John Cook
John Cook is the Co-founder and Publisher of GeekWire, a media company where he continues to serve. He previously co-founded Tech Flash, also in media, and has held reporting roles at several publications. His expertise is in media executive leadership.
Kanu AI raises $11.7M led by Trilogy Equity to convert employee workflows into production software
Kanu AI, founded by Karan Grover, raised $11.7 million to scale a platform that converts employee workflows into production-grade software running in customers' clouds, aiming to capture institutional knowledge and reduce costs and turnaround times.
Live show: Amazon, Meta and the fight over the future of AI; Plus, is Seattle still the place to build?
This week: Amazon is blocking Meta's new Muse AI assistant from shopping on Amazon.com, saying the agent doesn't identify itself and violates the site's conditions of use. We explain why the standoff is an early sign of a much bigger fight over whether AI agents can use websites and apps on people's behalf, and why Amazon has so much riding on the answer. For the definitive word on the issue, we ask Muse what it has to say for itself, and get an impressively sophisticated and evenhanded answer. We recorded this week's show live at Daniel's Broiler in downtown Seattle…
GeekWire and Greater Seattle Partners call for nominations for 2026 Uncommon Thinkers; deadline Sept. 18, winners honored Dec. 10
Nominations for GeekWire’s 2026 Uncommon Thinkers Awards — honoring Seattle-area inventors, scientists, technologists and entrepreneurs — close Friday, Sept. 18 at 11 a.m. PT; winners will be chosen by a judges panel and celebrated at the GeekWire Gala on Dec. 10. The fourth annual program, run with Greater Seattle Partners, seeks nominees who demonstrate innovation, leadership and measurable impact.
BrainChild Bio raises $116M Series A to fund Phase 2 CAR T trial for childhood DIPG
Seattle startup BrainChild Bio raised $116 million in Series A funding to advance a CAR T cell therapy for diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) and to support development of additional pediatric and adult brain tumor CAR T programs. The financing will fund a pivotal ILLUMINATE Phase 2 registration-stage trial and was led by an undisclosed private family fund and foundation, with participation from Seattle Children’s and WRF Capital.
Levanta raises $22M led by Volition Capital to scale influencer-brand matchmaking across Amazon, Walmart and Shopify
Seattle startup Levanta raised $22 million led by Volition Capital to expand its platform that connects brands with influencers and manages affiliate partnerships across Amazon, Walmart and Shopify; the company says revenue is up 80% year-over-year in 2026 and it has more than 90,000 vetted creators. Founded in 2023 by Ian Brodie, Spencer McKenney and Rob Schab, Levanta provides tools to find creators, send products, set commissions, track sales and handle payments.
Amazon's drones finally take off, inside Anduril's Seattle-area buildup, and an AirTag leads to a secret Amazon facility
This week: Amazon's Prime Air drones are finally going national, nearly 13 years after Jeff Bezos unveiled the idea on 60 Minutes. GeekWire's John Cook goes inside Anduril's unmarked Bellevue office as the defense company builds toward 1,000 Seattle-area engineers. Plus: a reporter hides an AirTag in a rare book and tracks it to a secret Amazon book-scanning facility in Las Vegas. With John Cook and Todd Bishop; edited by Curt Milton. Related stories and links Mentioned at the top Want to know what Jeff Bezos brings to Liverpool FC? Study Amazon's Leadership Principles Amazon drone delivery Amazon drone delivery…
InduPro raises $77M Series B, doses first patient in Phase 1 trial of IDP-001 targeting tumor protein pairs
InduPro raised $77 million in Series B financing and has dosed the first patient in a Phase 1 trial of IDP-001, an antibody-drug conjugate that uses the company’s ARRIS platform to target cancer cells by bringing two surface proteins together.
Elon Musk's Starlink swagger, SpaceX vs. the cloud giants, and Seattle’s tech universe revisited
This week: SpaceX reports its first quarter as a public company, and Elon Musk says Starlink could deliver a majority of the world's internet within a decade, leveraging production facilities in Redmond. Musk also explains the company's data center ambitions, calling terrestrial infrastructure a trivial problem next to reusable rockets. Plus: we bring two Washington tech universe posters into the studio, 17 years apart. The 2009 original turns up gems including Boeing's unlikely connection to Classmates.com, a 1990s forerunner to Facebook. The 2009 poster also brings back memories of Teledesic, the Craig McCaw venture backed by Bill Gates that tried…
Amazon's next big business, Satya Nadella's DIY app, and a VC's rallying cry for Seattle tech
This week: Microsoft and Amazon both reported quarterly numbers, and both stocks rose on cloud results that beat expectations. Is AI spending is paying off in real business? And in related news, Microsoft sees a rare annual headcount decline, hitting product R&D hardest. Plus: Satya Nadella builds a Power BI dashboard out of an analyst's research report, and touts it on the earnings call to make a bigger point. Jeff Bezos names Amazon's chips business as the long-awaited fourth pillar. And AI House managing director Jacob Colker delivers a much-needed pep talk for Seattle tech, calling on the region to…
Anduril seeks new funding at about $100 billion valuation amid Seattle expansion and protests
Anduril is seeking a new funding round that could value the defense contractor at about $100 billion as it rapidly expands engineering and maritime operations in the Seattle area, where protests have arisen over its work on AI-enabled military systems.
Seattle Sounders honor S. ‘Soma’ Somasegar, Madrona VC and former Microsoft exec, with pregame tribute after his May death at 59
The Seattle Sounders honored late Microsoft executive and Madrona venture capitalist S. “Soma” Somasegar, a minority owner who died in May at 59, with a pregame tribute and moment of silence recognizing his impact on Seattle’s tech and sports communities. Somasegar, who joined the Sounders ownership group in 2019, was remembered for his leadership at Microsoft, mentorship of startups, and efforts to bring people together through sports.
Virginia AI Startup Trase Raises $107M Seed Round, Expands Seattle Team to 100 Employees with AWS Vet Baskar Sridharan as President
Virginia-based AI startup Trase raised a $107 million seed round led by Arch Venture Partners and is expanding its Seattle-area team from 20 to 100 employees, led by new president Baskar Sridharan, to focus on AI deployment in highly regulated industries like healthcare.
Following through in Cleveland: A GeekWire trip report, plus data center ‘theater’ and the SpaceX IPO
In February, Seattle angel investor Charles Fitzgerald warned the region not to become the next Cleveland, prompting Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb to join the podcast and make the case for his city's comeback. This week we close the loop: Fitzgerald and GeekWire co-founder John Cook call in from an abandoned Westinghouse factory in Cleveland, where days of meeting entrepreneurs, civic leaders, and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine left them struck by a city hustling and aligned around jobs in ways Seattle no longer is. Back home, we dig into Seattle's unanimous one-year moratorium on new large data centers, which Fitzgerald calls…
Amperity Founders Derek Slager and Kabir Shahani Reassume Co-CEO Roles After Tony Owens' Departure in 2024
Amperity founders Derek Slager and Kabir Shahani have resumed co-CEO roles following the planned departure of former CEO Tony Alika Owens, aiming to drive growth amid rising AI demand. CFO Amy Kelleran Pelly also expands her role to president while retaining CFO duties.
ArchAstro Raises $6.2M to Launch AI Network for Cross-Company Enterprise Software Integration
ArchAstro, founded by veterans from Microsoft, Stripe, Meta, and Statsig, has launched with $6.2 million in pre-seed funding to develop AI agents that automate complex, cross-company software integrations and deployments. Their privacy-aware Forward Deployed Agents aim to securely connect disparate enterprise systems, addressing the lengthy and difficult process of integrating B2B software across corporate boundaries.
Zillow and Expedia Co-founder Rich Barton Officially Moves to Las Vegas Amid Seattle Tech Exodus
Rich Barton, co-founder of Zillow and Expedia, has officially moved from Seattle to Las Vegas, marking a new chapter in his life after his children left home. His departure is notable amid other high-profile Seattle tech leaders relocating and ongoing debates about Washington's tax policies on wealthy residents.
Zuckerberg's yacht, Meta's layoffs, a robot pizza flameout, and a reality check on AI expenses
This week on the show: Mark Zuckerberg's superyacht arrives in Seattle the same day Meta discloses nearly 1,400 local layoffs, robot pizza startup Picnic flames out and sells to a mystery buyer, and corporate America confronts the rising cost of AI, including the leaderboard-gaming practice known as "tokenmaxxing." And we return to the theme of billionaire yachts for our trivia challenge. With GeekWire co-founders Todd Bishop and John Cook. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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…
What we learned about Microsoft in the OpenAI trial, and is Seattle squandering its edge?
This week: As the Musk v. OpenAI trial heads to the jury, we dig into what Microsoft's internal board memos and executive testimony revealed about the origins of the company's massive bet on AI, and why this case matters beyond the billionaire drama. Plus, Howard Schultz, a former Washington governor, and the tech community weigh in on whether Seattle is squandering its edge as an innovation capital. And Todd owes John and the United Kingdom an apology. RELATED STORIES AND LINKS Microsoft's CTO testifies about email at the heart of Elon Musk's allegations against the tech giant OpenAI CEO Sam…
Seattle Ranks 4th in US Population Growth Amid Rising Tech Layoffs, Sparking Concern Among Industry Leaders
Seattle's tech industry remains a major economic force driving population growth, but rising tech layoffs and growing doubts among business leaders highlight emerging concerns about the city's long-term economic resilience and confidence.
Anduril Raises $5 Billion in Series H Funding to Expand Autonomous Naval Vessel Operations in Seattle
Anduril Industries secured $5 billion in a Series H funding round valuing the company at $61 billion to expand manufacturing and R&D of autonomous defense systems, including a maritime operation in Seattle. This investment highlights Seattle and the Pacific Northwest as emerging hubs for advanced defense technology development.
Armada Grows Seattle-Area Team to 120 as Its Portable AI Data Centers Gain Adoption by Washington State and U.S. Navy
Armada, a San Francisco-based startup, has expanded its Bellevue, Washington engineering team to 120 employees to meet rising demand for its rugged AI data centers that operate in remote areas. Its technology supports critical clients like the Washington State Department of Natural Resources for wildfire connectivity and the U.S. Navy, backed by over $200 million in funding including from Microsoft.
Inside the 2026 GeekWire Awards: Innovators reshaping how we work, build, and learn
This week on the show: Conversations with finalists and special guests at the annual GeekWire Awards about AI, innovation, startups, and the forces reshaping their industries, plus a special trivia challenge marking GeekWire's 15th year hosting the event. Guests include: Luis Poggi, CEO of HouseWhisper AI, winner of CEO of the Year Tracy Drinkwater, founder of the Seattle Universal Math Museum, STEM Educator of the Year honoree Ryan James, CEO of Dopl Technologies, finalist for Startup of the Year Laura Ruderman, CEO of the Technology Alliance Ross Finman, CEO of Augmodo, finalist for Hardware/Robotics/Physical AI of the Year Mohammad Rastegari…
Elon takes the stand, Big Tech drops big numbers, and a small VC gets in on a billion-dollar deal
This week on the show: Todd reports from inside the Oakland federal courthouse where Elon Musk is suing OpenAI, Sam Altman, and Microsoft, with jury selection revealing just how hard it is to find anyone neutral about Musk these days. Meanwhile, Microsoft and OpenAI restructured their partnership the same morning the trial began — and less than 24 hours later, OpenAI's models landed on Amazon's cloud. Then, Microsoft and Amazon both dropped blockbuster earnings, with Azure up 40%, AWS posting its fastest growth in 15 quarters, and the two companies combining for nearly $400 billion in capital spending this year…
Seattle VC Flying Fish Partners Joins $1.1B Seed Round for DeepMind’s David Silver’s Startup Ineffable Intelligence
Seattle-based VC firm Flying Fish Partners secured a spot in the $1.1 billion seed round for DeepMind legend David Silver's startup Ineffable Intelligence through years of relationship-building and strategic early investments. Despite managing less than $250 million, their networking and persistence led to participation alongside major investors like Sequoia Capital and Lightspeed Venture Partners.
Organizations
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GeekWire Co-founder and Publisher, GeekWire 2011–present · current
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GeekWire Co-founder and Publisher, GeekWire · current
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Tech Flash Co-founder 2008–2011 · past
Education
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Gettysburg College BA, History · 1990–1994
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Wooster High School
