The Am(AI)zing Race: Humanoids, Griefbots, and More

May 23, 2023

Kaley Ubellacker

Market Stirrings 🚩

Here's what the week looked like in pre-seed:

Total Amount Raised

Total Funding Rounds

Average Dollars per Round

Estimated Valuation Range

Data aggregated from proprietary research and Crunchbase; valuation estimate based on 10-20% ownership stake.

Good Reads 📖

For the rushed reader …

Our favorite stories in…

For the less rushed reader …

  • It’s a bird! It’s a plane! Nope, it’s a wind-powered cargo ship. Boats are stepping off the gas pedal with “wingsails.”

  • The EU gave final approval on cryptocurrency rules which will likely set the tone on how crypto is regulated globally.


  • Researchers are objectifying pain. One study, also part of a larger clinical trial, is using machine learning to quantify chronic pain.

  • Does Big Pharma have a big heart? Novartis bought an experimental stem cell gene therapy from cash-constrained Avrobio, providing it enough funding to keep afloat until the end of next year. 

  • Medicine and pandemic may be two sides of the same coin. AI’s entrance into healthcare and synthetic biology raises worries about escaped viruses and bioweapons.

techbits

  • Neeva surrendered. Neeva gave up its search engine battle against Google, and rumors are circulating that Neeva plans to instead double-down on its AI enterprise.

  • Sharing is caring: Stability AI released StabilityStudio, an open source version of DreamStudio, its generative-AI-powered design platform. It plans to capitalize on “community-driven development.”

  • Uber is afloat … on private chartered boats in Mykonos. Some might say this new market expansion is bigger and boater.

  • Terminator or augmenter? Sanctuary AI unveiled Phoenix, a 5’7” humanoid robot capable of lifting 55 pounds and traveling at 3 miles per hour.

  • Zoom is zooming ahead. The company plans to integrate Anthropic’s chatbot into its platform.

  • Intel is chipping away at Nvidia. Intel announced a strategic (and highly competitive) pivot with plans to introduce a new AI chip in 2025.

  • What if goodbye always meant see you later? China is using AI “griefbots” to help people cope with lost loved ones.

Fire Up the Pre-Seeds🔥

Highlights from this week’s pre-seed raises:

  • Mitiga - Climate change clairvoyance

    • The Problem: The world is changing amid global heating, and risk models are getting riskier.

    • Tech: A data-heavy, physics-based approach to predicting environmental risks driven by climate change

    • Recently Raised: $14.4 million in Series A funding led by Kibo Ventures

    • Also Note: The company already has about 20 recurring customers, including energy manufacturers, hedge funds, and other firms.

  • AMP Robotics - 4 Rs: reduce, reuse, recycle, robot

    • The Problem: Recycling is demanding, and computer vision is an untapped solution.

    • The Tech: A robotic sorting system that sorts and reclaims materials

    • Recently Raised: It extended its Series C round to $99 million, including an investment from Microsoft’s Climate Innovation fund.

    • Also Note: Recovering U.S. plastic packaging could represent earnings of $2 billion to $4 billion per year.

  • Wefox - “Crisis-resistant” insurtech

    • The Problem: The world needs greater access to insurance through digital solutions.

    • The Tech: A personal insurance platform offering products from both in-house and external brokers 

    • Recently Raised: $155 million in follow-on funding (half equity and half credit) to accompany its previous $400 million Series D round

    • Also Note: The company doubled its margins and revenue in Q1 2023 in a time when many fintech companies are struggling with layoffs.

  • Axis - Small businesses, big money

    • The Problem: Small businesses drive African economies, but those companies have limited access to online banking, payroll processing, and financing.

    • The Tech: A mobile wallet providing digital banking for small businesses and their employees

    • Recently Raised: $8.25 million in seed funding co-led by Tiger Global, Sawari Ventures, and Raba

    • Also Note: The company emerged from stealth and officially launched its platform to the North African market.

  • Somethings - We’re missing mentors

    • The Problem: Modern teens and traditional mental healthcare don’t mesh

    • The Tech: A youth-specific wellness platform connecting teens with trained mentors who they can reach out to asynchronously

    • Recently Raised: $3.2 million in Seed funding led by General Catalyst

    • Also Note: The company addresses an important gap in the market: 40% of teens in the US are consistently sad, but teenagers are more likely to seek mental health support from friends or family than a therapist.

  • Hippocratic AI - AI is healthy

    • The Problem: Hospitals don’t have enough nurses.

    • The Tech: A large language model trained with deep medical knowledge

    • Recently Raised: $50 million in Seed funding led by General Catalyst and Andreessen Horowitz

    • Also Note: The model focuses on non-diagnostic tasks and will one day be able to obtain certification in multiple medical areas and use polite bedside manners with patients.

  • Anthropic - Open season on OpenAI

    • The Problem: Regulators are concerned about AI’s potential to spread misinformation.

    • The Tech: AI systems with an eye for safety; they won’t tell users how to build weapons or use racially-biased language.

    • Recently Raised: $450 million in funding led by Spark Capital at a $4 billion valuation

    • Also Note: The company is backed by Alphabet.

Outro🚪

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