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Top News

According to a report in The Information, Apple is weighing whether to buy Perplexity or Mistral as pressure mounts over its Google Search deal and internal rifts deepen between execs who want to buy their way into AI and those who think they can build it in-house. More here.

Anthropic settled with authors over its use of pirated books to train AI, sidestepping a court fight that could have potentially cost the company billions. TechCrunch has more here.

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DOGE Uploaded Live Copy of Social Security Database to ‘Vulnerable’ Cloud Server, Says Whistleblower

By Zack Whittaker

A top Social Security Administration official turned whistleblower says members of the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) uploaded hundreds of millions of Social Security records to a vulnerable cloud server, putting the personal information of most Americans at risk of compromise.

Charles Borges, the Social Security Administration’s chief data officer, said in a newly released whistleblower complaint published Tuesday that other top agency officials signed off on a decision in June to upload “a live copy of the country’s Social Security information in a cloud environment that circumvents oversight,” despite Borges raising concerns.

The database, known as the Numerical Identification System, contains more than 450 million records containing all of the data submitted as part of a Social Security application, including the applicant’s name, place of birth, citizenship, and the Social Security numbers of their family members, as well as other sensitive personal and financial information.

Borges said members of DOGE, the team of former Elon Musk employees appointed to government under the guise of reducing fraud and waste, copied the sensitive database to an agency-run Amazon-hosted cloud server “apparently lacking in independent security controls,” such as who was accessing the data and how they were using it. 

The lack of security protections violated internal agency security controls and federal privacy laws, the complaint alleges. 

Borges said by allowing DOGE to be administrators of the agency’s cloud, the DOGE operatives would be able to create “publicly accessible services,” meaning that they could allow public access to the cloud system and any of the sensitive data stored inside.

Massive Fundings

Attio, a seven-year-old London and San Francisco startup that has developed an AI-driven CRM system used by businesses to manage and build their go-to-market operations, raised a $52 million Series B round led by GV, with additional participation from previous investors Redpoint Ventures, Balderton Capital, Point Nine, and 01A. The company has raised a total of $116 million. More here.

Arnatar Therapeutics, a three-year-old San Diego startup that’s developing RNA-based drugs, including a therapy aimed at treating Alagille Syndrome by restoring bile duct function in children, raised a $52 million Series A round last year co-led by Eight Roads and 3E Bioventures, with F-Prime Capital, Zhuhai Huajin Capital, Legend Star, Transfar Capital, New Alliance Capital, Yijing Capital, Gaorong Ventures, Jifeng Ventures, and Hongsheng Capital also taking stakes. More here.

Blue Water Autonomy, a two-year-old Boston startup that is developing long-range autonomous ships for the U.S. Navy that can operate for months at sea and carry significant payloads for security and logistics missions, raised a $50 million Series A round led by GV, with additional participation from previous investors Eclipse Ventures, Riot, and Impatient Ventures. The company has raised a total of $64 million. More here.

Big-But-Not-Crazy-Big Fundings

Aurasell, a two-year-old startup based in San Mateo, CA, that develops customer relationship management software built with AI to consolidate sales and marketing tools into one system, raised a $30 million seed round. N47, Menlo Ventures, and Unusual Ventures invested in the deal. More here.

Eyebot, a four-year-old Boston startup that operates self-service kiosks offering 90-second vision tests that generate doctor-verified prescriptions, raised a $20 million Series A round led by General Catalyst, with previous investors AlleyCorp, Baukunst, Village Global, Humba Venture, Ravelin, and Ubiquity Ventures also participating. The company has raised a total of $30+ million. TechCrunch has more here.

Holo, an eight-year-old Dubai startup that helps Persian Gulf residents buy homes by providing digital mortgage and refinancing services, raised a $22 million Series A round led by Impact46, with Mubadala, Rua Growth Fund, anb seed, and MoreThan Capital as well as previous investors Salica Oryx Fund and Dubai Future District Fund also piling on. More here.

Incyclix Bio, a six-year-old startup based in Durham, NC, that is developing a CDK2 inhibitor to treat advanced cancers that are resistant to current therapies, raised an $11.3 million Series B extension round. Investors included Eshelman Ventures, Eli Lilly, Pharmacosmos, and Cape Fear BioCapital. More here.

Nest Health, a five-year-old New Orleans startup that delivers in-home and virtual medical, behavioral, and social care for families on Medicaid, raised a $12.5 million Series A round co-led by previous investors 8VC and Blue Venture Fund, with Amboy Street Ventures, Alumni Ventures, and Health 2047 also anteing up. More here.

Splight, a five-year-old San Francisco startup that uses machine learning to increase the transmission capacity of existing electric grids for utilities, renewable energy developers, and large power users, raised a $12.4 million SAFE round led by Blue Bear Capital and including Zoma Capital. More here.

Vaxxas, a 15-year-old company based in Hamilton, Australia, that is developing a needle-free microarray patch to deliver vaccines more easily and without traditional cold storage requirements, raised a $32 million Series D round led by SPRIM Global Investments, with LGT Crestone, OneVentures, and Brandon Capital-Hostplus also contributing. It also secured $26 million in debt. More here.

Smaller Fundings

Boost My School, a seven-year-old New York startup that provides fundraising software for K-12 schools to manage donations, events, and giving campaigns in one system, raised a $10 million round led by High Alpha, with Far Out VC, Ground Game, and Allos Ventures also opting in. More here.

Creem, a one-year-old startup based in Tallinn, Estonia, that builds financial tools for AI-focused startups to handle global payments, taxes, revenue automation, and revenue sharing across teams and contractors, raised a $2.1 million pre-seed round. Practica Capital was the deal lead. EU-Startups has more here.

Holiwise, a two-year-old London startup that is developing an AI travel service that instantly plans and books personalized trips, including flights, accommodation, and activities, raised a $1.7 million pre-seed round led by banker Bobby Previti. Tech.eu has more here.

Payment Labs, a six-year-old Los Angeles startup that provides software for managing international payments, compliance, and reporting for industries like sports, esports, and the creator economy, raised a $3.25 million seed round led by Aperture Venture Capital, with Capital Eleven and ESPMX also joining in. More here.

Sequifi, a six-year-old startup based in Lehi, UT, that provides home service businesses with an all-in-one platform for payroll, HR, and workforce management, including same-day pay for workers, raised a $6.7 million seed round led by Cervin Ventures, with Frazier Group and Tokyo Black also investing. More here.

Yottar, a two-year-old UK startup that maps electrical grid capacity to help organizations identify where they can connect new facilities such as data centers, EV chargers, and hospital equipment, raised a $1 million pre-seed round. Haatch was the lead investor, with Cape Capital also taking part. TechCrunch has more here.

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Going Public

Klarna is dusting off its IPO plans, targeting a U.S. listing next month at a $13 to $14 billion valuation, a sharp drop from the $50 billion peak it once chased but still a hefty bet that buy-now-pay-later has legs in public markets. Reuters has more here.

People

Melania Trump is hosting an AI competition for K-12 students and positioning herself as the “First Lady of Technology.” The New York Post has more here.

Speaking of the First Family, Donald Trump Jr. will take a seat on Polymarket's board after it was revealed that his venture firm, 1789 Capital, invested tens of millions in Polymarket, a billion-dollar prediction market now cleared for U.S. entry after buying a licensed exchange and settling federal probes. Axios has the scoop here.

Microsoft President Brad Smith held an emergency press conference today after protesters occupied his Redmond office and planted listening devices, calling the tactics unnecessary while defending the company's Israeli contracts amid ongoing demonstrations over Azure cloud services. TechCrunch has more here.

In this week's episode of StrictlyVC Download, Connie talks to Uncork Capital's Jeff Clavier and Andy McLoughlin about backing AI chipmaker Groq and other AI-native bets, spotting unique datasets before they’re obvious, pushing portfolio companies to reinvent for an AI-first world, and whether San Francisco’s AI-fueled revival has legs.

Post-Its

Data

New Stanford research finds AI is cutting young workers out of jobs it can easily replace like entry-level coding and customer service while boosting hiring in fields where it serves more as a tool than a substitute, such as healthcare and research. The Wall Street Journal has more here.

Essential Reads

The parents of a 16-year-old who died by suicide are suing OpenAI, alleging its chatbot provided details about how to kill himself and discouraged him from seeking help. The New York Times has more here.

Google’s new AI hurricane model just beat the National Hurricane Center and top physics-based systems in tracking and intensity forecasts for Category 5 Erin, a sign that AI could soon rival traditional methods in the high-stakes business of storm prediction. Ars Technica has more here.

Meta is launching a California super PAC to pour tens of millions into backing state candidates who favor light-touch regulation of AI and social media. Politico has more here.

Detours

The U.S. Open has quietly become one of the biggest booze festivals in sports, with Grey Goose’s $23 Honey Deuce racking up $10+ million in sales last year and brands from Moët to Aperol cashing in as tennis morphs into both a cultural and cocktail event.

It’s not just the Goo Goo Dolls who are back in vogue; a 1997 Radiohead song is on the Hot 100 charts.

In honor of National Dog Day, I Am a Dog. I Am About to Puke. Where Is the Good Rug?

A 248-square-foot Parisian apartment that makes the most of every inch.

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Retail Therapy

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While the $7,399 price tag for Hasselblad’s new medium-format X2D II 100C puts it far out of reach of the average consumer, it’s $800 less than its predecessor while offering important new features like continuous autofocus, LiDAR-assisted tracking, and true HDR imaging.

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