The Week’s 10 Biggest Funding Rounds: Divergent Technologies And Biotech Rule

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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.

This was another pretty strong week as far as big-money raises go, especially considering the coming holidays. There was a handful of nine-figure deals — including a huge one for a manufacturing company using generative AI and 3D printing — and lots of money again going to biotech firms.

1. Divergent Technologies, $230M, manufacturing: Divergent Technologies raised a massive $230 million Series D to accelerate the commercialization of its digital manufacturing system that uses generative AI and 3D printing. The round was led by Hexagon AB, which invested $100 million of the $230 million total. New and existing institutional and family office investors also participated in the round. The Los Angeles-based firm has developed a software-hardware production system for industrial digital manufacturing that replaces traditional design, manufacturing and assembly solutions. Divergent’s system uses in-house-developed AI-driven generative design software and 3D printing to create the products and structures used in a variety of industries, including automotive, aerospace and defense sectors. Divergent already works with automotive customers such as Aston Martin and Mercedes-AMG. In the aerospace and defense industry, the company is actively working with six U.S. government contractors. Just last month, another 3D printing startup raised significant cash. 3D metal-printing startup Seurat Technologies locked up a $99 million Series C led by NVentures — Nvidia’s venture capital arm — and Capricorn’s Technology Impact Fund.

2. RefleXion Medical, $105M, biotech: As usual, biotech was hot this week, especially if the company is trying to figure out ways to fight cancer. Hayward, California-based RefleXion Medical announced the initial close of a $105 million equity raise led by The Rise Fund, TPG’s multisector global impact investing strategy (we’ll be hearing from them again on this list). The fresh cash will be used by the company to extend commercialization of its therapy for treating all stages of indicated solid tumor cancers, including metastatic disease. Founded in 2009, the company has raised $675 million, per Crunchbase.

3. Petvisor, $100M, software: Orlando, Florida-based Petvisor locked up a big $100 million-plus round led by Apax Digital Funds to help make veterinarians’ lives a little easier. The software startup equips veterinary practices with mobile-enabled tools which help with communication and client retention. Petvisor’s tools are used by more than 10,000 veterinary clinics and 400 grooming facilities. Pet parents can be demanding when it comes to their animal’s health, so it makes sense vets would be into using anything that helps keep lines of communication open.

4. (tied) MBrace Therapeutics, $85M, biotech: Yet another cancer-fighting biotech to raise big this week. San Diego-based MBrace Therapeutics closed an $85 million Series B led by TPG’s Life Sciences Innovations fund and The Rise Fund (see, I told you). MBrace is developing a drug that targets a receptor found in multiple cancers including, breast, non-small cell lung, colorectal, gastric and pancreatic. Founded in 2020, MBrace has raised $110 million, per the company.

4. (tied)  Cytovale, $85M, health diagnostics: San Francisco-based Cytovale, a medical diagnostics company focused on early diagnosis of immune-mediated diseases, raised an $84 million Series C funding led by Norwest Venture Partners. The company plans to use the cash infusion to roll out its IntelliSep rapid sepsis diagnosis test to more hospitals and health systems. The test can deliver results within 10 minutes. Sepsis is the third leading cause of death in U.S. hospitals. Founded in 2013, the company has raised $129 million, per Crunchbase.

6. (tied) Forward, $75M, health care: San Francisco-based health tech startup Forward raised $100 million in funding from the likes of Khosla Ventures and Founders Fund. The startup has created “CarePods,” a self-contained, AI-powered doctor’s office which will be located in malls and office buildings. The round included 25% of debt. Founded in 2016, the company has raised $325 million, per Crunchbase.

6. (tied) Imprint, $75M, finance: New York-based Imprint, a provider of co-branded credit cards for brands, locked up a $75 million Series B led by Ribbit Capital. Founded in 2020, the company has raised $127 million, per Crunchbase.

8. Element Energy, $73M, battery: Menlo Park, California-based battery management tech startup Element Energy closed an $111 million capital raise made up of a $73 million Series B equity investment and a $38 million debt facility. The Series B was co-led by an unnamed clean energy generation company in the U.S. and Cohort Ventures, according to the company. Founded in 2019, the company has raised nearly $147 million, per Crunchbase.

9.  Halio, $70M, manufacturing: Hayward, California-based Halio, which created smart glass for office buildings to optimize heat and light, locked up a $70 million round from SKC. Founded in 2010, the company has raised nearly $400 million, per Crunchbase.

10. Eyebiotech, $65M, biotech: New York-based Eyebiotech, a clinical-stage ophthalmology biotech firm developing therapies for eye diseases, closed a $65 million extension to its Series A — bringing the total raised to date to $130 million. New investors Bain Capital Life Sciences, Omega Funds and Vertex Ventures HC joined the round. Founded in 2021, this is the company’s first outside raise, per Crunchbase.

Big global deals

Divergent’s round was big, but not the biggest this week.

• China-based Huasun Energy, which specializes in the production of high-efficiency silicon interface cells and components, raised a round of approximately $277.3 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 Nov. 11 to Nov. 17. 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