ElevenLabs has made a name for itself building realistic AI voices. What started as two Polish engineers annoyed by terrible movie dubbing has grown into a profitable company now valued at $6.6 billion, doubling from just nine months ago. The company recently announced a $100 million tender offer led by Sequoia and ICONIQ, with participation from a16z […]
Market research is a $90 billion dollar industry that helps brands figure out how to best present themselves to potential customers. But that market insight isn’t cheap, nor is it quick. Cashew Research wants to change that using AI. Calgary, Alberta-based Cashew uses AI to develop market research plans and surveys for brands based on
Cashew Research is going after the $90B market research industry with AI Read More »
Antonio Forenza was working as head of research and development at Rakuten Symphony, a telecom subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate, when he realized that he needed to find a better way to manage his stress levels. A few years earlier, he had lost 40 pounds with the help of an Apple Watch, which counted steps
This startup built a Fitbit for your brain to combat chronic stress Read More »
For years, when it was time for startups to start selling their product, they could turn to any number of traditional playbooks. But as with so many things, AI is changing how companies prepare to go to market. “You can do more with less than ever before,” Max Altschuler, general partner at GTMfund, told the
How OpenAI and Google see AI changing go-to-market strategies Read More »
Build Mode is back with a holiday bonus episode. This week, Startup Battlefield editor Isabelle Johannessen is joined by the winner of this year’s competition, Kevin Damoa, the CEO and founder of Glīd, a logistics infrastructure company that aims to streamline the complex container shipment process. Damoa first discovered the challenges of shipping larger cargo
The U.S. immigration system is complex, hard to navigate, and expensive for immigrants. The startup JustiGuide claims it can help with that thanks to an AI-powered portal. The idea is to help immigrants in the U.S. — and eventually in other countries — understand the law and what visas they may be eligible for, and
JustiGuide wants to use AI to help people navigate the US immigration system Read More »
Isabelle leads Startup Battlefield, TechCrunch’s iconic launchpad and competition for the world’s most promising early-stage startups. You can contact or verify outreach from Isabelle by emailing [email protected]. She scouts top founders across 99+ countries and prepares them to pitch on the Disrupt stage in front of tier-one investors and global media. Before TechCrunch, she designed
How Glīd won Startup Battlefield 2025: Mentorship, mission-focus, and meditation Read More »
For all their pitches promising something new, AI startups share many of the same questions as startups in years past: How do they know when they’ve achieved the holy grail of product-market fit? Product-market fit has been studied extensively over the years; entire books have been written about how to master the art. But as
How AI startups should be thinking about product-market fit Read More »
Raising a $250 million Series D round may seem like a distant and unnecessary distraction to startup founders pitching investors for that first $1 million in seed money. But it shouldn’t be, according to several founders and venture capitalists. In their view, founders should be charting out a strategy for those later stage fundraises from
How founders can prepare for their late-stage fundraises from the start Read More »
Startups have never been able to offer the same sizable salaries as big tech companies. Now with companies like Meta and OpenAI willing to pay million-dollar salaries amid the AI race — the compensation divide has grown even larger. Early-stage startups are not doomed though. If they develop a compensation strategy that is generous, fair,
How startups can lure good talent fairly without big tech bank accounts Read More »
