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Engineering software startup Nominal has reached a $1 billion valuation after securing $80 million in a Series B extension round, led by Founders Fund. The investment highlights strong investor confidence in the company’s technology designed to modernize hardware development and testing operations.The round also saw participation from existing investors including Sequoia Capital, General Catalyst, Lux Capital, Lightspeed, and Red Glass, further strengthening Nominal’s investor base as the company continues expanding its engineering data platform.Founded by Cameron McCord, Bryce Ferguson, and Jason Hyon, Nominal develops software that helps hardware engineering teams manage and analyze complex data generated during testing and operations. Its platform enables teams to collect, organize, and analyze telemetry data from sensors, testing equipment, and operational systems.The company initially focused on sectors such as aerospace and defense, where engineering teams handle massive amounts of technical data. However, Nominal now plans to expand into additional industries including automotive, robotics, manufacturing, and energy systems.With the newly raised capital, Nominal intends to accelerate product development, expand its engineering team, and explore strategic acquisitions to strengthen its technology platform and global presence.The company’s platform acts as infrastructure for hardware programs by managing the entire data lifecycle-from instrumentation and data collection to analysis and reporting helping engineering teams improve decision-making and system reliability.

Private equity firm Thoma Bravo has agreed to acquire WWEX Group in a deal valued at approximately $5 billion, with plans to merge the logistics provider with Auctane, a shipping software company already in its portfolio. The transaction aims to create a major technology-driven logistics platform serving global e-commerce and supply chain markets.WWEX Group is a major third-party logistics (3PL) provider offering parcel and freight services through brands such as Worldwide Express, GlobalTranz, Unishippers, JEAR Logistics, and BLX Logistics. The company manages millions of shipments annually and supports a large network of customers across the United States.Once the acquisition is completed, WWEX will be combined with Auctane, a global shipping technology company that provides platforms including ShipStation, Stamps.com, Metapack, and Packlink. The merger is expected to integrate logistics services with shipping software, enabling businesses to manage the entire shipping process from order checkout to final delivery.The combined business is expected to become a large end-to-end logistics and shipping technology platform, leveraging data analytics and AI-enabled tools to help companies optimize shipping costs, improve operational efficiency, and gain better visibility across their supply chains.WWEX Group is currently backed by investors including CVC Capital Partners, Providence Equity Partners, Ridgemont Equity Partners, and PSG, some of whom are expected to retain minority stakes in the newly formed company after the transaction closes.The deal reflects increasing interest among investors in software-driven logistics infrastructure, where data, automation, and integrated shipping platforms are becoming essential for modern supply chains and e-commerce operations.The acquisition is expected to close in the second quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.

Agritech startup Mycoverse has secured €2.4 million in pre-seed funding to accelerate the development of biological solutions aimed at combating potato late blight, one of the most damaging crop diseases affecting European agriculture.The funding round was co-led by Future Food Fund and High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF), with additional participation from PINC, the venture arm of food company Paulig.Mycoverse is an agritech spin-out from the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) that focuses on developing biological crop protection using fungi. The company’s platform uses AI-driven discovery tools to identify fungal strains capable of protecting crops from disease while reducing the reliance on chemical pesticides.The newly raised capital will be used to advance the company’s first product targeting potato late blight, a disease that causes significant agricultural losses and represents an estimated $1.9 billion global market opportunity.Mycoverse’s technology combines AI-based discovery with advanced fungal production systems, allowing the company to develop bioactive crop-protection solutions that can be integrated into existing farming practices without major operational changes for farmers.The investment will also support expanded field trials and further product development, as the company works toward delivering scalable biological alternatives to traditional pesticides.Founded in 2024, Mycoverse plans to extend its biological crop protection platform to additional crops in the future, including grapevines, as demand grows for sustainable agricultural solutions across Europe.

German fintech startup DivTax has secured €1 million in a pre-seed funding round to accelerate product development and build partnerships with financial institutions. The funding will help the company expand its platform designed to simplify the complex process of reclaiming withholding tax on foreign dividends.The round attracted backing from investors including Angel Invest, CapCircle, and Superangels, along with prominent industry figures such as Dr. Ralph Müller, COO of ING Germany, and Max Linden, founder of lemon.markets. Additional angel investors Christian Stiebner and Matthias Goegele also participated in the financing.Founded in 2023 by Nicolas Oldag, Julius Holzer, and Linus Holzer, DivTax is building a digital platform that helps investors recover overpaid withholding tax on foreign dividends, a common issue faced by individuals investing in international stocks.When investors receive dividends from foreign companies, they often face double taxation, as foreign governments deduct withholding tax before the payment reaches investors. Recovering these taxes typically requires complex paperwork and dealing with foreign tax authorities. DivTax’s platform automates this process by aggregating data from brokers, calculating potential refunds, and managing the entire reclaim workflow digitally.The company states that its solution can help investors increase dividend returns by as much as 25%, while completing refund applications within minutes. The platform also enables users to review and reclaim taxes from dividends received over the past five years.DivTax launched its B2C platform for retail investors in early 2025 and is gradually expanding services for institutional investors as well. The startup currently serves German users and plans to expand its offering to other markets in the future.

Dutch venture capital firm LUMO Labs has secured a €6 million commitment from Spain’s state-owned investment arm SETT (Spanish Society for Technological Transformation) for its €100 million LUMO Fund, an impact-focused venture capital vehicle supporting early-stage technology startups across Europe.The LUMO Fund is designed as a multi-stage VC fund investing from pre-seed to Series A, targeting companies developing innovative technologies that address social and environmental challenges. The fund plans to back around 30-35 startups over the next four years.The newly secured capital from SETT, a public entity under Spain’s Ministry for Digital Transformation and the Civil Service, aims to strengthen funding access and entrepreneurial support for early-stage startups across Europe, with special attention on Spain’s growing startup ecosystem.LUMO Labs focuses on digital deep-tech innovations, particularly startups building solutions in areas such as artificial intelligence, digital security, and the Internet of Things (IoT). These sectors are seen as key drivers of economic growth, digital transformation, and social progress across Europe.The fund’s impact strategy aligns with several UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including Good Health and Well-Being, Quality Education, Sustainable Cities and Communities, and Climate Action. Through this approach, LUMO Labs aims to support founders developing scalable technologies that generate both commercial and societal impact.Founded by Andy Lürling and Sven Bakkes, LUMO Labs invests in mission-driven deep-tech startups and also provides founders with coaching programs and ecosystem support to help accelerate early validation and global growth.The fund primarily targets startups in Benelux and Germany, while also exploring opportunities in the Nordics, Baltics, and the Iberian Peninsula.

Agritech company Rainbow Crops has received a $7 million research grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to accelerate the development of climate-resilient crop varieties.The initiative is aimed at helping farmers adapt to rising climate pressures, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia where extreme weather is increasingly affecting food production.The funding will support the advancement of the company’s Trait Foundry™ platform, which combines artificial intelligence, genome editing, precision breeding, and automated plant analysis. This technology enables scientists to identify and stack beneficial genetic traits that can help crops better tolerate heat, drought, and other climate stresses.As part of the research program, Rainbow Crops will focus on improving three major staple crops - corn, sorghum, and rice. These crops play a crucial role in global food systems and are widely grown by farmers in regions vulnerable to climate change. The project will also study how young plants respond to environmental stress during the early seedling stage, a key phase for crop survival and productivity.Rainbow Crops emerged as a spin-off from the VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology and continues to collaborate with leading research institutions in Belgium. The initiative will involve partnerships with Professor Hilde Nelissen’s research group, the VIB Transformation Facility, and the VIB Agro-Incubator to advance crop genetics and breeding innovation.According to Giacomo Bastianelli, co-founder and CEO of Rainbow Crops, the grant will strengthen the company’s ability to develop solutions that help farmers grow crops capable of withstanding challenging environmental conditions.Through this effort, Rainbow Crops aims to deliver new genetic insights and breeding tools that can support the development of stronger crop varieties and contribute to improving global food security.