🧑‍🚀 Top Deals You Can’t Miss

1️⃣ OpenAI – $122B funding round at an $852B valuation, the largest private raise in history, backed by Amazon, SoftBank, Nvidia, and Microsoft.

2️⃣ Saronic – $1.75B Series D led by Kleiner Perkins, valuing the autonomous naval startup at $9.25B.

3️⃣ WHOOP – $575M Series G at a $10.1B valuation, scaling its AI-powered health and wearable platform globally.

🧠 Dopamine Dealflow

🌳 Series B+ & Growth

• OpenAI, a San Francisco, USA-based AI research and deployment company, raised $122 billion in growth funding. Investors include Amazon, SoftBank, Nvidia, and Microsoft.

• Saronic, an Austin, USA-based autonomous naval defense company, raised $1.75 billion in Series D funding. Kleiner Perkins led the round and were joined by Advent International, Bessemer Venture Partners, DFJ Growth, BAM Elevate, 8VC, Caffeinated Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Elad Gil, and Franklin Resources.

• WHOOP, a Boston, USA-based health and wearable technology platform, raised $575 million in Series G funding. Collaborative Fund led the round and were joined by Abbott, Mayo Clinic, Cristiano Ronaldo, LeBron James, and Rory McIlroy.

• Also, a United States-based autonomous delivery vehicle company, raised $200 million in Series C funding. Greenoaks Capital led the round and were joined by DoorDash.

• depthfirst, a San Francisco, USA-based AI cybersecurity company, raised $80 million in Series B funding. Meritech Capital led the round and were joined by Forerunner Ventures, The House Fund, Accel, Box Group, Liquid 2 Ventures, and Mantis VC.

🚀 Series A

• Variance, a San Francisco, USA-based AI compliance and fraud investigation platform, raised $21.5 million in Series A funding. Ten Eleven Ventures led the round and were joined by 645 Ventures, Y Combinator, Urban Innovation Fund, and Okta Ventures.

🤝 Strategic, M&A & Undisclosed

• Apollo Global / Atlantic Aviation, a New York, USA-based aviation infrastructure transaction, saw ~$10,000 million in acquisition value.

• Nvidia / Marvell Technology, a Santa Clara, USA-based semiconductor partnership, saw $2,000 million in strategic investment.

• Allbirds / American Exchange Group, a San Francisco, USA-based consumer brand transaction, saw $39 million in asset sale value.

💸 VC Funds Raised & Raising

• Runway, a New York, USA-based AI video platform, raised $10 million for a venture fund.

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📚 Read of the Day

🤖 OpenAI Closes $122B Round at $852B Valuation

The largest private funding round in history cements AI’s defining platform moment

OpenAI has officially closed its record $122 billion funding round, bringing its valuation to $852 billion and marking the largest private capital raise ever. The round included massive commitments from Amazon, SoftBank, Nvidia, and Microsoft, alongside new participation from individual investors through structured channels.

The Product Pitch

OpenAI is building an AI “superapp” spanning ChatGPT, APIs, and autonomous agents, generating roughly $2 billion in monthly revenue and scaling rapidly across enterprise and consumer use cases.

The Strategy

This round positions OpenAI for a likely 2026 IPO while locking in strategic partnerships across cloud, chips, and distribution. Its cap table now mirrors the full AI infrastructure stack.

Why It Matters

At $852 billion, OpenAI has effectively claimed the platform layer of AI. For investors, the opportunity shifts downstream to application-layer startups, tooling, and infrastructure that extend or complement its ecosystem.

👉 Read The Whole Story Here

📰 Other News You Don’t Want To Miss

• 🤖 All 11 xAI Co-Founders Have Now Left Elon Musk's AI Company — Leadership turnover continues as xAI undergoes restructuring following major strategic shifts.

• 👟 Allbirds Is Selling for $39M — It Raised Nearly 10 Times That in Its IPO — A stark example of public market compression as the once $4B brand exits via asset sale.

• 🖥️ CoreWeave Closes $8.5B GPU-Backed Financing, Achieving First Investment-Grade Rating — A landmark structured financing tied directly to AI infrastructure demand.

• 🧠 Nvidia Takes $2B Stake in Marvell, Deepening AI Chip Partnership — The deal reinforces vertical integration across compute and networking layers.