Cooling Off After the Spring Surge: May 2025 Crowdfunding Recap

CHART OF THE WEEK 📈

By Chris Martin | Read

Investment crowdfunding took a predictable pause in May—raising $26.4M across platforms, down from nearly $34M in April. But the month wasn’t without bright spots. From DCBooks surpassing its $3M goal on ChainRaise to standout campaigns like Yarnhub and Kif Kefir, May proved that even in slower markets, compelling startups can still win big. Dive into this week’s chart to see which campaigns led the way—and what history tells us to expect in June.

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KINGSCROWD PODCAST

By Sam Fiske / Watch | Apple | Spotify

In this week's Kingscrowd Podcast, we unpack the latest SEC crowdfunding insights, demystify asset sales for investors, and spotlight Siren Biotechnology, an innovative startup leveraging gene therapy to revolutionize brain cancer treatment. Get essential market clarity and learn about this standout equity crowdfunding opportunity.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Join KingsCrowd CEO Chris Lustrino for a live, interactive session with Energea co-founder Mike Silvestrini and Director of Investor Relations Tyler Hurlburt to demystify how solar power-purchase agreements convert sunlight into reliable cash flow, explain the risk-mitigation tools and geographic diversification behind Energea’s U.S., Brazil, and African portfolios, and answer your questions about adding renewable infrastructure to your investment strategy—reserve your spot for this investor-focused webinar on Wednesday, June 25th at 2pm ET.

PITCH REVIEW 💸

By Teddy Lyons \ Deal Report

Brief: Siren Biotechnology is a biotech company developing a universal AAV immunogene therapy platform to treat solid tumors resistant to standard immunotherapies. Founded by gene therapy expert Dr. Nicole K. Paulk, Siren’s approach turns tumors into “drug factories” by delivering immune-activating genes directly into cancer cells.

Teddy’s Take: Siren Biotechnology is perhaps the most de-risked pharmaceutical startup I’ve ever seen raise money in the online private markets. The company is using a well-known therapy, known as AAV immuno-gene therapy, to treat cancer. This is a therapy that has been used for over 30 years to effectively deliver genetic material into cells of patients with genetic diseases such as blindness, muscular disorders, and pediatric Parkinson’s disease. AAV gene therapy is exceptional in delivering precise instructions to specific areas of the body.

However, it has historically only been used for rare, single gene disorders. Siren Biotechnology is one of the first companies to ever try utilizing AAV-gene therapy to treat cancer by delivering “cancer-announcing” payloads directly to cancer cells and allowing patients’ own immune system to kill the disease.

Now, why do I consider this such a de-risked investment opportunity? The answer lies in the company’s financial backing, quality of the founder, and strong preclinical data. Siren Biotechnology is backed by one of the most successful VC firms in the world: Founders Fund (early investors in Facebook, Palantir, SpaceX, Airbnb, Stripe, Twilio, Spotify, and Neuralink). Founder’s Fund led Siren Biotechnology’s Seed round and made a follow-on investment in the Series A round. Since Founder’s Fund has backed less than ten drug development companies in over 20 years, this a strong signaling that Siren Biotechnology has a chance to become a generational company.

Secondly, Siren Biotechnology is run by one of the most impressive founders I’ve ever talked to in Pharma. She is on over 20+ AAV-gene therapy scientific advisory boards, including a Scientific Advisory Board Member of Sarepta Therapeutics, a $3.1B “big pharma” company. She’s also one of the more talented speakers in explaining complex technology to non-technical listeners (see this talk she gave at the All-In Summit).

And finally, the company has strong preclinical data showing 86% brain cancer survival rate in mice treated with this therapy. With FDA submissions taking place in early 2026, this is an early stage pharma company that should be heavily considered for any equity crowdfunding portfolio.

STAFF PICKS 🌶️

Macrovey

By Teddy Lyons

Macrovey has a $10M per year legacy business delivering electrical and mechanical material handling solutions to customers like Walmart, Amazon, and FedEx. The company is now launching robotics software for use in this industry. Is this a risky move?

Azure Printed Homes

By Léa Bouhelier-Gautreau

The startup comes back with a 6th round online. It's valuation has been growing faster than its revenue so far, which could make investors feel like they've missed the boat. But if you think that Azure can make it its competitive market, it's better late than never.

Drop Water

By Teddy Lyons

Drop Water is one of those startups that makes me believe we really can cut down on waste without giving up convenience. The company has raised over $15 million and is starting to sign contracts. But it still has a lot of challenges to face before it can realistically hope to deliver returns to its investors.

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