Funding will enable Rainfall Health to enhance AI-enabled solutions for the 742 TEAM-mandated health systems in new value-based reimbursement era

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 18, 2026 — Rainfall Health, an AI-driven compliance and reimbursement platform for hospitals and medical groups, today announced it has closed on a $15 million Series A funding round. The company will lean on this investment to build out its AI teams and build a world-class customer support team, who will support the hospitals impacted by the Transforming Episode Accountability Model (TEAM), which launched on January 1, 2026.

This new CMS mandate incentivizes hospitals and health systems to deliver on quality outcomes associated with the five highest-spend surgical procedures: lower extremity joint replacement, spinal fusion, coronary artery bypass graft, major bowel procedures, and hip/femur fracture treatment. By complying with the quality metrics, hospitals now stand to gain 20% in increased revenue from existing lines of service, yielding more than $100 million in new revenue per Health System.

“Hospitals have a tremendous opportunity to increase their revenues by delivering high-quality post-acute care that includes consistent check-ins, clear patient instructions, and clinician follow-ups,” said Eddie Qureshi, CEO and Founder of Rainfall Health. “By building out our AI and implementation teams, we will ensure our partners take advantage of this opportunity with CMS while delivering a consistent patient experience. This funding is a vital step for Rainfall as we continue to build the country’s first recognized standard for outcome-based care.”

This Series A investment was led by Two Bear Capital, along with support from other notable investors.

“Building an AI platform for hospitals and health systems to more effectively collect, standardize, and report on patient outcomes will forever change the way they track reimbursement,” said Mark Adams PhD, Partner at Two Bear Capital. “It will create unique new value for patients, providers, and an amazing portfolio business for Two Bear Capital. We’re excited to see Rainfall grow as its platform is deployed across the growing list of US hospitals that will need to deliver on the in-depth infrastructure requirements mandated by TEAM.”

Rainfall Health is the only product on the market that acts as a single blueprint for navigating compliance in this new era of reimbursement. Rather than seeing compliance rules as a downside for hospitals, Rainfall Health is driving towards the opportunity that exists for providers across the country to invest further into a new standard of care and access for their patients. The platform, which is already implemented across several impacted medical groups and hospitals, is built on increased healthcare access, hospital workflow efficiency, and regulatory compliance – all with the goal of improving patient outcomes.

“Rainfall is enabling providers across the country to connect with patients and deliver on their goals at a scale in which the industry hasn’t seen before,” said David Shulkin M.D., the Ninth Secretary of the US Department of Veterans Affairs and Chair of the RAIN Advisory Committee. “Eddie and his team’s commitment to moving the value-based care needle and supporting hospitals in aligning financial incentives with quality patient outcomes is refreshing to see. This funding round will allow Rainfall to accelerate their implementations as TEAM requirements begin to take hold this year.”

Rainfall Health remains committed to its original mission of using AI to ensure patients in any and all geographic areas have access to quality medical care. The platform will continue to play a key role in doing this across the country, as the outcome-based care model outlined in TEAM will accelerate the industry’s adoption of a more value-based approach in 2026 and beyond.

About Rainfall Health:
Rainfall Health is an AI-driven compliance and reimbursement platform that helps hospitals and medical groups navigate new value-based care models such as CMS’s TEAM model, ensuring they deliver on vital case management and care delivery goals. The company is shaping a new national standard for mandated care-model compliance through the RAIN Compliant^™ designation — a verifiable, AI-enabled framework adopted by hospitals, payers, and clinical partners impacted by the January 1, 2026 TEAM launch. Rainfall works with health system executives, physician groups, and post-acute partners to automate complex regulatory requirements, improve care-quality performance, and unlock new Medicare revenue streams. Follow Rainfall Health on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Media Contact
Will Pegler
+1 (203) 962-5694
[email protected]

SOURCE Rainfall Health

• SGT Capital Artificial Intelligence (AI) Co-Investment Fund Closes 25% Oversubscribed
• SGT Capital commits to invest in Artificial Intelligence as an expansion of Data Analytics & Cybersecurity
• SGT Capital Partners Joseph Pacini, Carsten Geyer, Dino Steinborn, Marcel Normann and Marianne Rajic applaud recent fundraising success

ZUG, Switzerland, Feb. 18, 2026 — SGT Capital announces the successful closing of its SGT Capital Artificial Intelligence (AI) Co-Investment Fund, which was 25% oversubscribed.  This fund strengthens SGT Capital’s strategy to invest in market-leading data analytic, cybersecurity and med-tech companies.  The SGT Capital AI Co-Investment Fund builds on SGT Capital’s established track record in technology-enabled sectors and reflects growing institutional investor demand for exposure to transformative AI-driven business models. 

SGT Capital Partners Joseph Pacini, Carsten Geyer, Dino Steinborn, Dr Marcel Normann, and Marianne Rajic applaud the strong investor demand and the successful fundraising outcome, stating:

“Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the key driver of growth for the global economy, and every company will either deploy AI or face disruption by it. This success underscores strong investor conviction in SGT Capital’s disciplined approach to backing market leading businesses and producing top decile returns.  AI is now a permanent feature of the global economy and SGT Capital is uniquely positioned to identify and support category-defining AI businesses, combining deep sector expertise with a disciplined investment approach.  The oversubscription of this fund reflects investor confidence in SGT Capital’s strategy, team, and track record.  We are grateful for the trust our investors have placed in us and look forward to deploying capital into high-conviction opportunities that drive technological transformation and long-term value creation.”

The SGT Capital AI Co-Investment Fund will focus on investments in scalable technology platforms across North America, Europe, and selected global markets. SGT Capital will leverage its operational expertise and global network to support portfolio companies in scaling revenue, expanding internationally, and strengthening governance and cybersecurity frameworks.

About SGT Capital

SGT Capital Group is a global private equity firm that generates top decile performance for its investors by investing in market leading businesses and expanding their international growth. With offices and portfolio company presence in London (United Kingdom), Zug (Switzerland), Frankfurt (Germany), Dubai (UAE), Silicon Valley (CA, USA), and Singapore, SGT Capital is led by Joseph Pacini, Carsten Geyer, Dr Marcel Normann, Marianne Rajic and Jens Dino Steinborn.

SOURCE SGT Capital

One of Texas’ largest angel rounds bets on scaling expertise as manufacturing’s skills gap widens

AUSTIN, Texas, Feb. 18, 2026 — Circuit, an Austin-based company building an AI platform for manufacturing and service organizations, today announced it has raised $30 million from individual investors. The funding comes as manufacturers face growing market and product complexity while a wave of retirements takes decades of expertise out the door.

“The work is getting harder and the people who know how to do it are leaving,” said Tyson Tuttle, co-founder and CEO of Circuit. “Products are more complex, tools are changing, and U.S. manufacturers are being asked to produce more with fewer experienced hands. Circuit exists to make sure expertise scales with the business.”

Manufacturing and service teams make hundreds of high-stakes decisions every day: configuring equipment, building quotes, guiding installations, and troubleshooting issues. The knowledge behind those decisions lives across scattered documentation and legacy systems – but more often in the heads of the people who’ve done the work for decades. Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute estimate that expertise drain could leave as many as 1.9 million manufacturing jobs unfilled by 2033.

“In a market crowded with general-purpose AI, it matters that Circuit actually understands manufacturing and service workflows – and how to measure success,” said Tony Bender, executive and advisor at Culligan. “They’re turning our years of product documents and operational know-how into guided execution our teams and dealers can rely on.”

Circuit turns that documentation – including complex visuals like technical manuals, schematics, CAD files, and exploded views – into actionable workflows that help teams configure, quote, and troubleshoot with confidence. The platform plugs into ERPs, quoting tools, and CRMs, pulling documentation from where it already lives. Teams input job requirements or field conditions in plain language. Circuit then layers on proprietary reasoning that interprets configuration logic, compatibility rules, and technical dependencies.

Leading manufacturers and product-driven service organizations – such as Culligan and Four Hands – are already seeing results: faster quotes, fewer support errors, and new hires up to speed in weeks instead of months.

The round includes backing from business leaders and experienced company builders who have built and scaled multi-billion-dollar organizations. Investors include Jim Breyer, Charlie Amato, Lew Cirne, Niccolo De Masi, Tom Long, Gary Petersen, Gary Rieschel, and Craig Robins.

Circuit was founded by Silicon Labs veterans, including former CEO Tyson Tuttle, who bring decades of experience building and shipping products in manufacturing and industrial environments. That firsthand perspective shaped both the platform and Circuit’s approach to partnering with customers – integrating AI into the workflows their teams rely on every day. The new funding will support continued product development, expanded customer deployments, and hiring across engineering and go-to-market teams.

By embedding trusted guidance into everyday workflows, Circuit helps manufacturers move faster, reduce errors, and deliver more consistent execution.

About Circuit
Circuit is purpose-built AI for manufacturing and service organizations. The platform turns technical documentation into an intelligent engine that guides teams through business-critical workflows like quoting, field service, and customer support. Learn more at circuit.ai.

Media Contact
Vanessa Blankenship
Sun PR
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 941-228-2488

SOURCE Circuit

• Round led by Heran Partners and joined by Clave Capital, Inveready and Bio&Tech Smart Capital
• Financing will enable Pharmacelera to build ongoing relationships with major pharm and biotech customers in the US
• Pharmacelera’s platform scours vast chemical ‘exaSpace’ accurately for novel molecules

BARCELONA, Spain, Feb. 18, 2026 — Pharmacelera, a deep tech company applying Quantum Mechanics and Artificial Intelligence to revolutionize drug discovery, has closed a €6 million investment round to accelerate its expansion in the United States and grow the capabilities of its proprietary platform.

Utilizing its proprietary Quantum Mechanics and Artificial Intelligence (“QaiM”) algorithms, Pharmacelera is revolutionizing drug discovery by finding novel and diverse molecular candidates across the vast chemical “exaSpace” with unprecedented speed, efficiency and accuracy. It can generate molecules that are up to 10 times better, 75,000 times faster, than traditional AI-led drug discovery approaches. Its technology can be applied to small molecules and small peptides in all stages of drug discovery – from hit identification, through hit-to-lead, to lead optimization.

This investment round will help Pharmacelera grow further and faster – firstly, by establishing a permanent team in the U.S., and secondly, by enabling the Company to expand the technical capabilities of its unique QaiM drug discovery engine in key growth areas.

The round was led by Heran Partners, a leading life sciences investor, and joined by Clave Capital, a long-standing tech transfer investor; Inveready, a Spanish alternative asset manager with a dedicated life sciences strategy; and Bio&Tech Smart Capital, a specialist investor in healthtech and science-based innovation.

Pharmacelera has already participated in more than 100 projects to date, including several notable successes in GPCRs. It has won repeat business from customers in both Europe and the U.S., including three big pharma companies and numerous highly-regarded biotechs.

Enric Gibert, Chief Executive Officer of Pharmacelera, said: “The first wave of AI-powered drug discovery promised a lot but delivered comparatively little. Pharmacelera is changing the picture, by coupling AI with quantum-based simulations to leverage the exaSpace – the vast, undiscovered universe of trillions of molecules – to find highly novel drug candidates that are up to 10 times better, using a process that’s up to 75,000 times faster than traditional AI-led approaches.”

He continued: “The backing of these leading investors, who have a deep understanding of drug discovery, is a strong validation of our revolutionary technology. The funding will enable us to establish a team in the U.S. – a natural next step to continue strengthening our relationships with large pharmaceutical and biotech companies on both the East and West coasts. It will also help us to greatly widen the capabilities of our QaiM engine.”

Raf Roelands, Partner at Heran Partners and new member of Pharmacelera’s Board of Directors, said: “By combining physics-based algorithms with machine learning, Pharmacelera enables the design of molecular candidates for novel targets and modes of action with a higher probability of success. We have a high conviction in this company, which was reinforced through direct discussions with its customers, including leading pharmaceutical companies, who have already experienced the significant impact of its technology.”

The funding round follows the signing of a strategic alliance between Pharmacelera and Silicon Valley company igniter General Inception (GI) in 2023, in which Pharmacelera became GI’s AI drug discovery strategic partner. Venkat Reddy, GI’s Chief Scientific Officer, sits on Pharmacelera’s Board of Directors. Since then, Pharmacelera’s technology has strengthened the intellectual property of several of GI’s portfolio companies.

About Pharmacelera

Pharmacelera is a deep tech computational drug discovery company applying its advanced 3D Quantum Mechanics and Artificial Intelligence (“QaiM”) engine to explore the vast chemical “exaspace” – which potentially comprises trillions of molecules – with unprecedented speed, efficiency and accuracy. This engine can significantly outperform traditional methods in its ability to identify structurally diverse, novel, and synthesizable compounds. Using this technology, the Company’s world class, cross-disciplinary team has already participated in more than 100 projects. Pharmacelera’s diversified and scalable business model has attracted recurrent customers including several big pharma firms and many prominent biotechs. Founded by AI engineers, drug hunters from industry and top academic profiles, its founders have co-authored more than 500 publications and hold more than 50 patents on technology and drug discovery. It is backed by Heran Partners, Clave Capital, Inveready and Bio&Tech Smart Capital and based at the Parc Científic de Barcelona, one of Europe’s premiere life science hubs. For more information, please visit https://pharmacelera.com/ 

About Heran Partners

Heran Partners is a specialist venture capital investor committed to creating transformative impact within the life sciences and healthcare industry. It is a Belgium-based investment fund driven by a dedicated team with strong scientific and entrepreneurial backgrounds. It provides venture and growth capital accompanied by a strong network, expertise and mentorship to start-ups and scale-ups with a solid technology platform and strong market potential.

Heran’s investment philosophy centers on addressing emerging health challenges such as an ageing population, the surge in chronic diseases, and associated increases in healthcare costs. Heran believes in harnessing the revolutionary potential of technology, science, and data to meet these challenges head-on. It focusses on solutions for unmet needs in the market. For more information, please visit https://www.heranpartners.com/ 

About Clave Capital

Clave Capital is an independent alternative asset management firm specialized in innovative projects and industrial SMEs. The firm has extensive experience in creating business value from scientific research results, with more than 20 years of expertise in investing, building, and supporting technology projects from their early stages, with a clear focus on technology transfer. Currently, the firm manages €173 million, with a highlight being Clave Innohealth F.C.R., a €50 million fund specialized in medical technologies and promoted with the support of CDTI Innvierte and several private investors linked to the healthcare sector. For more information, please visit https://clave.capital/ 

About Inveready

Inveready is a leading financial services firm specialized in Alternative Assets, Wealth Management, and Investment Funds. Founded in 2008 as a venture capital fund, Inveready has evolved into one of the most active investment firms for small and medium-sized enterprises in Spain, currently managing over €2.4 billion.

The financial group organizes its services into three main business lines: Alternative Assets, which includes various direct investment strategies (Venture Capital, Life Sciences Venture Debt, Strategic Public Equity, Private Equity, and Infrastructure); Wealth Management, which advises clients across a range of high-value products and services; and Investment Funds, investing in small-cap equities with a value investing approach through its management company True Value.

With a team of 60 employees, Inveready is headquartered in San Sebastián, with offices in Barcelona and Madrid. The firm has been recognized as “Best Venture Capital Firm” by SpainCap in 2017 and “Best European Venture Debt Fund” by Preqin in 2023, among other awards. For more information, please visit https://inveready.com/ 

About Bio&Tech Smart Capital

Bio&Tech Smart Capital, FCRE is an early-stage venture capital fund based in Santiago de Compostela, Spain, focused on investing in life sciences, healthtech and science-driven technology companies. The fund is managed by Noso Capital and is deeply connected to Galicia’s growing innovation ecosystem, combining strong regional roots with an active investment focus across Spain.

The fund was created with the mission of translating scientific knowledge into scalable, high-potential businesses, supporting founders at Seed and Series A stages. Bio&Tech Smart Capital is led by a team combining venture capital experience, scientific research and entrepreneurship, backing differentiated technologies with clear and meaningful applications in healthcare. For more information, please visit https://biotechsmartcapital.com/, https://nosocapital.com/es-es/index 

About General Inception

General Inception (GI) is pioneering company creation as an Igniter company. General Inception partners with extraordinary scientific founders at the inception of their journey to efficiently translate their groundbreaking innovations into transformational companies that address humanity’s grand challenges. As a business co-founder, GI brings together domain and functional expertise, executive talent, infrastructure and development resources, and capital to ignite, nurture and scale the company journey. GI is backed by leading venture capital firms Genoa Ventures, Hughes Ventures, Northpond Ventures, OMX Ventures, Paladin Capital Group, and Vertical Venture Partners. For more information, please visit https://www.generalinception.com/

SOURCE Pharmacelera

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