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Technology is reshaping how the world works.

The real question is not what it can do — but how we choose to use it.

We focus on using technology to support human evolution.

Progress works when responsibility stays human.

⚡ WHAT'S AT STAKE TODAY ⚡

1. 🚀💰 SpaceX vets raise $50M Series A for data center links
2. 🌍💸 World Labs lands $1B, with $200M from Autodesk, to bring world models into 3D workflows
3. 🧠💾 Running AI models is turning into a memory game
4. 🤖☁️ Mistral AI buys Koyeb in first acquisition to back its cloud ambitions
5. 🇮🇳📱 India's Sarvam wants to bring its AI models to feature phones, cars, and smart glasses
6. 🎓🇮🇳 OpenAI pushes into higher education as India seeks to scale AI skills
7. 🔍💼 Kana emerges from stealth with $15M to build flexible AI agents for marketers
8. 🎵🤖 Google adds music-generation capabilities to the Gemini app
9. 🛒🤖 Amazon halts Blue Jay robotics project after less than 6 months

Former SpaceX engineers secure funding for optical transceiver manufacturing startup

SpaceX vets raise $50M Series A for data center links

Three former SpaceX engineers who worked on optical communication systems for Starlink satellites have launched Mesh Optical Technologies, securing $50 million in Series A funding led by Thrive Capital. The Los Angeles-based startup aims to revolutionize the production of optical transceivers, critical components that enable high-speed data communication in AI data centers.

CEO Travis Brashears, President Cameron Ramos, and VP of Product Serena Grown-Haeberli identified the market opportunity while developing next-generation compute-intensive SpaceX satellites. Their assessment revealed significant limitations in the current optical transceiver market, particularly for applications requiring massive computational power.

Optical transceivers serve as crucial bridges between optical signals from fiber cables or lasers and electrical signals that computers can process. These devices are essential for AI data centers training large language models, as they enable multiple GPUs to work together seamlessly. The scale of demand is enormous – as Brashears explains, "Someone will brag about a million GPU cluster; you have to multiply by four to five for the number of transceivers in that cluster."

The market's potential is reflected in major contracts, such as the $4 billion deal won by established supplier AOI to provide components for AWS data centers. However, the industry faces a strategic challenge: Chinese firms and suppliers currently dominate the optical transceiver market.

Mesh Optical Technologies positions itself as a solution to this national security concern, building its supply chain outside China. Thrive Partner Philip Clark emphasized this strategic importance, stating, "If AI is the most important technology in several generations, to have critical parts of AI data center capex run through misaligned/competitive countries is a problem."

The company's ambitious production timeline involves manufacturing 1,000 units daily within the first year, positioning themselves to qualify for bulk orders in 2027 and 2028. This aggressive scaling plan addresses the immediate need for better AI interconnect solutions as the industry continues expanding.

Mesh faces significant manufacturing challenges, particularly in implementing automated, "lights-out" production techniques uncommon in U.S. industry. Much of this expertise currently resides in China, with even European equipment suppliers designing their processes around Chinese customers – some German firms' standard forms request Chinese company registration numbers.

The startup's strategy involves co-locating design and production to achieve greater efficiency and cost reduction. Their innovative approach has already yielded promising results: the current design eliminates a power-hungry component commonly used in existing systems. According to Ramos, this improvement could reduce GPU cluster power consumption by 3% to 5% – a significant efficiency gain for hyperscalers operating massive computing infrastructure.

Beyond data centers, Mesh Optical Technologies envisions a broader transformation in communications technology. The company sees optical wavelength communications as the next paradigm shift, moving beyond traditional radio frequency approaches.

"The world has primarily focused on radio frequencies for a long time," Brashears explained. "We want to be at the precipice of transition from RF to photonics...we want to interconnect everything, and not just computers, but that's where we're starting."

This vision extends far beyond their initial focus on AI data centers, suggesting potential applications across various industries and communication systems. The founding team's SpaceX experience with Starlink's optical communication systems provides valuable expertise for this ambitious expansion.

The $50 million Series A funding will support Mesh's rapid scaling efforts, automated manufacturing development, and market entry strategy. With AI continuing to drive unprecedented demand for high-performance computing infrastructure, the timing appears favorable for a domestic optical transceiver manufacturer offering improved efficiency and supply chain security.

Fei-Fei Li's World Labs raises $1B with Autodesk partnership

World Labs lands $1B, with $200M from Autodesk, to bring world models into 3D workflows

Fei-Fei Li's World Labs secured $1 billion in funding, with $200 million from Autodesk, alongside investments from AMD, Nvidia, and others. The partnership will explore integrating World Labs' AI world models with Autodesk's 3D design tools.

World Labs' "Marble" product creates editable 3D environments, complementing Autodesk's CAD software used in architecture, engineering, and entertainment. Starting with media use cases, the collaboration aims to combine spatial AI with traditional design workflows, enabling users to create immersive environments and detailed designs seamlessly.

🎙 New Episode: Turn Views Into Revenue with Ivan Unfiltered

Most businesses are posting content…
But very few are turning it into revenue.

In this episode, I sit down with Ivan Unfiltered — founder of Viral Video Labs and the force behind one of the biggest podcasts coming out of Las Vegas.

Ivan doesn’t just create content. He builds content systems that convert.

Through Viral Video Labs, he helps entrepreneurs and brands:

• Stop the scroll
• Capture real attention
• Turn short-form video into leads, sales, and authority

We break down:

• 🔥 Why most businesses fail at short-form
• 🔥 The difference between viral and profitable
• 🔥 How to build a repeatable content machine
• 🔥 The future of short-form media

If you’re serious about growing your brand online — this episode is a must-watch.

Amazon discontinues Blue Jay robot prototype after brief testing period.

⚡ Let’s Make AI Actually Useful:
What Would Move the Needle in *Your* Industry?

AI has potential — but generic advice rarely helps.

What would be genuinely valuable for AI to do in your industry right now?

• Automate a painful workflow?
• Improve decision-making?
• Replace a manual process that wastes time?
• Help your team upskill faster?

Tell us what you’d want AI to handle — or where you feel stuck.

We’re using these insights to curate **industry-specific trainings, live webinars, and practical guidance** you can actually apply.