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Nvidia-backed AI lab Lila Sciences hits $1.3 billion valuation after new funding

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Lila Sciences, a fast-growing AI startup focused on scientific discovery, has raised $115 million in an extension of its Series A round led by Nvidia’s venture arm, pushing its valuation above $1.3 billion, the company told Reuters. The latest investment brings Lila’s total Series A funding to $350 million and its cumulative capital raised to $550 million, underscoring investors’ confidence in AI for science.

Founded in 2023 by Flagship Pioneering, Lila aims to create what it calls “scientific superintelligence” — a network of specialized AI systems paired with automated laboratories capable of running continuous experiments. Its investors include General Catalyst and a subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

Lila said the funds will speed up the rollout of its AI Science Factories, vast facilities equipped with robotic instruments controlled by AI. The company recently signed a 235,500-square-foot lease in Cambridge, Massachusetts, one of the largest new lab spaces in the Greater Boston area this year.

The startup plans to open its AI platform to commercial customers, allowing companies in energy, semiconductors, and pharmaceuticals to use its automated systems for scientific discovery. Unlike traditional AI labs focused on internet data, Lila’s approach generates proprietary experimental data, which it says is key to the next era of AI-driven innovation.

CEO Geoffrey von Maltzahn said the company’s mission is to accelerate the scientific method itself. “It will set in motion the scientific method in a new form,” he said, describing how Lila’s technology has already produced thousands of discoveries across life sciences, chemistry, and materials research.

Nvidia-backed Reflection AI secures $2 billion funding, valued at $8 billion

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Reflection AI, a fast-rising artificial intelligence startup backed by Nvidia, announced on Thursday it has raised $2 billion in fresh funding, pushing its valuation to $8 billion. The massive round underscores investor enthusiasm for startups automating software development through AI.

The funding attracted major names, including former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, Citi, Donald Trump Jr.-backed 1789 Capital, and existing investors Lightspeed and Sequoia. Reflection AI, founded in 2024 by former DeepMind researchers Misha Laskin and Ioannis Antonoglou, builds AI systems that can autonomously write, test, and optimize software — a rapidly expanding niche within the AI industry.

The new valuation marks a huge leap from the company’s last funding round, when it raised $130 million at a $545 million valuation, according to PitchBook.

Investor appetite for AI ventures remains robust. Global venture capital funding jumped 38% year-over-year in Q3 2025 to $97 billion, with nearly half of that going to AI companies. Reflection AI’s momentum reflects how automation-focused startups are drawing capital on par with heavyweights like OpenAI and China’s DeepSeek.

The company said the funds will accelerate product expansion and recruitment as it scales operations globally amid intensifying competition in AI-driven coding tools.

AI Chipmaker Cerebras Withdraws U.S. IPO Filing After $1.1 Billion Fundraising Round

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Cerebras Systems, the California-based AI chip startup seen as one of the most promising challengers to Nvidia, has withdrawn its planned U.S. initial public offering (IPO), according to a regulatory filing on Friday. The decision takes effect immediately and comes just days after the company closed a massive $1.1 billion funding round.

The move surprised some investors given that U.S. IPO activity has recently rebounded sharply, buoyed by surging enthusiasm for AI-related stocks. Recent debuts, such as Fermi’s data center REIT listing, have drawn strong investor demand, reversing a slump caused by trade-policy and market uncertainty earlier in the year.

Analysts said the withdrawal likely reflects strategic timing rather than weak market sentiment. “Given that Cerebras just very recently completed a sizeable fund raise, it is of no surprise that they are holding off to pursue the IPO at this time,” said Josef Schuster, CEO of IPO research firm IPOX.

Cerebras’ latest financing round—led by Fidelity Management & Research and Atreides Management—valued the company at $8.1 billion and included participation from Tiger Global, Valor Equity Partners, and 1789 Capital, a fund partially linked to Donald Trump Jr.

Despite withdrawing the IPO filing, CEO Andrew Feldman emphasized that the company still intends to go public eventually. “We’re continuing to execute on our roadmap,” he said earlier in the week, noting that Cerebras’ focus remains on scaling production and commercialization of its high-performance AI chips designed to accelerate the training of large models.

The company had initially filed for a Nasdaq listing last year, but the process was delayed by a U.S. national security review of a $335 million investment from G42, an Abu Dhabi-based cloud and AI firm. That review reportedly examined potential concerns about foreign influence and technology transfer.

Industry observers view Cerebras’ decision as a pause, not a retreat. “This is more a company-specific strategic decision and does not tell us anything about the state of U.S. IPO sentiment, which we view as exceptionally strong,” Schuster added.

Founded in Sunnyvale, California, Cerebras Systems specializes in ultra-large AI processors and computing systems, including its flagship Wafer Scale Engine (WSE), a chip designed to massively outperform traditional GPUs in AI workloads. The company has become a key player in the rapidly expanding AI hardware ecosystem—one now defined by fierce competition, colossal valuations, and geopolitical scrutiny.