|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Canada’s Startup Community Puts Its Own Spin on ‘America First’
|
|
By Marc Vartabedian, WSJ Pro
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Good day. Some promoters of Canada’s tech community have a new slogan: Canada first.
The phrase, an apparent retort to the Trump administration’s “America first” approach, surfaced at several points during the recent Web Summit conference in Vancouver, British Columbia.
The new approach was on display at a Web Summit panel called “Canada First? How to navigate the new world order.” Two panelists, both Canada-based entrepreneurs, discussed how geopolitical tensions have fueled the “build in Canada” narrative.
“That has catalyzed a bit of nationalism in Canada and provoked a survival instinct in a lot of Canadian companies and founders,” said Jack Newton, the founder and chief executive of Canadian legal tech software startup Clio. “There has been an awakening in Canada regarding what it’s going to take for Canadian companies to be successful without necessarily being able to depend on the U.S. as a market.”
Read the full article here.
|
|
|
And now on to the news...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Calpers is reporting positive results from its overhauled private-equity investment plans. PHOTO: RICH PEDRONCELLI/ASSOCIATED PRESS
|
|
|
|
|
|
Calpers returns. The country’s largest public-pension fund is seeing positive early results from an overhaul of its private-equity program intended to break with its past inconsistency and disappointing returns, WSJ Pro reports.
-
The $544 billion California Public Employees’ Retirement System recorded an 11.3% gain calculated by time-weighted rate of return on its private-equity investments last year, according to data posted to the pension system’s website Friday. That is below its benchmark, but well ahead of performance of the State Street Private Equity Index, which tracks the returns of a broad set of private-equity deals.
-
The results are an encouraging sign for the overhaul of Calpers’ private-equity program begun in late 2022, said Anton Orlich, the pension system’s managing investment director for private equity.
|
|
|
|
|
17.9%
|
|
Calpers’ private-equity allocation, which is above its 17% goal but well within its target range, which tops out at 22%.
|
|
|
|
|
Crypto Exchange Gemini Files for IPO
|
|
|
Gemini Space Station, the crypto exchange controlled by the Winklevoss twins, said it plans to go public, The Wall Street Journal reports. The company made its plans known to regulators through a confidential filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. It said Friday it hasn’t determined yet how many Class A shares it will offer, or the offering’s price range. Gemini was launched in 2015 by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, billionaire brothers known for their early involvement in Facebook. The crypto exchange is one of the largest in the U.S. based on trading volume, according to Kaiko, a crypto data provider.
|
|
RSM Plans $1 Billion Investment in AI Agents, Other Services
|
|
|
RSM’s U.S. unit plans to invest $1 billion in artificial intelligence over the next three years, well above its previous investments, in part to use AI agents to automate more tax and accounting workflows, the WSJ's CFO Journal reports. The funds would go toward integrating generative AI into internal workflows as well as platforms the firm provides to middle-market companies and overall helping clients with their AI strategies. Some of the $1 billion will also go toward building the core AI infrastructure predictive models, talent upskilling and partnerships. RSM is the largest accounting firm outside of the Big Four in the U.S., based on revenue.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Funds
Taste Tomorrow Ventures, which is focused on early-stage investments in the beverage, food and snack industries, held the first close of its $30 million debut fund.
People
Orchid Security, an identity security orchestration platform, appointed Tal Herman as chief product officer. She was most recently at Okta.
|
|
|
|
|
Guardz, a Miami-headquartered cybersecurity startup helping managed service providers protect small and medium-sized businesses, scored $56 million in Series B funding led by ClearSky.
Zero Networks, an Orlando, Fla.-headquartered cybersecurity startup, landed $55 million in Series C financing. Highland Europe led the investment, with Principal Jacob Bernstein joining the company’s board.
MIND, a Seattle-based data loss prevention startup, secured $30 million in Series A financing led by Paladin Capital Group and Crosspoint Capital Partners.
Obvio, a provider of AI-powered traffic cameras, collected $22 million in Series A funding led by Bain Capital Ventures.
Kargo, a San Francisco-based provider of inventory data to global supply chains, picked up an $18.4 million investment led by Matter Venture Partners.
Coral Vita, a startup based in The Bahamas focusing on coral reef restoration, raised more than $8 million in Series A funding led by Builders Vision.
Row64, a Cheyenne, Wyo.-based business intelligence platform providing interactive visual analysis of big data, was seeded with a $4 million investment led by Galaxy Interactive.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
A drone during a police training session in Lawrence, Kan. PHOTO: ARIN YOON FOR WSJ
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
-
Venture capital investment is rising in Los Angeles — and not just for AI startups (Los Angeles Times)
-
Lakestar is trying to raise a $300 million European defense fund (Bloomberg)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
