Cascade, a startup building a platform to help architecture, engineering and construction firms find and win projects, has raised a $3.5 million seed round from Andreessen Horowitz Speedrun, Ada Ventures and Snowball VC. Launched in 2025, Cascade is the result of its founders, Hannia Zia and Joana Ferreira, witnessing firsthand the difficulties construction companies face
One of the most important things happening on Earth today is the increase in solar energy. Around the world, companies and countries are rushing to deploy solar power and batteries to achieve energy independence and limit the effects of climate change. However, that construction runs into a challenge in the labor market, with a limited
It’s not just you: AI startups are receiving a lot of seed funding and, in the process, making things difficult for anyone seeking funding, even at a pre-seed stage. We’ve covered the trend in detail, and at this year’s TechCrunch Disrupt event, we want to help pre-seed founders who are now locked into early-stage expectations.
Databricks announced a new funding round Thursday that values the company at $188 billion. The round was led by Coatue. Databricks did not reveal exactly how much it raised; He said the money is not yet in his hands and the round will close later this summer. (Other outlets have since reported the increase to
Sheryl Sandberg has led a $10 million investment in Self Inspection, a San Diego-based startup that is also backed by former Tesla CEO Jon McNeill’s DVx Ventures. The startup, founded in 2021, has spent the last few years trying to disrupt the vehicle inspection process by making it possible to properly assess damage to a
Travel agency Fora announced a $60 million Series D round led by Forerunner and Tactile Ventures, valuing the company at $1 billion. Founded in 2021, Fora is a two-part platform: it allows people to easily become travel agents by providing the infrastructure to support customer communication and trip planning; It also allows users to find
