Lion Herald Newsroom updates on Friday September 4th 2026

Thinking Machines, the AI startup founded by former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati, is reportedly in talks to raise $1 billion at a valuation of at least $40 billion.

Existing investor Accel is in discussions to lead the round, according to The Information and a source familiar with the talks. The proposed valuation is below the $50 billion the company reportedly sought late last year.

Thinking Machines has an annual revenue run rate exceeding $100 million, making the potential $40 billion valuation a substantial multiple of current revenue.

The startup launched Inkling, an open-weight AI model, in July and generates revenue through usage-based compute fees on its Tinker platform.

Thinking Machines previously raised $2 billion at a $12 billion valuation in one of the largest seed rounds on record. The company has since seen several prominent departures, including co-founders who returned to OpenAI.

AI infrastructure company Crusoe has raised $3 billion at a $30 billion valuation, tripling its valuation in less than a year, according to Bloomberg.

The round is being co-led by Atreides Management and Valor Equity Partners, with participation from Mubadala Capital, the asset management arm of Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund Mubadala.

The financing follows a reported $13 billion, five-year cloud agreement with quantitative trading firm Jane Street, under which Crusoe will provide GPUs and AI infrastructure.

Crusoe previously raised $1.38 billion at a $10 billion valuation in October 2025.

Founded in 2018 as a cryptocurrency mining operation powered by flared natural gas, Crusoe has evolved into a major data center and AI cloud provider, serving customers including Meta, Microsoft and OpenAI.

The company is also exploring a potential IPO and recently held discussions with investment banks including Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley.

Smart ring maker Oura has filed to go public, revealing rapid revenue growth as it looks to expand beyond traditional fitness tracking.

The company generated $1.2 billion in revenue during the nine months ended June 30, up from $697 million in the same period a year earlier, according to its SEC filing. Oura expects annual revenue to approach $2 billion this year.

Oura said it sold 3.6 million rings over the past year and has about 5 million paying members. Its 12-month membership retention rate stands at roughly 85%.

Founded in Finland in 2013, Oura could reportedly seek a valuation of around $16 billion and raise about $3 billion in its offering.

The filing comes as Oura pushes deeper into healthcare and AI, while facing a proposed class action lawsuit challenging the accuracy of its sleep-tracking technology. Oura has disputed the allegations.

Tesla is inviting businesses to express interest in buying Cybercab fleets and supporting its robotaxi infrastructure, suggesting the company may eventually look beyond operating autonomous vehicles entirely on its own.

The interest form, published Thursday ahead of a Cybercab event in Austin, asks companies about fleet purchases, mobility hubs, infrastructure and event collaborations. It does not confirm Tesla will sell Cybercabs to third-party operators, but points to a broader strategy for expanding its autonomous network.

For years, CEO Elon Musk envisioned individual Tesla owners adding their cars to a ride-hailing network. That model never materialized, and Tesla instead developed and operated its own robotaxi fleet.

Opening the door to outside fleet operators could help Tesla expand into new markets faster. The move comes as companies including Moove, Avis and Hertz increasingly position themselves to manage autonomous vehicle fleets for robotaxi platforms.