Anthropic, Google, and OpenAI Are Discussing an AI Industry Standards Board

Top News

CNN is reporting that Anthropic, Google, and OpenAI have discussed creating an AI industry standards body modeled on FINRA, potentially overseen by government and funded by industry, that would independently test frontier models before deployment. More here.

China’s Foreign Ministry pushed back on calls from Dario Amodei, Sam Altman, and Elon Musk to slow frontier AI development, calling the warnings “fear mongering” that would disrupt global AI governance even as Beijing separately urged stronger AI risk controls. CNBC has more here.

Palantir, Nvidia, and Booz Allen are curbing use of Anthropic and OpenAI models over concerns about proprietary data, with Palantir seeking irrevocable zero-data-retention guarantees and Nvidia steering sensitive work to its own Nemotron models instead, according to The Information. Reuters has more here.

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Sources Say Automattic’s Board Is Out After Failed Attempt to Oust CEO Matt Mullenweg

By Sarah Perez

Automattic’s board is out, multiple sources have confirmed to TechCrunch, after last week’s attempt to oust CEO Matt Mullenweg by voting to put him on a paid leave of absence.

After the vote, Mullenweg, the WordPress founder and CEO of WordPress.com parent company Automattic, accused the board of conspiring against him in a post on Automattic’s Slack. On Friday, TechCrunch exclusively reported Mullenweg told the company’s staff that he was back in control of the company, also via Slack post. Automattic confirmed to TechCrunch on Saturday that he had returned.

Initially, we heard from sources that Toni Schneider, a founding CEO at Automattic who now leads the open social network Bluesky, had resigned his Automattic board seat. Schneider has since removed a paragraph from his bio page on his personal website which had noted his contributions at Automattic.

Previously, Schneider’s website read: “I also contribute actively at Automattic, the open source company behind WordPress.com and WooCommerce. I was Automattic’s founding CEO and continue to support internal projects and investments as a board member and special advisor.”

We’ve also heard that Mullenweg removed the two other board members, Sue Decker and Gen. Ann Dunwoody.

Decker’s LinkedIn bio has been updated to confirm that she served on Automattic’s board from March 2020 through September 2026, despite her name still appearing on Automattic’s Board of Directors page at the time of publication.

Massive Fundings

Buildots, an eight-year-old Tel Aviv startup that uses cameras and AI to track construction progress and flag schedule delays, raised a $130 million round at an estimated $1 billion valuation. O.G. Venture Partners was the deal lead, with Lightspeed, Intel Capital, Mohari Ventures, Human Capital, Qumra Capital, Viola Growth, Poalim Equity, and Avigdor Willenz also digging in. The company has raised a total of $297 million. CTech has more here.

Cornelis, a six-year-old startup based in Wayne, PA, that develops networking technology to improve communication among AI chips, raised a $205 million round led by IAG Capital Partners. TechCrunch has more here.

EUCLYD, a two-year-old startup based in Eindhoven, Netherlands, that develops semiconductor and datacenter systems for running AI models more efficiently, raised a $230+ million Series A round co-led by Samsung, Somerset Capital Partners, Scaleup Europe Fund, and Innovation Industries, with EIFO, imec.xpand, Brabant Development Agency, and Quadri also opting in. More here.

Firehawk Aerospace, a six-year-old startup based in Addison, TX, that builds rocket motors using 3D-printed propellant for defense and aerospace applications, is reportedly in the market to raise a $200 million round at a $1.25 billion post-money valuation. The purported lead is Rochefort Asset Management, with 1789 Capital also participating. Investing.com has more here.

Kaiko, a 12-year-old Paris company that provides cryptocurrency market data and analytics, raised a $57 million Series B extension led by S&P Global, with BNP Paribas, Coinbase Ventures, Nasdaq, Royal Bank of Canada, and Stellar also engaging. The extension brings the Series B to $110 million. CoinDesk has more here.

Mecka AI, a two-year-old New York startup that collects and analyzes recordings of people performing everyday tasks to help robotics companies train humanoid and general-purpose robots, is reportedly in discussions to raise a $500 million round at a valuation of approximately $500 million, with Sequoia Capital as the purported lead. TechCrunch has more here.

Nuance, a one-year-old Seattle startup that develops audiovisual AI models for face-to-face conversations, raised a $50 million Series A round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, with Accel, NVentures, South Park Commons, and Define Ventures also stepping up. Business Insider has more here.

Open Cosmos, an 11-year-old company based in Harwell, UK, that builds satellites and operates communications and Earth-imaging constellations that provide secure connectivity and satellite data for decision-makers, raised a $405 million round. Investors included Lightrock, ETF Partners, Institut Català de Finances (ICF), and Entrepreneurs First. Payload has more here.

Shield AI, an 11-year-old company based in San Diego, CA, that develops autonomous aircraft and AI pilot software for military applications, is reportedly in talks to raise new funding at a valuation of at least $20 billion, after raising $2 billion in March at a $12.7 billion valuation. The Information has more here.

Tabby, a seven-year-old Saudi startup that provides buy-now-pay-later and other consumer financial services, raised a $233 million Series F at a $6.5 billion valuation from previous investors, led by Blue Pool Capital, with HSG, Wellington Management, and Arbor Ventures also participating. The financing included both new and existing shares. Reuters has more here.

Tandem Health, a three-year-old Stockholm startup that uses AI to help European clinicians document visits, assign medical codes, dictate notes, and answer patient-specific clinical questions, raised a $100 million Series B round led by Scaleup Europe Fund, with Kinnevik, Northzone, Amino Collective, and Visionaries also pitching in. The company has raised a total of $160 million. MobiHealthNews has more here.

Temporal, a seven-year-old startup based in Bellevue, WA, that develops software for keeping distributed applications and AI agents running reliably through failures, raised a $550 million Series E at a $12.55 billion valuation. The deal was co-led by Lightspeed, Wellington Management, Goldman Sachs Alternatives, and Tiger Global, with T. Rowe Price as well as previous investors Sequoia Capital, Index Ventures, and Madrona also participating. The company has raised a total of $1.2 billion. GeekWire has more here.

Big-But-Not-Crazy-Big Fundings

BRKZ, a four-year-old Riyadh startup that helps contractors, distributors, and factories source building materials, compare pricing, arrange logistics, and access flexible payment terms, raised a $13 million Series B round co-led by Wa’ed Ventures and 500 Global, with BECO Capital and ANB Capital also participating. The company has raised a total of $70+ million. More here.

Chift, a four-year-old Brussels startup that connects business software companies to European accounting, invoicing, payments, and other financial systems through one API, raised a $12.1 million Series A round led by BlackFin Capital Partners, with Entourage, Shapers, the Seeder Fund, and Wallonie Entreprendre also anteing up. Tech Funding News has more here.

Jack & Jill, a one-year-old London startup that uses AI agents to match job seekers with employers, raised a $40 million Series A round led by Air Street Capital. LAVX has more here.

Pave Finance, a five-year-old New York startup that provides software for financial advisers to build, personalize, and manage client portfolios, raised a $15+ million Series A round from an unnamed group of investors at a $100 million pre-money valuation. Financial IT has more here.

Resolutiion, a four-year-old London startup that helps companies detect early signs of commercial disputes in active contracts using messages, delivery data, invoices, and project trackers, raised a $10.4 million round. Investors included Cherry Ventures, Octopus Ventures, LocalGlobe, and Auxxo. Tech Funding News has more here.

Shennon Biotechnologies, a five-year-old San Francisco startup that develops T-cell engager cancer therapies that direct immune cells against surface and intracellular targets in solid tumors, raised a $12 million round. Investors included Future Ventures, NextGen Venture Partner