Silicon Valley Funding News - Week of October 23, 2023. Nirvana Insurance Raised $57M Series B

Happy Monday from Riyadh!  I am attending FII (Future Investment Initiative) this week and hope to catch up with some of you here!

Here are a few great reads, watch, etc for this week:

• 💪 Sequoia is Ambitious on AI, Europe and X - I am most impressed that Roloef mentioned his team invested in 17 AI startups in stealth mode. Watch on Bloombereg
• 🐂 Why Silicon Valley Works - Even though he posted it nearly a decade ago, this article by Sam Altman makes me think about Hong Kong and why we need to create a founder community that truly cares.  How to replicate the success of Silicon Valley elsewhere?
  • Network effects
  • Capital Market
  • Having ambitious people who care most about technology
  • Focus on long-term compensation - not cash, equity
• 💪 The Techno-Optimist Manifesto by Marc Andreessen - We believe in the words of David Deutsch: "We have a duty to be optimistic. Because the future is open, not predetermined and therefore cannot just be accepted: we are all responsible for what it holds. Thus it is our duty to fight for a better world." We owe the past, and the future. It’s time to be a Techno-Optimist. It’s time to build. Read more
• 💰 Pros and Cons of Open Source AI Business Models - Startups building business models around the tech are beginning to delineate along two clear lines. Some, convinced that a proprietary and closed source approach will give them an advantage over the swarms of competitors, are choosing to keep their AI models and infrastructure in-house, shielded from public view. Others are open sourcing their models, methods and datasets, embracing a more community-led path to growth.  Read more on TC
• 👂 Intel’s Microchip Push and Pull between the US and China - Intel's plans to invest billions in U.S. semiconductor production have made it a White House darling. But the Biden administration's crackdown on China's access to chips could still sting the company's business there. Super interesting to hear Intel's perspective on China and their ambition to become the only Foundry that is born and raised in America. Listen here

This week a total of 20 startups raised $306.6M in funding, 1 M&A:

• $86M goes to 8 Enterprise startups
• $57M goes to 1 InsurTech startup
• $51M goes to 3 Healthcare startups
• $25.5M goes to 1 BioTech startup
• $8.3M goes to 1 Real Estate startup
• $4M goes to 1 Environmental startup
• $30M goes to 1 Excavation startup
• $23.5M goes to 1 Construction startup
• $3.3M goes to 1 Media startup
• $12M goes to 1 Wearables startup
• $6M goes to 1 Sports startup