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By Stephanie Palazzolo

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Recent Editions

Art by Clark Miller.

OpenAI Gains Against Anthropic Among OpenRouter Customers

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Aug 18, 2026 7:01am PDT

OpenAI has found a new place to fight Anthropic for developer wallets: OpenRouter, a service AI app developers use to access models from different providers from one application programming interface. (In case you’ve been under a rock, Stripe is about to buy OpenRouter for a pretty penny.)A big chunk of OpenRouter’s business recently boiled down... OpenAI has found a new place to fight Anthropic for developer wallets: OpenRouter, a service AI...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Will Anthropic and OpenAI Stop Selling Their Best AI to Businesses?

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Aug 17, 2026 7:01am PDT

Anthropic and OpenAI’s move to develop AI applications and features tailored to specific industries continues to worry their customers, some of which must now compete head-on with their main AI suppliers. Design app Canva is the latest to find itself in this predicament, as we reported earlier this month.Through it all, though, most people... Anthropic and OpenAI’s move to develop AI applications and features tailored to specific...

Why The AI Compute Crunch Is Hitting Neolabs Especially Hard

Why The AI Compute Crunch Is Hitting Neolabs Especially Hard

By Rocket Drew · Aug 13, 2026 7:00am PDT

The AI chip shortage is causing headaches for tech giants such as OpenAI. Among those hardest hit, though, are the startups trying to build their own AI models—so-called neolabs that need to use their limited funding to secure access to enormous clusters of graphics processing units for the compute-intensive task of model training.“It’s like VC... The AI chip shortage is causing headaches for tech giants such as OpenAI. Among those hardest...

James Sagan, CEO of Architect Capital, on TITV.

OnlyFans Investor Says Company Will ‘Never’ Use AI to Replace Creators

By Jessica E. Lessin · Aug 12, 2026 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

James Sagan, CEO of Architect Capital, on TITV.

OnlyFans Investor Says Company Will ‘Never’ Use AI to Replace Creators

By Jessica E. Lessin · Aug 12, 2026 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

Every AI executive I talk to these days wants to tell me what their models can now do. James Sagan, the low-profile investor who just bought 16% of OnlyFans at a $3 billion valuation, spent most of our interview telling me what his platform is betting AI can't do.In a wide-ranging exclusive interview about the deal, and how he plans to evolve... Every AI executive I talk to these days wants to tell me what their models can now do. James...

Trajectory cofounders Ronak Malde, Michael Elabd and Arjun Karanam.

Trajectory, Founded by Ex-Google and Apple Researchers, Raises Funding From Sequoia in Back-to-Back Round

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Aug 11, 2026 7:01am PDT

As closed-source models have gotten more expensive, businesses have found workarounds by customizing open-source AI for their specific needs. Some are also trying to improve the software they use that allows models to use tools and take actions, otherwise known as a harness. Now, startups that help businesses with both tasks are seeing more... As closed-source models have gotten more expensive, businesses have found workarounds by...

Getty Images.

OpenRouter Bidding Sparks Router Frenzy

By Alix Coutures · Aug 10, 2026 7:05am PDT

Even before Stripe entered talks to buy startup OpenRouter for $10 billion, several tech companies were exploring or developing router technology, which helps customers use the most cost-effective AI models. And Stripe’s talks with OpenRouter, which my colleagues last week reported have entered the advanced stage, have set off a frenzy of... Even before Stripe entered talks to buy startup OpenRouter for $10 billion, several tech...

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Rain AI CEO Jack Kendall. Art by Clark Miller; YouTube.

OpenAI Acquired Patents from Altman-Backed AI Chip Startup Following Failed Acquisition

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Aug 6, 2026 7:06am PDT · 1 comment

There’s no question that some of the companies OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has invested in—like chipmaker Cerebras and nuclear fusion firm Helion Energy—have benefitted from doing business with the firm Altman leads. However, just because Altman is an investor in a startup doesn’t mean that OpenAI will be that helpful.Take AI chip startup Rain AI,... There’s no question that some of the companies OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has invested in—like...

Getty Images.

How Meta Plans to Close the Gap with Anthropic and OpenAI in Coding

By Jyoti Mann · Aug 5, 2026 7:00am PDT

Getty Images.

How Meta Plans to Close the Gap with Anthropic and OpenAI in Coding

By Jyoti Mann · Aug 5, 2026 7:00am PDT

As Meta Platforms races to catch up with Anthropic and OpenAI, it’s asking thousands of engineers to use its in-house AI coding agent, MetaCode, in their day-to-day work in an effort to improve the coding capabilities of its AI models.Maher Saba, vice president of Meta’s Applied AI Engineering organization, last month asked engineers across the... As Meta Platforms races to catch up with Anthropic and OpenAI, it’s asking thousands of engineers...

Art via Getty Images; Mike Sullivan

A Customer Feedback Startup Is in Talks For $125 Million Financing Led By Anthropic Investor

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Aug 4, 2026 7:11am PDT · 1 comment

AI that generates realistic voices has come a long way. It powers applications like ChatGPT, phone-based customer support and increasingly helps businesses solicit verbal feedback from their customers about products or experiences.One AI startup in that field is San Francisco-based Listen Labs, which helps businesses automate interviews with... AI that generates realistic voices has come a long way. It powers applications like ChatGPT,...

Jasjeet Sekhon, Chief Strategy Officer at Google DeepMind. Photo courtesy of the Berkeley Center for Responsible, Decentralized Intelligence.

Google DeepMind Exec Says Unprecedented Capex Is Actually a Bet On ‘RSI’

By Amir Efrati · Aug 3, 2026 7:01am PDT

Over the weekend, Jasjeet Sekhon, the chief strategy officer at Google’s DeepMind AI unit, used two words to describe what needs to happen to justify his industry’s unprecedented capital expenditures: recursive self-improvement. The white-hot term refers to AI that can automatically create better versions of itself.RSI is a “key part of the... Over the weekend, Jasjeet Sekhon, the chief strategy officer at Google’s DeepMind AI unit, used...

Art by Mike Sullivan.

Server Networking Boom Drives $300 Million Funding For Xsight

By Phoebe Liu · Jul 30, 2026 7:00am PDT

Graphics processing units are all the rage, but startups developing the networking equipment that connects GPUs to one other are getting some love from investors, too. The latest is Xsight, a nine-year-old startup based in Israel that makes server networking and storage chips, the latter of which are also in high demand in the current boom.Five... Graphics processing units are all the rage, but startups developing the networking equipment that...

Vitality Mechanical CEO Robby Hogle. Photo courtesy of Vitality Mechanical.

Why Data Labeling Startups Are Paying HVAC Companies $150,000 For Data

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Jul 29, 2026 7:01am PDT

Vitality Mechanical CEO Robby Hogle. Photo courtesy of Vitality Mechanical.

Why Data Labeling Startups Are Paying HVAC Companies $150,000 For Data

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Jul 29, 2026 7:01am PDT

In June, data labeling startup micro1 approached Robby Hogle, CEO of a heating, ventilation and air conditioning company in Troy, Mich., with a proposition: why not learn how to use AI in his business and get paid for it?Hogle had already been doing some work for micro1 as a side hustle. Hogle, a former investment banker, had been providing... In June, data labeling startup micro1 approached Robby Hogle, CEO of a heating, ventilation and...

Sam Altman, left, and Dario Amodei. Photos via Getty Images

OpenAI and Anthropic Are Quietly Teaming Up in Washington

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Amir Efrati · Jul 28, 2026 7:01am PDT

OpenAI and Anthropic are arch enemies whose leaders can’t stand each other. But the two foes have formed an unholy alliance in Washington in the interest of self-preservation. With the Trump administration set to finalize its framework for regulating and evaluating “frontier models” by August 1, the two leading AI developers are quietly... OpenAI and Anthropic are arch enemies whose leaders can’t stand each other. But the two foes have...

Credit: Tacta Systems™ Inc.

Robotics Startup Tacta Shows Its Hand (and Glove)

By Rocket Drew · Jul 27, 2026 8:35am PDT

As robotics companies explore new ways to collect the massive volumes of data needed to train the physical AI models that will power humanoid robots, one approach is gaining steam. Some robotics companies are relying on specialized gloves that people can wear while they carry out tasks at work or around the home. The gloves record information... As robotics companies explore new ways to collect the massive volumes of data needed to train the...

Takeoff founding engineers Shreya Shubhangi and Spencer Yen and founder and CEO Aakash Thumaty. Photo courtesy of Takeoff.

Sierra Acquires Agent Startup ‘Takeoff’ to Diversify Its Business

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Juro Osawa · Jul 23, 2026 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

In 2020, 22-year-old Aakash Thumaty was a product manager at Salesforce when he wrote an essay, “Value Driven Innovation at Shopify and the Incumbency Trap at Salesforce,” which argued against Salesforce’s subscription-based business model. He sent it to Bret Taylor, who at the time was Salesforce’s chief operating officer. To Thumaty’s... In 2020, 22-year-old Aakash Thumaty was a product manager at Salesforce when he wrote an essay, “...

Getty Images.

Anthropic Investor in Talks to Fund New Lab Run By Two Stanford AI Professors

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Jul 22, 2026 8:56am PDT

Getty Images.

Anthropic Investor in Talks to Fund New Lab Run By Two Stanford AI Professors

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Jul 22, 2026 8:56am PDT

Cloud and software incumbents want businesses to think twice before using Anthropic, OpenAI and other closed-source AI providers. Executives such as Palantir CEO Alex Karp have argued, for instance, that these AI firms could use their customers’ data to compete with them eventually. These potential fears could also help new AI startups... Cloud and software incumbents want businesses to think twice before using Anthropic, OpenAI and...

Art by Clark Miller/Nano Banana.

Anthropic’s Robot Ambition; Nvidia Ramps Up Vera Rubin

By Phoebe Liu, Stephanie Palazzolo and Rocket Drew · Jul 21, 2026 8:01am PDT · 1 comment

Over the weekend, tech blogger Robert Scoble claimed Anthropic was in the process of acquiring Physical Intelligence, an AI robotics software developer that was most recently in talks to raise capital at a valuation of $11 billion. Scoble’s claim sent X into a frenzy.Scoble may not be right, as Physical Intelligence CEO Karol Hausman denied to... Over the weekend, tech blogger Robert Scoble claimed Anthropic was in the process of acquiring ...

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What the New Kimi K3 Model Really Means for the U.S.-China AI Race

By Alix Coutures, Rocket Drew and Aaron Holmes · Jul 20, 2026 7:05am PDT

Thursday’s release of a surprisingly sophisticated new open-source AI model from Beijing-based startup Moonshot has ignited debate over whether China’s developers are erasing the gap with the dominant models from America’s AI firms.There is little question that Moonshot’s Kimi K3 is impressive. The largest open-source model in the world, with... Thursday’s release of a surprisingly sophisticated new open-source AI model from Beijing-based...

Runta CEO Guanlan Dai. Photo courtesy of Runta.

Andreessen Horowitz Backs Startup Aiming to ‘Parent’ AI Agents

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Jul 16, 2026 7:01am PDT

As a father to two young kids, Guanlan Dai sees a lot of similarities between AI agents and precocious children. Just as parents might childproof their house and avoid giving their kids access to credit cards, so too must developers limit the important files AI agents can access and how much the agents can spend in one go, he said.Now, Dai, a... As a father to two young kids, Guanlan Dai sees a lot of similarities between AI agents and...

Art via Getty Images

The Four Keys to Surviving the SaaSpocalypse

By Rocket Drew · Jul 15, 2026 9:45am PDT

Art via Getty Images

The Four Keys to Surviving the SaaSpocalypse

By Rocket Drew · Jul 15, 2026 9:45am PDT

To survive a zombie apocalypse, you’d probably want to team up with people who are skilled at medicine, engineering, farming—and your prepper uncle who stockpiles beans. To survive a SaaSpocalpyse, who should you team up with?Suppose for a second that the most extreme version of software disruption comes to pass: a couple years from now, AI... To survive a zombie apocalypse, you’d probably want to team up with people who are skilled at...