The world of AI agent startups saw major activity this week. Thinking Machines, founded by Mira Murati, became one of the most valuable AI startups after raising $2 billion in funding. This investment values the company at $10 billion and was led by the venture firm a16z. Thinking Machines focuses on building autonomous agentic AI systems that help businesses make decisions. This huge funding round signals strong investor belief in the future of agentic AI.

In infrastructure news, startup Blaxel raised $7.3 million in seed funding to build tools that support AI agents. Their technology creates the underlying systems that allow agents to work efficiently. Investors including First Round, Y Combinator, Liquid 2, and Multimodal backed this project. Blaxel's work is important because better infrastructure helps AI agents complete more complex tasks reliably.

Startup Pig.dev made a big change this week. Originally part of Y Combinator's Winter 2025 batch, they were building technology to let AI agents control Windows computers. But they pivoted to launch Muscle Mem instead. This new system acts like a memory cache for AI agents, allowing them to store and reuse information about repetitive tasks. The founder explained this change helps solve the problem of agents forgetting how to do things they've done before.

Another important development came from Browser Use, created by a different Y Combinator company. This tool helps AI agents interact with websites by scanning web pages and turning buttons, links, and forms into simple text instructions. It became popular when the Chinese agentic tool Manus used it and went viral. Browser Use shows how specialized tools are emerging to help agents navigate the digital world.

The week also highlighted how startups are solving key challenges in agentic AI. Pig.dev's pivot to Muscle Mem addresses the problem of agents struggling with long tasks. Meanwhile, Blaxel's infrastructure work tackles the technical foundation needed for reliable agents. These developments show the startup ecosystem is rapidly innovating to make AI agents more useful and practical for everyday tasks.

Investments in AI agent startups reached new heights this week. Beyond Thinking Machines' massive round, Perplexity and Anthropic also attracted significant funding. This wave of investment demonstrates growing confidence in agentic AI technology. Venture capitalists are betting these startups will transform how businesses operate by automating complex workflows.

Looking ahead, these developments suggest AI agents are moving from simple helpers to powerful tools that can handle multi-step tasks. Startups are building the crucial pieces - from decision-making systems (Thinking Machines) to supporting infrastructure (Blaxel) and specialized tools (Browser Use, Muscle Mem). Together, these innovations are making AI agents more capable and ready for real-world use.