Before diving into today’s email, I filmed a quick video last week breaking down Notebook LM. They’re a killer new platform built off of Google’s Gemini product. Feel free to check it out below:

Click here to check it out now.

_{Read Time: 10 Minutes}

Today’s Menu

• Former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati Launches AI Rival ‘Thinking Machines Lab’

  Bitcoin Rebounds to $96K as MicroStrategy Raises $2B for BTC

Markets

TODAY IN AI

Former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati Launches AI Rival ‘Thinking Machines Lab’

Former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati has officially launched Thinking Machines Lab, an AI research company aiming to make AI systems more customizable, multimodal, and transparent through open science.

Murati has assembled a dream team, including OpenAI’s John Schulman and Barret Zoph, plus talent from DeepMind, Character AI, and Mistral. The lab is prioritizing frontier AI models for science and programming, with a focus on human-AI collaboration. Unlike OpenAI, Thinking Machines has pledged to regularly release technical papers, code, datasets, and model specs—a strong commitment to open-source AI research.

Murati’s exit from OpenAI came just six months ago, and now she joins Ilya Sutskever’s SSI, which is already in talks to raise $1B+, in launching a direct competitor. With more top AI minds leaving OpenAI to start new ventures, the AI industry could be shifting toward a more open-source future.

^{Today In Crypto}

Bitcoin Rebounds to $96K as MicroStrategy Raises $2B for BTC

Bitcoin has bounced back above $96K after dipping in U.S. trading hours, with the CoinDesk 20 Index recovering 4%. Aptos (APT) led the altcoin rally, posting double-digit daily gains. BTC remains stuck in a tight range, but well-known trader Bob Loukas believes the weekly cycle is nearing a bottom, potentially resetting sentiment—though a break below $90K is still on the table. Meanwhile, Solana (SOL) rebounded, even as the LIBRA token scandal deepened, with co-creator Hayden Davis claiming he bought influence over Argentina’s President Milei.

In institutional news, MicroStrategy (now rebranded as Strategy) is raising another $2B to buy more Bitcoin, issuing 0% senior convertible notes maturing in 2030. The announcement likely contributed to BTC’s rebound, injecting fresh demand into a stagnant market.

Meanwhile, Semler Scientific (SMLR) surged after marking up its BTC holdings by $29M under the new FASB fair value accounting rule, which requires digital assets to be reported at market value starting Q1 2025. The company’s Q4 EPS jumped to $3.64, sending shares 2% higher after-hours and another 2% pre-market.

With corporate Bitcoin buyers stepping up and BTC’s range tightening, the market could be gearing up for a major move.

Want to share The Future of Disruptive Tech with a friend, family member, or coworker? Pass this link along to them.

Thanks for reading!

Until next time,

Damon James