The Week’s Biggest Funding Rounds: Fintech’s Big Week

Want to keep track of the largest startup funding deals in 2024 with our curated list of $100 million-plus venture deals to U.S.-based companies? Check out The Crunchbase Megadeals Board.

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 is our last weekly Top 10 of the year and we go out with some pretty big rounds — especially in the world of fintech. All in all, 2024 was filled with large-money deals, as megadeals soared — with more than 280 rounds of $100 million or more.

1. One, $300M, fintech: Fintech startups have struggled raising money this year, but it’s clearly a little easier when you’re majority-owned by the world’s largest retailer. Walmart, alongside investment firm Ribbit Capital, is leading a $300 million round for fintech startup One, per Bloomberg. The company offers installment loans, debit cards and payments services, representing a significant push by Walmart into the financial services field. The new round gives the Sacramento, California-based startup a valuation of $2.5 billion, per the report.

2. Liquid AI, $250M, artificial intelligence: What would a week be without a big generative AI raise? Liquid AI locked up a whopping $250 million round led by AMD at a $2.3 billion valuation, per Bloomberg. The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company has created liquid foundation models — lightweight, general-purpose AI models that need less data and compute power. Oddly, the company’s models actually use mathematical approaches discovered by studying a worm’s brain. Founded in 2023, the company has raised more than $290 million, per Crunchbase.

3. Zest AI, $200M, fintech: Yes, another big fintech round. This one goes to Burbank, California-based Zest AI, which landed a $200 million growth investment from Insight Partners. The startup uses AI to help with credit underwriting — with the technology providing more sophisticated and accurate scoring methods. The new cash will allow Zest to add to its current product portfolio and advance its fraud protection and generative AI technologies. Founded in 2009, the company has raised nearly $358 million, per Crunchbase.

4. Ayar Labs, $155M, semiconductor: Ayar Labs locked up a $155 million Series D led by Advent International and Light Street Capital at a valuation of more than $1 billion. The new round included participation from a number of strategics, including AMD Ventures, Intel Capital, Nvidia and 3M New Ventures. Ayar’s optical solutions to transmit data replace older electrical solutions to help users maximize compute efficiency and performance for artificial intelligence infrastructure while also reducing costs and power consumption. Ayar is just the latest optical interconnect startup trying to solve AI’s bottlenecks concerning compute and power usage. In October, Lightmatter locked up a $400 million Series D led by new investor T. Rowe Price at a $4.4 billion valuation. The round nearly quadrupled its previous valuation of $1.2 billion in December of last year after a $155 million raise. That same week, Xscape Photonics — a New York-based startup also using photonics technology to address the energy, performance and scalability challenges of AI data centers — raised a $44 million Series A led by IAG Capital Partners and with investment from the likes of Cisco Investments and Nvidia. Founded in 2015, Ayar has raised $370 million, per the company.

5. Capstan Medical, $110M, medical device: Capstan Medical, a startup developing robotic-enabled minimally invasive technologies to treat heart valve disorders, raised a $110 million Series C led by Eclipse Ventures. With more than 7 million people in the U.S. with heart valve disease, it’s no wonder investors were intrigued by the company. Founded in 2020, the Santa Cruz, California-based company has raised more than $141 million, per Crunchbase.

6. Speak, $78M, edtech: Speak, a startup that wants to help people learn new languages through AI, raised a fresh $78 million Series C led by Accel — doubling its valuation in fewer than six months and reaching unicorn status at a $1 billion valuation. It was just last June when the San Francisco-based startup announced a $20 million Series B extension at a $500 million valuation. Of course, such valuation jumps are nothing new for startups that include AI in their products. In Speak’s case, its platform generates audio conversations between the app and the user, with AI helping to improve users’ fluency. The company says it has created more than 25 million personalized lessons for its users just this year, and since its previous funding round has introduced its enterprise offering for employers. Founded in 2016, Speak has raised $162 million, per the company.

7. Veradermics, $75M, pharmaceuticals: New Haven, Connecticut-based Veradermics, a biopharmaceutical company developing therapeutics for common dermatologic conditions, closed a $75 million Series B led by Suvretta Capital Management. The company plans to use the new cash to fund the ongoing clinical development of its hair loss treatment. Founded in 2019, the company has raised nearly $111 million, per Crunchbase.

8. Gigs, $73M, mobile: San Francisco-based Gigs, a developer of an operating system for mobile services, raised a $73 million Series B led by Ribbit Capital. The startup plans to use the new funding to expand its geographical footprint and invest in new products. Gigs allows tech companies to embed connectivity into their products quickly. Founded in 2021, the company has raised $97 million, per Crunchbase.

9. (tied) Players Health, $60M, healthcare: Minneapolis-based Players Health, a provider of athlete and sports insurance, closed a $60 million Series C led by Bluestone Equity Partners. Founded in 2012, Players Health has raised more than $100 million, per the company.

9. (tied) Sublime Security, $60M, cybersecurity: Sublime Security, an AI-powered email security platform, announced a $60 million Series B led by IVP. Founded in 2019, Washington D.C.-based Sublime says it has raised $93.8 million.

Big global deals

The biggest funding outside the U.S. came from Asia.

• India-based Rebel Foods, which operates multiple food brands, raised a $210 million Series G.

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 Dec. 7 to Dec. 13. 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