Startup Monday: Latest tech trends & news happening in the global startup ecosystem (Issue 160- May 3)
Welcome to Startup Monday, my weekly newsletter that recaps the week in the global startup ecosystem. To have this newsletter emailed to you, you can sign up here.
Top startup news to follow this week:
1. Rising star defense tech startup Mach Industries is raising $100 million, sources say
The new round will value the company at around $470 million, according to the source. However, the deal hasn’t closed and terms may still change. The Khosla investor leading the deal is Keith Rabois.
Mach Industries is a buzzy defense tech startup, a status propelled by its founding origin story and connection to Sequoia. Thornton was just a teenager when he dropped out of MIT to found Mach Industries, which was Sequoia’s first defense tech investment.
Mach is developing vertical liftoff vehicles and weapons that can work from the edge of space. It is also developing smaller factories that can be easily built and distributed when more production is needed.
2. Supio, an AI-powered legal analysis platform, lands $60M
The new capital, which brings Supio’s total raised to $91 million, will be put toward growth, hiring, and go-to-market efforts, co-founder and CEO Jerry Zhou told TechCrunch. Supio plans to expand its Seattle HQ and open a new office as it roughly doubles its 100-person staff.
The idea for Supio came about after Zhou and Kyle Lam, Zhou’s childhood friend and a co-worker at tax compliance software firm Avalara, left Avalara to build their own business. Zhou says that they saw an opportunity to “transform how people work with documents.”
“Every day, attorneys and paralegals spend thousands of hours manually reviewing medical records, police reports, and expert opinions,” Zhou said. “Supio’s core product serves these users by giving them a deep understanding of their complex, unstructured data.”
Supio, which focuses on personal injury law, offers an AI-powered platform that connects to law firms’ existing file systems to assist with case management. Zhou claims that Supio employs “human verification” to combat AI-introduced errors and ensure reasonable accuracy.
“We focus deeply on specialized [AI] model and quality control at the document and data layer,” Zhou said. “Our legal AI supports over 114 case types and that number is growing in partnership with our customers.”
3. Defense Tech Startup Chaos Industries Hits $2B Valuation
Less than six months after raising a $145 million in a Series B , defense and critical infrastructure tech startup locked up a $275 million Series C that Chaos Industries values the company at . reportedly
The Los Angeles-based startup specializes in advanced detection, monitoring and communication solutions for the defense and commercial sectors. The company’s Vanquish radar provides early warning and tracking capabilities against unmanned aerial systems, missiles and aircraft.
Founded in 2022, Chaos has raised $490 million, per the company.
Chaos was not the only defense tech startup to make news as the week ended.
Mach Industries, which develops vertical liftoff vehicles and weapons that sit at the edge of space, is close to locking up a $100 million round co-led by new investor Khosla Ventures and existing investor , Bedrock Capital . per TechCrunch
This year could see another significant bump.
4. Lux Capital eyes $200M for debut defense-tech fund
Lux Capital , an early investor in , is seeking focused on defense tech, according to a regulatory filing.$200 million for a fund
The fund, Lux Defense Leaders, is the firm’s first industry-specific vehicle, suggesting it’s seeing an outsized opportunity in that sector right now. Lux has historically also invested in biochemistry, materials science, robotics and infrastructure.
The firm did not respond to PitchBook’s request for comment.
Lux’s approach to defense-tech investing over time has mirrored the industry’s evolution from Silicon Valley faux pas to hype cycle. Managing partner Josh Wolfe, who put a check into Anduril’s seed round in 2017, faced huge pushback from inside his own firm when he initially pitched the investment-over the years, more partners came on board, The Information reported.
5.Eli Lilly pens Creyon Bio AI oligonucleotide pact with $1B in biobucks on the table
Oligonucleotides work as short strands of synthetic DNA or RNA that can reduce, restore or modulate RNA through several different mechanisms. The Lilly-Creyon pact will span “a broad range of diseases,” the pair said in a statement, as Lilly buys into the biotech’s so-called “AI-Powered Oligo Engineering Engine.”
Creyon debuted back in 2022 with $40 million from a series A and a group of execs from antisense oligonucleotide-focused Ionis.
Creyon, one of a growing number of AI biotechs, has designed its platform to find oligonucleotide-based medicines using machine learning models that it claims are more efficient than traditional trial-and-error screening.
6. Chinese AI startup Manus reportedly gets funding from Benchmark at $500M valuation
Chinese startup , which works on building tools related to AI agents, has picked up $75 million in a funding round led by Benchmark at a roughly $500 million valuation, . according to Bloomberg
The company will use the money to expand to new markets, including the U.S., Japan, and the Middle East, Bloomberg noted, citing people familiar with the matter.
Bloomberg’s report suggests that the fresh round has quintupled the valuation of Manus, which previously raised somewhere north of $10 million from backers including Tencent and HSG (formerly Sequoia China).
7. Swiss HealthTech startup Aktiia raises €37 million for blood pressure platform and rebrands to Hilo
The round was co-led by Earlybird Health and Wellington Partners, with new investors Kfund and naturalX Health Ventures, and participation from existing investors redalpine, Khosla Ventures, Molten Ventures, Translink Capital and Verve Ventures.
Raghav “Rags” Gupta , CEO of Hilo, commented: “ This funding round is a testament to the confidence our investors have in Hilo’s groundbreaking technology and our mission to manage the world’s blood pressure via more frequent, convenient and accurate measurements. With billions worldwide suffering from hypertension, only 20% of whom are in control of their blood pressure, the need for innovative, accessible blood pressure monitoring solutions has never been greater. Our rebrand to Hilo represents more than just a name change, it’s a commitment to empowering users around the world with smarter tools to optimise their health. We are grateful to early Aktiia customers for their support and to our investors, new and existing, for their faith. “
Aktiia, now trading under Hilo, was established in 2018 to transform how blood pressure is measured and managed. By integrating advanced AI algorithms with datasets, Hilo’s cuffless blood pressure monitoring (CBPM) products claim to offer convenient, valuable reports to give both individuals and healthcare professionals a useful picture of their blood pressure.
The company’s foundation model for blood pressure has reportedly been trained on billions of optical signals and hundreds of millions of readings across more than 120,000 users. The company’s multidisciplinary team has contributed to over 120 peer-reviewed publications and holds more than 35 patents.
The latest investment builds on a period of significant momentum for the company during which it has achieved several milestones, including securing CE marking for its mobile phone camera blood pressure monitoring technology, securing regulatory approvals in Canada, Australia and Saudi Arabia, achieving 76% compounded annual revenue growth, and completing a pivotal clinical trial ahead of its U.S. FDA application submission.
This Series B funding will fuel continued product innovation, expansion into new markets and the build out of its blood pressure intelligence platform to support enterprise use cases.
Alongside this funding, Aktiia is introducing its new brand identity: Hilo — a rebrand which reflects the company’s global ambition to make cuffless, clinically validated blood pressure monitoring universally accessible and effortless.
The company has also developed a foundation Machine Learning model specifically designed for blood pressure. The model has been trained on “ tens of billions of optical signals from real-world users and further refined with hundreds of millions of calibration points “.
8. French DeepTech Chipiron raises €14 million to “make MRIs as accessible as X-rays”
This round is led by Blast, followed by the EIC Fund and iXcore. It is also supported by public funding: France2030 (SGI), the EIC Accelerator (European Commission), and ADD (Bpifrance).
This funding will enable Chipiron to build its first prototypes ready for hospital deployment, with clinical trials scheduled to begin in 2026.
Founded in 2020 by Evan Kervella (CEO) and Dimitri Labat (CSO), Chipiron’s mission has always been clear: to make MRI as accessible as x-ray. The startup specialises in ultra-low-field MRI. Its ambition is to democratise access to MRI through a lightweight, portable MRI machine that is “ 10 times less expensive “ than current standards.
In 2021, their €967k pre-Seed round was closed with business angels and the Entrepreneur First program. Between 2022 and 2023, €967k in non-dilutive funding helped to consolidate the early R&D phases. In 2023, a €2.3 million Seed round led by Exor Ventures and Unruly Capital accelerated development.
With this new round, Chipiron has surpassed €19 million in total funding since its creation, including equity and public support. While the need for high-precision medical imaging continues to grow, Chipiron believes that MRIs remains underused. The reason? According to them its the expensive equipment that is difficult to deploy, and requires complex hospital infrastructure.
Chipiron’s goal is to design a next-generation MRI, as reliable as current models, but compact, mobile, and far more accessible, accessibility that is also highly inclusive, since its size allows people with pacemakers or other types of implants to reportedly undergo MRI scans, whereas traditional MRI machines exclude them.
According to Chipiron, claustrophobic individuals, obese or elderly patients, and restless children can all benefit from the precision of this examination. This is also applicable to currently excluded facilities such as local care centres, private clinics, mobile units, etc.
According to data provided by Chipiron, the global MRI market is estimated at €8.7 billion, including €2.1 billion in Europe and €439 million in France. Chipiron believes this market could potentially double if MRIs became accessible to more healthcare facilities.
Anthony Bourbon , Founder and CEO of Blast. Club: “ Chipiron is exactly the kind of biotech we want to boost at Blast. They’re making possible what traditional medicine still struggles to do: detect life-threatening diseases early. A major public health issue, breakthrough technology, and a strong team. Proud to support them through .”
Thanks to this funding round, Chipiron will complete its R&D, build its first ultra-low-field clinical prototypes, and launch its hospital trials. Within three to five years, their objective is to converge on an initial clinical application, obtain the first FDA and CE authorizations, and deploy 100 commercial devices. The business will place an emphasis on expanding its presence throughout the US market.
9. Finnish startup raises €30 million for world’s first autofocus glasses that work as “nature intended”
Founded in 2021 by a team of wearable technology, optics and industrial design, IXI looks to disrupt the €175 billion eyewear market with dynamic lenses that automatically adapt to the wearer’s eyes. Its technology provides a wider field of view in a product that works just as “ nature intended your eyes to wor k”.
IXI’s founders, Niko Eiden (CEO) and Ville Miettinen (Chief Algorithm Officer) previously Co-founded the mixed reality hardware startup, Varjo. Their experience in advanced optics and eye-tracking solutions inspired them to create a new kind of eyewear that solves the challenge of vision correction and addresses the challenges of poor eyesight.
IXI looks to create a new category of eyewear, featuring real-time and ultra-low-power eye tracking and dynamic lens technology.
The company is on a mission to break the limits of traditional eyewear; limits that IXI argues have remained in place for centuries. According to them, traditional progressive lenses force wearers to compromise: narrow fields of view, peripheral distortion, and difficulty seeing clearly at varying distances are common trade-offs.
10. British FinTech startup Navro raises €36 million for payments curation platform
Jump Capital led the round with participation from Bain Capital Ventures, Motive Partners, and Unusual Ventures.
Founded in 2022, Navro looks to simplify payments for international businesses by enabling them to access quality payment and banking infrastructure around the world, all through one contract and one API.
The platform reportedly reduces the cost, complexity and compliance burden of cross-border transactions, and is trusted by global platforms and institutions in sectors such as payroll, pensions, and workforce management to power real-time payments in over 200 countries and 140 currencies.
“ With this new capital, we’re expanding our licensing footprint, integrating faster payment methods, and growing our support for customers in regulated industries, “ added Brown . “ We’ve spent the last three years building the foundation and now this round provides us the resources to move even faster as we scale into new markets .”
The fresh capital will power Navro’s growth strategy for 2025 and beyond, which includes extending operations into more US states, Dubai, Hong Kong and India.
In the coming months, the Navro payments curation platform will integrate 30+ digital wallets, more ACH corridors, and dozens of new real-time payment options.
The Navro platform supports cross-border collections, currency conversion, and global payouts while reducing working capital requirements by up to 70% — according to figures provided by Navro. Other benefits include lower costs, faster account reconciliation and a reduced administrative burden.
Following recent customer acquisitions, Navro is now processing workforce and supplier payments for hundreds of large corporations and more than 1,000 pension schemes.
“We’ve spent some time looking for a payments platform that truly understands the nuanced, technical, and regulatory challenges of global payouts, “ shared Robert Hutchins , partner at Jump Capital. “ Navro not only grasps this complexity, it’s building the infrastructure to solve it. Aran and the team bring a rare combination of deep market insight, executional rigor, and product clarity that we believe sets them apart in this space. “
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