Former Salesforce co-CEO Bret Taylor and vice president of Labs at Alphabet's Google Clay Bavor are reportedly launching their own artificial intelligence startup. Taylor announced the news through a LinkedIn post, adding, "rarely do you encounter a new technology so powerful that it feels inevitable that it will change the course of every industry." More: - Details, such as the company name and the scope of the venture, have been kept confidential, with further updates to follow in due time.
- Bavor — who will leave Google in March — added that the firm will leverage "AI to solve some of the most important problems in business."
- Salesforce acquired Taylor's startup Quip and instilled him as co-CEO along with Marc Benioff for a year.
- After Salesforce, Taylor had a stint as a chairman at Twitter until the latter was acquired by Elon Musk.
Zoom out: - Taylor and Bavor's organization will be the most recent to ride the wave of artificial intelligence applications.
- Microsoft integrated OpenAI's ChatGPT OpenAI's Bing platform, and rival Google announced its own conversational AI service called Bard.
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Neuralink gets hit with an investigation from the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT). The probe comes after a letter was sent from an animal rights group alleging the company mishandled the transportation of the implant removal from its monkeys. More: - The company develops and tests brain implants with the hopes of helping and rehabilitating chronically paralyzed patients or those suffering from an irreversible coma.
- A spokesperson from the USDOT noted they are in the process of conducting a full investigation to ensure the company is within all federal legal compliance.
- Neuralink is already facing a federal probe over previous allegations made by animal rights groups over alleged abuse and rushed experiments of its test subjects.
- The company, which was founded by Elon Musk and Max Hodak in 2016, has raised a total of $363M to date.
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Carbonplace, which is developing a blockchain-based carbon credit platform, raised a $45M round. The round was led by nine banks, including BBVA, BNP Paribas, National Australia Bank, and Standard Chartered. More: - The platform would enable users to share real-time carbon data and transactions.
- The company expects the exchange to be ready this year. It is currently testing the platform with Visa and Climate Impact X.
- According to McKinsey data, global demand for voluntary carbon credits will likely increase 15x "in the next several years."
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Worldcoin is looking for a lead investor as it seeks $120M in new funding, per sources close to The Block. The firm is aiming for a valuation of $3B, the same as its previous round from last year. More: - Worldcoin is co-founded by OpenAI co-founder and CEO Sam Altman.
- The firm aims to become the world's largest financial network geared towards universal basic income.
- To verify user identity and enable transactions, Worldcoin is developing iris-scanning technology dubbed Orbs.
- The firm cemented its unicorn status with a $25M venture funding round from Andreessen Horowitz (A16z), Coinbase Ventures, and Digital Currency Group.
- Khosla Ventures joined A16z to provide $100M funding in Mar. 2022 at a $3B valuation.
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Canadian-based education startup Paper is now a unicorn. The company aims to provide tutoring at more accessible costs and is now valued at $1.5B. More: - Paper, founded by Phil Cutle,r offers students free personalized tutoring sessions and course types across grade levels in over 400 schools.
- The Montreal-based company instead charges schools and districts about $40 per student to offer the service in schools.
- Cutler noted the biggest hurdle currently is building “awareness” around the product so students can take advantage of the personalized learning opportunities.
- The company has raised a total of $390M from investors like Google and SoftBank since its founding in 2014.
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Fable Food, which produces mushroom-based meat alternatives, raised an $8.5M Series A led by K3. The startup began offering its products in Australia before expanding to the U.S., U.K., New Zealand, Canada, and Singapore. More: - Fable's go-to-market strategy relies on partnerships with chefs and other food and beverage companies.
- The startup plans to use the funds for research and development of new products.
- The round included participation from Blackbird, Greg Creed, former global CEO for Yum Brands, and podcaster Osher Günsberg, among others.
- Fable previously raised a $6.5M Seed round in Aug. 2021.
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- EatFirst, a German food ordering startup, acquired British catering tech firm Feedr from parent company Compass Group U.K. & Ireland for an undisclosed sum.
- Healthcare insurance startup Sana is laying off 19% of its staff, or around 40 employees.
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 |  | Karan Chafekar is a Management Consultant, Business enthusiast, and Licensed Pilot.
Nicolas is a Sr. Analyst at Inside, covering startups and transportation trends. He is an avid map maker and data nerd. Nicolas has worked in the shared-scooter space, as well as advised e-bike and moped start-ups.
Robel is a writer for Inside.com. He was born and raised in the Bay Area but now lives in the Midwest. He is passionate about all things tech, venture, city, and state government, and in his free time enjoys outdoor activities including biking, hiking, and running. | | | | Editor | Vibha Chapparike is a Freelance Writer & Editor at Inside.com. With her post-graduation in Management and Finance completed, Vibha is expanding her knowledge in venture capital, business, startups, and technology. She has had a career in public relations and communications. An ardent reader and writer currently residing in Singapore, you can follow Vibha on Twitter @VChapparike. | |
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