Meta is still going all-in on the AI talent war, with Mark Zuckerberg reportedly reaching out to top recruits himself, throwing around jaw-dropping compensation packages that top $1 billion over multiple years. And Meta’s latest target? Mira Murati's new startup, Thinking Machines Lab. It's a bold play in an already overheated market.

While Zuck eyes new talent, Anthropic is preparing to raise a massive round of its own at a staggering $170 billion valuation, nearly tripling its worth in just months. On paper, it looks like the AI cash floodgates are wide open. But all this endless money raises some serious questions about sustainability.

On today's episode of Equity, Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, and Max Zeff unpack the reality behind these eye-popping figures. With compensation packages skyrocketing and funding rounds swelling, how long can this race actually last?

Listen to the full episode to hear more about:

Figma’s IPO, which is massively oversubscribed ahead of its NYSE debut

Ramp’s rapid rise to a $22.5 billion valuation in just 45 days

Why the Pentagon’s Golden Dome defense program may not be the big break startups are hoping for

The escalating AI chip race, from Groq’s $600 million raise to Tesla’s $16.5 billion deal with Samsung, all while geopolitical tensions flare over chip exports to China

Equity will be back for you next week, so don’t miss it!

Equity is TechCrunch’s flagship podcast, produced by Theresa Loconsolo, and posts every Wednesday and Friday. 

Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices