John Cook

Founded by Y Combinator alum and former machine learning engineer Karan Grover, Seattle-based Kanu AI has raised $11.7 million to solve a persistent enterprise problem: valuable operational knowledge getting trapped in employees' heads and spreadsheets. Led by Trilogy Equity Partners, the new funding will help scale Kanu's platform, which automatically converts day-to-day employee workflows into permanent, production-grade software deployed directly within a company's cloud.

Defense tech upstart Shield AI has selected the Puget Sound region as the manufacturing hub for X-BAT, bringing AI-piloted fighter production to the region and promising 4,000 jobs by the early 2030s.

Seattle lost 18,000 jobs between 2024 and 2025—with 70% concentrated downtown—while Bellevue added over 5,300, according to new Downtown Seattle Association data. Amid business claims that the JumpStart payroll tax is driving tech across the lake, Mayor Katie Wilson has moved to freeze tax rates in her new budget to give employers stability amid broader industry shifts.

Kompeld analyzes how companies describe themselves and scores their messaging. It looks at websites, sales materials and other company communications to identify what's clear, what's not, and where the message could be stronger.

Seattle biotech BrainChild Bio raises $116M to advance CAR T therapy for childhood brain cancer

Serial founder Stefan Kalb has launched Latch, an $8M FUSE-backed enterprise AI startup built alongside a PSL alum to map real-world workflows and liberate employees from the routine tasks that hold them back.

Seattle startup Levanta raised $22 million as brands increasingly turn to influencers to drive product sales, expanding its platform for connecting brands with influencers and managing affiliate partnerships across Amazon, Walmart and Shopify.

Flipboard has acquired Portland-based startup Graze to integrate its customizable algorithm engine into Flipboard's open social web platform.

A Seattle biotech built on University of Washington research has won a $245 million patent judgment against Guardant Health over DNA sequencing technology, with the court also ordering ongoing royalties through 2033.

After the U.S. Navy abruptly canceled a key unmanned warship program, defense giant Anduril quietly vacated its shipyard site on Seattle's Lake Washington Ship Canal—even as its broader regional footprint continues to surge toward 1,000 local engineers.

Inside Anduril's AI warfighting buildup: Defense giant sees a path to 1,000 Seattle-area engineers