WHAT’S INSIDE

• The latest in Tech: crypto summit, jobs cool off, Google v DOJ, HP, Microsoft

• The biggest startup deals closed this week

• The hottest companies on the rise in tech

• The latest exit deals and companies going public

• The latest VC & PE news and funds raised

TECH IN THE NEWS

Crypto Summit — President Trump announced the end of Operation Chokepoint 2.0, plans stablecoin legislation, and discussed the establishment of a $17B Bitcoin Reserve from seized assets aiming to make the US the global crypto hub.

Jobs Cool Down — Feb job growth below expectations at 151,000 new jobs, 4.1% unemployment rate. Healthcare leads gains while labor participation drops to 62.4%.

DOJ Shifts Gears — The DOJ dropped its bid to force Google to sell its AI investments including an Anthropic stake, while maintaining other antitrust measures. An April trial is scheduled.

Microsoft's AI Push — Microsoft is developing in-house MAI reasoning models to reduce OpenAI reliance, with potential API release later this year.

HPE Struggles — HPE shares fell 13% on impacts of US tariffs to its profit forecast. It also announced job cuts amid rising competition from Dell and Super Micro.

DEALS WE’RE WATCHING
Closed Deals:

MASSIVE DEALS

EcoDataCenter — The sustainable data center company raised a $478M to build eco-friendly AI infrastructure, partnering with CoreWeave and BMW.

Epirus — The defense tech company secured a $250M Series D to scale production of its Leonidas high-power microwave technology for drone defense, with focus on global expansion.

Shield AI — The AI drone startup raised $240M at $5.3B valuation from L3Harris and a16z to commercialize its Hivemind autonomous flight software.

Reflection AI — The autonomous coding startup founded by ex-DeepMind researchers raised $130M at $555M valuation from Nvidia and Reid Hoffman.

Turing — The AI coding platform secured a $111M Series E at $2.2B valuation to expand R&D and market presence in AI-powered development.

Aescape — The NY-based robotic massage startup raised $83M led by Valor Equity, with investors including Kevin Love and expanded partnership with Equinox.

SpecterOps — The identity security startup raised a $75M Series B led by Insight Partners to scale its BloodHound Enterprise platform and support R&D.

LARGE DEALS

Tandem PV — The U.S.-based perovskite solar panel manufacturer raised $50M to build a panels facility targeting for 30% efficiency by late 2025.

Grain — The AI-driven FX optimization platform raised $50M to enhance B2B cross-border transactions and expand their team.

Latent Labs — The programmable biology startup raised $50M ($40M Series A) led by Radical Ventures and Sofinnova, with angels from Google and Cohere.

MATRIXX Software — The digital commerce platform for telecoms raised $40M Series C led by Sutter Hill Ventures.

Swap — The e-commerce logistics AI platform raised $40M Series B to serve brands with $5M-$100M revenue.

Coalition — The cybersecurity insurance provider received $30M investment from Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance to expand globally.

Flex — The finance software platform raised $25M at $250M valuation, reaching $1B in payment volume within 18 months.

SMALLER DEALS

Crogl — The cybersecurity operations platform raised $25M Series A for its knowledge engine that automates investigations and compliance documentation.

Auxia — The AI-driven marketing platform raised $23.5M to optimize customer lifetime value using personalized AI agents.

Lumata Health — The vision care tech company raised $23M Series B to enhance access to treatments for chronic eye diseases using data-driven solutions.

Daupler — The utilities incident response platform raised $15M Series B led by Aqualateral for UK/EU expansion.

Ceramic.ai — The AI infrastructure startup led by ex-Google VP raised $12M to accelerate model training 2.5x, targeting enterprise adoption.

AIceberg — The AI security platform raised $10M seed from SYN Ventures and Sprout & Oak for enterprise AI risk management.

Intangible — The no-code 3D creation platform raised $4M for AI-powered world building, launching in June with free, premium tiers.

Momentic — The AI software testing platform raised $3.7M for natural language test creation, serving clients like Quora and Retool.

Companies to Watch:

Gong — The revenue prediction startup hit $300M ARR, valued at $7.25B with clients like Google and LinkedIn, as it prioritizes product development ahead of possible IPO.

Cursor — The AI coding platform hit $100M ARR in 21 months, becoming the fastest-growing SaaS ever, competing with GitHub Copilot through enhanced UX and AI integration.

Ceramic.ai — Silicon Valley veteran Anna Patterson's new startup raised a $12M seed to help enterprises build efficient AI models with reduced GPU usage.

Digg Revival — Kevin Rose and Alexis Ohanian acquired Digg news aggregator, planning an AI-powered platform relaunch focused on community engagement.

Defense AI — 1. Scale AI partners with Anduril, leveraging Microsoft, Google tech for "Thunderforge" initiative. | 2. Mach Industries wins US Army contract for vertical takeoff missile factory in California.

DEALS WE’RE WATCHING
The Funding Buzz 

China VC Fund — China launched a $138B fund for tech startups, focusing on semiconductors and renewable energy with a ong-term market-based approach.

Guggenheim — Partnered with billionaires to establish a $40B fund focused on AI investments, making it a major tech investment initiative.

SoftBank — Plans to borrow $16B for AI investments (potential $8B more in 2026), targeting companies like OpenAI and Stargate.

8VC — Joe Lonsdale’s Firm, raises an $880M fifth fund for cross-industry investments, now $6B+ AUM with expanded 60+ team in Texas.

OpenAI — Launched a $50M grant program for NextGenAI consortium with Harvard and MIT to advance AI research and education.

Exit Watch:

Kraken — The crypto exchange's parent Payward Inc. plans 2026 IPO after SEC drops lawsuit. It would be only the second U.S. public crypto exchange after Coinbase.

StubHub — The ticketing platform aims to raise a $1B+ IPO this year. It reports 50% growth in late 2024 ticket sales.

Canoo — CEO Anthony Aquila proposes buying the bankrupt EV startup's assets for $4M, clearing $11M debt. Other bids will be accepted until March 28.

Discord — Gaming chat platform (200M monthly users, $15B valuation) exploring 2025 IPO. It generates revenue through freemium model.

CoreWeave — The Nvidia-backed AI cloud provider files for an IPO (CRWV). Its revenue is up 700% to $1.9B in 2024, with $863M loss.