‘Excited’ and ‘scary’: AI funding frenzy brings all the emotions

Supply chain startup unpacks $89M July 6, 2023 Hi, {NAME}. The very mention of AI might make you either pull out your wallet or hide under your desk — or both — as we all cope with the tech sector’s latest obsession. Either way, it looks like the AI funding party’s just begun. Plus, supply chain startup [CADDi]( receives an $89 million delivery. 🔥 [After sizzling first half, don’t expect AI investment to cool off]( Seems like nearly every startup is claiming the AI label these days as one huge funding round is followed by an even bigger one. AI buzz has dominated the first half of this year, and all signs point to more big announcements to come. In this Mid-Year Report, we dig into 2023’s numbers and trends for AI investment. 📦 [CADDi lands $89M in sagging supply chain management sector]( Global procurement startup [CADDi]( locked up an $89 million Series C even as the supply chain management sector has seen a significant decline in funding. The Tokyo-based company plans to use the cash to help generate $10 billion in revenue by 2030 as well as expand its U.S. office. 📉 [AI was Q2’s big hope to end funding slowdown. It wasn’t enough]( Artificial intelligence gave investors a lot to cheer about in second-quarter 2023, with hefty funding rounds, large acquisitions and rising stock prices. But global venture funding still fell 18% in Q2 quarter over quarter to $65 billion, [Crunchbase]( data shows. We dig into the numbers. 💲 [Mid-Year Report: Who could still go public in 2023?]( While IPOs came to a screeching halt last year, we’ve seen a few promising public offerings in the first half of 2023. Here are ideas for 11 companies — ranging from fashion to fintech to pharma and of course AI — that could take on the public markets in the second half. 🔮 [Reader survey: Recession fears linger, cash runways in danger]( Most of you still think a recession this year is more likely than not. You’re tinkering with AI tools, but not yet convinced they’re world-changing. Your companies are still slashing costs. And almost a third of you say your companies only have six months of runway left in the bank. (Yikes!) Those are some of the takeaways from our latest quarterly Crunchbase News reader survey, where we gauged your sentiments about the state of the economy, company financials and yes, AI. 🏆 [The Megadeals Leaderboard: Track $100M+ rounds]( Keep track of the largest startup funding deals in 2023 with our curated list of $100 million-plus venture deals to U.S.-based companies. Powered by Crunchbase’s comprehensive data, this leaderboard is updated weekly as companies raise large rounds. [Crunchbase ROI Calculator]( [See the number of new accounts Crunchbase can add to your funnel with our advanced prospecting ROI calculator powered by Crunchbase data.]( [Calculate]( Recent Investments [Field]( [100M GBP]( / [Venture Round]( Field is a renewable energy company aiming to accelerate the build-out of renewable infrastructure needed to reach net zero. Categories: Clean Energy • Energy Management • Renewable Energy Founders: [Amit Gudka]( Investors: [DIF]( (Lead) [CADDi]( [$89M]( / [Series C]( CADDi is an online ordering platform that tracks industrial products for the manufacturing business. Categories: Information Services • Information Technology • Manufacturing • Supply Chain Management Founders: [Daiki Yukimatsu]( [Kobashi Akifumi]( [Yushiro Kato]( Investors: [DCM Ventures]( (Lead), [Global Brain Corporation]( (Lead), [Globis Capital Partners]( (Lead) [+ 7 more]( [illimity]( [56M EUR]( / [Post-IPO Equity]( Illimity is a digital bank that provides direct and investment banking services. Categories: Banking • Finance • Financial Services Founders: [Corrado Passera]( Investors: [Engineering Ingegneria Informatica]( (Lead) More Fundings Company Amount / Round Lead Investor [WANdisco]( $30M / [Post-IPO Equity]( - [Tandem]( 20M GBP / [Venture Round]( [Quilam Capital]( [GIVA]( 2.0B INR / [Series B]( [PremjiInvest]( [Gooten]( $11M / [Series A]( [KEC Ventures]( [Smartstaff]( $6.2M / [Series A]( - [Formaloo]( 2.0M EUR / [Seed Round]( [Change Ventures]( [DealCart]( Unknown / [Seed Round]( [Shorooq Partners]( [All Recent Funding Activity]( Recent Acquisitions [Kevin's Natural Foods]( Pending acquisition by [Mars]( for $800M More Acquisitions Company Acquired By Amount [Ulterra]( [Patterson-Uti Energy]( $370M [All Recent Acquisition Activity]( #{Rails.configuration.daily.cb_url} Discover innovative companies and the people behind them. [Follow Us on Crunchbase]( [View Jobs on LinkedIn]( [Follow Us on Twitter]( [Like Us on Facebook]( 564 Market St, San Francisco, CA 94104 © 2023 Crunchbase Inc. All rights reserved. [Privacy Policy]( | [Terms of Service]( [Unsubscribe]( from Crunchbase Daily.