The 12-week programme will start with five startups focused on decentralised commerce, marketing, advertising, payment and the metaverse.

Ben Jacobs of Companion Fund, flush with $300m from Mars, is going against the grain and betting bigger on startups as others pull back.

Jay Schrankler has returned to industry, becoming CEO of avionics systems provider Perceptive Avionics, with Samir Mayekar taking over at the Polsky Center.

Ten corporate investors were part of a $380m series C round this week, including Fortescue, United Airlines, Rio Tinto, Amazon, Microsoft and BP.

The US's $369bn climate legislation, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), promises to put the US at the forefront of the clean energy transition, but the act has its limitations.

ADP Ventures has been launched with a five-person team and will invest in technologies related to its HR software provider parent.

The firm’s CVC unit, Visa Ventures, will lead the new fund, which will focus on B2B fintech and data technology companies.

Mars' pet food and veterinary subsidiary has teamed up with Digitalis Partners to launch a second Companion Fund, following a $100m predecessor in 2018.

Mark Dryden, Francisco Larrondo and Gracia Lagos have joined the Chilean firm’s CVC arm led by GCV Emerging Leader Brian Walsh.

Timothy Denning, vice-president for research and economic development at Georgia State University, will become CEO of the Georgia Research Alliance.