Category Archives: News

SurveyMonkey launches new AI Analysis Suite and design tools, unlocking clear insights and beautiful surveys without the complicated process

Stg Partners

SurveyMonkey today announced its latest SurveyMonkey AI innovations, including a new AI Analysis Suite and supercharged survey creation tools. The new features are designed to help users ask better questions, make smarter decisions, and move faster.

“SurveyMonkey has always been in the business of capturing real human sentiment and turning it into action,” said Meera Vaidyanathan, Chief Product Officer at SurveyMonkey. “AI now lets us do this faster and smarter—automating the legwork, surfacing insights that were previously hidden, and helping our customers act with greater confidence. With 25 years of history and more than 100 billion questions answered, we’re uniquely positioned to deliver trusted AI that makes feedback not just easier to gather, but far more powerful.”

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Oracle Red Bull Racing And Carlyle Form Strategic Partnership

Carlyle

Carlyle becomes Oracle Red Bull Racing’s exclusive investment management partner, marking the first partnership between a Formula One team and a major global private markets firm.

Milton Keynes, UK and Washington, DC – Oracle Red Bull Racing and Carlyle (NASDAQ: CG), one of the world’s largest global investment firms, today announced a multi-year global partnership. Carlyle has become the Team’s exclusive partner in the investment management industry, marking the first partnership between a Formula 1 team and a major global private markets firm.

In both investing and Formula 1®, success is defined by the smallest margins, achieved through relentless precision, flawless execution, and the strength of a world-class team. This partnership brings together two leaders at the forefront of their fields, recognised globally for performance, innovation, and a shared drive to win.

Both industries are in periods of growth, powered by technology, fueled by data, and reaching a broader audience than ever before. Formula 1® is expanding its global fan base and redefining engagement in one of the world’s most elite sports. Private markets are becoming increasingly accessible, creating new opportunities for investors worldwide. Together, Oracle Red Bull Racing and Carlyle will open new avenues for engagement, deepen global connectivity, and pursue data and technology-enabled initiatives that support their shared ambition to broaden access across private markets and Formula 1.

As part of the agreement, Carlyle branding will be featured on the Oracle Red Bull Racing RB21 challenger and across key team assets, including the car chassis, drivers’ team kit, pit wall and garage environment. The partnership will be activated across the global Formula 1® calendar, with Oracle Red Bull Racing providing Carlyle with a powerful platform to engage with clients, partners, and communities around the world.

Laurent Mekies, CEO and Team Principal of Oracle Red Bull Racing, said: “We’re thrilled to welcome Carlyle to the team. Both of our organizations are built on world-class talent, bold thinking, and a drive to perform at the highest level. As an iconic firm in global finance, Carlyle brings a long-term perspective with an expansive network, and we look forward to building a powerful partnership on and off the track. Formula 1® demands relentless focus and precision, and we see clear alignment with Carlyle’s approach to investing.” 

Harvey Schwartz, CEO of Carlyle, said: “Our industry is undergoing an extraordinary transformation, fueled by greater access to private markets and growing interest from a new generation of investors. That same spirit of growth and inclusivity is reshaping Formula 1®, as Oracle Red Bull Racing leads the way in expanding the sport to new audiences globally. This partnership unites two high-performing teams driven by innovation and excellence. We’re excited to partner with one of the most illustrious brands in global sport to engage new audiences and create long-term value together.”

This collaboration underscores the growing intersection between high-performance sport and private capital. Carlyle continues to invest in building impactful partnerships and expanding awareness of private markets through influential global platforms.

Red Bull Racing gallery of images

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Media Contacts

Oracle Red Bull Racing

Madeleine Coe

Senior Communications Manager

Madeleine.coe@redbulltechnology.com 

 

Carlyle
Brittany Bensaull
Global Head of Corporate Communications 
brittany.bensaull@carlyle.com

About Carlyle

Carlyle (NASDAQ: CG) is a global investment firm with deep industry expertise that deploys private capital across three business segments: Global Private Equity, Global Credit, and Carlyle AlpInvest. With $465 billion of assets under management as of June 30, 2025, Carlyle’s purpose is to invest wisely and create value on behalf of its investors, portfolio companies, and the communities in which we live and invest. Carlyle employs more than 2,300 people in 27 offices across four continents. Further information is available at www.carlyle.com.

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Abenex completes the sale of Inlog following a successful transformation phase

Abenex

Five years after acquiring Inlog from US-based industrial group Haemonetics, Abenex announces the trade sale of the medical software provider specialised in blood product traceability and laboratory management. This transaction marks the conclusion of a strategic and operational partnership that enabled Inlog to reach a new stage of development, both in France and internationally.

 

A key player in the transmission and medical data protection

Founded in 1992 in Limonest (Rhône), Inlog has since become one of Europe’s leading medical software providers, specialising in solutions for laboratories, hospitals, and blood transfusion centres. Its software suites are used by over 630 public and private clients across 12 countries, including major public player of the blood transfusion and several Red Cross institutions internationally. Inlog also offers best-in-class solutions for quality management and regulatory compliance within laboratories. The Group employs around 80 people worldwide.

 

Accelerated growth driven by a focused strategy

Since Abenex’s investment in 2020, Inlog has undergone an ambitious transformation phase, establishing itself as an independent company following its carve-out from the Haemonetics Group and accelerating its growth trajectory. The management team has been strengthened, a new ERP system implemented, and R&D activities brought in-house to ensure tighter control over innovation. Geographically, Inlog expanded its presence in the DACH region with the opening of a subsidiary in Germany in 2022, to better serve the German, Swiss, and Austrian markets. In parallel, the company completed three strategic acquisitions: Moonchase in Belgium (2023), which enhanced its offering for laboratories with a web-based solution and entering the Benelux region; and Ubilab (2023) and Viskali (2022) in France, which deepened Inlog’s expertise in quality management software. Inlog has achieved significant growth, doubled its sales and solidified its position as a leading provider of critical processes digitalisation services in the healthcare sector.

 

A new chapter to accelerate innovation and international expansion

This change in ownership marks the beginning of a new phase of development for Inlog, with a clear ambition to strengthen its international footprint and drive innovation in response to the evolving digital and regulatory challenges of the healthcare sector. This new chapter builds on the solid foundations established in recent years: sustained growth momentum, a recognised software offering, and a resilient business model. It also extends the company’s societal commitments — Inlog became a purpose-driven company in 2023, with a governance framework aligned with long-term sustainability and positive impact objectives.

 

David Kalfon, CEO and President of Inlog, comments:
“We are extremely proud of the journey we have taken alongside Abenex. Their support has been instrumental in structuring our growth, expanding and modernising our software suite, and entering new markets. We look forward to this next chapter with confidence and enthusiasm, alongside our new shareholder.”

 

Thomas Peretti, Partner at Abenex, adds:
“Inlog is a prime example of our engaged and operational investment approach, working alongside passionate management teams. In just five years, the company has undergone a profound transformation — expanding its geographic footprint, significantly improving its ESG performance, and broadening its software offering, all while maintaining an outstanding level of quality and customer satisfaction. This remarkable trajectory also translated into a strong performance for our Funds. We are proud to have played a role in this success and confident in Inlog’s ability to continue its development.”

 

Deal participants (Sell-side)

Sellers

  • Inlog: David Kalfon and the management team
  • Abenex: Christian Dorléac, Thomas Peretti, Angèle France, Foucault Crombez

Sell-Side Advisors

  • M&A: Lincoln International (Matthieu Rosset, François Rispoli, François-Xavier Moisan, Arthur Legrand, Adrien Senechal, Jérémy Eyer) and Atguen Advisory (Jean-David Sultan)
  • M&A Legal: McDermott Will & Schulte (Grégoire Andrieux, Robin Lamour, Charlotte Michellet)
  • Management Advisory: Duroc Partners (Erwan Bordet, Faustine Paoluzzo)
  • Financial DD: 8Advisory (Gennat Mouline, Frédéric Blache, Xavier Parenty, Alexandre Pommier)
  • Commercial and Strategic DD: EY-Parthenon (Gianluigi Indino, Arnaud Laferte, Divya Claver, Hugo Jennequin)
  • Legal and Social DD: Grant Thornton (Caroline Luche Rocchia, Christine D’Ovidio, Sahra Hagani, Natalia Moya-Fernandez)
  • Tax DD: Arsène Taxand (David Chaumontet, Magali Mazzuco)
  • IT DD: Vaultinum (Philippe Thomas, Juliette Cazenave, Jonathan Berdah)
  • ESG DD: PwC (Jorik Geiger)

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TenFifty Capital, a New European CRE Lending Platform, Announces Its Launch

Apollo logo

Led by CEO and Industry Veteran Hugh Fraser, TenFifty Launches in Alliance with Apollo

Firm to Focus on Small- and Mid-Market Commercial Real Estate Lending Opportunities

MADRID, Sept. 09, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — TenFifty Capital (“TenFifty” or “the firm”), a new European focused commercial real estate lending platform for the small- and mid-market space, today announced its official launch. TenFifty is led by founder and CEO Hugh Fraser, with a senior, pan-European team investing in core markets across the continent and the UK.

TenFifty launches in alliance with Apollo (NYSE: APO), and its origination pipeline is expected to complement Apollo’s existing large loan strategy. TenFifty will focus on €10-50 million loans and the firm aims to originate €1-2 billion of loans year one, focusing on senior secured lending to a mid-cap market segment that is structurally underserved. TenFifty aims to bring speed and certainty of execution to its borrowers and meet growing demand for new issue acquisition loans and refinancings, particularly as traditional lenders scale back origination activity.

Founder and CEO Hugh Fraser said, “I’ve long held the belief that the small and mid-market European CRE debt space is often neglected and ripe for improvement. TenFifty Capital exists to address that gap, with a genuinely pan-European platform dedicated to supporting this sector of the market. I’m thrilled to be working with a company of Apollo’s calibre, having experienced first-hand the strength of their balance sheet, but more importantly, the strength of the Apollo team’s approach to building long-term partnerships. In 2017, Apollo was the first lender to support a UK Retail warehouse strategy I was leading at that time, and they quickly became one of our most reliable. Forming genuine, lasting partnerships with our borrowers is a key principle of how TenFifty conducts its business, and this alignment in approach and vision is exciting for us all.”

Apollo Partner and Head of Real Estate Credit, Europe, Ben Eppley said: “Hugh has earned a remarkable reputation in the European real estate market. We have worked with him for many years and are pleased to now formally partner with the launch of TenFifty as a new, high-performing platform. At Apollo, as one of the largest non-bank commercial real estate lenders in Europe, we believe this small and mid-market strategy will be highly synergistic with our broader real estate credit business and enhance Apollo’s granular origination capability, while maintaining a focus on first lien mortgages secured by high-quality assets and institutional borrowers.”

Fraser launches the Firm with extensive experience in building vertically integrated real estate lending platform across origination, execution and asset management capabilities. Prior to launching TenFifty, Fraser was the co-founder of M7 since 2009, where as head of capital markets he led the sourcing and managing of more than €6 billion of financings across 150+ facilities in addition to leading its small balance lending strategy for two fund vintages. Throughout his career, Fraser has developed extensive relationships with borrowers across the continent in addition to banking partners and institutional investors and developers.

TenFifty collaborates with borrowers in multiple sectors and across a wide spectrum of asset types, including logistics, industrial, retail warehousing, senior/student housing, hospitality, prime office, self-storage, parking and food retail.

With presence in Amsterdam, Berlin, London and Madrid, TenFifty will invest throughout core European markets including the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Ireland and beyond. The TenFifty team is deeply entrenched in these core markets, bringing not only geographical coverage but also local knowledge and understanding of regional nuances, regulatory frameworks and market dynamics.

About TenFifty Capital 
Founded by Hugh Fraser in September 2025, TenFifty Capital is a non-bank commercial real estate lender focused on the €10-50 million sector of the European real estate debt market. TenFifty blend intelligent capital with unwavering commitment, agile solutions, and an elite, long-term partnership approach. In alliance with Apollo Global Management, we’re setting a new standard for excellence. To learn more, visit www.tenfiftycapital.com.

About Apollo
Apollo is a high-growth, global alternative asset manager. In our asset management business, we seek to provide our clients excess return at every point along the risk-reward spectrum from investment grade credit to private equity. For more than three decades, our investing expertise across our fully integrated platform has served the financial return needs of our clients and provided businesses with innovative capital solutions for growth. Through Athene, our retirement services business, we specialize in helping clients achieve financial security by providing a suite of retirement savings products and acting as a solutions provider to institutions. Our patient, creative, and knowledgeable approach to investing aligns our clients, businesses we invest in, our employees, and the communities we impact, to expand opportunity and achieve positive outcomes. As of June 30, 2025, Apollo had approximately $840 billion of assets under management. To learn more, please visit www.apollo.com.

Contacts

For TenFifty:
Hugh Fraser
CEO and Founder
partnerships@tenfiftycapital.com

For Apollo:
Noah Gunn
Global Head of Investor Relations
(212) 822-0540
IR@apollo.com

Joanna Rose
Global Head of Corporate Communications
(212) 822-0491
Communications@apollo.com / EuropeanMedia@apollo.com

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On Belay Health Solutions Achieves Medicare Shared Savings, Demonstrating Commitment to High-Quality, Cost-Effective Care.

.406 Ventures

Boston, Massachusetts – On Belay Health Solutions, a physician owned and operated Accountable Care Organization (ACO) dedicated to improving the quality of care while reducing costs, is proud to announce that it has successfully achieved Medicare Shared Savings for the 2024 Performance Period, their second year in MSSP. This recognition highlights On Belays’ ongoing efforts to provide high-quality, patient-centered care to its Medicare beneficiaries while delivering savings to the Medicare program.

The Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP), managed by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), rewards ACOs that meet quality benchmarks and reduce healthcare costs for their beneficiaries. By coordinating care across multiple providers, improving health outcomes, and emphasizing preventive services, On Belay has demonstrated its ability to provide more efficient and effective care.

“We are thrilled to have earned Medicare Shared Savings, which reflects the dedication and hard work of our entire team,” said Andrew Allison, CEO of On Belay Health Solutions. “This achievement reinforces our mission to improve care for our patients, reduce unnecessary healthcare costs, and enhance the overall experience for everyone involved in the healthcare process.”

Key Highlights of On Belay’s Accomplishment:

  • Cost Savings: On Belay has successfully reduced overall healthcare spending for Medicare beneficiaries while maintaining and improving the quality of care.
  • Collaboration & Care Coordination: Through strong partnerships with our primary care partners, On Belay has fostered an environment of care coordination that ensures patients receive the right care at the right time. This collaboration spans multiple states nationwide, and across many diverse EHRs. The Medicare Shared Savings Program is a cornerstone of healthcare reform, encouraging providers to take accountability for the care they deliver. By focusing on value rather than volume, ACOs like On Belay are helping to shift the healthcare system toward sustainability and improved patient outcomes.

“As a participant in the Medicare Shared Savings Program, our priority is to continue enhancing patient care while driving efficiencies and reducing waste,” added Andrew Allison. “We look forward to building on this success and further strengthening our ability to deliver outstanding care to the communities we serve.”

About On Belay Health Solutions:

On Belay Health Solutions is a leading Accountable Care Organization (ACO) dedicated to improving the quality of care for Medicare beneficiaries while reducing healthcare costs. By fostering collaboration among healthcare providers, On Belay works to deliver high-value care through care coordination, preventive health strategies, and patient-centered practices. For more information about On Belay, visit www.obhs.com.

For media inquiries, please contact:
On Belay Health Solutions
Email: info@obhs.com
Website: Enabling primary care teams with the tools and support they need (onbelayhealthsolutions.com)

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The Missing Emotional Layer in AI: Our Investment in Nuance Labs

Lightspeed

Nuance Labs Co-Founders Fangchang Ma and Edward Zhang

We’ve all experienced the uncanny valley: the slight discomfort when watching an AI avatar speak, the sense that something fundamental is missing despite impressive technical capabilities. Today’s AI can reason brilliantly and generate human-like text, but when it comes to emotional intelligence, AI remains surprisingly tone-deaf.

That’s where Nuance Labs comes in. We at Lightspeed are excited to invest in their seed round alongside Accel as they build what we believe will become a foundational layer for emotional intelligence in AI.

As IQ becomes commoditized through increasingly capable language models, emotional quotient (EQ) emerges as the critical differentiator. Yet we believe current AI systems fundamentally miss this dimension. AI avatars feel robotic, not because of pixel quality, but because they lack the subtle emotional expressiveness that makes human faces compelling, and they are far from real-time responsiveness.

Nuance’s breakthrough insight mirrors that of large language models: just as LLMs learned to understand meaning by predicting the next word, AI can understand emotions by learning to predict human emotions and behavior.

Nuance Labs is building a unified foundation model for real-time generation and understanding of realistic human expression across multiple simultaneous modalities, including text, speech, and video. This unlocks new categories of AI interaction:

  • Real-time emotional generation: Lifelike avatars that don’t just speak words but convey appropriate emotional responses through coordinated facial expressions, vocal inflection, and body language. Imagine AI therapists that pause thoughtfully, offer encouraging expressions, and adapt their demeanor to your emotional state, all in real-time.
  • Real-time emotion understanding: AI systems that can read subtle emotional cues as they happen, enabling applications like live coaching systems that detect when you’re losing confidence during a presentation, or interview AI that understands not just what candidates say but how they say it.

The team brings exceptional depth: Fangchang Ma and Edward Zhang previously built research teams at Apple, contributing to products like Vision Pro’s Digital Persona system. Their combined expertise in computer graphics, robotics, and machine learning, along with thousands of academic citations, strongly positions them to solve this technically complex challenge.

We’re entering an era where AI interactions will be measured not just by accuracy or speed, but by emotional authenticity. Any interface where humans interact with AI, from customer service and education to entertainment and healthcare, will benefit from emotional intelligence. We believe Nuance Labs is building the infrastructure that will power this next generation of AI experiences.

The uncanny valley stands as a barrier to natural human-AI interaction. Nuance Labs is building a bridge that will enable an entire ecosystem of emotionally intelligent AI applications. We’re thrilled to support their mission to make AI interactions as natural and emotionally rich as human conversation itself.

Excited to bring emotional intelligence to artificial intelligence? Nuance is hiring.

 

The content here should not be viewed as investment advice, nor does it constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities. Certain statements herein are the opinions and beliefs of Lightspeed; other market participants could take different views.

Authors

Nnamdi Iregbulem

Nnamdi Iregbulem

Guru Chahal

Guru Chahal

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CVC Secondary Partners backs TDR’s investment in David Lloyd

CVC Capital Partners

Leading investors back next growth phase of David Lloyd

TDR Capital LLP (“TDR”), a leading UK-based private equity firm, is pleased to announce the successful closing of a newly formed continuation vehicle (“TDR Capital Titan”) which has been formed to acquire majority control of David Lloyd Leisure (“David Lloyd”), Europe’s largest operator of premium racquets, health and fitness clubs, from TDR Capital III and its co-investors (“TDR III”).

TDR Capital Titan will look to build on the success of TDR III and to continue the company’s ambitious growth plans. It also enables TDR III investors to realise their investment in a high-quality, well-performing asset, and provides new investors with the opportunity to invest behind David Lloyd and its future expansion.

TDR Capital Titan has been backed by a range of leading investors and asset managers, including the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (acting by its investment manager, TCI Fund Management), investment funds managed by Coller Capital, Apollo’s Sponsor and Secondary Solutions (S3) business, CVC Secondary Partners and Hollyport Capital.

TDR believes that the high quality of this new investor base demonstrates the attractive nature of the opportunity and the belief in David Lloyd’s excellent performance and growth prospects. TDR Capital Titan and its co-investors have set aside over £100m of additional capital to invest in the business and support its ongoing expansion. David Lloyd currently has a strong pipeline of future club openings across Europe and the UK and continues to roll out its premium spa and wellness offering and build additional padel courts to attract new members.

Completion of the acquisition by TDR Capital Titan, which is subject to customary conditions, is expected to take place in October 2025.

Russell Barnes, CEO David Lloyd Leisure, said: “We are delighted to have TDR’s continued backing as we enter our next phase of growth. Coming off the back of our strongest year yet – both in terms of membership numbers and the performance of the business – we continue to see huge opportunities for David Lloyd across Europe and in the UK. Our focus will remain on investing in premium site features, including spas and facilities for fast-growing sports like padel, where we are the UK’s leading operator. These investments are driving improved customer satisfaction levels and record numbers of members choosing premium packages, and we are confident that this strategy will continue to deliver results.”

Tom Mitchell, Managing Partner at TDR Capital, said: “David Lloyd has been a highly successful investment for TDR to date, achieving significant growth and operational transformation over the first period of our ownership. We remain excited by the opportunities ahead for the business which are supported by growing consumer demand for premium wellness services. We saw significant investor interest in TDR Capital Titan and look forward to working with our new partners to support David Lloyd’s next stage of growth. The transaction has allowed our current investors the option for a full exit, and we are very pleased to be continuing our work with Glenn, Russell and the wider David Lloyd team.”

Since acquiring David Lloyd in November 2013, TDR III has worked in partnership with the company’s management team to transform the business, delivering sustained growth and improved customer experience. Since 2013, David Lloyd has nearly doubled the number of clubs, opening over 40 new locations in the UK and 30 across Europe, tripled the number of employees to 11,600 and nearly doubled membership numbers to over 800,000.

Jefferies acted as sole financial advisor to TDR on the transaction and Kirkland & Ellis LLP acted as legal adviser in relation to the transaction and the establishment of TDR Capital Titan.

Morgan Stanley & Co. International Plc acted as financial adviser to David Lloyd and Travers Smith advised David Lloyd management in relation to the transaction.

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CEFC, La Caisse launch $250m Australian ag and carbon platform, Rio Tinto signs up as offtaker

LaCaisse

The CEFC and global investment group La Caisse (formerly CDPQ) have launched a AU$250 million landmark, large-scale, diversified agricultural platform to generate high-quality Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs), with Rio Tinto as a foundation offtaker.

La Caisse has invested AU$200 million alongside a AU$50 million commitment from the CEFC to create the Meldora platform (Meldora), managed by Australian agriculture and natural capital asset manager, Gunn Agri Partners (GAP). Meldora has purchased its first asset, a broadacre and irrigation farm of more than 15,000 hectares in Central Queensland.

Meldora will combine sustainable agricultural production with large-scale Environmental Plantings under the ACCU scheme, underpinned by a long term offtake from Rio Tinto for part of the ACCUs to be issued, creating both economic and environmental benefits. Under the Environmental Plantings methodology for ACCUs, native vegetation is planted and maintained for a minimum of 25 years for some projects and as long as a century for others, providing long term carbon sequestration and biodiversity benefits.

The investment will promote the integration of sustainable Australian agricultural production with restoration of local species vegetation that generates carbon credits, harnessing carbon sequestration and supporting the efforts of the sector to remain competitive in the global net zero economy.

Emmanuel Jaclot, Executive Vice-President and Head of Infrastructure and Sustainability, La Caisse said: “This investment is a timely step toward advancing resilient, climate-smart agriculture in Australia, while delivering measurable environmental and economic value. Teaming up once again with the CEFC and GAP – and with Rio Tinto as a foundation offtaker – reinforces our confidence in this platform’s ability to scale. It reflects La Caisse’s commitment to sustainable land use and our broader net zero ambition, as we position ourselves early in a growing market for high-quality carbon credits.”

La Caisse’s investment highlights growing global interest in carbon farming and sustainable agriculture as a valuable asset class.

CEFC Head of Natural Capital, Heechung Sung, said: “This initiative represents a long term investment in nature and land-based strategies in Australian agriculture. It’s a great privilege to again be able to work with La Caisse and GAP to invest in this strategy and alongside Rio Tinto, who have demonstrated with their long term offtake, a commitment to invest in high-integrity carbon credits.”

“By adopting an integrated sustainable land management model, this strategy can produce high-quality agricultural commodities while also increasing biodiversity, improving ecosystems, and earning carbon revenues through the investment in native landscape restoration. ”

“Sustainable agricultural practices across Australian farmland paves the way for a more resilient future with better environmental outcomes for the sector. By utilising a high-integrity method – Environmental Plantings – that also supports biodiversity, these carbon credits have the potential to command a premium in the market. This reinforces the role of nature-based solutions in climate action and underscores the increasing value of sustainable land management and investment in the restoration of trees and vegetation, as we transition to a low carbon economy.”

Gunn Agri Partners’ joint Managing Director, Bradley Wheaton, said: “The scale of this investment and the scope of the Meldora platform means that it is uniquely ambitious in integrating the restoration of native vegetation in the landscape of an institutional-quality agricultural investment. Through diversification across irrigation, dryland cropping and carbon credit generation, the investment model redefines the future of farming.”

ABOUT LA CAISSE

At La Caisse, formerly CDPQ, we have invested for 60 years with a dual mandate: generate optimal long-term returns for our 48 depositors, who represent over 6 million Quebecers, and contribute to Québec’s economic development.

As a global investment group, we are active in the major financial markets, private equity, infrastructure, real estate and private debt. As at June 30, 2025, La Caisse’s net assets totalled CAD 496 billion. For more information, visit lacaisse.com or consult our LinkedIn or Instagram pages.

La Caisse is a registered trademark of Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec that is protected in Canada and other jurisdictions and licensed for use by its subsidiaries.

ABOUT CEFC

The CEFC is Australia’s specialist climate investor, helping cut emissions in the race towards net zero by 2050. We invest in the latest technologies to generate, store, manage and transmit clean energy. Our discounted asset finance programs help put more Australians on the path to sustainability, in their homes and on the road. CEFC capital is also backing the net zero transformation of our natural capital, infrastructure, property and resources sectors, while providing critical capital for the emerging climate tech businesses of tomorrow. With access to more than $32 billion from the Australian Government, we invest to deliver a positive return for taxpayers.

ABOUT GUNN AGRI PARTNERS (GAP)

Gunn Agri Partners was established in 2013 and is managed by a highly credentialed team of agricultural and investment industry professionals, managing over $1.1 billion in assets and commitments. They combine decades of experience in institutional investment management and farm asset and natural capital management.

Gunn Agri Partners adopts an industry-leading framework that integrates sustainability in the design and delivery of its strategies and a mandate to transparently report against our investor’s targets. Investments strategies currently managed by Gunn Agri Partners include row crops, horticulture, mixed farming, livestock and natural capital. For more information, visit www.gunnagri.com.

ABOUT RIO TINTO

Rio Tinto operates in 35 countries where our 60,000 employees are working to find better ways to provide the materials the world needs. Our portfolio includes iron ore, copper, aluminium and a range of other minerals and materials needed for people, communities and nations to grow and prosper, and for the world to cut greenhouse gas emissions to net zero.

We have more than 150 years of mining and processing experience guiding our work. We have put climate change at the heart of our strategy, committing to a 50% reduction in Scope 1&2 emissions by 2030 and net zero operational emissions by 2050. We are combining investments in commodities that enable the energy transition with actions to decarbonise our operations and value chains.

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Motion raises $60M at a $550M valuation to redefine the next era of work

Motion raises $60M at a $550M valuation to redefine the next era of work

Four years ago, we met Harry Qi and his co-founders over coffee in San Francisco. The product itself was still raw, but the team’s conviction was undeniable. They weren’t just chasing a clever feature; their goal was to redefine how millions of people work.

That belief led us to back Motion’s Series A in 2020. Four years later, we’ve doubled down with super-prorata participation in every round, including Motion’s newly announced $60M raise at a $550M valuation across Series B, C, and C2.

From niche tool to category-defining agentic suite

Like many startups, Motion started with a niche focus: An AI-powered calendar and task manager that was a smart wedge into a noisy space. The founders quickly realized they were onto something bigger. Managing tasks solved part of the problem, but what if the platform could take the next step and execute them?

They began expanding Motion into what it is today: a complete agent-native work suite. Beyond calendars, Motion powers project management, docs, sheets, tasks, knowledge management, and business intelligence, designed for seamless human and AI collaboration.

The team’s latest innovation is ‘AI Employees.’ Think of them as out-of-the-box digital teammates that don’t just track work, but complete it. They can draft proposals, update project plans, and respond to client requests, all within the same platform their human teammates use.

 

We always asked ourselves: “Why should AI tasks live outside the systems where human tasks already run?” By unifying them, we unlock 100 times the value and give SMBs the same leverage that Fortune 500s get from expensive custom AI builds.
Harry Qi
Co-Founder & CEO, Motion

A playbook any founder can learn from

Watching Motion scale has been a masterclass in startup building. For founders, these are the lessons worth underlining:

  • Velocity wins. Motion ships with a speed that’s rare even in Silicon Valley. Features move from whiteboard to customer hands in days, not quarters.
  • Reinvent to expand. Calendaring was never the endgame. The team continuously reinvented the product until they unlocked a path to building the entire work suite of the agentic era, perhaps what Microsoft Office would look like if it were invented today.
  • Stay close to your customer. While big enterprises experiment with armies of AI engineers, Motion stayed focused on SMBs, which are the backbone of the economy. Over 80% of new ARR comes from this segment.

The results speak for themselves: 100,000+ paying customers, ARR tripling year-over-year, and $10M in new ARR from ‘AI Employees’ in just four months.

Built for everyday businesses

AI headlines often center on Big Tech or bleeding-edge AI labs, but Motion’s north star is different: the everyday businesses that keep America running.

 

‎Think of a design agency in Tennessee, a small IT firm in Alabama, or a marketing shop in Texas. These aren’t companies with dedicated AI teams; they’re lean teams that answer their own phones, juggle client deadlines, and need a system that simply works.That’s what Motion delivers: a platform where human and AI employees sit side by side, running the business together.

The impact is tangible:

  • An IT services CEO credits Motion’s AI project manager with cutting delivery time by 30%.
  • Marketing agencies report saving hours each week thanks to AI-powered executive assistant agents.
  • Customers say Motion is the first platform where “AI feels truly built-in, not bolted on.”

For their customers, Motion is the core operating system for how they work.

 

In just a few years, a single human will manage hundreds of AI Employees completing thousands of tasks inside the Motion platform. Our vision has always been to help everyday businesses grow by letting AI handle the busywork, so humans can focus on what really matters.
Harry Qi
Co-Founder & CEO, Motion

Why we’re doubling down on this team

We’ve partnered with Motion through its biggest wins and its toughest challenges, and what stands out is how the team shows up in both moments. Four years in, their co-founders are still working shoulder-to-shoulder. They’ve since welcomed seasoned leaders like Luis Carrasco (ex-Microsoft Teams), Antonio Garcia (ex-Salesforce), and Ashutosh Desai (founder of Make School and former Visiting Partner at Y Combinator) to the team, blending startup urgency with enterprise-scale experience. The culture they’ve built is ambitious yet humble, fast, and thoughtful.

 

Motion founders: Ethan Yu, Harry Qi, Chander Ramesh, and Omid Rooholfada.

This is a team built to win big. Here’s how they describe their recent momentum:

  • Growth: B2B ARR growing 3x year-over-year and scaling 20% month-over-month.
  • Product-market fit: Over 80% of ARR comes from SMBs and mid-market customers (businesses that need ready-to-use solutions, not armies of consultants).

We’ve continued to lean in because Motion is exactly the kind of team and market opportunity we’re excited to back. At SignalFire, we couldn’t be prouder to have been there since the beginning, and to keep backing Harry and the team at every step forward.

Join the mission – an invitation to builders

Motion is now a 65-person team with the drive of a scrappy startup and the ambition of a category-definer. With this new funding, they’re hiring across engineering, product, and AI research to expand the agentic suite and push the frontier of what’s possible.

For founders, Motion’s story is a reminder to start narrow, move fast, listen obsessively, and never stop reinventing. For builders, it’s an opportunity to help shape the next great work suite for the AI era, which empowers everyday businesses to thrive.

Explore open roles here.

Read TechCrunch’s coverage of the announcement here.

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Payworks announces strategic investment from Hg

HG Capital

Winnipeg, MB – September 8th – Payworks, a Canadian leader in total workforce management, has entered a strategic partnership with Hg, a leading software and services investor with deep expertise in human capital management (HCM).

The partnership marks a defining milestone in Payworks’ 25-year trajectory, fast-tracking the company’s growth, diversification and leadership strategy across the sector. By combining Payworks’ local expertise with Hg’s specialization in scaling software businesses, the investment will help to drive enhanced product development, expansion across the Canadian HCM landscape and an elevated client experience.

“For 25 years, Payworks has been building proprietary workforce management solutions tailored to Canadian employers,” said Barbara Gamey, Co-founder of Payworks. “The Payworks ownership group is excited to welcome Hg to our partnership. Their investment enables us to accelerate our innovation and value creation agenda, positioning Payworks for sustained leadership and diversification in the Canadian market.”

Payworks’ operations in Canada remain unchanged. Its team of more than 600 employees and network of offices across the country continue to support the company’s strategy, anchoring growth in service to Canadian businesses and their employees.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Payworks. In our research we surveyed more than six hundred payroll and HR customers in Canada and found that Payworks has a best-in-class product with the highest customer satisfaction. We look forward to supporting the business in its next era of growth” said Alexander Johnson, Director, and Hector Guinness, Partner, at Hg.

“Payworks’ track record of serving Canadian businesses, combined with our global HCM and software expertise, creates an exciting opportunity to accelerate innovation and reach more Canadians” added Robert Citrino, Principal at Hg.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

For further information, please contact:

Payworks
Jaclyn Christie, Vice President, Marketing, Jaclyn.christie@payworks.ca

Hg
Tom Eckersley, tom.eckersley@hgcapital.com
Sam Ferris, sam.ferris@hgcapital.com

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