AI dominated both YC Demo Day and startup news

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This week was a busy one for the startup and VC world, with its fair share of funding news and, of course, the latest edition of YC’s Demo Day.

Most interesting startup stories from the week

Yes, AI, AI, AI. But it’s more eventful than it sounds.

Departures: Several key people are leaving OpenAI — CTO Mira Murati, as well as the company’s chief research officer and a research VP. There’s more context than we can sum up here, so go have a read if you are so inclined.

Ive mind: It is now confirmed that former Apple designer Jony Ive is working on an AI device startup with OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman. The unnamed venture could be seeking to raise up to $1 billion by the end of the year.

AltGPT: Letta, an AI startup founded by the researchers behind MemGPT and positioning itself as “the open alternative to OpenAI,” has come out of stealth to much anticipation.

Pipelines: Data startup Airbyte launched Airbyte 1.0 with a focus on AI use cases. It also made its self-managed enterprise service generally available.

Most interesting fundraises this week

COVID-19 almost killed some companies and boosted others. Now companies from both groups are finding their footing, and other trends are getting confirmed.

Working out: German connected fitness startup EGYM closed a $200 million Series G round of funding that confirms investor interest in the broader trend of preventative healthcare.

Digital transformation: Whatfix, a San Jose-based company whose platform demonstrates how to use third-party software, raised a $125 million Series E round led by Warburg Pincus.

AI power: Open source developer platform Supabase raised an $80 million Series C round. The company now positions itself as Postgres-centric and has been enjoying AI tailwinds; 10% of active databases on the service power AI use cases.

Beaming: Marvel Fusion raised €62.8 million in a Series B round to work on making commercial fusion power a reality thanks to lasers. 

In the spotlight: British startup Raycast raised $30 million to bring its Mac productivity app to Windows and iOS, with a focus on “prosumer” users.

Most interesting VC and fund news this week

Exit time: Peak XV Partners, the largest India and Southeast Asia-focused VC fund, realized about $1.2 billion in exits since its split from Sequoia last year, TechCrunch learned from sources.

Skyrocketing: European defense tech will attract $1 billion in VC funding this year, according to a new Dealroom report. This significant increase compared to previous years also goes along rising interest for dual-use technologies.

Sailing: Spanish VC firm All Iron Ventures rebranded as Acurio Ventures and closed a third fund of $166 million that will exclusively make “follow-on” investments.

Last but not least

Taking place on September 25 and 26, Y Combinator’s online Demo Day for its Summer 2024 batch was once again dominated by AI use cases, some particularly exciting. The format itself is changing: Going forward, there will be four Demo Days a year, and YC CEO Garry Tan said that the next one on December 4 will include an in-person element.