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This Week in SaaS: Sep 29 – Oct 6, 2025

Over $1B raised across AI-heavy rounds (Vercel, Glean, Tipalti), big M&A moves from Qualtrics and Zeta, and key updates from FASB and Microsoft. Plus, founder takeaways on AI strategy, M&A readiness, and finance hygiene.

By
Ryan Allis
October 6, 2025

💸 SaaS Fundraises & VC Rounds

  • Vercel (Dev platform / AI apps) raised $300M Series F at $9.3B valuation. Co-led by Accel and GIC; new backers include BlackRock, StepStone, Khosla. Funds fuel AI Cloud and the v0 agent roadmap.

  • Tipalti (AI-powered finance automation) raised $200M in growth financing from Hercules Capital. Funds will fuel AI innovation, product expansion, and global scale.

  • CyberCube (cyber risk analytics for insurers) raised $180M led by Spectrum Equity. Capital supports product development, analytics, and international growth.

  • Glean (enterprise AI search & assistant) raised $150M Series F at a $7.2B valuation. Plans to scale partner ecosystem and international expansion.

  • EdSights (AI for student engagement & retention) raised $80M led by JMI Equity to expand across higher education and enhance its conversational AI platform.

  • PostHog (product analytics + feature flags) raised a $75M round at a $1.4B valuation. Led by Peak XV; PostHog officially enters unicorn territory.

  • Bite Investments (alt-investment SaaS platform) raised $25M from NewSpring Growth to scale its Bite Stream product and global operations.

  • Mondoo (agentic vulnerability management) — raised $17.5M for go-to-market acceleration, led by HV Capital.

  • Tie (e-commerce identity resolution). Raised $10M Series A. Led by Innovating Capital with Stage 2 Capital, Hawke Ventures, strategic angels.

Big Picture Context: 2025 venture capital funding is strong, and AI-native SaaS remains a magnet. H1 2025 was strongest half-year for venture investment globally since the first six months of 2022, signaling recovery in the private markets.

🤝 SaaS M&A Deals of the Week

  • Qualtrics Plans to Acquire Press Ganey (experience mgmt + healthcare surveys) — Qualtrics (Silver Lake-owned) agreed to acquire Press Ganey for ~$6.7B incl. debt. Big push into regulated healthcare data + AI use cases.

  • Nuvini Group Plans to Acquire MK Solutions (LATAM ISP ERP SaaS) — signed a binding term sheet to acquire MK Solutions; adds R$40M rev / R$20M EBITDA pro-forma/

  • Standard Dental Acquires iCoreConnect assets (dental practice SaaS) — asset purchase completed; consolidates dental software + services under one roof.

  • Zeta Global Acquires Marigold’s Enterprise Software Division (martech & loyalty platforms) — Zeta Global will pay up to $325M ($100M cash + $100M stock + up to $125M seller note) to acquire Marigold’s enterprise loyalty and email assets (Cheetah Digital, Selligent, Sailthru, etc.). Expands Zeta’s marketing automation stack.

  • SAIC to Acquire SilverEdge Government Solutions (cyber & AI platform SaaS) — Federal contractor SAIC will buy SilverEdge for ~$205 M in cash from a private-equity owner. Expands SAIC’s SOAR and agentic AI software capabilities for government clients.

  • Coupa Acquires Scoutbee (AI supplier intelligence SaaS) — Coupa announced the acquisition of Scoutbee to enhance supplier discovery and procurement AI features. Terms undisclosed. Deepens Coupa’s AI sourcing ecosystem post-Thoma Bravo buyout.

  • Synechron Combines RapDev, Calitii & Waivgen (ServiceNow SaaS consultancies) — Synechron merged three ServiceNow implementation partners to create a ~$250 M-revenue global practice in workflow automation and SaaS integration services.

  • Pulse (India) to Acquire Nucleus Commercial Finance (UK fintech SaaS lender) — Pulse will pay ~₹500 crore (~$60 M) for the digital lending platform, expanding its AI-driven SME credit and data SaaS footprint into Europe.

🗞️ Top SaaS News of the Week

  • Policy/accounting change you can’t ignore: FASB issued ASU 2025-06 modernizing internal-use software cost guidance under ASC 350-40. Implementation chatter was heavy; many finance teams are modeling impact now.

  • Microsoft partner ecosystem updates: mandatory MFA in Partner Center; multiple CSP updates and new AI workshops—worth a review if you sell in the Microsoft cloud.

  • Market pulse: Multiple trackers highlight AI-centric SaaS gathering steam.

🚀 Recent SaaS IPOs & S-1 Filings

🧠 Founder / Operator Takeaways

  • AI gravity well: The biggest raises (Vercel, Glean) reinforce that AI-native or AI-first value props accelerate rounds — but notice the emphasis on security, governance, and enterprise readiness in their narratives. If you sell into mid-market/enterprise, make your AI story concrete (workflows, SLAs, RBAC, audit) to shorten cycles.

  • Vertical + regulated data wins: Qualtrics Acquiring Press Ganey underscores how domain data moats in regulated industries (healthcare) pair well with horizontal platforms. If you’re vertical SaaS, lean into compliant data capture and model fine-tuning on your domain corpus; it’s acquisition fuel.

  • Be M&A-ready: With corporate acquirers re-opening their checkbooks, strong gross margins, durable NRR, and clear AI roadmap are what buyers pay for. Keep a clean data room, recurring rev concentration under watch, and a crisp carve-out plan for any non-core modules.

  • Finance housekeeping: Sit down with your controller/CFO on ASU 2025-06. Revisit what you capitalize vs. expense (product development, implementation) and update disclosures. This can swing EBITDA optics and lender covenants.

  • Partner channels: If you build/sell atop Microsoft, ensure MFA and CSP operational updates are handled; failures here now block deals and create renewal risk.

📰 News from SaasRise

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See you next Monday with the next edition of This Week in SaaS.

‍-Ryan Allis, CEO of SaasRise