AI beyond the hype

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Hello reader,

“I’d like to go one day without seeing ‘AI’ in the newspaper,” my mom said to me a few weeks ago. She’s a little tired of seeing the term thrown around so much.

I told her to imagine what it’s like for me. I work in the tech sector – there’s no escape.

Much like Thanos in Avengers: Endgame (“I am inevitable”), it does seem that AI is coming for us, in some form, shape, or way. What’s heartening for me personally is seeing how people are thinking deeper about the tech: the implications using it holds, its actual value, and how we can use AI productively. We’re looking beyond the hype at what it can actually do, and I think that’s important.

Case in point: While three of the five startups on our list of this week’s biggest deals are classified as AI companies, two of them are heavily involved in physical tech and mobility. This marks growing interest in how AI is being applied to revolutionize capital-intensive hardware, logistics, and transportation, rather than just generative software.

Here’s to us building more useful things with AI, instead of generating another awful image of some public figure, or whatever.

You can find all other important investment deals from the last few days in our weekly funding news wrap-up.

Let’s dive into the biggest deals and M&A that have recently taken place.

— Stefanie

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The biggest deals by market

🇰🇷 Wrtn Technologies, an AI services platform headquartered in South Korea, has raised US$72.2 million in series C funding. New investors include Coreline Ventures and Eugene Asset Management, alongside existing backers Goodwater Capital and Korea Development Bank.

🇦🇪 Fasset, a stablecoin-based financial services platform from the United Arab Emirates, has bagged US$68 million in series C funding from SBI Holdings and Speedinvest.

🇮🇳 Airbound is a drone tech startup based in India. It has secured US$37 million in series A funding from DoorDash, Greenoaks Capital, Humba Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and entrepreneur Lachy Groom.

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M&A

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Startup in the spotlight

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Behind the Glasswall

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12 ready-to-deploy solutions, 0% theory

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Exclusive listicles

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