About that Nvidia-China deal...

Top News

• Nvidia clarifies its China business: On the heels of reporting that Nvidia is investing in R&D in China, the company told the news media that it will not send “graphics processing unit plans” to the nation for adaptation to the local market. The global race to build the fastest AI chips, train the best models, and apply AI as broadly as possible is not merely a business case — it’s also a geopolitical struggle. A struggle with Nvidia stuck in the middle: the chip company wants to do business without losing the favor of its home market’s government… OR earning the ire of China’s own technocratic corps.

• Anthropic’s credit line: AI model giant Anthropic has reached a $2 billion revenue run rate, and to pair with the top line milestone, CNBC reports that the company landed a $2.5 billion credit line. A host of banks, including Morgan Stanely, JPMorgan, and Goldman, took part in the deal. With its revenue now comfortably in the ten-figure range, leaning on debt instead of equity capital makes sense for the former startup. After all, it can prove cheaper to lease capital than to sell shares in the long run — provided your valuation keeps going up. And with $2 billion in revenue, it hardly seems likely that Anthropic’s numbers are in any danger of heading south.

• VCs double down on AI video: Today on the podcast we played with ElevenLabs’ latest AI audio tool. But AI audio tools are hardly the only non-text medium to enjoy venture favor. TechCrunch reports that after raising $70 million in late 2024, and another $34 million a month ago, Moonvalley — “a Los Angeles-based startup developing AI tools for video creation,” per Kyle Wiggers — has tacked on another $10 million worth of funding. That’s a lot of dosh in just a few quarters!

TWiST500

While it’s newsy that TWiST500 company Windsurf has new AI models in the field, it’s even newsier that its potential future parent company has built something so directly competitive: Codex.

Codex is a new agentic tool from OpenAI that builds off its o3 model, bringing to market what Altman and company call “a cloud-based software engineering agent that can work on many tasks in parallel.” Given that the agreement between OpenAI and Windsurf is expected by the market to be all but a done deal, we’re getting a good look at how the two companies diverge.

Windsurf is building more than just AI. The startup renamed itself after the IDE it launched to better unify human developers, their AI helpers, and traditional SWE workflows. OpenAI, in contrast, is bringing the early version of Codex to select customers inside of ChatGPT.

It’s not impossible to see where OpenAI’s models and Windsurf’s popular developer platform could find common ground.

Today on the podcast, Jason argued that Windsurf should not sell for $3 billion. I’ve written that the company should hold out for at least $5 billion. Jason said $10 billion. Whatever the final figure is, should Windsurf end its independent run, here’s hoping that it doesn’t lose its vision once a part of a far-larger concern. (Who doesn’t love an enemies-to-lovers arc?)

Until that deal is done, the two companies both retain their spots on our list. — Alex

A message from LinkedIn Ads

To redeem a $100 LinkedIn ad credit and launch your first campaign, go to http://www.linkedin.com/thisweekinstartups

This Week in Startups

E2126: Podcast giant and Florida transplant Dave Rubin is Jason’s special guest on a politics and media-heavy edition of TWiST. Plus Jason and Alex talk the Chime IPO, Databricks major bet on agentic AI, startups offering Postgres as a service, and more.

E2125: On a special Tuesday TWiST, Alex chats with founders from two cutting edge frontier technologies reshaping our world. First up, ZioSec hopes to improve cybersecurity by putting AI agents on the case. Then, hear about how Terabase wants to use mobile robotic factories to transform how we build and maintain our solar power infrastructure.

E2124: Jason, Lon, and Alex examine Perplexity’s WILD $14 billion valuation and openly wonder why they need MORE funding. Plus, does Y Combinator REALLY think Google should be broken up, and if so, why don’t they stick to their guns? All that and the guys chat with Streamfog’s Kevin Bondzio about the promise of AR-powered podcast ads.

TWiST Partner Offers

• Squarespace: Turn your idea into a new website! Go to https://www.Squarespace.com/TWIST for a free trial. When you’re ready to launch, use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain.

• Northwest Registered Agent: Starting your business should be simple. With Northwest Registered Agent, you can form your entire business identity in just 10 clicks and 10 minutes. From LLCs to trademarks, domains to custom websites, they’ve got you covered. Get more privacy, more options, and more done—visit https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist today!

• Lemon.io: Hire pre-vetted remote developers, get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://Lemon.io/twist

Want to Work for This Week in Startups?

We’re looking to fill two in-person sales positions at our Austin, Texas HQ! First, a high-performing Sales Executive to help us seek out and promote clients, sponsorships, branded content, and more. Plus an experienced Sales Manager to lead, coach, and scale our sales executive team, while setting performance goals. Love the podcast and have B2B sales experience? We want to hear from you!

SF Live-Work Space Now Available

Need a flexible living and working environment in San Francisco? This thoughtfully designed loft-style residence at 787 Bryant St., the heart of the vibrant SOMA district and the city’s creative hub, is now available for rent or purchase. Check the listing for more details.

Founder University

Applications are open for Founder University Cohort 11, a 12-week remote pre-accelerator program tailored towards navigating early-startup practices, building an MVP, and growing traction. Submit your application at Founder University— Cohort 10 will kick off Summer 2025!

LAUNCH Accelerator

Are you a pre-Series A founder with a product in the market? Applications are now open for LAUNCH Accelerator's 35th cohort—starting Summer 2025—where you'll perfect your pitch, grow your business, and connect with top Silicon Valley investors. Apply here and take your startup to the next level!

The TWiST500 newsletter is the new, updated, and improved TWiST Ticker.