Sifted - Bpifrance’s cash at stake

Good morning there,

The results of our founder's mental health survey are in — and they don’t paint a pretty picture.

Over a third of the survey’s 138 respondents say they’re thinking of leaving their companies in the next 12 months. Miriam Partington and Maya Dharampal-Hornby dive into the findings here.

The founders behind Swedish AI agent-maker Lovable may have woken up today feeling happier than most. The startup which announced its $15m pre-Series A on Tuesday claims to be the fastest-growing startup in Europe ever. So what makes them so lovable? I met up with them to find out. 

If you work at a startup that’s also growing fast, you should apply to Sifted’s leaderboards — rankings celebrating the region’s fastest-growing startups. Applications for the Sifted UK & Ireland leaderboard close tomorrow.

Elsewhere today…

• Bpifrance has over €30m on the line in Ÿnsect collapse
• Meet the eight startups using AI to fight malicious AI
• Top 10 startup hubs in Europe

— Mimi Billing, Europe editor

/A message from our sponsor J.P. Morgan

Meet your local banking team

Connect with J.P. Morgan Innovation Economy's banking team, dedicated to fostering innovation and supporting the growth of emerging companies. Let us help guide you to IPO and beyond.

💰 Bpifrance has over €30m on the line in Ÿnsect collapse. After French insect protein startup Ÿnsect filed for insolvency proceedings on Monday, Sifted looked into the investors with most on the line. 

🏦 London-based fintech Zopa has announced plans for a new office in the capital’s bustling Canary Wharf area.

Growth vs cost: The new CFO mindset

With cost discipline top of mind, CFOs are rethinking their strategy — balancing rapid growth with profitability. But where should startups invest, and where should they cut back? Join this Sifted Talks to find out.

😪 More than half of founders experienced burnout last year. The tough economic climate is leaving many founders feeling “permanently stressed,” as one of 138 respondents of Sifted’s mental health survey put it. 

❤️ Is this AI agent-maker Europe’s fastest-growing software startup ever? Swedish Lovable has been called “the biggest story at the moment” and on Tuesday Sifted revealed its latest fundraise – a $15m pre-series A led by Creandum. 

🤔 Where in Europe is best to build a startup? If you’re asking this question, you’re in luck — today The Financial Times, Sifted and data provider Statista have released a ranking of 150 of Europe’s startup hubs. Spoiler: Munich and Paris-based hubs dominate the top 10.

🪞Meet the eight startups using AI to fight malicious AI. Sifted takes a tour of the European founders using AI to combat everything from bots to copyright theft and deepfakes.

Warsaw-based Nomagic, which develops robots to automate repetitive tasks in warehouses, raised $44m in funding. EBRD led the round and was joined by investors including Khosla Ventures and Almaz Capital.

London-based Relay, which is building an AI-powered logistics network for e-commerce retailers, raised $35m in Series A funding. Plural led the round and was joined by investors including Project A and Prologis Ventures.

London-based Napo, which delivers pet insurance solutions, raised €14.4m in Series B funding. Mercia Ventures led the round and was joined by investors including DN Capital, Companion Fund, MTech Capital and Helvetia Venture Fund.

Barcelona, Spain-based Flanks, a fintech focused on wealth management, raised €14m in funding. Motive Ventures led the round and was joined by investors including Battery Ventures. 

Barcelona, Spain-based Cafler, a platform for car repair and maintenance services, offering services from maintenance to insurance and renting, raised $11m in Series A funding. Copec Wind, Alumni VC, güil and Plug and Play co-led the round and were joined by investors including Seaya, Shilling and Wayra.

Amsterdam-based Carbonx, which builds carbon black plants for graphene production, raised €7.5m in grant and equity funding from the European Innovation Council.

Berlin-based Deutsche Sanierungsberatung (Dsb), which supports renovation projects for residential homes across Europe, raised €3.6m in seed funding. Vireo Ventures led the round and was joined by investors including FJ Labs, IBB Ventures and Saxovent.

Stuttgart, Germany-based Qrago, a mediation and scheduling software for logistics tasks in healthcare, raised €2.7m in seed funding. Āltitude and MobilityFund led the round and were joined by investors including Segenia Capital and capacura.

Eindhoven, the Netherlands-based Keiron, which is working on a contactless printing technology, raised €1.5m in seed extension funding. Cottonwood Technology Fund led the round.

Stockholm-based Sponswatch, an AI-powered sponsorship analytics platform. raised €1m in seed funding. Node VC led the round and was joined by investors including Venrex.

Copenhagen-based Tracksights, an intelligence platform for the automotive sector, raised €1m in pre-seed funding. Maki VC led the round.

Berlin-based Ctrl+s, which provides insights into supply chains to support effective sustainability strategies and decarbonisation efforts, raised €1m in seed funding. HTGF led the round and was joined by investors including Benjamin Schulz.

Brussels-based Maya, which provides AI-powered travel services, raised €1m in funding. Investors included Matthias Geeroms, Ivo Minjauw, Peter De Moor and Vincent Goemaere.

If you’d like to submit a deal, get in touch. 

For more deals, analysis and M&A insight, become a Pro subscriber to receive our weekly Deals newsletter.