Justin Fenchel

In 2024, 736 AgTech startups raised a total of $5.7B. There were 37 AgTech exits last year, 36 M&A transactions and one IPO. This is up 32% from 2023. See all the data in my latest CropLife.com article.

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The billion-dollar beverage boom I’m no longer buying into. In this week’s HSR case study, we’re breaking down why even after Poppi’s $1.95B acquisition and Olipop’s massive Series C, I’m staying on the sidelines. We dive into: ✨ The brutal economics of beverage (shipping liquid is expensive) ✨ Why Gen Z’s drinking habits are rewriting the rules of the industry ✨ The hype vs. reality of SipMARGS, Alix Earle, and the influencer-led RTD wave Want the full breakdown? The case study is out now. https://lnkd.in/gWyf7eVY

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GrubMarket Inc., now the largest private food tech company in the U.S., just secured $50 million in Series G funding, pushing its valuation past $3.5 billion! With $2B+ in revenue in 2024, operations in 70+ countries, and a 12,000-strong workforce, GrubMarket isn’t just growing—it’s redefining food logistics. The company’s AI-powered tech, including Farm-GPT and GrubAssist, is revolutionizing how farmers, suppliers, and businesses optimize pricing, inventory, and distribution. Founder & CEO Mike Xu emphasized that while the funding wasn’t a necessity, it aligns with GrubMarket’s explosive growth, AI innovation, and industry-wide impact. With a track record of strategic acquisitions, AI-driven efficiencies, and massive scalability, GrubMarket is proving that food tech isn’t just about supply chains—it’s about shaping the future of global food distribution. What do you think—will AI be the next big disruptor in food logistics? Learn More: https://lnkd.in/esGRh_85 #FoodTech #Innovation #Logistics #Growth #AI Branded Hospitality Hospitality Headline Newsletter Keith Brewer Shih-Chieh T. Benzi Ronen Robin Li Jonathan L. Hua Kelly Perdew

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What many Founders don't appreciate is that fundraising isn't just a "necessary pursuit of capital." It's an unforgiving crucible that strips away illusions and sharpens your grasp on the business you're building. Fundraising crystalizes what you fundamentally believe to be true about your business, but it also exposes what assumptions you've been coasting on and what you need to test to have any knowledge about whatsoever. Good VCs probe relentlessly, revealing if your idea is built on firm ground or just wishful thinking in disguise. It's a wake-up call that forces you to confront the gaps and the shaky premises that could unravel everything if left untested. The process no doubt forges you in fire. Rejections can bruise the ego and feedback can sting. But if you lean into it, you emerge with a refined strategy, a tighter product, and a team that's aligned on what matters. The pain? It's just the price of building something that the world has never seen before.

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An emerging VC manager's fundraising lessons... the first two funds are a grind. Now, we’re on our third fund, it feels like we’re almost over the hump, but fundraising never gets easy for most of us. I want to congratulate the emerging VC firms presenting at this year’s RAISE Global conference. As former RAISE presenters, and (soon-to-graduate) emerging managers, we thought we’d share this LP Translator, a lighthearted guide to decoding what LPs really mean during the fundraising process. Fellow GPs, which ones did I miss? 👇 The LP Translator 📣 "Let’s stay in touch.” Translation: We’re not interested. “We want to see your track record develop.” Translation: Either we don't believe in your strategy, or we’re focused on managers with more buzz. “We’re not allocating to new managers right now.” Translation: We’re not allocating to you right now. "Show us your deals so we can get to know you.” Translation: We’d like free co-invests if you get something hot. “We need to see more DPI before we commit.” Translation: We don’t really understand VC, but we’re pretending to. “We’re fully allocated for this year; check in early next year.” Translation: Next year we’ll still be fully allocated (just not to you). “Call us before final close.”  Translation: I’m too polite to say no at this time, so I’m kicking the can down the road. “Your fund is too small.”  Translation: Okay, that one might actually be true (for some LPs). “We went through your data room and want to meet face-to-face.” Translation: We’re genuinely interested, keep going! “Can you send us your LPA for signature?” Translation: Let’s go! 🚀 -------------------------- Fundraising is a long game, longer than we ever expected. We're now seeing how LP relationships are built across several funds, not several months. If they’re investing time to learn about you and your strategy, that’s your best signal of real interest. #emergingmanager #venturecapital #LP #RAISEGLOBAL

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Big things happened in the Techstars network in January: →  8 portfolio companies secured funding →  2 portfolio companies were acquired →  2 portfolio companies combined →  1 new global network partner ➕ U.S.-based rare earths processing startup Phoenix Tailings (Techstars 2020) closes $43M Series B funding round. ➕ Tive (Techstars 2017), a startup developing tech to pinpoint freight shipments in real time, raises $40M Series C. ➕ The Helper Bees (Techstars 2016) raises $35M Series C for home care. ➕ First Ascent Biomedical (Techstars 2021), a personalized oncology drug prediction platform, gets $6M to accelerate lab openings. ➕ Crypto tech startup Dfns (Techstars 2021) raises $16M to increase its workforce and expand in the Middle East. ➕ AI-powered mass tort company Parambil (formerly MedThread; Techstars 2023) announces $2M in pre-seed funding. ➕ Accenture Ventures invests in QuSecure (Techstars 2021) to advance PQC solutions for government and business. ➕ Vessl Prosthetics Inc. Prosthetics (Techstars 2023) secures a pre-seed round to drive innovation in prosthetic solutions. ⭐ Infinite Reality will acquire virtual shopping platform Obsess (Techstars 2017). ⭐ Hook Security acquires Haekka (Techstars 2021), a Slack-first training platform. ⭐ Transmute (Techstars 2018) and mesur.io (Techstars 2018) announce a strategic combination to remove disruption from global supply chains. https://lnkd.in/gn5wJZur 

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