A surge of capital is flowing into Thinking Machines Lab, an A.I. startup founded by former OpenAI executive Mira Murati, despite limited public details about the company’s direction. The recent $2 billion seed investment round, featuring Nvidia, AMD, Jane Street, and led by Andreessen Horowitz, has propelled the company to a $12 billion valuation. Interest is high as Thinking Machines Lab prepares to enter an already crowded field where major players are betting on innovative and collaborative approaches to artificial intelligence.
Thinking Machines Lab’s fundraising distinguishes itself not only by the size of its seed round but also in the high-profile involvement of backers compared to earlier AI startup investments which typically focused on narrower initial rounds, often before any product release. Unique in this instance, the amount raised and team assembled bears parallels to high-profile AI launches like Anthropic and Safe Superintelligence, also led by former OpenAI leaders, yet the scale of funding at the seed stage stands out.
What Drives Investor Trust in This Unreleased Venture?
The leadership of Mira Murati is a major factor behind investor confidence, as she is recognized for her previous roles at OpenAI, where she served as chief technology officer and briefly as interim CEO during a leadership transition. Her track record also includes experience with Tesla on the Model X. This blend of experience across AI development and product management is complemented by the addition of notable researchers and engineers, including OpenAI alumni and experts from Google, Meta, and Mistral AI.
How Will Thinking Machines Lab Approach Product Development?
The company has signaled a focus on developing multimodal AI capable of interacting with users naturally through conversation and perception. According to Murati, an open source component will form part of the expected product, and it is being designed for use by researchers and startups seeking customizable model solutions. Murati emphasized the importance of practical utility, stating,
“We’re building multimodal A.I. that works with how you naturally interact with the world—through conversation, through sight, through the messy way we collaborate.”
Will Collaboration and Openness Shape the Company’s Impact?
Openness and collaborative intelligence are central goals, with plans to release research to the broader AI community and to include open source resources in their offerings. Murati stated a commitment to making AI accessible, aiming for a distribution model that supports wide and equitable deployment. The company is also actively recruiting talent passionate about bridging research and application, signaling an ongoing investment in both innovation and broader engagement.
The emergence of Thinking Machines Lab highlights a notable trend, where prominent former OpenAI executives initiate ventures focused on advancing safe, collaborative, and accessible artificial intelligence. Markets have responded strongly to these startups, as shown by significant valuations for both Thinking Machines Lab and others like Safe Superintelligence and Anthropic, reinforcing expectations for diverse innovation routes within the field of AI research and deployment.
Investor enthusiasm for Thinking Machines Lab can be attributed primarily to its leadership pedigree, breadth of technical talent, and the strategic choice to build collaborative, multimodal AI. The significant size of the initial investment suggests intense competition for leading roles in the next wave of AI development. Readers interested in AI should track how such heavily financed startups aim to balance openness, practical value, and responsible growth. As Thinking Machines Lab reveals more about its research and eventual products, the landscape of AI startups may shift, reflecting broader challenges and opportunities in the sector.
