Tracking when private companies are nearing a sale, recap, or financing event has always been a guessing game. With thousands of sponsor-backed firms spread across sectors and geographies, most deal teams are forced to react after the market moves.
Investors, bankers, and service providers struggle to know which private companies are gearing up for a transaction or capital raise. Signals are scattered, opaque, and nearly impossible to track across thousands of PE- and VC-backed businesses.
Dakota centralizes those signals (holding periods, funding rounds, platform acquisition dates, ownership changes, and exit timing patterns) into one predictive transaction-readiness tool. Instead of waiting for headlines, users can see which companies are showing the strongest likelihood of pursuing a sale, recapitalization, or new financing before the market knows.
Below is today’s list of five PE- or VC-backed companies that, based on their hold period, financing stage, and last transaction date, appear to be credible candidates for a sale or next-round raise.
Nothing is guaranteed, but these companies fall squarely within the timing windows where sponsors typically look to generate liquidity or secure additional capital.
Sourced from Dakota Sponsor Backed Companies.
1. Motif
Motif is a collaboration platform designed specifically for the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry. It offers an infinite canvas that bridges 2D and 3D design processes, enabling teams to collaborate seamlessly across dimensions. The platform integrates with tools like Revit and Rhino, allowing real-time updates and synchronization of designs. Users can share and present work directly from the web application, eliminating the need for exports or PDFs.
- Sector: Industrials
- Industry: Construction & Engineering
- Last known transaction date: Series A, $46M, announced in January 2025.
- Major sponsors/backers: Led by CapitalG, with participation from Baukunst.
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: Motif’s last disclosed transaction places the firm squarely in the typical 12–24 month window when venture-backed industrial and construction platforms begin evaluating a follow-on round, strategic minority investment, or M&A to support scale. In capital-intensive sectors like Construction & Engineering, that timing often coincides with increased inbound interest from strategics and later-stage investors looking for validated platforms with early traction.
2. GenLogs
GenLogs is a transportation and supply chain visibility platform that leverages low-cost artificial intelligence to extract data from existing traffic cameras and roadside sensors. This technology enables trucking carriers to enhance operational efficiency by tracking all traffic, trucks, and trailers, thereby optimizing scheduled load pickups and drops, increasing trucking velocity, and improving driver satisfaction.
- Sector: Industrials
- Industry: Air Freight & Logistics
- Last known transaction date: Series A, $14.6M announced in February 2025.
- Major sponsors/backers: Led by Venrock and HOF Capital, with participation from Steel Atlas, AutoTech Ventures, Venture53, TitletownTech, Plug and Play Ventures, and Heartland Ventures.
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: GenLogs’ $14.6M Series A in February 2025 puts the company in the standard ~12–18 month post–Series A window when logistics and industrial tech platforms typically pursue a Series B, strategic minority investment, or M&A to fund commercial expansion. In asset- and operations-heavy sectors like air freight and logistics, that timing often aligns with heightened interest from strategics and later-stage investors once early deployment and customer validation are established.
3. AppliedAI
AppliedAI is a London-based company specializing in AI-driven solutions tailored for regulated industries such as insurance, healthcare, and financial services. Their platform, Opus, integrates AI workflows with a global network of verified human experts to automate complex processes, enhancing efficiency and compliance.
- Sector: Information Technology
- Industry: Vertical AI / RegTech Infrastructure
- Last known funding round: Series A, $55M, announced February 2025.
- Major sponsors/backers: G42, Palantir Technologies, Bessemer Venture Partners, McKinsey & Company, Accrete Capital
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: AppliedAI’s $55M Series A in February 2025 places the company in the typical 12–18 month post–Series A window when IT services and AI-enabled platforms begin pursuing a Series B, strategic minority investment, or acquisition to scale enterprise deployments. Given the size of the round, this timing often signals preparation for a follow-on transaction once early revenue traction and customer adoption are proven.
4. Ignis Energy
Ignis H2 Energy Inc. is a geothermal exploration and development startup focused on providing affordable, reliable, and sustainable baseload geothermal energy. The company manages a risk-balanced portfolio of geothermal power-producing opportunities across high-enthalpy environments worldwide, including projects in Turkey, Alaska, California, Nevada, and Italy. Ignis Energy leverages extensive expertise from the oil and gas sector to enhance geothermal exploration and development, integrating advanced data analytics and machine learning models to predict, locate, and explore geothermal resources more efficiently. The company's mission is to develop one gigawatt of documented producible geothermal reserves by 2030, contributing to a cleaner, more sustainable energy future.
- Sector: Utilities
- Industry: Independent Power and Renewable Electricity Producers
- Last known funding round: Series A, $12.5M, announced February 2025.
- Major sponsors/backers: alfa8, Nabors Industries, existing shareholders, private individuals, family offices
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: Ignis Energy’s $12.5M Series A in February 2025 places the company in the typical 12–18 month post–Series A window when renewable power platforms begin pursuing follow-on capital, project-level financing, or strategic partnerships to advance development and scale assets. In capital-intensive utility and IPP models, that timing often aligns with a near-term financing or strategic transaction once early projects reach key development milestones.
5. Mote, Inc.
Mote, Inc. is a Los Angeles-based clean energy startup focused on transforming agricultural and forestry waste into clean hydrogen and permanent carbon removal. Founded by Dr. Josh Stolaroff, the company leverages a proprietary biomass carbon removal and storage (BiCRS) technology to convert woody waste biomass into hydrogen and sequester CO₂. Their mission is to reduce and remove one billion tons of carbon by 2035. Mote's technology has been validated and funded by industry leaders, including the U.S. Department of Energy, CalFire, and the U.S. Forest Service. The company is led by Dr. Josh Stolaroff as CEO, with David Mittelstadt as Senior Vice President of Resources, Erika Pham as Vice President of Strategy, Alison Chen as Director of Process Engineering, John Grabowski as Vice President of Capital Projects, and Du Nguyen as Senior Research Manager. The Board of Directors includes Travis Lane, Joffre Baker, and Tom Preston-Werner.
- Sector: Energy
- Industry: Clean Energy Infrastructure
- Last known funding round: Series A, $7M, announced March 2025.
- Major sponsors/backers: Led by Nella Next and Preston-Werner Ventures, with participation from Counteract and other strategic partners
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: Mote, Inc.’s $7M Series A in March 2025 places the company in the typical 12–18 month post–Series A window when early-stage energy platforms begin evaluating a follow-on raise, strategic minority investment, or partnership to advance commercialization. In capital- and infrastructure-intensive energy models, that timing often aligns with a near-term transaction once pilot projects or early deployments reach validation milestones.
Use Dakota’s Sponsor Backed Company Intelligence to Spot Likely Exits Before the Market Does
Dakota’s private company data gives you a real-time view into thousands of sponsor-backed companies, including platform acquisition dates, funding rounds, parent sponsors, add-on activity, and sector categorization.
Instead of guessing where companies are in their lifecycle, you can instantly identify which ones are approaching the typical timing windows for a sale or recap.
Fully integrated into Dakota Marketplace, this dataset enables deal sourcers, investor relations teams, and allocators to anticipate transactions, build targeted outreach lists, and stay ahead of market announcements, every single day.
To explore more companies likely to transact, book a demo of Dakota Marketplace!
