Startups 22 January 2026 - 27 February 2026

NatWest ramps up Scotland startup push: RBS Accelerator targets 5,000 entrepreneurs, adds £1m EDGE deal

Royal Bank of Scotland, owned by NatWest, will expand its Accelerator programme to support 5,000 Scottish entrepreneurs in 2026 and has pledged £1 million to the Scottish EDGE Awards over three years. NatWest bought back 458,962 shares on March 4, with plans to cancel them. The bank’s Glasgow and Edinburgh hubs currently support 1,000 businesses. Scottish EDGE finals are set for June 11 in Edinburgh.

March 5, 2026

Business·News·Startups·Technology

Block stock jumps 20% premarket as Dorsey bets on AI and cuts 4,000 jobs

Block shares surged about 20% in premarket trading Friday after the company announced plans to cut over 4,000 jobs as it shifts to AI-driven operations. The stock traded near $65.49, up $10.96 from Thursday’s close. Block forecast first-quarter gross profit growth of 22% and raised its 2026 outlook. CEO Jack Dorsey said headcount will drop to just under 6,000.

February 27, 2026

Business·Finance·News·Startups

Vertex stock slips 3% as insiders flag sales, even as Alyftrek wins Australia funding

Vertex shares fell 3.2% to $475.84 Tuesday afternoon, underperforming biotech ETFs. H.C. Wainwright raised its price target to $591 and maintained a Buy rating. Vertex announced its cystic fibrosis drug Alyftrek is now funded on Australia’s PBS for eligible patients. Company filings showed two executives disclosed plans to sell shares acquired via restricted stock vesting.

February 17, 2026

AI·News·Startups·Technology

Intel and Vista jump into $350M+ SambaNova raise as AI chip fight widens

Vista Equity Partners is leading a Series E funding round of over $350 million for AI chip startup SambaNova, with Intel set to invest about $100 million, sources said. The round is oversubscribed and may reach $150 million from Intel. SambaNova sells inference chips for AI workloads. Final terms are still being negotiated.

February 7, 2026

Business·News·Startups·Technology

ElevenLabs snags $500 million at $11 billion valuation in Sequoia-led Series D

ElevenLabs raised $500 million in a funding round led by Sequoia Capital, lifting its valuation to $11 billion, more than triple last year’s figure. The AI voice startup ended 2025 with over $330 million in annual recurring revenue. Total funding since its 2022 launch now stands at $781 million.

February 4, 2026

News·Startups·Technology

Humans& grabs a $480 million seed at a $4.48B valuation — Nvidia and Bezos join the round

Humans& raised $480 million in seed funding, valuing the AI startup at $4.48 billion. SV Angel and co-founder Georges Harik led the round, with Nvidia, Jeff Bezos, and GV participating. CEO Eric Zelikman said a “human-centric” AI product is set to launch early this year. Most of the funding will go toward computing power for model training.

January 22, 2026

AI·News·Startups·Technology

Intel talks stall as AI chip startup SambaNova hunts up to $500 million in fresh funding

SambaNova is seeking $300 million to $500 million in new funding after takeover talks with Intel collapsed, Bloomberg reported Wednesday. Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan, who also chairs SambaNova, is weighing whether Intel should invest further. A previous deal valued SambaNova at about $1.6 billion including debt. The company is pitching the round to tech firms and semiconductor manufacturers.

January 22, 2026

News·Space·Startups·Technology

Bezos’ Blue Origin takes on Starlink with 5,408-satellite TeraWave network plan

Blue Origin announced plans to deploy TeraWave, a 5,408-satellite network for enterprise and government clients, starting in late 2027. The company says the system will deliver up to 6 terabits per second and has filed for FCC approval. TeraWave would join Amazon’s Leo network as a second Bezos-linked constellation, as SpaceX’s Starlink remains the market leader.

January 22, 2026