The Week’s Biggest Funding Rounds: Data Storage And Lots Of Biotech

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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 the biggest funding rounds of last year here and here.

It certainly was a big week — with companies having to raise more than $100 million to make the list. Biotech- and healthcare-related startups led the way — as those companies dominate the list, taking a vast majority of spots. However, as usual, a company with AI ties is on top.

1. DDN, $300M, data storage: Data is the big-money game right now. Private equity giant Blackstone Group is making a $300 million strategic investment into DDN, valuing the Chatsworth, California-based data storage company at $5 billion. Founded in 1998, DDN — formerly called DataDirect Networks — helps companies store, analyze and manage data — a value commodity as more businesses look to create and train AI models. The company plans to use the new cash to expand in industries ranging from healthcare to autonomous vehicles and accelerate product innovation, including for its AI data intelligence platform. Of course this is far from the only play the Blackstone Group has made in the data sector. Last year it was reported the world’s largest asset manager plans to invest $8.2 billion to develop data centers in Spain. In 2023, it partnered with Digital Realty to develop $7 billion in data centers targeting providers of online content, cloud services and artificial intelligence. Blackstone also is a backer of CoreWeave, an AI infrastructure startup that gives access to highly sought-after AI chips from Nvidia.

2. Innovaccer, $275M, healthcare: San Francisco-based Innovaccer could be listed as artificial intelligence or health care, as the company is looking to be the “one stop shop” for healthcare AI solutions. Innovaccer — which helps healthcare organizations by providing software solutions that aim to improve patient experience and reduce the administrative burden on providers — raised a $275 million round that was a combination of primary and secondary. No lead investor was announced, but investors included B Capital and Kaiser Permanente. Founded in 2014, the company has raised $654 million, per Crunchbase.

3. Whatnot, $265M, e-commerce: While most of us are looking to cut back on our spending after the holidays, investors clearly think people want to spend more money on livestream shopping platform Whatnot. The Los Angeles-based startup raised a $265 million Series E at a valuation of nearly $5 billion. The round was co-led by Avra, DST Global and Greycroft. Whatnot’s annual gross merchandise value for livestream sales surpassed $3 billion last year. Founded in 2019, Whatnot has raised approximately $746 million, per the company.

4. Aviceda Therapeutics, $208M, biotech: It may be a new year, but biotech is still raising big. Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Aviceda Therapeutics, a biotech company focused on developing immunomodulators to alleviate chronic inflammation, announced the closing of a $207.5 million Series C co-led by Omega Funds and TCGX. Founded in 2018, the company has raised $277 million, per Crunchbase.

5. Tenvie Therapeutics, $200M, biotech: South San Francisco-based Tenvie Therapeutics, a biotech looking into treatments of neurological diseases, launched with $200 million in funding led by Arch Venture Partners, F-Prime Capital and Mubadala Capital.

6. Timberlyne Therapeutics, $180M, biotech: San Diego-based Timberlyne Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical startup focused on the development of therapies for autoimmune disorders, closed a $180 million Series A led by Abingworth, Bain Capital Life Sciences and Venrock Healthcare Capital Partners. This is the company’s first funding, per Crunchbase.

7. Inari, $144M, agtech: Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Inari, a startup that designs more sustainable seeds for agriculture, locked up a $144 million round. No lead investor was named, but the company did say one of the new investors is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. The company is focused on creating new seeds for large-acre crops with its first wave of products — which includes soybeans, corn and wheat. Founded in 2016, Inari has raised $720 million, per the company.

8. Hippocratic AI, $141M, artificial intelligence: Palo Alto, California-based Hippocratic AI, which develops a safety-focused large language model for healthcare, safety and accuracy, raised a $141 million Series B valuing the company at $1.6 billion. The round was led by Kleiner Perkins. Founded in 2023, the company has raised $276 million, per Crunchbase.

9. Evergreen Nephrology, $130M, healthcare: Nashville, Tennessee-based Evergreen Nephrology, which provides care to those suffering from chronic kidney disease, raised a $130 million round led by Oak HC/FT, Rubicon Founders and a group of existing investors. Founded in 2021, the company has raised $134 million, per Crunchbase.

10. Ouro Medicines, $120M, biotech: San Francisco-based Ouro Medicines, a biotech developing immune reset therapeutics for people living with chronic immune-mediated diseases, launched with a $120 million Series A co-led by New Enterprise Associates, Norwest Venture Partners and TPG.

Big global deals

The biggest funding outside the U.S. went, of course, to another biotech firm.

• London-based Verdiva Bio, a company creating treatments for obesity and cardiometabolic diseases, raised a $411 million Series A.

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 Jan. 3 to Jan. 10. 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