Thinking Machines Lab, an artificial intelligence startup founded by former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati in February 2025, has raised $2 billion in seed funding, reaching a valuation of $12 billion. The funding round was led by venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and included participation from prominent investors and companies such as Nvidia, AMD, Accel, ServiceNow, Cisco, and Jane Street. The startup aims to develop collaborative, customizable, and multimodal AI systems that enable natural human interaction through conversation, vision, and real-world engagement. Thinking Machines Lab plans to release its first product within the coming months, which will feature an open-source component and tools for researchers and startups. The company has assembled a team including former OpenAI talent like John Schulman and is focused on building AI that can be fine-tuned using business key performance indicators to enhance profitability. The $2 billion seed round is among the largest in Silicon Valley history, surpassing previous records such as Yuga Labs' $450 million seed round in 2022. Despite the startup's rapid growth and high valuation, it currently has no revenue or commercial product on the market. The company is also noted for offering competitive salaries to attract top AI talent amid an ongoing industry talent war.