Chainguard raises $140M, Revolut snags a banking license, and all the AI news that’s fit to print

Top News

• It’s an AI world, and we’re just living in it: News that venture capitalists are still pouring capital into Seed, early, and late-stage AI startups. It’s not a shock that the market is bursting with artificial intelligence-related news. For example, Bing is getting into AI search. AI data scraping remains a trending topic. Google Deep Mind has some new math-focused AI results its proud of. Mistral has new models out as well. Google’s chatbots have received an update. The list goes on and on. And on.

• Chainguard snags $140M: The cybersecurity market may be in the spotlight due to CrowdStrike’s recent faceplant, but the underlying business momentum that underpins a host of companies in the space appears strong. For example, Chainguard, a cybersecurity startup, just announced a nine-figure raise at a $1.1 billion valuation. The Washington state-based company is hardly alone in raising over $100 million for an upstart cybersecurity business. Recall that TWiST500 member Huntress raised a similarly sized round just a few weeks ago.

• Revolut snags banking license: In a win for the fintech sector, neobank Revolut has secured a U.K.-banking license. Revolut, Monzo, and several other European challenger banks have posted improving results in recent quarters, coming good on prior investments into their potential. Revolut has raised $1.7 billion, for reference.

TWiST500

Cybersecurity. We’ve discussed Cyera, Huntress, and other companies in the context of the TWiST500, but it’s time to expand the list. Thanks to GeekWire's report of 175% growth in the last year, Chainguard clearly needs to be added as well.

But who else deserves our attention? A Crunchbase search for cybersecurity companies that have raised $50 million in the last year and a half kicks out dozens of names. Some of them are familiar because we’ve already flagged them, but not all.

• Xage expanded its Series B late last year so that it can help block network intrusions.

• Dazz raised a $50 million round mere weeks ago thanks to its work on “unified security remediation.”

• Cyberhaven’s Series C from June was worth $88 million at a $400 million pre-money valuation.

• Secure browser company Island’s April-era Series D was worth $175 million.

You get the idea. We think cybersecurity is the niche that is the most ripe for a deeper dive on our end. Expect more notes on the startup genre soon and a segment on the podcast.

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This Week in Startups

E1984: Jason and Alex’s latest news roundtable dug into the Google-Wiz deal’s demise, new AI models from Meta, and even the latest UBI study. Wiz’s choice to pursue an IPO over a sale could yield greater returns down the road, but at what price is not clear. Meta’s new Llama 3.1 405b model, meanwhile, has put open-source AI at the front of the pack when it comes to performance, shaking up the artificial intelligence landscape for months to come.

E1983: Benchmark investor Sarah Tavel is back! Tavel and Jason discussed the critical role of governance and accountability in startups, and the relationship between hype, investment decisions, and startup promotion. And for the software fans, the venture capitalists discussed the challenges that SaaS faces in the market today. Tune in!

E1982: Jason was joined on TWiST by True Anomaly’s Even Rogers this week. True Anomaly builds satellites and software to run them, focused on getting close to other satellites. Why does that matter? Defense applications, for one. The pair dug into defense contracts, national security, and even China-Taiwan tensions. If you are into space, startups, and security, this one is for you.

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