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Undercover VC | 💸 Inside the UK’s £500M Bet on Diverse Fund Managers

Plus: 🚀 The 3 tools boosting sales leader productivity in 2025

Author

Rafe Houston
July 16, 2025

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Welcome to Undercover VC — your inside track on how today’s top investors and operators are building high-performance, venture-backed businesses. Each edition delivers sharp, actionable insights on GTM strategy, capital efficiency, and portfolio execution across B2B SaaS, fintech, and AI. Built for VCs, operating partners, and scale-stage founders who want to win smarter — not just bigger.

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TODAY’S PICK 🎯

AI isn’t optional anymore. But most sales teams are buying insight tools when what they really need is execution.

In this week’s post, we break down:

  • Why most GenAI tools stall at surface-level signals

  • What real sales AI looks like in the field

  • The RIGHT framework to evaluate tools that actually drive deals forward

If your sales AI can flag risk but can’t tell reps what to do about it, it’s not helping.

👉 Use this guide to cut through the noise and choose a sales operating system that moves the needle.

📣LEADING VOICES 

👨‍💻 The Tech Trio That Saves My Sanity (and Hours!) Every Week | Saul Lew via LinkedIn

I’m a huge believer in working smarter, not harder. Over the past few years, I’ve built a small productivity tech stack that has literally saved me hundreds of hours. Hoping this inspires some ideas for your own workflows!

1. Notion: Productivity Management
2. Make.com: Automation
3. Claude by Anthropic:

Always happy to chat about tech and productivity if anyone wants to go into more detail on any of these (or chat about Hive Perform - another favourite of mine.

INDUSTRY INSIGHTS 🌐

The UK Government's £500m investment aims to promote growth among underrepresented entrepreneurs by backing diverse and emerging fund managers, especially those from ethnic minorities, women, and people with disabilities. This initiative, beginning in 2026, includes £400m to support diverse fund managers through the British Business Bank and an additional £100m commitment, particularly for female-led venture capital funds. These measures address funding disparities, highlighting financial inclusion and bridging gaps in the venture capital landscape.

Gov.UK

Venture capitalists are investing in battery-swapping start-ups, driven by demand in dense urban areas lacking fast-charging infrastructure. This approach, gaining traction in countries like India and Japan, offers quick swaps in place of lengthy charges, potentially alleviating power grid strain. The industry's future hinges on scaling demand and integrating with existing supply chains dominated by China.

AI startups in the UK secured $2.4 billion in venture capital in early 2025, accounting for 30% of the total VC funding, and reflecting strong interest due to practical applications like personalized medicine and enhanced logistics.

AI Invest

Surge AI targets a $1 billion capital raise to leverage demand from Scale AI's client departures, aiming for a valuation over $15 billion. The company's premium data-labeling services have attracted major clients like Google and OpenAI. This move tests investor interest in the data-labeling sector, balancing its necessity against potential automation vulnerabilities.

Reuters

CRED, an AI-powered predictive intelligence platform, raised $15M in a seed round led by defy.vc to enhance product development and expand operations. This funding supports CRED's mission to integrate internal enterprise systems with real-time market signals, offering actionable insights for large enterprises like the Golden State Warriors and UTA.