Newsletter: VC Breakfast Club

/espresso

• 💡 Quantexa raises $175M to scale AI-powered risk management and compliance solutions.

• 🔬 TRIMTECH secures €28.6M for AI-driven neurodegenerative disease therapies.

• 🌍 Wayve expands to Germany after $1B raise, developing AI-powered autonomous driving tech.

/raising (?)

Are you raising? Founders, pitch here.

/deals

💡 London-based Quantexa has secured $175M in funding, pushing its valuation past £2B ($2.6B). The AI startup, backed by Teachers’ Venture Growth and British Patient Capital, uses AI-driven intelligence to help financial firms manage risk. With growing public sector demand and a deep Microsoft partnership, Quantexa is scaling AI-powered compliance solutions.

🧠 Cambridge-based TRIMTECH Therapeutics raised €28.6M to develop targeted protein degradation therapies for neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s. Backed by Cambridge Innovation Capital, SV Health Investors, and Pfizer Ventures, the funding accelerates its TRIMTAC platform, designed to remove toxic protein aggregates while preserving healthy cellular function.

🌱 London-based Epoch Biodesign raised €17M Series A to scale its enzyme-powered plastic recycling technology, making recycled materials cheaper and higher-performing. Backed by Extantia Capital, Inditex, and Lowercarbon Capital, the funding supports its first plant and expansion into fashion, automotive, and chemicals industries.

📊 London-based fintech startup Bourn raised £1.5M to revolutionize SME finance with its flexible trade account (FTA). Backed by Haatch, Love Ventures, and Portfolio Ventures, Bourn partners with banks to enhance cash flow management and financial accessibility for UK businesses.

🎨 Stability AI secured fresh funding from WPP, strengthening its pivot toward enterprise AI tools. The deal integrates Stability AI’s models into WPP’s creative pipeline, following a turbulent period of executive departures, legal challenges, and restructuring. Stability previously raised $50M from investors including Sean Parker and Eric Schmidt.

🌊 London-based Ocean Ledger raised €900K pre-seed to enhance coastal risk forecasting using AI-driven geospatial analytics. Backed by Ananda Impact Ventures and Silverstrand Capital, the startup helps municipalities, insurers, and engineers mitigate climate risks through high-resolution shoreline and environmental monitoring.

🚗 London-based Wayve, backed by SoftBank, Nvidia, and Microsoft, is expanding to Germany after a $1B Series C in 2024. The startup is developing AI-powered autonomous driving features and aims to secure its first commercial deals with automakers while expanding testing across Europe, the US, and Japan./funds

🔋 Cambridge-based Molyon raised $4.6M to develop high-energy-density lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries, aiming to double battery capacity and tackle $85B+ global market. Backed by IQ Capital and Plural, funding supports pilot manufacturing and expansion into drones, robotics, and EV applications.

/tech

🚀 Araya Ventures, founded by ex-entrepreneur Rupa Popat, has raised £18.2M towards a £20M solo GP fund backing UK B2B SaaS and consumer startups. The fund prioritizes AI, fintech, and healthtech, while its Angel Academy trains women investors. I covered Rupa and Araya Ventures on my review of new solo-GPs a few weeks back!

✋ Tencent-backed XR startup Ultraleap is being sold for parts after struggling to commercialize its hand-tracking and haptics tech. Roli acquired its hand-tracking unit, while SIM IP picked up its IP assets.

/tech

• 🤖 UK-based CuspAI is advancing AI-driven material discovery, attracting AI pioneers Geoffrey Hinton and Yann LeCun to its advisory board. The startup, backed by Hoxton Ventures and Lightspeed, aims to revolutionize carbon capture, battery tech, and sustainable materials, leveraging AI for next-gen chemistry breakthroughs.

/flywheel

• LSE Generate has been named one of the UK’s top university start-up hubs, recognized for its incubators, funding programs, and global network.

• Oxford and Cambridge are racing to dominate the UK’s quantum computing sector, each leveraging world-class research, spinouts like Oxford Quantum Circuits and Riverlane.

• Thanks to YEP Accelerator & Oxbridge Foundation, Ukranian student startups HABITENERGY, Klats Ed Hub, and ReplyPilot will join an AI, Innovation & Entrepreneurship Bootcamp at Harwell.

• Lloyds opens applications for its 2025 'Launch Innovation' programme 🚀 Startups from any sector can join the 12-week accelerator, with the chance to secure a proof-of-concept and potential investment. Applications close April 25.

/breakfast

• Want to build the UK’s Silicon Valley? Call it a Flywheel.

• 8 Cambridge founders raised $2.85b to build robots

• Build the East West Rail, fast(er)

📸 /techbrunch

Every week I use Midjourney to reimagine a TechCrunch story from the week.

This week, OpenAI may charge up to $20,000/month for specialized AI "agents" tailored for tasks like sales, software development, and PhD-level research. SoftBank committed $3B to these tools.

• Caption this in comments?