Autolane Secures $7.4 Million Investment From Draper Associates And Hyperplane For Autonomous Vehicle Infrastructure

Autolane, an autonomous vehicle infrastructure developer, has raised $7.4 million in a funding round co-led by Draper Associates and Hyperplane, with participation from LAUNCH and Feld Ventures. The company is deploying its curbside operating system at four Simon Malls and properties in Texas and California, enabling faster and more efficient management of autonomous ride-hailing and delivery vehicles. Since launching its first full-scale test site in the San Francisco Bay Area in May 2025, Autolane has shown it can reduce curbside pickup times by 50% through improved order communication, handoff, and execution. CEO and co-founder Ben Seidl emphasized that the funding and partnership with Simon validate Autolane’s vision of integrating autonomous mobility infrastructure into high-traffic retail environments. FOUNDER: Ben Seidl INVESTORS: Draper Associates, Hyperplane, LAUNCH & Feld Ventures AMOUNT: $7,400,000 HQ: #PaloAlto #California #VentureCapital #Autolane #BenSeidl #DraperAssociates #Hyperplane #LAUNCH #FeldVentures #TradedVC

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Puppy Sphere Secures Seed Round Of $24 Million From Strategic Investors Including The School Of Hard KnocksPuppy Sphere (@ThePuppySphere), a New York-based wellness brand centered on the human-animal bond, has raised a Seed round from a group of strategic investors including The School of Hard Knocks, Tobi Oluwole, Jake Fleshner, Torch Collective, former Massage Envy CEO David Humphrey, and other founders and operators. Founded by Francesca Albo and Lea Burbidge Izquierdo, Puppy Sphere has scaled its puppy yoga concept into a broader experiential wellness platform with 13 studios, corporate wellness programs, brand partnerships, and live activations, serving more than 450,000 customers and partnering with companies including Google, Amazon, Netflix, TikTok, and the NBA. FUN FACT: Puppy Sphere was born from two Canadian founders’ own mental health journeys and has since grown into 13 studios across North America, $14M+ in cumulative revenue, and 450,000+ customers, all without outside capital. Along the way, the brand has welcomed names like Sabrina Carpenter, Simu Liu, Trevor Noah and Alessia Cara, while building a broader wellness platform around the gentle power of puppy therapy. Now Puppy Sphere is opening its cap table for the first time through a strategic angel round, bringing together leaders across media, consumer growth and wellness, including The School of Hard Knocks, former Massage Envy CEO David Humphrey, growth entrepreneur Tobi Oluwole, and Nucleus Network co-founder Jake Fleshner, alongside a broader group of strategic founders and operators. The vision: bring the gentle power of puppy therapy across the globe. FOUNDERS: Francesca Albo (@FrancescaaAlbo), Lea Burbidge Izquierdo (@LeaburbIz) INVESTORS: The School of Hard Knocks (@TheSchoolofHardKnockz), Tobi Oluwole (@TheTobiOluwole), Jake Fleshner (@JakeFleshner) Torch Collective, Heather Stark, Will Bodewes, Craig Zingerline & more ROUND: Seed VALUATION CAP: $24,000,000 HQ: New York, New York #VentureCapital #PuppySphere #TradedPartner #FrancescaAlbo #TradedVC