This is a weekly feature that runs down the week’s top 10 announced funding rounds in the U.S. Check out last week’s biggest funding deal roundup here.

While no billion-dollar rounds led this week’s list, we nonetheless saw a variety of startups in industries ranging from semiconductors to aerospace to biotech raise sizable rounds. The week’s biggest deal was $400 million for SiFive, a semiconductor startup challenging incumbent with chip designs built on an open rather than proprietary standard.

1. , $400M, semiconductors: San Mateo, California-based semiconductor startup SiFive raised a $400 million Series G round led by . SiFive makes the blueprints used by companies such as to develop their own internal chip designs, on an open standard called RISC-V. CEO Reuters he expects the raise to be SiFive’s last funding round before an IPO, though didn’t say when an offering would take place.

2. , $200M, aviation: Hermeus, an El Segundo, California-based startup developing autonomous military aircraft, raised $200 million in equity in a -led round. The company, which is developing what it says will be the fastest unmanned defense aircraft, also raised $150 million in debt as part of the round, which pushes its valuation to $1 billion. Other investors in the deal include , and

3. $137M, biotechnology: San Diego-based Sidewinder, a biotech startup developing cancer drugs to target difficult-to-treat tumors, raised a $137 million Series B led by and . The company is developing next-generation cancer drugs called antibody-drug conjugates, or ADCs, which are designed to act like “guided missiles” by using engineered antibodies to deliver toxic payloads directly into tumor cells. The company said its new funding will be used to push its lead drug candidates into clinical trials.

4. , $125M, AI infrastructure: Palo Alto, California-based Aria Networks raised $125 million in a -led Series A funding round. The company develops an AI-driven networking platform that monitors, analyzes and optimizes data center performance.

5. , $111.7M, aerospace: Starfish Space, a Seattle-based startup developing and manufacturing autonomous space vehicles that perform in-orbit, satellite servicing missions, raised $111.7 million. The Series B round was led by , and . Starfish’s spacecraft dock to satellites already in orbit to service and reposition them. They can also remove defunct satellites and debris from space.

6. (tied) , $100M, biotechnology: Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Stipple Bio raised a $100 million Series A round to advance its precision cancer therapies. The round was led by , and . Stipple aims to develop highly targeted cancer treatments that selectively attack cancer cells while minimizing damage to healthy tissue.

6. (tied) , $100M, health insurance: led the $100 million Series E for Chapter, a New York-based startup offering a Medicare navigation platform that provides advisory services for seniors seeking health coverage. Other investors include ​​, and 1.

8. , $85M, fintech: Modus, a Philadelphia-based startup, raised $85 million in a -led seed and Series A round. The startup describes itself as a tech‑enabled audit platform that acquires CPA firms and equips them with AI‑driven audit tools to deliver higher‑quality audits. and also participated in the deal.

9. , $80M, medical devices: and led the $80 million Series C for Menlo Park, California-based Endovascular Engineering, also called E2, which has developed a device called Hēlo for the treatment of venous thromboembolism, or VTE. The company secured clearance for Hēlo in December.

10. , $80M, biotechnology: Boston-based Life Sciences, which aims to develop drugs to promote longevity and find treatments for age-related diseases, says it raised $80 million in Series D funding. The company says it will use the funding to advance human trials of its cellular rejuvenation therapy, called ER-100, which aims to make older, damaged cells act younger again. Investors in the round were not disclosed. The company has previously been backed by , , , and.

Methodology

We tracked the largest announced rounds in the Crunchbase database that were raised by U.S.-based companies for the period of April 4-10. Although most announced rounds are represented in the database, there could be a small time lag as some rounds are reported late in the week.

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This is a weekly feature that runs down the week’s top 10 announced funding rounds in the U.S. Check out our last biggest funding deal roundup here.

We took a break from covering the largest U.S. startup investments over Thanksgiving week, which was just as well, given that it was a predictably slow period for big deal announcements. Now, with just a few weeks left in 2025, things are picking up again.

Predictions market led the list after confirming its already widely reported $1 billion fresh financing. Other big rounds came from sectors including defense tech, AI infrastructure, cybersecurity and biotech.

1. , $1B, predictions market: A couple weeks ago, we included Kalshi in our Top 10 after the company reportedly secured $1 billion in fresh funding. Well, now it’s official, with from the fast-growing New York-based predictions marketplace. Crypto-focused investor led the financing, with participation from a long list of venture firms.

2. , $350M, defense tech: Castelion, a developer of hypersonic munitions, it raised $350 million in Series B financing led by and . The Torrance, California-based company was founded by alum in 2022.

3. , $300M, cloud data: New York-based Eon, a provider of cloud data backup technology for enterprise AI, $300 million in a Series D led by of . The round brings Eon’s total funding to $500 million since its founding less than two years ago and increases its valuation to $4 billion.

4. , $150M, health insurance: Curative, a startup that markets a free out-of-pocket health plan, picked up $150 million in a Series B round led by . The financing values the Austin-based company at $1.27 billion.

5. , $134M, health insurance: San Francisco-based Angle Health, an AI platform for healthcare benefits, closed on $134 million in Series B funding led by . The round included a combination of debt and equity, bringing total funding to nearly $200 million, according to the company.

6. (tied) , $130M, cybersecurity: 7AI, a developer of tools for scaling AI agents to do security work, pulled in $130 million in a Series A led by . The funding round comes just 10 months after the Boston-based company launched out of stealth mode.

6. (tied) , $130M, biotech: Protego Biopharma, a startup therapeutics that aims to reprogram protein folding to address multiple diseases and disorders, raised $130 million in Series B funding. and led the financing for the San Diego-based company.

8. , $120M, biotech: Lexington, Massachusetts-based Triana Biomedicines, developer of a molecular glue discovery platform, $120 million in Series B financing. and co-led the round.

9. , $105M, simulation testing: Antithesis, a developer of simulation testing tools for software systems, raised $105 million in Series A funding. led the financing for the Tysons Corner, Virginia-based startup.

10. , $100M, AI server chips: Axiado, developer of a chip designed to save space and power in artificial intelligence servers, secured $100 million in a Series C+ round. led the investment for the San Jose, California-based company.

Methodology

We tracked the largest announced rounds in the Crunchbase database that were raised by U.S.-based companies for the period of Nov. 28-Dec. 5. Although most announced rounds are represented in the database, there could be a small time lag as some rounds are reported late in the week.

Illustration:

This is a weekly feature that runs down the week’s top 10 announced funding rounds in the U.S. Check out the biggest funding rounds of last week here.

While the year started out hot for large megaround deals, it has slowed considerably. Just three startups raised nine-figure rounds this week and you barely needed a round of $60 million to make this list.

1. , $425M, energy: Fusion startup Helion Energy locked up a $425 million Series F — valuing the company at $5.4 billion — as the company looks to commercialize its fusion technology. The round included participation from investors including , 2 and . The Everett, Washington-based startup has now raised more than $1 billion. In November 2021, Helion closed a $500 million Series E. The new round further illustrates investors’ appetite for new energy sources as power needs increase due to AI and other advances. In 2023, Helion announced a power purchase agreement with to deliver electricity from its fusion plant starting in 2028, and a customer agreement with to develop a power plant in the 2030s. Helion has just started operating its seventh generation prototype, Polaris, which is expected to demonstrate the first electricity produced from fusion. The company’s new round is the second-largest in the fusion sector since the start of last year, per Crunchbase data. Last October, , a startup attempting to create a nuclear fusion-based energy source, raised more than $900 million in a Series A led by .

2. , $180M, artificial intelligence: Voice AI startup ElevenLabs raised a $180 million round led by and at a $3.3 billion valuation. The raise comes about a year after the startup locked up an $80 million Series B at a unicorn valuation. The Brooklyn-based company allows creators, enterprises and others to use AI software to replicate voices in dozens of languages. Founded in 2022, ElevenLabs has raised $281 million, .

3. , $123M, insurance: The most expensive purchase most people will ever make is their home, so it matters who insures it. Openly provides independent insurance agents with a platform that offers coverage to homeowners and streamlines processes, improves risk underwriting and helps with claims. The Boston-based insurtech startup raised $123 million in equity financing led by this week, and another $70 million in debt. In 2023, the company raised a $100 million Series D, also led by Eden Global Partners. Founded in 2017, the company has raised nearly $431 million, .

4. , $97M, biotech: Boston-based Atalanta Therapeutics, a biotechnology using RNA interference for the treatment of neurological diseases, completed a $97 million Series B co-led by and . The company will use the cash to support clinical trials of its experimental RNAi therapies for KCNT1-related epilepsy and Huntington’s disease. Founded in 2018, the company has raised $207 million, .

5. (tied) , $75M, human resources: San Francisco-based recruiting startup Mercor raised a $75 million round led by 1 that values the company at a $2 billion valuation, per a report. The company started the process in December and the final total could still increase. Founded in 2023, the company has raised nearly $109 million, .

5. (tied) , $75M, power grid: Woburn, Massachusetts-based Veir, a developer of superconducting platforms for AI-driven data centers and utilities, closed a $75 million Series B led by . Founded in 2019, the company has raised nearly $112 million, .

7. , $70M, defense: Castelion, a defense manufacturer developing long-range hypersonic strike weapons, raised a $100 million Series A in a mix of debt and equity. The El Segundo, California-based startup creates what it calls “affordable, mass-produced hypersonic long-range strike weapons” that serve as a “non-nuclear deterrent.” The Series A — which includes $30 million in venture debt from — was led by . Defense tech has garnered major headlines in the past several months after massive raises by the likes of and artificial intelligence defense software developer . Just late last year, defense and critical infrastructure tech startup raised $145 million in a Series B. Already this year, raised a $60 million Series C and locked up a $50 million Series B.

8. (tied) , $65M, biotech: South San Francisco-based Helicore Biopharma, a biopharmaceutical startup focused on the treatment of obesity and related conditions, emerged from stealth mode with $65 million in a Series A co-led by and .

8. (tied) , $65M, electronics: Durham, North Carolina-based Smart Wires, a company that develops solutions for a more reliable and affordable power grid, raised $65 million in a new investment that included participation from . Founded in 2010, the company has raised $248 million, .

10. , $60M, health care: San Francisco-based Rad AI, an artificial intelligence-enhanced radiology firm, locked up a $60 million round led by that values the company at $525 million. Founded in 2018, Rad AI has raised more than $140 million, per the company.

Big global deals

The largest deal outside the U.S. came from the Iberian Peninsula.

• Spain-based , an all-in-one platform for managing business travel, raised a $200 million Series E that values the company at $2.7 billion.

Methodology

We tracked the largest announced rounds in the Crunchbase database that were raised by U.S.-based companies for the seven-day period of Jan. 25 to Jan. 31. Although most announced rounds are represented in the database, there could be a small time lag as some rounds are reported late in the week.

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That was the broad finding from our latest tally of Crunchbase data for U.S. and Canadian venture funding. It shows the pullback that commenced earlier this year has intensified in recent months, as tech valuations in public and private markets contract and the IPO window remains largely shuttered.

Overall, investors put $39.7 billion to work in seed- through growth-stage deals in Q3, down 53% year over year and down 37% from Q2. The year-over-year decline was most pronounced at late stage, which was down 63% in the just-ended quarter.

For perspective, we lay out North American funding totals, color-coded by stage, for the past 11 quarters:

The latest numbers appear less alarming when looking across a two-year time horizon, rather than solely comparing to 2021’s record-breaking tallies. By historical standards, funding totals are still pretty high. Early- and seed-stage dealmaking, for instance, is actually above 2020 levels.

Below, we look at the latest quarterly numbers in more detail, focusing on investment by stage as well as major exits.

Late-stage and tech growth contract sharply

We’ll start with late stage, which saw the sharpest slowdown.

Altogether, late-stage venture and technology growth funding totaled $19.4 billion in Q3. That’s a drop of nearly two-thirds from the $53 billion invested in the year-ago quarter. Funding is also down about 45% from Q2. 

Deal counts also fell, albeit not as precipitously. For perspective, we look at round counts and investment totals for the past five quarters below:

Public markets may be driving much of the pullback in late-stage private markets. With tech and biotech shares down sharply on major exchanges, investors are rethinking valuations. Additionally, with few IPOs happening, pre-IPO rounds aren’t getting done either.

Meanwhile, many late-stage startups, still flush with cash from the 2021 funding spree, may be putting off new raises until signs of market recovery emerge.

Even as late stage contracted, we did see some big rounds. The largest late-stage funding recipients for Q3 include digital manufacturing startup ($355 million Series C), small business policy provider ($315 million Series D), and urban greenhouse company ($310 million Series E).

Early stage is down, but less so

Investors also tapped the brakes on early-stage dealmaking. For Q3, they put $17 billion into 879 known funding rounds. In dollar terms, that represents a 40% drop from the year-ago total and a 28% drop from Q2.

For context, we look at early-stage investment and round counts for the past five quarters below:

Early stage is showing a less dramatic decline than late stage in part because companies are further from exit. Apparently, there’s more confidence that market conditions will improve as these startups mature.

By far the largest early-stage deal of the quarter was a $1 billion Series A for , which provides charging stations for electric fleets. Next up was a $350 Series A for , a spinoff working on asthma treatments, followed by a $300 million Series B for , a developer of Web3 infrastructure.

Seed slows some

The funding slowdown was much less pronounced at seed stage.

Overall, investors put $3.3 billion into seed-stage deals in Q3. That’s down 18% from Q2 and 6% from the year-ago quarter, which is markedly less than what we saw at later stages.

Seed stage’s comparatively strong showing indicates that investors are more confident about the long-term outlook than the short-term one. Also, while odds of failure are higher for newly minted startups, valuations are lower, which helps mitigate the risk.

Some of the Q3 rounds were unusually large by seed standards. For instance , an NFT project around intellectual property, snagged $50 million in a July financing. And , a mental health startup focused on seniors, landed a $32 million seed round in September.

Still, those were the outliers. The median disclosed seed or pre-seed round for Q3 was around $2 million, and only 25 deals were for $15 million or higher.

Exits

As Q3 was winding to a close, it was looking like a pretty sluggish exit environment, with a mostly shuttered IPO window and not a ton of big M&A action.

But then, in mid-September, shattered that narrative, announcing an agreement to buy digital design collaboration unicorn for $20 billion in stock and cash, in what’s been called the largest acquisition of a private, venture-backed company to date.

So yes, it might still look like lean times for most exit-hungry investors. But clearly, it’s still an environment where big deals can get done. Below, we look at what transpired in Q3 for both public offerings and M&A exits.

M&A

We’ll start with M&A, which, as previously mentioned, was largely dominated by the ginormous Figma acquisition. That deal was several multiples larger than every other disclosed acquisition combined.

Still, while no one else was spending like Adobe, there were some interesting and good-sized M&A deals over the course of the quarter. We list the top seven below:

Public offerings

The third quarter was not a great time for tech and biotech public offerings, given that both sectors have been taking a beating on major exchanges. Unprofitable companies—a category that includes most-recently public venture-backed deals—were particularly out of fashion.

Even in this suboptimal environment, however, several funded companies did make it to market, either through previously announced SPAC transactions or traditional IPOs. We list nine public market debuts below:

The largest debut was , a Lexington, Kentucky-based online marketplace for waste and recycling, which wrapped up a SPAC merger in August and debuted at a $1.7 billion valuation. Shares have fallen sharply since the debut.

Next up was , a quantum computing company that completed its SPAC merger in August in a deal that valued the company around $1.6 billion. Shares are well below their peak but are holding at better-than-average for a SPAC deal.

Down from a very high peak

So as we bid adieu to Q3, what should one make of these mostly downwardly trending numbers?

One of the key things to keep in mind is that we are scaling down from extremely tall heights, as 2021 surpassed prior funding records by a long shot. So, while an over 50% year-over-year funding decline may make for an alarming headline, we’re still close to where we were a couple years ago. And at the time, that was considered a pretty good period for startup funding.

Of course, late stage is faring worse than early stage and seed. Given the large sums of dry powder still in the coffers of venture investors, however, it’s likely they’ll begin spending more profusely once more consensus emerges around valuations and exit conditions improve.

For now, however, the numbers are indeed down. No up cycle lasts forever.

Methodology

The data contained in this report comes directly from Crunchbase, and is based on reported data. Data reported is as of Oct. 3, 2022.

Note that data lags are most pronounced at the earliest stages of venture activity, with seed funding amounts increasing significantly after the end of a quarter/year.

Please note that all funding values are given in U.S. dollars unless otherwise noted. Crunchbase converts foreign currencies to U.S. dollars at the prevailing spot rate from the date funding rounds, acquisitions, IPOs and other financial events are reported. Even if those events were added to Crunchbase long after the event was announced, foreign currency transactions are converted at the historic spot price.

Glossary of funding terms

Seed and angel consists of seed, pre-seed and angel rounds. Crunchbase also includes venture rounds of unknown series, equity crowdfunding and convertible notes at $3 million (USD or as-converted USD equivalent) or less.

Early stage consists of Series A and Series B rounds, as well as other round types. Crunchbase includes venture rounds of unknown series, corporate venture and other rounds above $3 million, and those less than or equal to $15 million.

Late stage consists of Series C, Series D, Series E and later-lettered venture rounds following the “Series [Letter]” naming convention. Also included are venture rounds of unknown series, corporate venture and other rounds above $15 million.

Technology growth is a private-equity round raised by a company that has previously raised a “venture” round. (So basically, any round from the previously defined stages.)

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New York-based Lemonade has now raised a total of during its lifetime. Its last raise was a in late 2017 that valued the company at $620 million. led that round as well.

This latest financing also included participation from Germany’s , , (formerly known as Google Ventures), Israel-based , and . Lemonade said it the new capital to accelerate its U.S. and European expansion, as well as to explore new product lines. The company first announced plans – its first major market outside the U.S. – last November.

Lemonade is licensed as a property and casualty insurance carrier and began offering homeowners and renters’ insurance in New York in late 2016. That offering is now available for most of the U.S. population. The company says it powers its offerings with artificial intelligence and “behavioral economics.” Lemonade claims it’s built a system that “collects 100x more data than traditional carriers,” giving it the ability to generate predictive data that can help improve underwriting and pricing. It operates contrary to traditional insurance models, charging a fixed percentage as a flat fee.

Lemonade also has a social good component. As a , the company annually donates a portion of unclaimed premium dollars to nonprofits. But it also believes in growth. , Lemonade CEO and co-founder, told me via email this morning that his company’s revenue climbed 466 percent to $57.2 million in 2018. The number of homes it insures, meanwhile, grew to 425,000 last year (covering just shy of $50 billion in total insured value) compared to just more than 100,000 at the end of 2017.  And, Lemonade upped the number of states it serves to 21 last year compared to eight in 2017. It’s also seen its headcount climb – to 165 employees today, up from around 50 a year ago. For more details on its growth metrics, check .

Note: We updated this story post-publication with comments from the company.

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That’s right, picked up in a Series C. The round was led by and . Other participants included , , and others.

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This is the third known financing for the company, which raised a back in January led by Comcast and Fifth Wall. The round brings the company’s total known funding to.

As a refresher, Hippo, which was founded in 2015 and officially launched last year, focuses on home insurance. The company, which works with insurance partners that underwrite the policies, claims that its main differentiator is the quick sign-up model (you can get a quote in one minute), which is driven by data and artificial intelligence.

Per the company’s , since its Series B in January Hippo launched in 11 states. Its coverage areas now include California, Nevada, Arizona, Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Missouri, Illinois, Maryland, among other states, according to its .

Of course, Hippo is not the only company focused on home insurance. Its competitors include , which is also data and AI-driven. That startup provides home and renters insurance and has raised since its founding in 2018.

The U.S. insurtech industry, generally, has grown significantly in the past year. Companies like , which is a mobile-first company focused on car insurance, and , which provides insurance to small business owners, have been raking in venture capital. For evidence, take a look at the chart below.

Investment in insurtech companies has reached over $1.6 billion this year alone, an increase of about 50 percent from 2017, according to Crunchbase.

Buying quickly online has been the norm for car and health insurance for some time now. These days more companies are moving into mobile access and relying on data aggregation and machine learning to produce quotes. Clearly, investors are confident that this trend will continue across many insurance categories from cars, to homes, to health.

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