During the recent Google Cloud Next conference in Las Vegas, Google unveiled a range of new advancements, including its next-generation AI processing chip, Ironwood, and the AI model Gemini 2.5 Flash. The event highlighted the increasing adoption of Google Cloud by numerous AI startups, marking a significant move in the competitive AI landscape.
Notable Startups Partnering with Google Cloud
The conference featured several standout startups that are now utilizing Google Cloud services. Among them is Safe Superintelligence (SSI), established by Ilya Sutskever, co-founder of OpenAI. This startup is part of a broader trend where leading AI companies are leveraging Google’s cloud infrastructure.
- Anysphere: Known for its AI code editor, Cursor, valued recently at $10 billion, Anysphere is utilizing Google Cloud’s capabilities alongside Anthropic’s AI models.
- Hebbia: This startup focuses on AI-driven document searching within legal contexts. Hebbia raised $130 million in a Series B funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz, with participation from other significant investors.
- Magic: Concentrating on automating coding and research, Magic has attracted investments from prominent figures including former Google CEO Eric Schmidt.
- Physical Intelligence: Develops foundational robotic software and has received substantial funding from notable backers like Sequoia and Jeff Bezos, with some founders connected to Google DeepMind.
- Photoroom: This Paris-based startup offers advanced AI photo editing solutions and is integrating Google Cloud’s video and image generation models.
- Synthesia: Focused on creating realistic AI avatars, Synthesia has secured a significant investment and is utilizing various Google AI models in its offerings.
Google’s Strategy to Attract Startups
Google Cloud is strategically partnering with venture capital firms like Lightspeed, expanding its VC network alongside established investors such as Sequoia and Y Combinator. This initiative aims to provide portfolio companies with access to Google’s AI resources, including cloud credits to support emerging technologies.
Additional AI Startups Showcased
The conference also highlighted a variety of other AI startups, showcasing the breadth of innovation occurring in the space. These include:
- Augment Code: AI software coding agent.
- Autoscience: AI agents for scientific research.
- Big Sur AI: Provides personalized recommendations for ecommerce.
- Captions: Creator and editor of talking videos.
- Eon.io: Specializes in autonomous enterprise backup solutions.
- fal: Focuses on text-to-image and image-to-video solutions.
- Spot AI: Enhances security cameras with AI technology.
- Story: Blockchain platform for intellectual property management.
- Studyhall AI: Coaching students in reading, writing, and exam preparation.
- Ubie: Healthcare symptom analysis tool based in Japan.
- Udio: Focuses on music creation.
- Ufonia: Facilitates clinical healthcare consultations.
- Wagestream: Platform promoting financial wellbeing.
- Wondercraft: Develops realistic audio content using GenAI.
This impressive array of partnerships and innovative startups positions Google Cloud as a formidable contender against other major cloud services, particularly Microsoft Azure and AWS, in the race for AI workloads.