Top Startup and Tech Funding News – October 7, 2025

It’s Tuesday, October 7, 2025, and we’re back with the top startup and tech funding news stories spanning the U.S. and around the world. From late-stage legal tech giants and decentralized AI networks to early breakthroughs in gaming, fintech, clean energy, and biotech, investors continued to deploy capital across every stage and sector.

Today’s coverage spotlights a mix of heavyweight financings and ambitious early-stage bets. Legal tech leader EvenUp topped the charts with a $150 million Series E, doubling its valuation to $2 billion. Meanwhile, Meanwhile secured $82 million to expand Bitcoin-denominated insurance products, and AI2 Incubator closed an $80 million third fund to back the next generation of AI startups. Early-stage activity was equally strong, with seed and pre-seed rounds fueling innovation in gaming agents, data infrastructure, and GovTech.

Funding Highlights

• EvenUp dominated the day with a $150 million Series E, solidifying its position as a category-defining legal tech player.

• Meanwhile raised $82 million to scale its Bitcoin-denominated insurance platform globally.

• AI2 Incubator closed an $80 million third fund to support 70+ early AI startups over the next four years.

• Altera secured $9 million to advance AI game-playing agents with social reasoning capabilities.

• Katana raised €14 million in a Series B extension to accelerate the growth of its manufacturing ERP platform.

• Early-stage rounds from Civilized AI, Peak:AIO, Ardent AI, Contrails AI, and H2 Carbon Zero underscored investor confidence in seed-stage innovation across GovTech, data infrastructure, trust & safety, and clean energy.

• Biotech startup Celaid Therapeutics added to the momentum with a $7.2 million Series B first close for its gene therapy platform.

Investor Activity

Venture capital firms remained active across the spectrum, from top-tier funds like Bessemer Venture Partners, Bain Capital, and Haun Ventures backing later-stage plays, to early-stage specialists like First Spark Ventures, Crane Venture Partners, and Benson Capital fueling next-generation startups. Strategic investors such as Apollo, Northwestern Mutual Future Ventures, and European heavyweight Cogito Capital Partners also made notable appearances.

The day’s activity revealed a familiar barbell pattern: major financings concentrated in AI, fintech, and legal tech at the top end, alongside a healthy volume of pre-seed and seed rounds driving innovation at the earliest stages. Together, these deals reflect sustained investor conviction in transformative technologies reshaping infrastructure, software, and science.

Here’s the full breakdown. Until tomorrow, stay sharp and keep building.

EvenUp Raises $150M in Series E Funding to Redefine Personal Injury Law with AI

EvenUp, a San Francisco–based legal tech startup, has closed a $150 million Series E round, doubling its valuation to about $2 billion. The funding round was led by Bessemer Venture Partners and will support EvenUp’s growth in AI-driven personal injury law services. EvenUp’s platform uses a proprietary AI model (trained on hundreds of thousands of injury cases) to automate tasks like drafting legal documents, reviewing evidence, and strategizing case lifecycles.

The startup reports that its tools have helped resolve over 200,000 cases and secure more than $10 billion in settlements, freeing attorneys to focus on higher-value work. The new capital will be used to expand EvenUp’s product offerings and to hire more engineering and legal experts as the company scales.

Funding Details:

• Startup: EvenUp

• Investors: Bessemer Venture Partners (lead), REV (RELX VC), B Capital, SignalFire, Adams Street, Bain Capital, HarbourVest, Lightspeed, Broadlight Capital

• Amount Raised: $150 million

• Total Raised: $385 million

• Funding Stage: Series E

• Funding Date: October 7, 2025

Celaid Raises $7.2M in First Close of Series B for Gene Therapy Platform

Celaid Therapeutics, a Tokyo-based biotech startup focused on gene-editing therapeutics, announced on October 7 that it has completed the first close of its Series B financing, raising JPY 1.055 billion (approximately $7.2 million). The capital will further its work in developing novel gene therapy vectors and delivery platforms aimed at treating rare inherited diseases. Celaid says it will use the funding to accelerate in-vivo validation and scale up its R&D infrastructure while preparing to engage global clinical partners. Earlier grants and prior seed capital bring its cumulative funding to JPY 2.52 billion (about $17.14 million).

Funding Details:

• Startup: Celaid Therapeutics

• Investors: Venture capital firms and Japan’s AMED (Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development)

• Amount Raised: JPY 1.055 billion (~$7.2 million)

• Total Raised: JPY 2.52 billion (~$17.14 million)

• Funding Stage: Series B (first close)

• Funding Date: October 7, 2025

Crunch Lab Raises $5M in Funding to Expand Decentralized AI Talent Network

Crunch Lab, the company behind the CrunchDAO crowdsourced AI platform, today announced $5 million in strategic funding to expand its decentralized AI talent network. The round was co-led by Galaxy Ventures and Road Capital, with participation from VanEck and Multicoin. Crunch Lab has built a decentralized network of over 10,000 machine learning engineers (including 1,200 PhDs) who compete to solve clients’ predictive modeling challenges.

Major institutions like the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) Research Lab and MIT’s Broad Institute have used Crunch Lab’s network to improve their models. This latest funding brings Crunch Lab’s total capital to $10 million (including a $3.5M seed in 2024). The company says the new money will be used to improve its platform and expand into new industries beyond finance and biotech, tapping the collective intelligence of its global community.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Crunch Lab

• Investors: Galaxy Ventures (lead), Road Capital, VanEck, Multicoin

• Amount Raised: $5 million

• Total Raised: $10 million

• Funding Stage: Strategic (Seed extension)

• Funding Date: October 7, 2025

Meanwhile Raises $82M to Expand Bitcoin-Denominated Insurance Products

Meanwhile, the Bermuda-based Bitcoin life insurance startup, today announced that it secured $82 million in new funding to scale its Bitcoin-denominated savings, annuities, and insurance offerings. The round was co-led by Bain Capital Crypto and Haun Ventures, with additional funding from Pantera Capital, Apollo, Northwestern Mutual Future Ventures, and Stillmark. Meanwhile is regulated in Bermuda and is the first long-term insurer to issue all premiums and claims in Bitcoin.

The company says its products protect policyholders from inflation and currency risk by combining traditional insurance benefits with the inflation-resistant properties of Bitcoin. This latest round brings Meanwhile’s funding in 2025 to $122 million (following a $40M Series A earlier this year). The funds will be used to build partnerships with insurance firms worldwide and to roll out new bitcoin-based financial products for both retail customers and institutions.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Meanwhile Incorporated

• Investors: Bain Capital Crypto (co-lead), Haun Ventures (co-lead), Pantera Capital, Apollo, Northwestern Mutual Future Ventures, Stillmark

• Amount Raised: $82 million

• Total Raised: $122 million (in 2025)

• Funding Stage: Series B

• Funding Date: October 7, 2025

Civilized AI Raises $2M in Seed Funding to Modernize City Services with AI

Civilized AI, a New Orleans–based GovTech startup, announced a $2 million seed round on Oct 7 to grow its AI platform for municipal services. The investment was led by Benson Capital and included Tulane University Ventures, Austin Capital Factory, and local angel investors. Founded by Matt Wisdom (who previously built TurboSquid), Civilized AI’s software lets city governments handle resident requests and inquiries across chat, SMS, and email.

The AI agents integrate with city content management systems and knowledge bases, making 311-style services more efficient and accessible. For example, residents can ask questions or submit service requests in plain language and get instant responses. Civilized AI says the new funding will accelerate product development and allow it to expand beyond New Orleans to other cities nationwide.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Civilized AI

• Investors: Benson Capital (lead), Tulane University Ventures, Austin Capital Factory, local angel investors

• Amount Raised: $2 million

• Total Raised: $2 million

• Funding Stage: Seed

• Funding Date: October 7, 2025

AltStore Raises $6M in Series A Funding to Fuel Global Expansion

AltStore, a third-party iOS app marketplace co-founded by Riley Testut and Shane Gill, has raised $6 million in its first venture to accelerate its global footprint. The round was led by Pace Capital (which took a 15% stake). AltStore has gained traction as one of the first alternative app stores permitted under recent EU regulations, hosting indie apps and even games (including emulators) that are not available on Apple’s App Store.

The founders said the new funding will allow them to hire engineers and expand beyond Europe into markets like Australia, Brazil, and Japan. As part of its growth, AltStore also plans to integrate with the open social web: it is launching a Mastodon instance so users can subscribe to app updates via the Fediverse.

Funding Details:

• Startup: AltStore

• Investors: Pace Capital (lead)

• Amount Raised: $6 million

• Total Raised: $6 million

• Funding Stage: Series A

• Funding Date: October 7, 2025

AI2 Incubator Closes $80M Third Fund to Back AI Startups

AI2 Incubator, the Seattle-based startup studio affiliated with the Allen Institute for AI, announced it has closed its third investment fund at $80 million. Over the next four years, the fund will support roughly 70 early-stage AI companies applying machine learning to real-world problems. AI2 Incubator has been active for a decade and has previously spun out companies like Xnor.ai (acquired by Apple) and Lexion (acquired by DocuSign).

Fund III builds on that track record amid a surge of investor interest in AI. Specific LPs were not publicly disclosed, but the incubator said the capital was raised to continue its mission of commercializing AI research. The $80M fund will finance new startups in areas from computer vision to language models, aiming to grow the Seattle-area AI ecosystem further.

Funding Details:

• Startup: AI2 Incubator Fund III

• Investors: Undisclosed limited partners (AI2’s own fund raise)

• Amount Raised: $80 million

• Total Raised: $80 million

• Funding Stage: Fund III (Venture fund)

• Funding Date: October 7, 2025

Katana Raises €14M in Series B Funding to Accelerate Global Growth

Katana, a Tallinn-based startup offering cloud-native inventory, production, and order management software for SMB manufacturers, has raised €14 million in an extension of its Series B funding. The round was led by Cogito Capital Partners, with investor Peter Fenton (Benchmark) joining as a new backer.

Existing investors Northzone, Atomico, 42CAP, and Lightrock also participated. Katana’s founder says the fresh funding will be used to expand into new markets and enhance its AI-driven tools that integrate with e-commerce, accounting, and shipping systems. The platform, which already serves over 1,500 businesses in 70+ countries, aims to become a one-stop ERP solution for product-based small and medium enterprises.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Katana

• Investors: Cogito Capital Partners (lead), Peter Fenton, Northzone, Atomico, 42CAP, Lightrock

• Amount Raised: €14 million

• Total Raised: Not disclosed

• Funding Stage: Series B (extension)

• Funding Date: October 7, 2025

Peak:AIO Raises $6.8M in Seed Funding for AI-Optimized Data Storage

Peak:AIO, a UK startup addressing data storage bottlenecks for AI, today announced that it raised $6.8 million in seed funding. The round was led by Pembroke VCT (contributing $5M), with participation from Praetura Ventures and an unnamed Silicon Valley investor. Peak:AIO has developed flash-based “AI Data Servers” that aim to keep GPUs fed with data at high speed for machine learning workloads.

One of its products, Peak:Archive, is a high-performance data archiving solution for AI datasets. Peak:AIO says the new capital will be used to further develop its hardware platform and expand sales globally, targeting customers like data centers, research labs and enterprise AI teams.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Peak:AIO

• Investors: Pembroke VCT (lead), Praetura Ventures

• Amount Raised: $6.8 million

• Total Raised: $6.8 million

• Funding Stage: Seed

• Funding Date: October 7, 2025

Ardent AI Raises $2.15M in Pre-Seed Funding to Build Autonomous Data Engineers

Ardent AI, a San Francisco startup developing autonomous AI agents for data engineering, has closed a $2.15 million pre-seed round. The funding was led by Crane Venture Partners, with participation from Active Capital, NFL quarterback Zach Wilson, and several operator angels. Ardent AI’s platform creates AI agents that can autonomously design, manage, and repair data pipelines across cloud infrastructure (integrating with tools like Airflow, Databricks, and Snowflake).

The startup says its agents can handle tasks in minutes that would take human teams days. The new funds will be used to grow the engineering team, deepen system integrations, and build next-generation pipeline agents.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Ardent AI

• Investors: Crane Venture Partners (lead), Active Capital, Zach Wilson, operator-angels

• Amount Raised: $2.15 million

• Total Raised: $2.15 million

• Funding Stage: Pre-seed

• Funding Date: October 7, 2025

H2 Carbon Zero Raises $0.85M in Seed Funding for India’s First Hydrogen Fuel Cell Factory

Umagine Hydrogen (branded H2 Carbon Zero), an Indian clean-energy startup, raised $850,000 in a seed round for India’s first hydrogen cell factory. The round was led by Venture Catalysts (an early-stage investor and incubator) with participation from Faad Networks. H2 Carbon Zero designs and manufactures modular fuel cell systems for stationary power, targeting telecom towers, construction sites, and defense equipment.

The startup plans to use the funds to build a gigawatt-scale fuel cell factory in India, expand its engineering team, and conduct field trials with early customers. This seed raise will help H2 Carbon Zero accelerate the delivery of zero-emission backup power solutions in emerging markets.

Funding Details:

• Startup: H2 Carbon Zero (Umagine Hydrogen)

• Investors: Venture Catalysts (lead), Faad Networks

• Amount Raised: $0.85 million

• Total Raised: $0.85 million

• Funding Stage: Seed

• Funding Date: October 7, 2025

Contrails AI Raises $1M in Pre-Seed Funding to Enhance Trust & Safety with AI

Contrails AI, a startup focusing on AI-driven trust and safety, announced $1 million in pre-seed funding. The round was led by Huddle Ventures with co-investment from Indian Angel Network (IAN Group). Contrails AI offers a multimodal content moderation platform that detects and manages harmful or disallowed content across text, images, audio, and video.

The founders say their technology employs forensic AI techniques (like “data DNA analysis”) to help marketplaces, media companies, and financial platforms guard against fraud, hate speech, and other risky content. The new funding will accelerate Contrails AI’s product development and support pilot projects with large enterprise customers in the US and Europe.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Contrails AI

• Investors: Huddle Ventures (lead), IAN Group

• Amount Raised: $1 million

• Total Raised: $1 million

• Funding Stage: Pre-seed

• Funding Date: October 7, 2025

Tech Funding Summary Table