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Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei via Getty

Investors Float Deal Valuing Anthropic at More Than $100 Billion

By Sri Muppidi and Natasha Mascarenhas · Jul 16, 2025 11:33am PDT · 1 comment

As Anthropic’s sale of artificial intelligence has surged, the company has told investors some of its profit-related metrics are improving even as it burns a tremendous amount of cash. That financial performance has prompted some investors to indicate interest in funding Anthropic at a valuation of more than $100 billion if the company decides... As Anthropic’s sale of artificial intelligence has surged, the company has told investors some of...

SandboxAQ CEO Jack Hidary, center, and his backers, clockwise from top right: Marc Benioff, Eric Schmidt, Jim Breyer, Sergey Brin and Ray Dalio. Photos by Getty. Art by Mike Sullivan

Lavish Spending and Weak Growth Engulf Billionaire-Backed AI Startup SandboxAQ

By Michael Roddan · Jul 16, 2025 6:00am PDT

An array of billionaire backers and the dream of two world-changing technologies has turned SandboxAQ into a $5.6 billion startup star. The company’s business has failed to keep up with the hype, and its CEO’s behavior is now under scrutiny. SandboxAQ’s success so far is illusory. Nearly all of the company’s first-quarter revenue can be traced... An array of billionaire backers and the dream of two world-changing technologies has turned...

Art via Mike Sullivan

OpenAI Preps ChatGPT Agents in Challenge to Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Jul 15, 2025 2:59pm PDT · 2 comments

As OpenAI tries to turn ChatGPT into a core application for white-collar work, it’s developing agent features that could make its customers less dependent on productivity apps from Microsoft. In the latest example, OpenAI has developed features that let ChatGPT customers quickly create and edit presentations and spreadsheets that are compatible... As OpenAI tries to turn ChatGPT into a core application for white-collar work, it’s developing...

Figure co-founder Mike Cagney. Photo by Noam Galai

Blockchain Lender Figure Technology Plans IPO

By Cory Weinberg · Jul 15, 2025 8:26am PDT · 1 comment

Figure co-founder Mike Cagney. Photo by Noam Galai

Blockchain Lender Figure Technology Plans IPO

By Cory Weinberg · Jul 15, 2025 8:26am PDT · 1 comment

Figure Technology Solutions, a startup that makes home loans on its blockchain and runs a crypto exchange, is planning to go public this fall, Figure co-founder Mike Cagney said. Figure is part of a wave of crypto companies taking advantage of a more crypto-friendly White House and surging investor interest in the industry. The move is a big... Figure Technology Solutions, a startup that makes home loans on its blockchain and runs a crypto...

From left: Varun Mohan, Sergey Brin, Demis Hassabis, Scott Wu and Jeff Wang. Photos and screenshots via Getty; YouTube

Windsurf Whiplash: Inside 96-hours of Frantic AI Dealmaking

By Natasha Mascarenhas and Valida Pau · Jul 15, 2025 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

Last Thursday, more than 40 researchers and engineers at Windsurf, a startup that has developed an artificial intelligence–powered coding tool, began gathering at a hotel in Mountain View, Calif., after receiving an invitation to a mysterious meeting from the startup’s management. The agenda became soon obvious when the staffers were... Last Thursday, more than 40 researchers and engineers at Windsurf, a startup that has developed...

Art by Mike Sullivan

ByteDance Developing Mixed Reality Goggles in Challenge to Meta

By Juro Osawa and Wayne Ma · Jul 14, 2025 8:55am PDT

Competition in mixed reality devices is heating up. TikTok’s parent, ByteDance, is working on a lightweight mixed reality device that resembles a pair of goggles, according to three people with direct knowledge of the project. It’s following in the footsteps of Meta Platforms, which has been working on a similar product scheduled for release in... Competition in mixed reality devices is heating up. TikTok’s parent, ByteDance, is working on a...

Google to Pay $2.4 Billion for Windsurf Staff, IP After Startup Ends OpenAI Talks

By Miles Kruppa, Natasha Mascarenhas and Erin Woo · Jul 11, 2025 2:49pm PDT · 8 comments

OpenAI’s discussions to buy Windsurf, the maker of a popular artificial intelligence coding assistant formerly known as Codeium, have ended. Instead, Google will hire Windsurf’s CEO, Varun Mohan, and some of the startup’s staff, both Google and Windsurf said. The monthslong talks between OpenAI to buy the startup for $3 billion ended in recent... OpenAI’s discussions to buy Windsurf, the maker of a popular artificial intelligence coding...

Photo via Getty

Huawei AI Chip Redesign Aims to Break Nvidia’s China Dominance

By Qianer Liu · Jul 11, 2025 6:00am PDT

Photo via Getty

Huawei AI Chip Redesign Aims to Break Nvidia’s China Dominance

By Qianer Liu · Jul 11, 2025 6:00am PDT

China’s Huawei Technologies is plotting a fundamental redesign of its next artificial intelligence chip in a bid to seize market share from Nvidia. The Chinese tech giant is working on a new AI chip design that would allow its chips to be used for a wider array of AI development work than its current ones can handle, according to two people with... China’s Huawei Technologies is plotting a fundamental redesign of its next artificial...

Jonathan Ross, CEO of Groq. Photo via Getty

Nvidia Challenger Groq Discusses $6 Billion Valuation

By Natasha Mascarenhas and Cory Weinberg · Jul 9, 2025 3:28pm PDT · 5 comments

Groq, an Nvidia challenger that develops chips to power large language models, has talked to investors about raising between $300 million to $500 million at a $6 billion post-investment valuation, according to two people with direct knowledge of the fundraising effort. The deal discussions come as the company told investors its revenue will more... Groq, an Nvidia challenger that develops chips to power large language models, has talked to...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Meta AI Researcher Warns of ‘Metastatic Cancer’ Afflicting Company Culture

By Kalley Huang · Jul 9, 2025 12:47pm PDT · 7 comments

Over the past month, Meta Platforms has overhauled its stumbling efforts in artificial intelligence by making a head-spinning series of hires of leaders and researchers from outside the company. But a key question has lingered: Why has Meta struggled so badly in AI that it’s injecting so much fresh blood into the company to lead a turnaround? ... Over the past month, Meta Platforms has overhauled its stumbling efforts in artificial...

Art via Mike Sullivan

After Layoffs, Microsoft Tells Staff to ‘Invest in Your Own AI Skilling’

By Aaron Holmes · Jul 9, 2025 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

After Microsoft announced last week it would cut 9,000 workers, its second major layoffs this year, it told its remaining salespeople to lean on artificial intelligence to be more productive. “We all need to use AI tools,” said Travis Walter, an executive overseeing Microsoft’s sales to small and medium enterprises in the Americas, during a... After Microsoft announced last week it would cut 9,000 workers, its second major layoffs this...

An Nvidia Blackwell chip. Photo via Getty

Chip-Backed Borrowing Boom Propels AI Computing Startups

By Miles Kruppa · Jul 8, 2025 11:41am PDT · 1 comment

An Nvidia Blackwell chip. Photo via Getty

Chip-Backed Borrowing Boom Propels AI Computing Startups

By Miles Kruppa · Jul 8, 2025 11:41am PDT · 1 comment

Several startups offering computing power for artificial intelligence are embracing the “borrow big to grow fast” strategy pioneered by CoreWeave, loading up on debt backed by their stocks of high-powered chips. For instance, London-based cloud startup Fluidstack has gotten approval from Macquarie and other lenders to borrow more than $10... Several startups offering computing power for artificial intelligence are embracing the “borrow...

Photo via Getty.

For Startups Safeguarding AI Models, Revenue Remains Modest

By Valida Pau and Sri Muppidi · Jul 8, 2025 6:01am PDT · 1 comment

Cybersecurity startups are busy touting their next big opportunity: safeguarding companies from the threats generated by artificial intelligence. That’s led to surging revenue for some of them. But previously unreported financial details for others—particularly young startups focused on safeguarding AI models—show corporate IT buyers... Cybersecurity startups are busy touting their next big opportunity: safeguarding companies from...

Art by Clark Miller; Altman image via Getty.

OpenAI’s Stock Compensation Reflect Steep Costs of Talent Wars

By Sri Muppidi · Jul 7, 2025 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

OpenAI has signaled it will hike pay for some employees in the wake of a raid by Meta Platforms on its artificial intelligence researchers. That could mean a significant increase in the billions of dollars in stock awards it already accounts for, threatening to further dilute investors after a planned corporate restructuring. The San... OpenAI has signaled it will hike pay for some employees in the wake of a raid by Meta Platforms...

TikTok U.S. offices in Culver City, Calif.

TikTok Building New Version of App Ahead of Expected U.S. Sale

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan and Juro Osawa · Jul 6, 2025 9:18am PDT · 1 comment

TikTok is building a new version of its app for users in the U.S. ahead of a planned sale of the app to a group of investors. The company has developed a plan to launch the new TikTok app, known internally as “M2,” to U.S. app stores on September 5, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. (The existing TikTok app is known... TikTok is building a new version of its app for users in the U.S. ahead of a planned sale of the...

Art by Clark Miller; Cook image via Getty.

Apple Explored Launching a Cloud Service for Developers

By Aaron Tilley · Jul 3, 2025 10:36am PDT · 2 comments

Art by Clark Miller; Cook image via Getty.

Apple Explored Launching a Cloud Service for Developers

By Aaron Tilley · Jul 3, 2025 10:36am PDT · 2 comments

Apple over the past few years considered launching a business renting out its servers to the millions of developers that create apps for the iPhone and Mac, in what would be a hugely ambitious move that would pit it against Amazon, Microsoft and Google. The idea discussed was for Apple to rent out servers running on Apple’s own chips, said three... Apple over the past few years considered launching a business renting out its servers to the...

Google CEO Sundar Pichai. Photo via Getty

Google Tries to Win Over Publishers Amid AI Search Tensions

By Catherine Perloff · Jul 3, 2025 6:00am PDT

Google’s relations with publishers have suffered lately, as its shift to AI-powered searches has hurt traffic being sent to publishers’ web sites. But Google is now taking steps to curry favor with publishers. In recent weeks, Google staffers on its ad tech unit that helps publishers sell ad space, known as Google Ad Manager, have told... Google’s relations with publishers have suffered lately, as its shift to AI-powered searches has...

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella holding a Maia 100 chip. Screenshot via YouTube.

Microsoft Scales Back Ambitions for AI Chips to Overcome Delays

By Wayne Ma · Jul 2, 2025 9:25am PDT · 1 comment

Microsoft is revising its roadmap for its internally developed artificial intelligence server chips and will focus on releasing less ambitious designs through 2028, hoping to overcome problems that have caused delays in development, according to two people with direct knowledge of the situation. Microsoft hopes that by scaling back some of the... Microsoft is revising its roadmap for its internally developed artificial intelligence server...

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei. Photo via AP

Anthropic Revenue Hits $4 Billion Annual Pace as Competition With Cursor Intensifies

By Natasha Mascarenhas and Stephanie Palazzolo · Jul 1, 2025 11:10am PDT · 1 comment

Anysphere, the maker of Cursor, an artificial intelligence-powered coding app, has hired two leaders of Anthropic’s competing coding product, Claude Code, according to one of the leaders. The move is notable because Cursor relies on AI from Anthropic to power its app and is one of Anthropic’s biggest customers. The hiring underscores the... Anysphere, the maker of Cursor, an artificial intelligence-powered coding app, has hired two...

Art by Clark Miller

Corporate Data Wars Intensify

By Natasha Mascarenhas, Kevin McLaughlin and Aaron Holmes · Jun 30, 2025 12:16pm PDT · 2 comments

Art by Clark Miller

Corporate Data Wars Intensify

By Natasha Mascarenhas, Kevin McLaughlin and Aaron Holmes · Jun 30, 2025 12:16pm PDT · 2 comments

A tussle is brewing between software firms and artificial intelligence startups over access to business customers’ data. The popularity of Glean, an AI tool workers use to search for corporate files and data across all of the apps they use, has prompted enterprise software firms like Salesforce, Atlassian and Notion to introduce similar AI... A tussle is brewing between software firms and artificial intelligence startups over access to...