TechCapsules

Scottish Widows and Aberdeen Investments have launched the CG Scottish Widows Growth Long‑Term Asset Fund (LTAF), the first UK defined‑contribution pension vehicle to channel retirement savings into venture‑stage deep‑tech firms. Managed by IP Group plc, the fund earmarks its inaugural tranche for quantum‑computing hardware start‑ups Oxford Quantum Circuits and Quantum Motion, alongside battery specialist Nyobolt and genomics company Genomics Limited. The initiative seeks to plug a domestic funding gap for UK hardware spin‑outs that have traditionally relied [...]

Alex de Vigan’s new startup Physicl has closed a $10 million seed round led by Inovia Capital to repurpose technology originally built for e‑commerce 3D renderings into high‑fidelity simulation tools for robot training. The company’s platform converts heterogeneous real‑world data into accurate 3D environments with correct geometry, materials and physics, addressing the chronic shortage of realistic synthetic data for physical AI models. Physicl’s first product, Studio, offers 10,000 virtual scenes and 100,000 assets that users can combine to [...]

OpenAI has secured $11 billion in a new funding round, valuing the AI lab at $1.25 trillion, Bloomberg reports. The round is still open and could reach roughly $20 billion, though the company originally aimed for $30 billion. The announcement follows Bloomberg’s report that Anthropic’s potential IPO valuation may fall to about $1.1 trillion from the previously expected $2 trillion. OpenAI had hinted at an IPO this year but postponed it, with a next‑year launch now anticipated. The move underscores the volatile market [...]

The UK government and UKRI announced £138 million for quantum sensing procurement, £12 million for a national quantum commercialisation skills centre, and £35 million for quantum networking testbeds. These funds build on a £2 billion package and a £300 million public investment that created over 2,000 jobs, 74 spin‑outs, and attracted £482 million in private capital. The launch coincides with the UK Quantum Showcase in London, drawing 3,500 global participants to demonstrate applications in healthcare, infrastructure, and defence.

Harbinger, an electric‑truck startup based in Los Angeles, closed a $240 million Series D round, bringing its total capital raised to over $650 million. The round was co‑led by Tiger Global, Capricorn’s technology impact fund, and defense‑focused Ridgeline, with repeat investors Fed Ex, Maniv, Greycroft and Leitmotif, plus new backer Fidelity Management. FedEx deepened its partnership by placing a $300 million order for 2,000 trucks and appointing its senior vice president of safety and transportation, Paul Melander, to Harbinger’s board. The funding supports [...]

Zipline raised $1.5 billion, boosting its valuation to $21.5 billion, and expanded its partnership with Walmart to add 300 drone‑delivery sites across the United States. The new multi‑year agreement builds on a 2021 deal that covered 21 sites, marking a substantial scale‑up. Funding was led by Paradigm, WCM Investment Management, and Layer Global, with participation from Valor Equity Partners, Fidelity, Uber, Tiger Global, J.P. Morgan, ARK Invest, and Salesforce Ventures. Zipline plans to use the capital to expand U.S. manufacturing [...]

CQMTEK, a Zhejiang‑based quantum precision measurement firm, secured over 100 million yuan (≈US$15 million) in pre‑Series B financing from Huzhou Jinkun and Huzhou South Taihu Juchuang, funds managed by state‑owned Huzhou Jinfu. The capital will fund research, product testing, batch manufacturing, and market expansion into telecommunications, AI computing, power grids, finance, and renewable energy. The company plans to enhance existing chip‑scale atomic clocks, frequency‑stabilized lasers, atomic magnetometers, and precision timing systems, while deepening supply‑chain ties with regional backers. [...]

Barcelona‑based Titan OS secured $46 million in a mix of equity and debt, bringing its total funding to $110 million. The capital, sourced from BlackRock‑managed debt facilities and existing investors Highland Europe and Mangrove Capital Partners, will accelerate global expansion and deepen partnerships with TV manufacturers. The company now serves 30 million users, has added partners such as Sharp, AOC, Vestel, Skyworth, and Philips, and plans to enhance content discovery and AI‑driven ad targeting.