This week’s funding roundup covers five raises spanning defence technology, AI advertising, coding agents, women in business grants and legal tech. Here is what closed and who led each round.
Advanced Navigation raises $158 million Series C
Sydney-based autonomy company Advanced Navigation has closed a $158 million Series C, one of Australia’s largest deep tech raises to date. The round was led by Airtree Ventures, with strategic participation from Quadrant Private Equity and the National Reconstruction Fund Corporation, which contributed $50 million.
Founded in 2012, Advanced Navigation builds navigation systems that operate independently of GPS, used across defence, maritime, aerospace and space applications. The company has deployed more than 100,000 systems globally and reported triple-digit revenue growth over the past 12 months, with more than 80 per cent of revenue coming from the US and Europe.
AI media agency Multiply raises $9.5 million
San Francisco-based Multiply, which describes itself as the first AI-native media agency for B2B companies, has raised $9.5 million in a round led by Mayfield, with participation from Sorenson Capital and individual investors including Instacart co-founder Max Mullen and Google Head of Gemini Josh Woodward.
The company emerged from stealth this week with the raise, launching what it calls Self-Learning Advertising, a model where ad campaigns continuously improve using a company’s own internal data rather than degrading over time. Early customers report significant pipeline increases across Google and LinkedIn campaigns.
AI coding platform Replit raises $400 million at $9 billion valuation
Replit, the AI coding platform targeting non-technical users including small business owners and first-time entrepreneurs, has raised $400 million at a $9 billion valuation, tripling its valuation in six months.
The round included Andreessen Horowitz, Georgian, Prysm Capital, YC, Coatue, Craft Ventures and the Qatar Investment Authority among financial investors, alongside strategic participants including Accenture Ventures, Databricks Ventures and Okta Ventures. Alongside the raise, Replit launched Agent 4, a coding agent designed to build not just apps but full business assets including mobile apps, investor decks and social content from a single spoken idea in one live session.
Grant for female entrepreneurs Fuel Fund 2.0 launches with $5,000 on offer
Omoda Jaecoo, FIGUR and By Jules have launched Fuel Fund 2.0, a $5,000 grant for female entrepreneurs across Australia. The initiative was created by entrepreneur Jules Robinson following the success of the inaugural Fuel Fund, which attracted more than 300 applications nationally.
The first round was won by Rita Saikali of RS Speech Pathology, a business focused on supporting parents with children’s communication development. Applications for Fuel Fund 2.0 are now open via the FIGUR website and close to female business owners and founders across Australia.
Legal tech fact management Mary Technology raises $7 million
Sydney-based legal tech startup Mary Technology has closed a $7 million round led by OIF Ventures, with participation from Sydney Angels and Empress Capital. Mary Technology builds fact management software designed specifically for litigation and disputes, helping legal teams organise and track the facts underpinning complex cases.
Funds will support the company’s expansion into the United States with the opening of a San Francisco office, alongside the launch of a self-serve model targeting small and mid-sized law firms that can now access the platform directly without going through a traditional sales process.
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Gaylene Mayoral
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