WORLD MODEL MAKER ODYSSEY NABS $1.45B VALUATION BACKED BY AMAZON AND OTHER BIG NAMES

Summary from the TLDR Design newsletter

Odyssey, an AI world model startup co-founded by self-driving veterans Oliver Cameron and Jeff Hawke, raised a $310M Series B at a $1.45B valuation, with backers including Amazon, AMD Ventures, and GV. Founded in 2023, the company builds world models for use cases ranging from video game creation to robotics, collecting real-world physical data through camera-equipped people rather than vehicles. The Amazon partnership designates AWS as Odyssey's preferred cloud provider, with model optimization planned for AWS's Trainium chips.