🕶️ European startups are breaking banks

Six bullets of updates

1. 🦘 Skip the VC route: 4 ways to fund your startup, including crowdfunding, angel investors, and grants, amid a 35% VC drop.

2. 🥖 French startup AdCreative.ai launches AdLLM Spark to boost ad copy conversion, predicting performance with 90% accuracy.

3. ☁️ Google's parent Alphabet is in advanced talks to acquire cloud security firm Wiz for a whopping $23 billion.

4. ⚖️ LegalFly's €15m Series A marks the latest funding in Europe's GenAI legal tech race to deploy GenAI in the legal sector.

5. 🎹 YouTube Music is testing an AI-generated radio feature and a new song recognition tool to boost discovery.

6. 🧠 European universities use AI to combat dementia with groundbreaking diagnostic tools, impacting over 55M people globally.

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What’s the AI financial results paradox?

AI's financial results are a head-scratcher. The paradox arises from its complex nature, where short-term financial metrics don't capture long-term gains. Think of AI as that expensive espresso machine you bought, promising barista-level coffee, yet it’s more of a fancy kitchen ornament. 

Investors remain bullish, pouring billions into AI startups. But the returns? Still brewing. For startups, this highlights the need for patience and strategic planning. AI's value may manifest in operational efficiencies or new revenue streams over time, not immediately. Investors should consider long-term potential when evaluating AI ventures. Read more! 

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Startup Events and Deadlines

1. Financial Modeling Bootcamp | July 22 | Bootcamp

2. How to close a Funding Round | July 24 | Webinar

3. Crash Course in Financial Modeling |August 7 | Webinar

4. SaaStock: Dublin | August 14 | Conference

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These companies just raised money

1. 🛡️ Defence AI startup Helsing raises $487M Series C to expand into the Baltics and counter Russian threats.

2. 🔧 HERO Software, a startup set out to fight climate change by helping plumbers, has closed a €40 million Series B financing round.

3. 🦾 Exein raises $15M in Series B to prevent robotic arms from malfunctioning, ensuring safer automation.

4. 👶 Shark Tank-backed Kudos secures $3M to continue revolutionizing the diaper industry with healthier, sustainable disposable diapers.

5. 🗂️ Moffin raised $2.1M to enhance automation and compliance, helping 70+ companies with over 1M data pulls. 

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Record debt and equity boost for European startups

European startups secured €47.3B across 2,971 funding rounds from January to June this year, with €18.7B being debt, likely surpassing 2022’s record of €28.1B. Climate tech played a significant role, with notable debt raises by Northvolt and H2 Green Steel, while fintechs led in debt round shares. 

Major debt rounds included €1.5B for SumUp and £750M for Tabeo. Additionally, 63 equity megarounds of $100m+, the highest since early 2022, and eight new $1B companies were minted, mostly in AI and CFO tech. Early-stage funding rose steadily, and VCs raised over €15B, the most since H1 2022.

Read the whole article.

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Do you know who’s Elon Musk's worst enemy?

Elon Musk: Whether you love or hate him, there's no ignoring the controversy around this tech titan. In this video, we've dug deep to uncover his mysterious persona, cutting through the chaos and cancel culture to reveal the real story behind one of the world's most polarizing figures. Subscribe for more content on video!