Colossal Biosciences raises $200M to bring back extinct animals

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• Startup reviving woolly mammoths hits $10.2B valuation: Colossal Biosciences, the startup working to bring back the woolly mammoth, dodo, and Tasmanian tiger, has raised $200M at a $10.2B valuation—more than six times its value just two years ago. Co-founded by Ben Lamm and geneticist George Church, the company plans to produce a mammoth calf by 2028 while advancing technologies to support conservation and endangered species. Despite skepticism about the risks and feasibility of de-extinction, Colossal’s vision has attracted investors like TWG Global and In-Q-Tel.

• Synthesia lands $180M: Synthesia, the London startup behind AI-powered video avatars, just raised $180M at a $2.1B valuation. With 60,000 businesses already using its platform for training, sales, and marketing, the company plans to expand into Asia Pacific and make its avatars even more lifelike and interactive. Backers like NEA and GV love its enterprise-first focus, which has helped Synthesia carve out a lead in the competitive AI video space.

• Stoke raises $260M to build fully reusable rockets: Y Combinator alum Stoke Space just closed a $260M Series C, bringing its total funding to $480M. Founded by Blue Origin veterans Andy Lapsa and Tom Feldman, the startup is working to develop the first fully reusable rocket, including both the booster and second stage. Fresh off a successful engine test, Stoke plans to use the funds to expand its operations at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Backers include Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Point72 Ventures, and Seven Seven Six.

TWiST500

After earning a somewhat saucy moniker for posts on its social service, Bluesky is back in the news with another somewhat awkward product title: Flashes. Yes. As you probably guessed, Flashes is a photo-sharing app that TechCrunch reports will launch shortly. And like the community-sourced name for individual quips on Bluesky, it’s coming from a third party.

A social network featuring third-party apps? In 2025? Yep. Unlike Reddit, which clamped down on its own API, Bluesky is predicated on the open AT Protocol, so folks can just build stuff.

That openness is one reason why we are bullish on Bluesky carving out a future in the social media space. Centralized social media giants like Snap, Meta, X, and others are good, but surely there’s room for something in the market that is less owned by a handful of shareholders?

Not that Bluesky is immune to such criticism—there’s a push called Free Our Feeds that wants to build on the AT Protocol but without the backing of traditional investors. If FOF succeeds, cool. That should only help Bluesky, we reckon; the more used the AT Protocol is, the stronger all apps and services that depend on it should be.

And as we noted on the show today, Bluesky is ranking pretty darn high on iOS these days. Its place amongst the most downloaded apps implies that people are still curious about the erstwhile Twitter rival. — Alex

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This Week in Startups

E2071: Alex opens the show and dives into Mark Zuckerberg's Joe Rogan interview, OpenAI's economic pitch, and the pending IPO of India’s Groww. Alex interviews two of our TWiST500 members, James Cadwallader (Profound) and Martin Rehak (Resistant AI), who discuss their companies' innovative approaches to SEO and fraud detection. The episode also covers the Biden administration's AI diffusion plan and shifts in the global tech landscape.

E2070: Jason shares highlights from his recent trip to Japan before tackling pressing issues like the LA wildfire crisis, federal aid challenges, and the potential for lawsuits against California over damages. The conversation shifts to the economic impact of inflation, the latest job report, and how automation and AI are transforming the labor market. Plus, they cover TikTok’s Supreme Court case and highlight wildfire relief efforts through the LA Fire Department Wildfire Fund.

E2069: Jason and Alex kick off the episode with a discussion about the recent fires in Pacific Palisades and Malibu, exploring the implications for insurance and startup opportunities. They dive into Meta's new content moderation strategy, analyzing Zuckerberg's motivations and potential actions from leadership. The conversation shifts to NVIDIA's AI supercomputer chip, Lenovo's rollable laptop, and Slack's iOS integration, showcasing cutting-edge innovations in tech. The episode wraps with a look at BYD's new supercar, Anthropic's valuation, and Jason’s experience with luxury Japanese minivans.

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