Bindery Books, a startup founded by publishing veterans, uses social media book influencers as acquiring editors to champion underrepresented authors and build engaged reader communities. LA TImes
News | Precursor Ventures
Teal Health Included on TIME100 Health 2026 List
Founder Kara Egan was honored for making women’s health care convenient. TIME
Exclusive: Concourse raises $12M for AI finance agents
Concourse, which builds AI agents for corporate finance teams, raised a $12 million Series A round, CEO Matthieu Hafemeister tells Axios exclusively. AXIOS
OPEX and Peltier partner on cold storage solution for automated fulfillment systems
This collaboration introduces advanced multi-temperature capabilities to OPEX Corporation’s Perfect Pick and Infinity AS/RS solutions, utilizing Peltier’s actively cooled, AI-enabled totes. Modern Materials Handling
Meta acquires AI device startup Limitless
Limitless, the AI startup formerly known as Rewind, has been acquired by Meta, the company announced Friday on its website. The company, which made an AI-powered pendant to record your conversations, says it will no longer sell its hardware devices and will maintain support for its existing customers for a year. TechCrunch
Barcelona’s Alinia bags $7.5M seed for AI compliance in banking
The New York and Barcelona-based startup raised $7.5M in seed funding, led by Mouro Capital, with participation from Raise Ventures, Speedinvest and Precursor Ventures. Tech Funding News
Women’s Ski Brand Halfdays Raises $10 Million Series A
With fresh capital from Kellwood Company, Dicks Sporting Goods Ventures and model Taylor Hill, co-founders Ariana Ferwerda and Kiley McKinnon are looking to expand into activewear and more wholesale doors. Business of Fashion
This Startup Raised $13.3 Million To Inject AI Into One Of The World’s Slowest Industries
The tedious, time-consuming process of settling insurance claims is practically begging for disruption. A startup called ClaimSorted is answering the call with an AI-enabled service that investors are backing to redefine the industry. Forbes
This Startup Raised $13.3 Million To Inject AI Into One Of The World’s Slowest Industries
On Monday, ClaimSorted will announce a $13.3 million seed round led by Atomico, the venture capital firm that has backed fintech giants Stripe and Klarna, with participation from Eurazeo, Y Combinator, Firstminute Capital, Start Ventures and a network of seasoned insurance veterans. Forbes
Exclusive: AI tutors coming to California Community Colleges
California Community Colleges (CCC) is partnering with AI company Nectir to launch an AI learning assistant for its 2.1 million students, Axios has learned. Axios
AudioShake raises $14M to make audio editable
AudioShake has raised $14 million in Series A funding to grow its platform that splits audio into components, CEO Jessica Powell exclusively tells Axios. Axios
How Aunt Flow Made Free Period Products A Standard Of Care
Once seen as a fringe issue, menstrual equity—the idea that access to free period products is a fundamental right—has moved into the mainstream. Since 2016, more and more states and countries have started making pads and tampons free in schools, prisons, and other public places. Companies and sports stadiums are jumping on board as well. They get that providing free period products isn’t just about convenience—it shows they actually care about treating people fairly and with basic dignity. Leading the charge is Claire Coder, founder and CEO of Aunt Flow and Forbes 30 Under 30 – Social Entrepreneurs (2020), who started the company at 18 after realizing bathrooms outside the home weren’t designed for people with periods. Forbes
Kevin Durant, Larry Fitzgerald And Other Athletes Participate In Rec’s $11 Million Series A Round
Rec, a technology company serving the parks and recreation industry, has raised $11 million in a Series A funding round in which several former and current professional athletes participated. The company offers software and an app to help people enroll in sports classes and other programs, book tennis courts and gyms and make it easier for recreation directors to handle the influx of inquiries from residents. Forbes
Engagedly Strengthens Frontline Capabilities with Acquisition of Butterfly.ai
Acquisition enhances Engagedly’s frontline-first strategy to drive retention, productivity, and operational performance. HR Tech Series
Edera Wins Innovation of the Year in the CyberScoop 50 Awards
The CyberScoop 50 Awards recognize those who have been honored for their work in protecting vital networks, information and critical infrastructure. Through their hard work, ingenuity, and creativity, they aim to fend off hackers, stay ahead of adversaries and protect American networks. CyberScoop
Live Nation Urban Just Launched The Largest Black Creator Network In The Industry
Everyone wants to be a content creator. And there’s no shortage of Black creators in the digital space. But is the field guaranteed to be lucrative? Not quite. One major barrier has been the lack of access to high-impact, brand-backed campaigns. Live Nation Urban is stepping in with a strategic solution. The live-event production company has officially launched the Live Nation Urban Creator Network—a bold new partnership with Breakr, the creator marketing platform fueling some of the biggest campaigns in music and media. Forbes
AI leadership development platform Praxis Labs sells to Torch
Praxis Labs, a learning development platform, announced its acquisition on Thursday for an undisclosed amount by the leadership and coaching enterprise Torch. TechCrunch
Can Brightland’s new squeeze bottles help it win the olive oil wars?
The olive oil startup that sources from California just launched Everyday Oils in squeeze bottles. Fast Company