Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
Venture Capital
• EdgeCortix, a Tokyo-based semiconductor company, is nearing $100m with the first close of its Series B funding. Backers included Yanmar Ventures, Pacific Bays Capital, NTT Finance Corporation, SiC Power, Aero X Ventures, SBI Investments and Global Hands-On VC. Go deeper
• Medallion, a San Francisco-based manual back-office management automation company, raised $43m. Acrew Capital led, with participation from Washington Harbour Partners, Sequoia Capital, GV, Spark Capital, and NFDG. Go deeper
• SpinLaunch, a Long Beach, Calif.-based space tech company, raised $30m led by ATW Partners, with participation from Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace. Go deeper
• Qunova Computing, a South Korea-based quantum software developer, raised $10m in Series A funding. GS Ventures, Korea Development Bank, GU Equity Partners, Company K, Quantum Ventures Korea, JB Investment, CKD Venture Capital and Daesung Private Equity participated. Go deeper
• Paradigm, an SF-based agentic spreadsheet company, raised $5m in seed funding. General Catalyst led. Go deeper
Private Equity
• Automated Industrial Robotics, a Michigan-based portfolio company of Ares Management, acquired Owens Design, a Fremont, Calif.-based industrial automation company. owensdesign.com
• Comply365, backed by Insight Partners and Liberty Hall Capital Partners, acquired Beams, a German provider of aviation safety risk management solutions. Go deeper
• E Source, an Align Capital Partners portfolio company, acquired Opinion Dynamics, a grid program evaluation and advisory firm. esource.com
• Fortifi, a KKR portfolio company, will buy Provisur, a Chicago-based provider of processing solutions to the protein industry. FortifiFoodSolutions.com
Public Offerings
• Black Rock Coffee Bar, a Scottsdale, Ariz.-based chain with 158 locations, filed for an IPO. It reports a $2m net loss on $95m in revenue for the first half of 2025, and plans to list on the Nasdaq (BRCB). Backers include Cynosure Partners. Go deeper
Fundraising
• Clean Growth Fund, a U.K. firm focused on startups that cut greenhouse gas emissions, held a £49m first close on its £150m target. Go deeper
• Curate Capital, a Houston-based VC firm focused on female-founded CPG brands, is targeting $50m for its second fund, per an SEC filing. Curate.capital
It's Personnel
• Josh Silverman, chief executive officer of Etsy, was added to the board of Instacart (Nasdaq: CART). Silverman served as executive in residence for Greylock Partners. Go deeper
Debt
• Adapteo, a Finnish circular building company majority-owned by Goldman Sachs Asset Management, raised $2.3b via green private-placement notes, bank-term loans and revolving credit facilities, per Bloomberg. Go deeper
Odds & Ends
💊 Merck KGaA agreed to pay up to $2 billion to Waltham, Mass.-based Skyhawk Therapeutics in a deal to develop small molecules for neurological disorders. Go deeper
• Aleon Metals, a Freeport, Texas-based critical metals recycler, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the Southern District of Texas. Go deeper
- Ryan Barwick, Natalie Breymeyer, Erin Brodwin, Colin Campbell, Katherine Davis, Katie Fehrenbacher, Ryan Lawler, Chris Metinko, Alan Neuhauser, Dan Primack, and Brock E.W. Turner contributed to this report.
