Top tech startup news for today, Friday, August 2, 2019

Good morning! Below are some of the top tech startup news for today, Friday, August 2, 2019.

Utah-based startup Ventum raises Series A funding for expansion. Ventum, an Utah-based startup that makes high-performance racing bicycles, has raised an undisclosed amount in Series A funding round for ongoing growth and new product development. The startup also announced it’s moving to Heber City, Utah. In 2015, Ventum released the Ventum One, a triathlon bike available worldwide through dealers. To support that growth, Ventum is moving to a new corporate headquarters in Utah, where it plans to hire 32 additional employees this year. All the bikes sold in the United States will be assembled at the new location.

Marine technology startup Kraken Robotics receives $1.8 million in project funding to develop mooring chain laser inspection sensor that anchors FPSO vessels to the seafloor. Kraken Robotics, a marine technology startup dedicated to the production and sale of software-centric sensors and underwater robotic systems, today announced its has been awarded funding for the development of a mooring chain laser inspection sensor, for use in offshore oil and gas applications.  Mooring chains are a key component that anchor FPSO vessels to the seafloor. The funding follows successful trials with Husky Energy (Husky), a wholly owned subsidiary.

Saudi Arabia backs $550 million investment in health startup Babylon, now valued at $2 billion. British healthtech startup Babylon has raised $550 million in an investment round backed by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. Other backers include German reinsurer Munich Re and an undisclosed U.S. health insurer. Babylon has attracted criticism from health professionals over a claim that its AI can diagnose medical conditions as accurately as doctors.

SafetyWing scores $3.5 million in seed funding. SafetyWing, an Oslo, Norway-based startup that offers medical insurance for digital nomads, raised $3.5m in seed funding to continue to expand operations and its business reach and build out a product collection of insurance, pension savings and income protection. The round was led by byFounders, with participation from Credit Ease Fintech Fund and DG Incubation. Led by CEO Sondre Rasch, CTO Sarah Sandnes and COO Hans Kjellby, SafetyWing provides a medical travel insurance product, which cover people from all over the world, while outside their home country.

Scientists at Carnegie Mellon advances FRESH 3D bioprinting to rebuild functional part of human heart, using a technology developed by startup FluidForm. Scientists have taken a major step closer to being able to 3D bioprint functional organs, after researchers devised a novel method of rebuilding components of the human heart, according to a study published in the August 2nd edition of Science. The scientists from Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), successfully developed an advanced version of Freeform Reversible Embedding of Suspended Hydrogels (FRESH) technology to 3D print collagen for small blood vessels, valves, and beating ventricles. The new novel 3D bioprinting method is used to build functional parts of the human heart.