☕ Apple-Google $1 Billion AI deal & Meta to cut 10% of employees in Reality Labs division.
Apple paid $550 billion to developers via the App Store since 2008 & Duolingo CFO to step down after nearly six years.
Breaking News
Apple will use Google’s Gemini models to power AI features across its ecosystem, including Siri, after evaluating alternatives like OpenAI and Anthropic. The multi-year deal, reportedly worth around $1 billion annually, will run Gemini via Google’s cloud while preserving Apple’s privacy-first approach, marking a major shift in Apple’s AI strategy as it prepares its biggest Siri upgrade in years—while also deepening Google’s exposure amid ongoing antitrust scrutiny.
OpenAI has acquired the four-person team behind Torch, a tiny health records startup, in an acqui-hire reportedly valued at $100 million in equity. Torch was building a unified “medical memory for AI” that aggregates data from doctor visits, labs, wearables, and wellness apps, and the team’s work will be folded into ChatGPT Health—signaling OpenAI’s accelerating push to become a core layer for health data analysis and continuity.
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With Migraine and Chronic Pain drug candidates in the pipeline that could redefine pain medicine, Neurocarrus is building what many believe could be the future of non-addictive pain relief.
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🗞️ What Else Is Brewing
40 real startup pitch decks that raised $350M+ (Including leading startups decks) (Link)
What founders should know before signing a Shareholders Agreement - Free template. (Link)
Founders: stop saying these things in VC meetings. (Link)
How to write a fundraising email: First email, follow-ups approved by leading VCs? (Link)
How to get warm intros to VCs without a network. (Link)
AI’s trillion-dollar opportunity: Context graphs. (Link)
STARTUPS RAISING MILLIONS
💰 Startup Funding Updates
PRE-SEED
Nodu, a London, UK-based stablecoin infrastructure startup, raised $1.45M in pre-seed funding. The round was led by Digital Space Ventures (an early investor in Revolut and Paysend).
SEED
Neuramint, a Denver, CO-based Web3 AI company developing an AI agent platform, raised $5M in Seed funding. Backers included Maelstrom, Borderless Capital, Selini Capital, Symbolic Capital, Lattice Fund, and Node Capital.
Avenue Biosciences, a Palo Alto, CA-based protein engineering technology company, raised $5.7M in Seed extension funding. The round was led by Balnord, and Tesi, with support from existing investors Voima Ventures, Inventure, University of Helsinki, and Dimerent.
Allos, an Oxford, UK-based company using causal AI for clinical outcomes, raised $5M in Seed funding. The round was led by Oxford Science Enterprises (OSE) with participation from Habico Invest, the family office of Danish pharmaceutical group Orifarm, and the University of California accelerator Berkeley SKYDECK.
Nanochon, a Washington, D.C.-based orthopedic device company developing an implant for treating articular cartilage defects in the knee, raised $4.1m in Seed Prime II funding. The round, which brought total funding to $11.3m, was led by cultivate(MD), with participation from The University of Virginia UVA Seed Fund, WSGR, Wealthing VC Fund, and others.
FluoSphera, a Geneva, Switzerland-based biotech startup testing drugs for safety and efficacy, raised €1.23M (CHF 1.15M) in funding. The round was led by Soulmates Ventures and a Swiss business angel, with participation from IndieBio New York.
GROWTH
Cytotheryx, Inc., a Rochester, MN-based preclinical cell therapy company developing cell-based treatments for liver disease, raised $60M in Series A funding. The round was led by Ouroboros Family Founders Fund I.
Trybe, a London, UK-based provider of spa, bathhouse, leisure, and activity management software, raised $30M USD in Series A funding. The round was led by Five Elms Capital.
Vantaris Surgical, a San Carlos, CA-based medical device company that provides a system for kidney stone treatment, raised $30M in Series A funding. The round was led by Longitude Capital, with additional participation from new investor Vensana Capital and existing investors Atypical Ventures, Neotribe Ventures, and Boutique Venture Partners.
VelaFi, a Dallas, TX-based provider of a stablecoin-powered financial infrastructure platform under Galactic Holdings, raised $20M in Series B funding. The round was led by XVC and Ikuyo, with participation from Alibaba Investment, Planetree, existing shareholder BAI Capital, and other global investors.
Vibrant Therapeutics, a Guangzhou, China- and Cambridge, MA-based clinical-stage biotechnology company developing new therapeutics, raised $61M in new financing. The round included new investors Pfizer Ventures and Apricot Capital with participation from Bayland Capital, HSG, Northern Light Venture Capital, and First Principle Venture Limited.
VieCure, a Denver, CO-based provider of software platforms for oncology care, raised $43M in funding. The round was led by Mitch Rales, and Northpond Ventures, with participation from Durable Capital Partners, Socium Ventures and Sator Grove Holdings.
bit.bio, a Cambridge, UK-based biotech company leveraging human cell programming technology, raised $50M in funding. The round was led by M&G Investments.
Hadrian, a Los Angeles, California-based developer of automated factories for aerospace and defense, raised expanded capital at a $1.6 billion valuation. The round was led by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc. with participation from Altimeter Capital, D1 Capital Partners, StepStone Group, 1789 Capital, Founders Fund, Lux Capital, a16z, Construct Capital, and other existing investors.
Orca Bio, a Menlo Park, CA-based late-stage biotechnology company developing cell therapies, raised $250M in aggregate funding. The amount consisted of $250M in new equity capital including a Series F led by Lightspeed Venture Partners.
Torq, a NYC-based agentic AI security operations provider, raised $140M in Series D funding, at $1.2 Billion valuation. The round was led by Merlin Ventures, with participation from all existing investors, including Evolution Equity Partners, Notable Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, Insight Ventures Partners, and Greenfield Partners.
AirNexis Therapeutics, a Palo Alto, CA-based clinical stage biotech company developing therapeutics for pulmonary diseases, raised $200M in Series A funding. The round was led by Frazier Life Sciences, with participation from OrbiMed, SR One, Life Sciences at Goldman Sachs Alternatives, Longitude Capital and Enavate Sciences among others.
MEDIPOST, a Cambridge, MA-based biotechnology company developing therapies for inflammation-driven degenerative diseases, raised $140M in funding. The round was led by Skylake Equity Partners and Crescendo Equity Partners, with participation from Korea’s growth equity fund.
TODAY’S RESOURCE PICK
📬 Early-stage startup financial model for fundraising (Excel)
Most founders struggle with financial models because they overcomplicate them and investors don’t want that.
This Excel template helps you build a clear, investor-ready financial model without fancy graphs or finance jargon. Just plug in your numbers and get projections investors actually expect to see at seed stage.
Inside:
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Clean structure that’s easy to explain in pitches
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Perfect for founders who aren’t finance experts but want to look sharp in investor conversations.
Quick reminder: numbers don’t raise money, the story behind them does. This model helps you tell that story clearly.
NEW VCs IN THE MARKET
🏦 Venture Capital Updates
The University of Pennsylvania, BioNTech, and Osage University Partners launched a $50m Penn-BioNTech Innovative Therapeutics Seed Fund (PxB Fund), a dedicated venture capital fund focused on early-stage life science companies originating from Penn. The PxB Fund will provide capital to Penn-founded companies developing novel therapeutics, diagnostics, and research tools, including AI-enabled drug discovery platforms to address serious medical conditions
KEY STORIES IN TECH
📜 Latest In Tech
Developers have made $550B on Apple’s App Store since 2008
Apple says it has paid developers $550 billion via the App Store since 2008, up sharply from $260 billion reported in 2021, highlighting how fast services revenue has scaled.
In 2025, Apple services hit record highs with 850 million weekly App Store users, over $100 billion in Apple Pay merchant sales, and strong growth across Apple Music and Apple TV.
The App Store’s 30% commission model remains under global regulatory scrutiny, even as Apple Music gained momentum amid ongoing backlash and artist exits from Spotify.
Mark Zuckerberg says Meta is launching its own AI infrastructure initiative
Meta has launched Meta Compute, a new initiative to massively scale its AI infrastructure, with plans to build tens of gigawatts of power capacity this decade and far more over time, according to Mark Zuckerberg.
The effort is positioned as a long-term strategic advantage for AI, spanning data centers, silicon, software stack, and energy partnerships, as Meta prepares for sharply rising compute and power demands from generative AI.
Leadership includes Santosh Janardhan (global infrastructure and data centers), Daniel Gross (long-term capacity strategy and partnerships), and Dina Powell McCormick (government relations and infrastructure financing), signaling Meta’s intent to treat AI infrastructure as a core business pillar.
Anthropic launches Claude for Healthcare
Anthropic has launched Claude for Healthcare, a set of tools that let hospitals, insurance companies, and patients use Claude for medical tasks through products ready for HIPAA compliance.
New connectors let Claude pull data from the CMS Coverage Database, ICD-10 codes, and the National Provider Identifier Registry to help with prior authorization, medical coding, and claims appeals.
Claude Pro and Max subscribers in the US can now give Claude secure access to their lab results and health records through Apple Health, Android Health Connect, and other integrations rolling out in beta.
UK investigates Musk’s X over Grok deepfake concerns
Ofcom has opened an investigation into X over claims that its AI chatbot Grok generated sexually explicit deepfake images, including non consensual and child abuse material, violating UK online safety rules.
The probe comes as the UK fast tracks a new law that makes creating sexual deepfakes a criminal offence and plans to ban companies from supplying tools designed to generate such content, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer calling the images disgusting and unlawful.
X, owned by Elon Musk, faces mounting global scrutiny over Grok, with regulators in France, India, Malaysia, and Indonesia also taking action, while Ofcom could ultimately seek fines, service restrictions, or a UK block if violations are confirmed.
Meta plans to cut around 10% of employees in Reality Labs division
Meta Platforms is planning to lay off about 10% of staff in its Reality Labs unit, according to a report by The New York Times, potentially impacting roughly 1,500 employees.
The cuts are expected to hit teams working on the metaverse, including virtual reality headsets and virtual social platforms, an area that has cost Meta over $60 billion since 2020 with limited commercial success.
Reality Labs also houses more promising bets like Quest headsets and Ray Ban smart glasses, but the layoffs reflect Meta’s broader shift in focus toward artificial intelligence as it tries to regain momentum after a weak reception to its Llama 4 model.
Duolingo CFO Matt Skaruppa to step down after nearly six years
Duolingo said CFO Matt Skaruppa will step down after nearly six years, staying on until February 23 before moving into an advisory role to support the transition.
Skaruppa joined in early 2020 and helped guide Duolingo through its IPO, a period of steady revenue growth, improving profitability, and increased use of AI to personalize learning and drive subscriptions.
Board member Gillian Munson will take over as CFO; Duolingo also reported about 30% growth in daily active users, with Q4 bookings slightly below analyst expectations.
LAST COFFEE SIP
☕ Other News
Netflix launches its first official podcasts
Netflix is launching its first official podcasts this week, starting with Bill Simmons hosting a live show after an NFL playoff game, with plans to add dozens more shows in the coming months.
The streaming service has signed deals with networks like The Ringer, iHeartMedia, and Barstool Sports, paying Barstool more than $10 million a year, though Netflix passed on bigger offers like Alex Cooper’s Call Her Daddy.
Netflix is treating podcasts as a low-risk test, starting with modest spending and limited marketing before committing more money, while other streaming services like Hulu have started meeting with podcasters after seeing Netflix’s interest.
HIRING ALERT: STARTUPS & VC ROLES
💼 Today’s VC & Startup Job Opportunities
All-In-One VC Interview Preparation Guide: With a leading investors group, we have created an all-in-one VC interview preparation guide for aspiring VCs. Don’t miss this. (Access Here)
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