Startups Draw Fresh Capital Across Energy, AI Code Testing and Drones

Blacksmith, a software infrastructure provider, raised $66 million in a Series C round led by Sequoia Capital at a $1 billion valuation, Ventureburn reported. Premji Invest joined, alongside existing investors Peak XV Partners, GV and Y Combinator. The raise, the company's ninth round, brings total funding to $125 million. Blacksmith, established in 2024 by Aditya Jayaprakash, Aayush Shah and Aditya Maru, runs continuous integration that builds and tests code when developers commit changes. It says 10,000 companies use its platform, and intends to grow its team and scale computing capacity.

Mach9 raised $34 million in a Series A round co-led by First Round Capital and Bessemer Venture Partners, with Prudence and existing investor Quiet Capital participating, per Ventureburn. The San Francisco-based company makes AI-powered computer-aided design software that converts 3D scans into digital blueprints for surveying and infrastructure work. It says the process runs up to 10 times faster at one-fifth the cost. The firm emerged from a hardware startup founded in 2021, with co-founder and chief executive Alex Baikovitz.

In Europe, Lisbon-based Beyond Vision completed a round of over €28 million, EU-Startups reported. It was co-led by Índico Capital Partners and Lince Capital, with a follow-on investment from ActiveCap, a shareholder since 2024. Founded in 2013 and led by chief executive Dário Pedro and chairman Luís Miguel Campos, the company develops dual-use autonomous unmanned aerial vehicles and AI algorithms. The capital will support scaling production capacity, advancing AI and swarm capabilities, and expanding its international presence in defence and critical infrastructure.

The German digital road freight forwarder says it expects to reach €1 billion in annual revenue this year and to deliver IFRS EBITDA profitability for 2026.