Latest updates from the AI industry
Board, the startup building what it calls "together tech" designed to bring people into the same room, has closed a Series A led by Union Square Ventures.
Board, the three-year-old, New York-based startup building what it calls “together tech” — tech designed to bring people physically into the same room — has closed a $20 million Series A led by Union Square Ventures. General Partner Michael Mignano, in his first investment since joining USV, will join the company’s board of directors. The [...] The post Board, the new game startup from Mirror founder Brynn Putnam, raises $20M, has already sold thousands | TechCrunch appeared first on NYT News Today .
– Advertisement – Malmö-based AI security startup Oplane has secured €4.5 million in seed funding in a round led by Seed Capital, with participation from existing investor Icebreaker.vc and angel investors including Emil Eifrem, Robert Lagerström, and Joakim Nydrén. The company develops an automated security architecture platform that helps engineering teams identify and address security [...]
The latest venture capital, seed, pre-seed, and angel deals for NYC startups for 6/2/2026 featuring funding details for Novellia, Ilant Health, and much more.
Zazume, a Barcelona-based PropTech startup that digitises the entire residential rental lifecycle, has closed an investment round worth €2.5 million to implement its growth strategy involving the acquisition of residential property management portfolios in provincial capitals. The round was led by the London-based VC firm Nordstar and Spanish venture GTV Capital, a Spanish family office [...]
Bayshore has raised $8 million in an Earlybird-led round to develop AI agents trained on legal and compliance data.
Archestra Inc., a U.K.-based startup whose open-source platform brokers access between artificial intelligence agents and sensitive enterprise data, today announced that it has raised $10 million in new funding to expand deployments inside large enterprises and grow its open-source ecosystem. The platform is in production at four Fortune 500 companies, where agents are working across [...] The post Archestra raises $10M to broker AI agent access to corporate data appeared first on SiliconANGLE .
With the war in West Asia looming over India’s business environment, May brought a slower, more cautious rhythm to the...
Anthropic, the $965 billion AI juggernaut, announced its confidential S-1 filing on Monday.
The company last raised $104m in October from the likes of Google Ventures and Lux Capital
A Saudi lending platform led the week with $23.5 million, while Israeli AI and fintech startups kept the checks coming.
Robotics, fintech, and biotech drove startup funding across Asia this week, with major rounds reflecting strong investor confidence in humanoid AI, digital finance platforms, and clinical-stage innovation across key global markets.
AI-powered platforms and industrial automation startups led funding activity this week, while energy tech and creator economy tools also attracted new capital across Latin America.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has offered to invest in every startup from the latest batch of Y Combinator through a model built around AI credits rather than direct cash investments. According to reports shared during a Y Combinator event, OpenAI plans to provide USD 2 million worth of AI tokens to each startup in exchange for equity. Altman described the move in a post, saying, “I am excited to see what will happen with tokenmaxxing startups, both for how they work internally and the products they can build. OpenAI offered to invest $2M in tokens into every startup in the current yc batch. happy building!” i am excited to see what will happen with tokenmaxxing startups, both for how they work internally and the products they can build. openai offered to invest $2M in tokens into every startup in the current yc batch. happy building! https://t.co/YSHYJoutuf — Sam Altman (@sama) May 20, 2026 The current Y Combinator batch reportedly includes around 169 startups. AI Infrastructure Is Becoming Startup Capital For years, cloud credits from infrastructure providers played a major role in helping startups manage operating costs during their early growth stages. AI infrastructure is now emerging as the next version of that model. Training, inference, and large-scale AI workloads remain expensive for startups building AI-native products. As a result, access to model credits can significantly reduce early burn rates. The OpenAI proposal reflects how AI firms are increasingly treating compute access as a strategic investment tool rather than only a revenue stream. According to reports, the investment will be structured through an “ uncapped SAFE ”, a financing mechanism commonly used within Y Combinator. Under this structure, OpenAI’s equity position would convert during a future funding round once the startup receives a formal valuation. The structure gives startups immediate access to AI resources while allowing OpenAI to secure long-term upside if some of these companies scale successfully. Competition Is Moving Beyond Models The offer also highlights a broader shift underway across the AI market. Model providers are no longer competing only on technical performance. They are competing for developer ecosystems, enterprise integrations, and long-term platform dependency. By embedding itself deeply into startup operations early, OpenAI increases the likelihood that these companies continue building products around its models instead of switching to alternatives later. The reports specifically noted that the arrangement could help OpenAI strengthen its position against competing platforms such as Anthropic’s Claude. This matters because startups often become long-term infrastructure customers as they scale. Winning developer adoption early can eventually translate into significant enterprise AI revenue later. Cost Savings Against Control Supporters argue that AI infrastructure costs are becoming one of the largest operational burdens for AI startups. In that context, USD 2 million in AI credits could offer meaningful financial flexibility during the early product-building phase. At the same time, some investors are urging caution around exchanging additional equity for platform-linked compute benefits. Seed investor Jason Calacanis raised concerns on social platform X, stating, “If you take these tokens, there’s a non-zero chance that OpenAI will study exactly what your startup is doing, copy your idea and put your app into their free offering. This is the classic platform playbook be careful, founders!” Fair warning, YC founders: if you take these tokens, there’s a non-zero chance that OpenAI will study exactly what your startup is doing, copy your idea and put your app into their free offering. This is the classic platform playbook — be careful, founders! https://t.co/CRTRSXZDwu — @jason (@Jason) May 20, 2026 The concern reflects a growing tension across the AI economy. As startups increasingly rely on foundation model providers for infrastructure, questions around platform neutrality, competitive overlap, and ecosystem dependence are becoming more prominent. The OpenAI-Y Combinator move signals that AI platform competition is entering a far more ecosystem-driven phase. Earlier cloud battles focused on storage, compute, and pricing. The next wave may revolve around which AI companies can build the strongest developer loyalty, startup ecosystems, and enterprise integrations before the market matures. For startups, the decision is becoming more strategic than technical. AI infrastructure choices made in the earliest stages could shape future costs, scalability, investor alignment, and even competitive positioning.
QY Research Inc. (Global Market Report Research Publisher) announces the release of 2025 latest report "Identity Authentication Card- Global Market Share and Ranking, Overall Sales and Demand Forecast 2026-2032". Based on current situation and impact historical analysis (2020-2024) and forecast
Ordermentum, Arkeus and Lume were among the Australian and New Zealand startups that raised more than $81 million this week. The post Three ANZ startups that raised $81 million this week appeared first on SmartCompany .
Tokyo-based secondz digital raised ¥300 million in Series A funding to expand Agentsense, a tool that tracks how brands appear in ChatGPT, Copilot, and Google AI search results. Total funding now stands at ¥450 million.
Italian legal AI startup Lexroom raised $50M in a Series B round led by Left Lane Capital. The Milan firm serves over 8,000 law firms and plans to open offices in Barcelona, Madrid, and Berlin.
Doozy Robotics, a physical AI humanoid company that’s building vertically integrated robotics ecosystems, announced global expansion plans ahead of its Series A.
Mumbai, India, 2026-05-21 — /EPR Network/ — Shreekant Patil is pleased to share that he has received two certificates of appreciation from IIT Bombay’s E-Cell. The first [read full press release...]
YourStory presents the daily news roundup from the Indian startup ecosystem and beyond. Here's the roundup for Thursday, May 21, 2026.
A feud between two founders over $31 million in startup funding went viral, revealing how AI and the attention economy are reshaping Silicon Valley.
Imperagen, a Manchester-based BioTech company using AI and quantum physics to engineer better enzymes faster, has closed €5.7 million (£5 million) in Seed funding to accelerate R&D, expand its wet lab capabilities, and build out its go-to-market function over the next 18 months. The round was led by PXN Ventures with participation from Imperagen’s existing [...]
Sam Altman announced OpenAI will invest $2 million in AI tokens in each startup from the latest Y Combinator batch in exchange for equity. This move aims to reduce startups' AI infrastructure costs and encourage the use of OpenAI's technology.
Scapia, a travel-fintech startup, has raised $63 million (about Rs 606 crore) in a round led by American venture capital firm General Catalyst....
To understand why LeCun is risking his legacy on a completely different AI architecture, here's our deeper explanation into how he perceives the current generation AI.
Biotech company Imperagen announced on Thursday a £5 million ($6.7 million) seed round led by PXN Ventures, with participation from IQ Capital and Northern Gritstone. The company was founded in 2021 by Manchester Institute of Biotechnology scientists Dr. Andrew Currin, Dr. Tim Eyes, and Dr. Andy Almond and spun out of the university. The startup [...] The post Imperagen raises £5 million to use quantum physics, AI on enzyme engineering | TechCrunch appeared first on NYT News Today .
Biotech company Imperagen announced on Thursday a £5 million ($6.7 million) seed round led by PXN Ventures, with participation from IQ Capital and Northern Gritstone.
Imperagen, a UK-based deeptech, raised £5 million in seed funding led by PXN Ventures, with ongoing support from...
This past Christmas, Chet Kittleson was in the back of a minivan watching his startup die in real time. His... Read More
New partnership enables AI-driven neobank to scale innovative financial services across EU markets Bloxley, the AI-driven hybrid neobank reimagining financial services for Gen Z and Millennials, announced a strategic partnership with Crassula, a leading Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) platform. This collaboration will power Bloxley’s European banking infrastructure, enabling the company to deliver... The post Bloxley Partners with Crassula to Power Next-Generation Banking Services Across Europe appeared first on GlobalFinTechSeries .
The startup's new multi-agent world model splits simulation from rendering to keep a shared world consistent across viewpoints. The research idea is significant; the choice of GoldenEye 007 as the test bed says as much about the field's IP problem as its progress.
Enterprise artificial intelligence platform startup Unframe Inc. today announced that it has raised $50 million in new funding to expand delivery capacity, invest further in its platform and build out senior leadership. The company also said it has crossed $100 million in total contract value within 12 months of its formal launch, with what it described as [...] The post Enterprise AI startup Unframe raises $50M after booking $100M in contract value in year one appeared first on SiliconANGLE .
Trackk, an investment platform targeting Gen Z users, has raised $3.7 million (around Rs 36 crore) in a seed funding round led by Lightspeed Venture...
Capital concentration shows no signs of abating this year. Just through April, U.S. venture capital totals in 2026 are on par with funding for all of 2025, and 80% of startup investment this year so far has gone to rounds of $500 million and more.
New partnership enables AI-driven neobank to scale innovative financial services across EU markets WILMINGTON, Del., May 19, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Bloxley, the AI-driven hybrid neobank reimagining financial services for Gen Z and Millennials, today announced a strategic partnership with...
The company is expanding lending operations across India after acquiring a significant stake in a non-banking finance company.
ONO, an agri-finance startup building a data and AI-powered platform for India's post-harvest agricultural supply chain, has raised $1.2 million in a pre-Series A funding round. The round was led by Aeravti Ventures, with participation from angel investors and Tremis Capital. This is Aeravti Ventures' second investment in ONO, having also led the company's earlier seed round. ONO was founded by Rama Rao Kancharapu and David Pokuri and is focused on improving credit access, reducing operational inefficiencies, and enabling long-distance market linkages for agricultural small and medium enterprises across India. The problem ONO is addressing India's agricultural supply chain, particularly in the post-harvest segment, has historically operated with limited structured data, weak trusted networks between buyers and sellers, and poor access to formal credit for farmers and agri traders. Commission agents, transporters, and traders working across long distances have few reliable tools to verify counterparties, assess risk, or access working capital quickly. ONO said it has built a technology and data platform that sits across this ecosystem, providing real-time intelligence on pricing, volumes, logistics, and market behaviour to farmers and agri-SMEs. The platform also enables faster payments, better price realisation, and reduced transaction risk for everyone involved in the supply chain. "The agricultural supply chain continues to operate with significant inefficiencies due to a lack of structured data, trusted networks, and timely access to finance. At ONO, we are building a technology and intelligence layer for the post-harvest ecosystem that enables stakeholders to make faster, smarter, and more reliable decisions, and more importantly, get timely access to fair credit. With Aeravti Ventures continuing to back us in this journey, we are focused on scaling our lending and market infrastructure capabilities across India," said Rama Rao Kancharapu, who is also the CEO of ONO. The startup claims to have facilitated over Rs 100 crore in co-lending and maintains a non-performing asset ratio of just 0.05%, a figure that compares favourably with standard agricultural lending benchmarks. Beyond lending, ONO has also worked on reducing fraud and defaults in long-haul agricultural trade, where goods and money often move across hundreds of kilometres between parties who may not have prior relationships. It operates across 12 states and more than 125 districts, serving over 1.3 lakh ecosystem participants including farmers, commission agents, traders, transporters, and buyers. The platform has more than 2,000 paid subscribers, has facilitated over Rs 200 crore in beneficiary payouts, and has enabled the movement of more than 25,000 metric tonnes of produce through long-distance markets, often covering distances of over 500 kilometres. Rishabh Singh, Managing Partner of Aeravti Ventures, said, "ONO is solving one of the most critical infrastructure gaps within Indian agriculture, building trust, transparency, and financial accessibility across post-harvest supply chains. The company's ability to leverage data and AI to unlock market access and reduce inefficiencies at scale strongly aligns with our investment thesis at Aeravti Ventures. Having partnered with ONO since its seed stage, we continue to remain highly confident in the team's execution capabilities and long-term vision." The funding comes after ONO acquired a significant stake in a non-banking financial company, which will allow it to deepen its lending capabilities and expand credit access for underserved agri-SMEs more directly. The startup is also preparing for a larger Series A raise as it looks to scale its presence further across India.
The silent demise of the conventional Silicon Valley exit route is precisely the kind of business story that doesn’t make an announcement on magazine covers or press releases. The startup-to-IPO path is portrayed as the primary drama of the technology industry in the conventional narrative that still permeates venture capital pitch decks and business school [...]
Copperhelm launched from stealth with $7M in seed funding to build AI agents that handle cloud threat detection and remediation automatically. TLV Partners led the round for the Tel Aviv startup.
Between April 20 and April 25, 2026, as many as 14 Indian startups from diverse sectors raised over $47 million in funding from investors. These sectors include Gaming, Education, Healthcare, AI, QSR, Personal Care, Legaltech, Cybersecurity, and Wealthtech. Last week, Indian startups raised over $139 million, with Energytech firm Polaris Smart Metering raising $80 million alone. High-value deals A diverse range of sectors attracted investments during the week, with the Healthcare space leading the pack. Leading this space was Coral, which raised $12.5 million. Gaming startup Lightfury Games raised $11 million. The list was followed by Textile technology startup STCH, Rysen School parent company AITS, and Gaming startup Spill Games, which collectively raised $12.6 million. STCH raised $5.5 million, AITS raised $4 million, and Spill Games raised $3.1 million. Emerging startups Personal Care startup Clarity Labs raised $420,000 in a Seed round, Healthcare startup Axten Hospitals raised $260,000, Legaltech startup Lawyered raised $2.5 million in a pre-Series A round, AI startup NudgeBee raised $3 million in a Seed round, QSR startup Acai Theory raised $420,000 in a pre-Seed round, Medtech startup CureMeAbroad raised $600,000 in a pre-Seed round, Cybersecurity startup Deep Algorithm raised $1.7 million in a pre-Series A round, and Wealthtech startup PrimeInvestor raised $2.07 million. Meanwhile, Modern Indian wear brand Alaya By Stage3 kept the funding figures under wraps. Mergers & Acquisitions The period also witnessed strategic mergers and acquisitions. Pine Labs acquires D2C checkout platform Shopflo Emversity acquired nurse mobility platform Lanstitut Raise Financial acquired algo trading platform Stratzy.
Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility — your central hub for news and insights on the future of transportation.
Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility — your central hub for news and insights on the future of transportation. To get this in your inbox, sign up here for free — just click TechCrunch Mobility! Tesla earnings came and went, and much of it fell into the “we expected this” category. Investors seemed surprised by the [...] The post TechCrunch Mobility: Elon’s admission | TechCrunch appeared first on NYT News Today .
BitcoinWorld Poke AI Agent Revolutionizes Personal Automation: Making AI Assistance as Simple as Sending a Text In a significant development for consumer artificial intelligence, a new startup called Poke has launched an AI agent that operates entirely through familiar text messaging platforms, making advanced automation accessible [...] This post Poke AI Agent Revolutionizes Personal Automation: Making AI Assistance as Simple as Sending a Text first appeared on BitcoinWorld .
It’s Wednesday, April 8, 2026, and we’re back with today’s top startup and tech funding news. Today’s rounds highlight a clear shift toward AI infrastructure, robotics, biotech innovation, and financial platforms scaling across global markets. From humanoid intelligence systems to chip design and digital lending, investors are backing technologies that sit at the core of [...]
India’s startup ecosystem remained highly active on April 8, 2026, with funding spanning fintech, AI, defence tech, D2C, and EV mobility. The day was led by KreditBee entering the unicorn club with a $280 million raise, highlighting strong investor confidence in digital lending. Alongside, multiple early and growth-stage startups secured capital to scale operations and innovation, while key business developments reflected increasing ecosystem maturity. Daily Indian Startup Funding Roundup - 8 April 2026CompanyAmountRoundLead InvestorsSectorKreditBee$280MSeries ENot disclosedFintech / Digital lendingAngoor AIINR 2 CrPre-seedVenturizerAI / Enterprise AIRoshAIINR 22 CrSeedIAN Alpha FundAI / DeeptechClayCoINR 34.59 CrSeries ATwenty-Nine Capital Partners VenturesD2C / SkincareTsecondAI$2.15MSeedMSN HoldingsDefense tech / AIAtlas$6MSeedAccel, Stellaris Venture PartnersSaaS / Fintech infraTrev MobilityINR 3.65 CrAngelExisting usersEV mobilityKreditBee Enters Unicorn Club with $280 Milli..
The latest unmasking of Satoshi Nakamoto is reportedly Blockstream CEO Adam Back. The post New York Times claims Bitcoin creator is founder of Canadian company Blockstream first appeared on BetaKit .
AI-led accounting platform Atlas has raised $6 million in a seed funding round, co-led by Accel and Stellaris Venture Partners. The fresh capital will be used to expand its AI platform, strengthen its presence in North America, and scale its go-to-market efforts. Building AI for Modern Accounting Firms Founded in 2025 by Arpit Maheshwari and [...]
SUMMARY Atlas raised $6 Mn (₹55.4 Cr) in its seed funding round from early stage investors Accel and Stellaris Venture Partners The funds will help Atlas expand its AI platform across accounting workflows, grow its network of partner accounting firms and accelerate go-to-market efforts Founded in 2025, Atlas acts as an AI implementation platform that [...]
Singapore-based AI startup Atlas, which helps accounting firms deploy AI systems to increase capacity, has raised $6 Mn (₹55.4 Cr)...