These startups energized our January top 10

Plus, does Europe really need more ‘founder-VCs’? February 7, 2024 Hi, {NAME}. It seems investors and startups alike were ready to get the year started with a bang after a sleepy 2023. The first month of the year started with more than a dozen [$100 million-plus funding rounds to U.S.-based startups](. Plus, [does Europe need more ‘founder-VCs’?]( 🔋 [Top 10: Energy startups power up with huge raises in January]( Massive funding deals to a pair of renewable energy startups led the way for the largest rounds to U.S. startups in January. All told, 13 U.S. companies landed venture rounds of $100 million or more last month. See also: [The Crunchbase Megadeals Board]( 💶 [Does Europe really need more ‘founder-VCs’?]( A common sentiment in the startup world is that Europe needs more founder-VCs — those investors who themselves previously started and operated startups. But guest author [Dan Gray]( argues that’s not necessarily the case, and that there are other things that would benefit the European VC system more. 🥷 [NinjaOne grabs $1.9B valuation with Series C]( [NinjaOne]( a cybersecurity startup focused on endpoint management, security and monitoring, raised a $231.5 million Series C led by [Iconiq Growth](. The minority investment values the Austin-based company at $1.9 billion. Related Crunchbase Pro list: [Cybersecurity Funding]( 🚀 [Space infrastructure stayed aloft in tough funding climate]( Last year, investors poured more than $4.6 billion globally into startups in the space travel and satellite categories, as well as space-related aerospace sectors, [Crunchbase]( data shows. Supersized rounds went to companies developing everything from satellite networks to space stations. Related Crunchbase Pro list: [Spacetech Funding, 2023]( 💸 [Is the IPO market back in business?]( This IPO market will not be like the ones of the past five years, writes guest author [Greg Sichenzia]( a securities lawyer who has counseled numerous companies and investment banks through initial public offerings. Here’s why. ⚡️ [Lightspeed picks up the pace]( [Lightspeed Venture Partners]( — now nearly a quarter of a century old and known for backing companies such as [Snap]( [Nest]( and [Stripe]( — significantly picked up its investment cadence in the final quarter of 2023, [Crunchbase]( data shows. Related Crunchbase Pro list: [Lightspeed Venture Partners’ Investments]( [Crunchbase ROI Calculator]( [See the number of new accounts Crunchbase can add to your funnel with our advanced prospecting ROI calculator powered by Crunchbase data.]( [Calculate]( Recent Investments [Recurrent Energy]( [$160M]( / [Debt Financing]( Recurrent Energy specializes in the development, construction, and operation of solar and energy storage projects. Categories: Energy • Renewable Energy • Solar Founders: [Arno Harris]( [Don Hutchison]( [Matt Garlinghouse]( [Rigetti Computing]( [Unknown]( / [Grant]( Rigetti Computing is a quantum computing company that builds and deploys full-stack quantum systems with superconducting qubits. Categories: Artificial Intelligence (AI) • Big Data • Hardware • Quantum Computing • Software Founders: [Chad Rigetti]( Investors: [Small Business Research Initiative]( (Lead) [Vestiaire Collective]( [Unknown]( / [Series J]( Vestiaire Collective is an online marketplace that allows users to buy and sell pre-owned luxury fashion items. Categories: E-Commerce • E-Commerce Platforms • Fashion • Marketplace • Social Shopping Founders: [Alexandre Cognard]( [Christian Jorge]( [Fanny Moizant]( [Henrique Fernandes]( [Sebastien Fabre]( [Sophie Hersan]( Investors: [Cynegetic Investment Management]( More Fundings Company Amount / Round Lead Investor [Ambience Healthcare]( $70M / [Series B]( [Kleiner Perkins]( [ANAROCK]( 2.0B INR / [Venture Round]( [360 ONE Asset]( [Kin Insurance]( $15M / [Venture Round]( [Activate Capital Partners]( [Wishlink]( $7.0M / [Series A]( [Fundamentum]( [All Recent Funding Activity]( Recent Acquisitions [Bookwise Solutions]( Pending acquisition by [VitalHub]( for 3.1M GBP More Acquisitions Company Acquired By Amount [Vermont Underground Locators]( [Bowman Consulting]( Unknown [All Recent Acquisition Activity]( Upcoming Tech Events [LEAP and DeepFest]( March 4 - 7, 2024 in Maham LEAP and DeepFest stand out as the world's most widely attended technology events. Accelerator Deadlines Date Accelerator Location Jan 30, 2025 [Littlefinger Capital]( Unknown Apr 4, 2025 [Great Zeal Crypto Rewards]( London [More Upcoming Deadlines]( Don’t see your event? Reach out to us at events@crunchbase.com. #{Rails.configuration.daily.cb_url} Discover innovative companies and the people behind them. [Follow Us on Crunchbase]( [View Jobs on LinkedIn]( [Follow Us on Twitter]( [Like Us on Facebook]( 564 Market St, San Francisco, CA 94104 © 2024 Crunchbase Inc. All rights reserved. [Privacy Policy]( | [Terms of Service]( [Unsubscribe]( from Crunchbase Daily.