Jun 23, 2025 4 min read Daily Rundown

⛵ Riding AI Wave

The Best of the Best, Apple Eyes Perplexity, Tesla Rolls Robotaxis

Good Morning, Tech Enthusiasts!

May 2025 Growth Rankings just dropped! AI tools are soaring—how high can we rise with them?

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AI Growth Report: Who’s Winning User Attention in May 2025?

The AI ecosystem is rapidly transforming from a niche innovation to a fundamental part of everyday infrastructure, enhancing various sectors like software engineering, enterprise productivity, and creative workflows. The May 2025 Top Growth Rankings Report from AI Secret analyzes real traffic data to identify the AI tools garnering the most attention and user trust, offering insights into market trends for industry stakeholders.

The report highlights that AI usage is not only accelerating but also diversifying, with significant growth observed across categories such as development tools, enterprise applications, and video creation tools. While major platforms retain their dominance, smaller, agile tools are emerging strongly, indicating that the demand for effective AI solutions is both broad and deep.

Key trends include the rising popularity of AI video tools, the impact of AI agents and go-to-market platforms on product scaling, and the increasing reliance on coding assistants and enterprise AI solutions. As the AI landscape continues to evolve, the emphasis is on rapid development and adaptation to meet real-world challenges.

⛵Key Takeaway: The insights from the May 2025 report highlight a vibrant market ripe with opportunities, suggesting that businesses that innovate and adapt quickly within the AI space can significantly enhance their competitive edge and capitalize on the growing demand for intelligent solutions.

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M&A

Apple Considers $14B Perplexity Acquisition to Challenge Google Search

Apple executives have held internal discussions about potentially acquiring AI startup Perplexity, valued at $14 billion, as the company seeks to bolster its AI capabilities and develop an AI-based search engine. The discussions, led by M&A head Adrian Perica and services chief Eddy Cue, are driven by Apple's need to prepare for the potential loss of its $20 billion annual Google search partnership due to antitrust enforcement.

The potential acquisition would be Apple's largest in history, providing the company with AI talent, a known brand, and real-time web search capabilities through Perplexity's technology. Apple is also considering a partnership alternative that would integrate Perplexity into Safari and Siri, though a competing Samsung partnership with Perplexity could complicate these plans.

Apple's interest reflects its urgent need to catch up in generative AI after delays in its Apple Intelligence platform and Siri improvements. The company has been actively evaluating Perplexity's technology through multiple meetings, while simultaneously competing with Meta for AI talent acquisition in the broader market.

⛵Key Takeaway: This strategic move positions Apple to transform a regulatory threat into a competitive advantage, potentially creating a superior integrated AI search experience that could differentiate its ecosystem while reducing dependence on Google's $20 billion partnership.

STARTUP

Former OpenAI CTO Raises Record $2B Seed Round for AI Startup

Thinking Machines Lab, the secretive AI startup founded by OpenAI's former chief technology officer Mira Murati, has closed a $2 billion seed round at a $10 billion valuation. Andreessen Horowitz led the round with participation from Sarah Guo's Conviction Partners, marking what could be the largest seed round in history for the 6-month-old company.

The startup's specific work and focus remain unclear, but it has leveraged Murati's reputation and recruited high-profile AI researchers to attract investors. Several former OpenAI colleagues have joined the new venture, including co-founder John Schulman, who previously worked on developing ChatGPT, DALL-E, and voice mode technologies.

Murati left OpenAI in September 2024 after serving as interim CEO during the brief period when the board ousted Sam Altman in November 2023, before Altman was quickly reinstated. The massive funding puts Thinking Machines in rarified company alongside Safe Superintelligence, co-founded by former OpenAI chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, which raised $2 billion at a $32 billion valuation.

⛵Key Takeaway: This unprecedented seed funding demonstrates the extraordinary investor appetite for AI ventures led by proven OpenAI alumni, creating massive market validation for enterprise AI solutions and potentially disrupting the competitive landscape with substantial capital backing from day one.

NEWS

What You Should Know Next

Tesla Officially Launches Robotaxi Pilot Service in Austin with $4.20 Flat Fee.
Technology investor Prosus NV Reports First $179 Million Profit Under CEO Fabricio Bloisi.
Controversial Startup Cluely Raises $15M from a16z for "Cheating" AI Tool.
Snap Acquires Student Calendar App Saturn in Undisclosed Deal.
University of Hawaii Approves $7.4M Student Success Technology Platform.

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