Sapient bets tiny models beat LLMs at reasoning; open-source HRM hits 11.4K stars
Singapore's Sapient Intelligence raised $22M at a $200M valuation to prove a 27M-parameter hierarchical reasoning model can outthink LLMs — open-sourced it.
사례 읽기startups.centerCASESTUDIES.CHAT 아카이브
모든 기업에는
시작이 있습니다.
기업이 시작하고 자리를 잡으며 이후의 과제에 맞선 과정을 살펴보세요.
전체 아카이브는 앱에서기사는 영어와 중국어 간체로 제공됩니다. 아래 제목과 본문은 게시된 언어 그대로 표시됩니다.
게시된 사례
2,000 게시된 사례 · 정기 업데이트Vivodyne bets AI drug discovery lacks human-tissue data, not better models
UPenn spinout Vivodyne builds robotic labs that grow and dose human organ tissues, arguing AI can't cure diseases trained on mouse data.
사례 읽기Isometric's verification bet: Onfido founder builds the registry carbon buyers trust
Eamon Jubbawy applies Onfido's identity logic to carbon markets: rigorous registry first, then AI certification for industry.
사례 읽기KREAM's authenticated-resale bet: unicorn in 2023, capital-impaired, ₩130B Naver rescue
KREAM built Korea's leading authenticated resale market and hit unicorn status in 2023, then slid into capital impairment; Naver injected ₩130B in Aug 2026.
사례 읽기Astrotalk's paid-online-astrology bet reaches $1B on ₹1,176 Cr FY25 revenue
Noida marketplace for paid chat and call astrology grew into a $1B unicorn with ₹1,176 Cr FY25 revenue and a profit-funded ESOP buyback.
사례 읽기Duolingo's 'AI-first' memo ignited a fandom revolt: cancellations and a walk-back
The internet's most memeable education app announced an 'AI-first' pivot in April 2025 — its fandom turned it into a boycott, forcing a walk-back.
사례 읽기Wero: 16 European banks' joint wallet against Visa and PayPal hits 52.5M users
Europe's biggest banks built one wallet together to break Visa, Mastercard and PayPal's hold; after a 2022 retreat and 2024 relaunch it reached 52.5M users.
사례 읽기Planqc bets neutral atoms win quantum computing; €50M Series A, DLR and Airbus contracts
Munich Max Planck spinout wagers lasers-trapped atoms reach fault-tolerant quantum computers first; €50M Series A and paid government projects follow
사례 읽기Aina's Dune bet: a $119 three-key keypad as the context layer for AI agents
Ex-Ultrahuman hardware VP Apoorv Shankar shipped a $119 Mac keypad that won Product Hunt's day and week, then raised $5.5M to build the full device.
사례 읽기Wysa's AI front door for mental health: 4.5M users, FDA nod, NHS across 31 services
Wysa bets AI can own mental health's front door: 4.5M users, FDA Breakthrough designation, NHS deployment across 31 Talking Therapies services.
사례 읽기Transload bets CCTV can measure every LTL shipment: YC P26, HN launch, ~$50K/site/month
Three TU Munich friends turn warehouse security cameras into freight dimensioners, so LTL carriers catch underbilled shipments without slowing the dock.
사례 읽기Ghostty bets a fast native terminal wins; HN #1 launch, 60k stars, non-profit
HashiCorp co-founder Mitchell Hashimoto's GPU-accelerated Zig terminal hit HN #1 at 1.0, then became non-profit under Hack Club.
사례 읽기Warp Space bets user-created AI characters make Caveduck a global chat platform
Korean startup WARP SPACE lets anyone create AI characters others pay to chat with; 1M+ users, 30M monthly conversations, ₩4.3B Series A led by ID Ventures.
사례 읽기Acadia discontinued carbetocin after its Phase 3 failed in Prader-Willi syndrome
The drug Acadia inherited with its 2022 Levo Therapeutics buy missed its Phase 3 on hyperphagia — Acadia killed it; the stock fell 11% in a day.
사례 읽기GALVANY's heat-transition bet: 2,500 heat pumps, €20.1M revenue, profitable at seed
GALVANY bets German heat pumps fail on installs and economics, not technology, so one full-chain platform can scale profitably.
사례 읽기Snoonu bet a tiny market could carry a full-stack super-app — and won a $320M exit
Snoonu built its own fleet, groceries and payments in a market most investors called too small, then sold 76.56% to Jahez at a $320M valuation.
사례 읽기NetShort's translated-AI drama bet: No. 1 global short-drama downloads with 23M in July
Chongqing MCN Maiya Media's NetShort exported Chinese short dramas via translation and AI, topping July 2026 overseas short-drama downloads at 23M+ per month.
사례 읽기Riiid bet AI knowledge tracing could replace test prep — SoftBank paid $175M to see
Korea's Santa TOEIC became a SoftBank-backed unicorn betting 'knowledge tracing' would end one-shot standardized testing — then bought content to stay credible.
사례 읽기Agora's GENIUS Act bet: white-label stablecoins, $50M Series A as US law lands
Agora bets the US stablecoin law opens a white-label issuance market; AUSD goes live multi-chain, Paradigm leads $50M Series A in July 2025.
사례 읽기ZuriQ's 2D trapped-ion bet: $25.5M to make quantum scaling a geometry problem
ETH Zürich spinout ZuriQ bets Penning micro-traps arranged in two dimensions can out-scale IonQ-style 1D chains; $29.7M raised so far.
사례 읽기