Snowflake
Facts
- HQ
- none
- Sectors
- Cloud, Data warehousing, Data governance, Data platform
- Stage
- Public
AI Expert Oren Etzioni Warns SpaceX's $1.75 Trillion IPO Valuation Differs Vastly from Tesla's, Challenging Musk Investment Logic
Oren Etzioni critiques SpaceX's IPO, arguing its $1.75 trillion valuation prices in three unproven bets unlike Tesla's smaller IPO, making the Tesla investment playbook inapplicable. He highlights that while SpaceX is a great company, its valuation and risk profile differ vastly, cautioning investors against applying the same strategies used for Tesla's growth.
Golden Analytics Raises $14 Million Seed Extension; Insight Partners Joins NEA and Madrona as Company Launches Public Beta
Golden Analytics announced a $14 million seed extension on June 9, 2026, led by Insight Partners joining NEA and Madrona as the company launches a public beta after strong early demand.
Gray Swan Raises $40M Series A to Expand AI Security Tools After Being Cited by Anthropic, OpenAI, and Meta
Gray Swan, a Pittsburgh-based AI security startup and CMU spinout, raised $40 million in a Series A funding round to expand its team and accelerate go-to-market efforts. The company builds tools to safety-test AI models, serving over 20 customers including frontier labs and global enterprises, and has been cited by Anthropic, OpenAI, and Meta.
Madrona and Wing Lead $40M Series A in Gray Swan to Secure Agentic AI, Investors Include Snowflake Ventures and Samsung Next
Madrona co-led a $40 million Series A in Gray Swan, a startup founded by Carnegie Mellon researchers Zico Kolter and Matt Fredrikson to build security and safety infrastructure for agentic AI in the enterprise. Gray Swan aims to create frameworks for agent identity, runtime protection, and adversarial testing to unlock wide enterprise deployment of AI agents.
SpaceX IPO filing reveals Starlink's impact, Bezos sounds off on CNBC, and Gemini owes John a beer
This week on a supersized Memorial Day Weekend edition of the GeekWire Podcast: A massive IPO filing from SpaceX includes new details about Elon Musk's Starlink business and its satellite factory in Redmond. Jeff Bezos talks about wealth, inequality and eventually tech in an hour-long CNBC appearance. John goes to World Cup ticketing hell and turns to ChatGPT and Gemini when FIFA's support falls short. And a special Sam Altman/Seattle startup edition of GeekWire Trivia. With GeekWire co-founders Todd Bishop and John Cook. Related Links: SpaceX is churning out 70 Starlink satellites a week in Redmond, and other tidbits from…
StitcherAI Launches with $3M Pre-Seed to Embed Real-Time AI Spending Data into Engineering Tools
StitcherAI launched with $3 million in pre-seed funding to provide real-time AI and cloud cost data directly in decision-making tools, aiming to prevent overspending. Founded by Seattle tech veterans Udam Dewaraja and Varun Mittal, the company avoids traditional dashboards by integrating spending context where humans and AI agents operate.
Former Tableau Chief Product Officer Francois Ajenstat Launches Golden Analytics with $7M Seed to Create AI-Native BI Platform
Francois Ajenstat, former Tableau chief product officer, has launched Golden Analytics with $7 million in seed funding to build an AI-native business intelligence platform that emphasizes automated insights and user control. The Seattle-based startup aims to advance BI by integrating AI at its core rather than as an add-on.
How to Sell AI Into the Enterprise: Pilots, Pricing, and Closing 12-Month Deals
What does it really take to sell an AI-native product into the Fortune 500? In this episode of Founded & Funded, Madrona Managing Director Matt McIlwain sits down with two founders deep in the trenches of enterprise AI adoption, Esha Joshi (Co-founder, Yoodli) and Anup Chamrajnagar (Co-founder, Gradial.) Their companies are selling into some of the world's most complex organizations, like Google, SAP, Snowflake, Databricks, and more. And they break down what founders often underestimate about enterprise AI sales. They dive into: Why most AI pilots fail and how to prevent it The "three-legged stool" of enterprise sales How AI…
OpenAI Expands Bellevue Office to 296,000 Sq Ft, Strengthening Seattle-Area Presence Near Microsoft and Amazon
OpenAI has signed a large lease to expand its Bellevue office to nearly 300,000 square feet, allowing space for over 1,000 employees as it strengthens ties with Microsoft and Amazon in the Seattle region. The expansion follows recent investments and partnerships, including a $38 billion cloud deal with Amazon and a $1 billion acquisition of Seattle startup Statsig.
Seattle Fintech Plutus Raises $1.2M to Democratize Hedge Fund-Level Investing for Retail Clients
Seattle fintech startup Plutus raised $1.2 million to expand its investment marketplace that offers everyday investors access to hedge fund strategies. The company recently obtained its SEC Registered Investment Advisor license and is onboarding customers from its waitlist.
Seattle Data Governance Startup Codified Winds Down as CEO Yatharth Gupta Joins Google
Seattle data governance startup Codified is winding down as its founder and former CEO, Yatharth Gupta, takes a new role as director of product management at Google. The company, which raised $4 million in seed funding in February 2024 and developed AI-driven data access controls, provided no further details on the shutdown.
Seattle AI Startup Yoodli Raises $40M, Valuation Hits $300M, Shifts to Enterprise Experiential Learning
Seattle startup Yoodli, which offers AI-powered conversation coaching software, has tripled its valuation to about $300 million following a $40 million funding round announced just eight months after a $13.7 million raise. The company is shifting focus from consumer public speaking to enterprise experiential learning, partnering with firms like SAP and Google to improve employee communication skills.
Seattle AI Startup Yoodli Raises $40M Series B Led by WestBridge Capital Amid 900% Revenue Growth
Seattle AI startup Yoodli raised $40 million in a Series B round led by WestBridge Capital, after reporting 900% revenue growth and tripling its staff to over 40. The company offers AI-powered conversational practice software used by major clients like SAP and Google, and plans to expand into experiential learning.
Seattle Startup Alkemi Launches AI Platform DataLab for Secure, Non-Technical Company Data Query, Raises $1.65M Pre-Seed
Seattle startup Alkemi, founded by brothers Connor and Maxwell Folley, launched the AI platform DataLab to enable non-technical employees to query company data in plain English without compromising privacy. The company recently raised $1.65 million in pre-seed funding led by Tuesday Capital.
Seattle Startup Plutus Raises Funds to Democratize Thematic Portfolio Investing for Retail Investors
Seattle-based startup Plutus, co-founded by Shashank Chiranewala and Mitren Chinoy, is creating a marketplace for thematic model portfolios to give everyday investors access to hedge fund-level strategies. The platform integrates with Interactive Brokers and offers curated portfolios with automated rebalancing and potential tax benefits.
Legal-Tech Startup CEO Pradnya Desh Runs for Bellevue City Council to Apply Founder’s Mindset to Local Government
Pradnya Desh, founder and CEO of the AI-driven legal-tech startup Advocat and a former U.S. diplomat, is running for a Bellevue City Council seat to apply a problem-solving founder's mindset to government. She aims to address key issues like affordable housing and transit, while also supporting the local startup ecosystem.
Yoodli Raises $13.7M to Expand AI Roleplay Software Helping Enterprises Enhance Employee Communication Skills
Yoodli, founded by CEO Varun Puri, has raised $13.7 million to grow its AI roleplay software that helps employees improve communication skills through interactive speech analysis and feedback. The startup, spun out of AI2 in 2021, is shifting focus to enterprise clients and has increased revenue fivefold in eight months.
Neotribe-led $13.7M Series A in Yoodli to Expand AI Roleplay Enterprise Platform Serving Google, Databricks and More
Neotribe Ventures led a $13.7 million Series A in Yoodli, an AI roleplay enterprise platform that helps users rehearse high-stakes conversations with real-time feedback; existing investors including Madrona, Cercano, AI2 and Neotribe (who previously invested) highlighted Yoodli’s enterprise traction with customers like Google, Databricks, RingCentral, Snowflake and BDO. The funding will expand sales, customer success, and engineering while improving personalization and realism in roleplays to address communication training gaps at scale.
Seattle AI Startup Yoodli Raises $13.7M to Enhance Sales Pitch Training with Generative AI
Seattle-based AI startup Yoodli raised $13.7 million to advance its generative AI platform that helps sales teams practice pitches by simulating conversations and providing communication feedback. Founded in 2021 by Varun Puri and Esha Joshi, Yoodli serves companies like Databricks and RingCentral and partners with Toastmasters and Korn Ferry.
Benjamin Dorr Named CEO of WellSaid Labs; Jennifer Weitzel Joins Microsoft as CVP; Jason Ing Becomes Typeface’s First CMO; Tina Walha Heads U.S. Digital Response
Benjamin Dorr became CEO of AI voice startup WellSaid Labs, replacing Brian Cook, while Jennifer Weitzel joined Microsoft as CVP of engineering and construction, Jason Ing became Typeface's first CMO, and Tina Walha was named CEO of U.S. Digital Response.
Seattle Startup Row Zero Raises $10 Million Seed Round to Revolutionize Big Data Spreadsheet Analysis
Seattle startup Row Zero raised $10 million in a seed round led by IA Ventures to develop a spreadsheet software optimized for big data analysis. Founded by former AWS engineers, the company aims to provide a faster, enterprise-grade alternative to traditional spreadsheets, with over 1,500 companies already using its platform.
Statsig Raises $100M at $1.1B Valuation to Expand AI-Powered Product Development Platform
Statsig raised $100 million in Series C funding at a $1.1 billion valuation to expand its AI-driven product development platform that unifies A/B testing, analytics, and feature management. Led by Iconiq Growth with participation from Sequoia and Madrona, the company aims to grow its product offerings and 140-person team amid increasing AI-driven software complexity.
Seattle’s Revefi Raises $20M Series A Led by Icon Ventures to Launch AI Data Engineer Product Raden
Seattle startup Revefi raised $20 million in a Series A funding round led by Icon Ventures to develop its new AI-powered product, Raden, which optimizes data warehouse usage. The company has seen 800% revenue growth and plans to expand its AI data engineering platform.
Chainguard Raises $140M Series C, Achieves $1.12B Valuation Becoming Seattle's Newest Cybersecurity Unicorn
Seattle-based cybersecurity startup Chainguard raised $140 million in a Series C round, reaching a $1.12 billion valuation and becoming a unicorn. Founded in 2021, the company focuses on securing software supply chains for major clients and has rapidly grown its customer base and revenue.
How Bobsled is Revolutionizing Cross-Cloud Data Sharing
Investor Sabrina Wu hosts Bobsled Co-founder and CEO Jake Graham for the latest episode of Founded & Funded. Jake is revolutionizing data sharing across platforms, enabling customers to get to analysis faster directly in the platforms where they work. Madrona co-led Bobsled's $17 million series A last year, which put the company at an $87 million valuation. In this episode, Jake — who had stints at Neo4j, Intel, and Microsoft — provides his perspective on why enabling cross-cloud data sharing is often cumbersome yet so important in the age of AI. He also shares why you can't PLG the enterprise…
