This week was reminiscent of the big-spending days of 2021, with several massive funding rounds announced. Leading the pack was OpenAI, which secured a historic $40 billion investment.

1. OpenAI – $40B, Artificial Intelligence
   The highlight of the week was OpenAI’s $40 billion investment, led by SoftBank. This deal is the largest venture investment ever made. SoftBank will contribute $10 billion to the deal and fund the remaining $30 billion, $10 billion of which will come through debt. The investment is contingent on OpenAI restructuring its for-profit subsidiary. If completed, this will push OpenAI’s post-money valuation to $300 billion.
2. Plaid – $575M, Fintech
   Plaid, the fintech company that connects user bank accounts to apps, raised $575 million at a $6.1 billion valuation. This funding, led by Franklin Templeton, will help Plaid manage employee tax withholding obligations and provide liquidity to employees via a tender offer. Plaid’s earlier planned $5.3 billion sale to Visa fell through in 2021 due to regulatory hurdles.
3. Silicon Ranch – $500M, Energy
   Silicon Ranch, based in Nashville, Tennessee, raised $500 million from European infrastructure investor AIP Management. The company, which focuses on solar and battery projects, is capitalizing on the growing U.S. electricity demands. Silicon Ranch has previously raised over $2 billion since its founding in 2011.
4. Runway – $308M, Artificial Intelligence
   Runway, an AI video startup based in New York, raised $308 million in a round that doubled its valuation from less than two years ago. The new round, led by General Atlantic, values the company at over $3 billion. Runway enables users to create videos with text or images and recently introduced its new Gen-4 AI model. The funding will help Runway expand its AI capabilities in film and animation.
5. AIRNA – $155M, Biotech
   AIRNA, a biotech company developing RNA editing therapies, secured $155 million in Series B funding, led by Forbion Capital Partners and Venrock Healthcare Capital Partners. The funds will support clinical trials for AIRNA’s drug candidate for alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency and help develop its RNA editing therapeutics pipeline.
6. Atsena Therapeutics – $150M, Biotech
   Atsena Therapeutics, a gene therapy company focused on reversing blindness, raised $150 million in Series C funding. The investment, led by Bain Capital Life Sciences, will be used to advance treatments for genetic conditions like X-linked retinoschisis, which causes blindness. Atsena was founded in 2019 and has now raised nearly $238 million.
7. SandboxAQ – $150M, Quantum Computing
   SandboxAQ, a spin-off from Alphabet focusing on AI and quantum computing, raised an additional $150 million in its Series E funding. This round, supported by Google and Nvidia, follows a $300 million raise just four months ago. SandboxAQ is working on quantum-based products for sectors like telecom, financial services, and cybersecurity. The company has raised over $950 million since its inception.
8. Temporal Technologies – $146M, Software
   Seattle-based Temporal Technologies secured $146 million in Series C funding at a $1.7 billion valuation. The company helps businesses manage complex software applications and will use the funding to enhance its cloud products and invest in AI development. Temporal has raised $350 million since its founding in 2019.
9. RayThera – $110M, Biotech
   RayThera, a biotech company focused on immunology therapies, raised $110 million in Series A funding. The round was co-led by Foresite Capital and OrbiMed. This is RayThera’s first funding raise.
10. Neurona Therapeutics – $102M, Biotech
    Neurona Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotech company working on regenerative cell therapies for neurological disorders, raised $102 million in financing. The company has now raised $426 million in total since its founding in 2008.

This week’s funding rounds highlight the continued strong investment in sectors like AI, biotech, and energy, with OpenAI leading the charge in artificial intelligence.