Startups

Construex, an Ecuador-based software-as-a-service marketplace for the construction and design industries, secured $4.6 million in seed funding. Zacua Ventures and Fifth Wall co-led the round and were joined by ABSeed and Terracotta Ventures. Roberto Arroyo started the company with his brother, Nico

Traditionally, the aesthetics and wellness industry — med spas, dermatologists, plastic surgeons, weight loss clinics, OBGYNS and so on — have leaned on in-person consultations and ad hoc marketing campaigns to drive business. But the pandemic changed the equation. Now, there’s an

Creators often work with different collaborators for different projects. And splitting payments with others is one of the biggest challenges for creators. Mozaic (previously Jammber) is trying to solve this problem through its range of solutions, including APIs and Chrome extensions. The company ha

Anil Goel, the CTO of Byju’s, is leaving the edtech giant, he informed some colleagues amid a broader restructuring at the Bengaluru-headquartered startup as it looks to pare down costs and unify many of its businesses. Jiny Thattil is replacing Goel as the CTO, according to an internal commu

EMotorad, an Indian startup manufacturing electric bikes, raised $20 million in a Series B round as it aims to disrupt China’s market domination and expand its presence in global markets. The three-year-old startup has raised more than $22.5 million in total funding, with Singapore’s Pa

“What controversy?” said the journalist from a global mainstream television outlet to me at the Web Summit Media Dinner, earlier this month in Lisbon. For all the heat and light, the gnashing of teeth, the tearing of clothes and the clutching of pearls, the big technology conference had seeming

Neuralink, the Elon Musk-founded company developing implantable chips that can read brain waves, has raised an additional $43 million in venture capital, according to a filing with the SEC. The filing published this week shows the company increased its previous tranche, led by Peter Thiel’s F

The AI skills gap is real. A recent study from Randstad, the recruitment company, found that job posts referencing generative AI skills have risen by 2,000% since March. It’s the third most sought-after skill set and one of the shortest in supply. The logical step for enterprise companies is

Over the last couple of weeks, I've been working with some truly spectacular founders. One guy was a three-star general at one point. Another is in the U.S. because his research is so far ahead of the AI learning curve that the U.S. State Department issued him an O-1 extraordinary ability visa

When Maha Shahzad was 19, she was forced to drop out of junior college in Southern California because of a six-hour daily commute. When she moved to Pakistan for work, half of her salary was spent on commuting because she couldn't find safe and reliable public transportation, a problem she says

Founded by an expert on geography and globalization, Climate Alpha's AI-based platform helps real estate owners and investors analyze the impact of climate change on their portfolios. The Singapore-based startup announced today it has raised $5 million in seed funding led by Jungle Ventures thr

How fast time flies. Just a few weeks ago, on the heels of its announced acquisition by British group Admiral, French insurtech Luko advertised itself through billboards in the Paris metro and felt confident enough to joke about the fact that it once won a “Next Unicorn” award. Fast-for

Australia and New Zealand are a far cry from Silicon Valley, yet the problems and circumstances of their venture environments tend to be similar in nature. Megadeals are rarer today, early-stage funding is up, valuations have come back to earth, and investors are encouraging their portfolio compani

We were blessed (cursed?) with the mother of all startup drama this week when Sam Altman was ousted from the top of multi-billion-dollar startup OpenAI. How do we know there was dramaaaa? Even Vanity Fair piled in. Look, I haven't been in any of the OpenAI board meetings, so Go