Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios
Venture Capital
• Luma AI, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based video generation platform, raised a $900m Series C round at a $4b valuation. Humain led, joined by AMD Ventures, a16z, Amplify Partners, and Matrix Partners. Go deeper
• Guardio, an Israeli consumer cybersecurity company, raised $80m. ION Crossover Partners led, joined by insiders Union Tech Ventures, Vintage Investment Partners, and Emerge. Go deeper
• Doppel, an SF-based social engineering defense platform, raised $70m in Series C funding. Bessemer Venture Partners led, joined by George Kurtz, NTT Docomo Ventures, and Aurum Partners. Go deeper
🚑 Arbiter, an NYC-based provider of health care orchestration tools, raised $52m at a $400m valuation. TriEdge Investments and MFO Ventures led, joined by WindRose Health Investors. Go deeper
🚑 Okami Medical, a vascular embolization tech startup, raised $45m led by Gilde Healthcare, with participation from Vensana Capital and USVP. Go deeper
• Sphere, a tax compliance platform, raised $21m in Series A funding. A16z led, joined by YC and Felicis Ventures. Go deeper
• Synthio Labs, an SF-based voice AI company, raised $5m in seed funding. Elevation Capital led, joined by 1984 Ventures, Peak XV Partners, and YC. Go deeper
🚑 Ember, an SF-based provider of claims denial prevention software, raised a $4.3m seed round from Nexus Venture Partners and YC. Go deeper
• Kaaj, a credit risk automation platform, raised a $3.8m seed round from Kindred Ventures and Better Tomorrow Ventures. Go deeper
• Tayla Cannon, a physical therapist and founder of virtual rehab platform Rebuildr, raised $1.1M from Slow Ventures. Go deeper
Private Equity
• Amplix, a portfolio company of Gemspring Capital, acquired 24By7Security, a Coral Springs, Fla.-based cybersecurity consultancy. Go deeper.
• Arkview Capital acquired NeoTech, a Chatsworth, Calif.-based electronics manufacturer. Go deeper
M&A
• CAA, a talent agency owned by Groupe Artemis, agreed to acquire Beanstalk, an NYC-based licensing agency. Go deeper
• Lloyds Banking Group (LSE: LLOY) agreed to acquire U.K. fintech Curve. Go deeper
Public Offerings
• Blockchain.com, a Luxembourg-based crypto exchange, plans to go public in 2026, per The Information. Go deeper
• Kraken, a U.S.-based crypto exchange recently valued at $20b, confidentially filed for a U.S. IPO, per Reuters. Go deeper
Odds & ends
• Switch Data Centers and Schneider Electric (Paris: SU) announced a $1.9b supply deal that the companies say is North America's largest-ever data center cooling deal. Go deeper
• MP Materials (NYSE: MP) is working with the U.S. Defense Department to create a JV with the Saudi Arabian Mining Co. (Maaden) to develop a rare earth refinery in the Kingdom. Go deeper
• Constellation Energy (NYSE: CEG) and the U.S. Energy Department closed a $1b loan to restart Unit 1 of Three Mile Island, now called the Crane Clean Energy Center. Go deeper
Fundraising
• Brookfield is launching a $100b AI infrastructure program with Nvidia and Kuwait Investment Authority, anchored by a $10b fund.
It's Personnel
🚑 Christina Speck, a former strategy and engagement consultant for Amazon One Medical, joined Sage Growth Partners as chief solutions and AI officer. Go deeper
🚑 Drew Hykes, former CEO of Inari Medical, was named president and CEO of Okami Medical. Go deeper
• Mike Ellow, former CEO of Siemens EDA, was named chief revenue officer of Synopsys (Nasdaq: SNPS). Go deeper
• Viv Rettke, former chief strategy and transformation officer at Cole Haan, joined J.Jill (NYSE: JILL) as chief growth officer. Go deeper
