New funding and ad support aim to ease capital gaps for small wedding businesses
Updated
February 24, 2026 2:55 PM
Mannequins display white wedding dresses in a bridal shop window. PHOTO: ADOBE STOCK
The Knot Worldwide, a global wedding technology platform and vendor marketplace, has launched a new grant initiative aimed at small businesses in the wedding industry.
The company, which operates brands such as The Knot and WeddingWire, connects couples with wedding professionals and provides tools to help vendors grow. It says the new WeddingPro Grant Program is designed to address a persistent challenge in the sector: access to capital.
Under the program, up to US$500,000 will be distributed to U.S.-based wedding professionals who run small businesses. The support will come in the form of financial grants, advertising credits on WeddingPro and mentorship. Selected businesses will also receive access to education resources and community support through the company’s network.
The move comes at a time when many wedding businesses remain small and resource-constrained. According to the company’s State of the Vendor Report, more than half of wedding businesses employ fewer than ten people. Three in four professionals surveyed said adaptability is critical to long-term success, while flexible funding remains a barrier. The grant program is positioned as a response to that funding gap.
“Our mission at The Knot Worldwide is to help the nearly 900,000 small businesses on our global platforms get discovered through our centralized vendor marketplace as well as give them the tools and resources to grow their business,” said Raina Moskowitz, Chief Executive Officer, The Knot Worldwide. “We consistently hear from our wedding professionals that access to capital is a barrier to getting started in the industry. With our new WeddingPro Grant Program, we will provide access to both capital and critical support services such as mentorship and education that will enable small business owners to further grow and scale.”
The application window opens on February 23 and closes on March 27. Winners are expected to be notified by May 2026, subject to eligibility verification and compliance with the official rules.
The program is open to U.S. wedding professionals who operate small businesses, have been in business for at least six months, can demonstrate an active revenue stream and earn at least 50% of their revenue from weddings. Applicants must submit a short form and a video outlining their business and how they would use the grant funds over the next 12 to 24 months. They can choose whether they prefer a monetary grant or free advertising support on WeddingPro.
To execute the program, The Knot Worldwide has partnered with the Global Entrepreneurship Network, which works with entrepreneurs worldwide. The company says the initiative builds on earlier efforts to support vendors on its platform, which includes about 200,000 wedding professionals in the United States. Its impact will depend on how effectively the support reaches the businesses that need it most. The real measure will be whether it helps them achieve steady, sustainable growth.
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Inside the funding round driving the shift to intelligent construction fleets
Updated
February 7, 2026 2:12 PM
Aerial shot of an excavator. PHOTO: UNSPLASH
Bedrock Robotics has raised US$270 million in Series B funding as it works to integrate greater automation into the construction industry. The round, co-led by CapitalG and the Valor Atreides AI Fund, values the San Francisco-based company at US$1.75 billion, bringing its total funding to more than US$350 million.
The size of the investment reflects growing interest in technologies that can change how large infrastructure and industrial projects are built. Bedrock is not trying to reinvent construction from scratch. Instead, it is focused on upgrading the machines contractors already use—so they can work more efficiently, safely and consistently.
Founded in 2024 by former Waymo engineers, Bedrock develops systems that allow heavy equipment to operate with increasing levels of autonomy. Its software and hardware can be retrofitted onto machines such as excavators, bulldozers and loaders. Rather than relying on one-off robotic tools, the company is building a connected platform that lets fleets of machines understand their surroundings and coordinate with one another on job sites.
This is what Bedrock calls “system-level autonomy”. Its technology combines cameras, lidar and AI models to help machines perceive terrain, detect obstacles, track work progress and carry out tasks like digging and grading with precision. Human supervisors remain in control, monitoring operations and stepping in when needed. Over time, Bedrock aims to reduce the amount of direct intervention those machines require.
The funding comes as contractors face rising pressure to deliver projects faster and with fewer available workers. In the press release, Bedrock notes that the industry needs nearly 800,000 additional workers over the next two years and that project backlogs have grown to more than eight months. These constraints are pushing firms to explore new ways to keep sites productive without compromising safety or quality.
Bedrock states that autonomy can help address those challenges. Not by removing people from the equation—but by allowing crews to supervise more equipment at once and reduce idle time. If machines can operate longer, with better awareness of their environment, sites can run more smoothly and with fewer disruptions.
The company has already started deploying its system in large-scale excavation work, including manufacturing and infrastructure projects. Contractors are using Bedrock’s platform to test how autonomous equipment can support real-world operations at scale, particularly in earthmoving tasks that demand precision and consistency.
From a business standpoint, the Series B funding will allow Bedrock to expand both its technology and its customer deployments. The company has also strengthened its leadership team with senior hires from Meta and Waymo, deepening its focus on AI evaluation, safety and operational growth. Bedrock says it is targeting its first fully operator-less excavator deployments with customers in 2026—a milestone for autonomy in complex construction equipment.
In that context, this round is not just about capital. It is about giving Bedrock the runway to prove that autonomous systems can move from controlled pilots into everyday use on job sites. The company bets that the future of construction will be shaped less by individual machines—and more by coordinated, intelligent systems that work alongside human crews.