Farewill, a U.K.-based end-of-life services provider that offers online tools for writing wills, organizing probate, and arranging cremation, has been acquired by funeral service provider Dignity in an all-shares deal valuing the startup at £12.9 million ($16.8 million).

Founded in 2015, Farewill is one of several startups to emerge in a category dubbed “death tech.” This includes apps to memorialize loved ones and social platforms to support the grieving process.

Some have raised significant amounts of venture capital funding, too, such as Empathy which emerged from stealth back in 2021 with $13 million for its digital assistant for bereaved families — going on to raise a further $47 million just a few months ago.

Read more on Farewill at the link in the bio

Article by Paul Sawers

Image Credits: Katarzyna Bialasiewicz / Getty Images Pro; Farewill

#TechCrunch #technews #startup #founder #acquisition #deathtech

Bigger isn't always better

One of the lessons that the wild Silicon Valley venture funding environment of the past few years has clearly taught is this: Bigger valuations are not always better.

“I think we’ve all kind of seen the negative impact of having a valuation too high from the last, call it, three years,” Elizabeth Yin, co-founder of Hustle Fund said onstage at TechCrunch Disrupt last week. When a VC bull market hits and startups are able to easily raise a lot of money before they have real, provable businesses, they’ve set themselves up for difficult times. Because “the bar is higher for that next round,” she said.

If the company fails to grow into a lofty valuation, it could wind up burning its most valuable employees, said VC Renata Quintini, co-founder of Renegade Partners.

Read more on why startups shouldn’t always take the highest valuation at the link in the bio

Article by Julie Bort

Image Credits: Barak Shrama/ Slava Blazer Photography / Flickr

#TechCrunch #technews #startups #founders #VCs #funding #venturecapital

The Indian Government just dropped the BIGGEST Startup Money Map for 2026 and it’s packed with opportunities for founders.

From AI to prototypes to early-stage innovation, crores worth of support programs are opening up and most entrepreneurs don’t even know about them.

If you’re building something — this is the moment you can’t afford to miss.

Swipe left to see the schemes every founder should know in 2026.
Your next big opportunity might be on Slide 2.

Share this with a founder who needs to see this
Follow @marketing.growmatics for daily startup insights & real opportunities

#startupfunding #startupindia #businessnews #InnovationEconomy #IndiaTech #AatmanirbharBharat #Entrepreneurship #PMModi #entrepreneurlife #founderslife #aitools #innovationindia #fundingopportunities #startupgrants #indiantech #marketinggrowmatics #explorepage #trendingreels #startupjourney #buildinpublic

Microsoft and Nvidia have teamed up to invest in Anthropic, marking one of the biggest alliances in the AI industry this year.

As part of the deal, Anthropic will spend $30 billion on Microsoft’s Azure cloud, tightening the competition around frontier AI models.

Nvidia is expected to invest up to $10 billion, while Microsoft will put in up to $5 billion. Both companies are joining Anthropic’s next funding round, a move analysts say is designed to reduce their dependence on OpenAI.

Satya Nadella said Microsoft will continue working with OpenAI, but the company does not want to rely on a single frontier model provider.

The partnership also deepens Nvidia’s position in the AI ecosystem. The chipmaker will work with Anthropic on next-generation hardware, including efforts tied to its Grace Blackwell and Vera Rubin platforms.

Anthropic has committed up to 1 gigawatt of compute using Nvidia systems. Industry executives estimate this setup could cost more than $20 billion.

Anthropic is now one of the fastest-growing AI companies, valued at around $183 billion and powered by strong enterprise demand.

The company expects its revenue run rate to climb to nearly $26 billion next year, supported by more than 300,000 business customers.

Follow us (@artificialintelligenceee) for everything latest from the AI world.

Source: CNBC

Elon Musk took a jab at Jeff Bezos, calling him a “copycat” after the Amazon founder jumped into the AI race by funding a new $6.2-billion venture known as Project Prometheus.

Bezos is stepping back into an executive role as the startup’s co-CEO, focusing on “AI for the physical economy,” with plans to develop advanced AI systems for engineering and manufacturing in sectors like computing, aerospace, and automotive technology.

Project Prometheus has already assembled a team of over 100 people, including top AI researchers from Meta, OpenAI, and Google DeepMind. This marks Bezos’s first hands-on leadership role since he stepped down as Amazon’s CEO in 2021.

He will share the chief executive role with Vik Bajaj, co-founder of Verily and Foresite Labs.

Reacting to the announcement, Musk posted “Haha no way,” followed by the word “copy” and a cat emoji on X.

Follow us @FutureTech for more!

German startup SWARM Biotactics just secured €13 million in funding to turn live Madagascar hissing cockroaches into AI-powered spy robots equipped with miniature backpacks containing cameras, sensors, and neural stimulators that allow remote control for covert surveillance missions. The Kassel-based company represents the world's first commercial effort to create "biologically integrated, AI-enabled, and mass-deployable systems" that can infiltrate environments where traditional drones and ground robots completely fail.⁠
⁠
CEO Stefan Wilhelm revealed that each cockroach carries a lightweight backpack weighing up to 3 grams that includes tiny cameras for real-time reconnaissance, environmental sensors to detect gas or radiation, and neural stimulators that send electrical impulses to the insect's nervous system to control movement. The technology allows military operators to guide individual cockroaches through rubble, tight spaces, or hostile territories, or deploy entire swarms that operate autonomously using artificial intelligence coordination.⁠
⁠
The breakthrough addresses fundamental limitations of conventional surveillance technology in cluttered, GPS-denied environments like urban combat zones, collapsed buildings, or disaster areas. Unlike mechanical robots that require significant power and sophisticated navigation systems, cockroaches naturally excel at navigating complex terrain while requiring zero energy input for locomotion, making them ideal biological platforms for persistent intelligence gathering.⁠
⁠
These living surveillance systems could provide unprecedented tactical advantages in scenarios where conventional technology proves inadequate or too conspicuous for effective intelligence gathering.

A new era in wearable tech is being etched directly onto the eye.⁠
⁠
Dubai-based deeptech startup Xpanceo has raised $250 million in Series A funding to build what it claims is the world’s first multifunctional smart contact lens. The lens aims to merge augmented reality, health monitoring, and advanced optics—like night vision and zoom—into a featherlight device thinner than a human hair. With 15 functional prototypes already built, Xpanceo says it’s on track for clinical trials by 2026.⁠
⁠
The lens is packed with innovations: intraocular pressure sensors for non-invasive glaucoma monitoring, biochemical sensors that scan tear fluid for glucose, hormones, and vitamins, and integrated nanophotonic microdisplays that project AR directly onto the retina. It uses just 1–3 microwatts of power—making it hundreds of times more efficient than current AR headsets.⁠
⁠
Additional breakthroughs include wireless power transfer, real-time data transmission, color-blindness correction, and nanoparticle engineering for enhanced low-light vision. These modular capabilities could eventually adapt to specialized needs across healthcare, defense, industrial, and consumer sectors.⁠
⁠
Xpanceo's long-term vision is bold: replace smartphones, glasses, and even smartwatches with a single, invisible computing interface. Founders Roman Axelrod and Dr. Valentyn Volkov have doubled their team to 100 researchers, filed over 110 scientific publications, and built partnerships with global institutions. The company has also debuted its lenses at trade shows like MWC and GITEX, where it showcased wireless-charging designs and real-time biosensing.⁠
⁠
While challenges like FDA approval and miniaturization loom large, investors believe Xpanceo is leading the charge into the post-smartphone age. “They’re not just building a product,” said lead investor Opportunity Venture, “they’re rewriting the rules of personal tech.”

Tech4Gamers reports that Star Citizen has reached nearly $900 million in crowdfunding but still has no release window, remaining in alpha since 2012. Squadron 42 was once targeted for 2026, yet the director’s recent departure puts even that in doubt. After 13 years of development and a huge team, the full release is still uncertain.
Do you think the game’s massive scope is slowing development?

#StarCitizen

[Follow @gamenewsplusnet]

Hashtags:

#Gaming #VideoGames #Game #Gamer #GameNewsPlus

Not every business needs an app.
Not every success needs funding.

Some of the richest Indians run boring businesses That quietly make crores.

A small kiosk printing custom mobile covers…
A kitchen cooking clean meals for working women…
A charging booth helping strangers stay connected…
A mini projector turning living rooms into cinemas…

These aren’t startups.
They’re everyday problems turned into everyday income.

These aren’t flashy.
But they’re profitable.
And they work.

Save this if you’re done chasing trends.
Comment “” if you want more such ideas.
Follow @marketing.growmatics for no‑fluff, profit‑first business ideas.

#IndianEntrepreneurs #Passivelncome #mobile #tiffinservic #mobilecharging #miniprojector #smallbusiness #DesiBusiness #StartupGyaan #MarketingGrowmatics #Mukeshambani #SmallBusinessIndia #MakelnIndia

[Business, Startup, Money, Profit, Marketing, Trending, Risk, Investment, Moneymatters, Startupindia, Makeinindia, India, Smallbusiness, Passiveincome, Entrepreneurship, Growth, Wealth, Success, Finance, Cashflow]

Vertical farming company Plenty has filed for bankruptcy.

In its statement, Plenty said it has received a commitment for $20.7 million in debtor-in-possession financing as part of a proposed restructuring plan. It plans to continue to operate a strawberry farm in Virginia and a plant science research and development (R&D) center in Wyoming.

Debtor-in-possession financing is financing for firms in Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Since its 2014 inception, South San Francisco-based Plenty has raised nearly $1 billion in funding from a variety of investors, including SoftBank Investment Advisers, Walmart, Bezos Expeditions, and Jeff Bezos as an angel investor.

Its last known valuation was $1.9 billion at the time of a $400 million Series E fundraise in January 2022, according to PitchBook.

Read more on Plenty at the link in the bio

Article by Mary Ann Azevedo

Image Credits: Plenty

#TechCrunch #technews #Plenty #startup #farming #agrotech #agtech