Mira Murati’s Thinking Machines Lab closes on $2B at $10B valuation

Thinking Machines Lab, the secretive AI startup founded by OpenAI’s former chief technology officer Mira Murati, has closed a $2 billion seed round, according to The Financial Times. The deal values the six-month-old startup at $10 billion. 

The company’s work remains unclear. The startup has leveraged Murati’s reputation and other high-profile AI researchers who have joined the team to attract investors in what could be the largest seed round in history. According to sources familiar with the deal cited by the FT, Andreessen Horowitz led the round, with participation from Sarah Guo’s Conviction Partners. 

Murati left OpenAI last September after leading the development of some of the company’s most prominent AI products, including ChatGPT, DALL-E, and voice mode. Several of her former OpenAI colleagues have joined the new startup, including co-founder John Schulman.

Murati is one of a handful of executives who left OpenAI after raising concerns about CEO Sam Altman’s leadership in 2023. When the board ousted Altman in November of that year, Murati served as interim CEO before Altman was quickly reinstated.