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- Deepgram raises $130M at $1.3B valuation and buys a YC AI startup
Deepgram raises $130M at $1.3B valuation and buys a YC AI startup
Plus: Slackbot is an AI agent now
Hafizur Rahman
January 13, 2026
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Today's Newsletter Highlights:
Deepgram raises $130M at $1.3B valuation and buys a YC AI startup
Slackbot is an AI agent now
Monday briefing: How Elon Musk’s Grok is being used as a tool for digital sexual abuse
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Deepgram raises $130M at $1.3B valuation and buys a YC AI startup
Deepgram, a voice-AI company known for its speech recognition and chat tools, has raised $130 million in Series C funding. This values the company at $1.3 billion.
Lead investor: AVP (Abs Capital Partners).
Participants: Alkeon, In-Q-Tel, Madrona, Tiger Global, Wing, and Y Combinator. New strategic backers include Twilio, SAP, Columbia University, and Princeville Capital.
This funding brings Deepgram's total to over $215 million.
📈 Key Points :
Deepgram’s voice AI models and APIs let businesses create speech-to-text and voice agent apps quickly. They serve industries like retail, customer service, fintech, and healthcare.
The company supports over 50 languages. More than 1,300 organisations use it, including NASA and AWS.
This funding shows that investors are confident in voice AI. Companies are now using natural voice interfaces in their products.
💼 Acquisition of a YC-Backed Startup
Deepgram has also acquired OfOne, a Y Combinator-backed voice AI startup. OfOne focuses on voice-driven ordering systems for restaurants.
Its technology ensures high accuracy in voice ordering, targeting quick-service restaurant settings.
📊 Strategic Growth Plans
Deepgram plans to use the new funds to:
• Expand globally, particularly in Europe and Asia-Pacific.
• Support more languages and developer tools.
• Invest in acquisitions and infrastructure to enhance its voice-AI platform.
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TSlackbot is an AI agent now
Slackbot, the assistant in Slack, is now an AI agent. It's more than just a notification bot. With generative AI, it helps users work directly within Slack.
This new feature is available for Business+ and Enterprise+ customers.
Key points:
Slackbot can search for information in Slack. With permission, it can also access tools like Microsoft Teams and Google Drive, all without leaving Slack.
Draft emails and documents: It can help write messages or documents, making common tasks quicker.
Schedule meetings: The AI agent can manage calendars and set up meetings for you.
Enhanced AI assistants can summarise channels or conversations. They provide personalised information tailored to your work context.
🤝 Integration Across Tools
This new Slackbot works across various enterprise systems. Users don’t need to switch between apps to complete their tasks.
Salesforce, Slack’s parent company, is developing broader AI toolkits and APIs. This will allow Slack to connect securely to other data sources and tools.
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Monday briefing: How Elon Musk’s Grok is being used as a tool for digital sexual abuse
Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok has faced misuse, particularly with its image creation and editing tools. People have used it to make deepfake images. These include non-consensual sexualised images of women and children. Experts warn this abuse can be classified as child sexual abuse material (CSAM) in some areas.
Key Points:
The misuse on X (formerly Twitter) grew fast. Reports showed hundreds of non-consensual images were created and shared.
⚠️ Severity & Scale of Abuse
Researchers and child protection groups have found cases where:
Users prompt Grok to remove clothing from photos, creating sexually explicit or suggestive images.
Some generated content features minors. This is worrying and illegal under anti-abuse laws.
Advocacy groups are urging law enforcement to investigate violations of child protection laws.
🔒 Platform & Regulatory Response
In response to public outcry, Grok’s image tools were limited to paying subscribers. UK officials criticised this as insufficient, suggesting it monetises illegal behaviour.
UK Technology Secretary Liz Kendall has announced new laws. Soon, sharing non-consensual intimate images will be illegal.
Regulatory bodies in several countries are taking action:
Ofcom (UK regulator) is looking into whether X failed to protect users and comply with online safety laws.
Concerns and actions about sexualised images made by Grok have also arisen in Australia and Ireland.
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