May 30th Newsletter

U.S. consumer confidence surged 12.3 points in May to 98, the biggest gain in four years, as trade tensions cooled and Americans grew more upbeat about the economy and jobs outlook. U.S. customs duties hit a record $16.5 billion in April, though still below President Trump’s $2B/day offset target. President Trump announced a U.S. Steel-Nippon Steel partnership promising 70,000 jobs and adding $14 billion to the economy, even as labor and trade challenges remain. Meanwhile, the threat of a 25% tariff on non-US-made iPhones sent Apple shares down 3%, pressuring Apple to expand domestic manufacturing. The E.U. and U.S. agreed to fast-track trade talks, delaying the 50% tariff deadline to July 9 while Europe readies €116 billion in retaliation. In tech, Salesforce agreed to purchase Informatica for $8 billion, and with OpenAI’s Stargate U.A.E., the U.A.E. has purchased ChatGPT Plus for its whole population. Lastly, Anthropic’s CEO, Dario Amodei, has warned that advancements in AI could eliminate half of entry-level, white-collar jobs, which could lead to a 20% unemployment rate.

Top 5 AI Highlights

[1] 🛒 Amazon has secured a multi-year licensing deal with The New York Times with access to The Times, NYT Cooking, and The Athletic, for its generative-AI services like Alexa. The agreement grants Amazon real-time article summaries, excerpts, and data to train models, though financial terms remain undisclosed. The arrangement follows publishers’ efforts to monetize content amid ongoing copyright disputes, including the Times’ 2023 lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft. Analysts believe the partnership could boost the Times’ subscriber base. More from Reuters.

[2] 💸 Nvidia incurred a $4.5B charge and lost $2.5B in Q1 FY26 sales due to new U.S. licensing restrictions on its H20 AI chips bound for China, and anticipated another $8B in potential Q2 revenue loss. The Trump administration's new export restrictions, despite the scrapping of Biden’s AI Diffusion Rule, have effectively shut Nvidia out of China’s $50B AI chip market. Despite the frictions, Nvidia posted strong Q1 earnings: $44.06B in revenue (up 69% YoY) and EPS of $0.96, beating estimates. More from TC.

[3] 🤝 Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings has joined Anthropic’s board, strengthening the AI firm’s leadership as it scales to compete with OpenAI and xAI. Appointed by the Long-Term Benefit Trust, Hastings brings deep experience guiding major tech companies through growth. His involvement underscores Anthropic’s push to become a leading force in safe, human-centered AI development, reinforcing its commitment to long-term governance and ethical AI advancement. More from TC. 

[4] 🏠 Fannie Mae is partnering with Palantir to detect mortgage fraud using AI, starting with multi-family housing. Early tests showed the tech could flag fraud in seconds versus months for human investigators. CEO Alex Karp said the system protects user privacy. The move comes as officials explore taking Fannie and Freddie out of conservatorship and possibly public, with talks also underway with Elon Musk’s xAI. The partnership may expand to Freddie Mac. More from CNBC. 

[5] 👯‍♂️Zoom CEO Eric Yuan used an AI avatar to deliver opening remarks on the company’s latest earnings call, joining Klarna’s CEO in embracing virtual stand-ins. Yuan’s avatar, created with Zoom Clips, highlighted the company’s push to innovate communication while stressing safeguards around identity and AI misuse. Yuan has long promoted avatars and digital twins as part of Zoom’s future. The company is now rolling out its custom avatar feature to all users, signaling a broader shift toward AI-driven corporate communication. More from TC. 

Founder’s Corner

The full VC route takes more than a decade

What We Read This Week

• Elon Musk’s Neuralink raised $600 million, boosting its valuation to $9 billion as it advances brain-chip implants for paralyzed patients (Semafor)

• xAI to pay $300 million to Telegram for Grok Integration. Telegram also earns 50% of the revenue from xAI subscriptions purchased through the app. (TC)

• Elon Musk tried to block OpenAI’s AI deal in the Middle East over xAI exclusion. (WSJ)

• Circle seeks up to $624 million in IPO, valuing it at $6.7 billion, down from $9 billion in 2022. Backed by ARK, it plans to trade under “CRCL” amid US regulatory clarity. (MSN)

• Apple has acquired RAC7, the two-person studio behind Sneaky Sasquatch, marking its first video game studio buy. It’s described as a unique move to grow Apple Arcade’s success. (DT)

• SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son has proposed a US-Japan sovereign wealth fund worth $300 billion to invest in tech and infrastructure, aligning with Japan’s zero-tariff push and the Trump administration’s revenue goals. (FT)

• Delaware AG hires bankers to evaluate OpenAI’s $300B conversion amid investor tensions. (WSJ)

AI M&A and Fundraising news (May 23 — May 30)

• Alba Health: AI-driven digestive health tracking for women, raised a $2.5M Seed.

• Ankar: AI IP platform for enterprise customers, raised $4.1M.

• Atomic Canyon: Generative AI tools for nuclear industry documentation, raised a $7M Seed.

• AssitIQ: Help hospitals track supply usage using AI, raised $11.5 million Series A.

• Buildot: AI-driven construction management tools, raised a $45 million Series D.

• Chalk: Data infrastructure to improve the speed of AI inference, raised $50M Series A.

• Clear Current: AI-powered energy use tracking and control, raised a $4M Seed.

• Context: AI-powered office suite builder, raised a $11M Seed.

• Converge: Sensors and AI for concrete optimization, raised a $22M Series A.

• Creatify: AI-powered video ad automation platform, raised a $15.5M Series A.

• Endra AI: AI assistants for engineering product development, raised a $3.4M Pre-seed.

• Frinks AI: Computer vision and AI tools for manufacturing, raised a $5.4M pre-Series A.

• Gail: Automates finance tasks for startups, raised a $8.2M Seed.

• GrowthX: AI for marketing data analysis and performance, raised a $12M Series A.

• Horizon3.ai: Autonomous penetration testing platform, raised $73M.

• Informatica: AI-powered cloud data management, acquired by Salesforce for $8B. 

• Infinity Constellation: AI-native company builder and acquirer, raised a $17M Seed.

• Inven: AI-native deal sourcing for private market investors, raised a $12.8M Series A.

• Legora: Swedish AI legal assistant startup, raised a $80M Series B.

• Optura: AI-powered healthcare operating platform, raised a $6.5M Seed.

• Palet: AI workforce for freight/logistics back-office automation, raised a $27M Series B.

• PiLogic: AI for radar signal interpretation in defense, raised a $4M Seed.

• Rhino Federated Computing: Federated AI infrastructure for regulated industries, raised a $15M Series A.

• Rillet: AI-powered financial statement automation for mid-sized businesses, raised a $25M Series A.

• Spott: AI-driven recruiting automation platform, raised $3.2M.

• RoboForce: AI-driven robots for industrial task automation, raised a $5M round.

• Samaya AI, Financial services AI platform, raised $43.5 million.

• Secro: AI-enabled platform for global trade finance, raised a $10M Series A.

• SpAItial: AI-powered 3D software tools for design, raised a $13M Seed.

• Superblocks: AI agent platform for internal enterprise apps, raised a $23M Series A Extension.

• Tamtam: AI-powered B2B sales team optimization, raised a $2M Seed.

• Traceloop: Infrastructure for real-time AI agent evaluation and monitoring, raised a $6.1M Seed.

• Throne: AI-powered smart toilet for gut health analysis, raised a $4M Seed.

• Unbound: Generative AI adoption tools for enterprises, raised a $4M Seed.

• Veesion: AI video surveillance for retail theft detection, raised a €38M Series B.

• viAct: AI-powered impact monitoring platform, raised a $7.3M Series A.

• Way Data Technologies: AI-powered fleet management and optimization, raised a $2.9M Pre-seed

• WellTheory: AI-driven autoimmune care coordination platform, raised $5M.