☕ China built the world’s fastest supercomputer & Meta to launch a standalone prediction markets app.
Oracle cuts 21,000 jobs as AI reshapes its workforce & OpenAI's 'Patch the Planet' takes on Anthropic.
Breaking News
China has reportedly built the world’s fastest supercomputer, reaching 2.198 exaflops and surpassing the previous U.S. leader. More importantly, the system achieved this without relying on Nvidia GPUs, signaling China’s growing ability to develop advanced computing infrastructure despite years of U.S. technology restrictions.
Meta is reportedly developing a standalone prediction markets app called Arena, allowing users to forecast outcomes on topics ranging from sports and elections to business and technology. The initial version is expected to use points instead of real-money betting, but Meta has reportedly not ruled out adding wagering features in the future.
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STARTUPS RAISING MILLIONS
💰 Startup Funding Updates
PRE-SEED
Kyork, a Berlin-based industrial AI startup, raised €3.1M in Pre-Seed funding. The round was led by Speedinvest.
SEED
Terraxy, a Saudi Arabia-based developer of desert greening and soil-regeneration technologies, raised $3M in Seed-2 funding. The round was led by Wa’ed Ventures, with participation from KAUST.
Halo, a Cambridge-based haircare technology company, raised $7M in Seed funding. The round was led by Seven Seven Six (776), with participation from AlleyCorp and Bling Capital.
Ladder Health, a Boston-based virtual-first pediatric developmental care company, raised $7M in Seed funding. The round was led by Nina Capital, with participation from Mairs and Power Venture Capital, South Dakota First Capital, 25madison Health, Hatteras Venture Partners, Create Health Ventures, Jumpstart Capital, White Oak Enterprises, Groove Capital, and 7Rock Ventures.
Concord, a New York- and Paris-based agentic media buying platform, raised $3M in Seed funding. Backers included A16Z Scout, Drysdale, Motier Ventures, Better Angle, and angels Rémi Lemonnier, Philippe Corrot, Arthur Querou, and Thomas Zaepffel.
TurboFlow, a Singapore-based on-chain trading ecosystem, raised $6M in Seed funding. The round was led by Pantera Capital, with participation from Susquehanna Crypto and Digital Currency Group (DCG).
GROWTH
Probook, a New York-based AI-powered operating system for home service businesses, raised $40M in combined Seed and Series A financing. The Series A was led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), while the Seed round was led by Sequoia Capital, which also participated in the Series A.
Lys Therapeutics, a France-based developer of neurovascular and neurodegenerative disease therapies, raised over €25M in funding. The financing included a $5M grant from The Michael J. Fox Foundation.
NorthLinks Bio, a Boston-based biotechnology company developing antiviral medicines, launched with $34M in funding from RA Capital Management.
Partly, an Austin-based developer of AI foundation models for the automotive repair supply chain, raised $50M in Series B funding at a $500M valuation. The round was led by DST Global Partners.
Eaigle, a Boston-based AI-native gate and yard automation company, raised an undisclosed growth funding round led by Noro-Moseley Partners, with participation from In Revenue Capital and Boreal Ventures.
Tetrix, a New York-based AI investment platform for limited partners, raised $15M in Series A funding. The round was co-led by White Star Capital and Innovation Endeavors.
Osanni Bio, a San Francisco-based therapeutics platform company, raised $190M in Series B funding. The round was led by Patient Square Capital, with participation from The Horowitz Group, Invus Opportunities, and The Retinal Degeneration Fund.
Allium, a New York-based blockchain data platform for enterprises, raised $40M in Series B funding. The round was led by Amplify Partners, with participation from Kleiner Perkins and Theory Ventures.
Solar Landscape, an Asbury Park-based distributed energy infrastructure company, raised $125M in debt financing. The facility was led by M&T Bank, with participation from Flagstar Bank, Atlantic Union Bank, and Valley Bank.
Astral Systems, a Bristol-based nuclear fusion technology company, raised £23M in Series A funding. The round was led by Mercia Ventures, with participation from Tees River, Daphni, Blast Club, Speedinvest, and Playfair.
Rapalogix Health, a Carlsbad-based biotechnology company focused on longevity-based skin health, raised $20M in Series A funding. The round was co-led by Woodline Partners and GordonMD Global Investments LP.
Recykal, a Hyderabad-based waste management and circular economy technology platform, raised $23M in bridge funding backed by existing investors and select family offices, facilitating an exit for Circulate Capital.
Mitigata, a Bangalore-based AI-native cyber resilience operating system company, raised $15M in Series B funding. The round was led by Bessemer Venture Partners, with participation from Nexus Venture Partners, Titan Capital, and WEH Ventures.
Timefold, a Ghent-based vehicle routing and shift scheduling platform, raised $13M in Series A funding. The round was led by Alstin Capital, with participation from Kompas VC, Lakestar, and Smartfin.
Prosper AI, a New York-based AI platform for patient journey management, raised $30M in Series A funding. The round was led by Andreessen Horowitz, with participation from Base10, Emergence Capital, Y Combinator, and Company Ventures.
AlpSemi, a Grenoble-based semiconductor company, raised €17M in funding. The round was led by Yotta Capital, with participation from SE Ventures, Navitas Semiconductor, and Cycle Group.
Sophia Space, a Pasadena-based company building AI infrastructure for the space economy, raised $7M in SAFE funding. Backers included EverGreen (The NVIDIA Alumni Investment Network), SparkLabs Group, and other strategic investors.
CroíValve, a Dublin-based medical device company, raised $20M in Series B expansion financing. The round included BGF, EIC, and existing investor MedTech Syndicate.
DAILY PICKS
🗞️ Must read writeups
How to build AI agents without coding - A practical guide for founders on setting up personal and business AI agents using Claude Projects - covering daily assistants, customer support agents, sales prep agents, and content repurposing workflows. (Read more here)
Why most AI projects fail quietly - Most companies don’t fail at AI because the model is weak. They fail because they automate broken workflows - turning messy processes into faster, costlier mistakes. This piece explains why only a small group of companies are seeing real AI ROI, and why the winners redesign workflows before adding automation. (Read more here)
NEW VCs IN THE MARKET
🏦 Venture Capital Updates.
Menlo Ventures, a Silicon Valley venture firm known for backing AI startups, has raised $3 billion across new funds, its largest fundraise in 50 years. The raise was fueled by the firm’s early and aggressive bet on Anthropic, whose stake is now reportedly worth around $14 billion, and Menlo has since expanded its AI portfolio with investments in startups such as Lovable, OpenRouter, OpenEvidence, and Higgsfield.
KEY STORIES IN TECH
📜 Latest In Tech
Anthropic’s Mythos found flaws in classified US systems within hours
Anthropic’s advanced AI model, Mythos, reportedly identified vulnerabilities across highly sensitive U.S. government systems during a classified cybersecurity program known as Project Glasswing.
According to comments referenced in Congress, the model uncovered weaknesses in numerous classified systems within hours, highlighting the growing role of frontier AI models in national security and cyber defense.
The revelation comes amid a broader dispute between Anthropic and the U.S. government, which recently restricted access to its Mythos and Fable models over national security concerns.
Meta launches its own smart glasses
Meta is launching its own line of smart glasses called Meta Glasses, dropping the Ray-Ban and Oakley branding entirely while still making them with EssilorLuxottica and selling them through the same retail stores.
The new glasses start at $299, undercutting the $379 Ray-Ban Gen 2 and $499 Scriber and Blazer Optics models, while keeping the same comfort fit, battery life, camera quality, and dual-camera AI rocker button.
The lineup includes the chunky “Fury” frame, the more compact “Adventurer,” and a Kylie Jenner design called the Starfire Kylie Edition, which has oval lenses, an embedded gem, and a charging case with a vanity mirror.
OpenAI's 'Patch the Planet' takes on Anthropic
OpenAI has teamed up with cybersecurity firm Trail of Bits on a program called Patch the Planet, which uses AI to find and fix security flaws in widely used open-source software that enterprises depend on.
The program starts each engagement by consulting maintainers, then uses OpenAI’s models and Codex Security to investigate vulnerabilities, while Trail of Bits engineers review findings to filter out false positives before they reach the projects.
Initial participants include Python, Go, cURL, and python.org, and the work has already identified hundreds of security issues and merged dozens of patches, with HackerOne and Calif supporting triage and disclosure.
Instagram takes on Netflix with TV app
Instagram is going after streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video by adding longer videos, episodic series, and Live TV to the TV app it launched last year, aiming to reach viewers in the living room.
The TV app is rolling out to Samsung TVs, joining Amazon Fire and Google TVs, and is gaining channels tailored to creators and topics users like, plus the ability to cast Reels and Saved content from a phone.
A dedicated section for horizontal videos is being tested to make watching on TV easier, and people can now view other users’ Stories within the app, which previously only played Reels natively.
Alibaba sues US after being added to Pentagon blacklist
Alibaba has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government after the Pentagon classified it as a “Chinese military company,” arguing the designation is baseless and harms its reputation and business relationships.
The company says its products are focused on e-commerce, logistics, and enterprise technology, not defense or intelligence, and is seeking removal from the blacklist through the courts.
The blacklist now includes major Chinese firms such as Baidu, BYD, NIO, and WuXi AppTec, restricting Pentagon contracts with these companies and escalating U.S.-China technology tensions.
Trump signs order to boost quantum research
President Trump signed two executive orders on Monday meant to push research into quantum computing forward and tighten security practices in preparation for the risks a post-quantum world could bring to online systems.
One order calls for building a quantum computer strong enough for scientific research, tells federal agencies to plan for quantum-enabled technology, and seeks to boost domestic supply chains for quantum infrastructure and materials.
The second order aims to speed migration to post-quantum cryptography by 2031, protecting systems against quantum threats that could break the encryption algorithms long used to secure private information online.
SpaceX lands $6.3B compute deal with Reflection AI
SpaceX has signed a $6.3 billion deal to sell computing power to Reflection AI, an open-source artificial intelligence startup that becomes the latest outside customer to tap Elon Musk’s Colossus infrastructure.
Reflection gets immediate access to Nvidia GB300s, the chips used to train and run AI models, and agreed to pay SpaceX $150 million per month from July 1, 2026 through 2029, with either side able to exit on 90 days’ notice.
The deal adds to SpaceX’s computing power agreements with Anthropic, Google and Cursor, which Musk’s company is now acquiring, and brings in an open-source lab as enterprises reassess relying on closed AI systems.
Oracle cuts 21,000 jobs as AI reshapes its workforce
Oracle’s workforce shrank by about 21,000 employees in fiscal 2026, a 13% decline, as the company restructured operations and increasingly adopted AI across its business.
The company spent $1.84 billion on severance and restructuring costs during the year, far higher than the previous year, reflecting the scale of the workforce reduction.
Despite aggressive hiring cuts, Oracle is doubling down on AI infrastructure, signing major deals with OpenAI and Meta while planning roughly $70 billion in capital spending to expand its data center footprint.
LAST COFFEE SIP
☕ Other News
GPTZero exits to Superhuman after reaching $30M ARR
AI detection startup GPTZero has been acquired by Superhuman, marking an exit for founder Edward Tian, who originally built the product as a Princeton senior thesis project.
The company grew to more than 19 million registered users and $30 million in annual recurring revenue while raising just $13.5 million in funding and reportedly becoming profitable.
Superhuman says the acquisition will strengthen its AI-detection capabilities, combining GPTZero’s technology with Grammarly’s existing tools as demand grows for identifying AI-generated content.
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