Here’s a roundup of interesting startup links I came across today:
North American Startup Funding Shattered Records In First Half Of 2026, Driven By AI
Overall, investment in U.S. and Canadian startups totaled a staggering $392 billion for the first half of 2026, per Crunchbase data, dwarfing anything we’ve seen before.
Dr. David Russo on missed opportunities in local medicine – Portland Business Journal
Among its 10 recommendations is a clear target: Cut the regulatory and administrative burden by 20% by 2029 by eliminating rules that no longer serve their purpose. Sensible. But if Oregon is serious about competitiveness, it should start with one of its largest sectors, lowest-hanging fruit, the biggest win: healthcare.
Agility Robotics to go public in Churchill SPAC valued $2.5B
The deal values Agility at $2.5 billion and could raise over $620 million, making it the biggest cash boost ever for a humanoid robotics company.
(2023) Apply for the inaugural class of the Latino Founder Accelerator – Portland Oregon startups, tech, news, events, jobs, and community
It’s always heartening to see more organizations leveraging their networks and community for the benefit of startup founders. Especially in areas where, to date, resources have been lacking. That’s why I’m psyched to share that a new startup accelerator — focused on Latino-founded companies — is recruiting its first class in Portland. Meet the Latino Founder Accelerator.
A global workspace in language models
In a new paper, we present evidence that a similar distinction has emerged in modern language models like Claude. We find that Claude has developed a small collection of internal neural patterns that, compared to all its other internal processing, play a special role.
AI Giants Are Handing Out Tons of Free Computing Power to Grab Startup Share – WSJ
The offers from growing AI-sales armies at companies such as OpenAI and Anthropic are so rich that some early-stage startup founders say they won’t need to raise money as soon as they expected, and others have been able to play AI companies off one another. Startups have received offers that in some cases amounted to more than $3 million in credits from multiple companies for cloud computing and tokens, the central units used to measure and charge for AI usage, founders say. That is the size of the median U.S. seed round, according to PitchBook.
AI Is Getting Companies Into Trouble, But Not For The Reason You Think😬
AI shouldn’t be judged by whether it’s perfect, because no human-built system ever will be. AI should be judged by whether it’s demonstrably fairer, more transparent, and more accountable than the process it replaces. Even then, the responsibility doesn’t stop once an AI system is deployed. Organizations should continuously test, monitor, and improve these systems as new risks surface.
Portland ballot measure for more public say in city budget clears hurdle – OPB
Under the proposal, any Portlander could submit ideas on projects they believe warrant city spending. Those proposals would be vetted by an oversight committee, as well as city staff, before advancing to a public vote.
How tech workers are feeling in 2026: a workforce splitting in two
Burnout overall jumped 11 points in a single year, and four in 10 respondents are worried about losing their job. Even those who feel optimistic about their own career may not recommend that friends follow their path. In the AI era, everyone agrees the ground is moving. No one is sure yet if it’s an earthquake or a launch.
The Untrainable – Sarah Guo
What I’d bet on is the direction: intelligence keeps getting cheaper, and value keeps sliding toward the few places a model can’t reach. The untrainable is value with history. So get inside one, do the unglamorous translation, and start writing down what good means there, because someone is going to.
Founder Exit vs VC Exit Explained – by Petar Dimov
If your company can become a strong business without becoming a giant company, that may be a perfectly good founder outcome. It may just not be a venture outcome.
Silicon Florist 🌹 Engage with community, Small business resources 🛍️
Issue 859
Building Better Businesses #009 – by Dr. Astrid J. Scholz
For all their wealth building potential, cooperatives are not an easy business to run. Few people know this better than Greg Brodsky who among other things created the co-op accelerator Start.Coop.
Chicago software company plants flag in Seattle area as new leadership team seeks AI talent – GeekWire
“The tech talent market here is really second to none,” said Panama, the former LiveRamp and Microsoft sales leader who took the helm of the company in April. “As we looked to create a hub with a vibrant office culture, Bellevue is really a stand-out option.”
Founder Performance Series – Session 01: Strength Is Founder Infrastructure, Wed, Jul 15, 2026, 4:00 PM | Meetup
Strength is not about aesthetics. It is about building a body that can handle stress, recover faster, make better decisions under pressure, and keep showing up when the business demands more.
Xcelerate: Westside Summer Social
Join Xcelerate Women and Collective Market for our first-ever Westside Summer Social – a relaxed evening of good conversation, genuine connection, and unparalleled community. Whether you’re a longtime Xcelerate community member or are just discovering us for the first time, you’re more than welcome here.
More Oregon startup news
