Thinking Machines Lab nears $5B funding at a $40B valuation

Thinking Machines Lab, founded by former OpenAI Chief Technology Officer Mira Murati, made headlines early in its life for securing a $2 billion seed round before even bringing a product to market. The company emerged from stealth in 2023, quickly gaining a reputation as one of the industry’s highest-profile AI ventures, thanks in large part to its leadership’s deep connections to OpenAI. Several executives at Thinking Machines, including Murati, have played pivotal roles in developing large language models such as ChatGPT in previous positions.

The company’s flagship tool, Tinker, aims to make it easier for users to fine-tune large language AI models. On Thursday, Thinking Machines released an updated version of Tinker, highlighting improvements in the model’s coding capabilities. The rapid evolution of the company’s products has attracted high-profile talent, including renowned competitive programmer Neal Wu. However, the intense competition for AI specialists has also led to significant turnover for the startup.

Over the past year, Thinking Machines has seen about one-third of its founding team depart, according to reports from Business Insider in May. Founders such as Barret Zoph, Luke Metz, and Andrew Tulloch have left for rival AI labs including Meta and OpenAI, lured by lucrative compensation packages and the promise of working at industry giants. The Information had previously reported in September that the company was exploring another funding round, following failed talks last year to raise capital at a $50 billion valuation.

Despite the departures, investors appear undeterred, as demonstrated by the willingness to back Thinking Machines Lab at a much higher valuation in a sector characterized by fierce competition and fast-paced development. Both the startup and Accel declined to comment on the funding round.

The expected influx of capital underlines the ongoing fervor among venture capitalists to secure stakes in promising AI ventures, even as reports of poaching and rising pay packages dominate headlines in the sector. With its new resources, Thinking Machines is poised to advance its research and development efforts and compete for both talent and technological breakthroughs in the global AI landscape.