Zombiecorns, Talent Wars & AI that Forecasts the FuturePost

Hi there, Innovators!

Today’s AI forecast? Overheated—with a strong chance of overspending. From unicorn startups teetering on the brink of zombification to a multimillion-dollar arms race for top AI talent, the AI world is moving fast, breaking things—and signing some very fat checks. Microsoft just dropped a model that does more than predict weather, and Google’s giving AI a VIP seat at the e-commerce table. Let’s dig in.

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The Rise of Zombiecorns

Unicorn AI startups are worth billions… but many may not survive the decade.

There’s a new mythical beast stalking the AI startup landscape: the zombiecorn. Dozens of AI unicorns—startups valued at $1 billion or more—are struggling with unsustainable burn rates, shaky revenue models, and growing pressure from deep-pocketed incumbents like Google and Microsoft. Enter the zombiecorn: those with poor revenue growth and unit economics.

• Overhype meets underdelivery: Many raised funds in the 2021–2023 boom with minimal product-market fit. In 2024, ~40% of the total amount raised by U.S. venture funds was from funds that list AI as a focus, according to SVB’s 2025 State of Enterprise Software Report.

• Sky-high compute costs and an arms race for top AI talent mean they’re burning through capital faster than they can build.

• Enterprise customers are cautious. They want ROI, not hype.

Why should enterprises care? Because the days of partnering with “the next OpenAI” may be over—unless that startup has revenue, retention, and a real moat. Otherwise, it’s vaporware with a glossy pitch deck.

Bottom line: The AI gold rush is entering its ‘Darwinian phase.’ Expect consolidations, fire sales, and a flight to sustainable value over valuation puffery.

Quote From the Field

What to Watch:
Bidding Wars for AI Brains: When $10M Isn’t Enough

The competition for elite AI researchers is now officially unhinged. OpenAI, Google DeepMind, and Elon Musk’s xAI are offering individual researchers up to $10 million per year in total comp. Some AI staff are getting offers from multiple orgs simultaneously, with non-competes and aggressive lock-ins now the norm.

Why the frenzy?

• Control the talent, control the frontier. The biggest breakthroughs (and biggest risks) hinge on a handful of superstar researchers.

• IP follows people. Teams like the original Transformer authors are now worth more than early-stage companies.

• Defensibility is in the brains. With models commoditizing, companies are hoarding the people who can build what’s next.

Enterprise takeaway: If you’re trying to build AI internally, don’t just throw money at the problem. Build a culture and mission that elite researchers want to be part of. And don’t assume your top engineer won’t get poached next week.

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AI News Roundup

OpenAI + Jony Ive: The iPhone of AI?
Sam Altman and Apple’s iconic former designer Jony Ive are teaming up to build a mysterious “AI hardware device.” Hardware meets soul meets superintelligence. No details yet—but vibes are immaculate.
→ Full scoop

Microsoft’s Aurora Model Looks Beyond the Clouds
Microsoft just launched Aurora, a new foundation model trained on petabytes of weather data—but its applications go far beyond forecasting. Aurora’s multimodal reasoning could support climate science, logistics, and even geopolitical modeling.
→ Get the report

Google Search Now Personalizes Shopping with AI
Google is weaving genAI into your shopping queries, helping consumers discover new brands based on their style, behavior, and product history. The new feature blurs the line between search and sales, and could massively disrupt retail discovery.
→ Read more

TL;DR:

• Zombiecorns are real. Many AI startups are unicorns in name only—and some are headed for extinction.

• The AI talent war escalates. Google, OpenAI, and xAI are shelling out millions to hoard the brains behind the breakthroughs.

• OpenAI x Jony Ive = AI hardware incoming.

• Microsoft Aurora goes beyond weather. This model has applications in climate, logistics, and more.

• Google adds AI to search-based shopping. Retail discovery just got smarter—and more personalized.

In a landscape where hype is easy and execution is hard, the winners will be the ones who know when to spend, when to scale, and when to say no to shiny objects. Whether you're investing in AI or building with it, remember: it's not just about unicorns. It's about staying alive long enough to ride one.

Stay sharp,

Cat Valverde
Founder, Enterprise AI Solutions
Navigating Tomorrow's Tech Landscape Together