In Silicon Valley, Saudi Money Keeps Flowing to Startups

Two startups-- View Inc., which makes light-adjustable glass, and Zume Inc., which uses robots to make pizza--disclosed investments over the past week totaling a combined $1.5 billion from SoftBank's Saudi-backed Vision Fund. Late last month, Katerra Inc., an innovator in property construction, reached a tentative deal with the Saudi government to build up to 50,000 units of housing annually for the kingdom. That followed a $1 billion funding round led by the Vision Fund early this year that valued the Menlo Park, Calif., company at more than $3 billion. Meanwhile, negotiations continued in recent weeks for a deal in which Tokyo-based SoftBank would invest $15 billion to $20 billion to buy a majority stake in WeWork Cos. likely with Vision Fund money, according to people familiar with the discussions. A WeWork spokeswoman declined to comment.