Startups

The Information team’s approach to covering up-and-coming companies focuses on previously unreported news of funding, plus the impact on the surrounding tech and finance ecosystems. Our newsroom produces The Information 50, an annual list of promising startups.

Recent Articles about Startups
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Sven Hoppe/Getty Images.
The Briefing

Microsoft’s Stock Slide Raises Specter of Activist Investors

By Martin Peers · May 12, 2026 5:00pm PDT
Is it time for another activist investor to take a run at Microsoft? Shares of the iconic software giant are down nearly 16% so far this year, making it the worst performer of the big tech names. The Financial Times reported on Friday that British hedge fund TCI had sold “almost all” of its stake in Microsoft, citing uncertainty about how AI... Is it time for another activist investor to take a run at Microsoft? Shares of the iconic...
Cerebras CEO Andrew Feldman. Getty Images.
Dealmaker

Cerebras' Plum OpenAI Deal Is a Double-Edged Sword

By Cory Weinberg · May 12, 2026 4:33pm PDT
When some journalist writes the book on the AI boom, one critical chapter will start on Christmas Eve 2025. That was the day that Nvidia and OpenAI’s complicated frenemy relationship became incredibly lucrative for chip startups that focus on AI inference.We already know that Christmas Eve was the day the tech industry (and this newsroom)... When some journalist writes the book on the AI boom, one critical chapter will start on Christmas...
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman arrives at the federal courthouse in Oakland, Calif., on Tuesday. Josh Edelson/AFP/Getty Images
Artificial Intelligence

Altman Tries to Turn the Tables on Musk in Contentious Testimony

By Rocket Drew · May 12, 2026 4:26pm PDT · 2 comments
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman sought to turn the tables on Elon Musk in their legal battle, testifying that the tycoon abandoned the group they co-founded and worked to undermine its success. Altman’s appearance in court Tuesday marked the highest-stakes moment yet in the trial over Musk’s lawsuit, which centers on allegations that the OpenAI chief led... OpenAI CEO Sam Altman sought to turn the tables on Elon Musk in their legal battle, testifying...
Stainless CEO Alex Rattray. Screenshot via YouTube/Stainless.
Anthropic in Talks to Buy Developer Tools Startup Used by OpenAI, Google
By Stephanie Palazzolo and Katie Roof · May 12, 2026 2:59pm PDT · 1 comment
Stainless CEO Alex Rattray. Screenshot via YouTube/Stainless.
Exclusive

Anthropic in Talks to Buy Developer Tools Startup Used by OpenAI, Google

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Katie Roof · May 12, 2026 2:59pm PDT · 1 comment
Anthropic is in advanced talks to acquire developer tools startup Stainless for at least $300 million, according to a person with knowledge of the deal. The four-year-old Stainless sells software to model makers including Anthropic, OpenAI and Google that helps developers, non-technical people and AI agents more quickly access AI models. Such... Anthropic is in advanced talks to acquire developer tools startup Stainless for at least $300...
Partner Content

Beyond the Models: Where Investors Are Finding AI’s Next Wave

By The Information Partnerships · May 12, 2026 11:18am PDT
Getting in on the ground floor of the next AI wave can feel particularly elusive for investors. With billions continuing to pour into frontier models and the infrastructure powering them, much of that opportunity is already spoken for. For investors looking beyond hyperscalers and data centers, the question is no longer whether AI will reshape... Getting in on the ground floor of the next AI wave can feel particularly elusive for investors....
image via Getty
Exclusive

Microsoft Has Generated More Than $30 Billion in Revenue From OpenAI’s Technology, Spending

By Sri Muppidi and Aaron Holmes · May 12, 2026 11:08am PDT · 2 comments
For three years, Microsoft was the only cloud provider to sell OpenAI’s large language models to other businesses, an exclusive right it fought hard to preserve after investing $13 billion in the startup. But businesses bought more access to those models from OpenAI directly than from Microsoft over that time, new data show. Even so, Microsoft’s... For three years, Microsoft was the only cloud provider to sell OpenAI’s large language models to...
Judgment Labs cofounders (from left to right): Chief Scientist Andrew Li, CEO Alex Shan and CTO Joseph Camyre. Photo courtesy of Judgment Labs.
AI Agenda

Why Lightspeed Backed This Agent Evaluation Startup’s Back-to-Back Rounds

By Stephanie Palazzolo · May 12, 2026 7:00am PDT
Alex Shan may not have been old enough to legally buy alcohol in 2023, but he was still old enough to start his own company and join the AI boom.Shan was 20 when he was first introduced to James Alcorn, an investment partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners, through a fellow Stanford University classmate. Shan, who started college at 16, had... Alex Shan may not have been old enough to legally buy alcohol in 2023, but he was still old...
OpenAI CEO, Sam Altman, left, and Cerebras CEO, Andrew Feldman. Photos via Getty Images
OpenAI Is Making Billions Just by Promising to Buy From Suppliers
By Cory Weinberg · May 12, 2026 6:00am PDT · 2 comments
OpenAI CEO, Sam Altman, left, and Cerebras CEO, Andrew Feldman. Photos via Getty Images
Exclusive

OpenAI Is Making Billions Just by Promising to Buy From Suppliers

By Cory Weinberg · May 12, 2026 6:00am PDT · 2 comments
Chipmaker Cerebras brought in one of the greatest pitchmen in tech, Sam Altman, to appear in a video to promote its $5.5 billion initial public offering. Seated on a gray upholstered couch and speaking softly, the OpenAI chief executive touted Cerebras’ chips as “the best high-speed inference offering in the world right now.” Altman has a strong... Chipmaker Cerebras brought in one of the greatest pitchmen in tech, Sam Altman, to appear in a...
Eran Zinman, co-CEO of Monday.com. Screenshot via YouTube/SaaStr AI.
The Briefing

Monday.com’s AI Hiring Lesson; BuzzFeed’s Rescue

By Martin Peers · May 11, 2026 5:00pm PDT
Digital media historians will be intrigued by news this afternoon that media mogul Byron Allen is buying control of once-important media outlet BuzzFeed. For more on this unusual deal, see below. Meanwhile... if you’re using mass layoffs as an indicator for AI’s impact on the job market, you may be looking in the wrong place. It might be smarter... Digital media historians will be intrigued by news this afternoon that media mogul Byron Allen is...
Partner Content

Capital, Not Compute, is the Real AI Bottleneck

By The Information Partnerships · May 11, 2026 9:19am PDT
Satisfying AI’s ravenous appetite for power and compute has kicked off a once-in-a-generation infrastructure expansion that is also one of the most expensive in modern history. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has estimated a single gigawatt of capacity can cost as much as $50 billion. With McKinsey projecting data center demand could reach 156 GW by... Satisfying AI’s ravenous appetite for power and compute has kicked off a once-in-a-generation...
A CATL battery swapping station in Ningde, China. Photo: Steve LeVine
The Electric

The Electric: China's Biggest Battery Maker Is Quickly Expanding Its Rental Business

By Steve LeVine · May 11, 2026 9:00am PDT
As they attempt to lower the cost of their electric vehicles, major Western automakers have mostly struggled with a single component: the battery, which can be up to 40% of an EV’s cost. As they attempt to lower the cost of their electric vehicles, major Western automakers have ...
Art via Getty Images
The Startup Helping OpenAI Optimize Its AI For Cerebras Chips
By Stephanie Palazzolo · May 11, 2026 7:30am PDT
Art via Getty Images
AI Agenda

The Startup Helping OpenAI Optimize Its AI For Cerebras Chips

By Stephanie Palazzolo · May 11, 2026 7:30am PDT
As access to Nvidia AI chips become more elusive, major developers such OpenAI and Meta Platforms are diversifying their sources of computing power, including by striking deals to use a variety of AI server chips. But making that approach work is not a cinch. The AI labs need to tailor the code that trains and runs their models to each type of... As access to Nvidia AI chips become more elusive, major developers such OpenAI and Meta Platforms...
Andrew Feldman, CEO of Cerebras Systems. Art by Clark Miller; YouTube.
The Briefing

Cerebras IPO Will Test Investor Appetite for AI Chip Startups

By Martin Peers · May 10, 2026 3:00pm PDT
How many AI chip designers can the public market support? We’ll get a sense of that on Thursday when Cerebras Systems, the biggest of a new generation of chip designers dedicated to AI, is expected to go public at a valuation of $35 billion. If it follows the pattern of other AI-related IPOs, such as cloud firm CoreWeave, Cerebras will be a big... How many AI chip designers can the public market support? We’ll get a sense of that on Thursday...
Art: Clark Miller (Photos: Getty Images)
The Weekend

AI Finds Necessity in Frenemies

By Abram Brown · May 9, 2026 8:00am PDT
Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• Tech Culture: Billionaire tax brings new boom time to Tahoe haven• Plus, Recommendations—our weekly pop culture picks: “The Interview: What Does Tucker Carlson Really Believe? I Went to Maine to Find Out,” “Hated by All the Right People,” and “Widow’s Bay”A very old proverb comes to mind when I think... Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• Tech Culture: Billionaire tax brings new boom time to...
Art: Clark Miller; Slim Aarons, Getty Images
Tech Culture

Billionaire Tax Refugees Flock to Ritzy Nevada Lake Town

By Eli Rosenberg · May 9, 2026 7:00am PDT · 8 comments
Naveen Rao, a longtime California resident, ascended to a rarefied tier of wealth last year when his startup, Unconventional AI, was valued at $4.5 billion. The company is based in Palo Alto, but with the specter of a new tax on billionaires looming over the state, Rao began considering other places to live. Last month, he found one: a... Naveen Rao, a longtime California resident, ascended to a rarefied tier of wealth last year when...