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This Week in Tech #61

Your curated digest of the week's hottest tech news, AI breakthroughs, and developer highlights.

Dillip Chowdary
Dillip Chowdary
Tech Analyst & AI Expert
Published
2025-10-13

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This Week in Tech #61

October 6-13, 2025

Welcome to Tech Week #61! This week delivered one of the biggest funding weeks of 2025, with over $3.1 billion raised across AI infrastructure and developer platforms. NVIDIA made a strategic $2 billion bet on Reflection AI, Supabase doubled its valuation to $5 billion in just four months, and GitHub Copilot got a major upgrade with Claude Sonnet 4.5 integration. Plus, Windows 10 reached end of support, marking the end of an era. Let's dive into the major tech stories!

💰 Funding & Investment

Reflection AI Raises $2 Billion Led by NVIDIA

October 9, 2025 - Reflection AI secured a massive $2 billion Series B funding round at an $8 billion valuation, marking one of the largest AI funding rounds in history.

Investors:

  • Lead: NVIDIA, Disruptive, DST
  • Participants: 1789, B Capital, Lightspeed, GIC, Sequoia, CRV, Citi, Eric Yuan (Zoom CEO), Eric Schmidt (former Google CEO)

Valuation Growth: The company's valuation surged 15x from $545 million just seven months ago when it emerged from stealth in March 2025.

Company Background:

  • Founders: Misha Laskin (led reward modeling for DeepMind's Gemini) and Ioannis Antonoglou (co-created AlphaGo)
  • Mission: Build open-source alternatives to closed frontier labs like OpenAI and Anthropic
  • Position: Positioning as Western equivalent to Chinese AI firms like DeepSeek

Use of Funds: The capital will accelerate compute resource acquisition for training new models, with the first release targeted for early 2026.

Why NVIDIA Led: NVIDIA's strategic investment reinforces its ecosystem approach, ensuring AI infrastructure demand for its GPUs while diversifying beyond closed AI labs.

Market Impact:

  • Validates open-source AI model development at scale
  • Intensifies competition with OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google
  • Signals investor confidence in diverse AI approaches
  • Creates pressure on closed labs to justify premium pricing

Source: TechCrunch - Reflection AI $2B Raise

Supabase Hits $5 Billion Valuation with $100M Series E

October 7, 2025 - Supabase, the open-source Firebase alternative, secured $100 million in Series E funding at a $5 billion valuation, doubling its valuation from $2 billion just four months ago.

Investors:

  • Co-leads: Accel, Peak XV (formerly Sequoia India)
  • Participants: Figma Ventures, returning backers

Valuation Trajectory:

  • June 2025: $200M Series D at $2B valuation
  • October 2025: $100M Series E at $5B valuation
  • Growth: 150% valuation increase in 4 months

Product Growth:

  • User base grew from 1 million to 4 million developers
  • Emerged as leading open-source alternative to Google Firebase
  • Built on PostgreSQL, offering powerful backend stack
  • Strong enterprise adoption across startups and Fortune 500

"Vibe Coding" Phenomenon: Supabase has become synonymous with the "vibe coding" trend—where developers rapidly build and deploy applications using modern, developer-friendly tools that "just work."

Key Features:

  • Open-source PostgreSQL database
  • Real-time subscriptions
  • Authentication and authorization
  • Storage and edge functions
  • Auto-generated APIs

Market Position:

  • Competes directly with Firebase, AWS Amplify
  • Open-source model attracts developer community
  • Enterprise-grade security and compliance
  • Strong integration ecosystem

Outlook: The rapid valuation growth reflects strong demand for developer-friendly, open-source infrastructure tools that accelerate application development without vendor lock-in.

Source: Dataconomy - Supabase $100M Series E

Base Power Secures $1 Billion Series C for Home Battery Network

October 8, 2025 - Base Power, the Texas-based energy startup led by Zach Dell, secured a $1 billion Series C financing round, valuing the company at over $3 billion pre-money.

Investors:

  • Lead: Addition
  • Other strategic energy and infrastructure investors

Business Model: Base Power deploys home battery systems that form a massive virtual power plant (VPP) network, using proprietary AI to coordinate distributed energy storage.

Technology:

  • AI Platform: Transforms isolated home batteries into cohesive, responsive network
  • Grid Services: Provides frequency regulation, demand response, peak shaving
  • Renewable Integration: Enables better solar and wind energy utilization
  • Consumer Savings: Homeowners save on energy bills while supporting grid stability

Market Opportunity:

  • U.S. residential energy storage market growing at 50%+ CAGR
  • Grid modernization driving demand for distributed resources
  • California, Texas leading adoption due to grid challenges
  • Federal incentives (IRA credits) accelerating deployment

Deployment Plans:

  • Targeting 1 million homes by 2027
  • Each home battery: 10-15 kWh capacity
  • Combined network: 10-15 GWh of grid storage
  • Equivalent to several traditional power plants

Why This Matters: Virtual power plants represent the future of grid infrastructure, leveraging distributed resources instead of massive centralized facilities. Base Power's AI orchestration platform could become the "operating system" for home energy.

Source: StartupHub.ai - Base Power $1B Series C

🤖 AI & Machine Learning

GitHub Copilot Gets Claude Sonnet 4.5 Integration

October 13, 2025 - Claude Sonnet 4.5 became generally available in GitHub Copilot, bringing Anthropic's most advanced coding model to millions of developers.

Why This Matters: Claude Sonnet 4.5 is recognized as the world's best coding model, outperforming GPT-5 and Gemini 2.5 Pro on coding benchmarks. Its integration gives GitHub Copilot users access to state-of-the-art AI assistance.

Key Capabilities:

  • Production-Ready Code: Generates deployment-ready applications, not just prototypes
  • Extended Autonomous Work: Can work autonomously for up to 30 hours (vs. 7 hours for Claude Opus 4)
  • Specialized Fields: Excels in cybersecurity, finance, and research applications
  • Sustained Focus: Maintains context and coherence over long coding sessions

Pricing: Remains unchanged at $3 per million input tokens and $15 per million output tokens.

Developer Benefits:

  • Switch between multiple AI models (GPT-4, Claude Opus, Claude Sonnet 4.5, Gemini Pro)
  • Access to best-in-class coding assistance for complex projects
  • Improved code quality and reduced debugging time
  • Better understanding of specialized domain requirements

Rollout: Available to GitHub Copilot Pro, Pro+, Business, and Enterprise subscribers worldwide.

Competitive Landscape: This integration intensifies competition among AI coding assistants, with developers now having access to the best models from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google all within GitHub's ecosystem.

Source: GitHub Changelog - Claude Sonnet 4.5

OpenAI Codex General Availability

October 13, 2025 - OpenAI Codex, the AI software engineering agent, became generally available to all developers through terminal and IDE integrations.

Capabilities:

  • Multi-language code generation (Python, JavaScript, Go, Rust, and more)
  • Autonomous debugging and error resolution
  • Code review and optimization suggestions
  • Integration with popular IDEs via APIs
  • Cloud agent delegation for background tasks

Use Cases:

  • Automated code generation from natural language
  • Legacy codebase modernization
  • API integration and boilerplate reduction
  • Testing and documentation generation

Pricing: Available through OpenAI API with per-token pricing model.

🔒 Security & Infrastructure

Windows 10 Reaches End of Support

October 14, 2025 - Microsoft officially ended support for Windows 10, marking the conclusion of a 10-year lifecycle for one of the company's most successful operating systems.

What This Means:

  • No More Security Updates: Critical vulnerability patches cease after October 14, 2025
  • Compliance Risks: Organizations using Windows 10 face regulatory compliance issues
  • Enterprise Impact: Estimated 400+ million PCs still running Windows 10
  • Extended Security Updates (ESU): Available for businesses at additional cost

Migration Timeline:

  • Immediate: Home users should upgrade to Windows 11
  • Enterprise: Many organizations negotiating ESU contracts for 1-3 years
  • SMBs: Facing budget constraints for hardware upgrades (Windows 11 has stricter requirements)

Hardware Requirements Challenge: Windows 11 requires:

  • TPM 2.0 (Trusted Platform Module)
  • UEFI firmware
  • Secure Boot capability
  • 8GB RAM minimum
  • Modern CPU (Intel 8th gen / AMD Ryzen 2000 or newer)

Security Implications: Continuing to use Windows 10 after end of support exposes organizations to:

  • Unpatched zero-day vulnerabilities
  • Malware and ransomware attacks
  • Data breach risks
  • Cyber insurance coverage issues

Market Impact:

  • PC refresh cycle accelerating through 2025-2026
  • Hardware vendors seeing increased enterprise demand
  • Cloud desktop solutions (Windows 365, Azure Virtual Desktop) gaining traction
  • Linux adoption increasing for older hardware

Recommendations:

  1. Audit all Windows 10 devices immediately
  2. Create migration plan with phased rollout
  3. Budget for hardware upgrades where necessary
  4. Consider ESU for critical systems requiring additional time
  5. Evaluate cloud desktop alternatives

Source: Microsoft Lifecycle - Windows 10 End of Support

Meta Hires xAI's CFO for $1.5 Billion

October 12, 2025 - Meta poached Andrew Tulloch, co-founder of Thinking Machines Lab startup, with a compensation package rumored to reach $1.5 billion over six years.

Strategic Significance: This move underscores Meta's aggressive strategy to close the AI gap with OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic by acquiring top-tier AI talent.

Executive AI Talent War:

  • Meta vs. xAI for AI leadership talent
  • Compensation packages reaching unprecedented levels
  • Sign of intense competition for AI expertise
  • Indicates Meta's commitment to catching up in AI race

Context: Following significant investments in Llama models and Reality Labs, Meta is doubling down on AI infrastructure and talent acquisition to maintain competitiveness.

📱 Hardware & Devices

Vivo X300 Series Launches in India

October 13, 2025 - Vivo confirmed the India launch of its X300 series powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 9500 chipset.

Key Features:

Vivo X300 Pro:

  • Camera: 200MP periscope telephoto sensor
  • Processor: MediaTek Dimensity 9500 (3nm process)
  • Display: 6.78" AMOLED, 120Hz
  • Charging: 120W wired, 50W wireless
  • AI Features: Advanced computational photography with real-time scene analysis

Market Positioning:

  • Competing with iPhone 16 Pro, Samsung S25 Ultra, Google Pixel 10
  • Premium flagship pricing expected around ₹75,000-80,000
  • Focus on camera capabilities and AI-powered photography
  • Targeting photography enthusiasts and power users

MediaTek Dimensity 9500:

  • 3nm manufacturing process
  • Improved AI processing unit
  • Enhanced GPU for mobile gaming
  • Better power efficiency vs. previous generation

Availability: Pre-orders began October 13, with retail availability expected late October 2025.

📊 Industry Insights

Q3 2025 Funding Roundup

October 1-13, 2025 - The first two weeks of Q4 saw unprecedented funding activity, continuing strong momentum from Q3.

Total Raised (Week of Oct 6-13):

  • Reflection AI: $2B
  • Base Power: $1B
  • Supabase: $100M
  • Total: $3.1 Billion+ in one week

Q3 2025 Acquisition Activity:

  • 9 acquisitions valued at $1B+
    • 4 in healthcare and biotech
    • 5 across cybersecurity, AI, financial services, product development, sports betting

Market Trends:

  • Continued strong investor appetite for AI infrastructure
  • Open-source alternatives gaining traction
  • Developer platforms seeing significant growth
  • Energy and sustainability tech attracting major capital
  • Enterprise AI solutions commanding premium valuations

Sector Breakdown:

  • AI Infrastructure: 45% of funding
  • Developer Tools: 25%
  • Energy/Sustainability: 15%
  • Enterprise Software: 10%
  • Hardware: 5%

📈 By The Numbers

  • $3.1 Billion: Total funding raised this week (Reflection AI, Base Power, Supabase)
  • 15x: Reflection AI's valuation growth in 7 months ($545M to $8B)
  • 150%: Supabase valuation increase in 4 months ($2B to $5B)
  • 4 Million: Supabase developer user base (from 1M earlier this year)
  • $1.5 Billion: Meta's compensation package for xAI CFO hire
  • 400M+: PCs still running Windows 10 at end of support
  • 30 Hours: Claude Sonnet 4.5's autonomous work capability
  • 200MP: Vivo X300 Pro periscope telephoto camera sensor
  • 1 Million: Base Power's target home battery deployments by 2027

🔮 Looking Ahead

This Week's Trends to Watch:

  1. AI Infrastructure Investment Boom - $3.1B in one week signals continued strong investor confidence. Expect more mega-rounds through Q4.

  2. Open-Source AI Competition - Reflection AI's $2B raise validates open-source approach. Will closed labs (OpenAI, Anthropic) respond with pricing changes?

  3. Developer Platform Consolidation - Supabase's rapid growth indicates market preference for open, developer-friendly tools over proprietary platforms.

  4. Virtual Power Plants - Base Power's $1B raise could trigger competing home battery network deployments, accelerating distributed energy transition.

  5. Windows 11 Migration Wave - October 14 end-of-support will drive significant enterprise PC refresh cycle through 2026.

  6. AI Coding Assistant Wars - Claude Sonnet 4.5 integration in GitHub Copilot raises the bar. Expect competitive responses from Google (Gemini) and Meta (Llama).

  7. AI Talent Acquisition - $1.5B compensation packages signal executive AI talent becoming the most expensive corporate asset.

💡 Developer Spotlight

Must-Try This Week

GitHub Copilot with Claude Sonnet 4.5 Experience the world's best coding model in your IDE:

# Enable Claude Sonnet 4.5 in GitHub Copilot
# Available in VS Code, JetBrains, Neovim, and GitHub CLI
# Switch models via settings or inline command

# Example: Generate a microservice
# Prompt: "Create a Node.js Express API with PostgreSQL for user authentication"
# Claude Sonnet 4.5 will generate production-ready code with proper error handling

Supabase for Rapid Prototyping Try the platform that reached $5B valuation in record time:

// Initialize Supabase client
import { createClient } from '@supabase/supabase-js'

const supabase = createClient('YOUR_SUPABASE_URL', 'YOUR_ANON_KEY')

// Real-time subscriptions out of the box
const channel = supabase.channel('todos')
  .on('postgres_changes', {
    event: '*',
    schema: 'public',
    table: 'todos'
  }, (payload) => {
    console.log('Change received!', payload)
  })
  .subscribe()

📚 Resources

🎤 Closing Thoughts

This week demonstrated that AI infrastructure investment shows no signs of slowing down. The $3.1 billion raised across Reflection AI, Base Power, and Supabase reflects investor confidence that we're still in the early stages of the AI transformation.

The open-source vs. closed AI debate is heating up, with Reflection AI's $2B raise providing significant validation for the open approach. Meanwhile, developer platforms like Supabase prove that building truly developer-friendly tools creates massive value.

Windows 10 end-of-support marks the end of an era and the beginning of the largest enterprise PC refresh cycle since Windows 7's retirement. Organizations that delay migration face serious security and compliance risks.

Stay secure, keep building, and embrace the open-source AI revolution! 🚀

Until next week, Dillip Chowdary Tech Bytes Team

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