Here’s a roundup of interesting startup links I came across today:
Menlo Turns 50 and Announces $3B in Fresh Capital to Go ALL IN on AI | Menlo Ventures
Fifty years ago, Menlo made its first bet on a future that had not yet arrived. In 1976, venture capital was still more craft than industry, but that didn’t stop our founding partner, H. DuBose Montgomery, a 27-year-old electrical engineer fresh from Bell Labs, from opening a new firm on Sand Hill Road. He had a simple belief: The most impactful companies often start building long before the market knows how to value them.
See How Sam Altman’s Personal Investments Benefit From Ties to OpenAI – WSJ
Sam Altman said at an event three years ago that he had roughly 400 active startup investments. The Journal identified more than 80, based on publicly-available materials and reporting, many of which date back to his time running the venture firm Y Combinator.
Why American data centers can’t plug in
The primary bottleneck to this growth is the availability of electricity. But this doesn’t mean there is an energy shortage. Instead, the constraint is connecting the flood of new data centers and the plants to power them to the electric grid. Before any new piece of infrastructure can be connected, grid operators must study how it will change power flows around the grid and determine whether upgrades to the system are required. That process is significantly backlogged. Though the median power plant in 2005 waited less than 20 months for interconnection, this had jumped to 55 months by 2023.
2026 Developer Survey | Stack Overflow
This is the 16th Annual Stack Overflow Developer Survey, the longest-running and most comprehensive study of technologists and developers worldwide.
Desperate AI Startup Now Cleaning Messy Apartments for Free
As the BBC reports, an AI company called Micro AGI is sending college-educated Silicon Valley types, loaded with cameras, to scrub filthy New York City apartments for free as part of an initiative called Shift. The hope is that the resulting footage will be worth more to the robotics and AI industries in the form of training data than what residents would pay for the service.
Positioning, Placement, Profit: Scaling Secrets from Steven Smith Teamaker CEO Darren Marshall
I recently attended the 2026 Angel Oregon Consumer Packaged Goods (AOCPG) Investment Announcement Mixer. Aside from the great energy in the room, the highlight for me was hearing Darren Marshall, CEO of Steven Smith Teamaker, speak about what it actually takes for small businesses to survive and thrive right now.
Xcelerate Westside Summer Social
Join Xcelerate Women and Collective Market for our Westside Summer Social — a relaxed evening of good conversation, genuine connection, and community. Whether you’re a longtime member or discovering us for the first time, you’re welcome here. We’re especially hoping to connect with women business owners across Washington County — so if that’s you, come as you are and bring a friend!
College Innovators from Across Oregon Compete at OSU-Cascades in 2026 InventOR Finals – The Source – Bend, Oregon
Finalist projects tackle challenges in sustainability, healthcare, technology, outdoor innovation and community impact. Teams represent 15 universities and community colleges in the state, including OSU-Cascades and OSU in Corvallis.
