Two Bay Area startups scored early funding rounds of more than $50 million over the past week and three more landed rounds of more than $25 million.
Hexagon Bio Inc. and Highnote Platform Inc. were among eleven Bay Area startups that announced they'd raised Series A rounds over that period. Based in Menlo Park, Hexagon is scrutinizing the DNA of fungi to try to find clues for new drugs. San Francisco-based Highnote, meanwhile, offers a service that allows companies to create their own branded credit cards to offer their customers.
Among the companies raising Series A rounds of more than $25 million was Cellular Longevity Inc., which goes by Loyal. The San Francisco startup is researching and developing drugs that could extend the lives of all dogs and improve the quality of life of older ones.
Here are the details on those and other Series A rounds from the past week:
Hexagon Bio Inc., Menlo Park, $61 million: Nextech Invest led the Series A round for this biotechnology startup that's researching fungi to develop treatments for cancer and infectious diseases. SoftBank, Casdin Capital, The Column Group, 8VC and Two Sigma Ventures also invested.
Highnote Platform Inc., San Francisco, $54 million: This startup, which helps companies create their own branded credit and debit cards, came out of stealth and announced its combined seed and Series A rounds. Oak HC/FT led its Series A round and co-led its seed funding with Costanoa Ventures. XYZ, SVB Capital and WestCap also participated.
Parafin Inc., San Francisco, $30 million: Ribbit Capital and Thrive Capital led the Series A round for this provider of financing for small businesses.
Cellular Longevity Inc. (dba Loyal), San Francisco, $27 million: Khosla Ventures led the Series A round for this developer of drugs intended to extend the life of dogs. First Round Capital, Box Group, Collaborative Fund, The Longevity Fund and Lachy Groom also participated.
GeneEdit Inc., South San Francisco, $26 million: Eli Lilly, KTB Network, Company K Partners, Korea Investment Partners, DAYLI Partners, KB Investment, IMM Investment, TimeFolio Asset Management, DCVC Bio, SK Holdings, Bow Capital and Sequoia Capital all invested in the Series A round for this developer of delivery mechanisms for gene-based medical therapies.
Simply Foods Inc. (dba New Age Meats), Berkeley, $25 million: Hanwha Solutions led the Series A funding of this developer of meat cultured from animal cells. SOSV, TechU Ventures, ff Venture Capital and Siddhi Capital also invested.
Cocoon Financial Services Inc., Mill Valley, $20 million: Index Ventures led the Series A round for this provider of software that helps automate employee leave requests. First Round Capital, SemperVirens, XYZ Venture Capital, Magnify Ventures and Springbank Collective also invested.
Arize AI Inc., Mill Valley, $19 million: Battery Ventures led the Series A round for this provider of software that helps companies monitor and adjust their machine learning algorithms. Foundation Capital, Trinity Ventures, The House Fund and Swift Ventures also participated.
1build Inc., San Francisco, $14.5 million: Greycroft led the Series A funding of this provider of a service that helps building contractors estimate construction costs.
Phiar Technologies Inc., Redwood City, $12 million: State Farm Ventures led the Series A round for this developer of an augmented reality navigation system for use in cars. Cambridge Mobile Telematics, Telenav, Norwest Venture Partners, The Venture Reality Fund and GFR Fund also invested.
Tribe VR Inc. (dba Ramen VR), San Francisco, $10 million: Makers Fund, Anthos Capital, and Dune Ventures led the Series A round for this developer of an online massive multiplayer virtual reality game.
