Malaysia’s AI agent-powered messaging app Respond.io raises $62.5M, eyes acquisitions
Respond.io, one of Malaysia startups to watch, uses AI agents to handle high volumes of customer inquiries and charges per convo, not per seat.
Startups
Sarvam becomes India’s newest AI unicorn with $234 million funding round led by HCLTech
Indian IT services company HCLTech is investing $150 million in the Bengaluru startup.
As AI agents become employees, NewCore emerges with $66M to give them identities
NewCore argues the next challenge in enterprise security will be managing AI agents, not people.
Orbio raises $21 million to automate hiring and onboarding for frontline workers
Orbio announces $21 Million Series A in round led by Dawn Capital.
As AI companies race to go public, who else is along for the ride?
Startups are trying to “ride that SpaceX IPO wave.”
As Anthropic suspends access to new models, India debates its AI future
Tech leaders debate whether the Anthropic episode is a wake-up call for India’s AI ambitions.
Andrew Yang thinks the next big startup opportunity is lowering the cost of living
Andrew Yang made a list of everything Americans overpay for — housing, food, wireless — and thinks the next startup gold rush is giving that money back.
Theker just raised $85M to build the factory robot that doesn’t specialize in anything
Unlike humanoid robots designed around a fixed form — think Boston Dynamics — Theker’s machines are built to be reconfigured.
Bluesky launches group chats, as company shifts focus to community features
Bluesky’s latest feature is group chats, arriving amid a shift in focus on building features for smaller communities.
Quantum Space’s military SPAC is trying to catch SpaceX’s IPO wave
Quantum Space says SPACs aren’t dead as it seeks a $1.2 billion deal to build military spacecraft.