Venture Capital

Anduril Raises $2.5 Billion at $30.5 Billion Valuation, Led by Founders Fund

| Importance: 9/10

Anduril Industries closed an oversubscribed $2.5 billion funding round at a $30.5 billion valuation, more than doubling its previous $14 billion valuation from 2024. Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund led the round with a $1 billion investment—the fund’s largest single check ever—demonstrating …

Anduril Industries Peter Thiel Founders Fund Palmer Luckey Trae Stephens +1 more Defense Contractors Venture Capital Autonomous Weapons Military-Industrial Complex Peter Thiel Network
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Trump Team Targets Politically Connected Startup Ramp for $700B Government Payments Overhaul

| Importance: 9/10

The Trump administration is fast-tracking a $25 million pilot contract for Ramp, a politically connected FinTech startup backed by Peter Thiel, Elon Musk, and JD Vance allies, to manage the $700 billion SmartPay government expense card program. Ramp, valued at $13 billion, has deep ties to …

Donald Trump Peter Thiel Elon Musk J.D. Vance Gerald Connolly +2 more trump-administration government-contracts fintech peter-thiel regulatory-capture +1 more
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In-Q-Tel Reaches 800th Investment Milestone, Expanding Into AI and Quantum Computing

| Importance: 7/10

In early April 2025, In-Q-Tel announced its 800th investment since the CIA venture capital arm’s founding in 1999, marking a major expansion of intelligence community financial entanglement with private technology companies. The milestone investment came as In-Q-Tel broadened its focus beyond …

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Chainalysis Raises $170 Million at $8.6 Billion Valuation in Series F

| Importance: 8/10

Chainalysis announces a $170 million Series F financing led by GIC, Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, bringing its valuation to $8.6 billion and cementing the company’s position as the largest enterprise SaaS company in the cryptocurrency industry. The funding round represents another …

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Flock Safety Reaches $3.5 Billion Valuation with 1,000+ Police Departments Using Surveillance Network

| Importance: 8/10

Flock Safety announces $150 million Series E funding round led by Tiger Global, achieving a post-money valuation of $3.5 billion and cementing its status as a surveillance unicorn. Additional investors include Andreessen Horowitz, Spark Capital, Meritech, and Initialized Capital, bringing total …

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Clearview AI Raises $30 Million Series B Funding Despite Widespread Privacy Violations

| Importance: 7/10

Clearview AI closed a $30 million Series B funding round led by Kirenaga Partners, valuing the controversial facial recognition company at $130 million. The investment came despite ongoing privacy investigations in multiple countries and widespread regulatory findings that the company’s …

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Chainalysis Raises $100 Million at $4.2 Billion Valuation in Series E

| Importance: 8/10

Chainalysis announces a $100 million Series E financing led by Coatue, bringing its valuation to $4.2 billion and establishing the company as the dominant player in the cryptocurrency surveillance industry. The funding round comes just three months after a $100 million Series D round in March 2021 …

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Vance Returns to Ohio, Launches Narya Capital

| Importance: 8/10

J.D. Vance returns to Ohio and co-founds Narya Capital venture firm with $93 million in capital, backed by Peter Thiel, Eric Schmidt, Marc Andreessen, and Scott Dorsey. The firm focuses on investing in startups in under-served cities across fields of science and advanced technology.

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Vance Returns to Ohio, Launches Narya Capital

| Importance: 8/10

J.D. Vance returns to Ohio and co-founds Narya Capital venture firm with $93 million initial funding, backed by Peter Thiel, Eric Schmidt, and other Silicon Valley elites. This strategic move positioned Vance for a future political career while leveraging his connections with tech billionaires. The …

J.D. Vance Peter Thiel Eric Schmidt Marc Andreessen Narya Capital narya-capital political-preparation ohio-return thiel-funding venture-capital +1 more
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Peter Thiel Backs J.D. Vance's $93 Million Narya Capital Venture Fund

| Importance: 6/10

Peter Thiel becomes anchor investor in J.D. Vance’s new venture capital firm Narya Capital, which raises $93 million. Fund focuses on investments outside Silicon Valley, particularly in Midwest, aligning with Vance’s populist branding while maintaining elite financial networks. …

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Peter Thiel Hires Vance at Mithril Capital

| Importance: 9/10

Peter Thiel brings J.D. Vance into his global investment firm Mithril Capital as an investor, marking a significant moment in Vance’s early professional career. This relationship positioned Vance within Thiel’s influential tech and venture capital network, setting the stage for …

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JD Vance Joins Peter Thiel's Mithril Capital as Principal

| Importance: 7/10

JD Vance joins Peter Thiel’s venture capital firm Mithril Capital as a principal, establishing a crucial financial and ideological relationship that would later shape his political career. This strategic partnership connects Vance to Thiel’s techno-libertarian philosophy and provides the …

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JD Vance Joins Peter Thiel's Mithril Capital as Principal

| Importance: 7/10

JD Vance joins Peter Thiel’s venture capital firm Mithril Capital as a principal, establishing a crucial financial and ideological relationship that would later shape his political career. The partnership connects Vance to Thiel’s techno-libertarian philosophy and provides the foundation …

JD Vance Peter Thiel Mithril Capital succession-risk jd-vance peter-thiel mithril-capital power-network +1 more
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J.D. Vance Joins Peter Thiel's Mithril Capital as Principal

| Importance: 6/10

Following publication of “Hillbilly Elegy,” J.D. Vance joins Peter Thiel’s venture capital firm Mithril Capital as principal, deepening financial and ideological ties with Silicon Valley’s tech elite.

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In-Q-Tel and Google Ventures Co-Invest in Social Media Surveillance Firm Recorded Future

| Importance: 8/10

On July 1, 2009, In-Q-Tel and Google Ventures simultaneously invested in Recorded Future, a startup founded by Christopher Ahlberg that specialized in using artificial intelligence to monitor the open web, dark web, and social media to predict future events. Each firm invested under $10 million in …

In-Q-Tel Google Ventures Recorded Future Christopher Ahlberg in-q-tel cia google social-media-surveillance ai-surveillance +2 more
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CIA Establishes In-Q-Tel as Revolutionary Venture Capital Arm

| Importance: 9/10

In September 1999, the Central Intelligence Agency established In-Q-Tel (IQT), a groundbreaking not-for-profit venture capital firm designed to bridge Silicon Valley innovation with intelligence community needs. The initiative was championed by CIA Director George Tenet, who recognized that …

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