🧑‍🚀 Top Deals You Can’t Miss

1. Anduril, $4 billion growth round at a $60 billion valuation, co-led by Thrive Capital and Andreessen Horowitz as the defense tech company accelerates autonomous weapons production.

2. Cal AI, acquired by MyFitnessPal, the app will continue operating independently while integrating MyFitnessPal’s nutrition database.

3. Blue Bottle Coffee, acquired by Centurium Capital from Nestle for under $400 million, ending Nestle's decade-long bet on premium specialty coffee.

🧠 Dopamine Dealflow

🌳 Series B+ & Growth

• Anduril, a Costa Mesa, CA-based autonomous defense technology company designing AI-powered weapons systems and drones for the US and allied militaries, raised $4 billion in growth funding. Thrive Capital and Andreessen Horowitz led the round at a $60 billion valuation.

• Ayar Labs, a San Jose, CA-based silicon photonics company, raised $500 million in Series E funding. Investors included Neuberger Berman, AMD, Nvidia, ARK Invest, Insight Partners, Qatar Investment Authority, Sequoia Global Equities, and MediaTek.

• Uala, a Buenos Aires, Argentina-based fintech platform serving 8 million users across payments, credit, merchant acquiring, and investments, raised $195 million in late-stage funding. Allianz X led the round and was joined by Stone Ridge Holdings, Tencent, Soros Fund Management, D1 Capital Partners, and Table Holdings.

• Grow Therapy, a New York, NY-based mental health marketplace, raised $150 million in Series D funding. TCV and Goldman Sachs Alternatives led the round and were joined by Sequoia Capital, Transformation Capital, SignalFire, and Menlo Ventures.

• WorkOS, a San Francisco, CA-based enterprise identity infrastructure platform, raised $100 million in Series C funding. Meritech Capital led the round and were joined by Sapphire Ventures, Audacious Ventures, Craft Ventures, Abstract & Greenoaks.

• ARQ, a Mexico City, Mexico-based stablecoin-focused financial platform with 2 million customers and $10 billion in annualized transaction volume, raised $70 million in Series B funding. Round backed by Sequoia Capital, Founders Fund, and existing investor Kaszek.

• Eight Sleep, a New York, NY-based AI-powered sleep technology company building temperature-regulating mattress covers, raised $50 million in growth funding. Tether Investments led the round at a $1.5 billion valuation.

• Pronto, a Mumbai, India-based on-demand home services platform, raised $25 million in Series B funding. Epiq Capital led the round and were joined by Glade Brook Capital, General Catalyst, and Bain Capital Ventures.

🚀 Series A

• Arda, a San Francisco, CA-based AI platform using video models to train robots to operate manufacturing plants autonomously, raised $70 million in Series A funding. Founders Fund and Accel led the round and were joined by Khosla Ventures and XYZ Venture Capital.

• Ease Health, a New York, NY-based AI-native CRM, EHR, and RCM platform for behavioral health providers, raised $41 million in Series A funding. Andreessen Horowitz led the round.

• SMACK Technologies, an El Segundo, CA-based AI lab platform focused on U.S. national security applications, raised $32 million in Series A funding. Geodesic Capital and Costanoa Ventures led the round and were joined by Point72 Ventures, Felicis, Scribble Ventures, and Bloomberg Beta.

• Shellworks, a London, UK-based materials startup developing biodegradable plastic alternatives from fermented used cooking oil, raised $15 million in Series A funding. alter equity led the round and was joined by NFDG, JamJar, Founder Collective, Local Globe, and Third Sphere.

🌱 Seed & Early Rounds

• Temple, a Bangalore, India-based wearable neuro-performance company, raised $54 million in Seed funding. Deepinder Goyal led the round and were joined by Steadview Capital, Peak XV Partners, InfoEdge Ventures, Dharana Capital, and others.

• JetStream Security, a San Francisco, CA-based AI governance platform, raised $34 million in Seed funding. Redpoint Ventures led the round and were joined by the CrowdStrike Falcon Fund, with angels including George Kurtz, Assaf Rappaport, and Frederic Kerrest.

• MightyFly, a San Jose, CA-based autonomous hybrid eVTOL cargo aircraft developer, raised $10 million in Seed funding. Draper Associates led the round and were joined by At One Ventures and 500 Global.

• Rodeo, a New York, NY-based social planning app that converts social media activity into real-world meetups, raised $8.5 million in seed funding. Investors included Foundry, 359 Capital, and Oceans.

• Plurio, a San Francisco, CA-based AI performance marketing agent, raised $3.5 million in Seed funding. Investors included Altair and DVC, Yellow Rocks and others.

• Escargot, a New York, NY-based AI-powered greeting card app enabling users to design and send physical cards from their phones, raised $2.75 million in seed funding. Wischoff Ventures and Hannah Grey Ventures co-led the round and was joined by South Park Commons and Magic Fund.

🤝 Strategic, M&A & Undisclosed

• ITT Inc., a Stamford, CT-based industrial manufacturer, completed a $4.8 billion acquisition of SPX FLOW, expanding into global flow and process technologies.

• Nvidia, a Santa Clara, CA-based semiconductor company, made a $2 billion strategic investment in Lumentum as part of a broader $4 billion photonics push supporting U.S.-based laser manufacturing.

• Blue Bottle Coffee, an Oakland, CA-based premium coffee retailer, was acquired for approximately $400 million. Centurium Capital is acquiring its global store operations from Nestlé to expand its premium coffee footprint across the US, Asia, and Europe.

• Cart.com, a Houston, TX-based e-commerce and logistics platform for enterprise brands, secured $180 million in strategic investment. Springcoast Partners led the round and was joined by PayPal Ventures, Arsenal Growth Equity, Mercury Fund, and Oak HC/FT.

• Starface, a New York, NY-based skincare brand, received a $105 million strategic investment from Asto Consumer Partners to scale retail and digital operations.

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📚 Read of the Day

📉 ChatGPT Uninstalls Spike 295% as Claude Climbs to No. 1

OpenAI’s agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense triggered one of the sharpest consumer backlashes in AI to date. U.S. app uninstalls of ChatGPT jumped 295% day-over-day on February 28, while 1-star reviews surged 775%. Meanwhile, Anthropic’s Claude downloads rose 51%, sending the app to No. 1 in the U.S. App Store.

The Backstory

The defense partnership covering surveillance and combat support use cases sparked immediate backlash. CEO Sam Altman later admitted the deal looked opportunistic and sloppy and said OpenAI would amend terms to address surveillance concerns.

The Strategy

Anthropic positioned itself as the principled alternative, reportedly calling OpenAI a supply chain risk. The contrast delivered measurable download gains without paid marketing.

Why It Matters

Brand trust is emerging as a competitive moat in consumer AI. A single controversial partnership shifted millions of downloads in days. For investors, the episode underscores how defense-adjacent revenue can materially impact brand equity and enterprise perception.

👉 Read The Whole Story Here

📰 Other News You Don’t Want To Miss

🤖 Cursor Surpasses $2 Billion in Annualized Revenue as Corporate Adoption Drives 3-Month Double — The AI coding assistant now generates 60% of revenue from enterprise buyers as run rate doubled in three months.

🪖 Sam Altman Admits Pentagon Deal “Looked Opportunistic and Sloppy” as OpenAI Amends Terms — OpenAI is revising its DoD agreement after user backlash and a 295% uninstall spike.

🛍️ Meta Tests AI Shopping Research Tool to Rival ChatGPT and Gemini— Meta is embedding product discovery directly into Meta AI as the AI-commerce race accelerates.

💡 Nvidia Bets $4 Billion on Photonics, Investing $2 Billion Each in Lumentum and Coherent — The chip giant moves to control the AI infrastructure stack beyond GPUs.