Weekly Digest: SpaceX Consolidates AI, Voice Tech Hits $11B, and MrBeast Buys a Bank
Massive moves this week — from Elon Musk’s trillion-dollar consolidation to MrBeast’s foray into fintech.
This week alone, startups secured billions in new capital, voice AI reached a staggering $11B valuation, and Elon Musk unified his empire in a $1.25 trillion mega-merger. Meanwhile, the world’s biggest creator officially entered the fintech race by acquiring his own bank.
To help you make sense of it all, we’ve rounded up the most talked-about startup stories from the past week — broken down into these categories:
🔔 The latest trend
🗝️ Read of the week
🔍 Top tech news
💰 Startup funding news
👀 New VC funds
🤝 Acquisitions
🎤 Must-watch interviews
Let’s dive in 🚀
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🔔 The latest trend
I recently got back from Dubai where I spoke at the 1 Billion Followers Summit — easily one of the best creator events globally right now.
Last year, I talked about how far the creator economy had come from a startup perspective. This year, I went deeper on a single question: Is Vibe Coding the Breakthrough for Creators?
I’ve been tracking this trend for months, and 2026 is officially the year the technical barrier didn’t just lower — it vanished.
Why this is a land grab right now:
Zero-Barrier Entry: Launching a custom app used to be a $50k investment. Now? It’s cheaper than a monthly gym membership.
The “Vibe” Stack: Tools like Lovable, Bolt.new, and Replit Agent let you build full-scale software just by describing it.
Global from Day One: AI dubbing and voice-cloning mean you can reach every market in your own voice, instantly.
Distribution as Leverage: If you own the attention, you own the demand. Creators are now refining that attention into software IP rather than just selling ads.
Read the latest trends reshaping the creator economy.
🗝️ Read of the week
As Deel went from zero to $1B ARR, countless well-wishers asked us to ‘grow-up’ and build an HQ and an office. We grew fast not despite being remote but because of it.
Storytime: This is a picture of me and my friend Sami in 2014 taking a 2-hour nap during a hackathon in London. This photo encapsulates the ‘hacker-bedroom energy’ that was characteristic of early Deel (though this was taken much before).
Continue reading - - >
🔍 Top tech news
ElevenLabs raises $500M from Sequoia at an $11 billion valuation.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX acquiring AI startup xAI ahead of potential IPO.
MrBeast’s company buys Gen Z-focused fintech app Step.
💰 Startup funding news
Fundamental with a new take on big data analysis raised $255M Series A led by Oak HC/FT, Valor Equity Partners, Battery Ventures, and Salesforce Ventures.
Duna founded by Stripe alumni raised €30M Series A led by Alphabet’s growth fund CapitalG.
Lunar Energy raised $102M Series D to deploy home batteries that prop up the grid. The round was led by B Capital and Prelude Ventures.
India’s Varaha raised $20M Series B to scale carbon removal from the Global South led by WestBridge Capital.
Former Cohere exec Sara Hooker has raised $50 million for her AI startup Adaption Labs — a bet on smaller, smarter models. The round was led by Emergence Capital Partners.
Dating app Ditto raised $9.2M Seed led by Peak XV Partners.
Gather AI, a startup that offers an AI platform for warehouse cameras and drones, raised $40 million Series B led by Smith Point Capital.
Resolve AI, a startup automating the work of system reliability engineering raised $125 million Series A at a $1 billion valuation led by Lightspeed Venture Partners.
Indonesian mobile coffee startup Jago raised $12M Series B led by Beenext.
Positron raised $230M Series B to take on Nvidia’s AI chips. The round was led by Arena Private Wealth, Jump Trading, and Unless.
Cybersecurity startup Lema has come out of stealth and raised $24 million Series A led by Team 8.
👀 New VC funds
Mundi Ventures closes on €750M for Kembara, its largest deep tech and climate fund.
French climate investor SlateVC raised €132 million first close for inaugural growth fund.
Pritzker Group veterans raise $50M venture capital fund.
Golden Sparrow Ventures raised $20M in first close of Fund II.
🤝 Acquisitions
🎤 Must-watch interviews
The $1.7B Mistake That Ended a Founder’s Dream | Colin Angle
Andreessen Horowitz General Partner: Venture Capital’s Future | David Haber.
He Built A $1.8B AI Company With No Experience | Max Junestrand.
Forget AI: Inside the Meltdown That Made Airalo #1 eSIM Unicorn | Ahmet Bahadir Ozdemir.
The Hidden Skill Behind Every Successful Founder | Lindsay Kaplan.
The Harsh Truth About Building a Startup in the AI Era | Anish Acharya.
The AI Version of You Will Outperform You — Emad Mostaque.
How Solana Survived When Most Other Coins Fell | Anatoly Yakovenko.
Watch now!
