Podcast Summary: Inside Thinking Machines Lab: A New Era of AI

Podcast: AI Hustle: Make Money from AI and ChatGPT, Midjourney, NVIDIA, Anthropic, OpenAI
Hosts: Jaeden Schafer and Jamie McCauley
Date: July 20, 2025

Overview

This episode explores the mysterious and ambitious Thinking Machines Lab, helmed by Miriam Maratti, which just raised a staggering $2 billion in a seed round—despite still being largely in stealth mode. Jaeden and Jamie analyze what little is publicly known about the company, speculate on its plans, and discuss the broader implications for the AI startup investment landscape. The episode also touches on avenues for individuals to gain exposure to the booming AI sector, specifically for those not directly able to invest in early-stage deals.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Massive Seed Raise by Thinking Machines Lab

• Context of the Raise:

  • Miriam Maratti’s company, Thinking Machines Lab, secured a $2 billion seed round (00:00).
  • The round was led by a16z (Andreessen Horowitz) with participation from NVIDIA, ServiceNow, Cisco, AMD, Jane Street, and other major players (03:14).
  • Many details are kept secret; "it's really hard to know what exactly they're doing." (02:35)

• Public Statements & Open Source Talk:

  • Maratti describes the venture as "building multimodal AI that works with how you naturally interact with the world through conversation, through sight, through the messy way we collaborate." (01:35)
  • The team intends to release "a significant open source component" and a product soon, targeting researchers and startups wanting to build custom models (01:50).
  • Jaeden notes the cryptic nature of their online presence: "You go to their website, it's even more cryptic... a plain white screen with basically nothing on it. No favicon..." (03:14)

Speculation: What Is Thinking Machines Building?

• Speculative Analysis:

  • Jaeden highlights the repeated mention of "collaborate" in Maratti’s statement, theorizing an AI-powered collaboration platform, possibly allowing real-time interaction with AI among multiple users—as if ChatGPT and Slack merged for teams (04:35).
    • “Imagine if you had… ChatGPT… where you essentially could have multiple people all in the same thread...” – Jaeden (04:35)
  • Jamie responds: “So kind of like an AI version of Slack, basically?” (05:30)

• Notable Quotes:

  • "Very, very cryptic. A plain white screen with… basically nothing on it. So it's interesting, but the ability they had to raise $2 billion and, and who they raised it from..." – Jaeden (03:14)

Team, Product, and Market Signals

• War Chest & Team Strength:

  • Investors like NVIDIA rarely back companies without seeing a real demo; the enormous funding and investor credibility likely mean there’s a working prototype (03:51).
  • The Thinking Machines Lab claims to have recruited leading AI talent from OpenAI and other prestigious labs (06:33).

• Humor in the Hype:

  • Commenters are calling the company "Thinky," a potential future nickname (05:51).
  • Another quip: "Due to inflation, $1 million seed rounds are now $1 billion." (05:51)
  • “They have a really powerful team. A whole bunch of, you know, former coworkers from OpenAI joined her… It feels like they've got the money, they've got the team and they're going to execute. But overall they definitely have a war chest to be able to compete with some big models.” – Jaeden (06:33)

Comparisons to Other AI Startups

• Mustafa Suleyman’s Inflection AI raised $1B+ and went through a high-profile acquisition, leading the hosts to reflect on whether selling too soon may limit future upside for founders (07:43–09:24).

AI Startup Funding Bubble?

• Concerns that investment numbers are "getting more and more inflated." (07:43)
  • “Everyone said it was a bubble and then somehow it just keeps growing.” – Jaeden (07:48)
• Discussion of how some founders cash out early via acquisitions, while others might achieve more by staying independent.

Retail Investor Perspectives

• Access Limitations:

  • Jamie asks how everyday investors can participate if they can't access startup deals (09:24).
  • Jaeden describes the concept of "paper shares" for private companies on Robinhood, enabling retail traders to get indirect exposure to companies like SpaceX or OpenAI (09:42).
    • Cautionary notes: The shares are not real, often complex, and can carry significant risk. (09:42)

• Jaeden’s Personal AI Investments:

  • Nvidia and Tesla:
    • Nvidia for their role in the AI gold rush.
    • Tesla due to their work on Optimus robots and investment ties with Elon Musk’s xAI initiative (10:53).
  • “I think both of those companies are poised to do really well in the AI run up... But yeah, it's. There's a. There's a lot of interesting stuff happening in AI right now, and I think you definitely want to find some way to capitalize on it because it's growing like crazy.” – Jaeden (11:46)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Mystery and Hype:

  • “Not very many specifics at all. So I'm, I'm very impressed at the amount of money that she's able to raise.” – Jamie (02:49)
  • “The website… doesn't even have a favicon… It's still just generic.” – Jaeden (03:14)

• Host-Fan Interaction/Funny Comments:

  • “Please honor the nickname everyone uses, Thinky.” – (05:51)
  • “Due to inflation, $1 million seed rounds are now $1 billion.” – Commenter quoted by Jaeden (05:55)

• On the AI Funding Climate:

  • “Everyone said it was a bubble and then somehow it just keeps growing.” – Jaeden (07:48)
  • “To raise that much money, they have to have some kind of monetization plan right off the bat.” – Jamie (07:17)

• On Retail AI Investing:

  • “The number one investment you can make is actually in yourself. And the number one way to do that is by joining the AI Hustle school community.” – Jaeden (12:09)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:00 – 01:35: Introduction to Miriam Maratti’s $2B fundraising for Thinking Machines Lab
• 01:35 – 02:49: Reading and analysis of Maratti’s public statement
• 03:14 – 05:30: Speculation on product direction, analysis of the cryptic website, and investor list
• 05:51 – 07:17: Commentary on social media reactions and the composition of the Thinking Machines team
• 07:43 – 09:24: AI startup exits, funding landscape, and founder strategies
• 09:24 – 11:56: Options for retail investors in AI startups; Jaeden’s investment choices
• 12:09 – end: Closing thoughts (including a pitch for the school community)

Final Thoughts

This episode highlights both the excitement around foundational AI startups and the ongoing opacity of this ecosystem at the highest stakes. With billions of dollars flowing into startups with barely any public-facing product, the AI “gold rush” shows no signs of slowing. The hosts provide humor and healthy skepticism, all while underscoring the importance of staying informed and considering personal upskilling as a prime way to tap into the AI boom.