Vermilion Cliffs Ventures Closes $25 Million Fund II For AI Cybersecurity And Developer Tools

Vermilion Cliffs Ventures has closed its second fund, a $25 million vehicle that will continue the firm’s focus on backing technical founders building in areas such as AI infrastructure, cybersecurity, and developer tools. Founded in 2023 by solo GP Ashley Smith, the venture firm raised the new fund in approximately four months, with significant support from existing investors. Fund II plans to invest between $500,000 and $1 million per company and target at least 25 startups over the next two and a half years, building on the success of the firm’s $13 million debut fund, which backed 35 companies including Keycard and CopilotKit. FOUNDER: GP Ashley Smith AMOUNT: $25,000,000 HQ: New York, New York #VentureCapital #VermilionCliffsVentures #GPAshleySmith #TradedVC

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Klinic Secures $24 Million In Seed And Series A Funding From Proofpoint Capital And I2BF Global VenturesKlinic, an AI-enabled specialty care access platform, has raised $24 million in combined seed and Series A funding to expand its provider network, enhance its AI-powered platform, and grow its life sciences partnerships. The round was co-led by Proofpoint Capital and I2BF Global Ventures, with representatives from both firms joining Klinic’s board. Founded and led by CEO Avish Bhama, Klinic helps patients navigate the often complex specialty care journey by using artificial intelligence and workflow automation to streamline provider matching, insurance verification, prior authorizations, patient communications, and pharmacy coordination. The company has already supported more than 150,000 patients and aims to make specialty care access faster, more connected, and more affordable. FOUNDER: Avish Bhama INVESTORS: Proofpoint Capital & I2BF Global Ventures ROUND: Seed & Series A AMOUNT: $24,000,000 HQ: Dallas, Texas #VentureCapital #Klinic #AvishBhama #TradedVC

Databento Secures $97 Million Series B Funding Led By New Enterprise AssociatesDatabento announced a $97 million Series B funding round led by New Enterprise Associates (NEA), with participation from investors including DRW, Redpoint Ventures, and Tribe Capital. In a July 9, 2026 announcement, CEO Christina Qi said the funding will help accelerate the company’s mission to build a modern market data platform for finance. Databento reported 6.65x year-over-year revenue growth, 97% enterprise retention since inception, profitability ahead of schedule, and support for more than 3,000 companies worldwide. The company plans to use the investment to expand into new asset classes and geographies, increase its global data center footprint, and continue investing in the infrastructure that powers its market data services. FOUNDER: Christina Qi INVESTORS: New Enterprise Associates (NEA), DRW Venture Capital, Redpoint Ventures, Tribe Capital, Alumni Ventures, Blindspot Ventures, Cross Creek, Fifth Down Capital, Motley Fool Ventures, Operator Collective, TGVP & Trousdale Ventures ROUND: Series B AMOUNT: $97,000,000 HQ: Salt Lake City, Utah #VentureCapital #Databento #ChristinaQi #TradedVC

Ollama Raises $65 Million Series B Led By Theory Ventures Bringing Total Funding To $88 MillionOllama, the popular open-source AI developer tool that helps developers run open-weight AI models locally on their computers, has raised a $65 million Series B round led by Theory Ventures, bringing its total funding to $88 million. Founder and CEO Jeff Morgan said the company, which launched in 2023, is now used by more than 8.9 million developers each month and is present in 85% of Fortune 500 companies. Built by Morgan and co-founder Michael Chiang, who previously helped create Docker Desktop, Ollama has gained significant traction with developers through its free desktop product while also expanding its cloud offerings for larger AI models that are too resource-intensive to run locally. FOUNDER: Jeff Morgan INVESTORS: Theory Ventures, Benchmark & Peter Fenton ROUND: Series B AMOUNT: $65,000,000 HQ: Palo Alto, California #VentureCapital #Ollama #JeffMorgan #TradedVC