Microsoft to invest $80 billion in AI data centers & Tesla’s sales fell year-over-year for the first time.

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💰 STARTUPS RAISING MILLIONS

Startup Funding Updates

Generative AI investments hit a record $56B in 2024, up 192% from 2023, driven by major rounds like Databricks ($10B), xAI ($6B), and Anthropic ($4B). U.S. startups dominated funding, while international winners included Moonshot AI ($1B) and Mistral (~$640M). Analyst Ali Javaheri warns of oversaturation and rising computing costs, favoring well-funded infrastructure players like Crusoe ($600M). KKR forecasts AI-driven data center spending to soar to $250B annually.

StruxHub, a San Francisco, Calif. – based construction tech startup, closed its $4M Seed funding round. The round was led by Brick and Mortar Ventures with participation from FJ Labs, Holcim, and angel investors.

Infinant, a Charlotte, NC-based bank platform provider, raised $15m in Series A funding. The round was led by FINTOP Capital with participation from Raido Capital Partners, Woodforest Financial Group, and Bankers Helping Bankers.

Apheris, a Berlin, Germany-based federated computing company focused on the life sciences sector, raised $20.8m in Series A funding. The round was co-led by OTB Ventures and eCapital with participation from Octopus Ventures and Heal Capital.

Rembrand, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based In-Scene Media and Virtual Product Placement technology developer, raised $23m in Series A financing. The round was led by super{set} with participation from The Trade Desk and Naver D2SF plus existing investors such as BOLD, the corporate venture capital fund of L’Oréal; Greycroft and others.

Fairly, a Portland, Oregon-based vacation rental management platform that emphasizes individualized care and a community-driven approach to service, launched out of stealth mode with an internally-funded $10.1m pre-seed funding round. Led by founder Eric Breon along with vacation rental industry experts Subechya Person and Jeff Flitton, Fairly provides a comprehensive SaaS platform for vacation rental homeowners and service providers to collaborate.

Deterrence, a Fremont, CA- and Washington, DC-based defense technology company automating the production of energetics, raised a total of $10.1m in funding. The round included a seed led by Riot Ventures with contributions from others including Definition Capital, Impatient Ventures, Valhalla Ventures, Banter Capital, and Dmitri Alperovitch.

Proton Intelligence Inc., a Vancouver, Canada-based developer of a continuous potassium monitoring (CKM™) platform, closed a $6.95m USD seed financing round. Backers included SOSV, We Venture Capital, Tenmile, LongeVC, 15th Rock, Exor, and Trampoline Venture Partners.

Qolab, Inc., a Madison, Wis.-based leader in superconducting quantum computing, raised over $16.0m to date in its Series A financing round. The round was led by Octave Ventures with co-investment from the Development Bank of Japan Inc. (DBJ), Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF), and Phoenix Venture Partners.

🏦 NEW VCs IN THE MARKET

Venture Capital Updates

Accel has retained its $650M India fund size, prioritizing disciplined returns over larger raises, unlike peers like Peak XV ($2.5B) and Lightspeed ($500M). The firm, known for early Swiggy and Flipkart bets, plans 60-70 investments per cycle, focusing on AI-driven software, wealthtech, and "Bharat" markets. With 10 portfolio startups eyeing IPOs, Accel sees significant potential in India's maturing digital and rural economies.

Nisha Desai, founder of Andav Capital, is suing PayPal, alleging her Asian-led firm was excluded from its $530M diversity program favoring Black and Hispanic-led businesses, violating civil rights laws. Desai claims the rejection cost her firm millions in vital capital and perpetuated perceptions of merit-based disqualification. The suit accuses PayPal of maintaining a "racially exclusionary investment program," which Desai says provided significant advantages to recipients while marginalizing Asian American-led firms. PayPal has declined to comment, and Desai is represented by Consovoy McCarthy, a law firm known for challenging race-based programs.

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📜 KEY STORIES IN TECH

Latest In Tech

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman published an article stating that the company believes it can build AGI and is now focusing on superintelligence, which he sees as a tool to accelerate scientific discovery and increase prosperity. He expects AI agents to enhance company productivity this year, despite current AI limitations. Altman is confident these challenges will be overcome but stresses the need for caution as superintelligent systems develop.

Meta removed several AI-generated profiles from Facebook and Instagram after facing significant backlash and mockery from users on social media platforms. The AI profiles, introduced as part of Meta's AI chatbot experiment, attracted criticism after remarks made by Meta's VP of Generative AI, Connor Hayes, brought them to public attention. Users were unable to block these AI accounts, prompting Meta to terminate the experiment and address the blocking issue, although the company still plans to integrate more AI personas in the future.

Microsoft plans to invest $80 billion in AI data centers in 2025, aiming to support the training and deployment of AI models and enhance cloud-based applications. Over half of Microsoft's investment will focus on constructing data centers in the United States, reflecting its commitment to domestic infrastructure development in the AI sector. The company emphasizes the need for government support in AI advancement and suggests training Americans to use AI tools, while also promoting American AI technologies internationally.

☕ LAST COFFEE SIP

Other News

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi has resigned from Aurora Innovation's board, effective Tuesday, to focus on his role and reduce external commitments. His departure follows Uber's $400M investment in Aurora in 2020 and their ongoing Uber Freight collaboration. Shailen Bhatt will replace him, with Ossa Fisher taking interim general counsel duties.

Tesla's 2024 production and delivery numbers showed a slight decline, with 1.77 million cars produced and 1.79 million delivered, marking a drop of about 4% and 1%, respectively. Despite a record Q4 with 495,570 vehicles delivered and 11 GWh of energy storage deployed, Tesla's results fell short of Wall Street's expectations. CEO Elon Musk faces challenges, including rising competition, reduced demand for older models, and potential shifts in government incentives.

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• SaaS Retention: The New Normal ChartMogul's report on SaaS retention trends, focusing on customer behavior, revenue patterns, and strategies for sustainable growth.

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