AI infrastructure agents Regulated prediction markets Robotics / physical AI consolidation Vertical AI SaaS (legaltech, workflow) Enterprise infra hires & GP talent

VC Pulse — Top Funds’ **only-latest-7-days** moves (Oct 4–11, 2025) — concise investor briefing

Posted on October 11, 2025 at 09:28 PM

VC Pulse — Top Funds’ only-latest-7-days moves (Oct 4–11, 2025) — concise investor briefing

Startup / Asset Sector Round / Event (date) Lead Investors / Actors Valuation* Notes
Kalshi Prediction markets / Fintech Series D — ~$300M (Oct 10, 2025) Sequoia Capital, a16z (and others) $5.0B (post-money reported). Rapid overseas expansion plan; regulated-exchange play in event markets. Reported by Bloomberg; a16z announced investment. (Bloomberg)
ABB Robotics (business unit) Robotics / Industrial AI Acquisition — $5.375B (deal announced Oct 8, 2025) SoftBank Group (buyer) $5.375B (deal price) Strategic SoftBank push into “physical AI” and robotics; closes expected mid–late 2026. Reuters & SoftBank press release. (Reuters)
n8n Workflow automation / AI agents Series C (announced Oct 9, 2025) Accel (led) + strategic investors N/A (not disclosed) Positioning as AI-native orchestration layer for agents — Accel cites enterprise traction. (accel.com)
Kernel (browser infra for agents) AI infra / Agent tooling Investment announced Oct 9, 2025 Accel (participation) N/A Accel highlights Kernel as browser infra for agent-based apps — signals investor interest in agent runtimes. (accel.com)
Relace (Web3 / tokenized markets — firm site) a16z investment (announcement Oct 8–10, 2025) a16z announced a stake N/A a16z posted a funding announcement / play commentary (Relace detail on a16z site). May reflect a16z renewed crypto/prediction market appetite. (Andreessen Horowitz)
EvenUp Legaltech / AI for legal services Series E (round news ~Oct 8, 2025) Lightspeed Venture Partners (participating) >$2B (stated >$2B after round) Lightspeed reiterated conviction with follow-on financing; legaltech consolidation signal. (Lightspeed Venture Partners)
Graphcore — India investment / AI campus AI chips / Hardware Strategic investment plan — up to $1B in India (announced Oct 11, 2025) SoftBank (owner/strategic) / Graphcore N/A SoftBank-owned Graphcore to open AI engineering campus and invest in India — regional footprint & hardware buildout. (Data Center Dynamics)
a16z (firm-level hires & posture) VC firm update GP hire: Raghu Raghuram joined a16z (reported Oct 9, 2025) Andreessen Horowitz N/A Major strategic hire from enterprise/infra (ex-VMware CEO) — strengthens infra & enterprise deal sourcing. Reported by Axios. (Axios)
YC / Techstars (accelerators) Accelerators / Early-stage Program cohort / Demo activity (last week → ongoing Oct 4–11 window) Y Combinator, Techstars N/A YC Summer/Fall demo activity continues; Techstars announced Fall cohorts — continued deal flow pipeline for seed-stage investors. See YC/Techstars announcements & press. (TechCrunch)

*Valuations are included only when publicly reported in the cited sources.

Brief commentary on trends (data-driven & concise)

  • Prediction markets & regulated exchanges: Kalshi’s large Series D and $5B valuation (Sequoia + a16z participation) marks renewed institutional confidence in regulated event/derivatives markets — investors are willing to back exchange-like startups with regulatory moats. (Bloomberg)
  • AI infrastructure & agent stack: Accel’s back-to-back investments (n8n Series C; Kernel participation) underscore a durable investor shift toward agent orchestration layers and browser/runtime infra that enable AI apps at scale. Expect intense M&A interest from infra players and cloud providers. (accel.com)
  • Robotics / physical AI consolidation: SoftBank’s ABB robotics acquisition (and Graphcore’s India investment) signals capital flowing into hardware + system-level AI (robotics, chips, edge/engineering campuses) — strategic, large-ticket deals by corporate investors. (Reuters)
  • Follow-ons into later-stage vertical SaaS / legaltech: Lightspeed’s participation in EvenUp’s >$2B round shows conviction in verticalized AI SaaS with strong ARR metrics. Expect pricier late-stage rounds in revenue-generative categories. (Lightspeed Venture Partners)
  • Talent & firm strategy moves: a16z hiring Raghu Raghuram (ex-VMware) signals renewed focus on enterprise & infra — firms are hedging on deep operator talent to source larger enterprise deals. (Axios)

Market potential, risks, and strategic fit (quick investor view)

  • High potential: AI infra/agent tooling (Kernel, n8n), regulated fintech exchanges (Kalshi) — large addressable markets, strong network effects and enterprise adoption vectors. (Bloomberg)
  • Principal risks: Regulation (prediction markets, crypto/Web3), capital intensity & long hardware cycles (robotics/chips), macro funding volatility for late-stage rounds (could compress exit multiples). SoftBank-sized deals carry integration risk. (Reuters)

  • Strategic fit for top funds:

    • Sequoia / a16z: gravitating toward market-defining platforms (exchanges, infra). Kalshi is aligned with both firms’ preference for platform and network-effect businesses. (Bloomberg)
    • Accel / Lightspeed: double-down on actionable enterprise AI (n8n, EvenUp) where ARR and unit economics are visible. (accel.com)
    • SoftBank: continues to pursue large strategic, physical-AI and hardware investments (ABB robotics, Graphcore India) consistent with “scale plays.” (ソフトバンクグループ株式会社)

Actionable insights for investors & analysts

  1. Prioritize diligence on regulatory exposure for any fintech / prediction market / Web3 targets — Kalshi-sized deals are possible but regulators can materially change TAM. (Bloomberg)
  2. Monitor agent orchestration startups (workflow + runtime) — firms like Accel are signaling an early window to capture infra share before consolidation; look for strong developer adoption metrics (DAU/MAU, retention). (accel.com)
  3. For corporate / late-stage funds, evaluate robotics & chip plays for strategic synergies (supply chain, data center, manufacturing) — SoftBank’s ABB deal is a template for an industrial consolidation play. (Reuters)
  4. Seed/accelerator sourcing remains fertile — keep VC scout channels active at YC/Techstars demo cycles to capture promising agent/infra early-stage teams. (TechCrunch)
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