Firefly Aerospace Prices $557M Nasdaq IPO After Historic Moon Landing

Ambience Healthcare, an AI startup focused on reducing clinicians' administrative burden, has secured a $243 million funding round that lifts its valuation above $1 billion. Led by Andreessen Horowitz and Oak HC/FT, the financing drew participation from OpenAI's startup fund, Kleiner Perkins and Optum Ventures.

CEO Mike Ng says the fresh capital will help "expand the depth and breadth" of Ambience's platform, with a special emphasis on strengthening its partnership with OpenAI to develop advanced, healthcare-specific foundation models.

US space tech companies attracted a record $3.1 billion in Q2 as investors bet on a defense-driven upswing, according to Seraphim Space. Series B and C rounds comprised 65% of total investment, while U.S. firms captured 70% of the capital, already surpassing 2024's annual haul.

The quarter's largest financing was Impulse Space's $300 million Series C, led by Linse Capital alongside DFJ Growth and 11 returning investors. Helmed by former SpaceX engineer Tom Mueller, the company will deploy the funds to scale in-space transport missions and advance its Helios kick stage and GEO Rideshare Program.

Firefly Aerospace has priced its initial public offering, seeking to raise $557 million on Nasdaq under the ticker FLY, according to SEC filings. The Central Texas company became the first private firm to land and remain upright on the moon when its Blue Ghost lander touched down on March 2.

Key details:

• Proceeds will retire over $151 million of debt and fund general corporate needs.


• Private equity firm AE Industrial Partners—Firefly's largest shareholder—will sell 16,000 of its 58.8 million shares but retain about 41% of voting power.


• Co-founder Thomas Markusic holds nearly 12.5 million shares and will not sell any in the offering.

BlinkOps has closed a $50 million Series B round led by Eyal Ofer's O.G. Venture Partners, with continued support from Lightspeed Venture Partners and Hetz Ventures and new participation from Vertex Growth. This brings the Israel–U.S. startup's total capital to $90 million.

• Founded by Gil Barak and Zion Zatlavi, BlinkOps launched its Security Micro-Agent Builder earlier this year.


• The platform lets enterprises deploy AI-powered micro-agents for identity management, patching, threat investigation and more.


• BlinkOps counts some of the world's largest companies among its users, with over 30,000 integrations and 10,000+ workflow templates.

Tilla, the Berlin-based maritime tech startup, has secured $2.3 million in Series A funding to turbocharge its AI-powered crew logistics platform. The round was led by Motion Ventures, fresh from launching a $100 million maritime tech fund, and backed by Belgian shipping giant EXMAR.

Key highlights:

• Total funding now stands at $4.6 million since 2021


• Capital to fuel entry into APAC and Mediterranean markets


• Platform promises up to 24% cost reduction and 40% time savings on crew changes