**Mathematicians are at the forefront of artificial intelligence**, developing models capable of solving complex math problems. This innovation isn't just about numbers; it's a gateway to solving a myriad of other challenges. Developers from OpenAI and other leading tech firms believe that AI mastering hard math can apply similar reasoning to broader issues.

![Stanford Math PhD’s AI Startup Targets $300 Million Valuation](https://tii.imgix.net/production/articles/15166/9cde30cc-0ba9-4cc7-9845-a49bf52664d9-633Vb5.png?auto=compress&fit=crop&auto=format)

**The startup**, founded by Stanford Math PhDs, is on a rapid ascent, targeting a **$300 million valuation**. Their work represents a significant leap in AI's capability to tackle not just mathematical problems but to extend its reasoning to various domains, promising a future where AI's problem-solving skills are unparalleled.

This venture underscores the **growing intersection between advanced mathematics and AI**, highlighting how deep academic expertise can drive technological breakthroughs. The team's background in mathematics provides a unique advantage in developing AI models that can understand and solve problems at an unprecedented level.

Mathematicians have been enthralled with artificial intelligence that can solve difficult math problems. And some developers behind these models at OpenAI and elsewhere believe AI that learns to solve hard math can use similar reasoning methods to solve other types of problems.But since today’s ...

Stanford Math Geniuses Launch AI Startup Eyeing $300M Valuation - The Future of Problem-Solving AI

The artificial intelligence sector continues to break barriers, with **Anysphere Inc.**, the creator of the **AI coding assistant Cursor**, leading the charge. The startup has announced a staggering **$900 million funding round**, catapulting its valuation to **$9.9 billion**. This marks a significant leap from its $2.5 billion valuation earlier in the year.

### The Rise of Cursor
Launched in 2023, **Cursor** has revolutionized coding with its AI-infused editor, offering real-time suggestions and a chatbot for code-related queries. With subscription plans at **$20 for individuals** and **$40 for businesses**, Cursor has quickly become indispensable for over a million daily users, including giants like **OpenAI, Spotify, and Instacart**.

### A Surge in Enterprise Adoption
Initially popular among individual developers, Anysphere has now turned its focus to **enterprise sales**, with businesses contributing a "big chunk" of its revenue. Over half of the **Fortune 500** companies are now utilizing Cursor in some capacity.

### Facing the Competition
Despite its rapid growth, Anysphere isn't without rivals. **OpenAI** is in talks to acquire **Windsurf**, a competitor, for about **$3 billion**, signaling the intense competition in the AI coding assistant space.

### Investing in the Future
The new funding will primarily fuel **research and development**, including enhancements to its AI models and the acquisition of **GPUs** necessary for AI training. Anysphere's team is also set to expand, growing from **60 to over 100 employees** in just a few months.

With its unprecedented growth and the backing of investors like **Thrive Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, and Accel**, Anysphere is not just riding the AI wave—it's leading it.

The artificial intelligence rush has enabled some small startups to grow very big very quickly. But by some estimates, none have grown as fast as Anysphere Inc., maker of the popular AI coding assistant Cursor, which has surpassed $500 million in annualized revenue, the company said.

Anysphere Shatters Records: $900M Boost Propels AI Coding Assistant to $9.9B Valuation

**Electric truck startup Bollinger Motors** has successfully exited U.S. bankruptcy court, thanks to additional financial support from its parent company, **Mullen Automotive Inc.** This marks a significant turnaround for the suburban Detroit-based company, which has faced its fair share of challenges.

![Mullen Automotive trucks](https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/X033EUdvRIryIj8w2GEf1g--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTY0MDtoPTM1MztjZj13ZWJw/https://media.zenfs.com/en/automotive_news_105/cef19057f812bb2e0a28aa8cc0754580)

Mullen Automotive, based in California, has increased its ownership stake in Bollinger Motors to **95 percent** by acquiring an additional 21 percent. This move comes as Mullen executes its second reverse stock split in as many months to comply with Nasdaq share price rules.

**Key Developments:**
- **Robert Bollinger**, the founder, was paid $11 million by Mullen, resolving a lawsuit where he claimed the company was broke and sought to recover his loan.
- **James Taylor** is set to oversee daily operations as a consultant, marking his return after departing in March.
- Mullen plans to **consolidate its engineering base** from Irvine, California, to its tech center near Detroit, adding 40 to 50 employees in Troy, Michigan.

**Production Resumption:**
Mullen CEO **David Michery** announced that production of **Class 4 trucks** would resume in eight to 10 weeks, with plans to expand the metro Detroit staff in anticipation of increased demand. However, the stagnant market poses a challenge.

**Supply Chain Cleanup:**
Bollinger Motors has been embroiled in lawsuits from suppliers alleging non-payment. Michery is actively addressing these debts, including payments to contract manufacturer **Roush**, which assembles the Class 4 trucks.

California-based Mullen acquired an additional 21 percent of Bollinger, bringing its ownership stake in the company to 95 percent.

Bollinger Motors Emerges from Bankruptcy with Mullen Automotive's Lifeline - A New Chapter Begins

**Cellebrite**, a leader in forensic technology for smartphone unlocking, has announced its acquisition of **Corellium**, a mobile testing startup, for a staggering **$170 million**. This deal, comprising $150 million in cash and $20 million in equity, marks a significant step towards enhancing mobile security testing capabilities.

### The Strategic Move
Cellebrite, headquartered in Israel, specializes in exploiting unknown vulnerabilities, such as **zero-day exploits**, to access encrypted data on smartphones. The acquisition of Corellium is poised to accelerate the identification of mobile vulnerabilities and exploits, bolstering Cellebrite's arsenal in digital forensics.

### Corellium's Edge
Corellium offers a unique platform that provides **virtual, cloud-based Android and iOS devices** for app and security testing. This innovative solution had previously drawn legal challenges from Apple, highlighting its potential to disrupt traditional testing methodologies.

### Regulatory Hurdles
The deal is pending approval from the **Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS)**, a U.S. government body that reviews transactions potentially impacting national security. The outcome of this review is eagerly awaited, with the deal expected to close later this year.

Cellebrite said the deal will help with the "accelerated identification of mobile vulnerabilities and exploits."

Cellebrite's $170M Gamble: Acquiring Corellium to Revolutionize Mobile Security Testing

**Ewelina Zajac-Holdrege's story is a testament to the power of perseverance and innovation in the startup world.** Starting from a modest basement office, she has risen to be named the **2025 Small Businessperson of the Year**, a title that underscores her remarkable journey and contributions to the business community.

Her approach combines **cutting-edge technology with a deep understanding of customer needs**, setting her apart in a competitive landscape. This recognition not only highlights her personal achievements but also serves as inspiration for aspiring entrepreneurs everywhere.

### Key Strategies Behind Her Success
- **Customer-Centric Innovation**: Ewelina's ability to listen and adapt to her customers' evolving needs has been central to her success.
- **Leveraging Technology**: Utilizing the latest tech trends to streamline operations and enhance product offerings.
- **Community Engagement**: Building strong relationships within the business community to foster growth and collaboration.

Huge Savings: Subscribe today to enjoy sports, entertainment, life, money, tech, and travel news along with videos, apps, and more.

From Humble Beginnings to 2025 Small Businessperson of the Year: The Inspiring Journey of Ewelina Zajac-Holdrege

A fiery debate is ripping through European tech circles on LinkedIn: **should founders adopt the “996” work schedule** — working 9am to 9pm, six days a week?

Evangelists of the 996 life say it’s the only way for startups to build successful companies, and compete in an AI-powered world where products are being shipped at breakneck speed and competition is intensifying.

“What European founders need to realise: the valley has turned up the intensity once again. Seven day days a week is the required velocity to win right now,” wrote 20VC founder Harry Stebbings in a LinkedIn post, to a mixture of praise and protest. “You aren’t competing against a random company in Germany, but the best in the world.”

Several forces are driving the shift to 996, said Index Ventures partner Martin Mignot on LinkedIn — among them AI. “This feels like a once-in-a-generation (or once-in-humanity) moment, and it’s moving incredibly fast. The size of the opportunity and the pace of change means any minute not working on your product is costly.”

Opponents of the idea say it’s a recipe for burnout — and no way to build a business in the long-term.

### A recipe for burnout

Plenty of founders who have built a business think 996 isn’t a great idea. Some told Sifted they experienced significant health issues after working non-stop to scale their startup.

“Building a startup is a long game. And ‘996’ is one of the fastest ways to burn out — we’ve all seen it happen, both openly and behind the scenes,” Nino Dvalidze, founder and CEO of Young Minds App, tells Sifted.

“In my experience, when you have a strong team, you focus on the right things, and you’re building where there’s real demand — you simply don’t need to work yourself into the ground.”

Some VCs who have built companies themselves are sceptical of the 996 narrative — especially when it is being endorsed by investors that haven’t been founders themselves.

Suranga Chandratillake, general partner at Balderton Capital and a former founder, says that while there are moments where entrepreneurs do have to work hard and push themselves to the limit, those periods must always be followed up with time to rest and recover.

“Building a really big company is a marathon. No one works all day, every day for a decade or two. You have to build balance into the journey,” he wrote on LinkedIn.

“The better founders know when to step back, reflect, talk to others, etc. Bill Gates always took a week out to read and reflect while becoming the richest person on the planet. If he found the time to do it, you probably can too.”

Balderton Capital was the first VC in Europe to set up a [founder wellbeing programme](https://sifted.eu/articles/wellness-programmes-founder-burnout) with the aim of helping founders build resilience and prevent burnout. Other VCs like Cherry Ventures and climate firm AENU have since launched their own programmes.

The founder-athlete analogy is one that is repeated over and over again when talking about the tightrope founders must walk to scale a successful tech company, while being careful not to overstep their physical or mental limits.

But athletes do train *hard*, points out Seth Bannon, founder of deeptech company builder 5050.

“If a 996 schedule leads a founder to burnout, they shouldn’t do it. But the reality is, founders who can’t sustain intense effort are likely to be outrun by those who can. Endurance matters in startups, just like it does in sport.”

“Fortunately, endurance isn’t fixed. Founders can improve it by exercising, eating well, and sleeping well,” he added.

“The best founders have always worked more than 996… How can anyone think they can build a generation-defining company in 40 hours per week?” Jan Claudio Muñoz, partner at BackBone Ventures, an early-stage VC investing in underrepresented founders, tells Sifted in a LinkedIn message.

“I'd only start a company with someone who I'm sure will work almost nonstop and not clock out after 9pm.”

### For the few

There’s also the question of what kind of tech ecosystem a 996 schedule would foster.

“If the future of tech requires 996 then it’s a future built by and for the privileged few,” says Nina Neumann, founders associate at Female Invest, a platform helping women learn about finance and investing.

“It’s hard not to notice how these visions of success rarely include space for parents, caregivers, or anyone outside the traditional founder mold. We need models that work for more than just the work-obsessed and for anyone with a life that doesn’t revolve just around work.”

Index Ventures’ Mignot also acknowledged in his post that 996 may be “particularly appealing” to younger people who haven’t yet got families, and are willing to put their life on hold for a few years to grow their companies.

“The key question for the companies that reach escape velocity is how to maintain the quality and speed of their output after they’ve grown out of this early Big Bang phase when maximum energy needs to be applied to create something out of nothing,” he said.

“This is where processes and systems become needed to make the unsustainable sustainable.”

### Stick to what works for you

Other founders say it’s hard to make blanket statements about how many hours we should spend at work — as the sweet spot will be different for everyone.

Success also looks different for every founder.

“The best startups succeed because they're nimble and adaptive, not because they follow rigid frameworks,” wrote Pedro Pamplona Henriques, cofounder of The Newsroom, an AI-powered tool helping journalists in their research and reporting processes on LinkedIn.

“As a founder I'm finding that what works best for me is to listen to my needs and the business' need: 996 can be awesome if I'm in a flow, 965 can be great to re-focus, 007 can be just what I need to take a step back. These numbers are irrelevant by themselves.”

And with AI supposedly speeding things up, shouldn’t we all be thinking about how we can do more in less time?

“We’re shipping faster today because building and distributing software is cheaper than ever, not because we tack on extra shifts,” says Sandra Dajic, head of growth and marketing at AI agent platform for customer experience Chatbase, which has [scaled to $6m ARR with 14 people.](https://sifted.eu/articles/how-to-bootstrap-to-multi-m-arr)

“What Europe really needs is investors who take more (and wider) bets, back founders from different backgrounds, step outside the usual circles. And founders should spend less time chasing those investors and more time on the fun part: building, selling, iterating.”

Get your popcorn at the ready folks, this debate has got fiery on LinkedIn

The 996 Work Schedule Debate: Scaling Success or Fast Track to Burnout?

Despite a political environment that some experts describe as increasingly hostile to AI research and development, **North America continues to lead in AI venture capital investments**. According to PitchBook data, between February and May of this year, **VCs invested $69.7 billion in North American AI and machine learning startups** across 1,528 deals. This starkly contrasts with the $6.4 billion invested in European AI ventures across 742 deals and the $3 billion in Asia-based AI startups across 515 deals during the same period.

### The Political Landscape and Its Impact
Under President Donald Trump, the U.S. has seen significant cuts to scientific grants for basic AI research, increased difficulties for foreign AI students, and threats to university-housed AI labs due to frozen federal funds. These policies, along with retaliatory tariffs, have created a chaotic market that seems unfavorable for risky AI ventures. Yet, **North American startups secured 75.6% of all VC AI funding in 2024**, a share that has increased to **86.2% in 2025**.

### Europe and Asia Lag Behind
Despite the EU's commitment to becoming a global AI leader and China's high-profile AI startups like DeepSeek and Butterfly Effect, **there's no significant shift in global AI investment towards these regions**. Export controls affecting AI chip procurement in Asia and the lack of a mass VC exodus to Europe highlight the challenges these regions face in competing with North America.

### The Unshaken Dominance of North America
The data paints a surprising picture: **even with political and regulatory challenges, the U.S. remains the center for AI capital**. Investors, despite the unpredictability, continue to bet on U.S. innovation for the highest returns, underscoring the region's enduring appeal in the global AI landscape.

Despite what some experts have characterized as an environment increasingly hostile to AI R&D, North America continues to receive the bulk of AI venture dollars, according to data from investment tracker Pitchbook.

Why North America Dominates AI VC Funding Despite Political Challenges

**TPG Angelo Gordon** has stepped in as an anchor investor for a significant debt package aimed at funding **Elon Musk’s** artificial intelligence venture, **xAI Corp.** This move comes as **Morgan Stanley** begins pre-marketing efforts for a debt offering that could propel xAI's ambitious projects forward.

### The Deal Breakdown
- **TPG Angelo Gordon** is investing in a loan that forms part of xAI's broader debt offering.
- **Morgan Stanley** is leading the charge, with early pricing discussions suggesting a **7 percentage points over the benchmark rate** for the floating-rate term loan and a **12% yield** on senior notes.
- The debt package is diverse, including a **floating-rate term loan, a fixed-rate term loan, and senior secured notes**.

### Why This Matters
This financial maneuver is part of Musk's larger strategy to **refocus on his business empire**, stepping back from political engagements. The funds are expected to support **general corporate purposes**, with a keen eye on advancing xAI's **Memphis data center, Colossus**, a critical hub for AI development.

### The Bigger Picture
Musk's recent merger of xAI with **X (formerly Twitter)** into **XAI Holdings** underscores his commitment to integrating AI across his ventures. This debt backing could be the catalyst needed to accelerate innovation in a fiercely competitive AI landscape.

TPG Angelo Gordon is an anchor investor in a debt package for Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup, xAI Corp., according to people with knowledge of the matter.

Stanford Math Geniuses Launch AI Startup Eyeing $300M Valuation - The Future of Problem-Solving AI

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Other Latest News

Anysphere Shatters Records: $900M Boost Propels AI Coding Assistant to $9.9B Valuation

Bollinger Motors Emerges from Bankruptcy with Mullen Automotive's Lifeline - A New Chapter Begins

Cellebrite's $170M Gamble: Acquiring Corellium to Revolutionize Mobile Security Testing

From Humble Beginnings to 2025 Small Businessperson of the Year: The Inspiring Journey of Ewelina Zajac-Holdrege

The 996 Work Schedule Debate: Scaling Success or Fast Track to Burnout?

Why North America Dominates AI VC Funding Despite Political Challenges

Elon Musk's xAI Secures Major Debt Backing from TPG: A Game-Changer for AI Innovation

Other Latest News

Anysphere Shatters Records: $900M Boost Propels AI Coding Assistant to $9.9B Valuation

Bollinger Motors Emerges from Bankruptcy with Mullen Automotive's Lifeline - A New Chapter Begins

Cellebrite's $170M Gamble: Acquiring Corellium to Revolutionize Mobile Security Testing

From Humble Beginnings to 2025 Small Businessperson of the Year: The Inspiring Journey of Ewelina Zajac-Holdrege

The 996 Work Schedule Debate: Scaling Success or Fast Track to Burnout?

Why North America Dominates AI VC Funding Despite Political Challenges

Elon Musk's xAI Secures Major Debt Backing from TPG: A Game-Changer for AI Innovation