Uzbekistan’s First Unicorn Uzum Hits $1.5B Valuation

Uzbekistan’s Uzum is proving that Central Asia isn’t just catching up—it’s arriving. The startup just bagged $65.5 million from Tencent and VR Capital, lifting its valuation to $1.5 billion. That’s a major statement. With 17 million users and 16,000 merchants, Uzum’s mix of e-commerce, fintech, and delivery is clearly working. Now, it’s eyeing bigger moves—scaling digital banking, expanding SME services, and going global. Honestly, it’s exciting to see a Tashkent-based startup punch into unicorn territory. Uzum’s rise isn’t just a local win—it’s a signal that the region’s tech scene deserves serious global attention.

Read more: TechCrunch

STAN Raises $8.5M to Challenge Discord in India’s Gaming Community

Indian mobile gaming platform STAN has raised $8.5 million in a Series A round led by Google’s AI Futures Fund and top Japanese gaming firms. With 25 million downloads and rapid product-driven growth, STAN now supports 5.5 million monthly users and has scaled revenues to $7.87 million in FY25. The funding will support expansion to other mobile-first markets and boost its AI-powered personalization and blockchain-based gamer profiles. In a booming Indian gaming market expected to hit $9.1 billion by 2029, STAN stands out with voice clubs and mobile-focused features targeting tier-2/3 cities.

Read more: Moneycontrol

1KOMMA5°, BlinkOps, and Dropzone AI Raise Over $250M to Boost AI-Powered Innovation

Three cutting-edge startups just secured major funding, signaling big trends in AI-powered tech. German company 1KOMMA5° raised €150 million pre-IPO to scale its AI-driven home energy platform—aiming to make sustainable, CO₂-neutral power management affordable and widespread across Europe and Australia. In cybersecurity, BlinkOps brought in $50 million to expand its “security micro-agents,” which automate repetitive security duties for enterprises without code, improving focus on real threats. Meanwhile, Dropzone AI landed $37 million to grow its AI-driven autonomous SOC analysts, which leverage large language models to investigate and triage security incidents at scale. Collectively, these investments highlight the rapid integration of AI into energy and cybersecurity, boosting efficiency and automation across critical industries.

Read more: TechStartups

Enlite Raises ₹46 Cr to Take Smart Building Tech Global

Mumbai-based startup Enlite has raised ₹46 crore in Series A funding led by Avaana Capital to take its AI-powered building automation systems global. Founded in 2017, Enlite makes plug-and-play solutions combining hardware, cloud, and edge AI—no rewiring needed. After bootstrapping for 7 years, the company now plans to expand into the Middle East and Southeast Asia while growing its presence across Indian sectors like hospitality, pharma, and real estate. Already deployed across 25 million sq. ft., Enlite’s tech aims to replace outdated, fragmented systems with smart, efficient automation. The team is also piloting an LLM directly on its hardware.

Credit: YourStory

Anduril Alums Raise $24M to Fix Military Logistics Mess

In a fresh twist to Silicon Valley’s defense-tech play, Anduril alums David Tuttle and Peter Goldsborough have raised $24 million to drag military logistics out of the spreadsheet era. Their startup, Rune Technologies, is building TyrOS — a deep tech logistics platform that works even on a jungle laptop, predicting supply needs and optimizing military resources. Unlike flashy weapons firms, Rune focuses on the boring (but vital) backend of war. With backing from a16z and Palantir execs, this AI-powered tool might just be the invisible backbone of future warfare.

Credit: TechCrunch

YC-Backed Greptile Eyes $30M Series A Amid Intense AI Code Review Rivalry

AI startup Greptile is reportedly raising a $30 million Series A at a $180M valuation, with Benchmark leading the round. Founded by 22-year-old Dasksh Gupta post-Georgia Tech and fresh out of Y Combinator’s 2024 batch, the startup is betting big on AI-driven code reviews. Its bot reviews code like a senior engineer, spotting bugs humans may miss. But Greptile isn’t just pushing boundaries in tech—it’s also under fire for its intense work culture. Gupta himself admits there’s “no work-life balance,” with employees grinding 9 am to 11 pm. The ambition is undeniable, but the pressure? That’s the price some startups pay chasing top spot.

Credit: TechCrunch

Boulevard Raises $80M as Medspa Boom Fuels Growth

Self-care tech startup Boulevard just raised $80M in Series D funding, boosting its valuation to nearly $800M. Originally built to help salons manage online bookings, the platform now powers 15% of U.S. medspas, offering tools like HIPAA-compliant injection mapping and payment processing. With beauty and wellness services expanding into medical territory—like Botox and GLP-1 weight loss meds—Boulevard’s client base and revenue (up 500% in 3 years) are growing fast. Led by JMI Equity, this round shows investor confidence in Boulevard’s niche in the booming medspa market.

Credit: TechCrunch

Anthropic Eyes $100 Billion Valuation as Claude Chatbot Revenue Soars

AI startup Anthropic is drawing strong investor interest with talks of a possible valuation crossing $100 billion. Though the company isn’t officially fundraising, top VCs are making unsolicited offers, driven by the rapid growth of its Claude chatbot, whose annualized revenue jumped from $3 billion to $4 billion in just a month. Earlier this year, Anthropic raised $3.5 billion at a $61.5 billion valuation, led by Lightspeed Ventures. Founded in 2021 by siblings Daniela and Dario Amodei, the company is backed by tech giants like Amazon, Alphabet, and Salesforce Ventures.

Credit: Bloomberg

Indian Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla Returns to Earth After 18-Day Space Mission

Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla successfully completed his 18-day space mission and has now returned to Earth. On July 15, his spacecraft, Dragon, made a safe landing in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California. Shukla launched into space on June 26 alongside astronauts from the U.S., Poland, and Hungary as part of the Axiom-4 mission, traveling over 6 million miles while conducting key experiments. After undocking from the ISS, the crew spent nearly 22.5 hours before splashdown. Shukla will undergo a 7-day rehab program to readjust to Earth’s gravity. His family expressed joy and anticipation at his safe return.

Credit: TOI

Bitcoin Nears Double YoY as Wall Street & Washington Fuel Surge

Bitcoin has nearly doubled in value over the past year, recently touching $123K before settling around $116K. Unlike past rallies, this surge is being driven by growing institutional demand, massive ETF inflows, and rising adoption from major firms like BlackRock and GameStop. Spot Bitcoin ETFs traded on U.S. exchanges have now amassed more than $150 billion in assets. Meanwhile, Congress is actively discussing crypto regulation during “Crypto Week,” with bills that may reshape the legal landscape. The proposed Clarity Act could finally provide clear oversight, giving the CFTC control over digital commodities like Bitcoin — paving the way for broader institutional involvement.

Credit: CNBC

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