Data storage and much biotechnology

Want to track the biggest startup funding deals in 2024 with a curated list of $100M+ venture deals for US-based companies? Check out the Crunchbase Megadeals board.

This is a weekly feature highlighting the top 10 funding rounds announced that week in the US. Check out last year’s biggest funding rounds here and here.

Indeed, this was an important week. To make the list, companies had to raise more than $100 million. Biotech and healthcare startups lead the way, with these companies dominating and dominating the list. However, as always, AI-related companies are at the top.

1. DDN, $300 million, data storage: Data is a high-stakes game these days. Private equity giant Blackstone Group has made a $300 million strategic investment in DDN, valuing the Chatsworth, California-based data storage company at $5 billion. Founded in 1998, DDN (previously known as DataDirect Networks) helps companies store, analyze and manage data, a valuable commodity as they look to create and train AI models. Masu. The company plans to use the new funding to expand into industries ranging from healthcare to self-driving cars and accelerate product innovation, including its AI data intelligence platform. Of course, this isn’t Blackstone Group’s only effort in the data space. Last year, it was reported that the world’s largest asset manager planned to invest $8.2 billion in developing data centers in Spain. In 2023, it partnered with Digital Realty to develop a $7 billion data center targeting providers of online content, cloud services, and artificial intelligence. Blackstone is also a backer of CoreWeave, an AI infrastructure startup that provides access to Nvidia’s highly popular AI chips.

2. Innovaccer, $275 million, Healthcare: San Francisco-based Innovaccer aims to be a “one-stop shop” for healthcare AI solutions, so it could be listed as artificial intelligence or healthcare. . Innovaccer helps healthcare organizations with software solutions that improve the patient experience and reduce administrative burden for healthcare providers, with $275 million in primary and secondary funding. I have procured it. Lead investors have not been announced, but investors include B Capital and Kaiser Permanente. The company was founded in 2014 and has raised $654 million to date, according to Crunchbase.

3. Whatnot, $265 million, e-commerce: While most of us are looking to cut back on post-holiday spending, investors want people to spend more on livestream shopping platform Whatnot. It is clear that The Los Angeles-based startup has raised a $265 million Series E at a valuation of nearly $5 billion. The round was co-led by Avra, DST Global, and Greycroft. The annual gross merchandise value of Whatnot’s livestream sales exceeded $3 billion last year. Founded in 2019, Whatnot has raised approximately $746 million to date, according to the company.

4. Aviceda Therapeutics, $208 million, biotech: It may be a new year, but biotech is still raising a lot of money. Aviceda Therapeutics, a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based biotechnology company focused on developing immunomodulatory agents that alleviate chronic inflammation, completes a $207.5 million Series C co-led by Omega Fund and TCGX announced. The company was founded in 2018 and has raised $277 million to date, according to Crunchbase.

5. Tenvie Therapeutics, $200 million, biotech: South San Francisco-based Tenvie Therapeutics is a biotech researching treatments for neurological diseases that has a $200 million investment led by Arch Venture Partners, F-Prime Capital and Mubadala Capital. It was launched with funds from

6. Timberlyne Therapeutics, $180 million, biotech: Timberlyne Therapeutics, a San Diego-based biopharmaceutical startup focused on developing treatments for autoimmune diseases, is led by Abingworth, Bain Capital Life Sciences, and completed a $180 million Series A led by Venrock Healthcare Capital Partners. According to Crunchbase, this is the company’s first funding.

7. Inari, $144 million, agricultural technology: Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Inari, a startup designing more sustainable seeds for agriculture, has secured a $144 million round. Although the name of the lead investor was not disclosed, the company said one of the new investors is a wholly owned subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. The company is focused on developing new seeds for large acre crops, with a first line of products such as soybeans, corn and wheat. Inari was founded in 2016 and has raised $720 million, according to the company.

8. Hippocratic AI, $141 million, artificial intelligence: Palo Alto, California-based Hippocratic develops large-scale, safety-focused language models for healthcare, safety, and accuracy. AI raised $141 million in Series B, valuing the company at $1.6 billion. This round was led by Kleiner Perkins. The company was founded in 2023 and has raised $276 million to date, according to Crunchbase.

9. Evergreen Nephrology, $130 million, Healthcare: Based in Nashville, Tennessee, Evergreen Nephrology, which provides care to people suffering from chronic kidney disease, is owned by Oak HC/FT, Rubicon Founders, and existing It raised $130 million in a round led by a group of investors. The company was founded in 2021 and has raised $134 million, according to Crunchbase.

10. Ouro Medicines, $120 million, biotech: San Francisco-based Ouro Medicines is a biotech developing immune-resetting treatments for people with chronic immune-mediated diseases, led by New Enterprise Associates, Norwest It was launched with a $120 million Series A in collaboration with Venture. Partners and TPG.

Large scale global transactions

Of course, the biggest recipient of funding outside the United States was another biotech company.

Verdiva Bio, a London-based company developing treatments for obesity and cardiometabolic diseases, has raised $411 million in Series A funding.

methodology

We tracked the largest announced rounds in the Crunchbase database raised by US-based companies over a seven-day period from January 3rd to January 10th. Most announcement rounds are visible in the database, but there may be a slight lag. As some rounds will be reported later in the week.

Illustration: Dom Guzman