Musk’s xAI shows there’s more money on the sidelines for AI startups
Equity - A podcast by TechCrunch, Mary Ann Azevedo, Kell, Theresa Loconsolo, Rebecca Bellan, Rebecca Szkutak
We’re off to an AI-heavy start to the week. OpenAI has a new deal with the Financial Times that caught our eye. Sure, it’s another content licensing deal, but there appears to be a bit more in the tie-up than just content flowing one way, and money the other. On this early-week episode of Equity, we also dug into the xAI news that TechCrunch broke recently; namely that Musk’s AI enterprise is not looking to raise $3 billion on a $15 billion valuation. No, it’s now looking for $6 billion at an $18 billion valuation. That’s a lot of capital. But there was even more to chat about, including the EU handing Apple even more bad news in the form of placing iPadOS under its DMA rules that should force third-party app stores on the tablet line in time. And Tesla got some good news in China, though just how impactful it will prove is not 100% certain at this juncture. And to close out, the Times has a fascinating look at pace at which venture capitalists are putting money into AI startups. Given the ability of OpenAI to land big deals with Microsoft money, is it enough?
