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Oct. 11, 2024

First Off

Welcome to The Beat, a roundup of local technology news.

Sara: Defense contracting is big business, and a group of venture capital firms is advocating for the U.S. government to reduce barriers to private sector defense innovation (ostensibly for some of their own portfolio companies).

Thirteen VC firms and tech companies signed an open letter asking Defense Secretary Llyod Austin to better support, and more quickly adopt, emerging defense industry technology solutions. Among the signatories: Kleiner Perkins, General Catalyst and Founders Fund.

The Big One

Breaking down the day's biggest Inno story.

Climate technology startups have been pulling in less funding over the past couple of years, but there's room for optimism according to a new report from Silicon Valley Bank.

Venture capital investments in climate companies peaked at the end of 2021 when U.S.-based companies raised nearly $15 billion in the final quarter of the year, and have been declining ever since.

There are also fewer climate-focused venture funds closing, and less capital being raised, compared to a couple of years ago, too.

But climate tech is still doing a little better than the tech industry overall, the report said. Particularly at later stage companies which are starting to close more deals and reach $1 billion-plus valuations.

The climate industry is also expected to get a boost from government incentives from legislation like the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 and the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022.

Making Moves

Inside the people, companies and organizations making moves around the Bay Area. Information comes from LinkedIn profiles, press releases and Inno reporting.

Fresh Faces

Palo Alto venture firm Eclipse hired Kaitlyn Glancy as its newest partner. Glancy was previously the head of North America for Flexport, a San Francisco-based software developer for logistics and freight.

Layoffs

San Francisco-based IRL is shutting down after an internal investigation showed that the company's user numbers were massively inflated. Legally known as Get Together, Inc., IRL's board found that 95% of its users were fake. The board had already suspended its CEO in April, but after an internal investigation, it decided that "the company’s going-forward prospects are unsustainable."

Capital Raises

Palo Alto-based Unshackled Ventures closed on $35 million for its third fund, TechCrunch reported. The firm is focused on supporting immigrant founders.

M&A Watch

Ten-year-old San Francisco legal technology startup Casetext is being acquired for $650 million by global news and data organization Thomson Reuters. Casetext develops AI-powered software tools for the legal industry and was most recently valued at $125 million in early 2022.

Databricks is acquiring another San Francisco company, MosaicML, in a deal worth $1.3 billion, Reuters reported on Monday. MosaicML creates software to make artificial intelligence projects cheaper to develop. The deal comes as Databricks builds out its own AI services.

And Mountain View-based AI analytics startup ThoughtSpot is acquiring Mode Analytics, a San Francisco-based business intelligence startup in a deal worth $200 million, according to TechCrunch.

Early Money

All the best seed and series A funding rounds.

A wave of recent funding announcements has showered Bay Area companies with fresh cash.

San Francisco-based security software developer BeeKeeperAI raised around $12 million in a Series A extension round that doubled its total funding.

Palo Alto-based Zenarate raised $15 million in an early-stage round for its AI-powered customer service training system.

Layfayette-based Honey Homes raised $9 million in a Series A round, TechCrunch reported. The company is developing a subscription service for home maintenance help.

In the Know

The biggest news from the tech world.

Magic Mushrooms. LSD. Ketamine. The Drugs That Power Silicon Valley. -WSJ
Thousands chatted with this AI ‘virtual girlfriend.’ Then things got even weirder -LA Times
He lost $340,000 to a crypto scam. Such cases are on the rise -NPR
A.I.’s Use in Elections Sets Off a Scramble for Guardrails -NYT
Military AI’s Next Frontier: Your Work Computer -Wired
Reddit Sales Growth Slowdown Preceded Fight Over New API Fees -The Information
These Tech Companies Think They Can ‘Solve’ the Wildfire Crisis - Vice
Joyful Ventures debuts with $23M focused on investment in sustainable protein startups -TechCrunch
San Francisco’s Russia-Linked ‘Startup Temple’ Back on Market -SF Standard
Tempo’s new take on AI personal training adds 3D body scans and dynamic reps -The Verge
A new dating app launched in San Francisco. 6,000 have already signed on -SFGate

Elsewhere in Inno

Stories from around the Inno network we think you'll dig. Sign up for Inno+ to access the entire Inno network

Health and wellness vending machines, coming to sports arenas, college campuses near you -Boston
BetterBrand wants you to enjoy their bagels with no guilt -Los Angeles
It's the 'age of Ozempic' for startups, VC Aileen Lee says -Bay Area Inno
Halle Berry says working with San Francisco biotech startup is her 'second act' -Bay Area Inno
Creating a buzz: Georgia biotech company picks up another $4.5M for honeybee vaccine -Atlanta

Random

All the recent news about startups behaving badly has had me thinking about Juicero, the now defunct San Francisco "smart" juicer startup that was simply making a fancy, and overpriced, fruit and vegetable squeezer. Have investors learned anything from that experience? I'm not so sure.

An Arizona-based startup is designing a dog food system that will ship pre-made meals comprised of dehydrated and freeze-dried foods that can be reconstituted and warmed up by the company's proprietary hot water dispenser. However, I don't see how a regular hot water kettle wouldn't also do the trick.

In the Community

The events and happenings to know in the ecosystem

JUNE

27-29

Databricks Data+AI Summit

JULY

Deadline: Applications for Startup World Cup Silicon Valley Regional competition

JULY

Deadline: Bay Area Inno Under 25 nominations

JULY

11-12

Venture Beat Transform