Felicis vs Menlo Ventures

Magentic Raises $18M for AI Industrial Automation

Magentic, a startup providing AI-powered digital workers for industrial companies, has secured $18 million in Series A funding, one year after its launch. The round was led by Felicis, with participation from existing investors Sequoia Capital and The Westly Group. Magentic's AI agents automate procurement and operational workflows for large manufacturers, handling tasks such as buy-versus-build assessments, supplier selection, contract negotiation, order management, and invoice processing. The platform supports both indirect procurement and direct spend on raw materials. The company targets industrial and procurement teams facing increased workloads due to manufacturing demand, trade disruption, and budget pressures. The funding will accelerate development of the AI agents, extend the platform to additional supply chain workflows, and support research into AI systems for complex optimization problems in industrial operations.

• Magentic raised $18 million in Series A funding.
• The round was led by Felicis, with participation from Sequoia Capital and The Westly Group.
• Magentic develops AI agents to automate procurement and operational workflows for industrial companies.

Menlo’s Investment in Factory: The System That Builds Software

Coding is AI’s first killer use case, with the world generating more code this year than in all previous years combined. Menlo Ventures has invested in Factory, a company building the system that builds software, as part of the AI coding startup’s latest funding round, announced last month at a $5 billion valuation. The investment follows a public dispute between Factory's CEO, Matan Grinberg, and investor Chris Degnan, who left to join competitor Cognition. Vinod Khosla, an investor in both companies, criticized Factory as a 'struggling second tier competitor.' Menlo's investment is seen as a strong endorsement, with partner Matt Murphy praising the company. The exact amount was not disclosed but described as significant.

• Menlo Ventures invested in AI coding startup Factory as part of its latest funding round.
• Factory's latest funding round was announced last month at a $5 billion valuation.
• Menlo's investment followed a public dispute between Factory's CEO and investor Chris Degnan.

Menlo Ventures Welcomes Alex Kurland as Newest Partner; Stripe to Acquire OpenRouter

Menlo Ventures announces the addition of Alex Kurland as its newest partner, and portfolio company OpenRouter has entered into an agreement to be acquired by Stripe.

Lovable Raises $400M at $13.3B Valuation, Doubling from Previous Round

Swedish vibe-coding startup Lovable has raised $400 million in a Series C round at a $13.3 billion valuation, more than double its December 2025 valuation of $6.6 billion. The round was co-led by Menlo Ventures and the Scaleup Europe Fund, managed by EQT, with participation from Balderton Capital, Tencent, Kaszek Ventures, and others. Returning investors include Accel, DST Global, and Salesforce Ventures. Lovable, launched in 2024, enables non-coders to build software through AI-assisted 'vibe-coding.' The company reports that apps built on its platform see over 900 million visits per month. Customers include Nvidia, Adidas, and Zendesk. Lovable plans to expand its business customer base, grow headcount by 50% to 450 employees across Sweden and the US, and develop more proactive capabilities beyond prompt-based interactions, while continuing to use multiple AI models and post-train open-source models.

• Lovable raised $400 million in Series C funding.
• The round values Lovable at $13.3 billion, double its December 2025 valuation of $6.6 billion.
• The round was co-led by Menlo Ventures and the Scaleup Europe Fund, managed by EQT.