How NfX Creates Unicorns🚀, Design as a Competitive Edge🎨, Investor Ranking 2025📊

Aug 31, 2025

Another week, another pulse check on venture.

From top insights and reports to new funds, VC jobs, resources, and the hottest deals, here’s everything you need to stay ahead.

Let’s dive in 👇

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In-Depth Insights 🔍

How NfX Creates Unicorns: Inside Their Investment Playbook 🚀
NfX partner Anna Pinol shares how the firm has helped launch 25 unicorns. Learn about their investment strategies and the founder lessons behind building billion-dollar companies. [Compound Podcast,
Guillermo Flor
,
Ruben Dominguez Ibar
]

Design Is the New Competitive Edge in Startups 🎨
As AI reduces software development costs, user experience and design take center stage. Aesthetic, intuitive products cut through crowded markets, proving that taste remains more valuable than tech alone. [Rex Woodbury]
China’s AI Infrastructure Crisis: The Cost of Overbuilding 🏗️
Billions were invested into data centers now sitting idle, as the rush to build AI infrastructure clashes with evolving market needs. This mismatch highlights the risks in government-driven projects amidst uncertain demand. [MIT Technology Review]
AI Talent Acquisition Prices Surge Amidst Growing Demand 📈
Elite AI engineers now command acquisition prices over $10M, driven by a shortage of skilled talent, rising compute costs, and increasing competition. This shift is changing the way valuable teams are bought and sold. [Axel Badalian]
Venture Debt: Fueling Late-Stage Startups 💰
Venture debt reached $53B in 2024, as firms delay IPOs and turn to debt financing for growth. This shift towards larger, more mature companies signals a new phase in funding for growth-stage startups. [WSJ]
AI to Revolutionize Retail with $1T Opportunity 🛒
AI is poised to reshape retail like never before, unlocking a trillion-dollar opportunity. From consultative shopping to predictive logistics, this shift could pave the way for the next retail giant. [Sequoia]
AI’s Impact on Entry-Level Jobs: A Growing Gap 🧑‍💻
New research shows a sharp decline in entry-level jobs in AI-impacted fields like coding and customer service. While senior roles increase, younger workers face shrinking opportunities at the bottom of the career ladder. [Alex Wilhelm]

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Interesting Reports 📊

Foundational Equity: Carta’s Startup Data Report for Founders 📊
Peter Walker shares 50 slides of startup data from over 45,000 companies on Carta. The report breaks down equity dynamics from co-founders to early employees, covering fundraising trends, SAFE terms, valuations, and dilution patterns, giving founders a rare, data-driven view into ownership.
Power Law Investor Ranking 2025 📊
Dealroom’s seventh annual VC ranking focuses on fundamentals, with two-thirds of scores tied to real revenue milestones. Early-stage conviction remains key, rewarding investors who back founders at Seed and Series A before valuations climb.
$148.5B Flows Into 32 LLM Developers. Led by Big Tech and Chip Giants 💰
Over 630 investors have backed LLM startups, but the largest checks come from NVIDIA, Amazon, Microsoft, Alibaba, Salesforce, and Google. This mix of investors, suppliers, acquirers, and competitors is reshaping the tech ecosystem into a tightly connected network.

Recently Launched Funds 💸

Portfolia launched its Women’s Health Fund IV, continuing its focus on innovations improving women’s health and wellness.
Blankpage Capital announced the raise of its maiden venture fund, targeting early-stage investments.
71-70 Angels closed Fund I at $4M to back high-potential early-stage startups.
CapitalT held the first close of its second fund, doubling down on early-stage tech companies.
HLM Investment Partners preparing to raise its sixth fund, focusing on healthcare innovation.
SHIFT Invest completed the first close of Fund IV at €92M to invest in sustainability-focused ventures.
Ventures EU launched its first €30M fund, targeting early-stage European startups.
Crescent Capital prepping a massive $3B credit continuation fund to support portfolio company financings.
Eldridge Capital aiming to raise $1B for a new private equity financing fund.
Portfolia launching a $20M fund focused on women’s health innovation.
Temasek’s Seatown closed $612M in the first close of its third private credit fund.
FB Ventures launching Australia’s first VC fund of funds tailored for retail investors, marking a significant step in democratizing access to venture capital.

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VC Jobs 💼

Lionheart Ventures (Remote): Associate or Principal (DOE, AI Focus) (apply here)
Griffin Gaming Partners (Los Angeles, CA): Investor Relations Analyst (apply here)
Identity Ventures (Berlin, Germany): Principal (Venture Capital) (apply here)
NLC (Amsterdam, Netherlands): Junior VC Fund Controller / Internal Auditor (apply here)
Entrepreneur First (San Francisco, CA): Investor (SF Launch) (apply here)
Four Cities Capital (Menlo Park, CA): VC Associate (apply here)
Mouro Capital (San Francisco, CA): VC Associate (apply here)
Accion (Washington, DC): VC Associate (apply here)
Planet A Ventures (Remote): VC Internship (apply here)
Accion (Washington, DC): VC Associate (apply here)

Hottest Deals 💥

M0 just bagged $40M in Series B to fuel its growth engine. (read more)
Wugen scored a monster $115M round to push forward next-gen therapies. (read more)
Mid-Atlantic Biotherapeutics locked in up to $50M from Legend Innovation to back its biotech pipeline. (read more)
Framer leveled up with a $100M Series D, now rocking a $2B valuation. (read more)
Maisa kicked off strong with a $25M seed to scale its platform. (read more)
BigC raised $14M Series A to fuel e-commerce growth in emerging markets. (read more)
Surface Design Solutions snagged $365K to keep building smart materials. (read more)
Instalily closed a $25M Series A to double down on AI-driven shopping. (read more)
Reprieve Cardiovascular landed $61M Series B to expand its heart failure treatment tech. (read more)
Vox AI secured €7.5M seed to bring conversational AI to healthcare. (read more)
Attio grabbed $52M Series B to reinvent CRM for the modern era. (read more)
Goodship raised $25M Series B to modernize freight logistics. (read more)
Paragraf closed a $55M Series C to scale graphene-based semiconductors. (read more)
Nest Health picked up $12.5M Series A to expand at-home pediatric care. (read more)
Incyclix Bio extended its Series B with an extra $11.25M to push oncology programs forward. (read more)