All posts tagged: Catalyst

General Catalyst just led a M bet on India’s travel payments market

General Catalyst just led a $63M bet on India’s travel payments market

Published by skeptic

Scapia, an Indian startup that combines travel booking with co-branded credit cards and mobile payments, has raised $63 million in a funding round led by General Catalyst, with existing investors Peak XV Partners and Z47 also participating. The deal comes despite a broader slowdown in fintech dealmaking. The all-equity round values assigns the startup a post-money valuation of more than $500 million, according to a source familiar with the matter, more than doubling its valuation from around $200 million in April 2025. The four-year-old outfit has raised $126 million to date from investors. That General Catalyst, one of the most prominent U.S. venture firms, is leading the round suggests that India’s travel-focused fintech market is drawing serious attention well beyond its home region. The funding comes as investors globally grow more selective in fintech bets after years of aggressive funding. In India, fintech funding remained largely flat in Q1 2026, while the number of deals fell by more than half from a year earlier as investors concentrated capital into fewer, larger deals, per a recent …

General Catalyst posted VC rage bait and it worked, especially on a16z

General Catalyst posted VC rage bait and it worked, especially on a16z

Published by skeptic

One of the most entertaining moments in VC this week was a piece of rage-bait marketing from General Catalyst. In a now-viral post on X that parodies the old Mac vs. PC commercials, the venture firm — better known as GC — posted a “VC vs GC” video on Wednesday. The VC was played by a tall actor in a baggy shirt and vest with a distinctly large, bald head — an apparent dig at Andreessen Horowitz co-founder Marc Andreessen. (But the real Andreessen never looks that disheveled). The GC character was played by a man with a thick head of dark hair, white kicks, and a tendency to stare deeply into the camera. He was clearly supposed to represent actor Justin Long’s cooler, “hipper” Mac character from the original commercials, in contrast to John Hodgman’s straight-laced “square” PC persona. GC asks VC about his robotic dog. VC explains, “This is Woof AI” and then extols the virtues of the artificial companion (you don’t need to walk it or break the news to the kids …

Musely secures 0M from General Catalyst without giving up equity

Musely secures $360M from General Catalyst without giving up equity

Published by skeptic

Musely, a direct-to-consumer telemedicine platform, has secured over $360 million in non-dilutive capital from General Catalyst’s Customer Value Fund (CVF). The company specializes in compounded treatments for skin, hair, and menopause care. Musely co-founder and CEO Jack Jia told TechCrunch that when CVF investors reached out to him last year, he wasn’t looking to raise capital. That’s because Musely, which was founded in 2014 as a wellness community before pivoting to prescription skincare in 2019, has been cash flow positive for years, he said. Jia didn’t want to reduce his ownership in the company by selling off a chunk of it to VCs. They frequently approached him about a potential round and he consistently turned them down, he said. But unlike traditional venture capital, CVF wasn’t looking to take an equity stake, nor was it offering a loan that would carry interest rate charges. Instead, CVF’s alternative financing is similar to a tiny revenue-share agreement: Companies with predictable revenue streams borrow capital, and then repay the funds along with a fixed, capped percentage of revenue …

Uni of Birmingham unveils perovskite catalyst for low-temperature hydrogen production

Uni of Birmingham unveils perovskite catalyst for low-temperature hydrogen production

Published by skeptic

Researchers at the University of Birmingham have developed a lower-temperature method for hydrogen production that could significantly reshape how clean fuel is generated. Led by Yulong Ding, the team demonstrated a new approach to water splitting using a perovskite catalyst, cutting operating temperatures by as much as 500°C. The study shows that hydrogen can now be produced at temperatures between 150°C and 500°C, far below those of conventional thermochemical processes. The result is a more energy-efficient system that can integrate with industrial waste heat, opening the door to decentralised hydrogen production. Published in the International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, the research suggests this method could also lower production costs compared to existing green and blue hydrogen pathways, particularly in regions with lower renewable energy costs. A shift in how hydrogen is made Hydrogen is widely seen as a cornerstone of the low-carbon transition. It produces only water when used as a fuel and can power fuel cells or be burned for heat. Yet the reality is less clean: around 95% of global hydrogen production still …

VC mega funds are back with General Catalyst, Spark rumored to be raising billions

VC mega funds are back with General Catalyst, Spark rumored to be raising billions

Published by skeptic

Following news last month that New York’s hottest venture firm, Thrive, just raised $10 billion for a new fund — its largest ever, double the previous one — another big-name VC firm is attempting to equal that raise. General Catalyst is in talks to raise $10 billion, unnamed sources tell Bloomberg. This firm, which has recast itself as a broader financial services company, raised $8 billion just a couple of years ago in 2024. Meanwhile, Spark Capital is trying to raise $3 billion, sources tell The Information, which would also be a big boost from its previous funds. And, as TechCrunch just exclusively reported, Founders Fund is about to close a new $6 billion fund, too. All of this follows Andreessen Horowitz’s $15 billion in new funding announced in January. Venture firms were already sitting on a record amount of so-called dry powder, meaning money available but not yet invested, at the end of 2025, according to the year-end report by PitchBook and the National Venture Capital Association. But 2026 is already shaping up as …

New carbon-based catalyst breaks down forever chemicals using light

New carbon-based catalyst breaks down forever chemicals using light

Published by Jenni Sidey

Blue light, a sheet of filter paper, and a stubborn class of industrial chemicals do not sound like much of a match. Yet that simple setup sits at the center of a new attempt to tackle PFAS, the long-lasting compounds often called “forever chemicals” because they resist breaking down in nature. An international research team led by the University of Bath has built a prototype carbon-based catalyst that uses light to break down a model PFAS compound. The work, published in RSC Advances, points to a possible way not only to destroy some of these chemicals but also, eventually, to help detect them outside specialist labs. PFAS have been used for years in consumer and technical products, from waterproof clothing to non-stick pans, make-up, and fire-fighting foams. Their appeal comes from their stability. That is also the problem. They persist in water systems, the food chain, the wider environment, and the human body. The source material notes that their long-term effects are not fully known, though some studies have linked some PFAS to a higher …

Scientists develop sunlight-activated catalyst to break down PFAS

Scientists develop sunlight-activated catalyst to break down PFAS

Published by skeptic

Breakthrough carbon-based technology offers a new route for PFAS removal and on-site detection. An international group of researchers has unveiled a new sunlight-driven catalyst designed to break down PFAS, the persistent industrial chemicals often referred to as “forever chemicals.” The team, led by the University of Bath, says the prototype material could eventually support more practical approaches to PFAS removal and environmental monitoring. This collaboration included scientists from the University of São Paulo, the University of Edinburgh, and Swansea University. The project was led by Professor Frank Marken of the University of Bath’s Department of Chemistry and Institute of Sustainability and Climate Change. Findings from the research are published in RSC Advances and detail how a carbon-based photocatalyst can degrade polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) using light energy. Why PFAS are so difficult to remove PFAS are valued for their water- and stain-resistant properties, making them common in non-stick cookware, waterproof textiles, cosmetics, and firefighting foams. Their chemical stability, however, also means they persist in soil, water systems, and living organisms. Studies have detected PFAS in drinking …

Tomb Raider Catalyst | Release date speculation and latest news

Tomb Raider Catalyst | Release date speculation and latest news

Published by Daniella Wilson

After what has felt like forever, a brand-new Tomb Raider game has finally been revealed! We don’t yet know what the exact Tomb Raider Catalyst release date is but we’re already excited to find out more about Lara Croft’s latest adventure. A lot has happened to Lara Croft since the last time we saw her in a new game. Not least the fact that Amazon now owns the game publishing rights. Something of a soft reboot for the franchise that follows on from 2008’s Tomb Raider Underworld and takes Lara to Northern India, the new game even features a new Lara design and voice actor to boot. Excited? Raid down into the page below to find out when we might be able to expect Tomb Raider Catalyst in stores and for the very latest on Lara Croft’s brand-new adventure. When is the Tomb Raider Catalyst release date? Speculation The Tomb Raider Catalyst release date is sometime in 2027, the developer has confirmed. Yep, that’s right, we have to wait a while to play through Lara’s …

General Catalyst commits B to India over five years

General Catalyst commits $5B to India over five years

Published by skeptic

General Catalyst, a Silicon Valley-based venture firm with more than $43 billion in assets under management, has announced it plans to invest $5 billion in India over the next five years, sharply expanding its push into the country’s startup ecosystem less than two years after merging with local venture firm Venture Highway. The commitment, unveiled at the India AI Impact Summit in New Delhi on Friday, will target startups across artificial intelligence, healthcare, defense technology, fintech, and consumer technology. The announcement marks a significant increase from the $500 million to $1 billion the firm had previously earmarked for India. India, the world’s most populous country with more than a billion internet users, is positioning itself as a major AI investment destination. New Delhi aims to attract over $200 billion in AI infrastructure investments over the next two years as it hosts the India AI Impact Summit with participation from companies, including OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google. “India will build the next generation of global platform companies,” General Catalyst CEO Hemant Taneja (pictured above) said, adding that …

Powerful catalyst could make mixed plastic recycling a reality

Powerful catalyst could make mixed plastic recycling a reality

Published by Jenni Sidey

Plastic waste surrounds daily life, from food containers and grocery bags to shampoo bottles and medical supplies. Much of it ends up buried or drifting into ecosystems because recycling it is slow, costly, and frustrating. A new study from chemists at Northwestern University suggests that problem may soon ease. Their research introduces a powerful nickel-based catalyst that can break down common plastics without the painstaking sorting that recycling systems depend on today. The study describes a method that turns low-value plastic waste into useful liquid oils and waxes. Those products can later become fuels, lubricants, or everyday items like candles. The process focuses on polyolefins, plastics made from polyethylene and polypropylene that account for nearly two-thirds of global plastic use. These materials are everywhere, and they are also among the hardest to recycle. “One of the biggest hurdles in plastic recycling has always been the necessity of meticulously sorting plastic waste by type,” said Tobin Marks, the study’s senior author at Northwestern. He said the new catalyst could remove that step for common plastics and …