Oct 15, 2025

9 New Unicorns for September 2025 Gina MarrsOctober 15, 2025 There are months when the startup world seems to hold its breath, and then there are months like September 2025, when billion-dollar valuations land like confetti across multiple industries at once. In just thirty days, nine companies from across the globe joined the fabled unicorn club, cutting across sectors as diverse as clean energy, fintech, AI and real estate –  a big jump from August’s four . From Berlin’s connected gyms to Bangalore’s digital lenders and Silicon Valley’s carbon recyclers, this new wave of unicorns tells a much bigger story about where innovation (and investor confidence) is heading next. These aren’t just another batch of startups chasing the same dream. Each has found its way into a market gap sharpened by global uncertainty: the clean-tech gold rush, the AI safety arms race and the fintech revolution in emerging markets. Together, they represent a snapshot of what post-pandemic innovation really looks like – it’s faster, it’s greener and it’s more globally distributed than ever before. It used to be that unicorns clustered around one idea: scale fast, disrupt something and attract Silicon Valley’s best capital. But the September 2025 cohort signals a shift. The billion-dollar mark isn’t being reached through app downloads or viral growth anymore – it’s through breakthroughs in manufacturing, sustainability and applied AI. Take Twelve and HIF Global, both turning captured carbon into fuels that could one day power jets and cars without relying on fossil fuels. Or Safe Superintelligence, born from a philosophical debate within the AI world and now spearheading an entirely new kind of lab – one where the goal isn’t speed to market but safety at scale. In the East, Moneyview and Veritas Finance are redefining financial inclusion in India, serving millions who’ve been left out of traditional credit systems. In Europe, eGym is turning fitness into data. And, in the U.S., Rentberry is trying to digitise one of the oldest industries of all – property rental – with the same energy that Uber once brought to taxis. What’s fascinating isn’t just the diversity of these companies, but their common DNA (so to speak): each one answers a global-scale problem rather than a local convenience. Energy, finance, housing and AI safety – these aren’t consumer fads, they’re foundational systems. Investors, it seems, are once again looking for startups that can anchor the future rather than chase the next buzzword. It’s almost as if we’ve gone away from the shiny and back to old faithfulls. The September unicorns remind us that the startup ecosystem isn’t cooling – it’s maturing. The billion-dollar badge no longer marks a social app or crypto play; it signals companies trying to solve hard problems that won’t fade with a trend. Founded in 2015 by Oleksii Lyubynskyi and Liliya Ostapchuk, Rentberry is a rental marketplace built to modernise the long-term leasing process. Originally born out of Ukraine but now based in San Francisco, the platform aims to bring transparency and efficiency to the landlord-tenant relationship. Rentberry allows tenants to bid on rental properties, negotiate terms digitally, and submit applications smoothly, while enabling landlords to manage multiple units in one system. It became a recognised unicorn by virtue of raising a $90 million round that valued it at around $1 billion. The company’s success derives from targeting inefficiencies in legacy leasing processes, the global scale of rental demand, and a seamless UX. That said, its bidding mechanics have drawn controversy, and Rentberry’s challenge now is proving sustainable unit economics as it expands. Safe Superintelligence, or SSI, was founded in June 2024 by Ilya Sutskever (formerly OpenAI’s chief scientist), Daniel Gross and Daniel Levy. It operates with a laser focus: building a safe, superintelligent AI system rather than chasing incremental AI products. Based across Palo Alto and Tel Aviv, SSI has attracted attention for raising $1 billion early on, despite not having a clear commercial product. Its mission is intentionally ambitious and long-horizon, placing alignment and existential safety above short-term monetisation. SSI is a bet on research, talent, and credibility in AI safety, effectively positioning itself as a laboratory rather than a conventional startup. Its success lies in moral clarity and prestige, though it also carries immense risk: investors are wagering on long timelines and breakthroughs rather than replicable revenue models. HIF Global is a pioneering player in the e-fuel (synthetic fuels) sector. The company converts renewable energy and recycled CO₂ into drop-in fuels (like e-methanol and e-gasoline) that work with existing engines and infrastructure. With operations spanning Chile, the U.S., Australia and more, HIF is working to decarbonise transport without requiring people to change their vehicles. Its ability to integrate capture, hydrogen electrolysis and fuel synthesis has drawn investors, including energy and shipping firms, to partner on value chains (for example, MOL from Japan). HIF has emphasised scalability, leveraging modular facility design and global deployment strategies. Its success comes from riding the rising urgency of decarbonisation and positioning itself where energy transition meets legacy industry. The challenge will be capital intensity, regulatory alignment and proving large-scale economics. Twelve (formerly “Opus 12”) is a US-based startup that turns captured CO₂ into chemicals and fuels using renewable electricity. It uses electrochemical reactors that convert carbon dioxide and water into carbon-based materials, a kind of carbon recycling. In 2025, it joined the unicorn ranks following a $200 million Series C, backed by funds such as TPG and Capricorn. What makes Twelve compelling is its dual mission: tackling climate change and reducing reliance on fossil feedstocks. It thrives at the intersection of carbon capture, green chemistry and synthetic fuels. Its success hinges on demonstrating that its reactors can scale cost-effectively and compete with fossil-based processes. The technical risk is high, but its potential payoff, a self-sustaining carbon economy, is enormous. Sakana AI presents itself as a next-generation AI scientist platform: an autonomous system intended to accelerate scientific discovery. It blends generative models, experimental design, simulation and automation to propose, test and refine hypotheses. Its ambition is to reduce the time and cost of research cycles by letting AI handle much of the experimentation. This “lab in software” concept is appealing to pharma, materials, biotech and academic partners. Its success depends on bridging domain modelling, trust, interpretability and real-world validation – it’s not just about impressive benchmarks. If it can deliver reproducible discoveries or meaningful aids to researchers, it may shift the paradigm. Its challenge lies in adoption inertia, regulatory approvals, and the intricacies of real-world scientific systems that often defy idealised general models. eGym is a German health-tech and fitness company that builds connected gym equipment and software for performance tracking, analytics and engagement. Its approach combines hardware, cloud analytics, and membership platforms to help gyms and users get data-driven insights. What sets eGym apart is its ecosystem strategy: gyms get tools to manage operations and retain customers, while users receive feedback, remote coaching and integrations. Its success comes from marrying physical and digital fitness in a unified product. The challenge for eGym is scaling across diverse markets, integrating with existing fitness ecosystems, and competing with big fitness and wellness tech firms. Its path forward lies in better AI coaching, predictive health insights and platform openness. Veritas Finance (based in India) is a fintech company specialising in lending and credit services for underserved markets, especially in small businesses and individuals. It has built AI-driven underwriting, alternate credit scoring models and digital workflows to expand access where traditional banks struggle. Its valuation reached unicorn status following a funding round that recognised the size and growth potential of the underbanked segment. What works for Veritas is its focus on local insights, data sources (e.g. mobile, transaction data) and speed of service. The challenge is credit risk, regulatory frameworks in India, and managing default rates in volatile economic conditions. To thrive, Veritas must continue refining risk models, maintaining loyalty and scaling carefully. 24M Technologies is a materials and battery innovation company focused on simplifying lithium-ion battery manufacturing. Its core idea is to bring down cost, complexity and processing steps in making batteries, improving throughput and efficiency. By doing so, 24M aims to make electric vehicles and energy storage more affordable and scalable. In 2025 , it crossed into unicorn valuation territory following an $87 million Series H round (reportedly valuing it at about $1.3 billion). Its strength lies in deep technical differentiation, strategic IP and alignment with aggressively growing battery demand. But it also faces execution risk: scaling new battery architectures from lab to gigafactory scale is often fraught with cost overruns and yield issues. Moneyview is an Indian fintech platform that offers credit, advance salary, and financial services aimed at the emerging middle class. It leverages AI, alternative data (e.g. behavioral, mobile usage) and seamless digital onboarding to serve users who might not qualify under rigid legacy credit checks. As per reports, Moneyview acquired Jify (employee benefits platform) and reached a unicorn valuation of around $1.2 billion. Its success comes from tackling credit exclusion, offering flexible products and embedding financial lifelines into everyday workflows. Its risks include default exposure, regulatory scrutiny and competition from both neobanks and incumbents. Its path forward hinges on refining risk algorithms, building trust and scaling responsibly across geographies. Related Articles