment officer, respectively. Li previously was at Blue Owl Capital and Ahmed was with Silver Rock Capital Partners. axios.link/4hLALyf

🚑 Krishna Yeshwant is retiring as a partner and co-head of life sciences at GV, where he'll continue to serve as a managing partner emeritus. axios.link/4s7bzHy

Starbucks yesterday said it has no plans to buy Chipotle, sending the coffee chain's stock up and the burrito business' stock down.

• The FT had previously reported on a possible deal, which would have been the largest-ever restaurant sector merger.