Startups / Funding
Following the money and the vision. Insights into early-stage startups, major funding rounds, VC ecosystem shifts and tech-driven industry disruption.
56 articles
SpaceX IPO Faces Investor Scrutiny Amid CEO Controversy
SpaceX considers an IPO while CEO Elon Musk's controversies create tension for investors balancing innovation with reputational risk.
Megarounds Surge Across Enterprise Software, AI and Space Tech in Biggest Funding Week of the Year
A massive funding week saw over a dozen startups raise hundreds of millions, led by a $750M round for spend-management platform Ramp. Enterprise software, AI developer tools and space tech dominated.
Analysts Question SpaceX's $4.3 Trillion Revenue Forecast for 2040
SpaceX's projected $4.3 trillion revenue by 2040 faces intense skepticism. Critics argue the figure ignores market constraints and growth limits in the space industry.
Worldcoin Layoffs Signal Trouble for Sam Altman's Iris-Scanning Venture
Worldcoin lays off staff amid regulatory battles over biometric data collection.
Sandstone Raises $30 Million to Automate Corporate Legal Work with AI
Sandstone secured $30M in Series A funding from Lightspeed and Sequoia to deploy AI for in-house legal teams, signaling a new wave of automation in corporate law.
Liquor Retail Tech Startup Secures $20 Million to Tackle Legacy Systems
Scotch raises $20M Series A led by VMG Partners. The AI-native platform aims to replace fragmented POS systems in liquor stores.
Startups bet on getting people offline with games and DIY computers
Startups like Board and cyberdeck creators are gaining traction by promoting offline activities and DIY computing.
From Prison to Startup: How One Felon Built a Tech Company From Scratch
A former inmate shares his journey from addiction and prison to founding a tech startup. His story highlights the challenges and opportunities for felons in the tech industry.
Legal AI Investment Heavily Favors Plaintiffs, Defense Seen as Next Frontier
Billions have poured into plaintiff-side legal AI, but the defense market is underdeveloped. With $682 million concentrated on plaintiff firms, investors see a large opportunity in defense-side litigation tools.
SendCutSend and Nourish Land $210M in Non-AI Startup Funding
Two startups raised nine-figure rounds this month, with SendCutSend taking $110M for on-demand custom manufacturing and Nourish securing $100M for insurance-covered metabolic health counseling.
Impulse Space lands $500M to lead orbital maneuvering race
Impulse Space raised $500 million in Series D funding to dominate orbital maneuvering. Founder Tom Mueller says timing is everything as space mobility markets expand.
Female Founders Gain Alternative to VC With Reg CF Platform AQi
A PayPal veteran and a Navy officer launched AQi, an SEC-registered crowdfunding platform for women-led startups. It uses Regulation Crowdfunding to bypass traditional VC barriers.
Anthropic Stock Becomes a Currency in San Francisco Real Estate
San Francisco home sellers accept AI startup shares as down payments, signaling growing confidence in private company equity as an alternative to cash.
Anthropic Files for IPO, Signaling Escalation in AI Public Market Race
Anthropic has confidentially filed for an IPO, following a $65 billion funding round that valued it at $965 billion. The move intensifies the race among top AI companies to go public.
Africa's Innovation Ecosystems Grow But Still Captures Only 1% of Global Activity
Africa's tech scaleup ecosystems more than doubled in a decade but represent just 1% of global figures. Four hubs dominate while clean energy emerges as a key strength.
A Founder's $14 Million Raise Started With a Talk, Not a Pitch
Alyx van der Vorm raised $14 million by speaking at events instead of cold emailing investors. She argues the best backers want to discover founders, not be pitched to.
Boston Startup Funding Hits Four-Year High but Lags Behind AI Boom
Boston-area startup funding rose to about $7.8B, the highest in four years, but the region missed out on the AI-driven venture capital boom that pushed national funding to a record $252B in Q1 2026.
OpenRouter's $113M Series B Signals AI Middleware Boom
OpenRouter raised $113 million to connect developers to multiple AI models. The Series B round underscores growing investor confidence in AI infrastructure companies.
Black founders secure $1.1B in Q1, but VC share remains tiny
Black founders raised $1.1 billion in Q1 2025, the most quarterly funding since 2022. Yet the haul accounts for just 2% of total venture capital, underscoring persistent disparities.