Bill Gates

Brandon Capital's $60m taypayer-funded biotech bets

Brandon Capital has put roughly $60 million of National Reconstruction Fund money into ten biotech companies and warns R&D tax changes would hurt deep tech; portfolio company Myricx Bio went to Novartis.

Also australiatimes.com

AgriFood Signals: Uber’s $14.8bn bid for Delivery Hero, Hippo Harvest banks $30m, agentic AI for ag

AgFunderNews roundup of agtech and foodtech items: several venture raises and EU grants, Uber's agreed takeover of Delivery Hero, Winnow's purchase of Lumitics, Norrsken Evolve's fund close, and Goterra's liquidation.

Livestock methane reduction startup swallows $11 million Series A

Sydney synthetic-biology venture Number 8 Bio has banked an $11m Series A with Icehouse Ventures leading, to advance cattle trials of its methane-cutting supplement; its 2024 seed and accelerator stint are recalled.

Also AgFunderNews·Startup Daily·SmartCompany

'Alexa, hook up my brain': Synchron hits major 'medical milestone'

Australian neurotech firm Synchron reported year-long trial results showing its brain implant was safe in six US patients, including one who used Amazon's Alexa by thought alone, keeping it ahead of Musk's Neuralink.

Bill Gates-backed Type One Energy lands massive seed extension to commercialize fusion power

Fusion startup Type One Energy has pulled in a $53.5m extension to its seed round, led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures with Foxglove Ventures and GD1 taking part, to accelerate its stellarator reactor plans.

Also Forbes Australia

5 Interesting Startup Deals You May Have Missed This Year

Year-end Crunchbase column recapping five distinctive 2023 raises: Cortical Labs, Forward, Neura Robotics, KoBold Metals and Living Carbon, with amounts, backers and one stated valuation.

Also TechCrunch Venture

Cybersecurity Sector Leads For New Unicorns In October, With Zero From Silicon Valley

Crunchbase's October 2023 unicorn board update: nine newcomers led by two cybersecurity firms, with Sydney's Employment Hero reaching unicorn status, Shield AI revalued upward, and Convoy and Olive AI shutting down.

Also Crunchbase News

CommBank plants funding in $220 Series A for climate change investor Wollemi Capital

Wollemi Capital, the Sydney climate investor, has closed a $220m raise, past its initial $100m goal, backed by CBA, Trawalla and others; the article recalls its bets on Loam Bio, Pluton Bio and Pachama.

No bull!@#$: Number 8 Bio lands $1.8 million for animal feed that reduces cow farts

A biotech startup making a methane-cutting cattle feed additive has raised pre-seed capital from four backers, with the piece also recalling recent emissions-focused raises by two other Perth ventures.

Also AgFunderNews·AgFunderNews·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·AgFunderNews

Pooptech Startups Are Passing The Smell Test

A survey of waste-management startups covering livestock and human waste ventures, their cumulative funding, Rumin8's January round led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures, and accelerator and corporate partnerships in the sector.

Calix kiln to be used to capture CO2 from the air

Calix's cement and lime decarbonisation subsidiary Leilac has signed an MOU licensing its electric kiln technology to direct air capture firm Heirloom, with both companies' chief executives commenting on the collaboration.

Bill Gates says there are multiple options for reducing livestock emissions

Gates discussed livestock emissions in a Lowy Institute session, recalling his firm Breakthrough Energy Ventures' investment in Western Australian methane-supplement startup Rumin8, and praised Australian agriculture and climate policy.

The week in agrifoodtech: Drive-thru grocery Addie's bags $10m, Bill Gates invests $12m into methane reduction

Weekly agrifoodtech deal roundup: grocery and agtech startups announce new funding rounds, an Australian feed-additive startup lands backing, several acquisitions and a shutdown occur, and a protein fund launches.

Also AgFunderNews

These Aussie startups raised a cool $29 million this week

Weekly roundup covering three Australian raises: Rumin8's climate tech funding led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Ferronova's biotech round led by Renew Pharmaceuticals, and EMVision's stroke imaging milestone payment.

Bill Gates, Twiggy invest in methane-reducing feed additive company

WA climate tech firm Rumin8 closed the second phase of its seed round, raising US$12 million from Breakthrough Energy Ventures and Harvest Road Group, with existing climate fund investors topping up their holdings.

Also SmartCompany·Techboard

Bill Gates fund invests in Perth startup slashing cow farts in Australian-first

Breakthrough Energy Ventures, the fund led by Bill Gates, took part in a $17.24 million round for Perth climate startup Rumin8, whose cattle feed additives cut methane; Prelude Ventures, Aware Super and Harvest Road also invested.

Also Startup Daily·SmartCompany·AgFunderNews·Startup Daily·Startup News (WA)·AgFunderNews·Crunchbase News

Bill Gates leads $US44m funding round to automate and accelerate solar PV construction

Breakthrough Energy Ventures and Prelude Ventures backed Terabase Energy's Series B, with the article also recalling the fund's earlier investment in air conditioning startup Blue Frontier.

Rio Tinto joins Gates to back renewable hydrogen startup as miners look to future tech

Mining major Rio Tinto has joined Bill Gates' fund and other industrial and cleantech backers in a US$198 million Series B for hydrogen electrolyser developer Electric Hydrogen; Fortescue's electrolyser investments are also noted.

Ignition Lane's Wrap: the state of Cloud, VC advice, Tiger stripes, cattle class crypto, M&A fires up

Weekly tech wrap: cloud-market trends, Tiger Global's cheques into Stake, Shippit and Carma, new VC funds, several acquisitions, grocery delivery startups Send and Quicko collapsing, and Elaine Stead joining M8 Ventures.

Also Startup Daily

MUSK BUY: Tesla boss wins war for Twitter with $61 billion

Startup Daily relays Elon Musk's agreed takeover of Twitter for roughly US$44 billion, including his earlier 9.2 per cent stake purchase, board reactions, and the debt and equity financing behind the deal.

Bill Gates-backed liquid metal battery company secures $A200 million

US liquid metal battery maker Ambri raised US$144 million (A$196 million), led by Reliance New Energy Solar with Bill Gates, Paulson & Co and others joining, to commercialise its long-duration storage technology and build manufacturing facilities.

Iron air battery backed by Bezos and Gates promises storage at fraction of cost

Form Energy unveiled its iron-air long-duration battery and announced a $US200 million Series D led by ArcelorMittal's XCarb fund, which invested $US25 million; earlier backers include Bezos, Breakthrough Energy Ventures and Macquarie Capital.

How long-duration energy storage will accelerate the renewable energy transition

Opinion piece by Hydrostor and Energy Estate executives arguing compressed air storage can serve Australia's grid, citing Hydrostor's financing round with Meridiam, its Broken Hill project, and overseas storage investments.

CCS, but not as you know it: US prize targets cement's monster emissions

Two overseas companies won a carbon XPrize for technologies storing carbon dioxide in concrete, with the article examining cement emissions and carbon capture prospects.

“You get your time in the sun”: AirTree founder Daniel Petre to step back from day-to-day operations at the firm

Veteran venture capitalist Daniel Petre will withdraw from daily duties at the firm he co-founded in 2014, moving toward a chair role, while discussing ecosystem maturity, a future fund and philanthropy among Australia's newly wealthy.

Your 90-second guide to the day in tech

A daily roundup: AVEVA buys data firm OSIsoft for billions, Acer faces a huge ransom demand from hackers, and venture firm Tempus Partners relaunches under a new name with a partner promotion.

Bill Gates backs $1/kg green hydrogen water splitter technology

Israeli green hydrogen startup H2Pro has closed a US$22 million Series A2 round led by Bill Gates' Breakthrough Energy Ventures alongside Breakthrough Energy Ventures Europe and IN Venture, backing its efficient water-splitting technology.

Sydney startup Vow cooks up a storm with celeb chef Neil Perry, in a bid to take lab-grown meat mainstream

Cultured meat startup Vow teams with chef Neil Perry on a trial menu of lab-grown dishes. The Sydney company previously took pre-seed money from Blackbird and is preparing a seed round.

Bill Gates and Richard Branson have their sights on the mining sector — and investment opportunities for startups abound

Analysis arguing tech billionaires' funds are investing in mining startups, citing past backing of KoBold Metals and Lilac Solutions, and urging Australian junior miners to position for this interest.

5 things you should know about tech today

Tech roundup covering Apple and Google's contact-tracing API fixing CovidSafe, Afterpay's US user growth, Tesla dropping a lawsuit, and Bevan Slattery selling a third of his Megaport stake for $65 million.

Holy grail of big batteries – first pilot for Gates-backed battery with 150 hours storage

A US utility will pilot Gates-backed Form Energy's long-duration aqueous air flow battery, promising 150 hours of grid storage, with Australian-linked backers and solar players mentioned.

HIV self-testing startup pivots to COVID-19 solution, and ploughs ahead with $30 million IPO plans

A blood-testing startup is adapting its self-testing technology for COVID-19 and pressing on with ASX listing preparations despite market turmoil, having earlier been backed by its founder and grant funding.

Bill Gates’ secret energy company unveils solar breakthrough for industrial heat

Solar concentration startup Heliogen has come out of stealth, claiming technology that reaches over 1,000°C to decarbonise industrial heat for cement and steel, with backing from Bill Gates and other investors.