The Week’s 10 Biggest Funding Rounds: The Mouse Invests Huge In Epic Deal

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This is a weekly feature that runs down the week’s top 10 announced funding rounds in the U.S. Check out last week’s biggest funding rounds here.

The week was rolling along pretty quietly until the House of Mouse decided to get involved. While the deal for Epic Games certainly grabbed headlines — it is tied for the largest round this year in the U.S. — there were a good number of other large deals as well. That included more than $200 million for a security company and lots of big biotech raises.

1. Epic Games, $1.5B, gaming: Epic Games is not a stranger to this list. The gaming giant raised big in 2022 when it nabbed $2 billion from Sony and KIRKBI — the family-owned holding and investment company behind The LEGO Group — at a $31.5 billion valuation. This week the North Carolina-based company raised another $1.5 billion through a new partnership with Disney to help give more exposure to the company’s characters and properties — including Marvel Comics characters. However, the round was a drastic drop in valuation, as it was reported Disney invested at a $22.5 billion valuation. Founded in 1991, the Fortnite creator has raised nearly $8 billion to date, according to Crunchbase data.

2. NinjaOne, $232M, security: NinjaOne showed this week that not all big funding rounds go to generative AI companies. The company, which provides endpoint management, security and monitoring, raised a $231.5 million Series C led by Iconiq Growth. The minority investment values the Austin, Texas-based firm at $1.9 billion. Monitoring and securing endpoints has been a main pillar of cybersecurity since the industry started. However, the need may be even bigger today, as many people work outside an office and with a variety of networks and devices. NinjaOne automates endpoint management for more than 17,000 customers in over 80 countries and witnessed 70%-plus ARR growth last year. Founded in 2013, the company has raised $261.5 million, per Crunchbase.

3. Neurona Therapeutics, $120M, biotech: San Francisco-based Neurona Therapeutics was the big biotch winner this week. The clinical-stage biotherapeutics firm, which focuses on regenerative cell therapy for the treatment of neurological disorders, locked up a $120 million financing co-led by Viking Global Investors and Cormorant Asset Management. Founded in 2008, the company has raised more than $320 million, per Crunchbase.

4. Starship Technologies, $90M, robotics: Delivery robot startup Starship Technologies raised a $90 million round co-led by Plural and Iconical. The San Francisco-based company has created delivery robots for food, groceries and just about anything else needing last-mile and on-demand delivery. Each robot can run for 18 hours when fully charged, and the company says the average delivery takes only the same amount of energy as boiling a kettle for a single cup of tea. Founded in 2014, Starship has raised $230 million, per the company.

5. Platform Accounting Group, $85M, accounting: Accounting isn’t the sexiest or buzziest industry, but there is cash in it. Salt Lake City-based Platform Accounting Group closed an $85 million minority funding round led by The Cynosure Group. The company acquires and supports the operation of professional services firms focused on providing tax compliance, outsourced accounting and a variety of other services to individuals and small businesses. Founded in 2015, this is the company’s first disclosed funding.

6. Zededa, $72M, cloud computing: Edge computing has been a necessity for enterprises for a long time to save time and bandwidth and bring data closer to the user. That is even more necessary in the age of AI — where vast amounts of data are necessary. San Jose, California-based Zededa raised $72 million to try to help with that, as the startup builds the underlying infrastructure necessary for edge computing. The new round, led by Smith Point Capital, values the company at approximately $400 million — an increase from its previous valuation of $193 million during the last funding round in 2022. Founded in 2016, Zededa has raised more than $127 million, per the company.

7. Ambience Healthcare, $70M, health care: San Francisco-based Ambience Healthcare, an AI operating system for healthcare organizations, announced a $70 million Series B co-led by Kleiner Perkins and OpenAI Startup Fund. The platform uses AI to generate comprehensive notes, help clinicians prep for patients, compose referrals and more. Founded in 2020, the company has raised $106 million, per Crunchbase.

8. Nasdaq Private Market, $62M, finance: San Francisco-based Nasdaq Private Market, a market for private company offerings, closed a $62.4 million Series B led by Nasdaq — which it was spun off from in 2021. 

9. Attralus, $56M, biotech: San Francisco-based Attralus, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing medicines for systemic amyloidosis, closed a $56 million financing led by new investor Alpha Wave Ventures. Founded in 2019, the company has raised $197 million, per Crunchbase.

10. Unlearn, $50M, clinical trials: San Francisco-based Unlearn, which uses AI to create digital twins of clinical trial participants, raised a $50 million Series C round led by Altimeter Capital. Founded in 2017, Unlearn has raised more than $130 million, per the company.

Big global deals

Epic Games and NinjaOne were the largest rounds globally. The next largest one came from China:

• Sidtek, which develops and manufactures OLED microdisplays, raised a Series A worth approximately $140 million.

Methodology

We tracked the largest announced rounds in the Crunchbase database that were raised by U.S.-based companies for the seven-day period of Feb. 3 to Feb. 9. Although most announced rounds are represented in the database, there could be a small time lag as some rounds are reported late in the week.

Illustration: Dom Guzman