Hello Sifted reader,

Think you can go one day without hearing the word AI? Not today, I'm afraid, dear reader.

Mubadala, the deep-pocketed Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund, told Sifted it thinks AI is "one of the most exciting new supercycles" and is keen to get stuck in.

There are also not one, but two generative AI funding rounds getting announced today, with recent podcast guest Taavet Hinrikus's VC firm Plural leading one of the deals. Scroll on for details.

Generative AI is also on the agenda at our Stockholm Sessions event taking place next Wednesday (March 8). There are still attendee tickets available — snap yours up fast!

And, last one on the topic of AI: we want to speak to European startups with thoughts and worries about the upcoming EU's Artificial Intelligence Act. If that's you, please email Zosia.

– Amy Lewin, Sifted editor

A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSOR KLYMB

Want to fund 12 months of runway without giving up equity?

You can get venture debt term sheets in just weeks — allowing you to focus on growing your startup and boosting valuation. Klymb’s new founders’ guide outlines all you need to know about venture debt financing and its advantages.

Read now

💰 Former McKinsey set to raise one of CEE’s largest growth funds. The former head of McKinsey in Poland has joined Czech VC Orbit Capital as a partner to help it raise a €200m+ fund to invest in scaleups in central and eastern Europe, Sifted can confirm.

⚖️ Legal docs checker Robin A secures $10m. Robin AI uses generative AI to check legal contracts and documents for companies, cutting out the need for a lawyer. Its Series A round was led by VC firm Plural, with participation from Monzo founder Tom Blomfield.

📹 Text-to-video GenAI Colossyan raises Series A. The London-based startup, which lets users generate learning and development videos hosted by an AI avatar, has raised $5m. Clients already include Procter & Gamble and Hewlett-Packard.

🇫🇷 Inside Bpifrance: the colossus powering French tech’s rise. There is perhaps no organisation in Europe that has contributed more to the growth of a startup ecosystem than French state bank Bpifrance. In 2022 alone, it poured €1.6bn into French tech startups and venture funds, along with running a dizzying number of networking events, accelerator programmes, grant funding schemes and innovation competitions — and every year, it's just getting bigger and bigger. Chris O'Brien wraps his head around how it works.

🤖 AI is the next "exciting new supercycle". Mubadala is a pretty major player in European tech; it was involved in two of Europe's 10 biggest growth deals last year, and is remaining active at the early stage too. So when its head of ventures, Ibrahim Ajami, told Sifted what he's keen to invest in right now, we took notes.

🚀 Sun, sea and space: the next tourism frontier. Will normal people ever get to experience a mini-break in space? Sifted meets the European spacetech startups that could make it happen.

🥱 How to make your all-hands meetings less boring. It's hard to keep a team engaged during a dull all-hands — but that doesn't mean they need to be scrapped altogether. Here's how to improve those important updates and stop your employees from snoring.

Klarna & Northvolt on the line-up | Sifted Sessions \ Stockholm — one week to go!

Over $14bn was invested in Nordic startups in 2021, which is now home to two of Europe’s most valuable private companies — Klarna and Northvolt. Hear from Klarna CEO and cofounder Sebastian Siemiatkowski and Northvolt chief environment officer Emma Nehrenheim at Sifted Sessions \ Stockholm this March 8 at Münchenbryggeriet.

Register now.

Series A

Netherlands-based SOURCE develops AI-powered indoor farms. It's raised $23m in a round led by Astanor Ventures.
Metaverse game Worldwide Webb, which lets players use existing NFTs as in-game avatars, has raised $10m from crypto-focused VC Pantera Capital.

Pre-seed / seed

France's Obvy, a platform that helps businesses set up online shops, had raised €2m from 4Ventures and a number of angel investors.
Konfetti, a digital platform to find and book team events, has secured €2m led by Speedinvest, with participation from Peak, Angel Invest, and the Atomico Angel Fund.
UK-based Sprout, which connects private investors with leading VC funds that they can invest a minimum of £5,000 into, has drummed up $1m. A range of family offices and angel investors participated.

March 1 | As the cookie crumbles, who’s picking up the data crumbs?
Next year marks the start of a cookieless era — a fundamental shift in the digital business world causing havoc for marketing teams. But can they be replaced? Join experts from ChartMogul, Tulipshare, Twilio Segment, The Copy Club and Wise on March 1 to find out how to build effective first-party data that fuels personalisation and growth. Save your free (virtual) seat.

March 15 | How to turn your startup into a gigacorn. Climate tech bagged a record $15bn in funding in 2022 — but where are investors placing their bets this year? We'll ask 'em. Find out on March 15.

March 29 | How to take meaningful climate action at your startup

At our online Sifted Talks on March 29 sustainability experts will explain how you could reduce your startup's carbon footprint and stay sustainable as you scale. Grab a spot here.