MENLO TIMES

Navier AI , developing agent-driven engineering, led by Cameron Flannery and Evan Kay, has announced  $5.6 million in seed funding and its launch from stealth. The round includes participation from GV  (Google Ventures), HCVC , and Y Combinator . Engineering has seen two major productivity leaps: CAD replaced manual drafting, and simulation enabled virtual testing. Navier introduces the third, Agent-Driven Engineering, where AI agents automate repetitive design-to-engineering

Chai Discovery , engineering better molecules using artificial intelligence, led by Joshua Meier  and Matthew McPartlon , has secured  $130 million Series B financing round co-led by Oak HC/FT  and General Catalyst , with participation from Thrive Capital , OpenAI , Menlo Ventures , SV Angel , and others, alongside new investors Emerson Collective  and Glade Brook , valuing the company at $1.3 Billion. The Series B round brings Chai’s total funding to more than $225 million.

Quantum Systems , developer of Aerial Intelligence Systems, led by Florian Seibel, Sven Kruck, Matthias Lehna, and Dave Sharpin, and Frontline Robotics , a Ukrainian defence technology company that develops and manufactures robotic systems for Ukraine's security and defence forces, led by Pavlo Kosolapkin and Yevhenii Tretiak, have launched  “Quantum Frontline Industries”(QFI), a German-Ukrainian joint venture that will establish Europe’s first fully automated, industrial-sca

Soverli , an ETH-Zurich spin-off, led by Ivan Puddu and Moritz Schneider, has secured  $2.6 million in pre-seed funding led by Founderful , with participation from the ETH Zurich Foundation , Venture Kick , and cybersecurity industry figures. Built on four years of ETH Zurich research, Soverli’s patent-pending technology runs multiple isolated operating systems on a single device, enabling a sovereign OS to operate alongside Android on standard smartphones with fast, seamless

Quantum Diamonds ,  building next-gen testing tools based on quantum sensing to solve one of the semiconductor industry’s hardest problems, led by Dr. Fleming Bruckmaier and Kevin Berghoff, announced  a €152 million investment plan to establish the world’s first production facility for advanced chip testing systems. The Munich facility is a strategic asset for strengthening Europe’s semiconductor position and is expected to receive tens of millions of euros in public funding

Kuva Space , empowering decision-makers with actionable planetary intelligence through innovative space and AI technology, led by Jarkko Antila, Jerry Welsh, Tuomas Tikka, and others, has partnered  with the WWF-Indonesia (WWF-Indonesia) to launch an initiative that uses satellite data and AI to monitor and quantify Indonesia’s vast blue carbon assets. The collaboration will map seagrass and mangrove habitats in East Nusa Tenggara and East Kalimantan, creating scalable data f

EpilepsyGTx , a biotechnology company focused on research and development of cutting-edge gene therapies to treat refractory epilepsy, led by Nicolas Koebel, Prof. Dimitri Kullmann, Dr. Joanne Broadhead, and Dr. Luiz Almeida Silva, has secured  $33 million in a Series A financing from XGEN Venture, the British Business Bank, and a global biopharmaceutical company. Taylor Wessing LLP advised EpilepsyGTx on the round, A&O Shearman advised XGEN Venture, and Panmure Liberum Cambr

University 2 Ventures , building the #1 pre-seed/seed deep tech university spin-off investment platform for Europe, led by Dr. Philipp Semmer, Dr. Johannes Triebs, Michael Schmitt, and Moritz von Klot, has completed  the first closing of its €60 million Fund I, with support from corporates including anchor LP Jungheinrich via Uplift Ventures , alongside family offices, serial entrepreneurs and industry executives. The fund is designed to support teams transforming Europe’s re

Odin Space , securing the future of space by developing advanced space debris detection and orbital mapping, led by James New and Dan Terrett, has secured  $3 million led by Steel Atlas , with participation from Iron Prairie , Tiny VC , and Cur8 Capital , and several other funds/angels. The funding will accelerate Odin’s mission to enhance space safety by enabling spacecraft operators, manufacturers, and space agencies to more accurately predict and monitor hazardous sub-cent

Fervo Energy , delivering 24/7 carbon-free geothermal energy, led by Tim Latimer, Jack Norbeck, PhD, David Ulrey, Christian Gradl, Sarah Jewett, and others, has announced  the closing of its oversubscribed $462 million Series E funding round, led by new investor  B Capital , with participation from new investors, including AllianceBernstein, Atacama Ventures, Carbon Equity, Climate First, Google, Mitsui & Co., Dr. Kris Singh (Founder of Holtec International), and JB Straubel.

Nu Quantum , building the quantum networking technology to scale quantum computers, led by Dr. Carmen Palacios-Berraquero, Dr. Claire Le Gall, Ed Wood, Danny Garden, Amii Shepperson, Sam Funnell, and Jonathan Cumming, has secured $60 million in Series A funding round led by National Grid Partners , including participation from Gresham House Ventures  and Morpheus Ventures , and continued support from existing investors Amadeus Capital Partners , IQ Capital , Ahren Capital , C

Orbital Marine Power , the future of clean, predictable power solutions, led by Andrew Scott, Chris Milne, and Oliver Wragg, has secured £7 million in investment. PXN Ventures  – the combined VC arm of Praetura Ventures and Par Equity- joined existing shareholders, including Scottish Enterprise, to invest in Orbital. The investment follows strong momentum in Canada, where Nova Scotia recently awarded Orbital and Eauclaire Tidal Ltd major new tidal energy licenses through its

Boom Supersonic , the company building the world’s fastest airliner, led by Blake Scholl, Rachel Devine, Jeff Mabry, Megan Young, and others, has announced  a backlog of more than $1.25 billion for its Superpower turbine and revealed its launch customer, Crusoe . The company also closed a $300 million funding round led by Darsana Capital Partners , with participation from Altimeter Capital , ARK Invest , Bessemer Venture Partners , Robinhood Ventures , and Y Combinator . Supe

Quantum Dice , harnessing the quantum properties of light to solve some of today's most critical computational challenges, led by Dr Ramy Shelbaya, Dr Marko von der Leyen, and Dr Zhanet Zaharieva, secured a €2 Million grant from the  European Innovation Council (EIC) Accelerator  programme, with the project now officially underway following its October kick-off. Quantum Dice, one of only 40 deep-tech start-ups across Europe, and among just three from the UK, was selected from

Quilt , the world’s most intuitive, advanced, and efficient ductless heat pump on the market, led by Paul Lambert, Matthew Knoll, and Bill Kee, has secured  a $20M Series B round from   Energy Impact Partners , Galvanize ,  Lowercarbon Capital ,  Gradient Ventures ,  Alumni Ventures , Incite Ventures , and others. The company is welcoming  Tom vonReichbauer (former CFO of Nest, Sunrun, and ICON) and  Veery Maxwell  (co-head of Galvanize Climate’s Innovation + Expansion fund)

Unconventional AI , rethinking the foundations of a computer to optimize energy efficiency for AI, led by MeeLan Lee , Sara Achour , Michael Carbin , and Naveen Rao , has secured  $475 million in seed funding led by Lightspeed  and Andreessen Horowitz , with participation from Sequoia , Lux Capital , DCVC , Future Ventures , Jeff Bezos, and many other amazing investing partners, valuing the company at $4.5 Billion. Naveen Rao, cofounder and CEO, will personally be investing $

Castelion , a cutting-edge defense technology company working to restore America's conventional deterrence capability, led by Bryon Hargis, Sean Pitt, Andrew Kreitz, and others, has secured  $350 million in Series B financing led by Altimeter Capital  and Lightspeed Venture Partners , with participation from Lavrock Ventures , Andreessen Horowitz , General Catalyst , First In , Space VC , Cantos , BlueYard , Avenir , Champion Hill , and Interlagos . The capital raise supports

Ultraviolette , the world's most advanced EV platforms, led by Narayan Subramanian and Niraj Rajmohan, has secured  $45 million as part of its ongoing Series E round. The latest infusion comes from leading Indian technology company Zoho Corporation  and Lingotto , one of Europe's largest investment management companies. The continued momentum in Ultraviolette Automotive’s Series E round underscores strong investor confidence in its growth trajectory and global ambitions. With

Shield AI , a deeptech company protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems, led by Gary Steele, Ryan Tseng, ex-Navy Seal Brandon Tseng, Nathan Michael, and others, and Sedaro , powering the future of aerospace & defense with mission simulation at scale, led by Daniel Martin, Robbie Robertson, PhD, and others, have announced  a strategic partnership to advance autonomous operations in orbit. The partnership designates Shield AI’s Hivemind Pilot as the pri

Ricursive Intelligence , the first frontier AI lab addressing the most fundamental constraint in AI progress: chip development timelines that can’t keep up with algorithmic advancement, led by Anna Goldie and Azalia Mirhoseini, announced  its launch and a $35 million seed funding round led by Sequoia Capital( Stephanie Zhan ), along with other investors, including Modern Capital( Suhail Nimji , Jennifer Campbell ), 49Palms( Madhavan Ramanujam , Joshua Bloom ), and Striker ( M

Moonshot Space , an Israeli startup building an affordable, on-demand delivery system for space infrastructure, led by Hilla Haddad Chmelnik, Fred Simon, and Shahar Bahiri, has emerged  from stealth with $12 million in funding to continue the development of a launch system, powered by electromagnetism. Moonshot plans to offer A&D primes its technology as a hypersonic test platform, while progressively developing capabilities to provide orbital launch services for companies se

Antares , building purpose-designed modular power for defense-critical assets, led by Jordan Bramble  and  Julia DeWahl , has secured $96 million in Series B led by Shine Capital  with participation from Alt Capital , Caffeinated , 53 Stations , Industrious Ventures , and others. The capital provides the momentum and discipline needed to achieve a milestone not seen in the United States for decades: the ability to design, build, and test nuclear reactors within a few years ra

Synopsys , the leader in engineering solutions from silicon to systems, enabling customers to rapidly innovate AI-powered products, led by Sassine Ghazi, Shelagh Glaser, Ravi Subramanian, Shankar Krishnamoorthy, and others, announced  an expanded, strategic partnership to revolutionize design and engineering across industries. R&D teams across sectors, from semiconductors to aerospace, automotive, and industrial, face growing workflow complexity, rising development costs, and

Spaceium , building a network of in-space refueling and repair stations, led by Ashi Dissanayake and Reza Fetanat, launched  its first in-space demonstration hardware, a precision robotic actuator for autonomous propellant transfer in orbit on SpaceX’s Transporter-15 mission, hosted aboard D-orbit’s ION spacecraft. Spaceium was founded to make in-space refueling a reality. Orbital fuel replenishment is the key to unlocking a larger, more sustainable space economy. For decades

Marble Imaging , the Earth Observation Data & Insights company, led by Robert Hook, Dr. Gopika Suresh, and Alexander Epp, has secured  a €5.3 million seed round led by HTGF. In addition, Marble has attracted a strong group of further investors who share the mission, including BAB Beteiligungs- und Management-gesellschaft Bremen mbH (BBM) , Lightfield Equity,  Oslo Venture Company ,  nwk | nwu Beteiligungsgesellschaften der Sparkasse Bremen ,  Sentris Capital ,  Auxxo Female C

Gravis Robotics , the earthmoving autonomy platform, led by Ryan Luke Johns, Dominic Jud, Marco Tranzatto, Burak Cizmeci, and Neil Woodfin, has secured $23M co-led by IQ Capital  and Zacua Ventures , with Pear VC , Imad (CVC of Nesma & Partners), Sunna Ventures , Armada Investment  and Holcim. Gravis systems are already in use with major construction and quarry operators, including Holcim, enabling autonomous site prep, stockpile management, and material loading. The company

Quantum Systems , transforming decision-making processes through aerial data intelligence, led by Florian Seibel, Sven Kruck, and Dave Sharpin, has secured  €180 million in a Series C Extension led by Balderton Capital, following its €160 million Series C in May this year, bringing the total amount secured in 2025 to €340 million, which marks the largest private capital raise in Europe’s dual-use sector. This values the company above €3 billion. Quantum Systems has establishe

IQM , a global leader in building superconducting quantum computers, led by Dr. Jan Goetz, Dr. Mikko Välimäki, Dr. Juha Vartiainen, Sylwia Barthel de Weydenthal, Jan Kuerschner, and others, announced  an over €40 million investment to expand its state-of-the-art production facility in Finland. The expansion will accelerate the development, fabrication, and testing of advanced quantum processing units, as well as the assembly of full quantum computers, laying the foundation fo

BlackSky , accelerating earth observation from space for real-time monitoring, led by Brian O’Toole, Henry Dubois, Chris Lin, Lyn Chassagne, Nick Merski, Patrick O’Neil, and Kevin Rioles, has delivered  the first very high-resolution  images  from the company’s third  Gen-3  satellite less than 24   hours following the satellite’s successful launch in November. The company’s advanced, low-latency commercial architecture is providing decision-grade data at real-time, mission-r

PowerUP , developing and producing high-quality and sustainable energy generation products, led by Ivar Kruusenberg, Marit Riis, Kush Chadha, and Henri Kaar, has secured  a €10 million Series A funding round co-led by dual-use venture firms Mercaton and  ScaleWolf  and joined by Estonia’s SmartCap Green Fund  (funded by the European Union’s Next Generation EU), with strong participation from existing investors. The core of PowerUP’s strategy is a dual-use mission: providing r

Maritime Fusion , building a first-of-a-kind fusion reactor for marine and off-grid applications, led by Justin Cohen and Jason Kaufmann, has secured  $4.5 million in seed funding led by Trucks VC , with participation from Paul Graham, Aera VC , Alumni Ventures , Y Combinator , and others. The HTS magnet lab in San Francisco is now operational, enabling rapid testing of prototype cables and magnets. A recent bench test carried 5 kA through the SHIELD HTS cable using liquid ni

Orbit Fab , building in-space fuel delivery infrastructure, led by Daniel Faber, Shawn Hendricks, and others, has announced  its latest milestone toward refuelling satellites in orbit. The company will deliver the Advancing Satcom Technology with Refuelling and Logistics (ASTRAL) project with a total UK funding of up to $3.8m (€3.3m). The contract for the first stage of the mission, worth £1.3m (€1.1m), has now been awarded to Orbit Fab by ESA’s Advanced Research in Telecommu

Redwire , a global leader in space and defense technology solutions, led by Peter Cannito, Jonathan Baliff, Al Tadros, and others, has been awarded  a $44 million phase 2 contract to advance the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA)  Otter  Very Low Earth Orbit ( VLEO ) mission to demonstrate the world’s first air-breathing spacecraft and advance next-generation orbital capabilities. The Phase 2 contract funds the completion of manufacturing and the delivery of

Point One Navigation , a leader in high-precision location technology, led by Aaron Nathan, Mike Kurdziel, Karen Leineweber, and Ryan Dougherty, has announced  a $35 million Series C oversubscribed funding round led by  Khosla Ventures , with participation from existing investors including IA Ventures , UP Partners , and Alumni Ventures .  The capital will drive infrastructure expansion, accelerate software innovation, and advance OEM integration, while also enabling team gro

NcodiN , the deep-tech startup pioneering optical interposer technology with integrated nanolasers, led by Francesco Manegatti, Bruno Garbin, Fabrice Raineri, Yacine Halioua, and Carlo Guareschi, has secured  €16 million in an oversubscribed Seed financing round led by MIG Capital , with participation from Maverick Silicon , PhotonVentures , and Verve Ventures , alongside continued support from existing backers Elaia , Earlybird , and OVNI . To strengthen its foundation, Ncod

Zap Energy , building a seriously cheap, compact, scalable fusion energy technology, led by Benj Conway, Brian A. Nelson, and Uri Shumlak, has achieved  plasmas with electron pressures as high as 830 megapascals (MPa), or 1.6 gigapascals (GPa) total, comparable to the pressures found deep below Earth’s crust. The results are the highest-pressure performance to date in a  sheared-flow-stabilized Z pinch  and an important marker on the path to scientific energy gain, or Q>1. Fu

Revolv Space , redefining small satellite capabilities through reliable and affordable space mechanisms and power systems, led by Marco Sala, Michal Grendysz, Filippo Oggionni, and Aleksander Fiuk, has announced  the launch of MARA, its next-generation Solar Array Drive Assembly (SADA) for medium-sized platforms and constellations. MARA delivers up to 5.2 kW per unit, bridging the gap between basic body-mounted arrays and costly legacy SADAs with a fully integrated, reliable,

Quindar , bringing cloud-native thinking to space operations, led by Nate Hamet, Sunny Bhagavathula, David Lawrence, Zach Meza, Shaishav Parekh, and Matt Regan, has secured $18M in Series A funding led by  Washington Harbour Partners  with continued investment from  Booz Allen Ventures , FUSE , FCVC , and Y Combinator . The new funding will support the development of a state-of-the-art classified facility in the Denver area, expand commercial integrations, and grow the workfo

Infinite Orbits , pushing the boundaries of in-orbit services with cutting-edge spacecraft driven by its own Rendez-Vous solution, an advanced Autonomous Vision-Based Navigation Solution, led by Adel Haddoud, Akshay Gulati, Manos Koumantakis, Marion Andrieux, Yasmin Hassan, and Jürgen Eisenbraun, has raised  a €40 million financing round from European Innovation Council Fund , along with Matterwave Ventures , Wind Capital , Balnord , IRDI , and Newfund Capital . This financin

Ursa Major , delivering mission-ready propulsion across missile defense, hypersonics, in-space mobility, and launch, led by Dan Jablonsky, Bill Nash, Brad Appel, and others, has closed  $100 million in its Series E funding round and received an additional $50 million in debt funding commitments. Investors include both new and long-term supporters of Ursa Major’s mission, including Eclipse , which led the round, and were joined by Woodline Partners , Principia Growth , XN, and

Leanspace , a European satellite operations technology provider, led by Guillaume Tanier, Alvaro Alonso Ruiz, and Gert Villemos, has raised  €10 million in Series A funding from new strategic investors: ISAI Cap Venture , Capgemini’s corporate venture arm, Qwaltec, 42CAP , Karista , and Arnaud Guérin, co-founder of military AI platform Preligens. Additional non-dilutive funding comes from Caisse d’Epargne and Bpifrance via the France 2030 strategic investment plan. The space

PowerLattice , the company reimagining power delivery for next-generation AI accelerators, led by Dr. Peng Zou, Gang Ren, and Sujith Dermal, has announced its emergence from stealth with $25 million in Series A funding jointly led by Playground Global  and Celesta Capital . The company’s power-delivery chiplet tightly couples power and compute, cutting total power needs by over 50% and effectively doubling performance. PowerLattice has raised $31 million to date. AI accelerat

Hummink , developer of High Precision Printing for Advanced Electronics and a spin-off of the prestigious physics lab of the Ecole Normale Supérieure (ENS) and PSL University, led by Amin M'BARKI, Pascal Boncenne, Pr. Lydéric Bocquet, Alessandro Siria, Antoine Niguès, and Christophe Bureau, has secured  €15 million to expand the deployment of their patented High-Precision Capillary Printing (HPCaP) technology, co-led by  KBC Focus Fund ,  Cap Horn , and  Bpifrance , with foll

Catalyx Space , a space infrastructure company providing turnkey solutions for orbital missions across industries, led by Rifath Shaarook, Clinton Antony, Keerthan Chand Aluvala, Saqib Hussain, Niharika Naveen, and Thaneem Rayan, has secured  $5.4 million in seed funding led by venture capital firm Outlander VC , with participation from Arka Venture Labs , Lex Reddy, KDX Management LLC , Together Fund , Higher Life Ventures , Nivesha Ventures , Prana Tech Ventures , Bria, HF0

Forterra , defining the next domain of operations creating an ecosystem where intelligent systems coordinate and prevail across the battlefield, led by Josh Araujo, Joseph Putney, Scott Sanders, Colin Chisholm, Taylor Smith Baisey, and Alberto Lacaze, has announced  a $238 million Series C comprised of both equity and debt led by Moore Strategic Ventures with participation from new investors Salesforce Ventures , Franklin Templeton , Balyasny Asset Management , 645 Ventures ,

Self.co , a Lithuania-based company, helping you uncover the true cause of your symptoms and guide you toward the right path to better health, led by Tautvydas Gylys, Gintautas Gylys, and Juozapas Zabukas, has secured  €2.56 million in funding, including €1.2 million led by  Iron Wolf Capital , joined by  Coinvest , NGL Ventures , and several angel investors, and a €1.36 million government grant from Innovation Agency Lithuania . Nearly 40% of people worldwide suffer from all

YQuantum , a Swiss startup developing innovative hardware components, unleashing the full potential of quantum computing, led by Dr. Christian Jünger, Dr. Johannes Herrmann, and Prof. Christian Schönenberger, has secured  €161,000 (CHF 150,000) from  Venture Kick . YQuantum develops compact, high-performance cryogenic hardware to enhance the scalability of quantum systems. Its technology supports high-fidelity superconducting and spin-qubit operations, enabling larger and mor

Inversion Space , building autonomous, highly-maneuverable re-entry vehicles to deliver cargo and effects from space, led by Justin Fiaschetti, Austin Briggs, Jackson Kemper, III, Collin Corey, and others, has unveiled  the design of Arc, a spacecraft intended to deliver critical cargo from space to any point on Earth within an hour, landing on water, snow or soil with a precision of around 50 feet. The concept targets the defense sector, aligning with the U.S. military’s lon

Cambridge Photon Technology , transforming high-energy photons into silicon-optimised infrared light, led by Dr Claudio Marinelli, Prof. Akshay Rao, Adrian Watson, and others, has secured  £1,556,000, comprising £926,000 in equity investment from Cambridge Enterprise Ventures , Spectrum Impact , Tybourne Capital, Providence Investment Company, and SourceSquared and £630,000 Clean Energy and Climate Technologies grant from the UKRI Innovate UK  Investor Partnerships, enabled b

Gravitics , developer of orbital carrier, led by Colin Doughan, Sundeep Kumar, Scott Macklin, Michael DeRosa, Gary Hudson, and others, has unveiled  Diamondback, a smaller orbital carrier designed to fulfill missions from protecting US national security satellites to deploying space-based missile interceptors, on Tuesday at Payload’s Space Investor Summit. Gravitics CEO Colin Doughan likened the company’s orbital carrier model to a network of police stations: strategically po