AI coding tools keep raising nine-figure rounds

Alex Wilhelm
December 20, 2024 • Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

Top News

Cursor raises $100M: Today, on the podcast, we feature an interview with the CEO of Codeium, an impressive startup building AI tools for developers. It’s a competitive space—so competitive, in fact, that since that chat, Codeium competitor Cursor has raised $100 million at a $2.4 billion valuation. Both companies have raised into the nine figures now, giving them deep war chests for a busy and hopefully fruitfully fractious 2025.
Elsewhere in mega-rounds: As we close the work week before Christmas, some startups are unwrapping their presents early by announcing huge funding events. Like insurtech startup bolttech ($100 million), or CPA automation concern Aiwyn ($113 million). And don’t forget that earlier this week smart-ring company, Oura raised $200 million.
New funds galore: Swizzle Fund is new and in the market with a $5 million vehicle, TechCrunch reports. The fund intends to focus on “some of the most pressing concerns facing women, including caretaking, health & wellness, and finances,” according to Dominic-Madori Davis. Elsewhere, Lerer Hippeau is looking to raise its ninth fund, and Energy Revolution Ventures raised $18 million. See, it’s not all megafunds today!

TWiST500

Three new names for the TWiST500 today. The first comes from Maddie:

Island: This has raised a half-billion dollars, and you’ve probably never heard of it. Or used its products, though that might change in the coming years. Island is building a secure browser for corporate environments. And after a lot of work — and a lot of capital — co-founder Mike Fey says that it is “getting into decent ARR at this point, meaningful ARR, and our margins are good.” Landing corporate customers for a piece of software that is generally free is no easy feat. Mix in a never-ending stream of cybersecurity issues, and a company that can improve a key piece of technology for large companies could be in for quite the outcome.
Two podcasting startups:
- Riverside has built a super-impressive software service that helps people record, edit, and transcribe podcasts. It also has lots of AI-powered features that could help dramatically lower the bar for folks to get a quality show off the ground. Podcasting is a lot of work behind the scenes — and while I will die before I give up on human producers, tiny shows cannot afford them. Riverside could be a brilliant option.
- PodcastAI: Full disclosure up front, Launch invested in PodcastAI. Here at the show, we use it to power the TWiST website. Because of that, I’ve used parts of its feature set pretty extensively, namely its transcripts, hosting, and storage offerings. Having worked on shows in the past that did not have the same archival infra that PodcastAI brings to TWiST, I know how useful those tools are. Simple pricing and an AI feature that can create shows in your own voice make it all the more likely to break out.

Now it’s up to Maddie and me to get the last eight additions onto the list itself. To work! — Alex

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