88% resolved. 22% loyal. Your stack has a problem.
Those numbers aren't a CX issue — they're a design issue. Gladly's 2026 Customer Expectations Report breaks down exactly where AI-powered service loses customers, and what the architecture of loyalty-driven CX actually looks like.
Welcome to the latest issue of RVL
A weekly digest uncovering how design, technology, and capital are shaping the next generation of companies.
This week: Bezos wants $100B to automate the world's factories. Nvidia's quiet networking business is already bigger than Cisco's. Uber is betting $1.25B on Rivian robotaxis. And AI funding just hit a record 41% of all venture dollars. We dig into where capital is moving, what it means for founders, and what's working inside RNO1.
ON THE RADAR
What's making waves right now
Jeff Bezos is trying to raise $100B to buy and automate the world's factories.
Bezos is in early discussions to raise a staggering $100B for a new fund described in investor materials as a "manufacturing transformation vehicle," targeting industries like semiconductors, defense, and aerospace. The idea is straightforward: buy traditional manufacturers, inject advanced AI systems, and rebuild operations around automation.
The effort is linked to Bezos' AI startup Project Prometheus, launched in late 2025 with $6.2B in funding, which focuses on applying AI to engineering and manufacturing processes. After reshaping retail and cloud, he's now setting his sights on the factory floor.
STARTUP SPOTLIGHT
Funding news that matters this week
Bluesky. Raised $100M Series B led by Bain Capital Crypto. The decentralized social network has grown from 13 million to over 43 million global users since its Series A with a new CEO search underway as the company pushes toward commercial scale.
Arc. Raised $50M Series C from Eclipse, a16z, and Menlo Ventures to expand its electric boat technology into commercial and defense markets. The LA-based startup is following the Tesla playbook, proving the tech on premium consumer boats before moving into larger markets.
Andromeda. A GPU marketplace that helps AI startups access compute without committing to hyperscaler contracts. Raised $60M from Paradigm at a $1.5B valuation, now managing tens of thousands of GPUs with a $100M annual revenue run rate.
RoboForce. Physical AI robots built for dull, dirty, and dangerous industrial work across energy, logistics, and manufacturing. Raised $52M in an oversubscribed round led by YZi Labs, bringing total funding to $67M, as the company shifts from R&D into full commercial deployment.
🔗 More early-stage movers: Eragon ($12M Seed, AI enterprise operating system), Paraform ($65M raised to date in Series B, AI-powered recruiting platform), Parallel ($20M Series A, AI agents for hospital admin workflows), and Foresight ($25M Series A, AI project delivery for large-scale infrastructure).
VC/PE WATCH
Where capital is flowing and what that means for founders
Nvidia's second act is already a behemoth. Nvidia's networking business, designed to connect AI data centers, reported $11B in revenue last quarter, a 267% year-over-year increase, making it the company's second-largest revenue driver behind chips.
Uber just committed $1.25B to Rivian for 50,000 robotaxis. Uber plans to deploy up to 50,000 robotaxis in 25 cities across the US, Canada, and Europe through 2031, starting in San Francisco and Miami in 2028.
AI is eating VC and the returns are holding up. AI startups accounted for 41% of the $128B in venture dollars raised on Carta last year, a record high, with just 10% of startups capturing half of all funding. But the smartest AI bet right now may be energy. Up to 50% of announced data center projects could face delays due to power constraints, opening a major opportunity for energy tech investors.
🔗 Trend for founders: Capital is concentrating fast, in AI, in autonomy, and now in the physical infrastructure powering it all. If your startup touches any of these layers, the funding window is open.
RNO1 CASE STUDY
Challenge: Amount, a VC-backed fintech powering digital banking for institutions like TD Bank and HSBC, needed a modern customer-facing digital experience that could communicate the sophistication of its platform while remaining accessible to a broad financial audience.
RNO1's Solution: RNO1 partnered with Amount's Head of Marketing and exec team to rebuild the marketing and product website from the ground up, extending the work into a comprehensive design system and visual language built to scale cross-channel.
Result: A design-rich digital experience positioned Amount for growth — during the partnership, the company raised $99M in Series D funding at a $1B+ valuation.
Which topic would you like to see more of next issue?
