Startups Weekly: No sign of pause

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You’d think WWDC would cause a lull in startup news. But not in June, when everyone is eager to announce their latest deals — or even to go public.

Most interesting startup stories from the week

This week brought us many reminders that no startup journey is linear — but the next billion-dollar idea may only be one click away.

Gong chime: Neobank Chime went public this week in one of this year’s most anticipated IPOs. But the company nearly died in 2016 — until a providential check.

Oh no, baby, no: Genetics testing startup Nucleus Genomics raised criticism for its new product, Nucleus Embryo, which could let future parents pick or discard embryos based on controversial factors.

Personal CRM: WordPress.com owner Automattic acquired Clay, a startup that had raised over $9 million in venture capital for its relationship management app, which will continue to be supported. (Trivia alert: TechCrunch has been writing about Automattic for 20 years now.)

ICYMI: Brad Menezes, CEO of enterprise vibe-coding startup Superblocks, has a tip for prospective founders hoping to find a billion-dollar idea: Look at the system prompts used by existing AI unicorns.

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Netflix, Box, a16z, ElevenLabs, Wayve, Sequoia Capital, Elad Gil — just some of the 250+ heavy hitters leading 200+ sessions designed to deliver the insights that fuel startup growth and sharpen your edge. Don’t miss the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch, and a chance to learn from the top voices in tech. Grab your ticket before Sept 26 to save up to $668.

Join 10k+ tech and VC leaders for growth and connections at Disrupt 2025

Netflix, Box, a16z, ElevenLabs, Wayve, Sequoia Capital, Elad Gil — just some of the 250+ heavy hitters leading 200+ sessions designed to deliver the insights that fuel startup growth and sharpen your edge. Don’t miss the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch, and a chance to learn from the top voices in tech. Grab your ticket before Sept 26 to save up to $668.

Most interesting VC and funding news this week

Behind this week’s top deals, including some particularly large ones, you will find oversubscribed rounds and VC inbound, but also hard-earned funding and bold life decisions.

Slim and fat: Multiverse Computing, a Spanish startup reducing the size of LLMs, raised an unusually large Series B of €189 million (about $215 million). The company claims its “slim” models can lower AI costs and run on all sorts of devices.

Upward: Enterprise AI company Glean raised a $150 million Series F led by Wellington Management at a $7.2 billion valuation, up from $4.6 billion in September 2024.

Boiling hot: Fervo Energy landed $206 million in a mix of debt and equity from backers, including Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Catalyst, to continue work on a new geothermal power plant in Utah.

Nuclear fuel: German startup Proxima Fusion secured a €130 million Series A (approximately $148 million) led by Balderton Capital and Cherry Ventures.

Last mile: Coco Robotics, a delivery robot startup backed by Sam Altman, disclosed having raised $80 million across a mix of funding events from 2021 to 2024. In March, it announced a partnership with OpenAI.

Singing: Hotel guest management platform Canary locked in an $80 million Series D led by Brighton Park Capital, with participation from Y Combinator, Insight Partners, Fidelity, and others.

Fresh capital: Tebi, the new fintech startup by former Adyen CTO Arnout Schuijff, raised a €30 million round ($34 million) led by Alphabet’s CapitalG for its all-in-one platform for hospitality businesses. 

Streamlining contracts: British AI legal tech startup Definely raised a $30 million Series B from European and North American investors to make it easier for lawyers to review contracts. 

Based: AI sales startup Landbase closed a $30 million Series A co-led by existing investor Picus Capital and  Ashton Kutcher’s Sound Ventures, which was one of 130 VC firms that reached out after its Series A and product launch. 

Shining bright: Co-founded by Jewel Burks Solomon, the former head of Google for Startups in the U.S., Collab Capital closed a $75 million Fund II focused on seed and Series A investments into healthcare, infrastructure, and the future of work.

Last but not least

The U.S. Navy says “welcome aboard” to new startup partnerships. This week on StrictlyVC Download, acting chief technology officer Justin Fanelli shared insights on the Navy’s innovation adoption kit, as well as advice for any startups looking to work with the Navy.