Latest Startups & Entrepreneurship News
Modal Labs in Talks for $2.5B Valuation Funding Round
AI inference startup Modal Labs is raising a new round at about $2.5 billion valuation, more than doubling its prior $1.1 billion valuation from five months ago. The company, co-founded by ex-Spotify and Better.com CTO Erik Bernhardsson, competes in the hot inference infrastructure space alongside Baseten and Fireworks AI.
Investors include Lux Capital and Redpoint Ventures.
Waymo Secures Largest Early 2026 Round at $16B
Autonomous driving leader Waymo raised $16 billion to scale its global robotaxi network, reaching a ~$126 billion valuation with backers like Sequoia and Alphabet. This tops early 2026 funding lists amid expansion into 20+ cities.
The round highlights investor bets on autonomous mobility infrastructure.
Anthropic Raises $10B for Agentic AI Systems
Generative AI firm Anthropic secured $10 billion led by GIC, Coatue, Microsoft, and NVIDIA, pushing its valuation to ~$350 billion. Funding targets enterprise-grade agentic systems expansion.
It ranks second in early 2026's largest startup rounds.
xAI Lands $3.4B for Sovereign-Scale AI Compute
Elon Musk's xAI raised $3.4 billion from Apollo Global Management and Valor Equity for AI infrastructure, tied to large-scale GPU leasing. The round supports building massive compute capabilities.
It places third among early 2026's top fundings.
Skild AI Raises $1.4B for Robot Intelligence
Physical AI startup Skild AI secured $1.4 billion led by SoftBank, NVentures, and Jeff Bezos at a $14 billion valuation. The funding develops a licensable general-purpose robot brain.
SoftBank led this standout Series C in robotics.
Runway Raises $315M at $5.3B Valuation for AI Video
AI video startup Runway raised $315 million at $5.3 billion valuation as 'world models' gain traction. The round underscores capital flow into compute-intensive generative video amid copyright challenges.
Video tech intersects high-stakes innovation and product utility.
Entire Launches with $60M Seed from Ex-GitHub CEO
Former GitHub CEO Thomas Dohmke launched Entire, an AI coding tools startup, with $60 million seed at $300 million valuation led by Felicis. Backers include Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan and Microsoft's M12.
It's dubbed the largest seed for developer tools.
Contented AI Raises $2.5M Seed in New Zealand
Christchurch-based AI startup Contented raised $2.5 million seed led by Altered Capital, with Icehouse Ventures and others participating. The February 2026 round funds its AI platform development.
Focuses on innovative AI applications from NZ.
Lema AI Secures $24M Series A for Cybersecurity
Lema Labs raised $24 million Series A led by Team8, with Salesforce Ventures and F2 Venture Capital, in February 2026. Targets AI-driven third-party risk management and enterprise security.
Enhances cybersecurity for SaaS ecosystems.
Allonic Raises €6M for Robotics Manufacturing
Budapest robotics startup Allonic raised €6 million to scale manufacturing of complex 'robot body' components. Addresses hardware challenges in physical AI supply chains and cost efficiency.
Investors eye picks-and-shovels for scalable robotics.
Lightspeed Leads Active January VC Deals
Lightspeed topped U.S. venture investors in January 2026 with deals like $300 million Series A for AI chip startup Ricursive Intelligence. Sequoia and a16z followed in activity for $5M+ rounds.
Y Combinator led seeds with 20 deals.