Pre-seed fundraising is down year-over-year
Necessary Nuggets
Happy Wednesday! If you’re new here, welcome to Necessary Nuggets, your one-stop pre-seed shop. We deliver updates from Necessary Ventures and helpful tidbits on our little corner of the world. Every edition is also on our blog.
Jobortunities 🚨
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Copper: Rethinking the induction stove and making kitchen electrification more accessible than ever. Picture a fossil-free future, without sacrificing aesthetics.
| Senior Embedded Systems Engineer |
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Market Stirrings 🚩
Here's what the week looked like in pre-seed:
$6.5M
Total Amount Raised
5
Total Funding Rounds
$1.3M
Average Dollars per Round
$6.5M-$12.9M
Estimated Valuation Range
Data aggregated from proprietary research and Crunchbase; valuation estimate based on 10-20% ownership stake.
TOO LATE FOR EARLY-STAGE?
VC investment for Q1 to Q3 2024 is up compared to the same period last year, but not for early-stage. Pre-seed and seed fundraising dropped 5% and 7% respectively, while Series B and later stages saw increases ranging from 15% to 105%.
Good Reads 📖
For the rushed reader …
The OpenAI Startup Fund just raised over $44 million for its fifth Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)—its biggest one to date.
Willow, Google’s 105-qubit processor, has demonstrated that quantum computers can scale up with improved accuracy, bringing them closer to outperforming classical supercomputers.
A recent study revealed that women who opted for an AI-enhanced breast cancer screening saw 43% higher cancer detection rates.
For the less rushed reader …
SPECIAL PURPOSE, SPECIAL DOLLARS: The OpenAI Startup Fund is open for business yet again. The OpenAI Startup Fund just raised over $44 million for its fifth Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)—its biggest one to date. Launched in 2021, the fund has been on a SPV spree this year, bringing in a total of $114.2 million across five separate vehicles. While the early-stage-focused fund has invested in some high-profile startups like Harvey and Mem, its website is quiet as a mouse. The exact purpose of all this cash is still under wraps, but the fund has already backed emerging AI ventures like Anysphere, Thrive Health, and Unify. Sam Altman’s handoff of legal control to Ian Hathaway this year adds another layer of intrigue to the news. Hope the OpenAI Startup Fund has a big back pocket for that wad of cash.
QUANT TOUCH THIS: Google just made a quantum leap with its latest chip. In a new breakthrough, Willow, Google’s 105-qubit processor, has demonstrated that quantum computers can scale up with improved accuracy, bringing them closer to outperforming classical supercomputers. After 30 years of theorizing, Google’s breakthrough shows that with the right error-correction techniques, quantum systems can scale up while cutting down error rates—eventually to a level where commercial applications might actually be possible. This marks a key milestone in the race to get quantum computers working without the noise and instability that have plagued them. In fact, Willow managed to complete a task in about 5 minutes that would take a classical supercomputer 1025 years. Time to start preparing for the sci-fi future where Google solves climate change before breakfast.
CHEST A CHECK-UP: AI is keen to check your mammogram. A recent study presented at the Radiological Society of North America's annual meeting revealed that women who opted for an AI-enhanced breast cancer screening saw 43% higher cancer detection rates. The study was led by Bryan Haslam, the chief product officer at DeepHealth, which specializes in AI healthcare solutions. The AI acts as a "second set of eyes" alongside radiologists, reviewing the X-rays and flagging potential issues—leading to higher detection rates and fewer false alarms. Of course, women who signed up for the program tend to be at higher risk, but even after factoring that in, the AI-driven process still boosted cancer detection by 21%. The problem some have flagged with the AI double-check system is that women must pay extra to add on AI detection. Should the breast care have a price tag?
Fire Up the Pre-Seeds🔥
It was a big week for pre-seed raises. Sit down and get comfortable for this exciting list:
fintech
Sandbox Wealth - Financial institutions playing in a new sandbox.
Sandbox Wealth raised $1.25 million led by NextGen Venture Partners. Sandbox Wealth is building a platform to support non-bank financial institutions, like RIAs and family offices, with deposits, lending, and enterprise-grade analytics.
SaaS
Freckle - Enrich data and pop a bottle of campaign.
Freckle raised $1.9 million led by Asymmetric Capital Partners. Freckle is developing a data-enrichment platform aimed at non-technical users to help create more robust lead lists, without having to study up on AI.
CoachIQ - More than just a coach’s playing field.
CoachIQ raised $1.3 million led by Startup Ignition Ventures. Founded by former collegiate athletes, CoachIQ is creating a business platform to streamline coaching operations, with a mission to create a more transparent process for the entire athletic experience.
MaxHome - Digital real estate for the real estate industry.
MaxHome raised $2 million led by BBG Ventures. MaxHome is developing an AI-driven platform to support real estate agents and brokerages, reducing manual processes and creating operational efficiencies.
Outro🚪
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