Specter Monitor is a data-driven newsletter for investors interested in learning about the latest market trends, signals, and opportunities. Our audience includes some of the most legendary VC investors in the world. We’ll work hard to bring you actionable insights into what’s happening in today’s markets while celebrating data-driven wins and predictions. ✨
🔥 Hottest Startups - September 2025
We're delighted to share with our readers the hottest startups for September. Leveraging our Investor Signals product, we analyse which startups have garnered the highest interest from prominent investors over the past 90 days.
Specter Team
🔷 Semiconductor Landscape 2025
Built on the foundation laid by JME Ventures for Spanish Semiconductor market we expanded the Semiconductor Market Map to a global scale, mapping 700 companies across categories including photonics, chip design, foundries, integrated devices, manufacturing, materials, and chemicals using Specter’s proprietary data platform. Download here!
Specter Team
💸 Revenue Signals of the Week
Specter tracks private-company revenue and profitability as it’s reported across social posts, news, podcasts, and public filings.
Dropmagic hit $420K ARR
Dropmagic reported $35K in MRR on Day 125, corroborated by a dashboard showing €33,816.62 MRR, and is targeting €50K MRR.
Outrank hit $2M ARR
Outrank crossed $2,000,000 in annual recurring revenue (ARR), shared by founder Tibo on X alongside an MRR chart indicating growing recurring revenue momentum.
Publer hit $3M ARR
Founder reports Publer at over $3M in annual recurring revenue (ARR) with no external funding.
StreamFlow hit $3.6M ARR
Streamflow reported $68,550 in revenue for the latest weekly protocol stats, alongside $18,331 in $STREAM buybacks and 295,750 $STREAM distributed; profitability status was not provided.
Get in touch to learn more.
🔮 Stealth Opportunities of the Week
Specter monitors real-time global talent movements to spot investment opportunities before anyone else.
Theo Margolius
Theo Margolius is based in London. Serial founder with prior VC-backed experience, high capacity to navigate and succeed in the startup ecosystem. Co-founded Otta, a tech job search platform, acquired by Welcome to the Jungle in December 2023. Current endeavor in fintech, though details are sparse, is anticipated to leverage his extensive network, industry insights, and successful track record in building and scaling ventures. Currently in stealth 👻
Thomas Dohmke
Thomas Dohmke, a former CEO at GitHub. Strong background in software development and a deep understanding of the tech industry. Dipl.Ing. in Computer Engineering from Technische Universität Berlin and a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Glasgow. Founded ToDoSoft and HockeyApp, the latter of which was acquired by Microsoft. At Microsoft, he held significant roles, culminating as a Principal Director of PM, before moving to GitHub where he served as Vice President, Strategic Programs, and later as Chief Product Officer. Currently in stealth 👻
Matt Farrugia
Matt Farrugia is a seasoned entrepreneur with a track record of founding and advising startups across various stages of growth. Based in Edinburgh, has successfully raised pre-seed and seed rounds from both local and international VCs. Has a Bachelor of Laws from The University of Edinburgh and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Edinburgh Business School. Founded Bemo Ltd, an engineering-led design and build agency, and serving as a director at Machines With Vision. Now currently in stealth 👻
Axel Ericsson
Axel Ericsson, a 2018 Thiel Fellow, is a technologist and entrepreneur based in San Francisco. Has a BSc in Computer Science from Stanford University, was involved in the Stanford Review and Stanford Bitcoin Club. Ericsson's entrepreneurial journey includes co-founding Vest, a startup in the fintech space, and Callin, where he served as Co-Founder & CTO until its acquisition by Rumble Inc. in May 2023. His experience in founding and scaling startups, particularly in the tech and blockchain arenas, makes him a notable figure in the startup ecosystem. Currently in stealth 👻
Tomer Mesika
Tomer Mesika, with a profound background in software architecture and machine learning, is currently the Co-Founder & CTO of a stealth startup. Based in Tel Aviv. Lead software architecture at Cyera and co-founded RapidUI, which was acquired by Wix. His expertise in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and software engineering is complemented by his educational background with a BSc in Computer Software Engineering from Technion - Israel Institute of Technology. Currently in stealth 👻
Existing Specter users: Access the full roster here.
New to Specter? Schedule a demo and activate your complimentary trial today.
🎱 Investor Signals of the Week
Specter analyzes the online and social activity of leading investors and industry insiders to predict upcoming funding rounds and acquisitions.
Staer (🔥 featured 3x in 90 days)
Staer, based in Malmö, Skåne, Sweden, is at the forefront of revolutionizing autonomous mobile robot fleets through its development of physical AI. Featured twice in 90 days, Staer is currently bootstrapped, showcasing its potential without external funding. The company's technology enables mobile robots to autonomously map new environments, understand space, plan movements, and continuously improve their operations. With a lean team of 4 employees, Staer has managed a 75% hiring growth rate over the past six months, indicating a rapid expansion phase. The founders, Jan Erik Solem, Johan Gyllenspetz, and Carl Silbersky, bring a wealth of experience in computer vision, AI, mapping, and world modeling to the table. Staer's business model targets B2B sectors, specifically operators of autonomous mobile robot fleets, aiming to enhance the efficiency and autonomy of these systems.
Cognee (🔥 featured 6x in 90 days)
Cognee, located in Berlin, Germany, is an emerging leader in the AI software industry, particularly in data and analytics. The company has recently secured $1.6M in funding. Cognee specializes in building an OSS memory engine for AI applications, facilitating the creation of GraphRAG and supporting Vector Stores, Graph stores, and various LLM providers. With a team of 9 employees, Cognee has seen an 11.1% hiring growth rate over six months and is focused on enhancing AI data management through its innovative products, including the Cognee AI Memory Engine and Cognee Python SDK. The company's traction is evident in its 16% increase in answer relevancy and 75% more support agents using the tool, serving clients like Keepi, Luccid, Dynamo, and DeepMetis.
Subconscious (🔥 featured 2x in 90 days)
Subconscious, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is pioneering in the field of DeepTech and software with its unique approach to long horizon reasoning beyond context limits. Despite being in the early stages of growth and bootstrapped, Subconscious has attracted attention from MIT Research and Stacy Swider (Mass Ventures). The company's technology focuses on building an extremely efficient inference engine for AI agents, backed by a co-designed AI model and runtime. This system allows for long horizon reasoning across tool use and virtually unlimited context, making it a significant advancement in AI and automation. Subconscious is led by founder Jack O'Brien and has a small team of 3 employees.
Linkup (🔥 featured 8x in 90 days)
Linkup, situated in Paris, France, is redefining web search for the next generation by connecting applications and AI agents to the internet. The company has successfully raised $3.2M in its latest funding round, With Seedcamp leading the investment, Linkup has developed a platform that enables AI systems to access, search, and interact with web content efficiently. The company boasts a team of 45 employees and has been featured twice in 90 days by The Twenty Minute VC. Linkup's technology bridges the gap between AI and the internet, providing developers with the infrastructure to power business applications with accurate web search capabilities.
Codebuff (🔥 featured 5x in 90 days)
Codebuff, located in San Francisco, California, is revolutionizing software development with its CLI-based coding agent, designed to write code via terminal interaction. Having been featured three times in 90 days and securing $0.5M in funding, Codebuff's total funding has reached $1.5M, with Y Combinator leading the investment. The company's product, Codebuff, is an AI coding agent that indexes entire codebases in seconds, offering deep insights and surgical code edits. With a team of 2 employees, Codebuff is focused on enhancing productivity for developers and software engineers through its innovative code generation tool.
Existing Specter users: Access the full list here.
New to Specter? Schedule a demo and activate your complimentary trial today.
🍒 Company Opportunities of the Week
Specter tracks the performance of millions of companies and identifies the ones who are likely to increase in valuation.
Aether (🌟 Specter – Global Rank 14)
Aether, located in San Francisco is a venture operating in Data and Analytics, DeepTech, Energy, Information Technology, and Software sectors, boasting a Specter rank of 14. The company, with a team of 16 employees including founder Zayne Sagar (previously at Various Startups and Multiple Companies), has seen a hiring velocity of 14.29%. Aether has successfully raised $3M in funding, with Amino Capital and Y Combinator among its notable investors. Investment partners such as Madeline L., Wei Li, and Jian cai from Amino Capital, and Gustaf Alstromer from Y Combinator, have contributed to its financial backing. The company's traction is highlighted by its 5,364 web visits with a significant monthly growth rate of 23,221.74% and 5,534 LinkedIn followers. Aether's commitment to innovation in its field is further evidenced by its selection of technologies and its strategic location in the United States, a hub for tech startups.
DatologyAI (🌟 Specter – Global Rank 28)
DatologyAI, HQ in Redwood City, California, stands out in the Data and Analytics, DeepTech, Education, Hardware, Information Technology, and Software industries with a Specter rank of 28. The company's robust team of 38 employees is led by founders like Ari Morcos and Matthew Leavitt, who bring experience from Meta, DeepMind, and Facebook AI. DatologyAI has secured $57.65M in funding across various rounds, with Conviction Capital and Amazon Alexa Fund among its key investors. The company's traction is evidenced by its 3,103 LinkedIn followers and a web visit count of 15,266, showcasing a monthly growth of 204.29%. This growth is supported by strategic partnerships and a focus on leveraging AI and machine learning technologies to innovate within its sectors.
Clueso (🌟 Specter – Global Rank 206)
Clueso, HQ in San Francisco, operates in the Data and Analytics, DeepTech, Information Technology, and Software sectors, achieving a Specter rank of 206. With a compact team of 18 employees, including founders Neel Balar, Prajwal Prakash, and Akash Anand, Clueso has raised $1.9M in funding. The company is backed by f7 Ventures and Y Combinator, with investment partners like Kelly Graziadei contributing to its growth. Clueso's traction is highlighted by 8,272 LinkedIn followers and a significant web visit count of 128,737, indicating a strong market presence and interest in its innovative solutions.
Clearly AI (YC S24) (🌟 Specter – Global Rank 314)
Clearly AI (YC S24), HQ in Seattle is a burgeoning entity in the Data and Analytics, DeepTech, Information Technology, Security, and Software fields, with a Specter rank of 314. The startup, led by founders Joe Choi-Greene and Emily Choi-Greene, has a team of 14 and has raised $500,000 in funding, notably from Y Combinator. The company's traction is demonstrated by 1,003 LinkedIn followers and a web visit count of 3,783, despite a recent decrease in web traffic. Clearly AI's commitment to advancing AI and security technologies is evident in its rapid team growth and strategic participation in Y Combinator's S24 cohort.
Convoke (🌟 Specter – Global Rank 123)
Convoke, located in South San Francisco, California, is on a mission to build superior software solutions for drug developers, focusing on clinical development, launch, and commercialization. Founded by Alex Telford Convoke has successfully raised $17.1M in funding. The company is supported by investors like Kleiner Perkins, with partners such as Leigh Marie Braswell playing a key role in its funding. Convoke's traction is underscored by 974 LinkedIn followers and a notable web visit growth of 55.03%, showcasing its emerging influence and innovative potential in leveraging technology for professional services.
Existing Specter users: Access the real-time startup feed here.
New to Specter? Schedule a demo and activate your complimentary trial today.
That’s all for this edition of Specter Monitor!
Stay tuned for the next updates and feel free to share with your friends.
