This week brought significant developments for several Prime Unicorn Index components, with major fundraising rounds and IPO preparations. Here’s a look at the latest updates:
CoreWeave Prepares for a Potential $4 Billion IPO
CoreWeave, the AI-focused cloud provider backed by Nvidia, is gearing up for a possible IPO that could raise over $4 billion at a $32 billion valuation. The company has seen explosive growth, with revenues surging to $1.9 billion in 2024—an eightfold increase from the previous year. However, this week’s S-1 filing reveals that CoreWeave remains unprofitable, with $863 million in losses last year and a hefty $7.9 billion debt load. Notably, the company’s founders have already sold off nearly $488 million worth of shares through past tender offers but will retain control via their Class B shares, which grant them 80% of the voting power. According to Caplight, Coreweave most recently traded at $1215 in the secondaries market, implying a valuation of nearly $30 billion.
Anthropic Secures $3.5 Billion in Series E at a $61.5 Billion Valuation
AI safety and research firm Anthropic has raised a massive $3.5 billion Series E round, bringing its post-money valuation to a reported $61.5 billion. Led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and joined by investors like Bessemer Venture Partners, Fidelity, and Salesforce Ventures, the funding will accelerate the company’s development of next-generation AI models. Anthropic continues to push forward with products like Claude 3.7 Sonnet and Claude Code, which are gaining traction in enterprise applications, including integrations with Zoom, Snowflake, and Pfizer. Prime Unicorn Index covered Anthropic’s Series E, which priced its shares at $56.09, nearly a month ago. Anthropic is now trading above $70/share according to data from Caplight.
Shield AI Raises $240 Million at a $5.3 Billion Valuation
Defense tech startup Shield AI secured $240 million in new funding to expand the commercialization of its AI-powered drones. The company’s Hivemind software, which enables autonomous flight for fighter jets and drones, is drawing attention from a broader range of industries beyond defense. Investors in this round include major defense players like L3Harris and Hanwha Aerospace, with existing backers such as Andreessen Horowitz also participating. Shield AI now stands as the second-largest defense tech startup in the U.S. by valuation, following Anduril.
Flock Safety Nears $7.5 Billion Valuation in Andreessen Horowitz-led Round
Flock Safety, a provider of license plate-reading cameras and crime prevention technology, is reportedly raising about $250 million in a new round led by Andreessen Horowitz. The funding would boost the company’s valuation to approximately $7.5 billion, a significant increase from its $4.8 billion valuation last year. More than 5,000 cities use Flock Safety’s technology, which is designed to assist businesses, schools, and law enforcement agencies with crime detection and data analysis. Previous investors include Tiger Global, Spark Capital, and Bedrock. The Series H round was additionally disclosed in a filing with the state of Delaware on Wednesday.
Other News
Tessera Therapeutics disclosed a new Series D down round at $5.18 per share on Monday, implying a valuation of $605 million, significantly lower than its previous valuation of $1.84 billion. This comes after it was announced that the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation would be investing up to $50 million in the company.
Harness disclosed new Series D-1,2,3,4,5 shares in a filing on Tuesday, likely tied to its recently completed merger with Traceable.