The Briefing: Darktrace Going Public In London, The Honest Co. Files For IPO, And More

Here’s what you need to know today in startup and venture news, updated by the Crunchbase News staff throughout the day to keep you in the know.

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Darktrace targets $4B London IPO

British cybersecurity company Darktrace has announced that it plans to go public on the London Stock Exchange. The company is reportedly targeting a public valuation of around $4 billion.

The Cambridge, U.K.-based company is known for applying AI to cybersecurity, with a focus on autonomous response technology. Founded in 2013, Darktrace has raised over $230 million in known funding to date, per Crunchbase data.

The IPO announcement follows an extended period of sharp growth. From fiscal year 2018 to fiscal year 2020, Darktrace said its revenue has grown from $79.4 million to $199.1 million at a compound annual growth rate of 58.3 percent.

— Joanna Glasner

The Honest Co. files for IPO

The Honest Co., offering eco-friendly products for babies and homes, filed IPO documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on April 9. The company is reportedly targeting a valuation of approximately $2 billion.

Actress Jessica Alba launched the company in 2012, and the Santa Monica, California-based company went on to raise $503 million in known venture-backed funding, according to Crunchbase data. The most recent was a $200 million private equity round led by L Catterton.

The filing did not give a price range or share count, but did reveal that the company’s revenue grew 27.6 percent from $235.6 million in 2019 to $300.5 million in 2020, with its diapers and wipes segment seeing the highest growth at 16 percent. At the same time, its net loss shrunk to $14.5 million in 2020 from $31 million in 2019.

— Christine Hall

Funding rounds

Memic lands $96M for surgical robot: Memic Innovative Surgery, a medical device company focused on robot-assisted surgery, raised $96 million in a Series D funding round led by Peregrine Ventures and Ceros.  The Israel- and Fort Lauderdale-based company says funding will support commercialization of its surgical platform in the U.S. and potentially other countries.

— Joanna Glasner

Tend bites into $125M to expand dental studios: Tend, a New York-based dentistry startup, raised $125 million in Series C funding led by Addition, which was joined by existing backers GV, Juxtapose, Redpoint Ventures and Zigg Capital. Founded in 2019, the company has raised a total of $198 million, according to Crunchbase data. Tend plans to increase its New York locations to 20 this year, as well as expand into Washington, D.C., and Boston. In addition, the company intends to develop new dentist-designed products and build out its team across dental, operations and technology.

— Christine Hall

Tech news

Microsoft eyes Nuance acquisition: Microsoft confirmed Monday it has entered into an agreement to acquire speech technology company Nuance Communications in an all-cash transaction valued at $19.7 billion. At that price, the deal would offer a premium of around 23 percent over publicly traded Nuance’s last closing share price of $56 per share. The acquisition will enable Microsoft to accelerate its cloud strategy for health care, called the Microsoft Cloud for Healthcare, which was introduced in 2020 and aims to address needs within the rapidly transforming and growing industry, Microsoft said.

— Joanna Glasner

Illustration: Dom Guzman

Source: https://news.crunchbase.com/news/briefing-4-12-21/