AI Startups Are Facing a ReckoningRead more

Arm CFO Jason Child. Art by Mike Sullivan.

startups semiconductors

The Startup ‘Adrenaline Junkie’ Trying to Break Open the IPO Market

By Cory Weinberg · Sept. 13, 2023 6:00 AM PDT · 2 comments

When bankers working on Arm’s impending initial public offering wanted to talk to one of the executives in charge of the SoftBank-owned chip designer, they sometimes heard heavy breathing on the other end of the phone. It was the sound of Jason Child, a longtime Amazon executive who is now Arm’s chief financial officer, running up a... When bankers working on Arm’s impending initial public offering wanted to talk to one of...

Chamath Palihapitiya, CEO of Social Capital; Deven Parekh, managing director of Insight Partners; and Scott Shleifer, managing director of Tiger Global. Photos via Getty.

startups venture capital

Venture Firms Hang the ‘For Sale’ Sign on Portfolios

By Maria Heeter, Natasha Mascarenhas and Kate Clark · Sept. 8, 2023 1:03 PM PDT · 4 comments

Some of the most active startup investors have been hanging a “for sale” sign on their portfolios at a time when venture investors are finding it increasingly difficult to raise new venture funds. Insight Partners has considered selling a stake valued at $400 million in Left Lane Capital, a consumer-focused venture capital firm... Some of the most active startup investors have been hanging a “for sale” sign on...

Photo by Shutterstock.

venture capital startups

Drug Startup Truepill Moves to Cut Share Price 90% as Garry Tan Departs Board

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Aug. 22, 2023 1:05 PM PDT · 1 comment

Truepill, a startup that ships prescription drugs on behalf of online pharmacies such as Hims, Mark Cuban’s Cost Plus Drugs and GoodRx, has authorized slashing the price of some of its shares by more than 90% from their peak in 2021, according to a recent filing provided by Prime Unicorn Index. In 2021, the startup said investors had... Truepill, a startup that ships prescription drugs on behalf of online pharmacies such as Hims,...

Image courtesy of Happy Money.

Lending Startups Seek Buyers as Rate Hikes Hobble Growth

By Natasha Mascarenhas and Kate Clark · Aug. 14, 2023 6:43 PM PDT · 1 comment

Image courtesy of Happy Money.

venture capital startups

Lending Startups Seek Buyers as Rate Hikes Hobble Growth

By Natasha Mascarenhas and Kate Clark · Aug. 14, 2023 6:43 PM PDT · 1 comment

Venture-backed consumer lending startups are starting to fold their cards. Happy Money, an online lending startup formerly known as Payoff, is in talks to sell itself, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter. The Torrance, Calif.-based company, valued at $1.1 billion in a private financing announced in February last year, has... Venture-backed consumer lending startups are starting to fold their cards. Happy Money, an online...

Modular co-founder Chris Lattner. Image via YouTube

venture capital startups

Modular, AI Startup Challenging Nvidia, Discusses Funding at $600 Million Valuation

By Kate Clark, Aaron Holmes and Stephanie Palazzolo · Aug. 11, 2023 4:21 PM PDT

Modular, a startup whose software aims to loosen Nvidia’s chokehold over in-demand artificial intelligence chips, has been in talks with investors including General Catalyst to raise Series A funding that would value it at roughly $600 million, according to two people with knowledge of the deal discussions. The new capital would come less... Modular, a startup whose software aims to loosen Nvidia’s chokehold over in-demand...

Tome founders Keith Peiris (left) and Henri Liriani (right). Photo via YouTube/Greylock.

venture capital startups

Tome, AI Startup Founded by Ex-Meta Managers, Discusses Fundraising at $600 Million Valuation

By Natasha Mascarenhas, Stephanie Palazzolo and Erin Woo · Aug. 9, 2023 1:15 PM PDT · 14 comments

Tome, a startup that uses artificial intelligence to make it easier to create and design presentations, has talked to investors about raising new money that could double its valuation to up to $600 million, according to two people with direct knowledge of the discussions. The new financing could amount to $60 million, according to one of the... Tome, a startup that uses artificial intelligence to make it easier to create and design...

Navin Chaddha and Jenny Lefcourt. Photos via Getty

venture capital startups

Venture Firms Still Writing Small Checks Despite $271 Billion in ‘Dry Powder’

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Aug. 7, 2023 6:00 AM PDT · 4 comments

In 2019, Sean Park—a co-founder of Anthemis Group—was on the road 200 nights a year, traveling to Boston, London and other tech hot spots to meet with startups. Even after Covid-19 curtailed travel, Park, who is also the firm’s chief investment officer, was swamped with Zoom meetings with entrepreneurs he was thinking about... In 2019, Sean Park—a co-founder of Anthemis Group—was on the road 200 nights a year,...

Graphic by Mike Sullivan.

‘Tidal Wave’ of Down Rounds Hits Startups

By Cory Weinberg and Kate Clark · Aug. 4, 2023 6:01 AM PDT · 12 comments

Graphic by Mike Sullivan.

venture capital startups

‘Tidal Wave’ of Down Rounds Hits Startups

By Cory Weinberg and Kate Clark · Aug. 4, 2023 6:01 AM PDT · 12 comments

Turntide Technologies, a maker of electric motor systems backed by Bill Gates–founded Breakthrough Energy Ventures, was one of the more than 300 private companies that passed the $1 billion valuation threshold last year, putting it firmly into unicorn status. It’s not worth close to that anymore. The Sunnyvale, Calif., firm is... Turntide Technologies, a maker of electric motor systems backed by Bill Gates–founded...

Reed Jobs. Photo via Emerson Collective.

venture capital startups

Reed Jobs to Start $400 Million VC Fund, Testing Appetite for New Funds

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Aug. 1, 2023 6:55 AM PDT · 2 comments

Reed Jobs, son of late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs and his spouse, philanthropist Laurene Powell Jobs, is leaving his mother’s Emerson Collective to start his own venture capital fund, according to a person with direct knowledge. The 31-year-old Reed Jobs is planning to raise $400 million for the fund he’s calling Yosemite Fund 1,... Reed Jobs, son of late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs and his spouse, philanthropist Laurene Powell...

Coatue co-founder Philippe Laffont. Photo by Getty.

venture capital startups

Coatue Raises $331 Million for Early-Stage Fund, 34% Below Target

By Kate Clark · July 31, 2023 11:26 AM PDT

Coatue Management has raised $331 million for its third fund focused on early-stage startups, according to a financial filing, a third less than its target and lower than its previous early-stage fund. The smaller than anticipated total shows how the firms that raised huge funds during the pandemic investing boom are falling short of their... Coatue Management has raised $331 million for its third fund focused on early-stage startups,...

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. Art by Clark Miller

Nvidia Accelerates AI Startup Investments, Nears Deal With Cloud Provider Lambda Labs

By Maria Heeter, Kate Clark and Stephanie Palazzolo · July 18, 2023 5:00 AM PDT

Nvidia is known for its stranglehold over the market for the data center chips that power ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence software. But in a matter of a few months, Nvidia has also become one of the biggest venture capital investors in an important class of customers who need its chips: cloud and AI software startups. In the latest... Nvidia is known for its stranglehold over the market for the data center chips that power ChatGPT...

Character.AI's cofounders Noam Shazeer and Daniel de Freitas. Photos by Getty. Art by Shane Burke.

Character.AI in Talks to Raise Funding as Meta Platforms Tests Rival

By Jon Victor and Kate Clark · July 15, 2023 7:00 AM PDT

Character.AI's cofounders Noam Shazeer and Daniel de Freitas. Photos by Getty. Art by Shane Burke.

Character.AI in Talks to Raise Funding as Meta Platforms Tests Rival

By Jon Victor and Kate Clark · July 15, 2023 7:00 AM PDT

Character.AI, which lets users create artificial intelligence–powered chatbots modeled after figures like TV character Tony Soprano and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, is in talks with investors about raising an additional round of funding, according to a person with direct knowledge. The discussions come just four months after Character.AI said... Character.AI, which lets users create artificial intelligence–powered chatbots modeled...

Why Beauty Company Oddity is Poised For a Hot IPO

By Ann Gehan · June 30, 2023 5:00 AM PDT · 1 comment

Cosmetics company Oddity Tech, which filed to go public last week, doesn’t need the stock market to continue rallying for its public debut to take off. Instead, Oddity can ride a tsunami of investor enthusiasm for other beauty and skin care stocks whose businesses have been lifted by TikTok popularity. One of the best stock market... Cosmetics company Oddity Tech, which filed to go public last week, doesn’t need the stock...

Photo by Getty.

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Apollo Leading More Than $1 Billion Debt Deal in Chipmaker Wolfspeed

By Maria Heeter · June 25, 2023 9:02 AM PDT

A group of investors led by Apollo Global Management is making a more than $1 billion debt investment in Wolfspeed, a publicly traded semiconductor maker with a $6 billion market capitalization, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter. The deal could be announced in the coming days and would be one of the largest direct lending... A group of investors led by Apollo Global Management is making a more than $1 billion debt...

venture capital startups

SoftBank’s Onetime Pizza-Robot Darling Shuts Down

By Erin Woo · June 2, 2023 4:37 PM PDT · 17 comments

Zume, which raised $375 million from SoftBank to automate pizza-making with robots before switching to developing sustainable packaging, has shut down. The company is insolvent and has retained restructuring firm Sherwood Partners to liquidate the assets for the benefit of the creditors, an alternative to bankruptcy, according to Martin... Zume, which raised $375 million from SoftBank to automate pizza-making with robots before...

Google CEO Sundar Pichai. Photo: Bloomberg.

Google Invests in AI Startup Runway to Wrest Cloud Business From AWS

By Kate Clark, Jon Victor, Amir Efrati and Erin Woo · May 31, 2023 2:47 PM PDT · 1 comment

Google CEO Sundar Pichai. Photo: Bloomberg.

venture capital cloud

Google Invests in AI Startup Runway to Wrest Cloud Business From AWS

By Kate Clark, Jon Victor, Amir Efrati and Erin Woo · May 31, 2023 2:47 PM PDT · 1 comment

Google is investing in Runway, a New York–based startup that lets customers generate video from text descriptions using artificial intelligence it pioneered, at a valuation of around $1.5 billion including the new capital, according to two people familiar with the matter. The investment, part of a roughly $100 million funding round,... Google is investing in Runway, a New York–based startup that lets customers generate video...

Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman in Davos earlier this year. Photo by Bloomberg.

The Impending Fight for Private Equity Buyout Lending

By Rachel Graf and Michael Roddan · April 21, 2023 6:00 AM PDT · 1 comment

A battle is looming over private equity buyout financing. After nearly a year on the sidelines, Wall Street banks are beginning to lend to private equity firms again for their buyout deals. Meanwhile, the direct lenders that stepped in to finance buyouts while the banks were absent—oftentimes PE firms themselves—are ratcheting up the... A battle is looming over private equity buyout financing. After nearly a year on the sidelines,...

From left: Nichole Wischoff, Helen Min, Meena Harris and Erica Wenger. Photos via Wischoff Ventures, Phenomenal Ventures and Erica Wenger.

venture capital startups

Cash Dries Up for VC Newcomers

By Kate Clark and Becky Peterson · April 10, 2023 10:10 AM PDT · 10 comments

When Helen Min and Meena Harris started raising money for their debut venture capital fund in January of last year, they expected that their combined 30 years of experience at tech companies would allow them to collect $15 million, a standard first-time fund target. Then interest rates spiked, sending tech stocks careening. By December, when... When Helen Min and Meena Harris started raising money for their debut venture capital fund in...

A Silicon Valley Bank branch in Santa Monica, Calif. Photo by Getty.

Breaking Up SVB Is Hard to Do

By Michael Roddan · March 23, 2023 1:14 PM PDT

With bids for the entity formerly known as Silicon Valley Bank due Friday, potential buyers and regulators are running into an interesting reality: Breaking up—and salvaging—SVB is hard to do. Nearly two weeks after SVB failed, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has yet to find a buyer for the so-called bridge bank that took over... With bids for the entity formerly known as Silicon Valley Bank due Friday, potential buyers and...

Stripe CEO Patrick Collison. Photo by Getty.

No More Four-Year Lockups: Stripe’s Sprint to a $7 Billion Fundraising Haul

By Maria Heeter and Cory Weinberg · March 16, 2023 2:31 PM PDT · 2 comments

Stripe CEO Patrick Collison. Photo by Getty.

No More Four-Year Lockups: Stripe’s Sprint to a $7 Billion Fundraising Haul

By Maria Heeter and Cory Weinberg · March 16, 2023 2:31 PM PDT · 2 comments

Two years ago, when Stripe raised money at a valuation of $95 billion, the payments giant had such an upper hand over investors that it could institute some highly unusual conditions in its fundraising round. Investors had to agree to hold onto their shares for four years after the company went public. And Stripe had the option to sell them even... Two years ago, when Stripe raised money at a valuation of $95 billion, the payments giant had...

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