Andreessen Horowitz is not eating the private equity world. At least not yet.

Driving the news: The venture capital giant recently disclosed in an SEC filing that it "intends to manage" a fund to "invest in the private equity asset class."

• This generated all sorts of buzz, but there's less here than meets the eye.

Zoom in: The filing was made via a16z Perennial, which the firm originally launched to manage money for its own general partners.

• It later expanded out to portfolio company founders and others in the tech ecosystem, basically turning it into a multi-family office.
• Some a16z Perennial clients use it as a full-service, outsourced CIO; handling everything from investments to tax/estate planning to spend management.
• Others use it in a more limited manner, usually to access venture capital or other asset classes that have high barriers to entry. On the VC side, this includes evergreen access to a16z funds.

The latest: Private equity is the latest asset class addition to the a16z Perennial mix, with interested clients eventually gaining access to a curated group of managers.

• But a16z itself won't be one of those managers, as a source says it has no plans to raise a direct private equity fund.

The bottom line: A16z has participated in a few large buyouts, most notably Skype (its first-ever deal) and Twitter/X.

• It's also evolved from its original investment strategy, which was to take passive startup stakes without joining boards of directors. So an eventual move into private equity could eventually happen, but this "fund" isn't it.

Highlander Partners has quietly merged two portfolio companies that make drones and the weapons meant to knock them out of the sky: Dzyne (Fairfax, Va.) and High Point Aerotechnologies (Dallas), Axios' Hope King and Colin Demarest report.

Why it's the BFD: This reflects increased government demand for autonomous defense tech, driven by both the global AI race and lessons learned from the Russia-Ukraine war.

• Private market investors have taken notice.

Behind the scenes: Former U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr is advising Dzyne, which was technically the acquiring company, making him one of several Trump administration alumni to work there.

• He tells Axios that he'll help identify law enforcement opportunities, "particularly on the border."

Self-promotion alert: Subscribe to our upcoming Future of Defense newsletter.

🎬 A24, an entertainment studio whose titles include "Everything Everywhere All at Once" and "Euphoria," raised an undisclosed amount of new funding led by Thrive Capital.

• Word is that it was around $100 million at a 40% premium to the company's $2.5b valuation back in 2022, when it raised $225m led by Stripes. It's unclear how much is primary vs. secondary capital.
• Thrive's Josh Kushner will join the board of A24, which in 2021 tried to sell for up to $3b but couldn't find takers.

• Creatio, a no-code CRM and workflow automation platform based in Boston, raised $200m at a $1.2b valuation. Sapphire Ventures led, and was joined by StepStone Group and insiders Volition Capital and Horizon Capital. axios.link/3XM3PgC

🌎 Samsara Eco, an Australian maker of fossil-free polymer resins, raised A$100m. Temasek and Main Sequenceco-led, and were joined by insiders DCVC, Hitachi Venture, Lululemon, Titanium Ventures, and Wollemi Capital. axios.link/4cxkZTm

• Fetcherr, an Israeli pricing, inventory and publishing platform, raised $90m in Series B funding led by Battery Ventures. axios.link/45Fw8zj

• Klarity, an SF document review startup, raised $70m in Series B funding. Nat Friedman and Daniel Gross co-led, and were joined by Scale Venture Partners, Tola Capital, Picus Capital, Invus Capital, and YC. axios.link/4cBnGmW

• K-ID, a kids safety and compliance technology platform for games, raised $45m in Series A funding co-led by a16z and Lightspeed, per Axios Pro. axios.link/3KXJf5l

🚑 Form Health, a Boston provider of obesity care, raised $38m in Series B funding. Sound Ventures led, and was joined by M13, SignalFire, and Next View Ventures. formhealth.co

• Conduit, an on-chain compute startup, raised $37m in Series A funding. Haun Ventures and Paradigm co-led, and were joined by Robot Ventures, Credibly Neutral, Coinbase Ventures, and Bankless Ventures. conduit.xyz

• Coder, an Austin, Texas-based developer platform, raised $35m in Series B extension funding. Georgian led, and was joined by Uncork Capital, Notable Capital, and Redpoint Ventures. axios.link/3KVPgQ6

🚑 Boston Oncology Arabia, a Saudi maker of bio-generic drugs, raised $35m from TVM Capital Healthcare. bostononcology.com

• Sensi.ai, a provider of virtual monitoring for elder home care agencies, raised $31m in Series B funding. Insight Partners and Zeev Ventures co-led, and were joined by insiders Entrée Capital, Flint Capital, Jibe Ventures, and Secret Chord Ventures. axios.link/4cG6exX

• Rainforest, a startup that embeds payment processing into other software, raised $20m in Series A funding. Matrix Partners led, and was joined by Accel, Infinity Ventures, BoxGroup, The Fintech Fund, Tech Square Ventures, and Ardent Venture Partners. axios.link/3xCMr3p

🌎 Climate X, a London startup that assesses climate risks of physical assets, raised $18m in Series A funding. GV led, and was joined by Pale Blue Dot, CommerzVentures, A/O, Blue Wire Capital, PT1, Unconventional Ventures, and Western Technology Investment. axios.link/3xCxbUb

🚑 Adonis, a New York-based health care revenue cycle automation startup, raised $31m in Series B funding. Point72 led, and was joined by Kin Ventures and insiders General Catalyst, Bling Capital and Max Ventures. axios.link/4ccOVo8

• Norm Ai, a New York-based regulatory AI platform, raised $27m in Series A funding. Coatue led, and was joined by Bain Capital Ventures, Blackstone, New York Life Ventures, Citi Ventures, TIAA Ventures, and Tony James. axios.link/3RIuU0z

• Payabil, a Miami-based provider of payments infrastructure for software companies, raised $20m in Series A funding. QED Investors led, and was joined by insiders TTV Capital, Fika Ventures, and Bling Capital. payabil.com

• Banca AideXa, an Italian banking and lending startup for SMBs, raised €16m from ConfCommercio. axios.link/45D4dAc

• Compredict, a German provider of virtual sensors for cars, raised $15m in Series B funding. Toyota's Woven Capital led, and was joined by Shift4Good. compredict.ai

🚑 Ocon Therapeutics, an Israeli women's health-focused drug delivery and medical device company, raised $10m led by RH Capital. axios.link/3RBHsGP

🌎 Travertine Technologies, a Boulder, Colo.-based green chemicals producer and carbon-removal firm, raised $8.5m. Holcim led, and was joined by Grantham Foundation, Clean Energy Ventures, and Bidra Innovation Ventures. travertinetech.com

🌎 Sirona Technologies, a Brussels-based direct air capture startup, raised €6m in seed funding. LocalGlobe and XAnge co-led, and were joined by Look Up Ventures, Satgana, Voyagers Climate-Tech Fund, Syndicate One, and Renaud Visage. axios.link/3zia6qx

🚑 Jogo Health, a New York med tech startup focused on chronic pain and neuromuscular disorders, raised $5.5m led by Hourglass Ventures. axios.link/4cyCJhn

• Daytona, an open source development environment manager, raised $5m led by Upfront Ventures. daytona.io

• SoSoValue, a Singaporean crypto financial research startup, raised $4.2m in seed funding from HongShan, GSR Markets, Alumni Ventures, CoinSummer Labs, and One Piece Labs. sosovalue.com

• Lost In, a new travel media brand, raised $4m led by MaC Venture Capital, per Axios Pro. axios.link/4eEhEE0

• Valpas, a Finnish bedbug control startup, raised €4m in seed funding. Zenith VC led, and was joined by Icebreaker VC, Finnish Industry Investment, Canon Marketing Japan MIRAI Fund, Activum SG Ventures, Houghton Street Ventures, Rockaway Ventures, and Morrow Ventures. axios.link/4bArpAB

• Wilya, a Mechanicsburg, Pa., provider of HR SaaS for manufacturing and supply chain companies, raised $4m in seed funding. Ironspring Ventures led, and was joined by Schematic Ventures, Plug & Play Ventures, Iron Prairie Ventures, Motivate Ventures, and 25Madison. wilya.com

• Smashing, an online content curation startup from Goodreads co-founder Otis Chandler, raised $3.4m in seed funding from True Ventures, Blockchange, Offline Ventures, Advancit Capital, and Power of N Ventures. axios.link/3XF3Y5M

• Tengo, a French platform for public-sector procurement, raised €3m led by Point Nine. axios.link/4eEbaox

• Allora Labs, a decentralized AI network, raised $3m from Archetype, Delphi Ventures, CMS Holdings, ID Theory, and DCF God. axios.link/3zbTlgm

• Foray Biosciences, a Cambridge, Mass., biomanufacturing startup, raised $3m in seed funding. ReGen Ventures led, and was joined by The Engine Ventures, Susquehanna Sustainable Investments, Understorey Ventures, and Superorganism. axios.link/45Dnhyg

• LoopFX, a British P2P FX trading platform, raised £2.6m from Augmentum Fintech. axios.link/3VUPn4N

🌎 Estuaire, a French provider of data for reducing aviation emissions, raised €2.2m in seed funding. Satgana led, and was joined by Safran Corporate Ventures, XAnge, and AFI Ventures. axios.link/3zdvFZg

• Ability AI, a marketing automation startup, raised $1.1m in pre-seed funding led by SMRK VC. ability.ai

🚑 Argosy Healthcare Partners recapitalized Connect Life Sciences, an Orlando, Fla., life sciences recruitment and staffing firm. connectlifesciences.com

• Blackstone agreed to buy British hotel operator Village Hotels for around £800m from KSL Capital Partners. axios.link/45IHB11

• China Merchants Capital paid around $870m for a 40% stake in the fiber assets of a PCCW unit. axios.link/3VWnPvW

• CData, a Chapel Hill, N.C.-based provider of data connectivity solutions, raised around $350m from Warburg Pincus. cdata.com

🎵 Create Music Group, a record label and music distribution platform, raised $165m led by Flexpoint Ford at a $1b valuation. axios.link/3VTkZHX

• Cobalt Service Partners, a portfolio company of Alpine Investors, acquired Digi Security Systems, a Tulsa, Okla., commercial security integrator. digiss.com

• Engelman's, a Florida commercial bakery owned by Shoreline Equity Partners, acquired Bradenton, Fla.-based St. Armands Baking Co. axios.link/4cjiXXi

• Foodsmart, an SF-based telenutrition provider and food benefits management platform, raised over $200m from TPG's Rise Fund. foodsmart.com

• Hamilton Lane made a strategic investment in Daphne Technologies, a New York platform that helps digitize the fundraising process. axios.link/4cCCbqJ

• Kian Capital Partners invested in Diamond Landscaping, a provider of landscaping services to high-net-worth clients in the LA area. diamondlandscaping.com

⚡ Quantum Capital Group agreed to buy Denver-based Caerus Oil & Gas for $1.8b from Oaktree Capital Management, Anschutz Investment, and Old Ironsides Energy, per Bloomberg. axios.link/4bjQfnV

• TDR Capital agreed to buy a Italian discount retailer Acqua & Sapone from H.I.G. Capital (which retains a minority stake). acquaesapone.it

🚑 Clario, a Philadelphia-based clinical trial technology provider, filed confidential IPO papers, per Bloomberg. It could seek a $10b valuation, while backers include Novo Holdings, Ares Capital, BDC, ATP Private Equity Partners, Cinven, and Omnes Capital. axios.link/4cgmMwy

• Graf Global, formed by serial SPACster James Graf (NKGen Biotech, Velodyne Lidar), raised $200m in its IPO. axios.link/3VpLncb

🚑 Vizient exercised its option to buy the remaining interest in health-care advisory firm Kaufman Hall from majority holder Madison Dearborn Partners. kaufmanhall.com

• ABM Industries (NYSE: ABM) acquired Quality Uptime Services, a Bethel, Conn., provider of uninterruptible power supply services for data centers, for $119m in cash. qualityuptime.com

• Alliance Trust (LSE: ATST) agreed to merge with rival British investment trust Witan (LSE: WTAN), forming a company that manages £5b in assets. axios.link/3W0PRqd

🍷 Chapel Down (LSE: CDGP), an English winemaker, is launching a strategic review that could result in a sale. axios.link/3RHytE5

• Doordash (Nasdaq: DASH) approached Deliveroo (LSE: ROO) last month about an acquisition, but talks dissolved over valuation, per Reuters. axios.link/3xIX3O9

• Bosch of Germany is weighing a takeover offer for Michigan-based appliances maker Whirlpool (NYSE: WHR), which has around a $4.8b market cap, per Reuters. axios.link/4eFIdc4

• Qatar Airways is in talks to buy up to a 20% stake in airline Virgin Australia, owned by Bain Capital, per the Australian Financial Review. axios.link/3VXSEjG

• Vista Outdoors (NYSE: VSTO) said that it received CFIUS approval to sell its firearms and ammo unit for $2b to Prague-based Czechoslovak Group. axios.link/4ceNFRC

• Apprentis Ventures, a New Hampshire-based VC firm led by Holly Neiweem (ex-Eight Bar Partners, Morgan Stanley), is raising up to $25m for its debut fund, per an SEC filing.

• Colosseum, a Solana-focused crypto group, raised $60m for its debut VC fund. axios.link/4bAurVv

• DTCP of Germany raised a total of $450m for its third growth equity fund and a mobility-focused early-stage fund. axios.link/3VVoFci

• Elsewhere Partners, an Austin, Texas-based firm focused on majority stakes in B2B software companies, raised $285m for its third fund. elsewhere.partners

• MiddleGame Ventures raised €150m for a VC fund focused on European fintech startups. middlegamevc.com

• Redpoint Ventures raised $740m for its fifth growth equity fund, per an SEC filing.

Ayana Parsons stepped down as a general partner and COO of Fearless Fund, the Atlanta-based venture capital firm that was sued over its grant program aimed at Black women founders.

• Johannes Huth is retiring as a partner and EMEA chair at KKR, after 25 years with the PE giant. He'll remain with the firm as a senior advisor. axios.link/45J8hPw

• Kevin Mandia, founder CEO of Mandiant and FireEye, joined cybersecurity-focused Ballistic Ventures as a general partner. axios.link/3zjsVJJ

🌎 Paddy Padmanathan, former CEO of ACWA Power, joined Permira as a senior adviser to the firm's climate investing team. axios.link/3XGocMu

• George Sampas is leaving law firm Sullivan & Cromwell to join Gibson Dunn as co-chair of M&A and head of cross-border M&A. gibsondunn.com

• Liz Veilleux joined ACME Credit Partners as head of IR and capital formation. She previously was with Global Delta Capital. acmecreditpartners.com

• Morgan Buehler Zanotti joined Summit Partners as an executive-in-residence. She previously led new ventures for Kraft Heinz, which had acquired her startup, Primal Kitchen. axios.link/3zfQeUF

Volkswagen yesterday agreed to invest $5 billion into EV maker Rivian, whose shares have been experiencing some serious range anxiety.

• The deal includes a $1 billion unsecured convertible note, and a pair of $1 billion common stock purchases in 2025 and 2026.
• The remaining $2 billion is tied to a joint venture whereby Volkswagen will be able to leverage Rivian's tech for its own EV development.

By the numbers: Irvine, Calif.-based Rivian went public in late 2021 at $78 per share, and soared to nearly $130 on its first day of trading.

• Yesterday's news provided an 8.6% pop, but that only brought shares up to $11.96.

The bottom line, per Axios' Ben Geman: "This probably isn't the last incumbent-startup pairing, especially as low-cost Chinese models put pressure on U.S. and European automakers."