This week, the startup ecosystem witnessed a flurry of funding activity, with several companies announcing new rounds of investment. Sierra, an AI customer service startup, raised $175 million, valuing it at $4.5 billion, while Read AI, a meeting summarization bot, secured $50 million in a Series B round, just six months after its $21 million Series A.

In other funding news, French cybersecurity startup Filigran raised $35 million, and biotech startup Archon Biosciences emerged from stealth with a $20 million seed funding round. GMI Cloud, a U.S.-based startup providing GPU cloud infrastructure, raised a Series A round of $15 million in equity and $67 million in debt financing.

Meanwhile, new ventures are also making waves. Actor and director Olivia Wilde launched a venture firm, Proximity Ventures, which is already investing in the consumer and enterprise sectors. African venture capital firm Janngo Capital closed its oversubscribed second fund at €73 million, and Crosscut launched a $100 million sixth fund focused on "frontier tech."

The European Innovation Council also announced a €1.4 billion budget for European deep tech research and startups next year, a €200 million increase from 2024. As the startup ecosystem continues to evolve, these developments signal a promising future for entrepreneurs and investors alike.