Headline

The traditional SaaS fundraising deck? AI killed it. Here are 30+ brand-new fundraising Google Slides for founders, available for all. It’s a free, fully editable Google Slides deck that you can copy and make your own, complete with a voiceover on each slide and our insights on the current AI fundraising landscape, curated by Jonathan Userovici and Astrid Moullé-Berteaux from our team. 3,000+ entrepreneurs have already requested it, so we’re making it available to everyone in the comments below. Sifted has the story in exclusive. Link to the article (and to the pitch deck to copy) in the comments! #startups #venturecapital #ai

Kicking off the new year strong with our Growth Investors Poker Tournament in our San Francisco headquarters this week, where we brought together 45 growth stage investors for an evening of friendly competition and new connections. 🃏♠️ Even with imaginary chips, the tournament was neck and neck — congratulations to our top 3 players who took home prizes from local, VC-favorite establishments! Special thanks to Industry Ventures and Sands Capital for co-hosting an incredible night with us and to everyone who joined us. King Goh, CFA Shalini Rao Nancy Xiao Trevor Neff Austin Hack Joe Davis Jacob Conger Ira Simkhovitch Kumar Gautam

We’re entering a new golden age of marketplaces. ✨ AI isn’t just making existing marketplaces more efficient - it’s changing how network effects work in marketplaces altogether. In our latest piece, the Headline consumer team tracks the evolution of marketplaces and what success looks like for these companies into the future. We are excited to meet founders who are building marketplace startups that could not exist before recent advances in AI. More on marketplaces below! https://lnkd.in/g5p_MGiD ➕ Plus, check out incredible companies like Wanderboat AI, Mindtrip, Inc., Gopuff, Arcade, Mercor, Fora Travel, Palmstreet, goConfirm + more defining the next generation of marketplaces!

Congratulations to Air on a fresh $35M Series B! We have watched the Air team transform how creative professionals work. This new funding isn’t just capital – it’s fuel to expand the platform's AI-powered features, boost its global reach, and continue innovating for creatives worldwide. Read more on the funding in Axios: https://lnkd.in/gcrnEGxa And check out our Headline profile of Co-Founder & CEO Shane Hegde below! https://lnkd.in/gWBGGGeb

Until now, research has focused on biological components in isolation—DNA, proteins, and cells. AI Bioptimus just raised $41M to view life as a whole. Jean-Philippe Vert (Google alumnus and Chief R&D Officer at 🇫🇷 AI biotech company Owkin), David C., and Eric Durand are building foundational AI models—much like portfolio company Mistral AI. “It’s like the GPT of biology,” says Jean-Philippe. Rather than generating text, the startup aims to learn and simulate the complex behaviors of life, leveraging training datasets that range from clinical data to genetic code. Instead of isolating individual biological components, Bioptimus integrates data across multiple scales—molecules, cells, tissues, and organisms—and modalities, such as imaging and genetics, to view biology as it exists in reality. The goal is to revolutionize medical, biotech, and cosmetic science. Bioptimus’s first commercial product will focus on understanding how microscopic genetic mutations lead to tumors visible at the macroscopic scale. Headline partnered with Bioptimus at the Seed stage in 2023 and is happy to double down in today's Series A led by Cathay Innovation with participation from includes Sofinnova Partners, Bpifrance through its Large Venture Fund, Hitachi Ventures, and Hugging's Face Thomas Wolf.

Congratulations to Buk on a $50M Series B fundraise! The Buk team is revolutionizing HR management in Latin America with a product that’s already impacting more than 1.5M users across 7K companies. And, this is just the start. With a fresh round of funding led by Headline Growth, we are looking forward to seeing the Buk team launch in a new market and continue to invest in product excellence. Read more: https://lnkd.in/dpChMsqU

Congratulations to Gentrace on an $8M Series A fundraise! The Gentrace team isn’t just meeting growing demand for accountable AI — it’s setting a new standard for the entire industry, paving the way for a new era of transparent and reliable AI applications. As a remarkable example of product-led growth, the platform has attracted an impressive roster of customers, including Quilt, Webflow, and Multiverse. We are excited to continue supporting the team on this journey to shape the future of AI development and deployment. https://lnkd.in/g_axhNDj

At the end of October, Headline hosted our Annual Meeting (“AGM”) at the Presidio in San Francisco, bringing together our limited partners, founders, and the broader global team for an update on what’s happening in the markets and in our portfolio. The event featured insights from a diverse group of speakers, including Headline team members, portfolio company founders, and industry experts. We covered topics such as IPO criteria, founder insights gleaned from operating in the era of AI, and market opportunities and performance. A few of the best learnings from Headliners and experts: 📈 IPO criteria is more stringent than ever, according to Headline Founding Partner Mathias Schilling, but we're seeing companies move ever-closer to that higher bar. 🤝 Around 70% of Headline’s software deal flow revolves around AI themes, said Jonathan Becker and Taylor Brandt. 🤖 The next big leap in AI is likely to be multi-modal agents—think AI that can use computers like humans, and perhaps book your flight or find you a hotel, according to Mistral AI's Lead Scientist Devendra Chaplot. 🚀 Maybe we all missed the point of Brian Chesky's “founder mode" talk, Reddit, Inc. CEO Steve Huffman told Nick Martell. "Founder mode" just means a founder's standards must never be delegated, and you shouldn't let a growing company get a mind of its own. For these insights and more, check out our full meeting recap below! https://lnkd.in/eWPrzsYh

Introducing the 2024 Prosumer Power 50! 🚀✨ The prosumer landscape is exploding with innovation, and we’re thrilled to unveil our inaugural list celebrating the fastest-growing startups empowering individuals and small teams with professional-grade tools. From design and content creation to advanced analytics and productivity platforms, these pre-Series B companies are redefining how we create, collaborate, and optimize workflows. Curated by the Headline consumer team, and fueled by insights from our proprietary Searchlight platform (tracking over 7M companies annually!), this list spotlights startups with breakout momentum, exceptional founder-market fit, and product-led growth. These companies are shaping the future of creativity, productivity, and collaboration. If you’re building the next big thing in prosumer tools, we’d love to hear from you! 💡 --> Jett Fein + Matthew Brown + Georgina McMillan + Zehra Naqvi Read the full list: https://lnkd.in/ghrnDGuZ

Congratulations to Headline VP Sophia Samutin on being named an Inspiring FinTech Female 2024! We loved seeing you light up the NYSE. ✨ NYC Fintech Women