Startups That Made Waves This Week

This week, that has reflected massive funding in the technological sector. China, the hub of emerging technological advancement, has received significant funding for Artificial intelligence, and no doubt the fund will be utilized to thrive in several sectors with AI technology. Currently, this technology is trending and will play a crucial role in making the overall economy drive forward.

EnergyX, the Korea-based tech firm, received significant funding of USD 50 million to enhance commercial production. At the same time, Indonesia-based East Ventures has come forward to invest a considerable figure of USD 30 million to improve the health care local start-up firms. The fund will also be segregated into biotechnology and various others that benefit mankind. 

The Startups that gained fortune this week are-:

Zhipu AI

It’s become increasingly evident that two parallel AI universes are forming between the U.S. and China. While the U.S. has spawned notable players like OpenAI and Anthropic, China has its own emerging candidates. One of these foundation model developers, Zhipu AI, announced that it has raised 2.5 billion yuan ($340 million) in total financing to date this year.

Founded in 2019, Zhipu was spun out of China’s prestigious Tsinghua University and is led by Tang Jie, a professor in the university’s Department of Computer Science and Technology.

The announcement has come at a delicate time. This week, the Biden administration imposed additional restrictions on the export of Nvidia AI chips to China, further impeding its rival’s ability to train large language models. In anticipation of semiconductor bans from Washington, China’s deep-pocketed AI companies have been stockpiling semiconductors, spending hundreds of millions of dollars on these much-coveted chips.

Healthcare

JAKARTA -- East Ventures has launched a $30 million health care fund which is expected to be closed soon, said Willson Cuaca, founder and managing partner of the Indonesia-focused venture capital firm.

The fund will invest in early-stage local startups across various sectors in health care, but the ticket size is not capped. "We won't combine the health care fund with other funds as it is unique and heavily regulated," Cuaca added.

It will invest across several key sectors or industries such as biotechnology and health care, future mobility, green technology and media content, the release added.

J&T Global Express

J&T Global Express, an Indonesian courier services startup, announced on Oct 16 that it planned to raise up to HK$3.92 billion ($500.97 million) in Hong Kong's second-largest initial public offering (IPO) in 2023. According to regulatory filings, the company, which primarily operates in Southeast Asia and China, will issue 326.5 million shares at HK$12.00 each.

According to the prospectus, J&T will have a market capitalisation of HK$105.75 billion ($13.51 billion), which is in line with the valuation achieved during its most recent private fundraising round in May. The IPO valuation is significantly lower than the $20 billion J&T was valued at in a 2021 funding round. J&T had hoped to raise $1 billion in the IPO but reduced its target after discussions with investors.

EnergyX

Posco Holdings, a South Korean conglomerate, is leading a consortium that is investing in lithium technology company EnergyX as it investigates more effective ways to create the battery metal for the green energy transition. The global rush to electrify the economy has fueled a search for a dependable lithium supply and other important minerals, drawing attention to as-yet unproven direct lithium extraction (DLE) technology developed by EnergyX and its colleagues.

South Korea's Elohim Partners and IMM Investment Global will invest in EnergyX's $50 million Series B funding round as part of the deal. The companies said that Posco, which invests through those funds, will work with EnergyX to help its technology reach commercial production.