TikTok Timeline Update: The Rise and Pause of a Social Video Giant

Justice Dept. Calls TikTok 'Direct Threat' to Privacy and Security of US
TikTok | Solen Feyissa | Flickr

See our timeline below for key developments TikTok's story over the last 10 years, starting with the founding of ByteDance and moving through the app's rise to popularity and the mounting concerns about data privacy and security.


March 2012: Internet entrepreneur Zhang Yiming founds ByteDance in Beijing.

August 2012: ByteDance launches its first product, Toutiao, an AI-powered news aggregator.

July 2014: Alex Zhu launches Musical.ly, an app that enables users to create short-form lipsync music videos; Musical.ly is headquartered in Shanghai with an office in Santa Monica.

July 2015: Musical.ly hits #1 in Apple app store.

September 2016: ByteDance launches Douyin, an app with similar functionality as Musical.ly; within a year, the Chinese app achieves 100 million users and 1 billion views per day.

September 2017: ByteDance brings Douyin outside of China's Great Firewall under the name of TikTok; the app does well in numerous Asian markets.

November 2017: ByteDance acquires Musical.ly for $1 billion; the company starts operating Musical.ly in the US, Douyin in China and TikTok in other markets.

August 2018: ByteDance merges Musical.ly with TikTok and migrates all user profiles to TikTok; Alex Zhu becomes TikTok senior vice president, saying, "Combining Musical.ly and TikTok is a natural fit given the shared mission of both experiences – to create a community where everyone can be a creator."

October 2018: ByteDance achieves a record $75 billion valuation, making it the world's biggest privately backed startup.

February 2019: Lil Nas X releases "Old Town Road" on TikTok, catalyzing a viral sensation that ultimately reaches #1 on Billboard's charts.

February 2019: TikTok is fined $5.7 million for child data privacy violations.

September 2019: Washington Post reports that TikTok may be censoring protests in Hong Kong.

September 2019: Leaked documents show TikTok instructs its moderators to censor videos that mention various subjects deemed offensive by the Chinese government and Communist Party, The Guardian reports.

October 2019: U.S. Senator Marco Rubio calls on the U.S. government to investigate the national security implications of ByteDance's acquisition of Musical.ly, citing concerns over the Chinese government and Communist Party's use of TikTok to censor content and silence open discussion.

October 2019: U.S. Senators Chuck Schumer and Tom Cotton ask U.S. Acting Director of National Intelligence to assess the national security risks from TikTok and other Chinese-owned apps, and request a congressional briefing on the findings.

October 2019: Alex Zhu begins reporting directly to ByteDance head Zhang Yiming; he had previously reported to the head of Douyin.

November 2019: The U.S. government launches an investigation into ByteDance's acquisition of Musical.ly on the grounds that ByteDance did not seek clearance when it acquired Musical.ly.

TikTok reportedly has 26.5 million monthly active users in the U.S. at this time.

December 2019: The U.S. Defense Department's Defense Information Systems Agency issues a recommendation that military personnel delete TikTok from all smartphones.

Q4 2019: TikTok becomes the most downloaded app in the world and second in the U.S.

January 2020: Several U.S. military branches ban TikTok on government-issued smartphones.

March 2020: U.S. officials reach out to TikTok to discuss political disinformation.

April 2020: TikTok surpasses 2 billion downloads and sets the record for quarterly downloads.

May 2020: Various child privacy groups file a complaint with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission that TikTok is violating the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and flouting terms agreed to following its February 2019 settlement.

A TikTok spokesperson says the company "takes the issue of safety seriously for all our users, and we continue to further strengthen our safeguards and introduce new measures to protect young people on the app."

May 2020: ByteDance hires former Disney executive Kevin Mayer as chief operating officer and TikTok chief executive officer.

June 2020: Teens organize on TikTok to fool Trump administration into anticipating high attendance for the President's Tulsa, Oklahoma campaign rally.

June 2020: India bans 59 Chinese apps including TikTok, citing national security and data privacy concerns; the move comes amid ongoing skirmishes between the two countries on the China-India border.

July 2020: Australia Prime Minister Scott Morrison launches an investigation into TikTok surrounding data concerns.

July 2020: U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo confirms the U.S. is looking into banning TikTok over concerns the app is sharing data with China; the next day, President Trump says he is considering a ban, framing it as a potential retaliation tactic against China for its handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

Aug. 2, 2020: Microsoft issues a blog post citing a conversation between chief executive Satya Nadella and President Trump around the company's potential acquisition of TikTok.

Aug. 4, 2020: Australia Prime Minister Scott Morrisson says there is not sufficient evidence to suggest a TikTok ban is necessary.

Aug. 6, 2020: President Trump issues an executive order banning American companies from transacting with ByteDance or its subsidiaries, namely TikTok; the U.S. Secretary of Commerce is to identify specific prohibited "transactions" 45 days after the order is issued.

Aug. 14, 2020: Trump issues another executive order demanding ByteDance "divest all interests and rights" in its assets and property that enable TikTok's U.S. operations, and data collected via TikTok in the U.S., within 90 days. The order says the U.S. investigation into ByteDance's acquisition of Musical.ly presented "credible evidence" that ByteDance "might take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States."

Aug. 17, 2020: Oracle enters the discussion as a reported TikTok suitor.

Aug. 18, 2020: President Trump says he would support Oracle buying TikTok. Oracle's cofounder and CTO Larry Ellison had previously said he supports Trump and had fundraised for him in February 2020.

Aug. 24, 2020: TikTok announces it is suing the Trump administration over the ban for failure to protect due process. Separately, a U.S.-based TikTok employee also sues the administration, stating, "I am a patriot"

Aug. 26, 2020: Kevin Mayer steps down from ByteDance and TikTok, citing a diminished role in a letter to colleagues. Rumors swirl that he was left out of ByteDance's negotiations with potential acquirers

Aug. 27, 2020: Walmart issues a statement that it is interested in partnering with Microsoft to acquire TikTok.

Aug. 28, 2020: L.A.-based Triller, a TikTok upstart competitor, is reported to have issued a bid for TikTok along with investment firm Centricus.

Aug. 29, 2020: The Chinese government issues new export rules that complicate the exportation of TikTok's underlying technology – namely its "For You" algorithm – to any foreign buyer.

Aug. 31, 2020: CNBC reports TikTok has chosen a buyer, with an expected sale price of $20 billion - $30 billion.

Sept. 3, 2020: With uncertainty over whether a buyer will be able to acquire TikTok's algorithm, and debate mounting over how that affects the value of the company, numerous outlets negotiations are likely to slow as the Chinese government increases its involvement.

Sept. 13, 2020: Microsoft says in a blog post that "ByteDance let us know today they would not be selling TikTok's US operations to Microsoft." The company says it would have made "significant changes" to ensure security, privacy, online safety and combatting disinformation.

Sept. 14, 2020: Oracle confirms that it has been selected by ByteDance to become a "trusted technology provider" with TikTok. The company says the proposal was submitted by ByteDance to the Treasury Department over the weekend. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin says on CNBC that the proposal includes making TikTok-global a U.S. headquartered company with 20,000 new jobs.

Mnuchin adds that the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States is reviewing the proposal this week for national security implications, and will make a recommendation to the president, who will then review the proposal.

Sept. 19, 2020: President Trump tells reporters he approved the deal in concept between Oracle and TikTok's parent company ByteDance, in which Oracle and Walmart would partner with the app in the U.S. The U.S. government postpones a planned ban on TikTok for one week.

Sept. 27, 2020: A federal judge in Washington temporarily blocks President Trump’s order banning TikTok, granting the social media firm a reprieve just hours before it was to be removed from mobile app stores. The judge says Trump’s order was “largely a unilateral decision with very little opportunity for plaintiffs to be heard,” according to the Washington Post.

Oct. 30, 2020: TikTok averts a U.S. ban again after a federal judge in Pennsylvania temporarily blocks restrictions set to take place on Nov. 12—the Trump administration's deadline for ByteDance to close a deal in the U.S.

Nov. 7, 2020: Democrat Joe Biden defeats President Trump in the presidential election, the Associated Press and other media outlets confirm. A few days later, an advisor to President-elect Biden says it is “too early to say” Biden’s thoughts on TikTok.

Nov. 11, 2020: TikTok asks a judge to extend the deadline for its sale by 30 days. The company says it hasn’t heard an update from the administration in weeks.

Nov. 12, 2020: The U.S. Commerce Department says it won’t enforce the sale deadline imposed by Trump’s order "pending further legal developments." The department cites the Pennsylvania ruling from October that found the TikTok crackdown exceeded the government’s power.

Nov. 13, 2020: The U.S. government extends its deadline by 15 days, giving TikTok until Nov. 27 to strike a deal that allays the government’s national security concerns.

Nov. 26, 2020: ByteDance gets another week to sell off TikTok’s U.S. business. A spokesperson for the Treasury Department tells CNBC that the government granted the extension until Dec. 4 “to allow time to review a revised submission” that it recently received.

Dec. 4, 2020: The latest deadline passes without an approved deal to sell TikTok. The Treasury Department says it won’t extend the deadline again, but there are “no plans to enforce anything,” a source tells The Washington Post.

Dec. 14, 2020: The Federal Trade Commission orders TikTok—along with Snap, YouTube, Twitter and other social media and streaming sites—to turn over information about how they collect and use information about users.

Feb. 10, 2021: Newly-inaugurated President Joe Biden slams the brakes on forcing a TikTok sale. In court papers, Biden administration lawyers file a motion to postpone the cases related to a potential ban of the popular social media app.

June 9, 2021: President Biden revokes Trump’s executive order that sought to ban TikTok and replaces it with one that calls for a broader review of foreign-controlled apps that may pose national security risks.

June 25, 2021: CNBC reports TikTok is tightly controlled by Chinese parent company ByteDance. Insiders tell the news outlet that ByteDance has access to TikTok’s American user data and is closely involved in the Culver City company’s decision-making.

July 20, 2021: Pakistan bans TikTok for the fourth time, citing “inappropriate content.” The country lifts the latest ban a few months later.

Sept 27, 2021: TikTok announces that it has surpassed 1 billion monthly active users as the app continues to rapidly rise in popularity.

Oct. 26, 2021: During a public hearing, U.S. lawmakers press Michael Beckerman, TikTok’s head of public policy for the Americas, on whether TikTok’s Chinese ownership could expose consumer data to Beijing. Beckerman says “access controls for our data is done by our U.S. teams,” adding that the data that TikTok collects is “not of a national security importance,” according to the New York Times.

Dec. 17 2021: A Wall Street Journal investigation shows that TikTok’s recommendation algorithm is flooding teens’ video feeds with eating disorder content.

December 2021: TikTok overtakes Google as the most-visited website on the internet.

Feb. 8, 2022: Facing criticism over hosting harmful content, TikTok announces new rules aimed at preventing viral hoaxes, shielding the LGBTQ community from harassment and removing videos promoting unhealthy eating.

February 2022: As Russia invades Ukraine, TikTok is awash in raw footage from the battlefield and false and misleading clips. The war raises fresh concerns about TikTok’s handling of misinformation on its platform.

March 2, 2022: A bipartisan group of state attorneys general launch an investigation into TikTok, examining whether the social media giant is harming children and young adults through the content on its platform.

March 11, 2022: Reuters reports that TikTok is close to a deal to store all of the video-sharing app’s U.S. user data with American software giant Oracle. The partnership is aimed at resolving the U.S. government’s national security concerns.

March 15, 2022: California lawmakers unveil a first-of-its-kind bill to let parents sue social media platforms like TikTok for allegedly addicting children to their apps.

March 31, 2022: Attorneys general from 44 U.S. states and territories urge TikTok and Santa Monica-based Snap to strengthen parental controls on their platforms, telling the social media giants that they must do more to protect kids online.

April 3, 2022: “The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical” wins a Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album. It’s the first Grammy-winning album to originate on TikTok, solidifying the app’s growing influence over the music industry.

April 15, 2022: The Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice launch probes into TikTok’s moderation of content depicting child sexual abuse, according to the Financial Times.

April 2022: TikTok is the most-downloaded app in the world during the first quarter of 2022, according to a study from digital analytics firm Sensor Tower.

May 12, 2022: The mother of a 10-year-old girl who died after allegedly trying a dangerous “Blackout Challenge” sues TikTok. The case is one of several to claim the app’s algorithm showed kids and teens videos of people choking themselves until they pass out.

June 17, 2022: BuzzFeed News publishes a bombshell report that TikTok’s data on U.S. users was repeatedly accessed in China by employees of parent company ByteDance. The report raises fresh privacy and security concerns about the Chinese-owned social media app.

The same day, TikTok announces that it migrated all of its U.S. user traffic to servers operated by American software giant Oracle, an effort to assuage concerns that American data could fall into the hands of the Chinese government.

June 28, 2022: In the wake of the BuzzFeed report, Federal Communications Commissioner Brendan Carr urges Apple and Google to remove TikTok from its app stores. Nine Republican U.S. senators send a letter to TikTok with questions about the company’s handling of American data.

June 30, 2022: TikTok responds to Republican lawmakers by detailing its plans on keeping U.S. data out of the hands of Chinese parent company ByteDance. The company’s letter confirms that ByteDance employees in China can access TikTok data, but only when “subject to a series of robust cybersecurity controls” and approvals overseen by its U.S.-based security team.

July 5, 2022: Leaders of the U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee ask the Federal Trade Commission to investigate whether TikTok deceived the public about whether people in China could access American user data.July 29, 2022: Bloomberg reports the Chinese government requested TikTok host stealth, propaganda accounts—a move that TikTok executives denied due to their growing efforts to distance the platform from its Chinese origins.

August 5, 2022: The flood of information coming from within the organization leads TikTok to hire roles meant to prevent internal leaks.

August 11, 2022: A Forbes review of TikTok and ByteDance employees’ LinkedIn profiles reveals that 300 current employees previously worked for Chinese state media publications. Fifteen employees apparently were employed by both at the same time.

August 16, 2022: Oracle begins its audit of TikTok’s algorithm and content moderation process to determine if the Chinese government has interfered with the platform.

August 18, 2022: Developer Felix Krause finds that the app monitors all keyboard inputs and tags, which could record private data like passwords and credit card information. TikTok denies these claims.

September 14, 2022: TikTok Chief Operating Officer Vanessa Pappas appears before the Senate Homeland Security Committee and says its ongoing negotiations with the U.S. government “will satisfy all national security concerns.” Notably, Pappas would not fully commit to cutting off U.S. data flow to China.

September 21, 2022: Former TikTok executives claim they were instructed to follow directions from ByteDance and had limited power to make internal decisions as people question TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew’s influence.

September 24, 2022: British regulators from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) send TikTok a warning over how the company handles children’s data—a warning that could lead to a $29 million fine.

September 26, 2022: The Justice Department reaches a “preliminary agreement” with TikTok over national security concerns, though details are still being negotiated.

October 12, 2022: A BBC report finds that TikTok profited from refugees collecting donations via the app’s live streaming feature, with some claiming the platform took up to 70% of the profits.

October 20, 2022: A Forbes report reveals that ByteDance intended to use TikTok to monitor the location of American citizens as a method of surveillance. TikTok denies these claims.

October 27, 2022: Even as the government places increasing pressure on TikTok, the Biden administration invites eight TikTok stars to the White House in an effort to reach Gen Z voters.

That same day, A Philadelphia judge rules that TikTok is immune in a lawsuit claiming the app was responsible for the death of a child participating in the “blackout challenge.”

Forget Rockets, This Long Beach Startup Spins Satellites Into Orbit

🔦 Spotlight

Hello Los Angeles!

It may be scorching this weekend, but the real heat is coming out of Long Beach, where SpinLaunch just raised $30 million to accelerate its Meridian Space satellite constellation. If you’ve heard of SpinLaunch before, it’s probably because of its wild approach: instead of burning tons of rocket fuel, the company literally spins payloads in a giant centrifuge before releasing them into the sky. It sounds like science fiction, but it’s one of the boldest bets on making access to orbit cheaper, faster, and more sustainable.

Image Source: SpinLaunch

The new funding will go toward advancing Meridian Space, a low Earth orbit broadband network that aims to deliver flexible, affordable global connectivity. With its first customer links expected in 2026, the project has the potential to do more than beam internet. It could reshape how enterprises, defense networks, and communities around the world connect. For Los Angeles, it’s a reminder that our region isn’t just about building the next social app or entertainment platform. We’re also home to the companies trying to redefine the very infrastructure of the digital age.

And while space tech often feels far away, SpinLaunch keeps its roots planted firmly here. Its headquarters and orbital accelerator facility sit right in Long Beach, reinforcing Southern California’s reputation as a launchpad for both aerospace and climate conscious innovation. After all, swapping fuel heavy rockets for a ground based launch system isn’t just cost effective, it’s far greener.

So while you’re cranking the A/C this weekend, remember SpinLaunch is busy cranking satellites into orbit, proving once again that in Los Angeles we don’t just chase the stars, we spin new ways to reach them.

🤝 Venture Deals

LA Companies

    • Wellth, a Los Angeles–based digital health company focused on daily care motivation and behavior change strategies, has closed an oversubscribed $36M Series C round led by Mercato Partners. The funds will be used to expand access to its platform across Medicare Advantage, Medicaid, D SNP, and other high-need populations, while also accelerating product innovation including introducing generative AI capabilities to personalize engagement, backed by strong performance metrics like 90 percent care plan adherence, a 51 percent drop in inpatient admissions, and a 16 percent boost in medication adherence. - learn more

      LA Venture Funds

        • Presight Capital participated in General Fusion’s oversubscribed $22M financing round, helping the Canadian fusion energy company push forward with its LM26 demonstration program. The fresh capital will drive progress toward key scientific milestones in Magnetized Target Fusion technology such as high temperature plasma generation and renew momentum on the path to commercializing clean fusion energy. The round also brings new board members onboard to fortify leadership as General Fusion advances toward a zero carbon energy future. - learn more
        • B Capital led a new Series C strategic growth investment in CompanyCam. The construction tech platform, known for its AI-powered job site documentation and workflow tools, will use the funding to expand globally, deepen AI integration, and enhance product features. WndrCo also participated in the round, backing CompanyCam’s push to transform contractor productivity. - learn more
        • Clocktower Ventures participated in Relcu’s latest funding round. Relcu provides an AI powered “system of action” for financial services that helps institutions streamline workflows, improve customer engagement, and drive growth. The company will use the new capital to extend its CRM and AI Agent Co Pilot beyond mortgage into deposits, lending, and other areas by enhancing AI integration, expanding APIs, and embedding intelligent automation to boost conversion, retention, and cross sell. - learn more
        • UP Partners participated in Loft Dynamics’ latest $24M Series B funding round. The Swiss based VR flight training company will use the investment to expand its revolutionary pilot training solutions, built on FAA and EASA qualified VR simulators, into commercial aviation, launching full motion Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 systems alongside cloud connected, AI enhanced tools and immersive at home training kits. - learn more
        • Upfront Ventures led the $5.6M Series A funding for Agenda Hero. The San Francisco based AI platform helps users eliminate manual calendar work by transforming text, images, and PDFs into fully structured, shareable events and schedules. The new capital will accelerate AI features, expand calendar integrations, and scale adoption across individuals, teams, and organizations. - learn more
        • Thiel Capital participated in Stark’s latest $62M funding round, which was led by Sequoia Capital and brings the German startup's valuation to around $500 million. Stark, founded in 2024, specializes in AI powered loitering munitions and command and control systems for battlefield drones, and plans to use the fresh capital to enhance its autonomous navigation, swarming capabilities, and expand production into new markets like the UK. Doepfner Capital also joined the round, backing Stark’s push to scale its defense technology. - learn more
        • Crosscut Ventures and Vamos Ventures joined Aalo Atomics’ $100M Series B funding round, supporting the Austin‑based company’s mission to deploy modular nuclear reactors tailored for AI data centers. Aalo plans to build its first full-scale reactor, dubbed Aalo‑X, by next summer, co‑locating it with an experimental data center to showcase how factory‑produced nuclear plants can deliver clean, reliable power rapidly. This latest capital infusion accelerates Aalo’s deployment timeline and reinforces its strategy of mass manufacturing scalable nuclear infrastructure for the AI era. - learn more
        • Overture VC co-led a $7M seed round in ChemFinity Technologies to boost its deployment of modular, sorbent-based systems that recover over 20 critical minerals from waste streams at low cost. The funds will help the company pilot and scale its high-performance technology, enabling domestic recovery of valuable metals like rare earth elements and platinum, while reducing reliance on imports and lowering environmental impact. - learn more
        • Muse Capital led a high profile strategic investment in Ohai.ai, the AI powered household assistant founded by Care.com veteran Sheila Lirio Marcelo, joining a star studded lineup of backers including Olivia Munn, Mindy Kaling, and Abby Wambach. The new funding will accelerate Ohai.ai’s mission to relieve parental mental load, launching a back to school feature that lets families automatically sync school calendars by ZIP code or flyer, making household planning significantly smoother. - learn more
        • Navitas Capital, alongside other investors, participated in EliseAI’s $250M Series E funding round. The New York-based AI company automating complex systems in healthcare and housing, will use the new capital to rapidly scale its team, enhance product innovation, and accelerate deployment of its AI-powered automation platform across front-desk operations, resident services, and beyond. The company has already doubled its workforce since its Series D, surpassed $100 million in annual recurring revenue, and aims to expand its impact across multiple stressful sectors. - learn more
        • Bedrock participated in TensorZero’s $7.3M seed round to advance its open source infrastructure for building industrial grade LLM applications. TensorZero offers an integrated stack covering LLM gateways, observability, optimization, evaluation, and experimentation, all designed to create a data driven “learning flywheel” that turns feedback into smarter, faster model performance and is rapidly gaining traction with developers and enterprises alike. - learn more
        • Calibrate Ventures co-led a $6M seed round in Grid Aero, backing the aerospace startup’s debut of its Lifter Lite drone, an autonomous heavy lift aircraft designed to deliver thousands of pounds over long distances in challenging environments. The seed funding will drive testing and scaling efforts as Grid Aero readies for ground trials and positions the “pickup truck of the skies” as a low cost, modular logistics solution for military and future commercial use. - learn more
        • Chapter One participated in Hyperbeat’s oversubscribed $5.2M seed round. Hyperbeat will use the new capital to expand its suite of on-chain tools such as staking tokens, high yield vaults, credit layers, and portfolio tracking aimed at simplifying and enhancing DeFi yield generation for traders, protocols, and institutions. The round underscores growing institutional confidence in Hyperliquid’s expanding ecosystem, which recently surpassed $2.1 billion in total value locked. - learn more
            LA Exits
            • SpectrumAi has been acquired by CentralReach, a leading provider of autism and intellectual and developmental disabilities care software, alongside fellow acquisition AI.Measures. The deals expand CentralReach’s Care360 platform with advanced tools including predictive analytics, real time decision support, and individualized assessment capabilities that help providers deliver outcomes based care. Leadership from both acquired companies will join CentralReach, further strengthening its ability to empower providers, payors, and families with intelligent, results driven therapy solutions. - learn more

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                      The Legal System Just Got Its AI Upgrade

                      🔦 Spotlight

                      Hello Los Angeles!

                      We talk a lot about AI in L.A., usually in the context of streaming platforms that “recommend” a movie you regret watching or apps that let you swap your face onto a Marvel poster. But the most interesting AI stories here aren’t gimmicks; they’re rewiring the hidden machinery of massive, slow moving industries. And this week, that spotlight falls on…lawyers.

                      LawPro.ai, a Los Angeles based legal tech startup, just closed a priced seed round led by Scopus Ventures to bring AI deeper into the world of injury claims. Their new “Case Assistant” isn’t about flashy automation, it’s about instantly surfacing case insights, cutting down endless hours of drafting, and helping law firms run with the precision of a Formula 1 pit crew.

                      Here’s why this matters: the legal industry has been one of the last holdouts when it comes to adopting tech that actually speeds things up. Now, with AI making its way from the red carpet to the courtroom, we’re watching the early stages of a shift that could change how justice is delivered in real time. In L.A., we’ve already seen AI startups shaking up entertainment, aerospace, and healthcare. Legal might be next.

                      And if LawPro.ai pulls it off, you might not just get a faster verdict, you might see the ripple effect across an industry that has spent decades charging by the hour. In other words, the billable clock might finally start running in our favor.


                      🤝 Venture Deals

                      LA Companies

                        • Equatic, a company using a patented seawater electrolysis process to remove atmospheric carbon dioxide while producing green hydrogen, has raised $11.6M in a Series A funding round. The round was co-led by Temasek Trust’s Catalytic Capital for Climate and Health (C3H) and Singapore-based Kibo Invest, and the capital will support the engineering, commercialization, and construction of its first 100‑kilotonne carbon removal facility, as well as broader manufacturing and technological development. - learn more
                        • SetPoint Medical has secured $140M in private financing, comprising a $25M second tranche of its Series C round and a $115M Series D round co-led by Elevage Medical Technologies and Ally Bridge Group. The funds will be used to launch and scale commercialization of the FDA approved SetPoint System, a pioneering neuroimmune modulation implant that targets the vagus nerve to treat moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis, as well as to advance development of therapies for other autoimmune conditions. - learn more

                        LA Venture Funds

                          • Bonfire Ventures participated in Topline Pro’s $27M Series B funding round to help the company scale its AI driven platform for local home service businesses. Topline Pro provides tools for plumbers, landscapers, painters, and other service providers to manage websites, marketing, CRM, payments, and more, enabling them to operate as scalable, autonomous enterprises. The new funding will be used to enhance its AI agent suite and expand onboarding, customer success, and product development capabilities to deliver greater ROI for small businesses. - learn more
                          • B Capital participated in Isaac Health’s $10.5M Series A funding round, backing the company’s mission to expand access to brain health and dementia care. Isaac Health provides virtual and in-home services nationwide and will use the funds to enhance its AI-driven screening tools, strengthen its technology platform, and grow partnerships with health systems and payers. - learn more
                          • Bold Capital Partners joined a $44M Series C financing round for Gameto, a clinical stage biotech company developing stem cell derived reproductive therapies. The new funding, which brings Gameto’s total capital raised to approximately $127M, will support completion of its pivotal Phase 3 trial of Fertilo, an iPSC derived egg maturation therapy, and the company’s global regulatory filings and commercialization efforts. - learn more
                          • M13 led a seed round that raised $8.5M for Mako, a New York based AI startup focused on automating GPU code optimization. Mako’s platform lets developers write in familiar high level languages while its AI intelligently generates and continuously tunes low level GPU kernels, yielding faster performance, cost savings, and compatibility across hardware like NVIDIA, AMD, and Tenstorrent. The fresh funding will be used to expand the engineering team, deepen hardware support, and bring Mako’s performance tools to a broader audience in AI, graphics, simulation, and scientific computing. - learn more
                          • Rebel Fund participated in a $9M Series A round for Chowdeck, a profitable Nigerian food delivery startup aiming to build Africa’s next super app for food, groceries, and essentials. With this capital, Chowdeck plans to roll out its quick commerce strategy, powered by a network of dark stores and hyper local logistics, to speed up delivery across Nigeria and Ghana. - learn more
                            LA Exits
                            • Mayweather Boxing + Fitness has been acquired by Giant Ideas, LLC, alongside KickHouse, and will be combined with the company’s flagship brand Legends Boxing to form the largest skill based boutique fitness network with more than 70 studios worldwide. Rather than focusing solely on rapid expansion, the unified brands will prioritize operational excellence, franchisee success, and community driven skill development. - learn more

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                                      Locket, Disney, Instagram and the Battle for Your Attention

                                      🔦 Spotlight

                                      Happy Friday, Los Angeles!

                                      This week, LA’s biggest tech and media players made one thing clear: they want to own the relationship. Whether it’s a celebrity sending selfies straight to your home screen or a content giant rewriting the rules of sports broadcasting, the power shift toward more curated, direct experiences is unmistakable, and it’s being engineered right here.

                                      Image Source : Locket

                                      📸 Locket Doubles Down on Star Power

                                      Venice-based Locket, the viral photo sharing app that made homescreen widgets cool, is now leaning into what LA does best: celebrity. Its new feature, Celebrity Lockets, allows artists to send exclusive photos directly to fans’ home screens. Early adopters include Suki Waterhouse and JVKE, with creators curating limited fan access to maintain intimacy and exclusivity. As Locket evolves from a casual social tool into a direct fan engagement platform, it’s becoming an increasingly relevant player in LA’s creator tech ecosystem.

                                      🏈 Disney’s ESPN Plays Offense

                                      Disney made a trio of bold moves this week that solidify ESPN’s future and its dominance in sports media. It’s buying out the NFL’s stake in ESPN, securing exclusive NFL Draft and behind the scenes content through 2033, and finally giving its standalone ESPN streaming service a launch date: August 21, 2025. That’s a power play straight out of Burbank. At the same time, Disney announced it will no longer report individual subscriber numbers for Disney Plus and Hulu, signaling a shift in how it wants investors and maybe consumers to measure success.

                                      🗞️ The New York Post Bets on LA

                                      In a sign of LA’s growing national influence not just in entertainment, but in news, the New York Post is launching a West Coast vertical called The California Post. With an editorial mission to cover the state’s cultural and political pulse, this move reflects a broader trend of major media brands planting roots in LA to chase both readers and relevance. For local media startups, content creators, and civic tech players, it’s yet another sign that the competition and the opportunity is growing.

                                      Image Source: Meta

                                      📱 Instagram Wants Your Inner Circle

                                      Instagram rolled out a new set of features this week that prioritize connection with close friends. Users can now share what they’re doing, watching, or feeling with a smaller group, clearly borrowing from the intimacy playbooks of apps like BeReal, Snapchat, and yes, Locket. As social platforms shift from mass broadcast to curated circles, LA-based creators and consumer startups should take note: the next frontier might not be going viral, it might be going personal.

                                      From star-powered lockets to streaming shakeups and platform reinventions, this week’s stories highlight how LA’s tech and media companies are rewriting the rules on connection and control.

                                      Now onto this week’s venture deals 👇

                                      🤝 Venture Deals

                                      LA Venture Funds

                                        • Starburst co-invested in Madrid-based SpaceTech startup Orbital Paradigm’s €470,000 raise, part of an ongoing €2M funding round led by Akka. The company is developing reusable orbital re-entry capsules aimed at reducing costs and increasing sustainability for space missions. Starburst’s participation underscores its focus on backing innovative aerospace technologies with commercial and defense applications. - learn more
                                        • Rebel Fund participated in Orbital Operations’ $8.8M seed round, which came shortly after the company graduated from Y Combinator. The funding will support development of the company’s high-thrust orbital transfer vehicle, designed to maneuver satellites and other payloads in space more efficiently. - learn more
                                        • Fourth Revolution Capital participated in SuperGaming’s $15M Series B round, which valued the company at $100M, five times its previous valuation. The funds will help expand titles like Indus Battle Royale internationally and scale SuperGaming’s tools for developers in emerging markets. - learn more
                                        • Cedars-Sinai Health Ventures participated in Elion’s $9.3M seed round, joining NEA and others in backing the AI-powered healthcare research and intelligence platform. Elion helps over 60% of U.S. health systems evaluate emerging technologies through its structured vendor marketplace. The funds will support platform development, new product launches, market expansion, and team growth. - learn more
                                        • M13 led the $10M seed round for Kontext, an AI-powered contextual advertising startup emerging from stealth mode. Kontext’s platform enables real-time ads inside chatbot responses using large language models, and the funding will help expand its engineering team and develop image-based ad formats. - learn more
                                        • STORY3 Capital Partners made a significant minority investment in U.K.-based activewear brand Adanola, valuing the company at approximately $530 million. This strategic partnership brings STORY3’s deep experience in consumer brand scaling to support Adanola’s global expansion, particularly across the U.K. and U.S. markets. - learn more
                                        • Walkabout Ventures participated in OLarry’s $10M Series A round, which was led by TTV Capital and included Marin Sonoma Impact Ventures. The funding brings OLarry’s total capital raised to $14.5M and will be used to scale its AI-powered tax advisory platform for high-net-worth individuals and to acquire regional CPA firms as part of its growth strategy. - learn more
                                        • Glendon Capital Management participated in Grasshopper’s $46.6M funding round, which was led by Patriot Financial Partners, to support the bank’s merger with Auto Club Trust in April 2025. Their investment reflects confidence in Grasshopper’s ability to scale its digital banking platform and expand its suite of business and consumer financial products. Growth metrics as of June 30, 2025 showed a 53% increase in assets, an 81% surge in deposits, and a 49% rise in loans, all backed by this strategic capital infusion. - learn more
                                        • Mucker Capital participated in beatBread’s $124M capital raise, alongside Citi’s SPRINT team, Deciens Capital, and Advantage Capital. Their involvement supports beatBread’s strategy to expand sales, marketing, and technology operations, while enabling greater funding flexibility for independent artists, songwriters, and labels through its AI-powered platform. - learn more
                                        • B Capital co-led Positive Development’s $51.5M Series C funding round alongside aMoon and Flare Capital Partners, helping to fuel expansion of its developmental therapy model for autistic children. Their involvement underscores confidence in the company’s family-centered, play-based approach—which lowers costs by about 50% compared to traditional ABA therapy—and supports growth through new Medicaid partnerships and technology enhancements. - learn more
                                        • Clocktower Ventures participated in Creditop’s latest $3.7M funding round, which was led by Collide Capital and also included Alaya Capital, Amador Holdings, Newtopia, and Driven VC. Their involvement supports Creditop’s mission to enable credit access at the point of sale, without a credit card, and will help fintech deepen its footprint in Colombia while exploring expansion across Central America and Peru. - learn more
                                        • Thiel Capital participated in Pilgrim’s $4.3 million seed funding round, backing the biotech startup founded by 21-year-old Jake Adler after he demonstrated its hemostatic dressing, Kingsfoil, on himself. Their support underscores confidence in Pilgrim’s aggressive R&D and dual-use medical platform targeting both military and civilian emergency care. - learn more
                                        LA Exits
                                        • ElectroMagnetic Systems, Inc., a California-based specialist in AI and machine learning-powered target recognition software for space-based radar, has been acquired by Voyager. The deal strengthens Voyager’s AI-native surveillance and intelligence capabilities, enabling real-time monitoring across ground, air, and space domains to meet evolving defense and commercial demands. - learn more
                                        • Daring Foods is being acquired by Australia’s leading plant-based meat company, v2food, in a move that strengthens v2food’s push into the U.S. market. Daring will continue operating under its own brand and will serve as a platform to introduce v2food’s own products across the States. The deal, paired with a strategic partnership with Japanese food giant Ajinomoto, aims to accelerate innovation in clean-label protein and expand global reach. - learn more
                                        • Irwin Naturals is being acquired by FitLife Brands in an all-cash transaction valued at $42.5M, which includes approximately $16M in net working capital. The deal, expected to close around August 8, 2025, will nearly double FitLife’s scale, with projected combined annual revenue of over $120M and adjusted EBITDA between $20–25M. It will be funded with cash on hand, a new term loan, and a revolving credit facility, and is expected to generate synergies through complementary product lines, broader mass-market distribution, and improved operational efficiencies. - learn more
                                        • Solsniper, a Solana-focused trading and analytics platform known for high-speed memecoin execution, has been acquired by Phantom as part of its strategy to expand beyond wallets into full-service on-chain finance. The Solsniper team will join Phantom to enhance its advanced trading features, while the platform will continue operating independently. The move underscores Phantom’s ambition to offer seamless, integrated trading tools within the Solana ecosystem. - learn more
                                        • Cinelease is being acquired by Zello, a private investment platform dedicated to scaling businesses across the entertainment industry, in a strategic move to bolster production infrastructure and amplify its presence across North America. Under Zello’s ownership, Cinelease will continue operating as a standalone company led by its veteran team, enhancing its lighting, grip, and studio offerings for film, TV, and commercial productions. This acquisition sets the stage for disciplined growth and stronger relationships within the film and television production ecosystem. - learn more

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