AI 🤝 Stem Cells

Skarper - Bike better

• The Tech: A patented clip-on unit that makes any bike an e-bike 

• Recently raised: $4.9 million in seed funding from the Starry Group and Mobilitech Capital

• Also note: Skarper already has hundreds of distribution requests from around the world and a large waiting list of customers.

MNT Halan - A rare unicorn

• Context: The largest lender in Egypt for the unbanked

• The tech: An ecommerce ecosystem for consumers, merchants, and enterprises

• The raise: $260 million at a $1 billion valuation in early February

• Its edge: The only fintech unicorn born in Q1 2023

Clear Street - Save the old stuff for antique shops

• The Tech: Modern infrastructure to replace outdated models used in capital markets

• Recently Raised: $270 million in Series B funding at a $2 billion valuation

• Also Note: Its business model is two-pronged, including charging a fee for transactions as well as financing public market securities. Also, Clear Street has a customer base of 200 institutional sized investors and hundreds of smaller trading entities.

Cortical Labs - Tonight’s special: DishBrain

• The Tech: Human stem cells that power AI models

• Recently Raised: $10 million led by Horizons Ventures 

• Also Note: The tech is so powerful because stem cells generalize information better and use less energy. Even Amazon’s CTO Werner Vogels was intrigued after seeing the lab.

Cortica - We should care more about kids

• The Tech: Hybrid care programs for children with neurodiverse conditions

• Recently Raised: $75 million in post-seed financing

• Also Note: Cortica acquired Springtide Child Development, a multisite practice serving children with developmental delays

VintaBio - An overlooked supply chain issue

• The Problem: A bottleneck in life-saving therapies

• The Tech: Developing and manufacturing viral vectors for use in cell and gene therapies

• Recently Raised: $64 million in funding led by Silicon Valley's Decheng Capital

• Also Note: VintaBio emerged from stealth with a newly appointed CEO and a custom-built manufacturing facility.

Innovamat - Goodbye times tables 

• The Problem: Teaching math is hard. Learning math is hard

• The Tech: A new math curriculum based on understanding, not rote memorization

• Recently Raised: $21 million in Series A funding led by Reach Capital

• Also Note: Innovamat’s product is well-received by consumers. Dr. Hollyce Schoepp, K-12 Supervisor in NJ, remarked, “Innovamat has brought the fun of learning math to our students and the joy of teaching math to our teachers. It’s been a win-win.”