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The F42 brief #011
👋 Hi, I’m Derek, and welcome to the Fusion42 newsletter! This is your go-to source for navigating the startup ecosystem and making things easier for everyone involved. Here, beyond Consensus views for Maverick Founders and Investors to overcome common challenges, so you can build and scale with confidence. No BS , no Fluff, just the TREWS to help you get **it done. Join 3,000+ founders and discover what truly matters for your venture—and how to set yourself up for lasting success.
Here’s your Monday dose of The F42 Brief, where we give you essential updates and innovations that are moving and shaping our startup space.
What’s inside »
📈 Trending Now
The one thing that’s making all the noise …. with a bit of fact checking.
💸 New Funds looking to give you cash
Who has launched a new fund to invest in startups last week.
💡Innovator Spotlight
Founders that are doing suff differently.
🛠️ Tool of the Week
Something useful to up your startups velocity.
📌 Note to Self
Stuff I constantly remind myself about, don’t want make the same mistakes again.
📈 Trending Now
Nik Storonsky Revolut Founder Using Data science to Invest on 20VC Podcast
Nik Storonsky, the founder of Revolut, has been vocal about leveraging data science in venture capital investing, a topic he discussed in a recent interview on the "20VC" podcast with Harry Stebbings. Storonsky's approach reflects a broader industry trend towards data-driven decision-making, which is reshaping how venture capitalists source, evaluate, and manage investments, particularly in early-stage funding from pre-seed to Series A.
The future of venture capital is poised to become increasingly data-centric for several reasons:
Enhanced Analytical Capabilities: The surge in available startup data, coupled with advancements in AI and machine learning, enables venture capitalists to swiftly and effectively analyze vast datasets. This capability allows for the early and accurate identification of promising startups, surpassing traditional evaluation methods.
Reduction of Bias: Traditional venture capital investing often relies on personal networks and intuition, which can introduce biases and result in missed opportunities. Data-driven approaches promote objectivity, enabling a broader evaluation of startups, especially at the pre-seed and seed stages, where data can uncover promising companies that might otherwise be overlooked.
Improved Success Projections: Predictive analytics enhance the accuracy of investment success forecasts, leading to better returns and more efficient capital allocation.
While the full impact of data-driven venture capital investing is still unfolding, the potential for improvement over traditional methods is significant. Storonsky's focus may be on Series B and later stages, but these data-driven strategies are equally applicable and beneficial at the pre-seed stage, offering valuable insights and efficiencies across the investment spectrum.
In summary, integrating data science into venture capital represents a natural and advantageous progression, providing a more analytical and objective framework for investment decisions. This evolution is expected to yield more consistent returns and mitigate the inherent risks associated with early-stage investing.
If you want to learn more about how we see the early stage investment market changing and how we are building the future please check out our data driven ecosystem series.
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For the ❤️ of Startups
💸 New Funds looking to give you cash
This week, 27 new venture capital funds are gearing up to deploy capital globally, targeting transformative industries and addressing diverse challenges. Here's the breakdown:
Geography: Investments span Asia, Africa, Latin America, Europe, and North America, with a focus on emerging markets, tier 2 and 3 cities, and cross-border opportunities.
Technology & Themes: Key areas of interest include artificial intelligence, blockchain, renewable energy, life sciences, Bitcoin ecosystems, climate tech, and early-stage enterprise software. Notable themes include decentralization, financial inclusion, and sustainable infrastructure.
The venture capital ecosystem remains robust, with significant emphasis on innovation, inclusivity, and sustainability as funds aim to reshape industries and create long-term impact.
Swish Ventures
Managed by Omri Casspi, Swish Ventures is a $60 million seed fund focusing on cybersecurity, cloud infrastructure, and AI. Looking to invest in fast-growing tech companies. Includes notable investors like Sequoia. Launch Date: December 2, 2024.
PCA Corporation
Japanese software company PCA starts a new venture capital unit, Iidabashi Cross Partners, focusing on startups developing back-office software and innovative business models, with a fund size of ¥2 billion ($13.3 million). Launch Date: December 2, 2024.
Alstin Capital
Managed by Carsten Maschmeyer, Alstin III is a €175M fund focusing on Series A investments in European B2B software companies, specializing in early-stage B2B tech. Launch Date: November 2024.
Illumen Capital
Illumen Capital's Catalyst Fund, worth $32.75 million, supports first-time fund managers and entrepreneurs, especially from underrepresented backgrounds, focusing on systemic equity in investing.
Kenro Capital
Co-managed by Piyush Gupta and Norbert Fernandes, Kenro Capital specializes in secondary transactions, aiming for investments ranging from $20-30 million per transaction in the tech and startup sectors.
Revenge Capital
A £50 million fund by Nell Daly, focusing on providing funding and mentorship to female entrepreneurs in the UK.
Rémy Cointreau Ventures (RC Ventures)
A corporate venture fund launched by Rémy Cointreau focused on supporting growth and exploring new technologies in the drinks sector. Specific fund details not disclosed.
Stellaris Venture Partners
Stellaris Venture Partners has closed its $300 million third fund, targeting early-stage tech startups across sectors such as consumer tech, AI, SaaS, and financial services. They plan to make 25-30 investments over the next three years, typically engaging as a lead investor in seed and Series A rounds.
Seido Capital Fund V
Belgian venture capital firm Seido Capital, now in Canada, is raising $70 million for early-stage investments in Canada's life sciences sector, with $45 million already secured in commitments.
Extantia Climate Flagship II
Climate tech venture capital fund focusing on environmental solutions.
Maven Income & Growth VCT PLC
Focuses on early-stage and SMEs across the UK, investing in technology, cybersecurity, life sciences, and more.
HSBC Asset Management's Venture Debt Strategy
Venture debt strategy targeting growth and late-stage VC-backed tech and life science companies.
Metalayer
Metalayer is a new venture capital investment fund with a planned size of $25 million. It focuses on investing at the intersection of crypto and mainstream financial services.
Hyla LatAm VC Fund
The Hyla LatAm Fund focuses on blockchain and AI technologies in Latin America, backed by a significant crypto investment, aiming to enhance financial inclusion and entrepreneurial ecosystems.
AKKR Strategic Capital LP
Accel-KKR's new fund, AKKR Strategic Capital LP, focuses on secondary investments in the software industry with over $2.2 billion in capital commitments.
Athletic Ventures Champions Fund
This new venture capital fund, led by former professional athletes Matt de Boer and Matthew Dellavedova, is raising at least $25 million for their Early Stage Venture Capital Limited Partnership (ESVCLP). The fund targets early-stage private technology, consumer, healthcare, and sports companies. It has already attracted over $20 million in commitments from more than 50 athletes, including Matildas star Sam Kerr.
Mistral Venture Partners
Mistral Venture Partners Fund IV is a new early-stage venture capital fund that focuses on investing in software companies. It targets investments in early-stage "Smart Enterprise" software, including areas such as Cloud Migration, Mobile, AI, Blockchain, and IoT. The fund has received $7.5 million from Fonds de solidarité FTQ, but the total size is unspecified.
Airtree Core Fund V and Opportunity Fund VVC
Airtree has launched a new venture capital investment fund, targeting $650 million. It consists of Core Fund V for early-stage startups at the Seed stage and Opportunity Fund V for backing Airtree's portfolio companies in later-stage, scale-up phases. They plan to invest in a dozen emerging startups annually.
DAIS AI Venture Fund
The Decentralized AI Society (DAIS) plans to launch an AI venture fund focusing on decentralized economic groups raising capital through tokenization. The fund aims to invest in AI projects aligned with combating the centralization of AI models. Fund size not provided.
LeapFrog
LeapFrog's Fund IV is a venture capital investment fund with $1.23 billion in commitments, including $1.02 billion in primary commitments and $210 million in co-investment commitments. It targets financial services and healthcare sectors in growth markets, focusing on Asia and Africa.
SenseAI Fund I
SenseAI Ventures is a venture capital investment fund focusing on startups working with artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. The fund targets AI-first startups and tools for building, deploying, and operating AI applications. The final close of the maiden fund is scheduled soon, with a size of Rs 200 crore.
Revo Capital Fund III
Revo Capital Fund III is a venture capital investment fund targeting early-stage technology companies primarily in Türkiye and selected countries in Central and Eastern Europe. The fund has a target size of USD 100 million.
Axiom Venture Fund II
Axiom Venture Fund II is a venture capital investment fund focused on the Bitcoin ecosystem. It plans to raise $75 million and invest in Bitcoin technology startups, particularly in fintech, capital markets, and energy industries.
Recursive Capital
Recursive Capital is a venture capital fund focused on investing in early-stage African Bitcoin companies. Fund I supports Bitcoin infrastructure companies, products with commercial use cases, and technologies on protocols like the Lightning Network and Fedimint, investing $50,000-$100,000 per company.
Abingworth
This is a new venture capital fund launched by a Carlyle-backed life sciences investor. The fund is valued at $1.5 billion and focuses on investing in clinical trials, supporting companies in life sciences to bring new medical solutions to market.
Eversource Capital
EverSource Capital's new venture capital fund is a $1-billion second fund expected to launch in 2025. It focuses on renewable energy infrastructure, including energy storage solutions for grid instability, static battery storage, mobile batteries for electric vehicles, and backup power solutions for commercial buildings and industries, especially in tier 2 and 3 cities.
What’s on at F42 this week.
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💡Innovator Spotlight
The Downside to Innovation: Dead Internet Theory
AI is changing everything, including LinkedIn—and not entirely for the better. Research by Originality AI reveals that over 50% of LinkedIn’s long-form posts (those with 100+ words) are now likely written by AI. Since ChatGPT launched, posts have not only increased in number but have also grown 107% longer on average.
This shift isn’t just about volume; it’s about a fundamental change in how we engage. LinkedIn, once a platform for genuine professional connections, now feels like a testing ground for AI tools. Even comments aren’t spared, with bots increasingly responding to other bots. The network is becoming less “social” and more “artificial.”
Entrepreneurs like Ruben Hassid, founder of the AI-powered LinkedIn ghostwriter tool EasyGen, are unapologetic about this trend. EasyGen has 27,000 users, and Ruben himself has grown his follower count from 8,000 to 400,000 in just two years. Tools like Taplio and others are also feeding into this surge.
For some, AI on LinkedIn is a productivity hack, allowing them to scale their presence and reach effortlessly. But for many, it signals the rise of the “Dead Internet Theory”—a dystopian view where the web is increasingly dominated by AI content rather than human interaction.
LinkedIn remains a vital platform for business, networking, and client acquisition, but as bots take over, authenticity is taking a hit. If half the posts and interactions aren’t real, what’s left?
This isn’t just a LinkedIn problem. It’s a glimpse into the future of online spaces where AI-generated content dominates, and it raises a tough question: in the pursuit of innovation, are we losing what makes the internet human?
🛠️ Tools of the Week
Spotlighting two tools—Recraft.ai and VanillaSky.ai—that help you create engaging content effortlessly.
Why Content Creation Matters
Whether it’s memes or short promo videos, engaging visuals are the currency of online attention. The right content can make your brand memorable, relatable, and shareable. However, creating high-quality, scroll-stopping content takes time, creativity, and resources. That’s where these tools come in.
Recraft.ai: Meme Creation Made Easy
Recraft.ai focuses on meme generation, letting you create witty, on-brand content that resonates with your audience.
User Benefits:
Simple Prompts: Generate memes by entering a quick description—no design skills required.
Customisation: Tailor fonts, styles, and images to match your brand identity.
Rapid Output: Speed up content production with AI-driven creativity.
Here is one that took me 60 seconds
VanillaSky.ai: Instant Promo Videos
VanillaSky.ai helps you create short, engaging promo videos in just minutes. It’s perfect for brands looking to elevate their TikTok, Instagram Reels, or LinkedIn presence.
User Benefits:
Effortless Video Creation: Turn simple prompts into polished videos.
Customizable Templates: Create videos that fit your brand’s aesthetic.
Time Efficiency: Produce high-quality promo content without lengthy edits.
Here is one that took me 60 seconds
Why You Should Use These Tools
Both tools cater to modern marketing needs:
Cost-Effective: Save on design and production costs.
Engagement-Boosting: Memes build relatability; videos captivate audiences.
Streamlined Workflow: AI handles the hard work, freeing up your time for strategy.
Final Thought
Whether you want to make your audience laugh with a meme or captivate them with a promo video, these tools simplify content creation for marketers, entrepreneurs, and creators alike. Try them out and see how they can level up your digital marketing game!
📌 Note to Self
Thank you for reading. If you liked it, share it with your friends, colleagues and everyone interested in the startup Investor ecosystem.
If you've got suggestions, an article, research, your tech stack, or a job listing you want featured, just let me know! I'm keen to include it in the upcoming edition.
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For the ❤️ of startups
✌🏼 & 💙
Derek