Accel retools its Indian accelerator: Along with choosing to foster a smaller cohort of startups with its Atoms startup accelerator in India, Accel has narrowed its focus to just two themes: AI and smart manufacturing. The venture firm has seen success in India, but it is rethinking its accelerator setup to better fit local needs and issues. The new Atoms cohort features just eight companies, two of which are still under wraps... Read More
Africa, Europe-focused Satgana closes first fund: At only €8 million, this fund's final close is far cry from the €30 million Satgana had targeted previously, but the climate-focused venture firm still intends to make 30 investments and reserve capital to write follow-on checks. First-time venture funds are having a hard time at the moment, so Satgana's final close is not a shock. How the firm's first round of deals bear out in the coming years will be far more important... Read More
Singapore-based StealthMole raises $7M: I am not completely sure what "AI-powered dark web intelligence" is, but StealthMole does it, and is doing well enough to close a Series A round. Founded in 2022 StealthMole claims it has 50 customers in 17 countries, which implies both broad demand for its brand of cybersecurity and the ability to scale its revenues. This startup's one to keep an eye on... Read More
SMB cybersecurity startup Coro nears unicorn status: Replete with $100 million in new capital that values it at "over $750 million," Coro is evidence that the cybersecurity market remains an attractive venture segment (proving that I was, in fact, not completely off the mark last year). The company's recurring revenue rose 300% in the last year, so you can see why VCs are flocking to back it... Read More
Blueground's short-term housing play clocks revenue of $560M: The push to return to offices resulted in some managed-property startups shutting shop, but Blueground's approach to offering furnished apartments for short-term rental is doing well. With $45 million in the form of a new Series D, the company is poised to continue its international expansion. The company's revenue rose to $560 million last year, up from $300 million in 2022... Read More
Diamonds are more than jewelry: It feels like we have news about French startups every day these days. Today's French startup is Diamfab, which just raised €8.7 million for its diamond semiconductor technology business. It turns out that diamonds could be a good fit for more efficient semiconductors with a lower carbon footprint, placing this deep-tech startup at the start of a journey that could shake up how we build semiconductors... Read More
How close are we to general-purpose humanoid robots? Taking a long view and a broad perspective on the state of the robotics industry, TechCrunch's Brian Heater digs into just how close (or not) we are to having humanoid helper bots running errands and helping around the house... Read More
