Bloomberg is reporting that OpenAI expects to generate $12.7 billion in revenue this year, more than triple last year's number. More here. 

Speaking of OpenAI, it is reportedly close to raising $40 billion in fresh funding commitments, at a stunning post-money valuation of $300 billion. TechCrunch has more here.

According to reporting from Pro Publica, SpaceX is permitting Chinese investors to buy stakes in the company so long as they route their money through offshore hubs like the Cayman Islands. TechCrunch has more here.

The U.S. has excluded 80 more Chinese companies from buying U.S. technology, including big customers of Intel, AMD, and Nvidia. The New York Times has more here.  

This is what VC hell looks like: Spend 3 weeks sending follow ups to founders for data. Work through multiple spreadsheets. Standardize metrics that are called 10 different names by different companies…

Every. Damn. Quarter.

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By Charles Rollet

A complaint about poverty in rural China. A news report about a corrupt Communist Party member. A cry for help about corrupt cops shaking down entrepreneurs.

These are just a few of the 133,000 examples fed into a sophisticated large language model that’s designed to automatically flag any piece of content considered sensitive by the Chinese government.

A leaked database seen by TechCrunch reveals China has developed an AI system that supercharges its already formidable censorship machine, extending far beyond traditional taboos like the Tiananmen Square massacre.

The system appears primarily geared toward censoring Chinese citizens online but could be used for other purposes, like improving Chinese AI models’ already extensive censorship.

Xiao Qiang, a researcher at UC Berkeley who studies Chinese censorship and who also examined the dataset, told TechCrunch that it was “clear evidence” that the Chinese government or its affiliates want to use LLMs to improve repression.

“Unlike traditional censorship mechanisms, which rely on human labor for keyword-based filtering and manual review, an LLM trained on such instructions would significantly improve the efficiency and granularity of state-led information control,” Qiang told TechCrunch.

This adds to growing evidence that authoritarian regimes are quickly adopting the latest AI tech. In February, for example, OpenAI said it caught multiple Chinese entities using LLMs to track anti-government posts and smear Chinese dissidents.

More here. 

Also, a startup spun out of Rivian this year that designs and manufactures small, lightweight electric vehicles, such as bikes and scooters, raised a $105 million round. Eclipse Ventures provided the funding. TechCrunch has the story  here.

Epicrispr Biotechnologies, a seven-year-old South San Francisco startup that is developing a drug that targets the root cause of facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy, a genetic disease that weakens muscles over time, raised a $68 million Series B round led by Ally Bridge Group, with SOLVE FSHD also taking part. BioPharma Dive has more here.

Island, a five-year-old Dallas startup whose browser gives companies control over how employees and contractors use web apps and data, helping prevent security risks like phishing or data leaks, raised a $250 million Series E round at a $4.8 billion post-money valuation. Coatue led the investment. The company has raised a total of $230 million. TechCrunch has more here. 

Mercury, an eight-year-old San Francisco startup that offers online banking services tailored for startups and tech-focused businesses, raised a $300 million round at a $3.5 billion post-money valuation, more than double the valuation it secured in a 2021 round. The deal was led by Sequoia Capital, with previous investor Coatue also investing. TechCrunch has more here.

Brisk, a two-year-old San Francisco startup that offers an AI-powered Chrome extension with over 40 tools designed to assist K-12 teachers in tasks such as creating lesson plans, grading, and adjusting materials for different student abilities, raised a $15 million round led by Bessemer Venture Partners, with Owl Ventures, South Park Commons, and Springbank Collective also stepping up. TechCrunch has more here.

Chronicle Labs, an eight-year-old startup based in Zug, Switzerland, that provides tools that bring accurate real-world data such as prices for tokenized assets onto blockchain networks, raised a $12 million seed round led by Strobe, with Galaxy Vision Hill, Brevan Howard Digital, Tioga Capital, and Fenbushi Capital also pitching in. CoinDesk has more here.

Dyna Robotics, a one-year-old startup based in Redwood City, CA, that aims to develop affordable, AI-powered robots designed to automate tasks for businesses of all sizes, raised a $23.5 million seed round co-led by CRV and First Round Capital and including Sancus Capital, Umami Capital, and Hardware Club. More here.

GetReal, a three-year-old startup based in San Mateo, CA, that offers tools to detect and prevent AI-generated deepfakes in audio, video, and images, raised a $17.5 million Series A round led by Forgepoint Capital and joined by Ballistic Ventures, Evolution Equity, and K2 Access Fund as well as Cisco Investments, Capital One Ventures, and In-Q-Tel. TechCrunch has more here. 

Paid, a London startup founded this year whose mission is to help companies developing AI agents manage pricing, billing, and profitability, raised a $10.8 million pre-seed round. Investors included EQT Ventures, Sequoia, and GTMFund. TechCrunch has more here.

Rogo AI, a three-year-old New York-based enterprise AI platform for investment banks and PE professionals, is reportedly in the market to raise $40 million at up to a $350 million valuation. Thrive Capital is the deal lead, with Khosla Ventures also contributing. (Khosla led its $18 million Series A in October.) The Information has the scoop here.

Silna Health, a two-year-old New York City startup that provides an AI-powered platform that automates administrative tasks like prior authorizations, benefit checks, and insurance monitoring for healthcare providers, raised a $22 million round co-led by previous investors Accel and Bain Capital Ventures, with prior backer Activant also investing. The company has raised a total of $27 million. CityBiz has more here.

Tribune Therapeutics, a five-year-old Stockholm startup that's focused on treating the root causes of fibrotic diseases (which cause scar tissue to form), raised a $39.9 million round led by LifeArc Ventures, with Novo Holdings, HealthCap, and Industrifonden also investing. More here.

Arlo, a three-year-old New York startup that provides health insurance plans tailored for small and medium-sized businesses with 10 to 150 employees, raised a $4 million seed round led by Upfront Ventures and including 8VC and General Catalyst. More here.

ConfigHub, a one-year-old Menlo Park startup that is developing a platform to centralize and streamline the management of software configuration data, raised a $4 million Investors included Crane Venture Partners, Encoded Ventures, and Pear VC. TechCrunch has more here.

Iceberg Quantum, a one-year-old Sydney startup that is developing fault-tolerant quantum computing architectures that aim to significantly reduce hardware requirements for error correction, thereby accelerating the timeline for practical quantum computing, raised a $1.2 million pre-seed round led by Blackbird Ventures, with LocalGlobe also participating. The Quantum Insider has more here.

Lumi AI, a two-year-old Toronto startup that allows retailers and supply chain operators to analyze their operational data by asking questions in everyday language, eliminating the need for coding skills, raised a $3.7 million seed round led by AgFunder, with Forum Ventures, ADQ, and Qora71 also opting in. Wamda has more here.

Rival, a two-year-old London startup that allows users to convert standard 2D videos into 3D formats, raised a $4.2 million pre-seed round. Speedinvest was the deal lead, with New Renaissance Ventures also chipping in. Tech Funding News has more here.

SplxAI, a one-year-old New York startup that helps organizations protect their AI applications and chatbots from security threats by automating testing and continuously monitoring for vulnerabilities, raised a $7 million seed round led by LAUNCHub Ventures, with Rain Capital, Runtime Ventures, Inovo, DNV Ventures, and South Central Ventures also anteing up. More here.

Voiceops, a three-year-old New York startup that analyzes customer calls to provide businesses with insights for improving sales, marketing, and compliance efforts, raised a $5 million seed round co-led by Bonfire Ventures and Twelve Below, with support from Precursor Ventures, Not Boring Capital, Village Global, Kearny Jackson, and Four Acres Capital. More here.

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Tactile, a new VC firm started by Brian O'Malley, a former managing partner at Forerunner Ventures, is in the market to raise a $100 million fund. The focus will be early-stage consumer deals. The Wall Street Journal has more here. 

Terrestrial Energy, a 13-year-old company based in Charlotte, NC, that is developing small modular nuclear reactors to power data centers and industrial processes, went public today via SPAC. TechCrunch has more here. 

Bradley Tusk, co-founder and managing partner at Tusk Venture Partners and a noted expert on how startups can navigate government regulations, is winding down his firm's operations because he says he is making more money as a consultant than as a VC. TechCrunch has more here. 

Reuters is reporting that DOGE member Edward "Big Balls" Coristine provided tech support to a cybercrime ring known as "EGodly." Mashable has more here. 

Playground Global, a 10-year-old Palo Alto VC firm that focuses on early-stage deep tech deals, is bringing on Pat Gelsinger, the former CEO of both Intel and VMWare, as a General Partner. More here. 

Amid the growing ranks of venture firms bringing aboard help to navigate the evolving regulatory landscape and to influence policy that impacts their portfolio companies, Eclipse VC has hired Thomas Storch as its new Head of Policy and Government Affairs. Reuters has more here.

A new report from TD Cowen about Microsoft's decision to bail on new data center projects points to a glut of AI computing resources. Bloomberg has more here.

According to figures from eMarketer, X is on track to grow global revenues this year by 16.5%, the first time year it has grown revenues in four years. Gizmodo has more here.

A federal judge has ruled that The New York Times' case against OpenAI alleging copyright infringement can move forward. NPR has more here. 

OpenAI's ability to create images in the style of the renowned Japanese animation company Studio Ghibli is not only a meme; it also suggests that the AI startup trained its LLM on millions of frames from Ghibli’s films. TechCrunch has more here. 

Duke University is not happy about its role in The White Lotus.

With over 700 million views, influencer Ashton Hall's morning routine has gone so viral that even grannies are getting in on it. 

A Ford executive had a gift for his fellow employees when he retired - a list of 2,229 verbal flubs committed by his colleagues over the last decade. 

Classic loudspeakers that deserve to be seen and heard.