VC Funding Top Ten — September 16, 2026: AI Dominance, Anew Labs, OpenAI Buzz

Overview

Wednesday afternoon, September sixteenth, three PM Pacific. Today's biggest check belongs to Anew Labs, a ByteDance spin-off that just locked in two hundred ninety million dollars at a one-point-five billion dollar valuation. The story of the day is AI's continued dominance in venture capital, a trend we'll explore wit

In this show

• Wednesday afternoon, September sixteenth, three PM Pacific. Today's biggest check belongs to Anew Labs, a ByteDance spin-off that just locked in two hundred ninety million dollars at a one-point-five billion dollar valuation. The story of the day is AI's continued dominance in venture capital, a trend we'll explore with our Markets and World analysts. We've tracked ten major rounds today totaling over one-point-two billion dollars. Let's break down the numbers.
• Here is today's snapshot. Disclosed funding hit one-point-two-four billion dollars across ten rounds. The largest was Anew Labs' two-hundred-ninety-million-dollar venture round for AI drug discovery. Unsurprisingly, AI was the hottest category, accounting for seven of the top ten deals. In public market news, automotive tech company Hero Motors opened its IPO for public subscription. The story of the day remains the relentless flood of capital into AI, with startups in the space raising massive rounds at impressive valuations.
• Taking the top spot is Anew Labs, which raised a massive two-hundred-ninety-million-dollar venture round. The deal, co-led by HSG, IDG Capital, and Hillhouse Investment, values the AI-powered drug discovery unit at one-point-five billion dollars post-money. As a recent spin-out from ByteDance, this funding highlights immense investor confidence in applying large-scale AI to the pharmaceutical industry, a sector ripe for technological disruption. It's a major validation for using tech giant talent and resources to tackle complex scientific challenges.
• At number two, Profound secured a one-hundred-eighty-million-dollar Series D, pushing its valuation to one-point-eight billion dollars. The round was led by heavyweights Sequoia and Kleiner Perkins. Profound develops marketing software to help brands optimize their visibility in new AI-powered search engines. This funding comes just seven months after a ninety-six-million-dollar Series C, underscoring the explosive growth and perceived urgency for companies to adapt their marketing strategies for the age of AI-driven search and answer engines.
• In third place, construction intelligence platform Buildots raised one-hundred-thirty million dollars in a growth capital round led by O.G. Venture Partners. The company uses AI and computer vision to give construction project managers real-time visibility into on-site progress. This is about bringing sophisticated data analytics to one of the world's oldest and most physical industries. The new funding is earmarked for global expansion and deepening the platform's functionality across the entire building lifecycle, from groundbreaking to handover.
• Number four is CADDi, an AI-powered data platform for manufacturing, which closed a one-hundred-fourteen-million-dollar Series D. The round minted a new unicorn, valuing the company at one-point-two billion dollars. A large syndicate of investors participated, including Moore Strategic Ventures and Atomico. CADDi helps manufacturers organize and use their engineering data. This funding will fuel its North American expansion and the development of specialized AI models capable of interpreting complex manufacturing data like 3D CAD files.
• Coming in at number five, fintech startup Rillet has raised one hundred million dollars in a Series C led by ICONIQ. This deal also brings the company into the unicorn club with a one billion dollar valuation. Rillet is building an AI-native enterprise resource planning, or ERP, platform for modern finance teams. This is the company's third funding round in the last year, bringing its total capital raised to over two hundred million dollars. The rapid-fire fundraising signals intense market demand for smarter, AI-powered tools in accounting and financial management.
• At number six, cybersecurity firm MIND secured seventy-two million dollars in a Series B round led by Crosspoint Capital Partners. MIND is developing an AI-native data loss prevention platform designed to automate the management of insider risk. As more companies adopt AI, the attack surface for data breaches and internal threats expands, creating a critical need for more advanced security solutions. This new funding will help the company accelerate the development of its autonomous platform to meet that growing demand for AI-era data security.
• The seventh largest round goes to Tokyo-based Preferred Networks, which raised sixty-four million dollars in a late-stage round from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. This isn't just a financial investment; it's a strategic alliance. Preferred Networks develops foundational AI technologies, including chips and large models. The partnership will focus on co-developing AI for critical systems like social infrastructure and national security, signaling a significant strategic push by Japan to build sovereign AI capabilities for core industrial and defense applications.
• At number eight, we have Flam, an AI interactive content company, raising forty million dollars for its Series B. The round was led by QED Investors. Flam has built a platform that allows enterprise customers to create immersive, interactive experiences for marketing, training, and entertainment. With over one hundred enterprise clients already on board, this funding is aimed at scaling the AI-powered platform globally. It’s a bet on businesses moving beyond static content and towards more engaging, AI-driven digital interactions with their customers and employees.
• Rounding out the list are two deals in DeepTech and Biotech. First, iGii, an advanced materials company, raised twenty-eight-point-five million dollars in a Series B led by the Scottish National Investment Bank. They've developed a proprietary 3D porous carbon nanomaterial with broad industrial applications. Following them is Tempo Therapeutics, a clinical-stage regenerative medicine company, which secured fourteen-point-five million dollars in venture funding. The capital will help commercialize their lead product for surgical reconstruction.
• And the one thing to watch: the buzz around OpenAI is getting louder. Reports have emerged that the AI leader is in early discussions for a private funding round that could value the company at an astonishing one-point-two trillion dollars ahead of its planned IPO. While the talks are said to be investor-initiated, the timing of any new funding will likely hinge on when OpenAI decides to go public. That potential IPO remains the most anticipated event on the tech industry's calendar. That's the deal flow for today. We're back tomorrow afternoon at three PM Pacific.