Mike Butcher
TechCrunch
United Kingdom
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Recent articles by Mike:
Rahko raises £1.3M seed from Balderton for quantum machine learning tech –
There remains a problem with the race to create a quantum computer, which is that experiments in this area can be extremely error-prone. Rahko is a new UK startup that thinks is can address this problem with what’s known as ‘Quantum machine learning’. It’s now raised a £1.3M ($1.6M) in a seed round led by […] → Read More
German tech investor leads Series A for Germany’s first medical Cannabis startup –
German just hit a new milestone in the space where venture capital and the burgeoning Cannabis industry meet. Berlin startup Demecan has completed a Series A financing round of 7 million euros to expand its production facility for medical cannabis and the wholesale trade in Germany. It’s become the only German company allowed to produce […] → Read More
Tourlane cofounder Julian Stiefel to speak at TechCrunch Disrupt Berlin this December –
Back in May, Tourlane raised $47 million in its ongoing mission to address the complex problems that still exist today around booking group travel. Tourlane has become a major player in this sector. We’re excited to announce that co-founder/co-CEO Julian Stiefel will be speaking at Disrupt Berlin in December! Tourlane works directly with service providers […] → Read More
Art on Blockchain pioneer Verisart raises $2.5M for art and collectibles certification –
A lot of talk has been made about verifying valuable items on an immutable blockchain, but the main pioneer in this space has been Verisart, which appeared a few years ago to use a blockchain to create certification for the fine art and collectibles market. But despite the blockchain hype of the last few years, […] → Read More
Notion Capital launches new $150M fund aimed at European B2B tech –
Notion Capital today announces a new $150M fund in a bid to bolster its claim to being the go-to investor for European B2B tech. Launched ten years ago after the $700M exit of MessageLabs by co-founders Ben and Jos White, this new fourth fund will continue its previous focus on Series A SaaS and enterprise […] → Read More
Startup aims to make filtered water an app-driven subscription service in the home –
With so many scandals around the quality of tap water these days, especially in the US, many people are turning to bottled water to drink. But this requires single-use plastics that are wreaking havoc on the environment. One startup in Europe, Mitte, thinks it has the answer: filtering water direct from the tap. It’s raised […] → Read More
Tencent leads $10M A funding round in SenSat which digitises real-world locations –
If you could digitize whole, real-world locations you’d automatically improve the planning for big infrastructure projects that require buildings, bridges tunnels and the like. Some $94 trillion in infrastructure investment is required by 2040 globally to sustain global growth predictions, yet infrastructure is one of the least digitized sectors in the global economy. SenSat is […] → Read More
YouTuber Caspar Lee co-founds Influencer marketing platform, raises £3M Series A –
Despite the inexorable rise of social media influencers, several problems remain when it comes to brands trying to use these stars to push their products. The marketing tools and processes are fragmented (read: chaotic). Attaining some level of authenticity, quality and creativity in influencer-driven campaigns is tough, to say the least. And the whole thing […] → Read More
Social care startup Lifted raises £1.5M for end-to-end elderly care platform –
The number of elderly adults requiring home care is set to grow at an alarming rate in most western countries as people live progressively longer. But underinvestment in technology and healthcare means society is at risk of vastly under-delivering. It’s very hard to scale these service and subsequently, no company has more than a low […] → Read More
ClimateTech is the new hot space for investors in a warming planet –
How do you attract the attention of a prince? Aside from being Meghan Markle, of course. One answer came recently in the form of Prince Harry’s backing of a new initiative designed to make offsetting the carbon from your airline flights a properly mainstream idea. For Harry, the initiative had a double whammy. It might […] → Read More
Customer marketing platform Ometria raises $21M Series B round led by Octopus Ventures –
Back in 2017 Ometria, an “AI-powered” customer marketing platform raised $6m in Series A funding to add to the $11m it had already raised. Its platform is all about allowing retailers to send individually personalized marketing messages across several brand touchpoints. Today it’s announced that it’s raised $21m in a Series B funding led by […] → Read More
Lookiero closes $19M led by MMC Ventures to be the Stitch Fix for Europe –
Lookiero, the online personal shopping service for clothes and accessories, has closed a $19 million funding round led by London-based VC MMC Ventures with support from existing investor All Iron Ventures, and new investors Bonsai Partners, 10x and Santander Smart. The company will use the backing to expand in its main markets of Spain, France […] → Read More
On-demand plant food startup Simple Feast raises $33M B round to push its climate credentials –
At Greta Thunberg heads back to Europe from the US after radicalizing a generation, entrepreneurs are quickly realizing that there is a zeitgeist to be gotten hold of here. With food production a major contributor to climate change, tt’s no surprise then that on-demand food startups are appearing to cater to this new audience. Simple […] → Read More
Remagine secures $35M fund backed by media giants to focus on entertainment and media tech –
Remagine Ventures is a relatively new European VC fund which focuses on investments in entertainment tech, including AI, gaming, sports & eSports, AR/VR, consumer and commerce. It’s now completed $35 million in funding from a number of entertainment and media corporations, including Axel Springer and ProsiebenSat1, Japanese Adways and American Liontree LLC. Last year global […] → Read More
Adarga closes £5M Series A funding for its Palantir-like AI platform –
AI startup Adarga has closed a £5 million Series A fundraising by Allectus Capital. But this news rather cloaks the fact that it’s been building up a head of steam since it’s founding in 2016, building up – what they say – is a £30 million-plus sales pipeline through strategic collaborations with a number of […] → Read More
Wikipedia blames malicious DDOS attack after site goes down across Europe, Middle East –
Wikipedia was forced offline in several countries Friday after a cyber attack hit the global encyclopedia. Users across Europe and parts of the Middle East experienced outages shortly before 7pm, BST, according to downdetector.com. Wikimedia’s German Twitter account posted: “The Wikimedia server…is currently being paralysed by a massive and very broad DDOS [distributed denial of […] → Read More
Uber has surveyed some drivers on small loans, suggesting financial products are coming –
Back in June Uber went on a hiring spree in New York, hiring at least 100 fintech-oriented tech workers to ostensibly look at creating products to increase loyalty and engagement among users and drivers, including things like banking. Cue a flurry of speculation. It now looks like Uber is taking baby-steps towards building such a […] → Read More
PrimaryBid closes $8.6M round for its platform aimed to help retail investors –
PrimaryBid, a UK-regulated platform connecting publicly listed companies with everyday investors for discounted share issuances has previously raised $3M. It’s now upped those stakes with an $8.6M funding round, led by UK VCs Pentech and Outward VC with participation from new and existing investors. Craig Anderson, a partner at Pentech, will join the PrimaryBidBoard of […] → Read More
Endurance events startup Let’s Do This raises seed cash from Serena Williams, Usain Bolt –
Let’s Do This is a YC alumni startup form 2018 which is a marketplace for endurance events, from a 5k fun run or an IronMan triathlon. It’s now raised a $5M seed round with Serena Williams and Usain Bolt participating. The round was led by Pete Flint (Partner at NFX, formerly Trulia, LastMinute). Other investors […] → Read More
Is Knotel poised to turn WeWork from a Unicorn into an Icarus? –
The day of reckoning for the “flexible office space as a startup” is coming, and it’s coming up fast. WeWork’s IPO filing has fired the starting gun on the race to become the game-changer both in the future of property and real estate but also the future of how we live and work. As Churchill […] → Read More