Tech Industry Sees Major Moves in AI, Autonomous Vehicles, and Startup Funding
The tech world witnessed a flurry of activity Monday, ranging from significant investments in autonomous vehicles and artificial intelligence to the shutdown of a long-standing animation software and fraud charges against a fintech CEO.
Waymo, the autonomous vehicle company owned by Alphabet, announced it raised $16 billion in a funding round led by Dragoneer Investment Group, DST Global, and Sequoia Capital, according to a blog post by the company. The funding will support Waymo's expansion of its driverless taxicab fleet to over a dozen new cities internationally, including London and Tokyo. The investment values Waymo at $126 billion. Parent company Alphabet maintained its position as majority investor, with participation from Andreessen Horowitz, Mubadala Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, Silver Lake, Tiger Global, T. Rowe Price, BDT MSD Partners, CapitalG, Fidelity Management & Research Company, GV, Kleiner Perkins, Perry Creek Capital, and Temas.
In the AI sector, SpaceX acquired Elon Musk's artificial intelligence startup, xAI, according to a memo posted on the rocket company's website. Musk, who is also the CEO of SpaceX, stated that the merger is primarily aimed at creating space-based data centers. He argued that current AI advancements rely on large terrestrial data centers, which require substantial power and cooling. "Global electricity demand for AI simply cannot be met with terrestrial solutions, even in the near term, without imposing hardship on communities and the environment," Musk wrote. xAI has faced accusations of imposing hardship on communities near its data centers in Memphis, Tennessee.
Adobe announced it will discontinue its 2D animation software, Adobe Animate, on March 1, 2026, as the company increases its investments in AI. The company issued an update to its support site and sent emails to customers, informing them of the decision. Enterprise customers will receive technical support through March 1, 2029, while other customers will have support through March of next year. The decision has been met with criticism from Adobe Animate users, who expressed concerns about the lack of alternatives that replicate the software's functionality.
Meanwhile, two Stanford students, Roman Scott and Itbaan Nafi, launched a $2 million startup accelerator called Breakthrough Ventures, aimed at funding businesses founded by college students and recent graduates nationwide. Nafi, a masters candidate at Stanford, told TechCrunch that the fundraise will transform Breakthrough "from just being a seasonal accelerator into a lifelong partnership with our founders." Scott received his undergraduate degree from Stanford in 2024 and went on to earn a masters degree there the following year. Raihan Ahmed was tapped to lead the accelerator early last year.
In other news, Gökçe Güven, the 26-year-old Turkish national and founder and CEO of fintech startup Kalder, was charged last week with alleged securities fraud, wire fraud, visa fraud, and aggravated identity theft, according to TechCrunch. Kalder, a New York-based fintech startup, claims to help companies create and monetize individual rewards programs. Güven is also an alum of the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, a list that has included other individuals who have been charged with fraud, including FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, Frank CEO Charlie Javice, Joanna Smith-Griffin, founder of the AI startup AllHere Education, and Martin Shkreli.
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