Mega Funds Were Right🐘, VC’s New Blood Is Drying Up🩸, Global Tech Hubs Ranked🌍
Another week, another pulse check on venture.
From top insights and reports to new funds, VC jobs, and the hottest deals—here’s everything you need to stay ahead.
Let’s dive in 👇
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Stay ahead:
In-Depth Insights 🔍
What If the Mega Funds Are Right? 🐘
Mega funds aren’t oversized - they’re precision machines designed to follow outliers, bet big, and reshape venture as the trillionaire era unfolds. [Jeff Becker]
Why Every VC Fund Claims to Be Top Quartile 🤔
Top quartile is meaningless in a power law world. Real returns come from the outliers, not the average. [Yavuzhan Yilancioglu]IPO Market Reopens, but Valuations Take a Hit 📉
Tech startups like Hinge Health and Chime are going public — just not at their fantasy-era valuations. Down rounds are the new normal.VC’s New Blood Is Drying Up 🩸
First-time VC funds raised just $1.1B in 2025, down nearly 80% from 2021 - making survival nearly impossible for emerging managers. [Bloomberg]
AI Sucks Up 40% of VC Capital as 'Zombiecorns' Multiply 💸
AI dominates VC funding; non-AI startups face a funding freeze. SVB flags rising 'zombiecorns' with shaky growth. [CNBC]Jony Ive Joins OpenAI in $6.5B Deal 🎨
OpenAI acquires Ive's startup io, putting the legendary Apple designer in charge of crafting its AI hardware future.
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Interesting Reports 📊
Global Tech Hubs Ranked 🌍
Dealroom’s 2025 index shows who’s rising, who’s stalling. Ecosystem momentum matters - and some cities are slipping. [Deal Room]
Cloud Wars ⚔️
Three giants, one massive cloud pie. Market share, pricing plays, and AI arms race breakdown. [CB Insights]
100 AI Startups to Know in 2025 🤖
From stealth to spotlight - CB Insights drops its AI shortlist. Deep dives by category, traction, and investor heat.
Recently Launched Funds 💸
Munich Re Ventures $125M aimed at startups tackling risk, resilience, and maybe the next insurance disruptor.
Google search giant rolls out the AI Futures Fund - big bets on AI research with an ethical backbone.
Adaptation Ventures a new angel group with a clear mission: fund accessible tech and empower disability innovation.
United Effects Ventures new kid on the block, focused on startups that actually move the needle in impact and sustainability.
Creator Ventures $45M for influencers with a business plan - still proving the creator economy is more than hype.
Redpoint Ventures 10th fund, $650M strong. Redpoint's still got the checkbook - and it’s ready for another startup safari.
Abundant Venture Partners debuting a growth platform for purpose-driven startups - think money meets mission.
Invictus Growth Partners $574M Fund II in the books. Target: capital-efficient tech cos with scale potential and discipline.
Fundraising?
If you're raising a round,
and I can help. We gather startup fundraising data and share it with our audience of 300k+ investors and startup enthusiasts. Fill out this form and we’ll will do our best to connect you with the right investors! 🚀VC Jobs 💼
TCV (New York City, NY): VC Associate (apply here)
Temasek (San Francisco, CA): Senior VC Associate (apply here)
Hitachi Ventures (Boston, MA): VC Analyst (apply here)
Synchrony Ventures (Chicago, IL): VC Vice President (apply here)
Construct Capital (Washington, DC): VC Investor (apply here)
B Capital (Los Angeles, CA): Capital Formation Associate (apply here)
XRC Ventures (Remote): VC Internship (apply here)
Distilled Intelligence (Remote): VC Internship (apply here)
SkiesFifty (Remote): VC Associate (apply here)
TempoCap (London, England): VC Internship (apply here)
Hottest Deals 💥
Awardco, the employee perks rocket ship, just banked $165M and officially entered unicorn airspace. (read more)
Instead got the nod (and capital) from Iris Software Group to keep rethinking how hiring should be done. (read more)
Pulnovo Medical scored fresh capital from EQT and Qiming to double down on treating pulmonary hypertension. (read more)
StackHawk raised $12M to help devs ship faster without worrying if security is lurking under the hood. (read more)
MDA – Medical Decision Alliance pulled in €3.3M to inject AI smarts into healthcare decisions. (read more)
Emerge Tech got the HTGF stamp of approval (read: funding) to keep cooking up AI-native insights. (read more)
Jupus, the AI tool for SME digital hustle, landed €6.5M in seed cash to accelerate the mission. (read more)
desk.ly, making the flexible workplace actually work, secured a crisp seven-figure check. (read more)
Converge raised $22M to bring real-time, AI-powered insight to construction - less guesswork, more getting it done. (read more)
Pixee, a startup turning product placement into an art form (and revenue stream), raised $15M. (read more)
Rhino Federated Computing raised $15M to make secure, multi-party data collaboration not just possible - but seamless. (read more)
Perpl, building the OS for customer experience intelligence, raised $9.25M to go deeper on CX clarity. (read more)
Entos Pharmaceuticals picked up backing from CureDuchenne Ventures to keep fighting muscular dystrophy at the cellular level. (read more)
WellTheory raised $5M to scale its personalized approach to autoimmune care - healthcare that gets you. (read more)
Alt Carbon raised $12M to help the planet breathe easier with scalable carbon capture tech. (read more)
RESOURCES 🛠️
✅ 300+ VCs That Accept Cold Pitches — No Warm Intro Needed
✅ 50 Game-Changing AI Agent Startup Ideas for 2025
✅ 144 Family Offices That Cut Pre-Seed Checks
✅ 70+ Startup Pitch Decks That Raised Over $1B in 2024
✅ 89 Best Startup Essays by Top VCs and Founders (Paul Graham, Naval, Altman…)
✅ The Ultimate Startup Data Room Template (VC-Ready & Founder-Proven)
✅ The 100+ Pitch Decks That Raised Over $2B
✅ Ultimate Investor List of Lists (+5k VCs)
✅ 40 Pitch Decks That Raised Over $460M
✅ The Startup Founder’s Guide to Financial Modeling (7 free templates included)
✅ SAFE Note Dilution: How to Calculate & Protect Your Equity (+ Cap Table Template)
✅ 400+ Seed VCs Backing Startups in the US & Europe
✅ The Best 23 Accelerators Worldwide for Rapid Growth (and How to Get Into Them)
✅ The Ultimate Startup & Venture Capital Notion Guide: Knowledge Base & Resources
✅ AI Co-Pilots Every Startup & VC Needs in Their Toolbox