How to get into a16z's super-competitive Speedrun startup accelerator program

Recapping this week in startups

View this email online in your browser  February 13, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 How to get into a16z's super-competitive Speedrun startup accelerator program: TechCrunch spoke to a16z partner Joshua Lu for some tips on standing out for the Speedrun program. Read More Former GitHub CEO raises record $60M dev tool seed round at $300M valuation: Thomas Dohmke's new startup offers an AI system to allow developers to better manage all the code AI agents produce. Read More Didero lands $30M to put manufacturing procurement on 'agentic' autopilot: Didero functions as an agentic AI layer that sits on top of a company's existing ERP, acting as a coordinator that reads incoming communications and automatically executes the necessary updates and tasks. Read More A message from TechCrunch Events TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 200 nominations open Nominate your cutting-edge, early-stage startup or one worth a shot for Startup Battlefield 200 and take the Disrupt Stage this October in San Francisco. Compete for $100K equity-free, gain global visibility, and face top investors. Thousands apply. 200 advance. Only 20 pitch live. Nominate Today Must-Reads Databricks CEO says SaaS isn't dead, but AI will soon make it irrelevant: AI isn't going to replace major SaaS apps with vibe-coded versions, Databricks CEO Ali Ghodsi believes. But it could give rise to competitors. Read More Former Founders Fund VC Sam Blond launches AI sales startup to upend Salesforce : The startup, Monaco, has come out of stealth as an AI-native all-in-one CRM plus more system backed by names like the Collison brothers and Garry Tan. Read More Score, the dating app for people with good credit, is back: Two years ago, a controversial dating app was launched and quickly shuttered: for people with good-to-excellent credit. Now, the founder is relaunching it, open to anyone. Read More AI inference startup Modal Labs in talks to raise at $2.5B valuation, sources say: General Catalyst is in talks to lead the round for the four-year-old startup, according to our sources. Read More Eclipse backs all-EV marketplace Ever in $31M funding round: The San Francisco-based startup says its AI-first approach has allowed it to scale faster. Read More A message from TechCrunch Partnerships Give Winning Startups a Fast Track to Startup Battlefield at Disrupt Turn your pitch competition into a direct pipeline to Startup Battlefield with TechCrunch's Fast Track program. With TechCrunch's editorial voice, judging support, and global amplification, your program gains instant credibility, reach, and founder demand. Elevate your event, attract stronger startups, and give winners a fast-track to Startup Battlefield at Disrupt — all while positioning your organization at the center of startup innovation. Learn More Be the first to know when news breaks Subscribe to our News Alerts, and you won't miss a thing. Breaking news, exclusives, and special reports—straight to your inbox. Sign up for News Alerts! Last but Not Least Ex-Googlers are building infrastructure to help companies understand their video data: Founded by former Google Japan leaders, InfiniMind is building enterprise AI to turn vast, unused video archives into searchable, actionable business intelligence. Read More Check out some of our other newsletters: StrictlyVC TechCrunch Events TechCrunch Mobility Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Unsubscribe Member Center Privacy Policy Copyright © 2026 TechCrunch Media LLC 501 2nd Street, Suite 650, San Francisco, CA 94107

Two Stanford students launch $2M startup accelerator for students nationwide

Recapping this week in startups

View this email online in your browser  February 06, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 Two Stanford students launch $2M startup accelerator for students nationwide: "Breakthrough's purpose is to fill in the funding and opportunity gap that exists in many of these ecosystems because students have historically lacked access to capital and the networks required to launch their entrepreneurial pursuits," co-founder Roman Scott said. Read More Fintech CEO and Forbes 30 Under 30 alum has been charged for alleged fraud: The startup CEO says she plans to publicly address the charges this week. Read More Meet the new European unicorns of 2026: From Belgium to Ukraine, five fresh European unicorns were minted this January. Read More A message from TechCrunch Events The founder playbook for 2026: TechCrunch Founder Summit Founders and VCs, this conference is built for you. Join 1,100+ founders and investors of all stages for a highly curated, all-day summit in June, designed to connect capital and companies. From tactical workshops to candid Q&A and curated meetings, it's where scale, growth, and deal flow happen. Save up to $300 on your pass. Or save up to 30% with a group. Register Now Must-Reads 2026 plans: What's next for Startup Battlefield 200: See what to expect for Startup Battlefield 200 in 2026, the ultimate startup pitch competition on the global stage at TechCrunch Disrupt. Join the mailing list to be the first to know when applications drop. Read More Fundamental raises $255M Series A with a new take on big data analysis: Fundamental has built a new foundation model to solve an old problem: how to draw insights from the huge quantities of structured data produced by enterprises. Read More Epstein-linked longevity guru Peter Attia leaves David Protein, and his own startup 'won't comment': Attia co-founded longevity medical testing startup Biograph, which came out of stealth a year ago. Read More a16z VC wants founders to stop stressing over insane ARR numbers : Andreessen Horowitz VC Jennifer Li⁠, who oversees some of the firm's fastest-growing AI companies, warns founders not to believe every ARR claim made on X. Read More Fitbit founders launch AI platform to help families monitor their health: Luffu uses AI in the background to gather and organize family information, learn day-to-day patterns, and flag notable changes so families can stay aligned and address potential well-being issues. Read More A message from TechCrunch Events Momentum and deals start at Disrupt — Save up to $680 now At Disrupt, founders find momentum, VCs discover their next investment, and operators take their next leap. October 13–15 in San Francisco, 10,000 tech leaders converge at San Francisco's Moscone West to connect and hear from 250+ industry-defining voices across 200+ sessions. Save up to $680 on your pass. Or save up to 30% when you bring your community. Register Now Be the first to know when news breaks Subscribe to our News Alerts, and you won't miss a thing. Breaking news, exclusives, and special reports—straight to your inbox. Sign up for News Alerts! Last but Not Least ElevenLabs raises $500M from Sequoia at an $11 billion valuation: ElevenLabs' valuation has raised more than three times in the last 12 months. Read More Check out some of our other newsletters: StrictlyVC TechCrunch Events TechCrunch Mobility Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Unsubscribe Member Center Privacy Policy Copyright © 2026 TechCrunch Media LLC 501 2nd Street, Suite 650, San Francisco, CA 94107