Top News

Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok was taken offline late Tuesday after it began posting a barrage of antisemitic content, including praise for Hitler and attacks on Jewish figures, following a weekend update that dialed back moderation on the platform. NBC News has more here. 

In a strange bit of timing, xAI launched Grok 4 and a $300-per-month subscription tonight, just hours after it had to yank antisemitic posts and revise Grok’s system prompt. (See above.) TechCrunch has more here. 

OpenAI is prepping an AI-powered web browser that will let users interact with the internet through a chat interface and built-in agents, taking aim at Google’s data-rich search empire while ironically building its browser on top of Google's own open-source Chromium code. Reuters has more here. 

In related news, Perplexity just launched its own AI-powered web browser, though early tests show it still stumbles on complex requests. TechCrunch has more here. 

Nvidia just became the first company to hit a $4 trillion market cap. CNBC has more here. 

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Jack Dorsey Says His “Secure” New Bitchat App Has Not Been Tested for Security

By Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai

On Sunday, Block CEO and Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey launched an open source chat app called Bitchat, promising to deliver “secure” and “private” messaging without a centralized infrastructure.

The app relies on Bluetooth and end-to-end encryption, unlike traditional messaging apps that rely on the internet. By being decentralized, Bitchat has potential for being a secure app in high-risk environments where the internet is monitored or inaccessible. According to Dorsey’s white paper detailing the app’s protocols and privacy mechanisms, Bitchat’s system design “prioritizes” security.

But the claims that the app is secure, however, are already facing scrutiny by security researchers, given that the app and its code have not been reviewed or tested for security issues at all — by Dorsey’s own admission.

Since launching, Dorsey has added a warning to Bitchat’s GitHub page: “This software has not received external security review and may contain vulnerabilities and does not necessarily meet its stated security goals. Do not use it for production use, and do not rely on its security whatsoever until it has been reviewed.”

This warning now also appears on Bitchat’s main GitHub project page but was not there at the time the app debuted.

As of Wednesday, Dorsey added: “Work in progress,” next to the warning on GitHub.

This latest disclaimer came after security researcher Alex Radocea found that it’s possible to impersonate someone else and trick a person’s contacts into thinking they are talking to the legitimate contact, as the researcher explained in a blog post.

More here. 

Massive Fundings

Actithera, a four-year-old startup based in Cambridge, MA, that develops targeted cancer therapies using radioligand technology designed to deliver radiation directly to tumor cells, raised a $75.5 million Series A round co-led by Hadean Ventures, Sofinnova Partners, 4BIO Capital, and previous investor M Ventures, with Bioqube Ventures, Innovestor’s Life Science Fund, Investinor, Surveyor Capital, and prior backer Arkin Bio Ventures also participating. CityBiz has more here.

Groq, a seven-year-old company based in Mountain View, CA, that makes chips for large language models, is reportedly in talks to raise $300 million to $500 million at a $6 billion valuation, more than double its valuation from last August. The Information has the scoop here. 

MaintainX, a six-year-old San Francisco startup that helps companies reduce equipment downtime and automate equipment maintenance tasks, raised a $150 million Series D round at a $2.5 billion valuation. The deal was co-led by Bessemer Venture Partners and Bain Capital, with Amity Ventures and August Capital also chiming in. Reuters has more here. 

Revolut, a nine-year-old London startup that offers digital banking services, is in talks to raise about $1 billion in a new round led by Greenoaks, pushing its valuation to $65 billion. The Financial Times has the scoop here.

ServiceUp, a three-year-old startup based in Los Gatos, CA, that automates and manages vehicle repairs for fleets and insurance carriers, raised a $55 million Series B round led by PeakSpan Capital, with previous investors Hearst Ventures, Trestle Partners, Capital Midwest Fund, and Litquidity Ventures also diving in. The company has raised a total of approximately $70 million. Crunchbase News has more here. 

Big-But-Not-Crazy-Big Fundings

AirGarage, an eight-year-old San Francisco startup that provides software and management services to help property owners operate and monetize parking lots and garages more efficiently, raised a $23 million Series B round led by Headline, with additional participation from previous investors Founders Fund and Fourthline Capital Management. Parking Network has more here.

Augmentus, a six-year-old Singapore startup that designs software that lets manufacturers set up and control industrial robots without needing to write code, raised a $11 million Series A+ round led by Woori Ventures, with EDBI, Sierra Ventures, and Cocoon Capital also taking part. The Robot Report has more here.

Centivax, a six-year-old South San Francisco startup that develops vaccines designed to provide broad protection against multiple strains of viruses, raised a $45 million Series A round led by Future Ventures and including NFX, BOLD Capital, Base4, Kendall Capital Partners, and Amplify Bio. More here.

Hololight, a 10-year-old Austrian company that provides streaming technology that lets industrial companies run AR and VR applications from the cloud, raised an $11.7 million round led by Cipio Partners, with Bayern Kapital, Direttissima Growth Partners, EnBW New Ventures, and Future Energy Ventures also investing. More here.

Honor Education, a five-year-old San Francisco startup that has designed a digital learning platform to support interactive, personalized instruction for universities and online degree programs, raised a $38 million Series A round from ​​Alpha Edison, Wasserstein & Co., Audeo Ventures, Interlock Partners, and New Wave Capital. Forbes has more here.

Nominal, a four-year-old New York startup that uses AI agents to automate accounting tasks for startups, including bookkeeping, reporting, and compliance, raised a $20 million Series A round led by Next47, with Workday Ventures as well as previous investors Bling Capital, Hyperwise Ventures, Vela Partners, and Incubate Fund also opting in. The company has raised a total of $30 million. CTech has more here.

Parspec, a four-year-old startup based in San Mateo, CA, that sells AI-powered software that helps building product manufacturers and suppliers manage pricing, quotes, and product data for commercial construction projects, raised a $20 million Series A round led by Threshold Ventures, with previous investors Innovation Endeavors, Building Ventures, Heartland Ventures, and Hometeam Ventures also chiming in. More here.

Polimorphic, a six-year-old New York startup whose software helps local governments build and manage internal tools for tasks like permitting, service requests, and public records, raised a $18.6 million Series A round led by General Catalyst, with previous investors M13 and Shine also engaging. CityBiz has more here.

SiPearl, a five-year-old French startup that raised a $37.5 million Series A extension, bringing the total round size to $152 million. Investors included Cathay Venture as well as previous investors European Innovation Council Fund and French Tech Souveraineté. Data Center Dynamics has more here.

Sundial, a five-year-old San Francisco startup that is building AI agents that let business teams ask questions about company data and obtain answers in plain language without requiring help from data analysts, raised a $16 million Series A round. GreatPoint Ventures led the investment. The company has raised a total of $23 million. More here.

Smaller Fundings

Bastazo, a five-year-old startup based in Bentonville, AR, that uses AI to help security teams prioritize and remediate the top 5% of vulnerabilities most likely to be exploited, raised a $5.3 million seed round. Cortado Ventures led the financing. More here.

Blok, a one-year-old San Francisco startup that builds AI agents that simulate how real users interact with mobile apps, helping product teams test features and identify issues before launch, raised a $5 million seed round led by MaC Venture Capital. The company has raised a total of $7.5 million. TechCrunch has more here.

Castellum, a six-year-old New York startup whose software helps banks and other financial institutions screen individuals and entities for sanctions, money laundering, and other compliance risks, raised an $8.5 million Series A round led by Curql, with BTech Consortium, Framework Venture Partners, Spider Capital, Remarkable Ventures, and Cameron Ventures also contributing. More here.

Circle Games, a two-year-old Istanbul startup that makes mobile puzzle games for casual players, raised a $7.25 million seed round led by BITKRAFT Ventures, with Andreessen Horowitz, Play Ventures, APY Ventures, and e2vc also joining in. GamesBeat has more here.

Layer, a four-year-old San Francisco startup that provides embedded accounting features that software companies can integrate into their products for small and midsize business customers, raised a $6.6 million seed round led by Emergence Capital, with Better Tomorrow Ventures also anteing up. More here.

Novenda Technologies, a six-year-old Dutch startup that makes 3D printers that allow dental labs to produce crowns, bridges, and other restorations without using glue or molds, raised a $6.1 million Series A round ledby Brightlands Venture Partners, with KBC Focus Fund, Borski Fund, and Limburg Business Development Fund also pitching in. Tech Funding News has more here.

Plexāā, a four-year-old London startup that makes wearable medical devices paired with an app to prepare patients’ skin before breast surgery, helping reduce complications and support recovery, raised a $4.5 million seed extension round from TCP Health Ventures as well as previous investor Thena Capital and a grant from the National Institute for Health and Care Research. CityBiz has more here.

ScienceMachine, a one-year-old London startup that builds AI agents that help biotech companies run experiments, analyze data, and generate research insights with minimal human input, raised a $3.5 million pre-seed round. Revent and Nucleus Capital were the co-leads. Tech.eu has more here.

Tandem, a one-year-old Paris startup that creates AI assistants that help busy professionals manage tasks like scheduling, reminders, and follow-ups through natural conversation, raised a $3.8 million seed round. Tribe Capital was the deal lead. EU-Startups has more here.

ZeroEntropy, a one-year-old San Francisco startup that is developing an AI infrastructure to help developers create retrieval systems that can understand context and reasoning, rather than just matching keywords, raised a $4.2 million seed round led by Initialized Capital, with support from Y Combinator, Transpose Platform, 22 Ventures, and Andreessen Horowitz. More here.

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Going Public

Lens Technology, a 21-year-old company headquartered in Hunan that supplies Apple with glass and metal casings, raised $608 million in a Hong Kong listing to fuel overseas expansion as it hedges against mounting US-China trade pressure. NikkeiAsia has more here. 

People

Linda Yaccarino stepped down as CEO of X, capping a chaotic two-year tenure marked by advertiser flight, frequent outbursts from Elon Musk, and an unwinnable PR game. TechCrunch has more here. 

Steve Davis, the Musk confidant who officially exited the Department of Government Efficiency in May, is reportedly still pulling strings behind the scenes at DOGE while quietly dismissing his own departure as “fake news.” TechCrunch has more here. 

A $237 million bet on Polymarket asking whether Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would wear a suit before July ended in a controversial "No" ruling, despite abundant visual and media evidence to the contrary, triggering backlash over oracle governance, token-weighted voting, and the integrity of decentralized market resolutions. Decrypt has more here.

Essential Reads

In a parting shot, a former AI researcher calls out a "culture of fear" at Meta. "I have yet to meet someone in Meta-GenAI that truly enjoys being there," he wrote, adding, "You'll be hard pressed to find someone that really believes in our Al mission. To most, it's not even clear what our mission is." The Information has the story here. 

The New York Times digs into how the crypto industry courted President Donald Trump with campaign donations, lobbying pressure, and personal appeals, turning him from a vocal skeptic into its most powerful champion. More here.

Microsoft says AI saved it more than $500 million last year in its call centers alone by increasing productivity and satisfaction across sales, support, and engineering, with AI now generating 35% of new product code and helping salespeople close deals 9% faster. Bloomberg has more here. 

Hertz is rolling out AI-powered scanners from UVeye at major U.S. airports to flag even the tiniest rental car blemishes, leaving some customers stunned by damage fees they say are based on shadows or barely visible marks. The New York Times has more here. 

Soundslice, a 13-year-old Chicago company that helps musicians learn by syncing sheet music with video, added support for ASCII tablature after repeated hallucinations by ChatGPT misled users into thinking the feature already existed, pressuring the founder to build something he never intended. TechCrunch has more here. 

Andreessen Horowitz is moving its corporate registration from Delaware to Nevada. "In particular, Delaware courts can at times appear biased against technology startup founders and their boards," the firm said in a blog post. Business Insider has more here. 

Detours

For those of you keeping score, the trailer for Ryan Gosling's Project Hail Mary officially broke the record for the most views of a trailer for an original movie in one week.

A new cooking game called Restaurats lets players run chaotic multiplayer kitchens as fully customizable rats. Yum. 

Retail Therapy

Nike's latest basketball shoe looks like it can evade ground-based radar.

Take a train trip through England's Lake District aboard Belmond's Britannic Explorer and enjoy some Michelin-starred meals along the way.