Augmentus secures investment from Applied Ventures
Augmentus, a Singapore-based robotics developer, has received a strategic investment from Applied Ventures, the venture capital arm of Applied Materials. The investment will help the company fulfill its goal of enabling intelligent, autonomous robotics for high-mix manufacturing environments worldwide.
Founded to simplify traditional robot programming, Augmentus provides manufacturers with tools to automate complex, labor-intensive tasks. Its AutoPath robotics stack, for instance, integrates 3D vision and adaptive intelligence, enabling robots to perceive, interpret, and act with human-like precision. The system generates detailed point clouds and converts them into dynamic motion paths in real time, significantly reducing setup and reconfiguration time.
With the new investment, Augmentus plans to scale its adaptive robotics platform and expand into industries seeking to automate variable production lines.
This funding follows the company’s Series A+ round, announced in July, when it raised USD 11 million in a round led by Woori Venture Partners, with participation from new investor EDBI and existing backers Sierra Ventures and Cocoon Capital.
Sedifly concludes oversubscribed pre-seed round to support college admissions
Sedifly, a Singapore-based edtech startup, has raised a six-figure USD sum in an oversubscribed pre-seed round backed by angel investors and supported by an equity-free grant from Enterprise Singapore.
Founded to make college admissions consulting more affordable and transparent, Sedifly helps students apply to leading universities through academic mentorship, extracurricular guidance, and essay coaching.
“Ivy League acceptance rates have dwindled by more than five times over the past three decades. We’ve seen many educational consulting firms step in to guide students, but the prices they charge are pure ludicrous,” said Joash Lee, founder and CEO of Sedifly. “As the world’s first value-driven educational consulting firm, we aim to make things more accessible.”
The company plans to use the new funds to enhance its product capabilities, deepen artificial intelligence-driven personalization, and expand into key markets.
Grab invests in May Mobility for autonomous vehicle rollout in Southeast Asia
May Mobility, a US-based autonomous vehicle company, has received an undisclosed investment from Grab as part of a multiyear partnership to introduce autonomous vehicle (AV) services across Southeast Asia.
Under the collaboration, May Mobility’s autonomous driving technology will be integrated into Grab’s ecosystem, including its fleet management and routing systems. The two companies will also work together on AV training and job transition programs for Grab driver partners.
In addition, May Mobility will leverage GrabMaps for localization and deploy its “multi-policy decision-making” (MPDM) technology to navigate Southeast Asia’s complex traffic environments.
First Move leads pre-seed investment in Ourteam
Ourteam (stylized as “ourteam”), a Singapore-based startup focused on AI-driven talent screening, has raised an undisclosed amount in a pre-seed round led by First Move, with participation from Silicon Valley angel investors.
In a statement, Ourteam said its platform “helps companies interview every candidate fairly, consistently, and fast.” The startup’s system conducts adaptive, role-aware interviews within minutes, providing deterministic scoring and insights that reduce screening time by up to 50%. Current clients include Prenetics, SenangPay, and 42KL, with regional pilots underway in Malaysia and Vietnam.
“Hiring across Asia is broken, too slow, too manual and often based on gut feeling,” said Yewwai Kong, founder and CEO of Ourteam. “We built Ourteam so every candidate gets a fair shot, and every employer can make confident decisions faster.”
Tessaract raises GBP 4.6 million to expand legal tech platform in the UK
Tessaract, a legal technology company, has raised GBP 4.6 million (USD 6.1 million) in a funding round led by Mercia Ventures, with participation from Fuel Ventures. The new capital will support the company’s UK expansion, product innovation, and the development of AI-driven features for its workflow platform.
The funding coincides with Tessaract’s relocation of its headquarters from Singapore to the UK, where it plans to strengthen relationships with law firms and deliver data-driven solutions for optimizing legal operations.
Hubble raises JPY 800 million to expand AI-powered contract platform
Hubble, a Tokyo-based provider of cloud-based contract management software, has raised an additional JPY 800 million (USD 5.3 million) in Series B funding, completing the round. The latest tranche follows a third-party allotment of shares to Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India and DNX Ventures, bringing Hubble’s total Series B funding to JPY 2.3 billion (USD 15.2 million).
The company will use the funds to enhance its AI-powered contract assistant, strengthen customer success operations, and expand internationally.
According to CEO Shinpei Hayakawa, Hubble aims to build essential digital infrastructure for contract management, emphasizing rapid feature development and long-term scalability.
UMe Tea raises USD 10 million Series A to expand US footprint
UMe Tea, a California-based tea chain, has raised USD 10 million in a Series A round led by Conductive Ventures, with participation from iFly.vc and Enlight Growth Partners, according to 36Kr. The funds will support team expansion and new store openings across the San Francisco Bay Area.
Founded in 2019 by former Silicon Valley engineer Jiachun Li, UMe Tea combines elements of Chinese tea culture with flavors tailored for US consumers. The company currently operates 27 stores and plans to reach 33 by the end of 2025, focusing on high-density locations in California.
UMe Tea told 36Kr that non-Asian customers now account for 60% of its customer base. Signature items such as mango teas and salted popcorn chicken have performed strongly, while limited-edition launches and collectible campaigns have helped drive engagement and sales growth.
Recent deals completed in China:
- Neolix, an autonomous driving technology company, has raised more than USD 600 million in a Series D round led by UAE-based Stone Venture, with participation from Gaocheng Capital, CITIC Capital, CDH, Sparkedge Capital, Beijing AI Fund, and an undisclosed major Chinese internet platform. The funds will be used to advance algorithm upgrades, product development, commercialization, and global expansion.
- BioCompass (Baiyao Technology), a developer of virtual cell platforms, has raised an undisclosed eight-figure RMB sum in an angel funding round led by FreesFund, with participation from Shunxi Capital. Mingde Capital served as the financial advisor. Founded by a team specializing in bioinformatics and AI, BioCompass will use the new funds to advance its graph-based pretraining models for applications in gene regulation and cell state prediction under different environmental conditions. —36Kr
- Guoyan New Power Technology, a Shenzhen-registered lithium battery manufacturer, has secured nearly RMB 50 million (USD 7 million) in a Series B round from Haiheng Group. Established in 2019, the company focuses on the R&D, production, and sales of steel shell lithium batteries and has developed proprietary composite cap and encapsulation technologies to support manufacturing. The proceeds will be used to expand production capacity and invest in new product development. —36Kr
Pave Bank, Endowus, Hangry, and more made recent headlines:
- Pave Bank, a commercial bank, raised more than USD 39 million in a funding round led by Accel, bringing its total funding to over USD 44 million. The round drew participation from other investors including Tether Investments, Quona Capital, Wintermute, Helios Digital Ventures, Financial Technology Partners, Yolo Investments, Kazea Fund, and GC&H Investments.
- Endowus, a digital wealth advisory platform, raised more than USD 70 million in its latest funding round led by Illuminate Financial, with participation from Prosus Ventures, Citi Ventures, and several Asian family offices. The round includes a USD 20 million cash injection and the conversion of existing notes, bringing the company’s total funding to over USD 130 million to date.
- Hangry, a Jakarta-based operator of “virtual” restaurants serving delivery-only orders, raised USD 10.5 million in a Series A5 round led by Alpha JWC Ventures.
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