Zetwerk, an Indian B2B marketplace for manufacturing processes, has acquired Lexington, Mass.-based Unimacts. The move will allow Zetwerk to expand into renewable energy product manufacturing and access Unimacts’ supplier base. Unimacts was valued at $39M at the time of the acquisition. More: - Unimacts sources components for solar and wind energy businesses from India, Vietnam, and Mexico.
- The firm manufacturing base allows customers to reach suppliers outside of China.
- Unimacts is the Indian firm’s fourth acquisition in recent months.
- It had previously acquired companies in the oil and gas, aerospace, and defense industries.
- Zetwerk was valued at $2.7B when it raised $210M in Series F funding in Dec. 2021.
Zoom out: - A drop in valuations and a reduction in venture capital funding have resulted in an ideal acquisition environment.
- Pitchbook predicts that M&A activity will pick up next year, with cash-rich startups and PE firms poised to grab startups running out of runway.
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The former CEO of the startup Iterable Inc. is suing investors for allegedly removing him from leadership because of his East Asian descent. Officially, the investors fired Justin Zhu for violating company policy after discovering he had taken a small amount of LSD before an investor meeting. More: - Zhu admits that he took LSD before the meeting and was "more sensitive to the dose than he expected."
- In the lawsuit, Zhu explains that he takes small doses of LSD for depression, citing sources that suggest the drug could help treat the malady.
- Zhu began organizing with the Stand with Asian Americans coalition following the deadly shooting of primarily Asian women in Atlanta.
- His organizing came up in a meeting with investors; an investor allegedly told Zhu he should support the Asian Americans by investing in them and "not serve the goal by being a role model as CEO."
- Zhu claims another investor told him the Caucasian COO "looked more like a CEO than Justin did."
- Several investors from VC firms like Charles River Ventures and Silver Lake are listed as defendants.
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Post News, an online news platform similar to Twitter, raised an unspecified amount of money from Andreessen Horowitz and NYU professor Scott Galloway. Post News lets users make and share posts as well as follow each other. Users can paywall their content. More: - The platform was launched on Nov. 14 and remains in the beta stage, meaning it does not allow users to communicate via DMs or add alt text to images.
- Post News was founded by Noam Bardin, who served as the CEO of the Google-owned navigation app Waze between 2009-2021.
- 335,000 people have joined the company's waitlist, and 65,000 accounts are active.
- Andreessen Horowitz also gave Elon Musk $400M to acquire Twitter.
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Pearpop, a marketplace that connects brands with celebrities and influencers, raised $18M at a $300M valuation. The round is an extension of a $10M Series A it first raised in April 2021. Pearpop CEO Cole Mason says the platform has over 200,000 creators, and they've collectively been paid $10M. More: - Pearpop has raised $34M since its inception in 2020, according to Crunchbase.
- The funding round involved actor Ashton Kutcher's Sound Ventures and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian's Seven Seven Six.
- Multiple brands, including Netflix, Chipotle, Beyond Meat, and Amazon, have joined Pearpop's platform.
- Notable celebrities on Pearpop's platform include singers Post Malone, Shawn Mendes, Madonna, and The Weeknd.
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The Indian dairy startup Mooofarm Pvt Ltd raised $13M Series A. Aavishkaar Capital led the round. The startup's "Dairy as a Service" platform connects small dairy farmers to a cattle marketplace, telehealth programs, and other services that help optimize business operations. More: - Accel Partners, Aditya Birla Ventures, Rockstart AgriFood, Navus Ventures, and Alteria Capital also participated in the round.
- $11.5M of the investment will go toward equity, while the remaining $1.5M is a debt investment.
- Mooofarm plans to use the funds to expand operations.
- The Indian startup operates in Rajasthan, Punjab, and Haryana and plans to expand into Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.
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The founders behind the French startup studio and incubator, eFounders, have established a new holding company Hexa. eFounders will slot in under the newly established firm, along with its other spin-off ventures. The move will allow the firm to become a vertical startup studio and allow its subsidiaries to focus on specific sectors. More: - eFounders had launched two spin-off incubators, Logic Founders and 3founders, for fintech and Web3 projects, respectively.
- Since starting 11 years ago, Hexa has backed over 30 startups with a total valuation of $5B.
- Their portfolio includes three unicorn startups: Spendesk, Aircall, and Front.
- The firm takes a 30% stake in startups launched by the studio.
- Hexa estimates it takes them €800,000 to launch a startup.
- The firm intends to launch an eFounders 2.0 initiative going forward to focus on climate tech, health tech, AI, edtech, and proptech startups.
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Quick Hits: - HubSpot and Brandwatch partnered this year to survey over 1,000 individuals across the U.S. to better understand consumer purchasing habits, thoughts, and behaviors.*
- Singaporean venture capital firm Iterative Capital has received $55M in capital commitments for its second fund. The firm intends to back early-stage startups in Southeast Asia.
- Software purchasing process automation platform Teampay raised $47M in Series B financing consisting of $35.25M in equity and $11.75M in debt financing. Fin Venture Capital led the funding round.
- Novo Holdings and LYFE Capital co-led a $65M Series A-1 financing for gene editing startup iECURE.
- StartupOS launched a platform that assists early-stage founders in validating product ideas, building MVPs, and achieving product market fit. The firm intends to add an early-stage deal flow platform for angels and investors early next year.
- Peter Thiel’s Valar Ventures, along with EQT and World Fund, participated in the climate-conscious digital money platform TreeCard’s $23M new financing round.
- Tech innovation is surging in education, finance, health care, and other industries. See what your competitors are building with Crowdbotics.*
*This is sponsored content.
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 |  | Karan Chafekar is a Management Consultant, Business enthusiast, and Licensed Pilot.
Jigney Pathak is a Business Researcher at Inside who loves technology, finance & sports. He has a Bachelor of Business Administration with a finance specialization & has previously worked at Salesforce.
Courtney Rawlings is an Inside Research Analyst living in Los Angeles, California. She has returned to her hometown of LA after spending several years working at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, where she is completing a Ph.D. in Art and Architectural History.
| | | | Editor | Vibha Chapparike is a Freelance Writer & Editor at Inside.com. With her post-graduation in Management and Finance completed, Vibha is expanding her knowledge in venture capital, business, startups, and technology. She has had a career in public relations and communications. An ardent reader and writer currently residing in Singapore, you can follow Vibha on Twitter @VChapparike. | |
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