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. Podqi
Podqi is an AI-powered platform that automates monitoring, takedown, and retroactive compensation for intellectual property (IP) infringements. Founded in 2025 and headquartered in San Francisco, California, the company serves entertainment companies by leveraging AI technology to streamline the process of identifying and addressing IP infringements. Podqi's platform scans millions of potential infringements daily, enabling brands to protect their digital and physical assets from counterfeiting and IP violations.
- Sector: Information Technology
- Industry: Software
- Last known transaction date: Seed, $3.2M, announced in March 2025
- Major sponsors/backers: General Catalyst, Soma Capital, Afore Capital
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: Podqi’s March 2025 $3.2M seed round places it squarely in the 10–12 month window when software companies typically re-enter the market, especially when the seed size signals expectations of rapid traction. Combined with Q1 fundraising cycles and investor pressure to validate valuations, the timing points to a near-term follow-on or strategic transaction.
2. Rakurai
Rakurai is a private company founded in 2023 by Syed Rizvi, who serves as the CEO and Founder. The company is headquartered in San Francisco, California, United States. Rakurai specializes in delivering scalable performance solutions for Web3 infrastructure, focusing on enhancing the efficiency and scalability of blockchain networks. Their primary product offerings include high-throughput Solana nodes designed to improve transaction processing capabilities within the Solana ecosystem.
- Sector: Information Technology
- Industry: IT Services
- Last known transaction date: Seed, $3M announced in March 2025
- Major sponsors/backers: Lead Investor: Anagram; Other Investors: Slow Ventures, Robot Ventures, Paper Ventures, P2P.org, GlobalStake, CyberFund, Crypto.com
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: Rakurai’s $3M seed round announced in March 2025 places it at the point where IT services companies typically seek a follow-on transaction after deploying capital into delivery capacity and early customer acquisition. Given the shorter revenue ramp and cash-flow visibility common in IT services, the timing suggests Rakurai is likely approaching a near-term raise or strategic transaction to scale contracts and expand margins.
3. Causal Labs
Causal Labs is an AI-driven technology company specializing in developing physics-based models to predict and control weather patterns. Founded in 2024 by Dar Mehta and Kelsie Zhao, the company is headquartered in San Francisco, California. Causal Labs aims to revolutionize weather forecasting by providing real-time, hyper-local predictions that enable industries such as agriculture, renewable energy, and aviation to make informed decisions in dynamic and complex conditions.
- Sector: Information Technology
- Industry: IT Services
- Last known funding round: Seed, $6M, announced March 2025
- Major sponsors/backers: Kindred Ventures (lead), Refactor, BoxGroup, Factorial, Otherwise, Karman Ventures,
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: Causal Labs’ unusually large $6M seed round announced in March 2025 implies an accelerated growth plan that would bring the company back to market sooner than a typical seed-stage IT services firm. As that capital approaches full deployment and early enterprise traction becomes visible, the timing aligns with a near-term follow-on or strategic transaction to lock in scale and valuation momentum.
4. Surgicure Technologies
Surgicure Technologies, Inc. is a medical device company specializing in innovative airway management solutions for both civilian and military applications. Their flagship product, the Horseshoe™, is designed to enhance patient safety by providing reliable endotracheal (ET) tube securement, preventing facial pressure injuries, and facilitating effective oral care. The company aims to reduce adverse events in airway management by optimizing patient breathing and streamlining clinical workflows.
- Sector: Health Care
- Industry: Health Care Equipment & Supplies
- Last known funding round: Seed, $1.785M, announced March 2025
- Major sponsors/backers: Led by Launchpad Venture Group, with major contributions from Gurtin Ventures, and participation from BakerBridge Capital, TiE Angels, SBXi, Beacon Angels, SideCar Angels, Tidal River Fund, and BBE Ventures
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: Surgicure Technologies’ March 2025 seed round places it at a point where health care equipment startups typically pursue a follow-on or strategic transaction after hitting early regulatory, prototype, or pilot milestones. With capital deployment cycles in medtech often driving clear inflection points within 12–18 months, the timing suggests near-term activity to support validation, manufacturing scale, or clinical expansion.
5. Thorizon
Thorizon is a deep-tech startup specializing in the development of molten salt reactors (MSRs), aiming to provide stable and clean energy solutions. Founded as a spin-off from NRG, the Dutch Nuclear Research Institute, Thorizon has rapidly expanded with offices in Amsterdam and Lyon. The company is led by CEO Kiki Lauwers and co-founder Sander de Groot. Thorizon's flagship project, Thorizon One, is a small modular reactor designed to deliver 100 MW of electricity or 550°C industrial heat, sufficient to power 250,000 households or supply energy-intensive industries. The reactor utilizes a unique cartridge-based fuel system, enhancing safety and efficiency by recycling long-lived nuclear waste. Thorizon collaborates with industry leaders such as Orano, Tractebel, VDL Groep, and EDF to advance its technology. The company has secured significant funding, including a €20 million investment in March 2025, bringing its total funding to €42.5 million. Thorizon's mission is to drive nuclear innovation in Europe, enhancing energy security while reducing carbon emissions and managing nuclear waste.
- Sector: Industrials
- Industry: Energy Equipment
- Last known funding round: €20M raised in March 2025; €42.5M total funding to date
- Major sponsors/backers: Led by Invest-NL, with participation from Positron Ventures, PDENH, and Impuls Zeeland
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: Thorizon’s March 2025 Series A places it at a stage where capital-intensive electrical equipment companies often seek a follow-on transaction once engineering, supply chain, or pilot infrastructure milestones are reached. Given the scale of the round and the long-lead development cycles in industrial hardware, the timing suggests a near-term strategic investment, project financing, or Series B to sustain momentum and de-risk commercialization.
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!
