🕶️ The $500M Power Move Shaking Up AI Search

VCs reject China and Russia funding as startups raise big for AI, space, and more.

Author

Paula Echeverria
December 21, 2024

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AI’s getting a voice (literally), satellites are gearing up for liftoff, and a “Genius Girl”-inspired fund is putting dollars where dreams are. 🫰 

Meanwhile, the Clean Capital Certification is trying to play bouncer for critical tech—though some heavyweights are skipping the party.

It’s a world where quantum computing meets cancer detection, and even smart rings are raising Series D. 💸 

Let’s dive in.

-🕶️ 

 
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Six bullets of updates

  1. 🚀 K2 Space secures a $60M contract to launch its mega satellite, Gravitas, on SpaceX's 2026 Transporter-16 mission.

  2. 🤖 Ex-Twitch CEO Emmett Shear launches Stem AI, an AI startup backed by a16z, focusing on human-aligned tech.

  3. 🌟 Songyee Yoon launches Principle Venture Partners, a $100M AI fund, inspired by her "Genius Girl" TV character.

  4. 🧬 Earli co-founders blend science and tech for 98% accurate cancer detection, turning tragedy into hope.

  5. 📱 Iconfactory's Tapestry app, crowdfunded with $177K, to launch in 2025 unifying social media and RSS feeds.

  6. 📞 OpenAI lets U.S. users call ChatGPT via phone for 15 minutes of free advice and translations, no account needed.

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Clean Break: Venture Firms Pledge to Ditch Foreign Ties

Over 20 venture firms have signed the Clean Capital Certification, pledging to reject investments from countries like China and Russia. Spearheaded by Future Union, the initiative aims to safeguard critical technologies from adversaries—a concern heightened by past entanglements between U.S. firms and Chinese investors.

However, notable holdouts like Andreessen Horowitz and Founders Fund raise questions about the pledge's impact. While they support its rationale, the certification remains self-regulated, with no formal vetting in place—though Future Union is working to address this.

As Future Union works to refine the certification process, all eyes are on whether more firms will join the pledge and how it might shape the future of venture capital and tech innovation.

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Startup Events and Deadlines

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These companies just raised money

  1. 💍 Finnish startup Oura raises $200M in Series D, boosting its valuation to $5.2B amidst smart ring market surge.

  2. 💻 Robin Capital hits €15M for its first fund, supporting B2B SaaS startups across Europe with 28 companies onboard.

  3. 🔬 BlueQubit bags $10M to bridge quantum computing into real-world applications with its QSaaS platform.

  4. 🧠 British startup Mindgard raises $8M to combat AI threats, keeping R&D in London and expanding to the U.S.

  5. 🏡 Brazilian fintech Trinus raises $7M Series B extension, boosting its real estate ecosystem and tech platform.

  6. 🚀 Swizzle Fund raises $5M to back startups focused on women's health, finance, and caregiving innovation.

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Perplexity's $500M Infusion as AI Search Heats Up

Perplexity's staggering $500 million funding round and $9 billion valuation are clear indicators of investor confidence and the escalating stakes in the AI search arena. As OpenAI and Google push boundaries with their own advancements, the race for dominance in this space is heating up, turning it into a battleground for innovation. Perplexity's recent acquisition of Carbon further underscores its strategic focus on enhancing connectivity and integrating real-world data—a critical move to stay competitive in this high-stakes environment.

However, this rapid growth comes with challenges. The company is under increasing legal scrutiny, raising important questions about its ability to maintain trust and transparency. In an era where privacy and ethical AI use are central to public and regulatory concerns, can Perplexity navigate these pressures while scaling at such a breakneck pace?

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That’s why a lot of them (including investors from a16z, Bessemer, Founders Fund, and Sequoia) trust this free newsletter.

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