Japan to steer $1.8 trillion pension fund toward more alternative investments

American AI chip startup SambaNova said Wednesday it had been valued at $11 billion, in a $1 billion fundraising round announced at the Raise Summit industry event in Paris. The company’s juiced valuation highlights the growing importance of its specialist area of AI “inference”, the process by which AI models generate a response to users’…

Brian Schimpf, CEO of one of America’s biggest defense tech startup Anduril recently old CNBC at the Allen & Co. Sun Valley Conference that the company is in no rush to go public given the current market conditions. “A bad time to do that is in the middle of a hype cycle. So we’re not…

TaiSan has secured £4.65 million in seed funding, with Eos Advisory and Mercia Ventures leading the round through the Midlands Engine Investment Fund II. The company plans to use the money to develop lighter solid-state sodium-ion batteries for e-bikes, scooters, and power tools. Ten investors joined the round, along with a grant from Innovate UK….

Seoul National University Holdings drives Korea’s startup ecosystem growth – CHOSUNBIZ  Chosunbiz

Alafi Capital Company LLC disclosed a 17.1% stake in CalciMedica, Inc. common stock. The Schedule 13D was filed on Jul. 10, 2026, shifting from prior Schedule 13G filings in 2025. The position includes shares bought in a June 2026 private placement and earlier purchases, plus warrants with ownership limits. Investor Intent Alafi Capital built its…

Some interesting data here from HSBC, but will the regulatory framework in the UK and the EU stifle innovation allowing the USA and China to take the lead on AI deployment? Here’s the word; UK startups and scaleups raised $17 billion in venture capital funding during the first half of 2026, marking the strongest opening…