Joyce Shen’s picks: musings and readings in AI/ML, October 19, 2026
📌 Musings and Readings
“Scientists are finding AI may make us remember things that never happened” (Link)
“US Treasury pushes global partners to rename AI as 'super intelligence'” (Link)
“Universities Are on an AI Philosopher Hiring Spree” (Link)
“Wikipedians Believed AI Would Come and Go. They Were Wrong” (Link)
“China's ByteDance sets up AI safety team, launches global hiring drive” (Link)
“Accelerating the search for antimicrobial peptides with Google Antigravity” (Link)
Muse Wonder (Link)
👏 Deals
Ultra Robotics, a NYC-based AI robotics startup developing industrial robots to automate warehouse tasks, has raised $50m in series A funding.
Sabi, a CA-based neurotech startup developing brain-computer interfaces that convert neural signals into text, enabling hands-free communication through thought, has raised $50m in seed funding.
Hello Robot, a CA-based robotics startup building AI-powered mobile manipulation robots for assistive living and research, has raised nearly $3m in grant funding.
Finches, a Munich, Germany-based agritech startup leveraging satellite imagery and predictive analytics to help food manufacturers optimize agricultural sourcing and anticipate supply disruptions, has raised €2m in pre-seed funding.
Cleavr, a Paris, French based AI-powered fintech startup using agents to automate accounts receivable and streamline collections, has raised €8m in funding.
Intellivisa, a Wilmington, DE-based company providing an AI-powered travel compliance solution that automates visa applications, document verification, and international entry-requirement checks for travelers, has raised $3m in pre-seed funding.
Harbor, a CA-based company building a risk and insurance solution that helps businesses manage, mitigate, and transfer the emerging risks associated with deploying AI agents, has raised $10m in seed funding.
Sainaptic, a Cambridge, UK-based company that automates grading and feedback for education and certification providers, has raised approximately $1.3m in funding.
Othello, a NYC-based applied AI lab developing real-time sales coaching and revenue intelligence technology that delivers live call guidance and actionable insights, has raised $8m in seed funding.
CodeWall, a London, UK-based AI-native cybersecurity startup using autonomous AI agents to simulate real-world cyberattacks and identify exploitable vulnerabilities, has raised $4m in pre-seed funding.
RSYNQ, a CA-based startup developing AI infrastructure to connect, coordinate, and control physical devices and robots, has raised $2m in funding.
Otter Health, a Washington, DC-based startup developing an AI-powered clinical intelligence platform to help health insurers identify low-value care and improve clinical decision-making, has raised $8m in seed funding.
Opsin, a CA-based cybersecurity startup building an AI-native enterprise security and governance platform to monitor and control AI agents, has raised $21m in funding.
Ambio, a Helsinki, Finland-based cleantech startup developing a digital procurement platform that connects manufacturers with recycled plastics suppliers to streamline sourcing and accelerate the adoption of sustainable materials, has raised €5.1m in seed funding.
Halluminate, a CA-based startup building the infrastructure layer for agentic AI, providing frontier labs with proprietary environments, data, and evaluations to train and benchmark AI agents, has raised $30m in series A funding.
Pandektes, a Copenhagen, Denmark-based legal AI startup building the intelligence layer for legal work by combining proprietary legal data with AI-powered research and workflow automation for law firms, has raised €13.5m in series A funding.
Spotable, a Ghent, Belgium-based construction tech startup using AI and aerial imagery to automate roof and façade measurements, estimates, and quoting for contractors, has raised €4m in seed funding.