Even with investors staying selective, venture capital is showing real signs of recovery. Global funding climbed to about $120 billion in Q3 2025, marking the fourth straight quarter of growth and a renewed sense of confidence around exits and liquidity.
And while AI continues to dominate, in fact capturing more than half of all VC dollars this year, what’s most interesting is where that innovation is happening. Investors are backing AI not just in software, but across energy tech, climate solutions, robotics, and the physical infrastructure that powers everyday life.
In that context, the nearly $254 million raised by the companies in our November roundup reflects a bigger shift: capital is flowing toward founders solving real-world problems with staying power, not just the next digital layer.
Here are 10 purpose-driven companies that closed funding rounds in November 2025 to accelerate innovation.
Infravision
Location: Austin, TX
Infravision, an aerial-robotics company that uses advanced drones to help utilities build and maintain power lines more efficiently, raised a $91M Series B led by GIC, with participation from Activate Capital, Hitachi Ventures, and Energy Impact Partners. The company’s TX System (their drone-powered line stringing system) uses autonomous drones and intelligent ground equipment to replace manual and helicopter-based line stringing, dramatically improving safety and speed. Infravision will use the new funding to scale North American manufacturing, expand global utility partnerships, and accelerate deployment of its drone-powered grid-building technology as demand for transmission surges.
ElectronX
Location: Chicago, IL
Energy exchange company ElectronX raised a $30M Series A round to modernize how electricity is bought and sold. The funding was led by DCVC and included quantitative trading firms XTX Markets, Five Rings, and GTS. Their new platform aims to make power trading easier to understand and more efficient. With this funding, the company plans to finish regulatory approvals and launch its first electricity-trading products. It will also help them expand the technology and operations teams needed to power the new platform.
Endolith
Location: Denver, CO
Endolith, a biotech and AI company that uses engineered microbes to make critical mineral extraction cleaner and more efficient, raised a $16.5M Series A co-led by Squadra Ventures and Draper Associates. The company partners with mining operators to unlock minerals like copper with lower environmental impact and higher yield. Instead of relying solely on traditional extraction methods, Endolith’s approach could reduce waste, water use, and emissions in one of the world’s most resource-intensive industries. The new funding will support additional R&D, pilot projects with mining partners, and the buildout of commercial operations.
Mine Vision Systems
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Mine Vision Systems (MVS) brings advanced vision systems and software to underground mining. The company raised a $12.5M Series A led by Rockwell Venture Capital, with significant participation from Condire Investors, to accelerate R&D, expand deployments with global mining customers, and build a broader decision-making platform around its FaceCapture technology, which gives operators real-time visibility into mine conditions, improving safety, planning, and operational decision-making. With better data and visualization, mines can reduce accidents, optimize extraction, and extend the life of existing assets.
Athian
Location: Indianapolis, IN
Athian, a carbon marketplace helping livestock producers quantify and monetize verified emissions reductions, raised just over $4M in a Series A backed by Ajinomoto Group Ventures, Chipotle’s Cultivate Next, and Mondelēz’s Sustainable Futures fund. Athian’s platform generates certified “insets” that can be sold within beef and dairy supply chains. The company will use the funding to scale producer onboarding and support its growth as it expands its capabilities and reach to accommodate new species and international markets.
Clairity
Location: Boston, MA
Clairity, an AI-powered breast imaging company, raised a $43M Series B led by ACE Global Equity and Santé Ventures, with participation from the Breast Cancer Research Foundation and existing partners. By turning routine scans into forward-looking risk insights, Clairity helps care teams move from reactive treatment to proactive prevention. The funding raised will support commercial expansion in the U.S., deepen partnerships with imaging centers, and help develop the next generation of 3D breast and cardiac imaging products to improve diagnostic accuracy at scale.
Nudge Security
Location: Austin, TX
Nudge Security, which helps organizations govern employee use of SaaS and AI tools, raised a $22.5M Series A led by Cerberus Ventures, with Ballistic Ventures, Forgepoint Capital, and Squadra Ventures. Nudge Security shows companies what software and AI tools their teams are using, highlights potential risks, and nudges employees to stay secure. This funding will help them build smarter safety features, expand their AI oversight tools, and grow the teams that support and sell the product.
Abacus
Location: Chicago, IL
Abacus secured a $5M Series A led by GFT Ventures, BankTech Ventures, and LAUNCH to help enterprises make smarter planning and forecasting decisions. The company’s analytics platform uses AI to bring together financial, operational, and market data so leaders can see more clearly what’s happening in real-time and predict what might happen next. Abacus plans to use the money raised to expand its engineering and customer success teams, enhance its AbacusOS, and roll out new automation features, like AI-driven workflows and content generation.
sunday
Location: Atlanta, GA
sunday, the QR-powered restaurant payment platform used across the U.S. and Europe, raised a $21M Series B with participation from DST Global Partners. The company helps restaurants streamline ordering and payment while capturing more guest feedback and loyalty data. The funding will support U.S. expansion, development of smart ordering kiosks, and deeper integrations with POS, loyalty, and CRM systems to modernize the fast-casual and full-service dining experience.
Vurvey Labs
Location: Cincinnati, OH
Vurvey Labs, an AI-powered consumer insights and co-creation platform, raised a $8.5M strategic Series A, led by Havas, along with The Hillman Group and LightShed Ventures. Vurvey asks real customers to share short video feedback about products, designs, or ideas. Vurvey’s AI tool analyzes those videos and turns the insights into clear profiles or patterns ("People Models") that brands can use to make decisions. The funding will help Vurvey to scale its platform globally, expand AI capabilities, and grow product and customer success teams as demand for human-grounded AI insights increases.
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