News
Each day, DailyAlts tracks major developments across the alternative investment world. Our content is procured from primary contacts in the industry and secondary sources across the web. Our goal is to give readers the most up-to-date news and engaging experience to open new doors and areas of knowledge. Our stories cover nine separate verticals of the alternative investment industry.
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Swedish fintech company Klarna achieved a significant improvement in its financial performance during the first quarter, as it halved its net loss compared to the same period last year. The company reported a net loss of 1.3 billion Swedish krona ($120.7 million), down 50% from the previous year’s loss of 2.6 billion krona.
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Alternative Investments/AI: Euclidean Technologies Launches ETF For AI-Selected Value Stocks
Seattle-based investment advisor Euclidean Technologies Management has launched its first exchange-traded fund (ETF), the Euclidean Fundamental Value ETF (ECML US). The actively managed US equity fund utilizes artificial intelligence (AI) to identify value stocks. The ETF, listed on NYSE Arca, has an expense ratio of 0.95% and currently manages approximately $130 million in assets.
Venture Capital: Matrix Partners Raises $550M For Its Fourth India Fund
Matrix Partners India, a venture capital firm focused on investments in India, has announced the closure of its latest fund, securing over $550 million in commitments. This new fund from Matrix Partners is their largest dedicated to India so far.
Artificial Intelligence: AI Helps Researchers Find A Compound To Kill The Drug-Resistant A. baumannii Bacterium
Scientists at MIT and McMaster University have used artificial intelligence (AI) to identify a new antibiotic that can combat drug-resistant infections caused by Acinetobacter baumannii. The bacterium is commonly found in hospitals and is responsible for pneumonia, meningitis, and other severe infections.
Venture Capital: ElevateBio Lands $401M Series D Funding
ElevateBio, a technology-driven company focused on cell and gene therapies, has announced the closing of a $401 million Series D financing round. The funding will be used to expand and scale ElevateBio’s cell and gene technology platforms, capabilities, and therapeutic pipeline. The company has seen significant growth over the past year, adding more than 15 new biopharma partners to its ecosystem, including collaborations with Moderna and Novo Nordisk in gene editing. ElevateBio has also made advancements in its technology platforms, including gene editing systems and multiplex base editing, allowing for the development of a wide range of therapeutics.
FinTech: Starling Bank Doubles Revenue, Earns 6X Profits; CEO Boden Leaves On A High Note
Starling Bank, a leading digital bank in the UK, has reported a significant increase in profits and announced a change in leadership. Founder Anne Boden will step down as CEO on June 30th but will remain on the Board as a non-executive director. John Mountain, the current COO, will take over as interim CEO to guide the bank through its next phase of growth.
Alternative Investments/AI: Qraft Technologies Debuts AI-Managed U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF
Invest-tech Qraft Technologies has launched a new ETF called the QRAFT AI-Pilot U.S. Large Cap Dynamic Beta and Income ETF (NYSE: AIDB). This ETF utilizes the company’s proprietary risk model, powered by artificial intelligence (AI), to assess market drawdown risk and provide optimized equity allocation for investors.
Artificial Intelligence: Nvidia Blows Away Analyst Estimates, Market Cap Of $1T In Sight
Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ: NVDA), a leading chipmaker based in Santa Clara, California, stunned analysts and investors with its robust revenue forecast, propelling the company towards a $1 trillion market capitalization and triggering a global surge in stocks related to artificial intelligence (AI). Nvidia’s shares rose by up to 29% in premarket trading after the company announced an expected sales figure of $11 billion for the three months ending in July, surpassing analysts’ estimates of around $7.2 billion.
Digital Assets: Canadian BTC Miner Upstream Data Files Patent Suit Against Crusoe Energy Systems
Upstream Data Inc., a Canadian Bitcoin mining company, has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Crusoe Energy Systems LLC in the US District Court in Colorado. Upstream alleges that Crusoe violated their patent related to bitcoin mining technology that converts stranded natural gas into bitcoin. Upstream’s patented system utilizes stranded gas to generate electricity for cryptocurrency mining at remote oil well sites. They have deployed over 350 bitcoin mining systems in the US and Canada, addressing the issue of stranded gas venting.
FinTech: Plenty, The Wealth Creation Tool For Couples, Lands $2.75M Pre-Seed Capital
Plenty, a fintech platform, has raised $2.75 million in pre-seed capital to launch its innovative financial solution for couples. The platform aims to modernize wealth building by providing accessible opportunities for couples to discuss, manage, and invest their money together. Investors in this funding round include Phenomenal Ventures, Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman’s 35V, former CEO of Wealthfront Adam Nash, ex-Stripe angels, and Inovia Capital.
Venture Capital: QED Investors Wraps Up Two New Fintech Funds Collecting $925M
QED Investors, a prominent fintech venture capital firm, has announced the closure of two new funds, totaling $925 million in capital commitments. The oversubscribed Fund VIII amounts to $650 million and is aimed at early-stage businesses, while Growth II secures $275 million and focuses on later-stage fintechs.
Artificial Intelligence: BuzzFeed Launches Botatouille, An AI-Based Culinary Companion
BuzzFeed has unveiled Botatouille, an AI-powered recipe generator designed to provide personalized meal suggestions based on the ingredients available in users’ refrigerators. The platform also features a chatbot feature, allowing users to ask culinary questions while cooking.
Venture Capital: Anthropic Lands $450M Series C Including From Spark, Google, Salesforce
Anthropic, an AI software company, has announced a successful Series C funding round of $450 million, led by Spark Capital and with participation from Google (NASDAQ: GOOGL), Salesforce Ventures, Sound Ventures, Zoom Ventures, and others. This latest investment brings the total funding for Anthropic to approximately $1.45 billion. However, the company has not disclosed its current valuation, although estimates suggest it is around $4.1 billion.
FinTech: UAE Central Bank grants Checkout.com An Acquiring License, A First For A Global Payments Platform
Checkout.com, a global payments service provider, has been granted a Retail Payment Services license by the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This license makes Checkout.com the first global payments provider to receive an acquiring license in the UAE, solidifying its leadership in the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region.
Digital Assets: Grayscale Files For ETF That Invests In Overseas Spot Bitcoin ETFs And Bitcoin Mining
Grayscale, the world’s largest cryptocurrency fund manager, is attempting to work around regulatory restrictions imposed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) by filing to launch a US-listed exchange-traded fund (ETF) that would invest in bitcoin exchange-traded products (ETPs) already operating in other countries.
Artificial Intelligence: OpenAI Says Superintelligence Inevitable, But Global Surveillance Needed
An article by Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, and Ilya Sutskever published by OpenAI discusses the potential development of superintelligence in the next ten years and the need to manage the risks associated with it.
FinTech: General Atlantic Pumps Another $100M Into India’s PhonePe
PhonePe is the digital payments company owned by Walmart Inc. Private equity firm General Atlantic has invested an additional $100 million (₹820 crore) in PhonePe, the digital payments company owned by Walmart Inc (NYSE: WMT). This funding is part of PhonePe’s ongoing fundraising efforts and maintains the company’s valuation at $12 billion. General Atlantic’s latest…
Digital Assets: Facebook Owner Meta Looking To Tie Up With Magic Leap For AR, Metaverse
Facebook’s parent company, Meta (NASDAQ: META), is reportedly in discussions with augmented reality (AR) start-up Magic Leap to establish a multiyear agreement. Meta, which is investing billions of dollars into its metaverse project, aims to create an online world filled with avatars. The potential collaboration between Meta and Magic Leap would involve intellectual property licensing and contract manufacturing in North America to aid in the development of mainstream AR products. Magic Leap specializes in producing custom components such as high-tech lenses and software, which are crucial technologies for building the metaverse. However, insiders indicate that the partnership is unlikely to result in a joint Meta-Magic Leap headset.
Venture Capital: Cloud-based Restaurant Management Software Provider Restaurant 365 Lands $135M
Restaurant365, a leading restaurant enterprise management software provider, has announced a successful funding round of $135 million. The funding was co-led by global investment firms KKR and L Catterton, with participation from existing investors such as ICONIQ Growth and Bessemer Venture Partners.
Artificial Intelligence: Kenyan Workers Subjected To Trauma When Labeling Explicit Content For OpenAI
Richard Mathenge, a Kenyan worker, endured a traumatizing experience while training OpenAI’s GPT model. Assigned to a team responsible for teaching the AI about explicit content, Mathenge and his colleagues spent hours each day categorizing and labeling offensive and disturbing texts. The material they encountered included descriptions of child sexual abuse, incest, bestiality, and other explicit scenes. The toll of this work went largely unnoticed, overshadowed by the technical effectiveness of the AI training process.
Artificial Intelligence: G7 Leaders Acknowledge Positive Potential Of AI, But Want “Guardrails”
G7 leaders have called for the establishment of “guardrails” to regulate the development of artificial intelligence (AI) at their 3-day summit in Japan that commenced today. There is a growing need for oversight of AI due to its rapid advancements and potential abuses, the leaders felt.
FinTech: Vonage To Enable Payments And Messaging On Meta-Owned WhatsApp In Singapore
Vonage, a global cloud communications leader, has partnered with WhatsApp (NASDAQ: META) in Singapore to introduce payments on the messaging app. The collaboration, known as Vonage Conversational Commerce, powered by Jumper.ai, enables businesses and consumers to have end-to-end shopping experiences within WhatsApp.
Venture Capital: Water Treatment Specialist Gradiant Lands $225M
Gradiant, a global water and wastewater treatment solutions provider, has secured $225 million in Series D financing, led by BoltRock Holdings and Centaurus Capital. This funding brings Gradiant’s total funding to over $400 million and its valuation to $1 billion.
Alternative Investments/AI: Roundhill Unveils Generative AI ETF Amidst ChatGPT Frenzy
Roundhill Investments has launched the Roundhill Generative AI & Technology ETF, providing investors with a diversified portfolio of stocks in the generative artificial intelligence (AI) space. The launch comes in response to the success of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, a chatbot that has gained significant popularity since its release in late 2022. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) invested $10 billion in OpenAI, highlighting the potential of generative AI technology.
Digital Assets: Ripple Unveils CBDC Platform That Central Banks Can Use
Ripple has announced the Ripple CBDC Platform, a comprehensive solution for central banks, governments, and financial institutions to issue their own central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). With over 90% of countries exploring CBDCs to improve financial inclusion and streamline payment processes, Ripple’s platform leverages blockchain technology similar to the XRP Ledger (XRPL). This enhanced platform allows users to effectively manage and customize the entire life cycle of fiat-based CBDCs, including transactions and distribution.