France wants in on the AI race—$100B says it’s serious

Alex Wilhelm
February 10, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

Top News

France arms for an AI future: After announcing a deal to use domestic power sources and foreign funds to build a 1 gigawatt datacenter, France has a package of investments worth more than $100 billion for its AI industry. General Catalyst and EU businesses are also working to accelerate continental AI advancements. There are rumors of deregulation, and EU stalwarts Mistral and Helsing are teaming up for AI defense work. When it comes to AI, we’re seeing Europe become a bit more American. (Alex’s notes here.)
OpenAI is building its own chips: AI foundation model company — and TWiST500 member — OpenAI is building its own chips, getting as far as ‘taping’ a design out with TSMC. Given OpenAI’s massive historical reliance on third-party hardware (Nvidia) and compute (Microsoft), building its own silicon could make sense. So long as what OpenAI cooks up is sufficiently better for its needs than what it buys today to warrant the focus cost.
Lyft teases self-driving future: Lyft, the American rideshare company and former startup darling is teaming up with Mobileeye to “bring fully autonomous robotaxis” to the Dallas market in 2026. To our knowledge, Dallas is a good choice as it doesn’t yet have Waymo operating. But 2026? If Tesla manages to meet its own promises to investors and fans alike, and Waymo keeps expanding, Lyft’s offering feels both late and modest.

TWiST500

Maddie and I are adding the last companies before the halfway mark of the TWiST500, which means it’s a great time to discuss a few new additions:

Truveta: Truveta is a weird bird. I’ve known about it since it was small, as it is run by former Microsoft exec Terry Myerson, and I was once a Redmond beat reporter. Since its early days, the Truveta model of acquiring health datasets to provide “regulatory-grade” electronic health record data for research was intriguing. But how well would the company navigate the famously fraught healthcare market? As it turns out, very well! The company’s latest $320 million round makes that much clear. Why add it to the TWiST500? Because I, a silly man, did not until recently realize that in the AI era, having as much data as Truveta wants to imbibe and provide could provide a rock-solid foundation for a host of insanely neat products. Talk about the market coming to you!
Alloy Automation: Another company I’ve had my eye on for a long time, Alloy started as a business promising ”complex automation made easy, and with no code.” Since then, it has developed an e-commerce focus and, most recently, moved upmarket. Often when we add a company to the TWiST500, we have revenue growth figures to benchmark against. Not so in this case, but having watched the company and its products mature, I’m taking a flyer on them here.
Polymarket: And to close, a gimmie. Polymarket — love it or hate it — has found a place in online culture that appears to have real staying power. Along with Kalshi, it forms the rare ‘quasi-gambling’ TWiST500 niche. But in the era of legal, mobile sports betting, perhaps we’re just a society now that does this sort of thing all the time. Might as well facilitate the trades and bank the coin, right? — Alex

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This Week in Startups

E2082: Jason and Alex break down Trump’s latest move against the carried interest tax loophole—could this shake up venture capital? Then, Orbit Fab CEO Daniel Faber joins to discuss how his company is building “gas stations in space” to refuel satellites and enable the industrialization of space. Plus, Deel’s massive $300M secondary sale, the CapBase acquisition, and big shifts in the European AI and energy sectors

E2081: Jason and Alex break down Palantir's valuation, financial performance, and stock analysis. They dig into how Temu and Shein are taking advantage of a trade loophole and what it means for e-commerce. Then, Uber’s latest earnings lead to a discussion on the future of self-driving, with Waymo and BYD making big moves. They wrap up with a look at prediction markets, regulatory hurdles, and the shifting competitive landscape in tech.

E2080: Jason and Alex dive into the AI arms race, break down Lovable.dev’s insane growth to $10M ARR in weeks, and test whether AI can really replace software engineers. Plus, they analyze Trump’s latest tariff chaos and what it means for startups, global trade, and the economy.

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