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SoftBank Plans Up to $20B Bond Offering for Refinancing

Funding momentum in AI infrastructure and next‑generation interfaces continues, with Groq and Wispr AI both securing major rounds that push their valuations deeper into unicorn territory.This week's private company news:SoftBankis talking with investment banks about a potential $10B-$20B bond offering to help refinance a loan for itsinvestment in OpenAI, Bloomberg's Laura Benitez and Janice Huang. Proceeds from the sale would partly be used to repay a $40B bridge loan secured earlier this year for its OpenAI investment, and also for other AI investments, according to people familiar with the matter. The offering could be denominated in dollars and euros and could come as early as September, the people add.Anthropicis preparing to pitch amore than $30T total addressable marketin its IPO, surpassing SpaceX's $28.5T estimate and underscoring the exceptionally ambitious growth expectations embedded in AI valuations, The Wall Street Journal's Corrie Driebusch. Anthropic could aim to raise as much as $100B in its offering and is aiming for a valuation of about $2%, the report says.Smart ring makerOurawants up to$3B in its IPOand is targeting avaluation of over $16Bfrom the public listing, Bloomberg's Bailey Lipschultz and Mark Gurman report, citing people familiar with the matter. The IPO could happen as soon as September, the authors note.Some of the biggest capital raises by private companies this week include:Groq– The company announced a $350M Series A fundraise, with the round led by Disruptive, with planned participation from Nvidia. The funding round values the company at $3.5B. This latest round, together with $650M raised in June 2026, brings recent funding in the company to $1B. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Nvidia, AMD, and Broadcom.Wispr AI– The company has raised $280M in Series B funding at a $2B valuation, led by long-time investor and partner Menlo Ventures. They are joined by existing investors Notable Capital, NEA, Neo Ventures, 8VC, and MVP Ventures. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Meta Platforms, Alphabet, and Microsoft.Muon Space– The Mission Foundry for high-performance satellite constellations announced a $250M Series C led by Eclipse Capital, with participation from Galvanize, Google, Salesforce Ventures, Wellington Management, I Squared Capital, Woven Capital, Radical Ventures, Congruent Ventures, Costanoa Ventures, Activate Capital, ACME Capital, ArcTern Ventures, and Overlap Holdings. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Iridium, Spire Global, and Trimble.Starcloud– The company pioneering data centers in space has announced a $250M Series A extension funding round at a $2.3B post-money valuation. The round was led by Manhattan West. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Viasataand AST SpaceMobile.Emerald AI– The company announced it has raised $150M in an oversubscribed Series A financing at a valuation of $1.05B. Energize Capital and DCVC co-led the round. The round was led by Manhattan West. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Palantirand Amazon.Unicorns to watch this week:Halter– The cattle tech/AgTech company has significantly expanded its scale in 2026, raising $220M in a Series E at a $2B valuation, more than doubling its prior valuation. The company now has one million smart collars sold and is operating across three continents, with U.S. ranchers building 60,000 miles of virtual fencing using its system. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Zoetis.Decagon– The AI customer support agent company valuation has tripled to $4.5B following a $250M Series D led by Coatue and Index Ventures. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Salesforce, Freshworks, and HubSpot.Zama– The cryptography/blockchain infrastructure remains the first unicorn in the FHE space, with its Series B round establishing a valuation around $1B. The company continues to push encrypted computation and confidential smart‑contract infrastructure, making it one of the most closely watched cryptography startups in 2026. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Inteland AMD.Colossal Biosciences– The biotech "de-extinction" continues to attract major investor attention as it advances its synthetic biology platform and de extinction programs. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Ginkgo Bioworksand Twist Bioscience.Breeze Aviation Group– The company remains a private standout in U.S. aviation, expanding its fleet and underserved route strategy. Breeze continues to benefit from strong seasonal demand and its growing Airbus A220 footprint, keeping it in focus as a next generation low cost carrier. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Southwest Airlinesand JetBlue Airways.IPOs to watch:OPENAI– The company's CFO Sara Friar told employees that the AI lab "will be a public company in 2027," CNBC's Ashley Capoot and Kate Rooney report. In an all hands meeting, Friar told employees not to worry about rival Anthropic's IPO timeline. OpenAI confidentially filed its IPO prospectus with regulators in June, but it has not publicly disclosed its plans. "The IPO is not a finish line, it is a milestone, another fundraise," Friar told employees, according to two sources familiar with her comments. "We raised $122B in March, and that gives us flexibility."EvoAir Holdings– The company has filed for a firm commitment initial public offering of shares of common stock and anticipates that the initial public offering price of shares will be between $4.00 and $5.00 per share.Inspire Brands– The company announced that it has confidentially submitted a draft registration statement on Form S-1 with the Securities and Exchange Commission relating to the proposed initial public offering of its common stock. Inspire Brands expects to use the net proceeds of the proposed offering to repay outstanding indebtedness under its existing term loan facility and pay offering fees and expenses."Private Markets" is The Fly's recurring series of stories on the latest moves in the private sector, largest unicorn companies and initial public offerings to watch. Fly subscribers, add $PRIVATE to your portfolio for alerts on breaking news in the startup and venture capital space.

Southwest Airlines Appoints New Board Members

Southwest Airlines (LUV) today announced Jason Liberty, chairman and CEO, Royal Caribbean (RCL), and Varun Krishna, CEO, Rocket Companies (RKT), will join the company's board of directors, effective immediately.

Southwest Airlines Appoints New Board Members

Southwest Airlines (LUV) announced Jason Liberty, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Royal Caribbean Group (RCL), and Varun Krishna, Chief Executive Officer, Rocket Companies (RKT), will join the company's Board of Directors, effective immediately. The Board determined that adding two directors with extensive public company leadership experience and deep expertise in technology, digital innovation, commercial strategy, and financial leadership will further strengthen the Board as Southwest continues executing its strategic priorities and driving value for shareholders