Startup School is back! Master Gen AI and skyrocket your growth

Google for Startups' Startup School: Gen AI is back in session on Oct 29th— if you want to kickstart your AI expertise, this time we're focusing on practical applications of generative AI, with a new chapter about data-driven growth with BigQuery & Gemini. This immersive, four-week training is designed to help you master the latest Google Cloud generative and conversational AI solutions to take your business to the next level. In this semester’s sessions, we will also cover Google Cloud’s Partner Ecosystem, including Anthropic & Google DeepMind, and how startups can leverage them to expand their AI toolkit.

Don’t be late for Startup School— register today to save your seat.

Startup funding news 💸

• Barcelona-based Submer raised $55.5M at a $500M valuation, led by M&G, to enhance its innovative cooling technology for data centers, which involves submerging server racks in biodegradable, non-conducting coolant
• Barcelona-based Koa Health is preparing a €40M funding round, with €18M expected from the European Investment Bank (EIB). The funds will support the development of its Koa Care 360 platform, combining digital tools with clinical care for mental health
• Barcelona-based logistics company Paack raised €22M, led by Infravia and Unbound, to improve the company’s operational efficiency after announcing layoffs affecting almost half of its staff a few months ago. More info here
• Madrid-based Be Levels, a health supplement company, secured €6M from Axon Partners Group
• Madrid-based fintech startup Reveni raised €5M in debt and equity, led by Inveready and Banco Santander. Reveni enables instant refunds and exchanges
• Squirrel Media has acquired a 10.5% stake in second-hand fashion platform GoTrendier for €4.4M, thus valuting the company at €41M
• Madrid-based Loud Intelligence raised over €1M from Demium, Encomenda and others. The round will support the development of Voi<3, an AI platform for contextual audio advertising
• Barcelona-based KomboAI closed a €700k round led by Demium, with participation from Encomenda, Eoniq, and others. This investment will help the company enhance its AI-driven recruitment platform. More info here
• Other rounds of funding:
• Soluciones Industriales HAUX: €500k, modular industrialized construction

M&A activity 🎊

• Cinven, EQT, and CPPIB have postponed for the second time the IPO of Hotelbeds, valued at €4B, due to market uncertainty caused by tensions in the Middle East and the elections in the U.S. The IPO, initially scheduled for October, is now expected in the first quarter of 2025
• Indra plans to sequentially sell the majority of its technology division Minsait, starting with the sale of 100% of Minsait Payments, with the aim of raising approximately €600M. Bidders include Constellation Software, Cinven and Pollen Street and others

Investor & accelerator news 🚀

• New funds or updates on fundraising activity:
• Hyperion, a fund led by former PP president Pablo Casado, has reached €150M in comittments in six months, according to Cinco Dias. Focused on defense technology, aerospace, cybersecurity, and AI, the fund secured investments from major companies like Indra, Sapa, Prosegur, and Fond-ICO
• HWK Techinvestment has launched a fund to invest in AI, cybersecurity, and observability, with the goal of reaching €65M. The fund is led by Juan Santamaría, former CEO of Panda Security
• Itnig Capital is a new €15M fund launched by Itnig’s founders Jordi Romero and Bernat Farrero. The fund, which will also be managed by Marcel Queralt, will focus on pre-seed investments in Spain, up to €250k per company. Jordi, Bernat and Marcel talked about the fund in the itnig podcast
• Grow Venture Partners has closed the investment period of its first fund, Grow Seed Fund I, investing in 17 companies
• Angels Capital sold 5% of his stake in the Valencia-based startup Fourvenues to Base 10 and Acurio Ventures (previously All Iron) funds, retaining 0.3%. Fourvenues provides software for managing nightlife and music events
• UPC (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya) sold its 1.43% stake in Mitiga Solutions in the company’s last founding round. Mitiga is a spin-off of the UPC
• UK investment firm Connect Ventures was one of the first investors in Barcelona-based Typeform. Now, Connect’s first fund, which includes Typeform as one of its best investments and portfolio companies, has been sold to also UK firm Molten Ventures

Startup news 💡

• Very interesting thread by David Miranda about Emerita Legal, a Galician startup that was trying to democratize the access of court rulings in Spain. Due to various reasons, which David covers in his thread, the company had to shut down. The main reason was unfair competition from existing players that control the market
• Techcrunch published a long profile of Heura, the plant-based meat startup. The company is shifting its mission to focus on replacing junk food with healthier plant-based alternatives
• Profile of Estoko Logistics, a startup founded in 2021 that offers a flexible logistics solution through its platform, connecting businesses to over 500 validated warehouses across Spain and Portugal
• Expansion published an article on the journey of Spanish entrepreneurs that have focused their companies in the LatAm market, featuring Sergio Furio (Creditas), Belvo, Diego Ballesteros (Bewe), Jesus Monleon (GoTrendier) and others
• Silbo Money, the fintech created by former BBVA CEO Ángel Cano and other former banking executives, has received a license from the Bank of Spain to begin its operations. The company plans to focus on payments via Whatsapp
• New companies or product launches:
• Multiplo Capital came out of stealth, a personal finance app for millennials

Big company news 🏦

• BBVA has agreed to invest $187M together with KKR in its climate strategy, focusing on the transition to a low-carbon economy. The alliance aims to identify investment opportunities in climate infrastructure
• Interview with the CEO of Waylet, Repsol’s loyalty payments app. The app was launched by Klikin, the startup acquired by the energy giant years ago. Between 2021 and 2024 usage has doubled, to 8M registered users
• Google will continue investing in Malaga "para que sea el centro neurálgico de Europa en ciberseguridad". In the same city: Accenture will establish one of its six global AI hubs in Málaga, Spain
• The CNMC reduced a proposed €485M fine against Booking to €413M due to insufficient evidence regarding anti-competitive practices. The fine relates to Booking’s abuse of its dominant position in Spain’s hotel booking market. Two major infractions were upheld, but the third, linked to unfair competition, was dropped
• Fluidra invested in the French company Ecotropy through its Fluidra Ventures fund. Ecotropy specializes in digital twins for energy efficiency in pools,

Crescenta es la primera gestora digital de Capital Privado para invertir en fondos exclusivos, con rentabilidades objetivo de +15%*. Hasta ahora estaban reservados a altos patrimonios, pero hemos democratizado esta inversión dándote acceso desde 10.000€ (a desembolsar gradualmente). EQT, Cinven, Insight... fondos de primer nivel a golpe de clic.

Invierte en Crescenta.com | Consulta los fondos

Además, si estás este jueves en Madrid, acércate a la charla “Democratización y digitalización de la inversión”, en la que participará Ramiro Iglesias, CEO y cofundador, junto a François Derbaix. Es gratis y te puedes apuntar aquí.

Interesting reads 🤓

• Carmen Alfonso Rico, founder of investment firm Cocoa, wrote an article on Sifted: “The things nobody told me about launching a VC firm: How to set up a fund structure ”
• David Bonilla wrote “Vender debería costar más que facturar”
• Karel Escobar and Back Fund published a report on Corporate Investment in Spain