Dean Leitersdorf and I are on Zoom, watching a Sabrina Carpenter music video.<\/p>\n
In \u201cTaste,\u201d Carpenter and Jenna Ortega comically feud in over-the-top fashion\u2014complete with chainsaws, machetes, and camp. But we\u2019re not watching the original. In real-time, the video is transfigured into a snowy animated wonderland, courtesy of an AI model called Mirage. The model was built by Decart, an AI lab focused on interactive experiences that Leitersdorf cofounded and leads. The site calls Mirage a \u201cworld transformation model,\u201d but Leitersdorf prefers \u201clivestream diffusion model\u201d\u2014\u201ca way better name,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
\u201cLook, I\u2019m a Lego man!\u201d Leitersdorf laughs as we scroll through other possibilities on Mirage. Effusively, Leitersdorf shows me what it would look like to turn his video into \u201cZombies!\u201d mode, flying through \u201ccabincore\u201d and steampunk modes. In \u201cWorld of Wizards\u201d mode, he shows me how mundane objects\u2014like pens\u2014appear as spell-casting beams of light.<\/p>\n
This is both fun and games, and entirely serious\u2014Leitersdorf, who cofounded the company with Moshe Shalev in 2023, has long been clear about the depth of his ambition: He wants Decart (yes, named with the philosopher in mind) to be a trillion-dollar company.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re here to build a billion-user consumer app,\u201d said Leitersdorf. \u201cIt can\u2019t be that ChatGPT is the last thing a billion people will install on their phones. It just can\u2019t be. The next thing a billion people install on their phones needs to be a Decart product\u2026 So, the vision is this: A billion-user company that completely changes how people interact with tech. We do it through building one of the best AI labs in the world. One day, it\u2019ll be top five, top three, and then number one. And we do this with a very small but very fun, talented team.\u201d<\/p>\n
Decart has closed a $100 million Series B, valuing the company at $3.1 billion, Fortune has exclusively learned. Sequoia Capital, Benchmark, and Zeev Ventures, all existing investors, participated in the round, with new investor Aleph VC also joining. This round undoubtedly marks a valuation leap\u2014previous reports pin Decart\u2019s valuation at $500 million. (The company didn\u2019t comment on specific numbers.) What\u2019s more, Leitersdorf says the raise was wholly unnecessary\u2014despite raising $153 million in the last 11 months, Decart has spent less than $10 million of its investors\u2019 money.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, Decart remains far from its trillion-dollar goals. But Leitersdorf\u2014born in Israel, raised in Palo Alto, and who earned his doctorate by 23\u2014approaches that ambition with a hard-charging, exuberant confidence.<\/p>\n
\u201cGive it five years, 10 years,\u201d said Leitersdorf. \u201cIf it works, that\u2019s incredible. And if it doesn\u2019t, you had the best five years of your life. It took a year for us to say it out in the open. And people definitely told us, once we said it publicly, \u2018You guys are crazy.\u2019 I say, let them call us crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n
And to be clear, it does sound crazy\u2014though not quite as crazy as it would have even a few years ago. Trillion-dollar companies didn\u2019t exist at all (at least, not in modern financial markets) until 2018, when Apple<\/a> first crossed the mark. Today, depending on fluctuations, there are between eight and 10 trillion-plus companies in the world by market cap. The goalposts are moving in the markets, and the landscape of the Internet is also about to change.\u00a0<\/p>\n Leitersdorf has a clear view about how the Internet is changing post-ChatGPT. Pre-ChatGPT, he says, consumer Internet use could fall into four categories\u2014knowledge, e-commerce, communication, and creativity (or, if you like, fun). His case: With the rise of AI, the first three categories are already en route to being completely transformed by AI agents and chatbots. That leaves creativity and fun, where Decart believes it can make an impact, said\u00a0Leitersdorf.<\/p>\n \u201cThink about Netflix, Minecraft, Instagram, TikTok, that\u2019s all a huge portion of the internet,\u201d he told Fortune. \u201cIt accounts for more than half the internet, both in time spent and in dollars. And AI still hasn\u2019t completely made its mark. Our TikTok feeds are flooded by AI cats. But that\u2019s not really a new experience. We\u2019re still doing lots of the same things we\u2019ve done for years, opening apps we\u2019ve long opened and engaging with them the way we always mostly have.\u201d<\/p>\n Leitersdorf added: \u201cOver time, we won\u2019t just be seeing Sabrina Carpenter videos. The experience itself will change.\u201d<\/p>\n OpenAI update\u2026 OpenAI is reportedly<\/a> set to hit a valuation of $500 billion, and\u2014also reportedly<\/a>\u2014today the company\u2019s GPT-5 is expected to see its release.<\/p>\n ICYMI\u2026 The second episode of the Term Sheet Podcast is live! Our next guest: Taylor Otwell, CEO and founder of Laravel\u2014the company\u2019s $57 million raise from Accel last year<\/a> was one of our most-read Term Sheets of 2024. Listen here<\/a>.<\/p>\n See you tomorrow,<\/p>\n Allie Garfinkle Joey Abrams curated the deals section of today\u2019s newsletter. Subscribe here<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n Venture Deals<\/p>\n – Chai Discovery<\/a>, a San Francisco-based AI-powered molecule engineering company, raised $70 million in Series A funding. Menlo Ventures led the round and was joined by Yosemite, DST Global Partners, SV Angel, Avenir, DCVC, and others.<\/p>\n – Positive Development<\/a>, a McLean, Va.-based provider of developmental therapy for children with autism, raised $51.5 million in Series C funding. aMoon Fund, B Capital, and Flare Capital Partners led the round and were joined by Healthworx, Digitalis Ventures, and others.<\/p>\n – Lorikeet<\/a>, a New York City-based developer of AI-powered customer concierge software, raised $35 million in Series A funding. QED Investors led the round and was joined by Blackbird, Square Peg, Skip Capital, Capital49, Operator Partners, Airtree, and Athletic Ventures.<\/p>\n – Elion<\/a>, a New York City-based AI-powered research and intelligence platform for health care technology, raised $9.3 million in seed funding. NEA led the round and was joined by Cedars Sinai Health Ventures, TMV, Scrub Capital, and Alumni Ventures.<\/p>\n Private Equity<\/p>\n – AVS Bio, a portfolio company of Arlington Capital Partners, acquired IPA Europe<\/a>, a Brussels, Belgium-based antibody discovery and protein production company, carved out of ImmunoPrecise Antibodies. Financial terms were not disclosed.<\/p>\n – BV Investment Partners acquired a majority stake in The Millenium Alliance<\/a>, a New York City-based conferences and executive education platform. Financial terms were not disclosed.<\/p>\n – Opiniion, backed by Five Elms Capital, acquired Rentgrata<\/a>, a Miami, Fla.-based resident engagement tool. Financial terms were not disclosed.<\/p>\n Exits<\/p>\n – Advancing Eyecare, a portfolio company of Cornell Capital, acquired Birmingham Optical<\/a>, a Birmingham, U.K.-based optical equipment and services company. Financial terms were not disclosed.<\/p>\n – Blackstone agreed to acquire Enverus<\/a>, an Austin, Texas-based data analytics energy intelligence platform, from Hellman & Friedman and Genstar Capital. Financial terms were not disclosed.<\/p>\n
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Email: alexandra.garfinkle@fortune.com<\/a>
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