Top Startup and Tech Funding News – August 7, 2025
Nickie Louise
Posted On August 7, 2025
It’s Thursday, August 7, 2025, and we’re back with today’s top startup and tech funding news from across the globe. From programmable mRNA and real-time generative AI to on-orbit defense vehicles and fintech fraud resolution, today’s deals show no signs of a summer slowdown. If anything, investors are doubling down—backing deep tech bets and vertical AI plays across healthcare, cybersecurity, and customer support automation.
From biotech labs in Boston to crypto hubs in Madrid, today’s rounds span every stage—from stealthy seed rounds to pre-IPO moves. And with venture capital still flowing into high-conviction themes like senior care tech, fraud automation, and robotic safety systems, it’s clear founders aren’t waiting for the market to catch up—they’re building.
Funding Highlights
Strand Therapeutics leads the pack with a $153 million Series B to reprogram how we treat cancer at the genetic level. Minghui Pharmaceutical pulled in $131 million in pre-IPO capital to bring its dermatology pipeline to market. Apreo Health raised $130 million for a novel emphysema treatment, while AI standout Decart banked $100 million to scale its real-time generative video engine.
Capacity secured a combined $92 million in equity and debt to automate support workflows. Kustomer returned with $30 million to relaunch its AI-powered CRM after breaking away from Meta, and Bit2Me grabbed $30 million to fuel crypto expansion across Europe and Latin America. Early-stage momentum came from startups like Casap ($25M), Orbital Operations ($8.8M), and Translucent AI ($7M)—each attacking underserved markets with sharp execution and technical depth.
Investor Activity
Top-tier names including Bain Capital, Sequoia, OrbiMed, Kinnevik, and Initialized Capital were out in force, leading some of the day’s biggest rounds. At the same time, newer players and sector-specific funds made targeted bets across space tech, fintech, and senior care. It’s clear that while markets may be cautious, the right ideas are still getting funded—and funded big.
Here’s the full breakdown.
Until tomorrow—keep building.
Apreo Health Closes $130M in Series B Funding for Breakthrough Emphysema Treatment Device
Apreo Health, a Menlo Park-based medical device startup, secured an oversubscribed $130 million Series B round to advance its novel treatment for severe emphysema. The round was co-led by Bain Capital Life Sciences and Norwest Venture Partners, with participation from F-Prime Capital and Intuitive Ventures.
“We are incredibly grateful for the support from this world-class syndicate of investors and their desire to partner to redefine the standard of care in emphysema,” said Karun Naga, CEO of Apreo Health. “More than three million Americans are affected by severe emphysema, yet fewer than 1% receive interventional treatment—a stark reflection of limitations of currently available treatments. Our BREATHE Scaffold offers a fundamentally different approach: a novel implant designed to gently release air trapped in affected lungs, with potential for much broader adoption. This financing marks a significant milestone that enables us to complete a robustly designed pivotal trial and continue advancing toward expanded access for this severely underserved population.”
The financing will fund a pivotal trial and early commercialization of Apreo’s BREATHE airway scaffold — a bronchoscopically delivered implant designed to gently release trapped air in hyperinflated lungs, improving breathing in patients with advanced emphysema. Existing backers Lightstone Ventures and Santé Ventures also joined the round. By backing this FDA-designated Breakthrough Device, investors aim to help Apreo bring a fundamentally new therapy to market and redefine the standard of care for COPD patients who have few treatment options.
Funding Details:
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Startup: Apreo Health
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Investors: Bain Capital Life Sciences (co-lead), Norwest Venture Partners (co-lead), F-Prime Capital, Intuitive Ventures, Lightstone Ventures, Santé Ventures
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Amount Raised: $130 million
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Total Raised: Not disclosed
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Funding Stage: Series B
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Funding Date: August 7, 2025
Minghui Pharmaceutical Raises $131M in Pre-IPO Round to Launch Dermatology Therapies
Minghui Pharmaceutical, a Shanghai-based dermatology-focused biotech, raised $131 million in a “pre-IPO” financing aimed at fueling the launch of its lead therapy in China and advancing multiple late-stage drug programs. Co-led by OrbiMed and Qiming Venture Partners, the round provides Minghui with resources to seek approval for MH004 — a topical pan-JAK inhibitor cream — and to push forward innovative oncology candidates in its pipeline, including an experimental PD-1/VEGF bispecific antibody and a TROP-2-targeting antibody-drug conjugate for lung cancer.
The fresh capital positions Minghui for a potential public listing as it works to bring novel dermatology and cancer treatments to market in the coming years.
Funding Details:
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Startup: Minghui Pharmaceutical
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Investors: OrbiMed (co-lead), Qiming Venture Partners (co-lead), TF Capital, BioTrack Capital, 5Y Capital, New Day Fund, Wider Link Enterprise Investment, and others
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Amount Raised: $131 million
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Total Raised: Not disclosed
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Funding Stage: Pre-IPO Round
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Funding Date: August 7, 2025
MIT Spinout Strand Therapeutics Raises $153M in Series B Funding to Advance Programmable mRNA Cancer Therapies
Strand Therapeutics, a biotech startup spun out of MIT and pioneering programmable mRNA therapies, has closed a major $153 million Series B round to accelerate its pipeline of next-gen cancer treatments. The funding was led by Swedish investor Kinnevik and joined by new backers including Regeneron Ventures, ICONIQ, and Amgen Ventures.
The fresh capital infusion will help Strand advance its lead program STX-001, an IL-12-expressing mRNA therapy, through clinical trials and expand its platform of self-replicating mRNA genetic circuits. The 2018-founded startup’s technology is designed to reprogram the tumor microenvironment and stimulate systemic immune responses against cancer, positioning Strand at the forefront of a new wave of RNA-based therapeutics.
Funding Details:
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Startup: Strand Therapeutics
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Investors: Kinnevik (lead); new investors Regeneron Ventures, ICONIQ, Amgen Ventures, Alderline Group, JIC-VGI, LG Technology Ventures, Gradiant Corporation; existing backers FPV Ventures, Playground Global, Eli Lilly and Company, ANRI, Potentum.
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Amount Raised: $153 million
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Total Raised: Over $250 million
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Funding Stage: Series B
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Funding Date: August 7, 2025
Decart Nabs $100M in Series B Funding to Scale Real-Time Generative AI Platform
Decart, an artificial intelligence startup known for its real-time video generation technology, has raised $100 million in Series B funding at a valuation of $3.1 billion to expand its cutting-edge platform. The round saw continued support from Decart’s existing major investors, including Sequoia Capital, Benchmark, and Zeev Ventures, joined by new backer Aleph VC.
The funding underscores strong confidence in the company’s breakthrough generative AI models. Founded by veterans of Israel’s elite Unit 8200, Decart has pioneered GPU-optimized AI systems capable of producing live, interactive video content for millions of users – a capability that rivals even the largest tech labs. With the new capital, Decart plans to further its R&D and maintain its lead in delivering high-performance, real-time AI content generation for applications in gaming, entertainment, and robotics.
Funding Details:
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Startup: Decart
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Investors: Sequoia Capital, Benchmark, Zeev Ventures (existing lead investors); Aleph VC (new)
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Amount Raised: $100 million
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Total Raised: $153 million
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Funding Stage: Series B
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Funding Date: August 7, 2025
Capacity Secures $92M in Funding to Scale AI-Powered Support Automation Platform
Capacity, a St. Louis-based provider of AI-powered support automation software for contact centers, received a total of $92 million in new financing to fuel its growth. The funding includes a $42.6 million Series D equity round led by TVC Capital and Toloka.vc, alongside a $50 million debt investment from Chicago Atlantic. With this infusion, Capacity plans to accelerate product innovation and expand its platform’s reach in the customer support industry.
Founded in 2017 by CEO David Karandish, Capacity’s software uses generative AI and automation to help enterprises deflect support tickets, emails, and calls by providing instant answers and workflow resolutions. Over 20,000 companies use the platform’s AI-powered chatbot and knowledge base across web, voice, and chat channels. By bolstering its balance sheet, Capacity aims to meet rising demand from organizations seeking to improve service efficiency and customer experience through AI-driven automation.
Funding Details:
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Startup: Capacity
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Investors: TVC Capital (lead, Series D), Toloka.vc (lead, Series D), Chicago Atlantic (debt financing)
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Amount Raised: $92 million (combined equity and debt)
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Total Raised: Not disclosed
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Funding Stage: Series D + Debt Financing
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Funding Date: August 7, 2025
Kustomer Lands $30M in Series B Funding to Expand AI Customer Service Platform
Kustomer, a New York City-based customer service software company, has raised $30 million in a Series B round to accelerate development of its AI-driven platform for improving customer experiences. The funding was led by Norwest Venture Partners, with participation from Battery Ventures, Redpoint Ventures, and Boldstart Ventures. Kustomer provides an AI-native customer relationship management (CRM) platform for support teams, combining automation and a unified view of customer data to help businesses deliver faster, more personalized service.
Founded in 2015 by seasoned entrepreneurs Brad Birnbaum and Jeremy Suriel, Kustomer.com brings deep expertise to the customer service space. The duo has successfully built and sold five companies to major industry players. Based in New York City, Kustomer.com is the first customer service platform designed entirely around the customer—consolidating everything businesses need to deliver faster, more personalized support in one streamlined hub.
Led by CEO and co-founder Brad Birnbaum, Kustomer plans to use the new capital to advance its product roadmap, including generative AI features that assist human agents, and scale up operations to meet growing demand from enterprises. The company, which was reacquired from Meta last year, is positioning itself as a leading solution for modern, AI-enhanced customer support across all channels.
Funding Details:
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Startup: Kustomer
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Investors: Norwest Venture Partners (lead), Battery Ventures, Redpoint Ventures, Boldstart Ventures
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Amount Raised: $30 million
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Total Raised: Not disclosed
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Funding Stage: Series B
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Funding Date: August 7, 2025
Bit2Me Raises $30M in Funding to Accelerate European Crypto Expansion
Bit2Me, a Madrid-based digital asset platform, secured €30 million (approximately $33 million) in funding to fuel its expansion across the European Union and Latin America. The round was led by Tether’s venture arm, with participation from additional undisclosed investors. Bit2Me operates one of Spain’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges and is officially registered with the Bank of Spain as a Crypto Asset Service Provider.
The company plans to leverage the new capital to enter more EU markets under the bloc’s new MiCA regulations, while also consolidating its presence in Argentina and other Spanish-speaking countries. Founded in 2014, Bit2Me has emphasized compliance and security – holding multiple international certifications – to build trust with users. With this growth investment, Bit2Me aims to become a dominant player in Europe’s crypto ecosystem, offering regulated trading services, digital wallets, and crypto education to millions of users.
Funding Details:
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Startup: Bit2Me
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Investors: Tether Ventures (lead); other investors undisclosed
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Amount Raised: $30 million (€30 million)
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Total Raised: Not disclosed
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Funding Stage: Undisclosed (Growth funding)
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Funding Date: August 7, 2025
August Health Scores $29M in Series B Funding to Bring AI to Senior Care Software
August Health, a San Francisco-based startup modernizing senior living operations, raised $29 million in Series B funding to expand its electronic health record platform and launch new AI capabilities for care providers. The round was led by Base10 Partners and included existing investors General Catalyst and Matrix Partners, along with strategic backers Equitage Ventures, the Senior Living Transformation Company, and Stanford University.
August Health’s cloud-based software is already used by thousands of senior living communities as their system of record for resident care, medication management, billing, and compliance. With the new funding, the company will accelerate development of “August Intelligence” – an AI-driven assistant that analyzes resident data to help staff anticipate needs, improve care quality, and streamline operations. Co-founded in 2020 by Dr. Justin Schram and former Apple engineer Erez Cohen, August Health has quickly become a frontrunner in senior care tech. The fresh capital will support the startup’s rapid growth as the aging population drives demand for better technology in elder care.
Funding Details:
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Startup: August Health
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Investors: Base10 Partners (lead), General Catalyst, Matrix Partners, Equitage Ventures, Senior Living Transformation Company, Stanford University
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Amount Raised: $29 million
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Total Raised: Not disclosed
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Funding Stage: Series B
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Funding Date: August 7, 2025
Casap Raises $25M in Series A Funding to Automate Fraud Dispute Resolution
Casap, a New York-based fintech specializing in AI-driven dispute and fraud operations, secured $25 million in Series A funding to scale its platform for combating first-party fraud in banking. The round was led by Emergence Capital, with participation from Lightspeed Venture Partners, Primary Venture Partners, SoFi, and others. Casap’s software automates the entire credit card dispute resolution process, from intake and evidence analysis to filing chargebacks and communicating decisions, using intelligent AI agents.
By replacing manual workflows and siloed tools, Casap helps financial institutions identify suspicious customer behavior and resolve fraud cases faster, yielding over 50% reductions in fraud losses for early clients. The company, led by CEO Shanthi Shanmugam, will use the new capital to enhance its fraud scoring algorithms, grow its workforce, and expand into additional use cases across the payments lifecycle. The investment brings Casap’s total funding to $33.5 million, marking a record amount raised in the emerging payment disputes automation category.
Funding Details:
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Startup: Casap
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Investors: Emergence Capital (lead), Lightspeed Venture Partners, Primary Venture Partners, SoFi, and others
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Amount Raised: $25 million
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Total Raised: $33.5 million
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Funding Stage: Series A
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Funding Date: August 7, 2025
FORT Robotics Adds $18.9M in Series B Funding to Secure Intelligent Machines
FORT Robotics, a Philadelphia-based company building safety and security systems for autonomous machines, closed an additional $18.9 million as an extension of its Series B round. The new funding was led by Tiger Global and brings FORT’s total financing to $60.5 million to date. It included strong participation from both new and returning investors, such as Prime Movers Lab, Mark Cuban, FundersClub, Creative Ventures, GRIDS Capital, Ahoy Capital, Neman Ventures, Mana Ventures, Gaingels, and Ryuu Co. of Japan.
FORT develops a hardware-software platform that serves as a “robot control tower,” enabling operators to safely monitor, stop, or re-route fleets of robots and industrial equipment in real time. The company’s wireless emergency stop and security software is used by over 500 customers across warehousing, agriculture, construction, and other sectors to prevent accidents and cyber threats. With the Series B extension, FORT plans to accelerate product development and scale its sales as demand grows for its fail-safe solutions that maximize human-machine collaboration.
Funding Details:
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Startup: FORT Robotics
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Investors: Tiger Global (lead); returning investors Prime Movers Lab, Mark Cuban, FundersClub, Creative Ventures, GRIDS Capital, Ahoy Capital; new investors Neman Ventures, Mana Ventures, Gaingels, Ryuu Co.
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Amount Raised: $18.9 million
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Total Raised: $60.5 million
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Funding Stage: Series B (extension)
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Funding Date: August 7, 2025
Ostra Security Raises $9.5M in Funding to Extend Series A for Managed Cybersecurity Services
Ostra Security, a Minneapolis-based managed cybersecurity provider for small and mid-sized businesses, announced a $9.5 million Series A extension to ramp up its growth. The additional funding was co-led by General Catalyst and Rally Ventures, with participation from longtime Ostra backer Jeff Cowan of Capital Four. Ostra delivers a “security-as-a-service” model, acting as an outsourced cybersecurity operations team for clients that lack in-house resources.
Its platform replaces a patchwork of point solutions with a unified, hands-on service that monitors threats, responds to alerts, and continually fortifies each client’s IT environment. With the new funding, Ostra plans to accelerate hiring of security talent, deepen its technical capabilities (such as threat intelligence and automation), and expand its white-glove service model. As cyberattacks increasingly target companies with limited IT staff, Ostra aims to provide enterprise-grade protection in an accessible, fully managed package.
Funding Details:
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Startup: Ostra Security
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Investors: General Catalyst (co-lead), Rally Ventures (co-lead), Jeff Cowan (Capital Four)
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Amount Raised: $9.5 million
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Total Raised: Not disclosed
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Funding Stage: Series A (extension)
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Funding Date: August 7, 2025
Orbital Operations Raises $8.8M in Seed Round of Funding to Build In-Orbit Defense Vehicles
Orbital Operations, a Long Beach, Calif.-based aerospace startup, emerged from stealth with an $8.8 million seed round to develop high-thrust orbital vehicles for national security missions. The round was led by Initialized Capital and attracted a syndicate of space-focused investors including Harpoon Ventures, DTX Ventures, Rebel Fund, TRAC VC, Karman Ventures, and angel backers like Immad Akhund. Founded by former SpaceX engineers Ben Schleuniger and Ross Doherty, Orbital Operations is designing a spacecraft called Astraeus that can be stationed in orbit, loaded with liquid hydrogen and oxygen propellant.
The craft’s actively cooled engine and cryogenic fuel system will allow it to maneuver on demand in space, enabling rapid response capabilities to defend satellites or reposition assets. The startup will use the seed funding to expand its team and facilities in Long Beach, conduct engine tests and propellant management demonstrations, and advance R&D in collaboration with U.S. defense partners. Orbital Operations aims to fill a critical gap in space security by providing an on-orbit “rapid reaction” vehicle for government and commercial customers.
Funding Details:
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Startup: Orbital Operations
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Investors: Initialized Capital (lead), Harpoon Ventures, DTX Ventures, Rebel Fund, TRAC VC, Karman Ventures, Immad Akhund, and others
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Amount Raised: $8.8 million
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Total Raised: Not disclosed
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Funding Stage: Seed
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Funding Date: August 7, 2025
Translucent AI Snags $7M in Seed Funding to Launch Finance Copilot for Hospitals
Translucent AI, a New York-based startup building an AI-powered financial analyst for healthcare providers, raised a $7 million seed round to accelerate its launch. The oversubscribed financing was led by New Enterprise Associates (NEA) and joined by Virtue VC, FPV Ventures, and Redesign Health. Founded in 2024 by hospital operations veterans, Translucent has developed a platform that serves as a “virtual CFO assistant” for health systems, ingesting complex financial and operational data to deliver real-time insights, forecasts, and reports.
The goal is to help hospital finance teams identify inefficiencies, predict revenue cycle issues, and make faster decisions in an era of tight margins. Since its pilot deployments, Translucent’s software has been used by healthcare organizations managing over $5 billion in combined revenue. With the new seed funding, the startup plans to expand its engineering team and roll out its AI financial analytics platform to more hospitals and large medical groups looking to improve their financial performance.
Funding Details:
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Startup: Translucent AI
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Investors: NEA (lead), Virtue, FPV Ventures, Redesign Health
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Amount Raised: $7 million
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Total Raised: $7 million
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Funding Stage: Seed
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Funding Date: August 7, 2025
Tech Funding Summary Table (Sorted by Amount Raised)
| Startup | Investors (Lead and notable) | Amount Raised | Total Raised | Funding Stage | Funding Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strand Therapeutics | Kinnevik (lead), Regeneron Ventures, ICONIQ, Amgen Ventures, others | $153 M | $250 M+ | Series B | Aug 7, 2025 |
| Minghui Pharmaceutical | OrbiMed (co-lead), Qiming Venture Partners (co-lead), TF Capital, others | $131 M | Not disclosed | Pre-IPO | Aug 7, 2025 |
| Apreo Health | Bain Capital LS (co-lead), Norwest (co-lead), F-Prime, Intuitive, others | $130 M | Not disclosed | Series B | Aug 7, 2025 |
| Decart | Sequoia Capital, Benchmark, Zeev Ventures, Aleph VC | $100 M | $153 M | Series B | Aug 7, 2025 |
| Capacity | TVC Capital (lead), Toloka.vc (lead), Chicago Atlantic (debt) | $92 M | Not disclosed | Series D + Debt | Aug 7, 2025 |
| Kustomer | Norwest (lead), Battery Ventures, Redpoint, Boldstart | $30 M | Not disclosed | Series B | Aug 7, 2025 |
| Bit2Me | Tether Ventures (lead), *undisclosed others***** | $30 M (€30 M) | Not disclosed | N/A (Growth round) | Aug 7, 2025 |
| August Health | Base10 Partners (lead), General Catalyst, Matrix Partners, others | $29 M | Not disclosed | Series B | Aug 7, 2025 |
| Casap | Emergence Capital (lead), Lightspeed, Primary, SoFi, others | $25 M | $33.5 M | Series A | Aug 7, 2025 |
| FORT Robotics | Tiger Global (lead), Prime Movers Lab, Mark Cuban, others | $18.9 M | $60.5 M | Series B (Extension) | Aug 7, 2025 |
| Ostra Security | General Catalyst (co-lead), Rally Ventures (co-lead), Jeff Cowan | $9.5 M | Not disclosed | Series A (Extension) | Aug 7, 2025 |
| Orbital Operations | Initialized Capital (lead), Harpoon, DTX, Rebel, Karman, others | $8.8 M | Not disclosed | Seed | Aug 7, 2025 |
| Translucent AI | NEA (lead), Virtue, FPV, Redesign Health | $7 M | $7 M | Seed | Aug 7, 2025 |
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