Global Superhero Franchise Returns with Free Distribution Strategy to Reach 99+ Countries

VANCOUVER, BC and DUBAI, UAE, Feb. 18, 2026 — 99 Kids Holdings Co., a dual Canada-UAE entertainment company, today announced the close of a $5 million Series A funding round led by Exponential Ventures to reboot THE 99—the groundbreaking comic book and animated series that introduced Islam-inspired superheroes embodying universal values to global audiences starting in 2006.

Launching just ahead of Ramadan, the reboot will introduce THE 99 to a new generation through 52 original episodes remastered in 4K with enhanced audio. The series will debut free on YouTube and select broadcasters in English, Arabic, Indonesian, Urdu, Hindi and other languages. This values-driven franchise—recognized by Forbes, studied at Harvard Business School and partnered with DC Comics in a Justice League crossover—returns amid rising global intolerance, delivering 99 heroes from every corner of the world.

A Mission for Today’s World

“The world faces an epidemic of intolerance. THE 99 provides an antidote: stories that teach kids tolerance, empathy, kindness and understanding at critical developmental stages,” said James Drage, Partner of Exponential Ventures and Chairman of 99 Kids Holdings. “After years of conversations through YPO, Dr. Naif and I agree: not rebooting THE 99 would let intolerance win.”

Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa, creator of THE 99, added: “We proved superheroes can transcend faith, culture and geography using universal values. Now we’ll reintroduce this message to kids who will build bridges, not walls.” Since 2006, THE 99 has reached over 50 million viewers across 60+ countries—making it one of the first Arab-originated children’s IPs to achieve global distribution.

Roadmap to Global Scale

99 Kids Holdings will build a global fanbase of 6-12-year-olds via free content:

2026 Launches:

• Remastered 52-episode series (YouTube + broadcast partners)
• Roblox game
• New comics and animated special

2027+ Expansion:

• Original animated series with new global characters
• Graphic novel series
• Gaming experiences and live-action television/film adaptations

The funding accelerates localization, team builds, broadcaster partnerships and AI-powered tools for personalized fan content.

Exponential Ventures: Civilization-Scale Impact

The investment aligns with Exponential Ventures’ focus on Massive Transformative Purpose (MTP), seeking portfolio companies that create measurable societal impact alongside financial returns. THE 99 is the fund’s first media and entertainment investment.

“THE 99 isn’t just entertainment—it’s a scalable solution for raising empathetic global citizens,” said Salim Ismail, Co-Founder, who will join the advisory board.

99 Kids Holdings is in active discussions with additional strategic investors and partners across North America, Europe, MENA and Southeast Asia.

About THE 99

Launched in 2006, THE 99 featured 47 comics (plus six DC Justice League of America crossovers), 52 animated episodes, a Kuwait theme park and global licensing deals. Operations were suspended in 2014 amid political backlash and extremist threats—ironically proving why its message of tolerance was needed. Recognized by Forbes as a top global trend and with Dr. Al-Mutawa cited as one of the world’s most influential designers, the IP embodies universal values such as empathy, justice, wisdom and compassion.

About 99 Kids Holdings Co.

99 Kids Holdings Co. is a dual Canada/UAE company rebooting THE 99 as a top-10 global children’s IP, backed by impact investors and kids entertainment/tech advisors.

About Exponential Ventures

Exponential Ventures is a VC fund scaling Exponential Organizations with the Open ExO framework, tackling civilization-scale problems with profit and purpose.

Watch THE 99
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@The99Kids

MULTIMEDIA ASSETS AVAILABLE:

Past media:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/17YeYvQieP4wIOXn58GqzSZyN3DGlet1G/view?usp=drive_link

HONG KONG, Feb. 17, 2026 — Fireplace, a professional trading terminal for prediction markets, announced a $1.5 million pre-seed round to bring institutional trading infrastructure to one of the fastest growing asset classes in history. The round was led by Frachtis, with participation from White Star Capital and several other notable VCs and Angel Investors, including Syndicate rounds on Legion and Echo.

Fireplace offers what prediction markets always lacked: a unified terminal that aggregates markets, liquidity, and execution across prediction market venues. Fireplace delivers real-time data, institution-grade execution, advanced charting, wallet, whale, and insider tracking, and discovery. Wallet technology and automations are powered by in-house Enclave Money infrastructure.

As prediction markets fragment across platforms and chains, Fireplace is being built to support cross-venue aggregation with smart-order-routing. Rather than forcing traders to manually compare prices and liquidity across venues, Fireplace will intelligently route orders when the same market exists in multiple places.

“Prediction markets are one of the most powerful financial primitives, but the user experience hasn’t caught up.” said Sumer Malhotra, Co-Founder and CEO of Fireplace. “Trading feels slow and information-poor, Fireplace fixes that by giving traders the fastest, most intelligent terminal.”

Prediction markets have exploded over the past year, becoming a core venue for macro-events, sports, crypto events, and elections. Despite this growth, tooling remains fragmented, slow, and information-poor.

In just 5 months, Fireplace has seen rapid traction:

• 30,000+ traders on waitlist 
• 10,000+ organic followers on X 
• Official Polymarket badge on X 
• Public launch on January 27, 2026 

Akshay Rajagopal, Co-Founder and CTO, added: “Prediction markets needed their own Bloomberg Terminal. Fireplace brings real-time infrastructure and execution that simply didn’t exist before.”

Fireplace sits above existing prediction markets, aggregating markets, traders, and liquidity into a single interface.

“Fireplace is building the professional interface that markets like Polymarket have been missing – the data, speed, and tooling that serious traders expect. This will unlock a new category for prediction markets, allowing pro-traders and institutions to participate in a new asset class.” said Xavier Meegan, CIO of Frachtis.

The funding will accelerate development of the terminal, with a focus on execution, deeper data layers, and cross-venue aggregation with smart-order-routing.

Fireplace Pro’s launch: https://x.com/fireplacegg/status/2016210775883628623?s=20

SOURCE Fireplace; Enclave Money

inKind has provided over $600 million in funding to more than 6,000 top restaurants while delivering over $175 million in dining rewards for its 4 million+ users

AUSTIN, Texas, Feb. 17, 2026 — inKind, the leading restaurant commerce enablement platform and technology company, has closed $450 million in capital to accelerate its growing platform of 6,000 restaurants in the U.S. With this new funding, inKind will advance its platform growth to an additional 10,000 U.S. restaurants over the next year.

Known for connecting thousands of top restaurants with its over 4 million customers, inKind’s fundraise included several prominent individuals and firms, including Matt Hulsizer and Jenny Just (founders of Peak6), Sarosh Mistry (former CEO of Sodexo US), and Vasanth Williams (CPTO of Conde Nast) to name a few.

To date, inKind has provided more than $600 million in funding to a diverse group of top restaurant partners, including acclaimed operators like José Andrés Group, MINA Group and Ethan Stowell Restaurants, and independent establishments like Okàn, Kann, and Superiority Burger; as well as 20 Michelin-starred destinations and 50 James Beard nominees.

The funding raised by inKind, a mix of equity and debt, enables the company to accelerate its impact on the restaurant industry by providing operators with needed access to growth capital and high-spending guests. Additionally, inKind will ramp up innovation of the in-app customer dining experience for its rapidly growing subscriber base of millions.

“Restaurants are the heart of our communities and they deserve partners who understand the unique support they need to thrive,” said Johann Moonesinghe, CEO and co-founder of inKind. “Traditional restaurant financing models can drain equity, cash flow, and long-term viability. We created inKind to change that—offering a smarter, more sustainable way to fund restaurants without the burdens. Our model helps operators maintain cash flow, access capital quickly, and build more resilient businesses. Thanks to our partners that led the funding we’re able to amplify those efforts on a massive scale to up to 10,000 additional restaurants. We’re proud to support thousands of locally owned restaurants nationwide, not just with funding, but as true partners in their success.”

The news aligns with inKind’s continued standout growth, marked by over 100% growth in gross order volume (GOV) for four consecutive years (2020-2024) and is on pace to reach more than $350 million in 2025. To date, inKind has rewarded its users with over $175 million in dining rewards and continues to attract hundreds of thousands of new users monthly.

inKind has become the largest platform of its kind, providing restaurants with financing that essentially pays for itself. The company’s unique business model provides restaurants with funding in exchange for food and beverage credits, rather than equity or debt. These credits are then used by high-spending diners through the inKind app at partner restaurants via inKind’s best-in-class 20% back rewards model.

inKind was created by Moonesinghe, his late brother Rajan Moonesinghe, his husband Andrew Harris and Marcus Triest, as a more supportive capital option for restaurants, based on the challenges they faced as restaurant owners and investors themselves. Having invested directly in over 30 restaurants and owning several themselves, including The Guest House Austin and Las Vegas, Etta Scottsdale, and Ember Kitchen in Austin, Moonesinghe and Harris built inKind to harness the power of regular restaurant customers to support local hospitality businesses in a mutually beneficial way.

José Andrés Group CEO, Sam Bakhshandehpour, whose restaurant group has integrated inKind’s solutions across multiple properties and funding rounds, shared, “inKind understands what it really takes to operate a restaurant. They move at our pace because they know first-hand what works in the hospitality trenches. While traditional lenders see spreadsheets, inKind sees the late nights, the razor-thin margins, and the passion that drives our business. Their capital isn’t just funding; it’s freedom—freedom to invest in our people and perfect our craft. Johann genuinely cares about restaurants and has built something that’s not only incredible for diners but transformative for operators.”

The influx of capital will further drive inKind’s expansion in underserved markets and restaurant segments, particularly among independent restaurants and emerging chains. It will also be utilized to fuel the development of proprietary technology tailored to meet the evolving needs of restaurant owners including expanded financial products that address specific restaurant needs, such as growth capital, equipment financing, and better access to debt.

The company’s innovative approach to capital and its focus on restaurant success have earned it recognition as one of the Most Innovative Companies by Fast Company, one of America’s Fastest Growing businesses by Deloitte and Touche, and one of the Best Places to Work by Built in.

For more information about inKind and its mission to support the restaurant industry, visit https://inkind.com and follow @inkind.app.

About inKind
Founded in 2016, inKind is a leading commerce enablement platform that provides low-cost capital investment opportunities for restaurants and exclusive dining rewards for consumers. With over 4 million users in the US and partnerships with 6,000 restaurants nationwide, inKind has become the largest consumer marketplace of its kind. The platform has infused over $600 million in capital to successful restaurant groups like MINA Group, Ethan Stowell Restaurants, and José Andrés Group, as well as independent restaurants such as Okàn, Kann, and Superiority Burger. inKind’s mission goes beyond profit, focusing on delivering exceptional experiences for both restaurant partners and diners. Through its seamless app experience, inKind redefines shared dining experiences by offering tangible savings, enticing rewards, and seamless transactions. Stay up to date with inKind by visiting https://inkind.com and following @inkind.ap.

SOURCE inKind

Series A funding fuels production and product development as demand accelerates for proven
maritime autonomy.

SAN DIEGO, Feb. 17, 2026 — Seasats, a leader in small uncrewed surface vehicles (sUSVs), today announced the close of a $20 million Series A financing led by Konvoy Ventures, with participation from Shield Capital, DNS Capital, Techstars, Tanis Venture Management, Crumpton Ventures, Dorado Group, and other strategic investors. To date, the company has raised more than $40 million in funding and has recently been awarded over $100 million in U.S. government contracts, underscoring strong demand for its proven autonomous maritime platforms.

“Seasats has delivered what much of the market continues to promise: operationally proven autonomous surface vehicles that can deploy and meet the mission,” said Jason Chapman, Co-founder and Managing Partner at Konvoy Ventures. “As part of our diligence, we spoke directly with Seasats’ customers, and we were impressed by their consistent testimony about the vessel’s ability to execute real-world missions. Combined with growing adoption across military, commercial, and international partners, Seasats is uniquely positioned to deliver the next phase of maritime autonomy.”

Seasats’ long-endurance vessel has successfully completed trans-Pacific and trans-Atlantic crossings, and the company’s interceptor has conducted continuous operations of over a week, underscoring each platform’s reliability, endurance, and readiness for operational use. Building on these milestones, the new funding will enable Seasats to expand production and respond to rapid growth in market demand.

“Robotics typically deliver value by automating tasks across one or more of the three D’s: dirty, dull, and dangerous,” said Mike Flanigan, CEO and co-founder of Seasats. “We’ve focused on attacking the “dull” problem, making vessels that can reliably operate for weeks or months, just like Navy and utility ships do. That approach has won tremendous support from users and investors, and this funding underscores that.”

In the past year, Seasats secured U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Navy contracts. The company was also selected for the Department of War’s Accelerate the Procurement and Fielding of Innovative Technologies (APFIT) program, which funds innovative capabilities that have completed development and are ready to scale. Funds from the Series A will support expansion of new facilities, additional product lines, and continued team growth as the company capitalizes on increasing demand for low-cost, scalable maritime autonomy.

“Seasats is delivering critical capabilities that strengthen security for the United States and our allies,” noted Philip Bilden, Founder & Managing Partner at Shield Capital. “Whether providing port security, patrolling coasts, or protecting our forward deployed military in dangerous duties, Seasats is supporting missions that matter.”

About Seasats
Seasats builds long-endurance autonomous surface vessels for defense, commercial, and scientific missions. By combining commercial manufacturing agility with defense-grade reliability, Seasats delivers small, cost-effective unmanned systems that extend maritime reach, enhance situational awareness, and reduce risk to personnel.

SOURCE Seasats

Funding accelerates commercial deployment of Utility’s H2Gen® technology, which produces cost-effective clean hydrogen and highly concentrated CO₂ streams, enabling at-scale economic decarbonization for existing assets in hard-to-abate industries

HOUSTON, Feb. 17, 2026 — Utility Global (“Utility”), a global economic industrial decarbonization company enabling practical solutions for hard-to-abate sectors, today announced a first close of $100 million in its Series D financing round, led by Ara Partners and APG Asset Management (one of the world’s largest pension investors on behalf of Dutch pension funds). This milestone financing will allow Utility to globally deploy its proprietary H2Gen^® technology at industrial scale.

The financing will accelerate Utility’s growth, enabling the continued expansion of its manufacturing capabilities, the strengthening of its project delivery teams, and the advancement of multiple commercial deployments across the Americas, Europe, and Asia. The capital will support its recently announced strategic partnerships and project announcements with Kyocera, Symbio North America Corporation, Seongnam Municipal Government of Korea, Maas Energy Works and ArcelorMittal. Utility’s focus remains on repeatable, economically viable solutions that integrate directly into industrial processes and enable near-term decarbonization at scale.

Utility’s proprietary H2Gen® technology enables the conversion of water into valuable clean hydrogen and a high-purity CO₂ stream without electricity by utilizing industrial off-gases, supporting pragmatic and scalable decarbonization while enabling economic carbon capture, utilization, or sequestration (CCUS). The technology is designed to integrate directly into existing industrial infrastructure in largely hard-to-abate assets, delivering repeatable deployments across steel, refining, petrochemicals, chemicals, low carbon fuels and upstream oil and gas.

“This financing marks a critical step in Utility’s transition from a proven technology to full-scale global commercial execution,” said Parker Meeks, Chief Executive Officer and President of Utility Global. “Industrial customers are no longer looking for pilots or promises; they need deployable solutions that work within existing assets and deliver true economic industrial decarbonization today that is operationally reliable and highly scalable. Utility’s technology produces both economic clean hydrogen and capture-ready CO₂ streams, and this capital enables us to scale and deploy that impact globally with speed, discipline, and rigor.”

Ara Partners continues to be a majority investor in Utility Global. Ara’s focus is on accelerating the growth of businesses that can deliver standout performance while decarbonizing the industrial economy. Ara first invested in Utility Global in 2021 and continues to support the company’s commercial expansion as it advances customer projects worldwide.

“Utility is tackling one of the most difficult challenges in the energy transition: decarbonizing hard‑to‑abate industrial sectors,” said Cory Steffek, Partner at Ara Partners and Utility Global board chair. “What sets Utility apart is its ability to compete head‑to‑head with conventional fossil‑based solutions on cost and reliability, even as it materially reduces emissions. With this new funding, Utility is well positioned for its next chapter of commercial growth while maintaining the technical excellence and capital discipline that have defined its development to date.”

TPH &Co., the energy business of Perella Weinberg Partners, and BDA Partners, are serving as financial advisors to Utility Global.

About Utility Global

Utility delivers practical solutions that enable economic industrial decarbonization across hard-to-abate sectors including steel, mobility, refining, chemicals, and upstream oil & gas. The company’s breakthrough H2Gen® technology harnesses energy from industrial off-gases and biogases to produce application-specific, high-purity hydrogen with low-to-negative carbon intensity on-site from water, without electricity, using a proprietary electrochemical process.

H2Gen® also produces a high-concentration carbon dioxide stream, significantly reducing the cost and complexity of carbon capture. Modular, scalable, and operationally flexible, H2Gen® systems integrate seamlessly into existing industrial assets with a record-small footprint, enabling practical and economical decarbonization.

Utility is a portfolio company of Ara Partners, a global private equity and infrastructure firm that is decarbonizing the industrial economy.

For more information on Utility’s solutions and services, visit www.utilityglobal.com.

About Ara Partners

Founded in 2017, Ara Partners is a global private markets firm focused on decarbonizing the industrial economy. We invest in the middle market across three strategies: Private Equity, Infrastructure, and Energy. We scale commercially demonstrated decarbonization solutions, support the businesses and infrastructure that enable their adoption, and reduce emissions at the source across the conventional energy value chain. Our model combines investing, market and policy expertise, project execution and operational optimization, and rigorous carbon accounting to reduce emissions economically and unlock growth at an industrial scale. Ara operates from Houston, Boston, Dublin and Washington D.C., and, as of September 30, 2025, had approximately $6.6 billion in assets under management.

For more information about Ara Partners, please visit www.arapartners.com.

About APG

As the largest pension services provider in the Netherlands APG manages approximately €590 billion (June 2025) in pension assets for 4.6 million participants. APG provides executive consultancy, asset management, pension administration, and pension communication. With approximately 4,000 employees we work from Heerlen, Amsterdam, Brussels, New York, Hong Kong, and Singapore. We work for pension funds and employers in the sectors of education, government, construction, cleaning, housing associations, sheltered employment organizations, medical specialists, and architects.  

Further details can be found on APG’s website https://apg.nl/en.

SOURCE Utility Global

Financiering ondersteunt wereldwijde uitrol van platform voor economische industriële decarbonisatie

De financiering versnelt de commerciële inzet van Utility’s H2Gen®-technologie, die kosteneffectieve schone waterstof en sterk geconcentreerde CO₂-stromen produceert en economische decarbonisatie op industriële schaal mogelijk maakt voor bestaande activa in moeilijk te decarboniseren sectoren.

HOUSTON, Texas, 17 februari 2026 — Utility Global (“Utility”), een wereldwijd opererende bedrijf gespecialiseerd in economische industriële decarbonisatie en praktische oplossingen voor moeilijk te decarboniseren sectoren, heeft vandaag een eerste closing van 100 miljoen dollar aangekondigd in haar Series D-financieringsronde, geleid door Ara Partners en APG Asset Management (een van ‘s werelds grootste pensioeninvesteerders namens Nederlandse pensioenfondsen). Deze mijlpaalfinanciering stelt Utility in staat haar propriëtaire H2Gen®-technologie wereldwijd op industriële schaal uit te rollen.

De financiering zal de groei van Utility versnellen door verdere uitbreiding van de productiecapaciteiten, versterking van de projectuitvoeringsteams en vooruitgang van meerdere commerciële implementaties in Noord- en Zuid-Amerika, Europa en Azië. Het kapitaal ondersteunt tevens de recent aangekondigde strategische partnerschappen en projecten met Kyocera, Symbio North America Corporation, de stad Seongnam in Zuid-Korea, Maas Energy Works en ArcelorMittal. Utility blijft zich richten op herhaalbare, economisch haalbare oplossingen die rechtstreeks in industriële processen kunnen worden geïntegreerd en op korte termijn grootschalige decarbonisatie mogelijk maken.

Utility’s propriëtaire H2Gen®-technologie maakt het mogelijk water om te zetten in waardevolle schone waterstof en een hoogzuivere CO₂-stroom zonder gebruik van elektriciteit, door industriële restgassen te benutten. Dit ondersteunt pragmatische en schaalbare decarbonisatie en maakt economische koolstofafvang, -gebruik of -opslag (CCUS) mogelijk. De technologie is ontworpen voor directe integratie in bestaande industriële infrastructuur binnen grotendeels moeilijk te decarboniseren activa, met herhaalbare toepassingen in de sectoren staal, raffinage, petrochemie, chemie, koolstofarme brandstoffen en upstream olie en gas.

“Deze financiering markeert een cruciale stap in de overgang van Utility van een bewezen technologie naar volledige wereldwijde commerciële uitvoering,” aldus Parker Meeks, Chief Executive Officer en President van Utility Global. “Industriële klanten zijn niet langer op zoek naar pilootprojecten of beloften; zij hebben nood aan inzetbare oplossingen die binnen bestaande activa functioneren en vandaag echte economische industriële decarbonisatie leveren, met operationele betrouwbaarheid en hoge schaalbaarheid. Utility’s technologie produceert zowel economisch haalbare schone waterstof als capture-ready CO₂-stromen, en dit kapitaal stelt ons in staat die impact wereldwijd snel, gedisciplineerd en doelgericht op te schalen.”

Ara Partners blijft meerderheidsinvesteerder in Utility Global. Ara focust op het versnellen van de groei van ondernemingen die uitmuntende prestaties leveren en tegelijk de industriële economie decarboniseren. Ara investeerde voor het eerst in Utility Global in 2021 en blijft de commerciële expansie ondersteunen naarmate wereldwijd klantprojecten worden gerealiseerd.

“Utility pakt een van de meest complexe uitdagingen van de energietransitie aan: het decarboniseren van moeilijk te decarboniseren industriële sectoren,” aldus Cory Steffek, Partner bij Ara Partners en voorzitter van de raad van bestuur van Utility Global. “Wat Utility onderscheidt, is het vermogen om qua kosten en betrouwbaarheid rechtstreeks te concurreren met conventionele fossiele oplossingen, terwijl het de uitstoot substantieel vermindert. Met deze nieuwe financiering is Utility goed gepositioneerd voor het volgende hoofdstuk van commerciële groei, met behoud van de technische excellentie en kapitaalsdiscipline die haar ontwikkeling tot op heden hebben gekenmerkt.”

TPH&Co., de energieactiviteiten van Perella Weinberg Partners, en BDA Partners treden op als financieel adviseurs van Utility Global.

Over Utility Global

Utility levert praktische oplossingen die economische industriële decarbonisatie mogelijk maken in moeilijk te decarboniseren sectoren, waaronder staal, mobiliteit, raffinage, chemie en upstream olie en gas.

Voor meer informatie over Utility’s oplossingen en diensten, bezoek: www.utilityglobal.com

Over Ara Partners

Ara Partners werd opgericht in 2017 en is een wereldwijde private-markets investeringsmaatschappij met focus op de decarbonisatie van de industriële economie.

Voor meer informatie, bezoek: www.arapartners.com

Over APG

Als grootste pensioenuitvoerder van Nederland beheert APG circa €590 miljard (juni 2025) aan pensioenvermogen voor 4,6 miljoen deelnemers.

Meer details zijn te vinden op: https://apg.nl/en

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Logo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2904341/Ara_Partners_logo_lockup_RGB_BLACK_TM_Logo.jpg

Logo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2904901/APG_logo_2400_Logo.jpg

New AI system validates service invoices before payment, giving health systems control over one of their largest and least-managed spend categories.

DALLAS, Feb. 17, 2026 — SpendRule today announced the launch of its contract intelligence platform to help health systems prevent overpayments on purchased services. By validating invoices directly against contract terms before payment, SpendRule brings transparency, clarity and control over a $323 billion spend category.

SpendRule enters the market with significant momentum, already deployed across several health systems, including OSF HealthCare, Kettering Health, MemorialCare, and MUSC Health. These organizations are utilizing SpendRule to move from reactive auditing to proactive prevention, enforcing purchased services contract obligations before payment, improving visibility into services spend, and resolving issues faster.

Purchased services represent nearly half of non-labor spend for health systems, yet the vast majority of that spend remains unmanaged, resulting in more than $32B in preventable overpayments annually, according to industry estimates. Contracts are complex, rarely reviewed, and the majority of invoices are approved without validation. The result is widespread overpayments, limited visibility into vendor performance, and cost management that is reactive rather than controlled.

SpendRule addresses this gap by turning purchased services contracts into enforceable logic operating directly within existing accounts payable workflows. “Most purchased services contracts sit in a filing cabinet – literal or digital – disconnected from the payments they’re supposed to govern,” said Joseph Akintolayo, CTO and co-founder of SpendRule. “We change that by turning those agreements into code – encoding the actual terms, conditions, and obligations into real-time payment controls. This enables true 4-way matching – Purchase Order, Receipt, Invoice, and Contract Terms – automatically validating invoices against their contract before payment. Discrepancies are flagged with evidence and resolved upstream, without disrupting existing ERP or AP systems.”

“Supply chain teams have always struggled with a lack of resources dedicated to purchased services – despite their spend levels often exceeding medical/surgical supplies, and with far greater complexity,” said Chris Heckler, CEO and co-founder of SpendRule. “In my 20+ years in this space, I’ve seen firsthand that simply identifying savings opportunities is the tip of the iceberg. The real challenge is ensuring those savings actually hit the bottom line. By embedding AI-powered contract enforcement directly into the payment process, SpendRule gives health systems an automated, proactive way to eliminate overpayments and meaningfully reduce costs.”

“We manage thousands of purchased services contracts, many of them hundreds of pages long,” said Dave Fergus, Chief Supply Chain Officer, OSF HealthCare. “Before SpendRule, there was no realistic way to ensure every invoice line matched the contract before payment. Now, that validation happens automatically, giving us confidence in invoice accuracy, stopping the leakage, and freeing our teams from thousands of hours of manual approvals each year.”

SpendRule is backed by leading investors including Abundant Venture Partners, MemorialCare Innovation Fund, and Zeal Capital Partners, and has already gained traction with numerous health systems as a result of strategic commercial acceleration work with member systems partnered in the Abundant Alliance.

Health systems looking to gain control over their purchased services spend can learn more by visiting https://spendrule.com.

About SpendRule

SpendRule is healthcare’s first AI-powered contract intelligence platform that validates purchased services invoices against complex contract terms in real-time, preventing overpayments, enforcing agreements, and driving proactive cost savings before payments are made. SpendRule is trusted by leading health systems including OSF HealthCare, Kettering Health, MemorialCare, and MUSC Health, and is backed by leading investors including Abundant Venture Partners, MemorialCare Innovation Fund, and Zeal Capital Partners.

For media inquiries, contact Nita Nehro at [email protected].

SOURCE SpendRule

ATLANTA, Feb. 17, 2026 — Founders Row and its founder, Jamie Weeks, today announced a strategic investment and advisory partnership with Ohm Health, marking the first step in the firm’s thesis that the wellness industry is entering a new phase centered on intentional disconnection and nervous-system regulation.

As the founder of contrast therapy concept SweatHouz (SWTHZ) and once the largest franchisee group within Orangetheory Fitness, Weeks has consistently identified where consumer wellness is headed next.

Founders Row is aligning its capital and incubation strategy around what it believes is the category’s next structural shift. After a decade dominated by performance and aesthetics, followed by a cycle centered on recovery and optimization, the firm sees wellness entering a new era of regulation – the ability to intentionally step away from digital stimulation, recalibrate the nervous system, and build sustainable habits around downshifting rather than constant output.

“In a world where we are overwhelmed by screens and rely on digital apps to track and guide everything, we believe the next frontier is actually disconnection,” said Jess Yuan, Partner and Chief Operating Officer of Founders Row. “The brands that define this next era will reduce digital noise.“

Ohm Health, founded by James McGoff, operates at the intersection of neuroscience, industrial design, and behavioral habit formation. Ohm’s flagship product, the Resonance Lamp, helps users recover from stress and build a more resilient nervous system by translating real-time biofeedback into light, sound, and touch cues that guide resonance breathing. The device is intentionally screen-free and built as a standalone ritual rather than an extension of existing apps or wearable dashboards.

“Ohm is our first partnership centered on nervous-system reset and intentional disconnection – and it will not be our last,” said Jamie Weeks, Founder of Founders Row. “For years, the status signal was being always on. We believe the next era will reward those who know how to turn off.”

McGoff previously co-founded TemperPack, a high-growth sustainable packaging company, before launching Ohm Health to focus on products centered around nervous-system health and daily behavioral practice.

“We built Ohm to help people change states in real time,” said McGoff, Founder and CEO of Ohm Health. “It’s not about tracking stress. It’s about helping people regulate it. Founders Row immediately understood that this category is more about behavior and environment than just metrics, and we are excited to bring them on as an investor and strategic advisor.”

Founders Row intends to continue investing in and incubating brands aligned with its disconnection thesis, including plans to incubate a brick-and-mortar concept later this year focused on structured digital withdrawal and nervous-system recovery.

Financial terms of the investment were not disclosed.

About Ohm Health
Ohm Health is on a mission to bring accessible, screen-free nervous system care into the moments people need it most. Ohm believes calm isn’t found; it’s practiced. Through light, sound, and touch, Ohm helps you return to your natural breath rhythm, helping you feel better now, and better over time. Ohm Health translates decades of academic research into a daily tool anyone can use: a lamp that makes the science simple, sensory, and part of daily life.

About Founders Row
Founded by entrepreneur and operator Jamie Weeks, Founders Row builds and backs founder-led consumer businesses. The firm operates through two complementary models: incubating new brands from the ground up and partnering with exceptional founders to provide platform-level support across strategy, operations, and growth. Founders Row is known for founder-first structures that preserve ownership while enabling disciplined expansion without sacrificing control, culture, or long-term value. Headquartered in Atlanta. For more information, visit foundersrow.co.

Contact: Juliana Martins, [email protected]

SOURCE Founders Row

AUSTIN, Texas and SYDNEY, Feb. 17, 2026 — Austin-based defense technology startup Breaker has raised $6 million in seed funding led by Bessemer Venture Partners with follow-on investment from Australian venture firm Main Sequence who also led Breakers’ pre-seed round. The round will accelerate the development and deployment of Breaker’s AI agent software that enables military operators to control teams of autonomous systems across air, land and sea with voice commands. The aim is to solve defense’s autonomous vehicle orchestration problem. 

Defense technology has been advancing more in the past 24 months than in the previous three decades, with the United States continuing to prioritize defense innovation to maintain its global leadership and national security. A recent Executive Order prioritizes strengthening of America’s military edge by delivering state‐of‐the‐art capabilities at speed and scale.

In January 2026 the Pentagon’s Defense Innovation Unit launched the $100M Autonomous Orchestrator Challenge, publicly identifying one of the hardest problems in modern military autonomy. Silicon Valley now recognizes that AI leadership and national security are inseparable. Breaker’s platform-agnostic software allows military operators to orchestrate teams of autonomous systems across air, land and sea with their voice.

“Today, autonomy still means one operator controlling one robot, with remote controls or laptops, which fundamentally limits the number of autonomous systems that can be deployed,” says Matthew Buffa, Co-Founder of Breaker.

“In this drone warfare era, the next frontier is orchestration – how to manage and coordinate robotic teams at speed, at scale and under pressure. Breaker’s software changes the operator-to-robot ratio – turning small teams into force multipliers. Robots become genuine teammates that understand and deliver on the mission.”

“With our tech, a single human operator simply talks to the fleet of autonomous systems over the radios they already carry. The onboard AI agent in turn responds with real-time, context-aware responses, translating the operator’s intent into machine action. Allowing operators to stay focused on their mission, whether driving a truck or flying a helicopter.”

Critically, Breaker’s software runs entirely onboard each robot, with no reliance on cloud connectivity or external networks. When communications are jammed or denied, the agents continue operating autonomously, making mission-aligned decisions at the edge.

Top-tier backing from category-defining investor

This latest funding announcement puts Breaker in the top 25% of US seed rounds. Bessemer Venture Partners, one of the world’s longest-standing venture firms, known for backing category-defining companies such as Canva, Rocket Lab, Shopify, Anthropic and Perplexity, led the round.

“As outlined in Bessemer’s 2026 Defense Tech Roadmap, we are seeing a period of rapid transformation as uncrewed systems proliferate at scale,” says David Cowan, Partner at Bessemer Venture Partners.

“Breaker’s on-robot agents will redefine how militaries deploy and manage autonomous systems. By enabling small teams to safely control large numbers of robots through intuitive, natural language interfaces, Breaker is tackling one of the hardest and most important problems in defense technology.”

Breaker’s product has been tried and tested worldwide, including successful demonstration contracts with both the United States Special Operations Command and Defense Science and Technology Agency Singapore.

For images/videos to accompany this release see: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/13FbmuJZbDW352VTGiQnNXnwea6xFHfAq?usp=sharing

About Breaker

Breaker is a defense technology startup with HQ in Sydney, NSW, and Austin, Texas that develops software to turn any robot into truly autonomous teammates.

Existing robots demand constant human oversight, bulky equipment and complex networks – limiting their usefulness in real operations. Founded by Matthew Buffa, Michael Irwin, and Vanja Videnovic, they set out to build something different: autonomous systems that understand missions, make nuanced decisions, and operate more like teammates than blunt tools.

Backed by Bessemer Venture Partners and Main Sequence and led by a team of former Anduril, Droneshield and Hargrave Technologies engineers, Breaker is on a mission to create the robots we were promised.

https://www.breakerindustries.com/

SOURCE Breaker