Take from the rich and give to the bots

Top News

Robinhood turns over the controls to your agent: The iconic stock trading app launched a new feature allowing customers, if they so choose, to turn over trading and purchasing decisions to AI agents. It’s the next natural evolution for the app, after already introducing features that give AI-generated investing advice and financial research. VP of product management Abhishek Fatehpuria explained to WSJ that the company heard from many customers who “want to give their agents the power of Robinhood, but in a very safe way.” These tools are not just accepting straight-forward prompt-based instructions and making trades, but providing what amounts to a full research and analytics layer on top of the Robinhood app. Traders can ask their agents to determine if they are overly concentrated in one part of a market, for example, or to research a new category of promising potential investments based on specific metrics and parameters. For now, agents can only make stock trades, but access for options, crypto, and event-based contract activity is likely coming down the road.
YouTube aggressively tagging AI content: In an effort to limit Deepfake and Slop Mania, YouTube announced plans to tag more videos that include AI-generated content. YouTube has been labeling AI videos since 2024, but now it’s making thee notifications more visually prominent, and will apply them more widely, to any video that’s determined to include “significant photorealistic AI use.” The system relies on algorithms that automatically detect AI outputs, but individual creators are also asked to manually disclose any time they’re using photorealistic AI tools. (Naturally, there is a way to ‘appeal’ these decisions via the YouTube Studio backend, but anyone who has used this method before knows that it remains an imperfect system.) There are also different tiers of AI use triggering different levels of warnings. If YouTube determines that a video includes AI-generated images that are sufficiently unrealistic or animated, a more subtle disclosure appears in the expanded description, rather than right next to the video itself.
Navigate developed an “AI coach” for builders: The startup comes from former Opendoor CEO Eric Wu. Of course, that company purchased thousands of homes per month, while employing a massive network of subcontractors and tradespeople to renovate and “flip” properties. During that time, Wu observed a number of inefficiencies in the house-flipping and home makeover process. The result was Navigate, a startup building an AI platform to help construction teams better manage their sprawling, complex operations while completing jobs more quickly, and lowering costs, while maintaining quality control.

TWiST 500

It’s the new raise for Cognition, hot and fresh out the kitchen.

The company debuted in 2023, and designed the autonomous AI software engineer Devin. Notably, they acquired another coding startup — Windsurf — back in 2025, after Google acqui-hired CEO Varun Mohan and a number of the company’s top researchers.

Today, Bloomberg announced $1 billion in new funding for Cognition, at a burly $26 billion valuation, co-led by 8VC, General Catalyst, and Lux Capital. (Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, and Atreides Management, are also in on the deal.)

The enthusiasm is not hard to understand. Even by 2026 AI standards, Cognition’s growth and adoption has been impressive. Their revenue run rate hit $492 million this month, up from just $37 million last May. All that expansion is largely thanks to widespread enterprise and government adoption. Goldman Sachs, Mercedes-Benz, and the good ol’ US of A are notable Cognition customers.

Better yet, the company is working alongside, rather than fighting against, massive model-makers like Anthropic and OpenAI. Devin is model-agnostic, and routes users to whichever tools it feels will be best suited to the task at hand.

One strong green flag in particular that’s highlighted by the Bloomberg report. Cognition developers are eating their own dog food at an impressive rate. More than 90% of the startup’s internal code was written by its own AI agent. – Lon

A message from Agree

E-signature, invoicing, billing & payments — all in one. Stop chasing invoices at agree.com. Tell them Jason sent you & get 50% off for life!!

This Week in Startups

E2292: Jason and Lon start off the episode with Divergent Technologies’ co-founder and CEO Lukas Czinger. He tells us about their proprietary 3D printing component platform, which interconnects AI-powered design and in-house 3D printers with computer vision-enabled robotic assembly systems. The company has shifted from a focus on luxury vehicle components to parts for the defense and aerospace industries. Then, Brendan Goode and Dr. Mark Horowitz of Outro Health join the show. They’re helping patients wean themselves off of anti-depressants using a “hyperbolic tapering” method.

E2291: Why raise $200 million if you are already profitable? That’s the question Jason and Alex put to Mercury’s founder and CEO, Immad Akhund, after the entrepreneur raised another massive round for his upstart, technology-friendly bank. TWiST then welcomed Kled founder Avi Patel to discuss the startup he considers a clear ripoff of his own company. Jason gavels in verdicts on all parties involved, including Y Combinator and venture capital firm General Catalyst. The show closes with a news lightning round, including OpenAI’s decision to offer $2 million in token credits to hundreds of startups.

E2290: Multiple 2026 commencement addresses have been interrupted by a chorus of boos when the speakers raised the topic of AI innovation. Why are America’s students SO NEGATIVE about the prospect of working with AI tools, and is it too late to turn things around. Jason and Alex discuss the growing backlash to datacenters, AI apps, and technology more generally among mainstream Americans, why it’s happening, and whether it’s still fixable. PLUS thoughts on how OpenAI and Anthropic gained such massive dominance in terms of actual AI-related revenue, and the growing visibility of Flock Safety’s surveillance network.

TWiST Partner Offers

Northwest Registered Agent: Get more when you start your business with Northwest. In 10 clicks and 10 minutes, you can form your company and walk away with a real business identity — Learn more at www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist.
Deel: Founders scale faster on Deel. Set up payroll for any country in minutes, hire anyone anywhere, get visas handled fast, and get back to building. Visit deel.com/twist to learn more.
Render: Find out why 5 million developers are already using the all-in-one cloud platform, Render. Go to render.com/twist and apply for the Render Startup Program to get $500-$100,000 in free credits, depending on your stage and backers.

Our Favorite Tool

If your work depends on conversations — interviews, meetings, calls — you need a Plaud NotePin. You can check it out at Plaud.ai/twist and use code TWIST for 10% off!

SF Live-Work Space Now Available

Need a flexible living and working environment in San Francisco? This thoughtfully designed loft-style residence at 787 Bryant St., the heart of the vibrant SOMA district and the city’s creative hub, is now available for rent or purchase. Check the listing for more details.

The TWiST500 newsletter is the new, updated, and improved TWiST Ticker.

Update your email preferences or unsubscribe here

548 Market Street PMB 72296
San Francisco, California 94104, United States