AI
The maker of non-text AI model Jev valued at $7.5B just weeks after launch
What has users and large corporations so excited about Jev is TypeSafe’s claim that it works significantly faster and uses far fewer tokens than LLMs.
Tag: Startups
engine
TechCrunch Disrupt 2026: Gamma’s Grant Lee, Engine’s Elia Wallen, and GV’s Crystal Huang on landing your first 1,000 customers
Leaders from Gamma, Engine, and Google Ventures join TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 to talk how to get your first customers. Register now to save up to $100. Grab a second pass at 50% off.
Lumenus
LumenUs helps automate tedious paperwork in times of grief
"The day your loved one passes away, you also get this honorary badge of a project manager for a project you had no idea about," said founder Sara Tashakorinia.
AI
Popular AI leaderboard Arena nearly doubles valuation to $3.1B valuation in 10 months
The company behind the popular LMArena leaderboard has raised $200 million led by Lightspeed and Khosla, and is now measuring AI models on alignment issues such as lying.
In Brief
Robot data startup Mecka AI nabs $60M from Sequoia
Mecka AI collects and analyzes human motion data to train humanoid robots and other kinds of robots. The startup pays people to record everyday tasks.
AI
Nous Research confirms it hit $1.5B valuation, launches AI agents for business users
The developer of Hermes Agent raised a $90 million Series B.
Startup Battlefield 200
Greenairy is building smart plant towers to clean the air in your office
As it turns out, the cure for stuffy, chemical-infused office air might be a tower of leafy greenery.
AI
Ex-Ramp engineers raise $20M for platform Melius after scrapping their first product
The startup crossed over $1 million in anualized revenue within two months of its post-pivot launch.
AI assistant
Silicon Valley’s AI wunderkind launches Underdog, the most private Instinct/Muse competitor yet
Sigil Wen, backed by a Silicon Valley who's who, has built an on-device AI assistant that promises to be free, fully private, and capable for everyday tasks.
AI
AI computing startup Lambda to raise $4B ahead of planned IPO
Nvidia-backed Lambda is raising up to $4 billion at a $14.5 billion pre-money valuation ahead of a planned 2027 IPO, led by Coatue and Blackstone.