April’s funding rundown centers on some pretty highly technical industries, from biotech to national intelligence to climate tech.
We offer this rundown soon after the latest PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor report on venture capital activity showed a rebound in the first quarter of 2023 — still nowhere near the numbers at the height of the pandemic, though it's clear which technologies are getting increased attention and funding: artificial intelligence, machine learning and high-level data analysis.
That's evidenced in some of the deals below. Add to that: Just days ago, Booz Allen Ventures, the investment arm of the defense giant, invested an undisclosed amount in San Francisco-based Credo AI. The White House has signaled its own interest in AI by announcing $140 million toward creating seven new institutes for AI research and development. And the future use of AI has even been a sticking point for the recent Writer’s Guild of America’s strike.
Now, it's time to take a look at the rundown of some more funding rounds that took place last month:
Fivecast: The Australian data intelligence company has chosen Arlington as its U.S. home base and announced April 10 it raised $20 million in Series A funding to fuel its expansion and contract work with the intelligence agency alliance known as Five Eyes between Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. The round was led by VC firm Ten Eleven, with participation from existing Australian backers, including the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization's Main Sequence and the South Australian Venture Capital Fund, managed by Artesian. The company — co-founded in 2017 by CEO Brenton Cooper, as well as Duane Rivett, vice president of customer success; Ross Buglak, vice president of product development; and David Blockow, vice president of engineering — uses AI and machine learning to comb and analyze publicly available data to provide national security insights for government agencies.
NeuroCytonix Inc: The Rockville biomedical technology company raised $4.01 million April 11, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. It’s unclear whether these funds are tied to a planned $12 million capital raise the company announced March 2 for non-U.S. investors to help finance the creation of a neurological rehabilitation center in The Bahamas. The company develops technology to improve treatment for those suffering from cerebral palsy, stroke and traumatic brain injury. It was founded by its CEO, J. Roberto Trujillo.
Pallas Industries Inc: A new defense technology company operating in stealth mode has raised $5.4 million April 21, per an SEC filing. Pallas, based in Arlington, indicated in that filing it's raised that amount from 20 investors and hopes to raise another $85,000. Founded last year, the company lists as a top executive Bryon Hargis, whose LinkedIn includes stints at SpaceX, OmniEarth and Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.
Hydrosat: The D.C. climate tech company, which performs geospatial data analytics about crop yields and irrigation using thermal infrared imagery, announced April 25 that it raised $20 million in new funding, including a $15 million Series A round and more than $5 million in nondilutive funding. The round was led by Statkraft Ventures with participation by Blue Bear Capital, Hartree Partners, OTB Ventures, Freeflow Ventures, Cultivation Capital, Techstars, Santa Barbara Venture Partners, Expon Capital and Hemisphere Ventures. The company was founded in 2018 by four people, including CEO Pieter Fossel and President and Chairman Royce Dalby, and it's raised more than $35.6 million to date, according to Crunchbase.
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