The changing nature of startup employment, OpenAI’s e-commerce ambitions, and Powell’s future

– Those left behind: If you think about it, joining a startup is a little crazy. In many cases, a startup employee leaves behind a stable job at a longstanding company where their next several years of life can, more or less, be planned. But at a startup, anything can happen, for better or worse. That’s what people sign up for—an adventure. Along with the prospect of some decent financial upside. 

And that’s something that’s come into question in recent days, as the social media ruckus over the Windsurf deal ballooned, followed by Scale cutting 14% of its staff (about 200 employees) Wednesday in the aftermath of its $14 billion Meta deal. Layoffs happen—we all get that—but a deal worth billions that potentially doesn’t account for all early employees is a tough pill to swallow. (To be sure, the full terms of these deals, particularly how they treat employee equity, are not known. It’s possible that the employees, even those laid off, will make out OK. If you have insight, hit me up!). 

Beyond the specific cases of Scale or Windsurf, what I find most interesting is that we’re having a broader conversation about the startup employee social contract. The classic story where an entrepreneur mints hundreds of millionaires by building a generational company, to me, is still the greatest societal good of venture-backed startups. We may be living less and less in a world like that, but I hope not. (If you have thoughts on how deals like Scale and Windsurf will affect conventions for startup employees moving forward, email me! That’s our Friday essay.)

– OpenAI buy: It may seem that no one is left at OpenAI given the seemingly ceaseless reports of Meta’s talent poaching, but the $300 billion AI bellwether still has some tricks up its sleeve. The Financial Times reported that OpenAI is working on a checkout system for online sales that would be tied to the LLM and through which OpenAI would take a cut. The search-shopping intersection isn’t a new one, but I do think this is far more interesting and points at the potential for AI business models to expand beyond premium subscriptions (it also strikes me as something I’d be more likely to engage with as a consumer than, say, an OpenAI phone.) As the hunt for revenue in AI continues, don’t be surprised if we see more e-commerce-AI intersections this year. 

– Trump’s Powell problem: The markets turned frenetic when reports initially emerged yesterday that Trump may fire Fed Chair Jerome Powell. For years Trump has called Powell a “very stupid person” and a “knucklehead,” so it was a surprise when Trump fired back that it was “highly unlikely” he’d fire Powell. (Per the Supreme Court, Trump does not have unilateral authority to fire Powell, whose term as chair ends in 2026.) Trump wants to see interest rates cut, as does a large swath of the private markets. But would that even be all that good of a thing?

After all, the famed boom of 2021 and 2022 derived its name, the ZIRP (zero interest rate policy) era, from the Fed. An intense bust followed, rescued by AI, where valuations have soared to stratospheric heights. So, the interest rate cut that Trump’s looking for could help the exit environment, but could also have concerning knockdown effects. As always, I would love to know what you think.

See you tomorrow,

Allie Garfinkle
X: @agarfinks
Email: alexandra.garfinkle@fortune.com
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Venture Deals

– Exodigo, a Palo Alto-based AI-powered underground mapping solution provider, raised $96 million in Series B funding. Zeev Ventures and Greenfield Partners the round and were joined by Vintage Investment Partners, Leblon Capital, and existing investors 10D, Square Peg and JIBE.

– Exein, a Rome-based cybersecurity company, raised €70 million ($81.3 million) in Series C funding. Balderton led the round and was joined by Supernova and Lakestar, as well as existing investors 33N, United Ventures and Partech. 

– Boulevard, a Los Angeles-based client experience platform for appointment based, self-care businesses, raised $80 million in Series D funding. JMI Equity led the round and was joined by existing investors Index Ventures and VMG Partners. 

– One Biosciences, a Paris-based AI-driven driven oncology solutions company, raised €15 million ($17.4 million) in Series A funding. Redmile Group and Blast led the round and were joined by Galion.exe, Invus, Adamed Technology, Sofinnova Partners, Polytechnique Ventures, and Kima Ventures. 

– Gen Phoenix, a recycled leather manufacturer, raised $15 million in funding. Material Impact led the round and was joined by existing investor Tapestry. 

– Empirical Security, a Chicago-based AI-powered cybersecurity company, secured $12 million in seed funding. Costanoa Ventures led the round. 

– Retirable, a New York City-based holistic retirement planning platform, raised $10 million in Series A funding. IA Capital Group led the round and was joined by Nationwide Ventures, Western & Southern Financial Group, Clocktower Ventures, and existing investors Primary Venture Partners, Portage Ventures, Vestigo Ventures and SilverCircle.

– Billee, a Dallas-based utility management platform, raised $9.15 million in seed funding. RET Ventures led the round. 

– BQP, a Syracuse-based quantum-first simulation company, raised $5 million in seed funding. Monta Vista Capital led the round and was joined by New York Ventures, Arc Ventures, Armory Square Ventures, and more.

– Coverflow, a San Francisco-based AI insurance platform, raised $4.8 in seed funding. AIX Ventures led the round and was joined by Founder Collective and Afore Capital. 

– Kiku, a Copenhagen-based AI-powered recruitment platform, raised €4 million ($4.6 million) in seed funding. Cherry Ventures led the round and was joined by Yellow and others.

– Mango, a Mexico-based fintech platform for the construction industry in Latin America, raised $3 million in seed funding. Ironspring Ventures led the round and was joined by Brick & Mortar Ventures, Great North Ventures, and Incisive Ventures. 

– Paypercut, a Bulgarian-based payments aggregation platform, raised €2 million ($2.3 million) in pre-seed funding.  Concentric led the round and was joined by Passion Capital, RTP Global, Tuesday Capital, and more.

– Hootology, a New York City-based market research platform, raised $1.1 million in pre-seed funding. JAD Family Revocable Trust led the round. 

Private Equity

– Rydoo, backed by Marlin Equity Partners and Eurazeo, acquired Semine, an Oslo-based AI-driven accounts payable automation platform. Financial terms were not disclosed. 

– PrecisionX, backed by CORE Industrial Partners, acquired Hudson Technologies, an Ormond, Fla.-based provider of specialty deep and shallow drawn stamping. Financial terms were not disclosed. 

– Unity Partners acquired a majority stake in The Byng Group, a Toronto-based residential renovations company. Financial terms were not disclosed. 

– KKR acquired a minority stake in ghSMART, a Chicago-based leadership advisory firm. Financial terms were not disclosed. 

– Abacus Group and Medicus IT, both backed by FFL Partners, merged to launch a new multi-vertical IT managed services provider exclusively focused on the financial services and healthcare industries. Financial terms were not disclosed. 

– Bessemer Venture Partners acquired a minority stake in StayTerra, a Bradenton, Fla.-based vacation rental management platform. Financial terms were not disclosed. 

– CASE, backed by AE Industrial Partners, acquired Ragnarok Technologies, a Reston, Va.-based IT services provider for federal and commercial clients. Financial terms were not disclosed. 

– Frontier Growth acquired a minority stake in EPR Fireworks, a Jacksonville, Fla.-based records management and operations software company for fire and emergency medical services agencies. Financial terms were not disclosed. 

Exits

– CEA CAPA Education Abroad, backed by Infinedi Partners, acquired CIS Abroad, an Easthampton, Mass.-based provider of education abroad programs, from Global Educators. Financial terms were not disclosed. 

– Warburg Pincus acquired a majority stake in Keystone Agency Partners, a Harrisburg, Penn.-based insurance broker and agency network, from Bain Capital, which launched Keystone in 2020. Bain Capital will retain a minority ownership in Keystone through a new investment from Bain Capital Insurance. Financial terms were not disclosed. 

– NexPhase Capital acquired Empower Community Care, an Atlanta-based behavioral health organization, from Northlane Capital Partners. Financial terms were not disclosed. 

Other

– Rokt agreed to acquire Canal, a San Francisco-based marketplace growth platform. Financial terms were not disclosed.

FUNDS + FUNDS OF FUNDS

– Pantheon, a London-based private equity firm, raised $2.2 billion for its third fund focused on absolute and risk-adjusted returns across a broad and diversified range of credit strategies and investments.