New startup with their A👀 on safety
Feb 19, 2025
Kaley Ubellacker
Market Stirrings 🚩
Here's what the week looked like in pre-seed:
$39.0M
26
Data aggregated from proprietary research and Crunchbase; valuation estimate based on 10-20% ownership stake.
In the East Coast vs. West Coast startup battle, California still reigns supreme, securing nearly 50% of all VC funding in 2024. New York, while gaining momentum, trails far behind with just over 10%. Despite New York’s rising profile, California’s established ecosystem continues to dominate, making it the top choice for venture capital.
Good Reads 📖
For the rushed reader …
In a showdown of silicon giants, Apple and Meta are gearing up to compete in the humanoid robot space.
Venture capitalists are back to rapidly minting early-stage unicorns, with AI leading the charge.
Mira Murati, former CTO of OpenAI, just launched Thinking Machines Lab, an AI startup focused on creating more customizable, accessible, and collaborative AI systems.
For the less rushed reader …
Not your average bot
Every day feels like we’re inching closer to the pages of best-selling science fiction, and I’m not talking about Elon’s Oval Office takeover. In a showdown of silicon giants, Apple and Meta are gearing up to compete in the humanoid robot space. Meta recently launched a dedicated unit within its Reality Labs to build a robotics platform, much like Android for hardware makers. Apple, never one to sit out, has its sights set on a high-end smart home hub and a mobile robot that could rival Amazon’s Astro. Meanwhile, startups like Boston Dynamics and Agility Robotics are already ahead of the curve, so the real question is where they’ll fit once more big players enter the space. The race is on—and I’m just trying to figure out where to put my humanoid robot when it was hard enough sharing space with my siblings.
Have you heard there's a new herd?
Don’t pack away your fairy tales yet—unicorns are making a comeback. Venture capitalists are back to rapidly minting early-stage unicorns, with AI leading the charge. In 2024, 39 startups reached the $1 billion valuation mark—a 70% jump from 2023—thanks to AI ventures like Elon Musk’s xAI and Safe Superintelligence. While this is still a far cry from the 184 unicorns minted during the 2021 boom, it shows that VCs are once again willing to back big valuations for younger companies. Sectors like robotics, EVs, and fintech are also getting in on the action. While VCs haven’t fully returned to their 2021 FOMO-fueled ways, this resurgence of early-stage unicorns proves they still believe in a bit of magic.
A well-oiled thinking machine
Here’s a think tank that’s making waves. Mira Murati, former CTO of OpenAI, just launched Thinking Machines Lab, an AI startup focused on creating more customizable, accessible, and collaborative AI systems. The goal is to bridge key gaps in AI, like improving public understanding and developing systems that adapt to individual needs. With a powerhouse team from OpenAI, Google, and beyond, Thinking Machines Lab is working on multimodal AI that collaborates across fields like science and programming, while keeping AI safety at the forefront. The startup is reportedly in talks to raise over $100 million in VC funding. It’s safe to say in thinking “machine”, they’re thinking pretty big.
Fire Up the Pre-Seeds🔥
Highlights from this week’s pre-seed raises:
climatetech
Malama Labs - A low carbon luau.
Malama Labs raised funding from Jesse Pearson. Malama Labs is developing Hawaii’s first regional carbon marketplace with blockchain-verified carbon credits.
Elio - Medicine that keeps the Earth healthy too.
Elio raised $2 million led by Ananda Impact Ventures. Elio is building an eco-friendly design co-pilot focused on the pharma industry, providing sustainable decision support to scientists.
fintech
GorillaTech - Startup finances with some flair.
GorillaTech raised $2 million, including $800,000 from Founder Steven Saxton. GorillaTech is building an AI-driven platform to empower SMBs with enterprise-level tools, helping streamline payments and deliver actionable insights.
AI
Human - Stronger than a safety pin.
Human raised $7.3 million, including participation from HF0, Soma Capital, Spearhead, Pioneer Fund, Hummingbird VC, and other notable investors. Human is creating an AI safety lab that solves AI alignment by developing a layer 1 blockchain to prove identity for humans and AI agents.
Future AGI - Advancing the adoption process.
Future AGI raised $1.6 million co-led by Powerhouse Ventures and Snow Leopard Technology Ventures. Future AGI is building an AI lifecycle management platform to make AI adoption as seamless as possible, enabling more comprehensive evaluation of AI applications.
Pinkfish - Heard of the era of generative automation?
Pinkfish raised $7.6 million led by Norwest Venture Partners. Pinkfish is developing a platform that revolutionizes how enterprises manage automation, leveraging generative AI so anyone can create automation with natural language conversations.
Outro🚪
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Thanks for reading, and see you next week!
