Apple kills AR glasses project & OpenAI unveils a new ChatGPT agent for ‘deep research’

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STARTUPS RAISING MILLIONS

💰 Startup funding updates

TeamSec, a Dubai, UAE-based provider of a SaaS based, AI-powered securitization platform for the structured finance industry through its innovative Securitization-as-a-Service platform, raised USD7.6m in funding. Backers included Deniz Ventures, the venture capital fund of DenizBank, established under the Emirates NBD Innovation Fund—the Corporate Venture Capital arm of Emirates NBD Group—and Rasmal Ventures, a Doha, Qatar-based venture capital firm.

Nutrix, a Switzerland-based health tech startup, raised a $2.5M seed round co-led by Simpact and OIST-Lifetime Ventures, bringing total funding to $4M. The company’s cortisol-tracking device, cortiSense, recently won a CES Innovation Award and is launching in the U.S. with support from the Mayo Clinic.

Observo AI, a Newark, CA-based AI-native data pipeline company, raised $15M in Seed funding. The round was led by Felicis and Lightspeed Venture Partners.

Backline, a San Francisco, CA-based provider of an autonomous security remediation platform, raised $9M in Seed funding. The round was led by StageOne Ventures, with participation from Evolution Equity Partners and Gradient.

Cedar Money, a NYC-based payments company that enables seamless cross-border money movement on stablecoins, raised $9.9M in Seed funding. The round was led by QED Investors, with participation from North Island Ventures, Wischoff Ventures, Lattice, and Stellar.

OneThird, an Enschede, The Netherlands-based AI-driven food tech company, raised €3.5M in Series A funding. The round was led by Invest International, with participation from previous investors Pymwymic, SHIFT Invest and Oost NL.

Savant Labs, a San Mateo, CA-based provider of an AI-powered platform helping business analysts access and manage data, raised $18.5M in Series A funding. The round was led by Dell Technologies Capital (DTC), with participation from Vertex Ventures, Cota Capital, Village Global, Bloomberg Beta, West Wave Capital, and Uncorrelated Ventures.

Closinglock, an Austin, TX-based fintech and fraud prevention technology provider, raised $34M in Series B funding. The round was led by Sageview Capital and supported by Headline and RWT Horizons.

Perspective AI, a Palo Alto, CA-based customer conversations company, raised $4M in Seed funding. The round was led by Village Global, Array Ventures, Honeystone VC, Recursive Ventures, Darkmode VC, and angel investors.

Motif Systems, a San Francisco, CA-based provider of a building design platform, raised $46M in Seed and Series A Funding. The round was led by CapitalG, and the previously undisclosed Seed round was led by Redpoint Ventures. Pre-seed venture firm Baukunst also participated in both rounds.

Kode Health, a Holland, MI-based provider of an on-demand medical coding platform, raised $27M in Series B funding. The round was led by Noro-Moseley Partners with participation from Mercury, FCA Venture Partners, Epsilon Innovation Fund, and 111 West Capital.

NEW VCs IN THE MARKET

🏦 Venture Capital updates

Conviction Partners, a San Francisco-based AI-focused VC firm, raised a $230M second fund and added ex-Sequoia partner Mike Vernal as GP. Founded by former Greylock investor Sarah Guo, the firm has backed AI startups like Mistral, Harvey, and Sierra. The new fund more than doubles Conviction’s $101M debut fund.

Petra Capital Partners, a Nashville, TN-based private equity firm, has completed fundraising on Petra Growth Fund V, with $270M of capital available to invest. Consistent with prior funds, PGF V will target healthcare, business, and technology-enabled services companies and is structured as a small business investment company (SBIC) licensed by the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Blue Sage Capital, an Austin, TX-based lower-middle market private equity firm, announced the final close of Blue Sage Capital IV, L.P., at $618M including a substantial commitment from the General Partner. The fund was backed by a global group of Limited Partners including well-known college/university endowments, charitable foundations, pension funds, large family offices, insurance companies, and entrepreneurial individuals.

KEY STORIES IN TECH

📜 Latest in tech

OpenAI unveils a new ChatGPT agent for ‘deep research’:

• OpenAI introduced "Deep Research," an AI agent for intensive knowledge work, offering in-depth research with citations for finance, science, and policy users, initially limited to 100 queries for ChatGPT Pro.

• The feature, powered by a reinforced version of OpenAI’s o3 reasoning model, analyzes vast online data, interprets PDFs, and generates text-based insights, with future updates planned for visual outputs and specialized data sources.

• Despite OpenAI’s claims of superior accuracy compared to competitors, Deep Research still struggles with misinformation and formatting errors, raising concerns about AI reliability in high-stakes research scenarios.

DeepSeek founder Liang Wenfeng celebrated as AI pioneer in China:

• DeepSeek founder Liang Wenfeng received a hero’s welcome in his hometown of Guangdong during the Lunar New Year, as locals praised his academic brilliance and AI breakthrough, which reduces reliance on Nvidia chips amid U.S. sanctions.

• Wenfeng, a billionaire hedge fund manager through High-Flyer, remains elusive despite growing interest, with bodyguards accompanying him as he avoids public appearances and media scrutiny.

• His low profile follows patterns seen with Chinese tech leaders like Jack Ma, whose prominence led to government intervention, making it likely that Wenfeng will stay behind the scenes despite his rising influence.

Apple kills AR glasses project:

• Apple has discontinued its augmented reality glasses project, codenamed N107, which was intended to rival Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses, following challenges with technology integration and performance.

• The decision comes after the commercial failure of the Apple Vision Pro headset, which, despite its technical capabilities, struggled in the market with a high price of $3,499 and limited use cases.

• In contrast, Meta's collaboration with Ray-Ban resulted in over one million units sold in 2024, with plans for future models, as Apple reconsiders its strategy in the AR/VR sector.

SoftBank and OpenAI to launch AI joint venture in Japan:

• SoftBank and OpenAI are launching SB OpenAI Japan, a joint venture offering AI services to corporate clients, with SoftBank committing $3 billion annually to integrate OpenAI’s technology.

• This move strengthens SoftBank’s ties with OpenAI, following reports of a $15B–$25B investment and its $15B commitment to Stargate, the $100B U.S. data center initiative with OpenAI and Oracle.

• Amid DeepSeek’s rising influence, Son and Altman met with Japan’s Prime Minister, emphasizing the global AI race and the growing demand for compute power.

LAST COFFEE SIP

☕Other news

AI startup Perplexity sued for alleged trademark infringement:

• Perplexity Solved Solutions, a Texas-based HR software firm, has sued AI search startup Perplexity for allegedly infringing on its registered trademark, which it secured in 2022 after using the name since 2017.

• The lawsuit claims Perplexity’s branding, domain, and enterprise product Spaces cause market confusion, citing user mix-ups and social media tags, while alleging the AI firm ignored a cease-and-desist letter and trademark opposition.

• This adds to Perplexity’s legal troubles, including an ongoing lawsuit from News Corp over alleged content theft, as major media outlets accuse the startup of replicating copyrighted material without permission.

Meta considers moving incorporation from Delaware:

• Meta Platforms is considering changing its incorporation from Delaware to Texas and has engaged in discussions with Texas officials regarding this potential shift.

• The company reassured that it has no intention of moving its corporate headquarters from Menlo Park, California, despite contemplating reincorporation.

• The move to Texas could be influenced by the state's more favorable legal and regulatory environment, appealing to firms interested in reducing expenses and optimizing operations.

HIRING ALERT: STARTUPS & VC ROLES

💼 Today’s VC & startup job opportunities

• Chief Of Staff - Spacecadet Venture | USA - Apply Here

• Investment Associate - Avaana Capital | India - Apply Here

• Investment Associate - Listen | USA - Apply Here

• Analyst - Palm Drive Capital | India - Apply Here

• Customer Success Manager - Full path | Remote - Apply Here

• Strategy and Operations Manager - Cribl | USA - Apply Here

• Technical Investing Associate - Capital One Venture | USA - Apply Here

• Vice President Portfolio Management - 43 North | USA - Apply Here

• Strategy Associate - Commerce Venture | USA - Apply Here'

• Venture Partner - Dardania Capital | USA - Apply Here

• Investment Analyst - Left Lane Capital | USA - Apply Here

• Investment Team - Epic Venture | USA - Apply Here

• Operations and Finance - Topology Venture | USA - Apply Here

CURATED RESOURCES

🎁 Don’t miss - Curated Resources for Founders.

• Write Your Monthly Investor Update (Email Template Download).

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