Startup Monday: Latest tech trends & news happening in the global startup ecosystem (Issue 162- May 17)

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Top startup news to follow this week:

1. Samaya AI, startup building AI for financial services, raises $43.5 million in VC funding

Samaya AI, a startup that creates AI models that assist financial analysts and which is backed by a number of leading figures both in Silicon Valley and on Wall Street, has raised $43.5 in new venture capital financing. Venture capital firm led the funding round. The valuation of Samaya following the new funding was not disclosed. Also participating in the new investment round were former Google CEO turned prominent Silicon Valley investor Eric Schmidt; AI “godfather” Yann LeCun, who is Meta’s chief AI scientist; David Siegel, who is a confounder of the hedge fund Two Sigma; and Marty Chavez, the former Goldman Sachs technology executive who is now vice chair of the investment firm Sixth Street Partners. New Enterprise Associates

2. Redpoint raises $650M 3 years after its last big early-stage fund

The firm’s early-stage strategy is managed by four managing partners: Alex Bard (pictured above), Satish Dharmaraj, Annie Kadavy, and Erica Brescia, who joined the firm in 2021 after serving as GitHub’s COO for nearly three years.

The multistage firm also runs a growth strategy, led by partners Logan Bartlett, Jacob Effron, Elliot Geidt, and Scott Raney. Last year, Redpoint raised its fifth growth-stage fund at $740 million, a slight increase from its $725 million fund closed three years prior.

3. JPMorgan’s $175M Bet On Startup Platform Ends Amidst Venture Capital Market Turmoilform Ends Amidst Venture Capital Market Turmoil

JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: ) has quietly shut down Capital Connect , its startup-venture capital matchmaking platform launched just two years ago. The site went offline in late 2024 without a formal announcement from the bank, and sources familiar with the decision say the platform failed to meet expectations, according to .

Competitive Pressures and a Shifting Market

Four sources familiar with the matter confirmed that Capital Connect simply didn’t meet expectations, according to Fortune. One of those sources told Fortune that Capital Connect “didn’t really reach a state where it had bespoke value to offer all ends of the marketplace.”

4. The Nuclear Company raises $51M to develop massive reactor sites

The Nuclear Company is taking an old approach to building new nuclear reactors. Rather than gin up a new design or try to mass manufacture smaller reactors, it wants to develop a series of reactors using existing designs.

At the sites that are closer to groundbreaking, each can support reactors with more than 1 gigawatt of generation capacity. The Nuclear Company is aiming to develop 6 gigawatts in its first fleet.

5. Sprinter Health raises $55M to expand its at-home healthcare service

When Max Cohen and Cameron Behar set out to launch a startup together during the pandemic, they decided to focus on the most top-of-mind sector of the era: healthcare.

But since neither Cohen nor Behar had a background in healthcare (both worked at Google and Facebook previously), they had to think long and hard about how to contribute to a sector that was dominating the public consciousness at the time.

Telehealth was getting tremendously popular, too, in those years, but the duo recognized that not all patients can be served remotely.

Four-year-old Sprinter has been growing fast: It now operates in 18 states (compared to five in 2023), and has seen its revenue increase six-fold over the past year, Cohen said.

Sprinter Health’s secret sauce is its tech logistics system, which provides optimal routes and schedules to its clinical professionals, phlebotomists cross-trained as medical assistants, and community health workers.

6. AI video startup Moonvalley lands $53M, according to filing

The filing, submitted Thursday, reveals that Moonvalley actually landed (so far) around $53 million total from a group of 14 unnamed investors.

The wide availability of tools to build video generators has led to such an explosion of providers that the space is becoming saturated. Startups such as , , Genmo, Lightricks , , Kling, and , as well as tech giants like , Alibaba, and Higgsfield , are releasing models at a fast clip. In many cases, little distinguishes one model from another.

7. Defense-focused space startup True Anomaly raises $260 million

The Colorado-based company announced April 30 that it closed a Series C round that combines equity and debt financing. Venture firm Accel led the round, with participation from Meritech Capital and several existing backers including Eclipse, Riot Ventures, Menlo Ventures, and Narya. Stifel Bank is providing the debt portion of the raise.

The company’s flagship vehicle, called the Jackal, is designed for close-proximity operations, using optical and radar sensors to gather high-resolution imagery and conduct reconnaissance. The company also builds software platforms for training and simulations aimed at preparing military personnel for space conflict scenarios.

With the new funds, True Anomaly plans to support four space missions over the next 18 months, introduce new products and grow its workforce from 170 to more than 250 employees by the end of this year.

The company’s upcoming missions include its third test flight of the Jackal to low Earth orbit to continue validating spacecraft performance and production techniques. It also plans to launch its first Jackal missions to geostationary orbit-a region 22,000 miles above the Earth used by many military satellites-and to cislunar space, the area between Earth and the Moon that has emerged as a new domain of strategic interest.

8. Czech investment fund Rockaway Ventures targets game-changing tech with new €55 million raise

The fund will focus on early-stage investments, specifically late-Seed and Series A funding rounds, focusing on sectors such as energy, defense, and dual-use technologies. In the future, the fund hopes to back startups throughout their entire growth journey, from pre-Seed to later-stage funding.

“ We’re not just capital. We’re entrepreneurs ourselves — we’ve built companies, and we understand what’s around the corner. Founders working with us receive hands-on support in areas like international expansion and scaling ,” shared Petr Šmíd , General Partner at Rockaway Ventures.

Founded in 2014, Rockaway Ventures has been investing in areas where the Rockaway Capital group has expertise, primarily in retail and e-commerce, travel & hospitality, digital logistics, digital media, cybersecurity, defence, CleanTech, and PropTech.

They notably backed Czech success stories Productboard and Storyous.

Launched in 2022, the current fund draws around 25% of its capital from Rockaway Capital (its parent company), and the remainder channeled through private investors — most of which are based in Czechia.

The fund has backed 11 companies to date, and over the next three years they plan to significantly expand their portfolio by dedicating 60% of their investments to companies in CEE — with the remaining 40% targeting Western Europe and diaspora-led startups from Czechia.

“ We are currently seeing numerous investment opportunities in sectors significantly shaped by global trends and geopolitical developments. We are particularly interested in founders across Europe and the United States who are committed to driving growth and advancing their businesses through transformative technologies, “ added Dušan Zábrodský , General Partner at Rockaway Ventures.

Notable investments include Apaleo, a German cloud-native hotel management platform used by clients like CitizenM and Limehome in over 15 countries; CulturePulse, a US-Slovak startup applying AI for behavioural modelling and risk prediction; and Gjirafa, an Albanian e-commerce and media platform that has secured €7.7 million from Rockaway Ventures across two funding rounds.

According to Rockaway, the past few years have been difficult for venture capital, but there appears to be a renewed sense of optimism in the tech sector specifically.

“ The recovery began in 2024 and is continuing this year. One key driver is transformative technology, particularly AI. A few years ago, many investors didn’t fully grasp its potential. Today, we can clearly demonstrate its sector-specific impact — and that’s changing the game, “ said Šmíd .

9.British film financier Goldfinch and Luxembourgian Digital Genesis launch €17.8 million entertainment fund

Goldfinch Holdings , the London-based film financier, and Luxembourg’s newly established Digital Genesis Fund are joint financing a fund worth €17.8 million to back next-gen media ventures that leverage tokenisation, AI, the metaverse, and TMT infrastructure.

The fund will match Digital Genesis’s initial €17.8 million investment deal-by-deal with Goldfinch International-creating a new co-investment framework for future-facing studios.

Announced on the sidelines of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival and to be officially unveiled at the TechCannes Industry event, the partnership between Goldfinch International and Digital Genesis SICAV RAIF Fund aims to develop a decentralised entertainment ecosystem powered by blockchain technology.

Hendrik Hey , Managing Director & Co-founder of the Digital Genesis Fund says, “This must be what it felt like when the first Hollywood pioneers built their studios and set a new era of storytelling in motion. Today, we find ourselves at a similar turning point — but this time, the canvas is infinite: a three-dimensional, transparent, and interactive metaverse. Visual media is no longer locked inside a screen — it breathes, it responds, it surrounds us. We are no longer just creating content; we are building worlds. And in these worlds, everyone becomes part of the story.”

Goldfinch Holdings was founded in 2013 and has built a reputation as a reliable backer of film and television ventures. Digital Genesis, although a newcomer, is preparing for a public listing and is supported by leaders in both media and blockchain. Together, they aim to shape the infrastructure of future storytelling through this new fund.

Goldfinch International, the global investment arm of Goldfinch Holdings, will match the initial fund amount under the leadership of Justin Deimen, Managing Partner of Goldfinch International, and Phil McKenzie, Chief Operating Officer of Goldfinch Holdings.

The venture’s first move is the acquisition of Lumiere, a tokenised crowdfunding platform aiming to redefine content financing. Lumiere, led by Patrice Poujol, enters the fold as a key strategic asset. The platform is backed by players such as Animoca Brands, Brinc, Rolling Stone and RS Productions, providing the new ecosystem with an immediate foundation for growth and experimentation in blockchain-based content models.

Beyond Lumiere, the partners have already mapped out a slate of projects including The Squad — a Web3-native production studio that follows the emerging Film3 business model — and MILC (Media Industry Licensing Content), a metaverse-based production and content licensing hub.

10.British SpaceTech startup Space Forge raises €26.8 million for in-space manufacturing

Cardiff-based Space Forge , innovators in space-based advanced materials manufacturing and return technology, today announced the completion of its funding round — reportedly the largest Series A in UK SpaceTech history. €26.8 million Series A

The round was led by the NATO Innovation Fund, with support from World Fund, the National Security Strategic Investment Fund (NSSIF) and the British Business Bank through its Regional Angels Programme. This round also includes investment from Innovation Investment Capital Limited Partnership, backed by Cardiff Capital Region, Gaingels, SpaceVC, Unruly, with additional contributions from Helium Three, Stellar and TypeOne, and London Technology Club.

Founded in 2018, Space Forge is pioneering a clean industrial revolution by leveraging space as a manufacturing platform for next-generation super materials and advanced semiconductors. With fully returnable satellites, Space Forge offers a scalable solution to manufacture and return materials that are difficult or impossible to produce on Earth.

By harnessing the unique conditions of space-including microgravity, vacuum, and extreme temperature differentials, Space Forge looks to unlock the ability to manufacture materials that are impossible to produce on Earth.

The company details that these advancements have wide-reaching applications in semiconductors, quantum computing, clean energy, and defence technologies.

Research provided by Space Forge suggests space-made materials could cut CO₂ emissions by 75% and energy use by 60% in key infrastructure, offering a powerful tool for strengthening climate resilience.

This investment will accelerate the development of ForgeStar-2 — Space Forge’s next-generation returnable manufacturing satellite while supporting the company’s first in-orbit demonstration mission, ForgeStar-1, set to launch in 2025.

Together, these missions aim to demonstrate a scalable, reusable platform for manufacturing high-performance materials in space-delivering breakthroughs for security, clean energy and infrastructure.

In-space manufacturing unlocks supermaterials that dramatically outperform their Earth-made counterparts. Not only in function, but in footprint.

According to data provided by Space Forge, materials produced in orbit could reduce CO₂ emissions by up to 75% and cut energy use by 60% across high-value infrastructure like EV charging networks, cloud data centres and advanced telecoms. In automotive applications, they could halve electric vehicle charging time.

ForgeStar satellites are also designed with sustainability at their core. For every 1kg of CO₂ created during launch and operation, 15 tonnes are prevented from entering the Earth’s atmosphere — as per comments from Space Forge.

“ Space Forge’s in-space manufactured semiconductors can reduce energy usage by 75% — by harnessing unique space conditions of microgravity, vacuum and low temperatures. We first backed Space Forge in 2021, long before the link between climate and computing was obvious. This link is clear as day now. We’re thrilled to continue supporting them as they scale, and we’re excited to welcome the NATO Innovation Fund on this journey .”

With key industry collaborations underway — including partnerships with Sierra Space and Northrop Grumman — Space Forge believes they are poised to lead the commercialisation of in-space manufacturing from Low Earth Orbit (LEO).

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