TSMC reports Q4 net profit rose 35% YoY to about $16 billion, handily beating estimates as it benefited from surging demand for AI chips.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-15
TSMC AI chips
TSMC reports Q4 net profit up 35% YoY to a record ~$16B, above $15.17B est., as it benefited from surging demand for AI chips and hit $100B in 2025 revenue
Reuters · 2026-01-15 · #3
Appfigures reports global consumer spending on the App Store and Google Play rose 21.6% year-over-year to $155.8B in 2025.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-15
App Store Google Play
Appfigures: global consumer mobile app spending on Apple's App Store and Google Play rose 21.6% YoY to $155.8B in 2025, but app downloads dropped 2.7% to 106.9B
TechCrunch · 2026-01-15 · #56
WeLab Ltd. raises $220 million in equity and debt from HSBC Holdings Plc, Prudential Hong Kong Ltd., and other investors.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-15
WeLab Ltd. $220M HSBC Holdings Plc Prudential Hong Kong Ltd. other investors
Hong Kong-based WeLab, which runs digital banks WeLab in Hong Kong and Saqu in Indonesia, raised $220M in equity and debt from HSBC, Prudential HK, and others
Bloomberg · 2026-01-15 · #58
Mytra raises $120M Series C led by Avenir Growth.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-15
Mytra Avenir Growth
Mytra, which is building autonomous robots for warehouses that can move loads up to 3,000 pounds, raised a $120M Series C led by Avenir Growth
Fortune · 2026-01-15 · #16
Berlin-based Parloa raises $350M at a $3B valuation, bringing total funding to $560M+.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-15
Parloa
Berlin-based Parloa, which develops AI customer service agents for Booking.com and others, raised $350M at a $3B valuation, taking its total funding to $560M+
Financial Times · 2026-01-15 · #44
Meta will reinvest the savings from the Reality Labs layoffs into wearables.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Meta wearables
Sources report AI chip startup Etched raised $500M in a round led by Stripes at a $5B valuation, bringing its total funding to nearly $1B.
rumored 1 article 2026-01-14
Etched Stripes
Sources: AI chip startup Etched raised $500M led by Stripes at a $5B valuation, bringing its total funding to almost $1B
Bloomberg · 2026-01-14 · #48
Polygon pays a total of over $250M to acquire Coinme and Sequence.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Polygon $250M+
Polygon buys crypto startups Coinme and Sequence for a total of $250M+, as it seeks to bolster its stablecoin and fintech infrastructure and compete with Stripe
Fortune · 2026-01-14 · #55
Liftoff reports a $25.6M net loss on $491.6M in revenue for the nine months ending Sept. 30.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Liftoff $25.6M net loss $491.6M revenue nine months to Sept. 30
Liftoff, which helps companies place ads in mobile apps, files for a US IPO, reporting a $25.6M net loss on $491.6M in revenue in the nine months up to Sept. 30
Bloomberg · 2026-01-14 · #59
Sources report AI chipmaker Cerebras is in talks to raise about $1B at a $22B pre-investment valuation, up from an $8.1B valuation in September 2025.
rumored 1 article 2026-01-14
Cerebras $1B $22B $8.1B
Sources: AI chipmaker Cerebras is in talks to raise ~$1B, valuing the startup at $22B before the new investment, up from an $8.1B valuation in September 2025
The Information · 2026-01-14 · #61
Defense Unicorns raises $136M Series B led by Bain Capital, valuing the company at over $1B.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Defense Unicorns Bain Capital
Defense Unicorns, which provides open-source air-gapped software to the US DOD, raised a $136M Series B led by Bain Capital, taking its total valuation to $1B+
Reuters · 2026-01-14 · #55
Checkr reports revenue grew to $800M, a 14% increase from 2024.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Checkr $800M
Checkr, which does employee background checks, says its revenue grew 14% YoY to $800M+ in 2025, amid a flood of AI-generated CVs and fake financial documents
Forbes · 2026-01-14 · #59
Caterpillar reaches a $300 billion market capitalization for the first time.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Caterpillar $300B market capitalization
Caterpillar hits a $300B market cap for the first time, driven by demand for its data center power generation equipment; CAT is up 12% in 2026 to a record ~$640
Bloomberg · 2026-01-14 · #61
Caterpillar shares are up about 12% in 2026 to a record around $640 per share.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Caterpillar ~$640 per share
Caterpillar hits a $300B market cap for the first time, driven by demand for its data center power generation equipment; CAT is up 12% in 2026 to a record ~$640
Bloomberg · 2026-01-14 · #61
High-Flyer posted 56.6% average returns across its quant funds in 2025.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
High-Flyer
Analysis: DeepSeek parent company High-Flyer posted an average return of 56.6% across its quant funds in 2025, which could boost the cash available for DeepSeek
Bloomberg · 2026-01-14 · #52
WithCoverage raises $42M Series B led by Sequoia and Khosla, offering an AI-based flat-fee risk management model that replaces traditional insurance brokers.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
WithCoverage Sequoia Khosla
WithCoverage, which replaces traditional insurance brokers with its AI-based flat-fee risk management model, raised a $42M Series B led by Sequoia and Khosla
Axios · 2026-01-14 · #54
Liftoff files for a US initial public offering (IPO).
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Liftoff US IPO
Liftoff, which helps companies place ads in mobile apps, files for a US IPO, reporting a $25.6M net loss on $491.6M in revenue in the nine months up to Sept. 30
Bloomberg · 2026-01-14 · #59
Sources report that Montage Technology Co., a Shanghai-listed chip designer valued at $22B, plans a Hong Kong IPO that could raise over $900M and would be backed by Alibaba Group and JPMorgan Asset Management.
rumored 1 article 2026-01-14
Montage Technology Co. Hong Kong IPO $900M+ Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. JPMorgan Asset Management
Sources: Chinese chip designer Montage, a Shanghai-listed company valued at ~$22B, plans a Hong Kong IPO that could raise $900M+, backed by Alibaba and JPMorgan
Bloomberg · 2026-01-14 · #37
IO River raises a $20M Series A round led by Venture Guides and New Era.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
IO River Venture Guides New Era
Tel Aviv- and Boston-based IO River, which helps companies manage multiple CDN and edge networks, raised a $20M Series A led by Venture Guides and New Era
Axios · 2026-01-14 · #34
Skild AI raises a $1.4B Series C at a $14B valuation.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Skild AI $1.4B $14B valuation
Pittsburgh-based Skild AI, which makes robotics foundation models, raised a $1.4B Series C at a $14B+ valuation, up from ~$4.5B in June 2025
Bloomberg · 2026-01-14 · #25
Skild AI previously raised $300M in June 2025 at a $4.5B valuation.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Skild AI $300M June 2025 $4.5B valuation
Pittsburgh-based Skild AI, which makes robotics foundation models, raised a $1.4B Series C at a $14B+ valuation, up from ~$4.5B in June 2025
Bloomberg · 2026-01-14 · #25
Microsoft was recently on pace to spend nearly $500M per year for Anthropic to power Microsoft products.
rumored 1 article 2026-01-14
Microsoft Anthropic
Source: Microsoft has become one of Anthropic's top clients and was recently on pace to spend nearly $500M/year for Anthropic's AI to power Microsoft products
The Information · 2026-01-14 · #10
Aikido Security raises $60M led by DST Global at a $1B valuation to support its automated security guardrails for developers.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Aikido Security DST Global $60M $1B valuation
Belgium-based Aikido Security, which offers automated security guardrails for developers, raised a $60M Series B led by DST Global at a $1B valuation
Reuters · 2026-01-14 · #28
Depthfirst raises a $40M Series A round led by Accel Partners to support its AI-native codebase scanning and credential exposure protection tools.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Depthfirst Accel Partners $40M
Depthfirst, which provides AI tools for codebase scanning, credential exposure protection, and threat monitoring, raised a $40M Series A led by Accel Partners
TechCrunch · 2026-01-14 · #20
Sources say Anthropic, OpenAI, and SpaceX took early steps to go public, suggesting 2026 may be a year of mega IPOs.
rumored 1 article 2026-01-14
Anthropic OpenAI SpaceX
2026 may be the year of the mega IPO, as sources say Anthropic, OpenAI, and SpaceX took early steps to go public, setting up a watershed moment for the AI boom
New York Times · 2026-01-14 · #12
Novee raises $43M Series A and $8.5M seed, totaling $51.5M in funding.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Novee $43M Series A $8.5M seed $51.5M total
Novee, which utilizes proprietary AI models to perform automated penetration testing, emerges from stealth with a $43M Series A and an $8.5M seed
Axios · 2026-01-14 · #15
Alpaca raises a $150M Series D led by Drive at a $1.15B valuation.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Alpaca Drive $150M Series D $1.15B valuation
Alpaca, which builds software to let companies offer stocks, ETFs, and other financial instruments, raised a $150M Series D led by Drive at a $1.15B valuation
Fortune · 2026-01-14 · #38
Microsoft pledges to reject/decline tax breaks related to its data center projects.
denied 1 article 2026-01-14
Microsoft tax breaks
Microsoft changes its data center approach, pledging to pay its own power costs, reject tax breaks, and replenish more water than it uses, amid local opposition
GeekWire · 2026-01-14 · #60
Microsoft pledges to pay its own power costs for its data centers.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Microsoft power costs
Microsoft changes its data center approach, pledging to pay its own power costs, reject tax breaks, and replenish more water than it uses, amid local opposition
GeekWire · 2026-01-14 · #60
Liang Wenfeng's quantitative hedge fund (High-Flyer) generated returns above 50% in 2025.
confirmed 1 article 2026-01-14
Liang Wenfeng High-Flyer
Analysis: DeepSeek parent company High-Flyer posted an average return of 56.6% across its quant funds in 2025, which could boost the cash available for DeepSeek
Bloomberg · 2026-01-14 · #52