Y Combinator urges the White House to support Europe’s Digital Markets Act

Y Combinator, one of the world’s most prolific startup accelerators, sent a letter on Wednesday urging the Trump administration to openly support Europe’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), a wide-ranging piece of legislation that aims to crack open Big Tech’s market power. The DMA desig

Could deep tech serve as Europe’s path to autonomy from the US?

Amid geopolitical tensions and volatile markets, the question of Europe’s ability to weather the storms ahead, especially as President Trump seems intent on having his pound of tariffs from the continent, is looming large. But an extensive new report claims deep tech is poised to become a ke

Y Combinator founders raising less money signals a 'vibe shift,' VC says

Silicon Valley has been captivated by the prospect of AI, not only as a productivity enhancer but also as a catalyst for creating successful companies with much leaner teams than in the past. Stories abound of AI startups quickly reaching tens of millions in revenue with headcount as low as 20 peo

Insight VC explains the biggest mistake that keeps founders from raising a big round

Given how much money VCs are pouring into AI startups these days, it may seem like VCs have decided: If it's not AI, they won't write a big check. But that's not exactly what's happening. Dealmaking at the moment is more nuanced, said VC Insight Partners Managing Director Ryan Hink

Why VCs ghost founders, or reject deals and never speak to the founder again

Getting ghosted is never fun. Especially if you’re a founder seeking capital from investors. It's similar to dating. You might be left wondering “Why is this person not getting back to me? Did I do something wrong?” Did the investor hate the product? Did they not care for me personal

African VC LoftyInc Capital launches third fund for seed and Series A, reaches $43M first close

One of Africa's most active investors, known for early bets on unicorns like Flutterwave, Andela, and Wave, has secured fresh capital to invest in startups across the continent. This comes as funding deals and volumes in Africa saw only a slight dip last year, according to a report by VC firm P

Foundation Capital, an early backer of Solana and Cerebras, raises $600M fund

Foundation Capital has come a long way since it was forced to scale down its fund size from $750 million in 2008 to $282 million (its sixth main fund) in 2013. On Tuesday, the 30-year-old firm announced that it raised a $600 million eleventh flagship fund, which is 20% larger than the predecessor

General Catalyst loses three top investors as the firm expands beyond venture, contemplates IPO

Three key investors have left General Catalyst amidst a series of recent changes at the firm, which now describes itself as an “investment and transformation company,” technewss has learned. The departed managing directors include Deep Nishar and Kyle Doherty, who co-led General Catal

General Catalyst is reportedly weighing a potential IPO

General Catalyst, the powerhouse venture firm, is considering an IPO, Axios reported Friday morning, citing “multiple sources.” technewss has reached out to the firm's managing partner, Hemant Taneja, for comment. In the meantime, those following General Catalyst's trajectory

Key Cambridge, UK VC launches $126M fund to stem later-stage flight

It's often said that the U.K. and Europe lack the huge level of growth funding for later-stage startups that the U.S. has for its own, and this is correct. According to the European Investment Fund, there are at least seven times more large-size VC funds in the U.S. than in Europe. So the appe

Pre-seed firm Afore Capital has a fresh $185M fund and a new program to help founders discover ideas

Afore Capital, a firm that claims to be the largest dedicated pre-seed investor, was founded on the idea that the first check into a new startup should be larger than what most accelerators and early-stage investors were offering. When Afore raised its third $150 million fund in 2022, the firm wrot

Cherryrock Capital raises new $172M fund from all-star investors to back diverse founders

Cherryrock Capital, founded by ex-TaskRabbit CEO Stacy Brown-Philpot, announced Wednesday the closing of its $172 million Fund I with an all-star limited partner list that includes JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, MassMutual, Melinda French Gates' Pivotal Ventures, Reid Hoffman, Mellody Hobson, and She

Brand-new women’s focused Swizzle Ventures skyrockets past its fundraising target

Swizzle Ventures has closed its Fund I at $6.6 million, bypassing its initial $3 million target, Jessica Kamada, the firm's founder, told technewss.  Back in December, technewss reported that the firm, which quietly launched in 2023, was raising and has already bypassed $5 million, per

Marc Andreessen dreams of making a16z a lasting company, beyond partnerships

Many venture industry observers have wondered whether Andreessen Horowitz, a firm that manages $45 billion, has its sights on eventually becoming a publicly traded company. Co-founder Marc Andreessen said he isn’t “chomping at the bit to take the firm public,” on this week’