Diraq secures USD 15 million in Series A2 round
Diraq, a quantum computing company specializing in solutions based on silicon quantum dots, has concluded its Series A2 funding round, raising USD 15 million in capital. Leading this round is Quantonation, with participation from John Higgins Family Investments and UNSW Sydney.
This milestone follows the initial Series A round led by Allectus Capital, which provided Diraq with USD 20 million. Thus far, Diraq has raised a total of USD 120 million, including research funding from Australian and US government programs.
With the latest infusion of funds, Diraq aims to advance its R&D initiatives, expand its team in Australia, launch operations in the US, and strengthen its existing international partnerships.
“We are excited to lead Diraq’s Series A2 round as the company continues to evolve as a key player in the global silicon quantum ecosystem. … The primary technical focus in the next 18 months will be on the development of a quantum chip through a standard semiconductor foundry. This milestone will serve as a proof point, solidifying the viability of Diraq’s technology and propelling the company’s scale-up program aimed at constructing the most powerful quantum computers in the world,” said Will Zeng, partner at Quantonation, who will join Diraq’s board following the completion of this deal.
UAE allocates USD 200 million to launch technology fund for developing nations
The UAE has launched a fund aimed at financing the development of advanced technology in developing nations. With an initial capital of USD 200 million, the fund is backed by the Abu Dhabi government and will be overseen by the state’s Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC).
Faisal Al Bannai, secretary general of the ATRC, said that the fund is aimed at making technologies developed by the UAE accessible to governments and organizations in less affluent nations. It will also support various research projects. —Reuters
Latest deals in India:
- ConveGenius, an edtech startup specializing in artificial intelligence-based chatbots and adaptive learning platforms, has raised INR 150 million (USD 1.8 million) as part of a strategic partnership with Searce, a provider of cloud solutions and technology services. This funding round comes on the heels of a separate investment last month, when ConveGenius received USD 7 million from UBS Optimus Foundation, Mount Judi Ventures, and existing investors including the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation (MSDF), Bace Capital, Heritas Capital, and Gray Matters Capital.
- Happi Planet, a Bangalore-based D2C home care brand, has secured INR 84.7 million (USD 1 million) in a funding round led by Fireside Ventures. The company will utilize the funding primarily to expand its offline footprint as well as its online presence. —Inc42
- Yu, a startup focused on developing healthier iterations of packaged foods, has raised INR 200 million (USD 2.4 million) in a Series A funding round jointly led by angel investor Ashish Kacholia and the Asian Paints Promoter Group, which includes Manish Choksi and Varun Vakil. The startup plans to scale its manufacturing capacity while delving into multiple product categories and segments both domestically and globally. —Inc42
- Corrit Electric, an electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing company, has secured INR 50 million (USD 601,700) in an angel investment round led by Porush Jain (Sportskeeda). This infusion of capital will facilitate the expansion of operations and improvement of R&D initiatives at Corrit Electric. —VCCircle
- Amber, a student-focused accommodation solutions provider, has raised USD 21 million in its maiden funding round. The round was led by Gaja Capital and saw participation from Lighthouse Canton and Stride Ventures. Amber intends to utilize the newly raised capital for global expansion and to enhance its offerings for property managers and students. —Entrackr
- Lohum, a Greater Noida-based sustainable producer of battery materials, has raised USD 23 million in a Series B1 round led by Baring Private Equity Partners. The round, which materialized in August last year, also saw participation from Cactus Partners, Chhattisgarh Investment Limited, Ventureast Proactive Fund, Michael B Schwab Living Trust, Singularity Growth, Stride Ventures, and several angel investors including Anish Vora, Kunal Babani, and Manas Tondon, among others. —Entrackr
- Crux, an AI startup, has raised USD 2.6 million in a seed funding round led by Emergent Ventures, with participation from Y Combinator and Neon Fund. The round also saw participation from early backers like First Cheque. —The Economic Times
Doxa, Seviora T3F Strategy, Orient Growth Ventures, and more led last Friday’s headlines:
- Doxa Holdings, a Singapore-based fintech startup specializing in a digital procurement platform for the supply chain sector, has recently secured an undisclosed amount of funding from Cento Ventures.
- Singaporean state-owned investor Temasek Holdings has partnered with Japan’s Norinchukin Bank to anchor the Seviora T3F Strategy, a USD 173 million fund. The fund will be managed by Seviora Capital, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Temasek, and focus on initiatives that decarbonize and promote sustainable transformation within the food and agriculture sectors.
- Orient Growth Ventures, an investment firm based in the Netherlands, has announced the final close of its second fund, securing commitments totaling USD 90 million. Utilizing the expertise and network of local venture capital partners, Orient Growth Ventures aims to provide European investors with access to the Indian and Southeast Asian venture capital ecosystem.
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