💸 Carmen Palacios-Berraquero's Nu Quantum Raises $60M Series A
FemWealth Issue #240
Hi FemWealth Friends,
In the Spotlight 💸
Co-founded and led by Dr. Carmen Palacios-Berraquero, Nu Quantum develops quantum networking technology to scale quantum computers.
“When we launched seven years ago, very few were thinking about networked or distributed quantum computing as a strategy for scaling, but we saw it as one of the most urgent and challenging outstanding problems in the industry, and set out to solve it. We’ve made great strides in shaping the market and the technology since then. As we’ve grown, I’m proud we have created a culture defined by fearless innovation, and fuelled by collaboration and diversity under a shared mission to accelerate quantum computing for good.” - Dr. Carmen Palacios-Berraquero, Founder and CEO of Nu Quantum
The Cambridge, UK-based deeptech startup raised a $60 million Series A round led by National Grid Partners, with Gresham House Ventures, Morpheus Ventures, Amadeus Capital Partners, IQ Capital, Ahren Capital, Cambridge Enterprise Ventures, East Innovate, NSSIF, and Sumitomo (Presidio Ventures) also contributing.
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Led by Susan Stone, Blue Current develops silicon solid-state batteries for electric vehicles and stationary storage. The California-based startup raised $81 million in Series D extension funding led by Amazon and joined by Koch Disruptive Technologies, Piedmont Capital, Rusheen Capital Partners, and Allen & Co.
Co-founded by Jana Jensen, PhD, MBA, Excelsior Sciences uses AI to speed small molecule drug development. The New York startup raised $70 million in Series A funding from Deerfield Management, Khosla Ventures, Sofinnova Partners, Cornucopian Capital, Eli Lilly, Illinois Ventures, and MIT.
Founded and led by Michelle Lee, Medra develops an autonomous robotics system for physical AI scientists. The San Francisco startup raised $52 million in Series A funding led by Human Capital and joined by Lux Capital, Neo, NFDG, Catalio Capital Management, Menlo Ventures, 776, and Fusion Fund.
Co-founded by Ioana Hreninciuc, Runware is an AI-inference platform that generates images, videos, and audio in real-time. The San Francisco startup raised a $50 million Series A round led by Dawn Capital, with additional support from Comcast Ventures, Speedinvest, Insight Partners, and Andreessen Horowitz.
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Led by Nicole Richards, Allonnia develops technologies to remove contaminants and improve mineral recovery. The Boston startup raised a $20+ million Series A extension round co-led by Viking Global Investors, Bison Ventures, General Atlantic, BHP Ventures, and Pivotal Capital Partners.
Co-founded by Annie Collins, Aradigm aims to make insurance for cell and gene therapies more sustainable. The New York City-based startup raised $20 million in Series A funding led by Frist Cressey Ventures, and joined by a16z and Morgan Health.
Founded and led by Diana Heldfond DiGia, Parallel provides teletherapy and special education services for K-12 schools and districts. The New York City-based startup raised $20 million in Series B funding led by Valspring Capital and joined by existing investor Rethink Impact.
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Co-founded by Shanea Leven, Empromptu AI helps transition SaaS products into AI-native systems. The San Francisco-based startup raised $2 million in Pre-Seed funding led by Precursor Ventures and joined by Alumni Ventures, Founders Edge, Rogue Women VC, South Loop, and Zeal Capital.
Founded and led by Michelle Masek and Nadia Jamshidi, Honeyjar AI provides an operating system for comms and public relations professionals. The New York City-based company raised $2 million in Pre-Seed funding led by Heather Hartnett, general partner and CEO at Human Ventures, and Kevin Mahaffey, founder of SNR Ventures.
Co-founded and led by Leah McClure, Rotostitch develops automated textile manufacturing systems for apparel production. The San Francisco startup raised a $1 million Pre-Seed round co-led by Boost VC and Nova Threshold.
VC: Co-founded by Lulu Cheng Meservey, a well-known public relations advisor to tech startups, US-based Rostra raised $40 million for a VC fund.
Co-founded and co-led by Univ Prof Dr med Silke Sperling, Luxembourg-based Catalpa Ventures announced the first closing of a €30 million fund to back early-stage HealthTech companies.
Founded and led by Solo GP and British Air Force veteran Nicola Sinclair, Twin Track Ventures, a UK firm investing in defence and dual-use, raised £5 million. Sinclair is one of a very small number of female VCs in the defence space.
Founded and led by General Partner Esma Choho, Growathon Ventures launched as Europe’s first women of colour (WOC) led VC fund, targeting €100 million to back pattern-breaking founders who deliver excess returns.
Founded and led by Emily Kirsch, Powerhouse Ventures is raising up to $100 million for its third fund, per an SEC filing.
Haley Bryant was promoted to Partner at Hustle Fund. The San Francisco-based firm is co-founded and co-led by General Partner Elizabeth Yin.
Co-founded by Sophie Winwood and Ruth Foxe Blader, unlock VC, a platform and community for women in VC, announced that its upcoming summit is officially moving to Barcelona. The event will take place on 7–9 October 2026 at Norrsken Barcelona HQs.
Tech Leadership: Denise Dresser, former CEO of Slack, joined OpenAI as chief revenue officer.
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Anamaria
Founder & Writer of FemWealth