Nuclear startup Valar Atomics in talks to raise new funding at $6B valuation
The potential deal highlights a growing trend of complex, multi-stage funding rounds that mask true entry prices.
Venture
No product? No problem. This Disrupt 2026 session shows how to get pre-seed funding with conviction, storytelling
It’s not just you: AI startups are taking in a huge amount of seed funding, and in the process making things harder for anyone looking for funding even at a pre-seed stage. We’ve covered the trend in detail, and at this year’s TechCrunch Disrupt event, we want to help pre-seed founders now being held to seed-stage […]
Founders Fund hires former OpenAI exec Ryan Beiermeister (and not because of her Mafia skills)
Ryan Beiermeister, who demonstrated cool analysis in the Founders Fund YouTube series “Mafia,” has joined the firm as a partner.
AI-powered travel agency Fora hits unicorn status, raises $60M
Travel agency Fora announced a $60 million Series D round led by Forerunner and Tactile Ventures, valuing the company at $1 billion.
Why Greylock capped its new fund at $1.5B when it says it could have raised more
By keeping the number of investments to about 25 per fund, Greylock aims to remain what it calls “the most important partner” to its founders.
OpenAI researcher Miles Wang in talks to launch AI drug discovery startup valued at $2B
The funding discussions point to investor interest in applying AI to make breakthroughs in life sciences.
David Beckham’s health drink startup IM8 takes $1B from General Catalyst’s unusual CVF fund
General Catalyst’s Customer Value Fund doesn’t make equity investments. It’s providing $1 billion for IM8, known for its longevity vitamin drink.
Hermes agent maker Nous Research in talks for new funding at $1.5B valuation
The company is raising at least $75 million, led by Robot Ventures, with significant participation from USV and other prominent investors.
Reed Jobs would rather talk about curing cancer than his last name
When we last sat down with Jobs at TechCrunch Disrupt nearly three years ago, his firm Yosemite was brand new and biotech was still reeling from its post-pandemic crash. Now, the venture outfit has a team of 17; a cluster of blockbuster drugs are all losing patent protection in roughly the same window, creating all kinds of new opportunities; and AI has gone from a curiosity to, in Jobs’s words, a huge part of what Yosemite does. “I didn’t expect Yosemite to be moving this fast,” he said.
Filing: College app Fizz accuses VC of sharing confidential startup information with rival Sidechat
Fizz has expanded its lawsuit against rival Sidechat, alleging that a Maveron VC shared its confidential information obtained during a fundraising meeting with the competing startup.