Rwazi Raises $12M to Bring Real-Time Consumer Insights to Global Brands

After years of struggling to find accurate data on global consumer behavior, Joseph Rutakangwa launched Rwazi in 2021 to solve the problem. The startup has now secured $12 million in Series A funding led by Bonfire Ventures. Rwazi offers companies real-time, voluntarily shared data directly from consumers — also known as zero-party data—instead of relying on outdated reports or surveys. With operations in 190+ countries and clients like Coca-Cola and Visa, the company plans to scale its AI tools and expand its engineering team to better serve global markets.

Credit: TechCrunch

Cognition Acquires Windsurf to Boost AI Engineering Future

Cognition has officially acquired Windsurf, the agentic IDE, bringing in its product, IP, brand, and talented team. With $82M ARR, 350+ enterprise clients, and a rapidly growing user base, Windsurf strengthens Cognition’s mission to revolutionize software engineering. The Windsurf team will continue operations for now, while their tools and IP will soon integrate into Cognition’s offerings like Devin. Notably, all Windsurf employees will benefit financially and receive full equity vesting. This move signals a major leap toward the future of autonomous software development, positioning Cognition as a powerful force in the evolving AI engineering landscape.

Credit: TechCrunch

Windsurf Deal Slips From OpenAI’s Grasp, Google Wins in the AI Talent War!

In a surprise twist, OpenAI’s $3B deal to acquire AI coding startup Windsurf has collapsed — and Google swooped in smartly. Instead of buying the company, Google acqui-hired key Windsurf talent, including CEO Varun Mohan, for $2.4B. They also secured a non-exclusive license to Windsurf’s tech. The rest of Windsurf stays independent under a new interim CEO. This clever move gives Google DeepMind top AI coding brains without full acquisition hassles. Meanwhile, OpenAI is left empty-handed. The race for elite AI talent is heating up, and Google just played a masterstroke.

Credit: CNBC

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