Top Startup and Tech Funding News – January 28, 2025

It’s Wednesday, January 28, 2026, and we’re back with today’s top startup and tech funding news. Today’s capital flows reflect growing investor conviction in AI-native infrastructure, digital security, industrial autonomy, and next-gen productivity platforms. As AI applications mature across sectors, funding is consolidating behind teams solving fundamental scaling and workflow bottlenecks.

AI-driven enterprise platforms led early and mid-stage activity. Checkbox raised $23 million to streamline legal intake, while Slice Global Equity secured $25 million to automate international cap table compliance. Outtake landed $40 million to stop deepfake-enabled impersonation attacks, and Gyde emerged from stealth with $60 million to modernize insurance and wealth brokerage.

Compute, biotech, and autonomous mobility commanded later-stage attention. PaleBlueDot AI raised $150 million to expand its global AI cloud footprint, while Cellares secured $257 million to scale its automated cell therapy factories. Waabi grabbed $1 billion to bring AI-powered robotaxis to Uber, and Genspark landed $300 million to launch its next-gen AI Workspace suite. Decagon, Northwood Space, and others rounded out today’s cohort with platform-scale ambitions across support automation and orbital infrastructure.

Tech Funding News

Funding Highlights

• PaleBlueDot AI raises $150M Series B to expand global AI compute infrastructure
• Decagon lands $250M Series D to power AI-powered customer concierge
• Waabi raises $1B Series C to expand into robotaxis and autonomous driving
• Genspark closes $300M Series B to build AI workspace platform
• Cellares secures $257M Series D to industrialize cell therapy manufacturing
• Northwood Space grabs $100M Series B to upgrade satellite ground stations
• Outtake raises $40M Series B to build a digital trust platform against AI attacks
• Checkbox lands $23M Series A to automate legal intake with AI
• Gyde raises $60M seed to transform insurance and wealth brokerage with AI
• Slice Global Equity secures $25M Series A for AI-driven global equity compliance

Investor Activity

Today’s rounds drew strong participation from growth equity firms, crossover investors, and AI-native venture funds. Several companies also attracted strategic capital from hyperscalers, defense partners, and tech luminaries. From AI compute and autonomy to biotech and enterprise SaaS, investors are backing teams re-architecting infrastructure across physical, digital, and regulatory layers. Here’s the full breakdown of January 28’s most significant startup and tech fundings.

PaleBlueDot AI Raises $150M in Series B Funding to Expand Global AI Compute Infrastructure

PaleBlueDot AI, a Silicon Valley startup building a “neocloud” for AI workloads, has raised a $150 million Series B funding round led by B Capital. The fresh funding values the company at over $1 billion and will accelerate the deployment of its high-performance GPU compute platform across key regions (North America, Europe, and Asia). PaleBlueDot’s software lets enterprises spin up dedicated AI clusters in multiple data centers at lower cost; the new capital will help it rapidly expand capacity and reduce latency for global AI customers.

The round underscores surging demand for elastic AI computing. By tapping idle data center GPUs and adding its own hardware, PaleBlueDot aims to rival the big cloud providers in price and performance for training large models. The funding will be used to expand nodes in new regions and enhance its scheduling software, helping address the shortage of affordable, geographically distributed AI compute resources.

Funding Details:

• Startup: PaleBlueDot AI

• Investors: B Capital (lead)

• Amount Raised: $150 million

• Total Raised: $160 million

• Funding Stage: Series B

• Funding Date: January 28, 2026

Decagon Raises $250M in Series D Funding to Power AI-Powered Customer Concierge

Decagon, an AI startup that builds “concierge” customer support agents, said it raised $250 million in a Series D round led by Coatue Management and Index Ventures. The funding comes just six months after its previous round, tripling Decagon’s valuation to $4.5 billion. Decagon’s conversational AI platform is being adopted rapidly: the company signed over 100 new enterprise customers in 2025 across industries like travel, hospitality, finance, and retail. The new capital will enable Decagon to scale its infrastructure and accelerate the deployment of AI-driven support bots at global brands.

Enterprises are increasingly looking to AI to deliver personalized customer experiences at scale. Decagon’s technology uses natural language and code-level instructions to automate service workflows, blending chat, email, and voice channels. With the funding, Decagon plans to deepen integrations with major CRM systems and expand its engineering team, solidifying its lead in the emerging AI concierge market. The round attracted continued support from early backers (including a16z and Bain Capital Ventures) as well as new investors, reflecting confidence in Decagon’s growth.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Decagon

• Investors: Coatue Management (lead), Index Ventures (lead), ChemistryVC, Definition Capital, Starwood Capital; existing investors include a16z and Bain Capital Ventures.

• Amount Raised: $250 million

• Total Raised: ~$480 million

• Funding Stage: Series D

• Funding Date: January 28, 2026

Waabi Raises $1B Series C to Expand Into Robotaxis and Autonomous Driving

Waabi, a Canadian developer of autonomous driving software, has closed a combined $750 million Series C and $250 million funding milestone investment (totaling $1 billion). The oversubscribed round was co-led by Khosla Ventures and G2 Venture Partners, with about $250 million coming from Uber to support the deployment of 25,000 Waabi-powered robotaxis on its ride-hailing platform. This marks Waabi’s first move beyond self-driving trucks into passenger vehicles: it will partner with Uber to launch a robotaxi fleet, leveraging the same AI-based driver model.

Waabi CEO Raquel Urtasun says the startup’s “physical AI” approach—training a single model across trucks and cars—enables it to scale more efficiently than legacy autonomous-vehicle efforts. The funding will accelerate Waabi’s expansion of testing and production partnerships. It already has deals to integrate its software into Volvo’s autonomous trucks, and with the new capital and Uber tie-up, Waabi aims to fast-track the commercialization of robotaxi services. The CEO noted that, unlike earlier AV companies, Waabi does not rely on extensive pre-mapping, which should enable faster deployment in new markets.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Waabi

• Investors: Khosla Ventures (lead), G2 Venture Partners (lead), Uber (milestone investor), NVIDIA Ventures, Volvo Group VC, Porsche Automobil Holding, BlackRock, Radical Ventures, HarbourVest, ADIA, BDC Capital, EDC, TELUS Ventures.

• Amount Raised: $1 billion (Series C and milestones)

• Total Raised: ~$1.28 billion

• Funding Stage: Series C

• Funding Date: January 28, 2026

Genspark Raises $300M in Series B Funding to Build an AI-Powered Workspace Platform

Genspark, a Palo Alto startup, closed a $300 million Series B round to accelerate its all-in-one AI Workspace platform. The company says it recently surpassed $100 million in annual recurring revenue and has seen rapid enterprise adoption of its toolset. Genspark’s AI Workspace is a suite of agents that can autonomously execute end-to-end tasks (such as creating presentations, managing email, and generating media) from simple user instructions.

The new funding, which brings Genspark’s total funding to roughly $460 million, will be used to launch “AI Workspace 2.0” – an upgrade that adds voice-to-text integration, enhanced workflow automation, and new content-generation features. Investors include Emergence Capital (lead), LG, SBI Ventures, UpHonest, and Pavilion Capital, underscoring strong confidence in the startup’s vision.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Genspark

• Investors: Emergence Capital Partners (lead), LG, SBI Ventures, UpHonest, Pavilion Capital.

• Amount Raised: $300 million

• Total Raised: ~$460 million

• Funding Stage: Series B

• Funding Date: January 28, 2026

Cellares Raises $257M in Series D Funding to Industrialize Cell Therapy Manufacturing

Cellares, a biotech firm creating automated “cell therapy factories,” announced a $257 million Series D co-led by investment funds managed by BlackRock and Eclipse. The financing brings the company’s total capital to $612 million. Cellares’ platform integrates robotics and software to automate production of personalized cell and gene therapies, aiming to drastically reduce cost and scale. The new funding will support the development of its integrated development and manufacturing organization (IDMO), which streamlines everything from cell sourcing to drug packaging. With backing from global investors including T. Rowe Price, Baillie Gifford, and Duquesne Family Office, Cellares is positioned to help pharma and biotech companies industrialize next-generation therapies.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Cellares

• Investors: BlackRock (co-lead), Eclipse (co-lead), with participation from T. Rowe Price, Baillie Gifford, Duquesne Family Office, Intuitive Ventures, EDBI, and others.

• Amount Raised: $257 million

• Total Raised: $612 million

• Funding Stage: Series D

• Funding Date: January 28, 2026

Northwood Space Raises $100M in Series B Funding to Upgrade Satellite Ground Stations

Northwood Space, a startup founded by Bridgit Mendler that makes next-generation satellite ground-station hardware, closed a $100 million Series B round led by Washington Harbor Partners and Andreessen Horowitz. The round came alongside a nearly $50 million contract from the U.S. Space Force to upgrade the Satellite Control Network.

Northwood’s compact, phased-array ground stations can be deployed far more quickly than traditional satellite antennas, meeting the need for agile, high-throughput ground links. The funding will expand production and deployment of these systems worldwide, addressing a surge in satellite missions and demand for faster data downlinks. Northwood, with only a year-old Series A behind it, is banking on its lightweight, scalable design to modernize a critical piece of space infrastructure.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Northwood Space

• Investors: Washington Harbor Partners (lead), Andreessen Horowitz (co-lead).

• Amount Raised: $100 million

• Total Raised: ~$130 million

• Funding Stage: Series B

• Funding Date: January 28, 2026

Outtake Raises $40M in Series B Funding to Build a Digital Trust Platform Against AI Attacks

Outtake, a cybersecurity startup focused on AI-driven identity fraud, has closed a $40 million Series B funding round led by ICONIQ. The round included participation from CRV, SignalFire, and high-profile tech figures such as Microsoft’s Satya Nadella and Palantir’s Shyam Sankar. Outtake provides enterprises with a unified platform for detecting and countering coordinated impersonation campaigns across web, email, and other digital channels.

As sophisticated phishing and social engineering attacks escalate with AI, the funding will help Outtake scale its detection network and deepen its integrations with enterprise security systems. The company says it will use the capital to expand its product development and global sales efforts to meet surging demand for AI-native digital identity defense.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Outtake

• Investors: ICONIQ (lead), CRV, SignalFire, and angel investors, including Satya Nadella (Microsoft), Nikesh Arora (Palo Alto Networks), Bill Ackman (Pershing Square), and others.

• Amount Raised: $40 million

• Total Raised: $40 million

• Funding Stage: Series B

• Funding Date: January 28, 2026

Checkbox Raises $23M in Series A Funding to Automate Legal Intake with AI

Checkbox, an enterprise software startup for corporate legal departments, secured a $23 million Series A round led by Touring Capital. Checkbox’s AI-driven “legal front door” platform captures incoming legal requests from email, Slack, Salesforce, and other channels, automating routine workflows. The investment, which also included Peak XV (Sequoia India), Conductive Ventures, and Workday’s Jerry Ting as an angel, will accelerate the development of Checkbox’s intelligent intake system.

By turning free-form legal inquiries into structured, automated processes, Checkbox helps companies reduce the manual triage burden on lawyers. The startup says more than 100 organizations are already using its system, and the Series A will fund scaling to meet demand across sectors such as tech, finance, and healthcare.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Checkbox

• Investors: Touring Capital (lead), Peak XV (Sequoia India), Conductive Ventures, Tidal Ventures, Five V Capital, and angel investor Jerry Ting (VP at Workday).

• Amount Raised: $23 million

• Total Raised: $23 million

• Funding Stage: Series A

• Funding Date: January 28, 2026

Gyde Raises $60M in Seed Funding to Transform Insurance and Wealth Brokerage with AI

Gyde, a startup launching an AI-native brokerage platform, announced its official launch with $60 million in seed financing led by Lightspeed Ventures. Gyde’s platform combines machine learning tools with experienced broker teams to help independent agents serve clients across insurance, health, and wealth planning. According to the company, the funding will enable it to roll out its software (GydeOS) and AI assistant (Gia), empowering brokers to deliver personalized advice at scale.

By automating administrative tasks and enhancing carrier partnerships, Gyde aims to modernize the traditional brokerage model. The round also included participation from Optum Ventures, Crystal Venture Partners, Virtue, and MVP Ventures, signaling strong investor interest in the large insurance-services sector.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Gyde

• Investors: Lightspeed Ventures (lead), Optum Ventures, Crystal Venture Partners, Virtue, MVP Ventures, and several university endowment funds.

• Amount Raised: $60 million

• Total Raised: $60 million

• Funding Stage: Seed

• Funding Date: January 28, 2026

Slice Global Equity Raises $25M in Series A Funding for AI-Driven Global Equity Compliance

Slice Global Equity, an AI-focused compliance platform for international cap tables, raised $25 million in a Series A round led by Insight Partners. The investment, which brings the startup’s total funding to $32 million, will be used to deepen Slice’s AI-powered infrastructure for managing equity across multiple countries.

Slice’s system automates complex tasks like multi-jurisdiction tax withholding, vesting schedules, and regulatory reporting. Existing backers TLV Partners, R-Squared, and Jibe also participated, as did law firms Fenwick and Cooley as strategic investors. Slice says it is already in use at growing global companies (including unicorns Wiz and Wayve) to replace fragmented spreadsheets and legal workflows, and the new capital will help expand its presence in Europe and Asia.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Slice Global Equity

• Investors: Insight Partners (lead), Fenwick LLP, Cooley LLP, TLV Partners, R-Squared Ventures, Jibe Ventures.

• Amount Raised: $25 million

• Total Raised: $32 million

• Funding Stage: Series A

• Funding Date: January 28, 2026

Tech Funding Summary Table