Joyce Shen’s picks: musings and readings in AI/ML, July 13, 2026

📌 Musings and Readings

“When We Talk to AI, What Are We Talking To?” (Link)

“Meta pulls new AI image feature after days of backlash” (Link)

“China’s BrainCo bets the future of brain tech is wearable” (Link)

“Scientists used AI to crack one of water's biggest mysteries” (Link)

The AI Agent Index by MIT (Link)

“State of Consumer 2026” (Link)

👏 Deals

Worldmodeldata, a Cambridge, UK-based company focused on transforming licensed video game gameplay into structured training datasets, has raised £7 million in seed funding.

geoSurge, a London, UK-based AI company offering a visibility platform for generative search, has raised $12m in seed funding.

Acti, a Singapore-based company developing an AI-native mobile keyboard, has raised $5.3m in seed funding.

Katalyze AI, a CA-based AI software company providing AI agents and data intelligence for pharmaceutical companies, raised $10.5m in seed funding.

Arato.Software, a Tel Aviv, Israel-based startup developing an enterprise AI assurance platform that test, validate, and monitor generative AI applications, has raised $10m in seed funding.

Savi Security, a CA-based consumer cybersecurity company that protects families from AI-driven scams and fraud, has raised $7m in seed funding.

Tangos, an Israel-based company providing a financial crime investigation platform, has raised $20m in seed funding.

NudgeNow, a NYC-based company building an AI-powered commerce optimization platform, has raised pre-seed funding.

Wonderdog, a CA-based company developing an AI-enabled preventive care platform, has raised $5m in pre-seed funding.

Hakimo, a CA-based company offering an AI-powered physical security platform, has raised $12m in funding.

Grace Investment Machine, a China-based company building an AI-powered investment research platform, has raised $20m in series A funding.

Marker, a London, UK-based company providing the AI-native writing platform, has raised $13m in seed funding.

Polysense, a Ghent, Belgium-based company building an AI-powered industrial intelligence solution, has raised $10.7m in seed funding.

AltaML, an Edmonton, Alberta, Canada-based applied AI company developing enterprise-grade agentic AI solutions, has raised $6.1m in funding.