AI news5
Alphabet raises a record ~$85bn to fund Google's AI build-out
Alphabet upsized its equity raise to about $85 billion (from $80 billion two days earlier) to fund AI infrastructure, its first new share issuance since 2005. The offering was heavily oversubscribed and includes a $40 billion at-the-market program plus a $10 billion deal with Berkshire Hathaway. It tops the previous equity-raise record (Petrobras, $70 billion in 2010). Gemini is now reported at around 900 million users.
techcrunch.com ↗Why it matters
A raise this size signals the AI infrastructure race is now financed at a scale only a handful of companies can reach, widening the gap to everyone else.
UK orders Google to let publishers opt out of AI Search
The UK's Competition and Markets Authority has ordered Google to let publishers opt out of having their content used in AI search features like AI Overviews and AI Mode, without losing visibility in normal search. Publishers can switch it on via a toggle in Search Console, and Google must attribute content with clear links. The CMA calls it a world first and has given Google nine months to implement, with two compliance reports due in the first year.
techcrunch.com ↗Why it matters
It is the first real lever publishers have to protect their content from AI summarisation, and a template other regulators will study.
Coralogix raises $200m to build the monitoring layer for AI agents
Coralogix raised $200 million at a $1.6 billion valuation to build tools that monitor and troubleshoot AI agents, just 11 months after its last round. The round was led by Advent and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. The company grew revenue more than 60% in a year and serves over 5,000 customers including IBM and JFrog. The bet is that autonomous agents need a new observability layer to catch failures.
techcrunch.com ↗Why it matters
As organisations deploy agents that act on their own, watching what those agents actually do becomes its own category of essential software.
Cyera nears a $12bn valuation at 80x revenue
Data-security firm Cyera is closing a $300 million-plus round at a $12 billion valuation, about 80 times its $150 million in annual recurring revenue. That comes five months after a $400 million round valued it at $9 billion. The 80x multiple sits above what investors give most fast-growing AI startups, and TechCrunch reports the company is spending faster than it earns. Cyera disputes the figures.
techcrunch.com ↗Why it matters
An 80x revenue multiple is a clear marker of how stretched AI-adjacent valuations have become, worth watching as a bubble signal.
Amazon starts showing AI-generated product images in search
Amazon is rolling out AI-generated product images in its shopping app. As you type a search in apparel or home categories, it shows made-up images below the autocomplete suggestions. The images are not real products, they are visual suggestions, and tapping one runs a visual search for similar real items. Amazon says it works best where visual details matter most.
techcrunch.com ↗Why it matters
Blurring real and AI-generated imagery inside a shopping flow tests how much synthetic content people will accept before trust erodes.
AI in the nonprofit sector1
Meta puts a free AI agent on WhatsApp globally, with real weight for nonprofits
Meta has made its Business Agent available globally on WhatsApp and Instagram, an AI bot that answers questions, recommends options, books appointments, qualifies leads and hands off to a human when needed. WhatsApp now has more than 200 million small-business users, and the agent is free initially before paid tiers arrive. For nonprofits and NGOs, especially across the Global South where WhatsApp is the main channel for beneficiary contact, this puts a capable conversational agent within reach at low or no cost.
techcrunch.com ↗Why it matters
WhatsApp is the default service-delivery channel for many under-resourced organisations, so a free AI agent there could quietly become one of the most widely used nonprofit AI tools.