#22: (9/9/24) Early & Growth Stage Tech Startup Funding Recap!
Check Out This Week's Venture Capital Investment Summary Spanning Early & Growth-Stage US Based Environmental Technology & Enterprise Software Startups!
Every Monday, the team here at Bearhug Recruiting aggregates, researches, and publishes a recap of the prior week's fundraising activity within the early and growth-stage Environmental Technology & Enterprise Software startup ecosystem.
This research not only allows us to keep our finger on the pulse of the markets we serve, but also benefits others who, like us, enjoy analyzing the latest trends that signal investor confidence AND startup growth within what we believe are the most exciting and impactful segments!
We also hope the people and companies we feature enjoy both a virtual fist bump from the team at Bearhug, plus benefit from some additional free market exposure to amplify their mission. Make sure you reach out to any that are interesting/relevant that you might be able to help!
Here’s this week’s startup funding recap:
Oxylus Energy, led by Perry Bakas, has raised a $4.5 million Seed funding round. Oxylus Energy makes novel carbon utilization technology designed to convert carbon dioxide into green methanol through low-temperature and low-pressure processes. Their electrolyzers are modular, enabling onsite production of carbon-neutral fuels and chemical feedstocks. This technology targets sectors like shipping, aviation, and petrochemicals, providing sustainable solutions for carbon utilization. The funds will be used to accelerate technology development, prototype testing, and pilot deployment. The round was led by Toyota Ventures (Lisa Coca) and Azolla Ventures (Amy Duffuor) with participation from Earth Foundry and Connecticut Innovations. [Link] #E-Fuels #Modular Fuel Production #Carbon Utilization #ClimateTech #Green Methanol #Environmental Technology
Blitzy, led by Brian Elliott, has raised a $4.4 million Seed funding round. Blitzy makes an AI-driven platform that automates end-to-end custom software development. The platform processes product requirements, runs them through a proprietary orchestration tool, and automates significant portions of the development process. Blitzy aims to achieve full autonomy in software development within the coming years, currently improving its capabilities by delivering enterprise-grade products for insurance and financial services clients. The funds will be used to hire additional engineers and expand its Boston presence. The round was led by Flybridge (Chip Hazard, Jeffrey Bussgang), Link Ventures, Bessemer, NFX, Picus Capital, and Asymmetric. [Link] #AI Coding Agents #Custom Software Development #Generative AI #Artificial Intelligence
Champion, led by Jeff Reekers, has raised a $3.3 million Seed funding round. Champion makes an AI-powered customer advocacy platform that helps B2B companies identify, activate, and mobilize their customers. The platform uses AI to empower marketers to build genuine relationships, drive organic growth, and create a sustainable expansion engine. By focusing on personalized experiences, Champion enables companies to amplify customer voices, ensuring marketing efforts resonate authentically in the marketplace. The funds will be used to enhance platform capabilities, expand go-to-market efforts, and support customer marketing initiatives. The round was led by Flyover Capital (Patrick Berry, Dan Kerr) with continued investment from High Alpha (Eric Tobias) and participation from Bread & Butter Ventures (Mary Grove), and Stage 2 Capital (Liz Christo, Sean Po). [Link] #Customer Marketing Platform #Post Sale Tech #MarTech #SalesTech #Artificial Intelligence
Revefi, led by Sanjay Agrawal, has raised a $20 million Series A funding round. Revefi makes a GenAI-powered data ops automation platform that enables businesses to streamline their data infrastructure, improve observability, and optimize system performance. Its AI data engineer, Raden, augments data teams with expertise in architecture, cost management, and real-time insights. The platform delivers automated solutions for complex DataOps use cases, ensuring higher ROI, reduced data spend, and accelerated decision-making across enterprise operations. The funds will be used to scale engineering, enhance product management, and grow sales and marketing efforts. The round was led by Icon Ventures (Preeti Rathi), joined by GTM Capital (Saqib E. A.), Mayfield (Navin Chaddha), and StepStone Group. Kudos to Neythri Futures Fund (Mythili Sankaran) for participating in prior funding rounds as well. [Link] #Data Ops Automation #AI Data Engineer #AI Agent #Generative AI #Artificial Intelligence
Mantel, led by Cameron Halliday, has raised a $30 million Series A funding round. Mantel makes molten-salt-based carbon capture technology designed to operate at high temperatures in boilers, kilns, and furnaces. The system enables efficient carbon capture, reducing emissions and achieving net-negative emissions. Mantel’s technology has demonstrated capture at lab scale, and they plan to scale up to capture 1,800 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year at an industrial site. The funds will be used to implement a demonstration project to enable full-scale commercial deployment. The round was led by Shell Ventures (Hector MacQuarrie) and Eni Next (Clara Andreoletti) with participation from Engine Ventures (Michael Kearney), New Climate Ventures (Donald Kendall, Matt Arnold), Hartree, bp Ventures, Arosa Ventures, Vale Ventures, Newlab, MCJ Collective, and others. [Link] #Molten-Salt-Based Carbon Capture Tech #ClimateTech #Environmental Technology
Galy, led by Luciano Bueno, has raised a $33 million Series B funding round. Galy makes lab-grown cotton through a proprietary cellular agriculture process, which offers customizable quality and ESG benefits. The company’s ‘GALY Cotton’ replicates traditional cotton’s attributes and is scaling from lab to pre-industrial production. Galy is also expanding its platform beyond cotton to include other plant-cell products, addressing the $1.7 trillion global agricultural market. The funds will be used to advance GALY Cotton’s production and scale up operations. The round was led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures (Carmichael Roberts), with participation from H&M Group and Inditex. Kudos to Pillar VC (Jamie Goldstein) for participating in prior funding rounds as well. [Link] #Cellular Agriculture #Lab Grown Cotton #ClimateTech #Environmental Technology
Laravel, led by Taylor Otwell, has raised a $57 million Series A funding round. Laravel is a popular web application framework designed for developers to build full-stack web applications efficiently. The company introduced Laravel Cloud, a platform for deploying applications seamlessly, with pay-per-use compute and a free sandbox tier. Laravel also emphasizes its commitment to open source, continuously enhancing its developer tools and ecosystem, ensuring a robust environment for innovation and community growth. The funds will be used to scale the team, develop Laravel Cloud, and expand open-source initiatives. The round was led by Accel (Miles Clements). [Link] #Web App Development Frameworks #DevTools #Open Source
Thatch, led by Chris Ellis, has raised a $38 million Series A funding round. Thatch offers a personalized health benefits platform that integrates fintech and healthtech to streamline healthcare benefits management. The platform simplifies budget setting, fund allocation, and plan selection, offering tailored healthcare solutions for employers and employees. By leveraging pooled buying power and integrating tax incentives, Thatch helps companies optimize healthcare costs while enhancing employee satisfaction and access to quality care. The funds will be used to expand the team, scale technology, and accelerate customer acquisition. The round was led by Index Ventures (Jahanvi Sardana, Martin Mignot) and General Catalyst (Alex Tran, Nathaniel Levy-Westhead), along with new investors SemperVirens (Robby Peters, Colin Tobias), and The General Partnership (Phin Barnes, Anthony Kline), with participation from existing investors including Andreessen Horowitz (Julie Yoo, Jay Rughani) and Avid Ventures (Tali Miller, Addie Lerner). [Link] #Health Benefits Platform #HRTech #HealthTech #FinTech
Mesa Quantum, led by Sristy Agrawal, has raised a $3.75 million Seed funding round. Mesa Quantum specializes in quantum sensing technology, developing chip-scale sensors like accelerometers, magnetometers, and atomic clocks for applications in consumer electronics, IoT, autonomous vehicles, and defense. The technology aims to enhance precision and efficiency in navigation, communication, and timing systems. Mesa Quantum's innovations enable scalable deployment of quantum sensors, contributing to advancements in high-tech industries. The funds will be used to build a new R&D facility and hire technical talent to commercialize their quantum sensors. The round was led by J2 Ventures (Jon Bronson) with participation from SOSV (Duncan Turner). [Link] #Quantum 2.0 #Quantum Sensors #Next Gen Navigation #Next Gen Timing #Internet of Things
Portex, led by Brittany Ennix, has raised a $6.25 million Seed funding round. Portex provides a comprehensive cloud-based freight management platform for small- to mid-sized companies. It centralizes communication, manages freight bids, and tracks shipment statuses, all while remaining broker-agnostic. By enabling instant messaging and automated data handling, Portex empowers shippers to work with multiple brokers, optimizing their logistics operations for cost and efficiency. The funds will be used to accelerate AI-focused product development and expand go-to-market strategies. The round was led by Footwork (Mike Smith) and joined by Cowboy Ventures (Jillian Williams). Existing investors Susa Ventures (Chad Byers, Leo Polovets) and Base10 (Adeyemi Ajao, TJ Nahigian) also participated in the round. [Link] #Freight Management Tech #Freight Dashboard #Logistics & Supply Chain Tech #Artificial Intelligence
Switch Bioworks, led by Tim Schnabel, has raised a $17 million Seed funding round. Switch Bioworks develops innovative, carbon-neutral biological nitrogen fertilizers using synthetic biology. Their technology engineers nitrogen-fixing microbes that establish themselves on plant roots before initiating fertilizer production, providing a sustainable alternative to conventional fertilizers. The microbes reduce the need for synthetic fertilizers, lowering costs and environmental impact, while maintaining crop yield and soil health. The funds will be used for product development, initial scale-up, and field trials. The round was led by Change Forces Capital (Kartick Kumar) and joined by Grantham Foundation, Astanor Ventures, Acre Venture Partners (Lucas Mann), Anthos Capital (Paul Farr), Thia Ventures, Emerson Collective, Ag Ventures Alliance and others. [Link] #BioTech #Sustainable Fertilizer #Biofertilizers #Sustainability #ClimateTech #Environmental Technology
Sedric AI, led by Nir Laznik, has raised an $18.5 million Series A funding round. Sedric AI creates a compliance-dedicated AI platform for financial institutions, providing a comprehensive view of compliance risks across all customer touchpoints. The platform utilizes a specialized large language model (LLM) to automate policy enforcement, streamline audits, and ensure compliance with regulatory standards. Sedric's solution helps organizations reduce risks, improve efficiency, and maintain compliance across complex operational landscapes. The funds will be used to enhance compliance operations and expand the Tel Aviv lab. The round was led by Foundation Capital (Charles Moldow, Nico Stainfeld) with participation from Amex Ventures (Kevin Weber, Rebecca Li) and our existing investors, including StageOne Ventures (Nate Meir), The Garage, Gefen Capital, Skywell Capital, Secret Chord, and K20 Fund. [Link] #AI Compliance Platform #FinTech #Generative AI #Artificial Intelligence
Demex, led by Bill Clark, has raised a $10.25 million funding round. The Demex Group makes risk analytics and intelligence solutions, partnering with reinsurance brokers, insurers, and reinsurers to address the increasing frequency of property losses from secondary perils. Their platform models loss accumulation using weather and claims data, combined with climate research, to provide parametric stop-loss solutions for the insurance industry. The funds will be used to expand operations and further development. The round was led by Congruent Ventures (Abe Yokell) and included Moxxie Ventures (Katie Jacobs Stanton, Alex Roetter), MetaProp (Zach Aarons, Aaron Block), and existing investor Blue Bear Capital (Ernst Theodor Sack, Hank Hattemer). Kudos to IA Capital Group (Matthew Perlman) and Anthemis, for participating in prior funding rounds as well. [Link] #Retained Climate Risk Reinsurance #Weather Risk Management #Data Analytics #InsurTech #ClimateTech #Environmental Technology
Acuvity, led by Satyam Sinha, has raised $9 million in Seed funding. Acuvity provides a comprehensive AI security and governance platform designed for both employee and application usage in enterprises. The platform offers granular access control, real-time enforcement, and visibility across AI models and custom applications, ensuring secure and compliant AI deployment. Acuvity's technology safeguards against data breaches, enhances privacy, and ensures regulatory compliance in the rapidly evolving AI landscape. The funds will be used to accelerate platform development and expand AI adoption security. The round was led by Foundation Capital (Ashu Garg, Jaya Gupta) with participation from individual investors. [Link] #AI Security & Governance Platform #Generative AI #Artificial Intelligence
Anytime AI, led by Lingfei (Teddy) Wu, has raised $4 million in Seed funding. Anytime AI develops an AI legal assistant for plaintiff lawyers, integrating large language models (LLMs) with advanced technologies like retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) and optical character recognition (OCR). The platform enhances law firm operations by automating legal research, generating insights, and managing client interactions, ultimately boosting revenue, efficiency, and client opportunities. The funds will be used to expand operations and broaden market reach. The round was led by Gopher Asset Management and Kao Family Office, with additional support from various law firms and angel investors. [Link] #AI Legal Assistant #LegalTech #Generative AI #Artificial Intelligence
*Note: The companies we feature in our weekly recap are a very small subset of a much larger batch, carefully chosen based on our team's assessment of how each company aligns with our GTM search practice. It’s worth noting that most startups raise funding rounds privately, often long before the news is announced publicly!
