December 4, 2025

Cloud nine

Hi there,

Here is this week's Hot or Not.

Hot: Cloud competition

Google Cloud is gaining share of the AI startup market among cloud providers. 

We analyzed partnership activity across major hyperscalers to understand how cloud competition is shifting. We found: 

• AI startups experimenting in Google’s Gemini ecosystem are often scaling directly onto GCP 
• AWS slipped to 30% but its model neutrality still appeals to startups avoiding lock-in
• Azure’s OpenAI and Anthropic partnerships haven’t driven startup adoption

See who’s winning the AI startup market here.

Not: Ultrafast delivery funding

Amazon just launched ultrafast 30-minute grocery delivery in Seattle and Philadelphia.

The tech giant is betting its infrastructure can crack what smaller players couldn’t during the ultrafast boom.

Funding to ultrafast delivery platforms has collapsed from $7.6B in 2021 to just $704M in 2025 YTD. 

Amazon’s move puts direct pressure on grocery delivery players DoorDash, Gopuff, and Instacart. 

CB Insights customers can track the market here.   

Hot: Nvidia's deal pace

Nvidia’s $2B investment in Synopsys this week marks the latest move in the company’s deal spree.

In 2025 alone, Nvidia: 

• Added 400+ new key business relationships (up 30% vs. 2024)
• Backed 77 equity deals to startups (including activity from its venture arm NVentures)
• Made 5 acquisitions

CB Insights customers can interact with Nvidia’s live strategy map to see where the $4T company is headed next. 

Not: Black Friday without AI

ChatGPT referrals to retail apps jumped 28% year-over-year over the Thanksgiving weekend.

The numbers signal a shift toward agentic commerce: where AI agents don’t just assist but act, making purchase decisions on behalf of consumers.

Now, a wave of startups are building the specialized tools that power every stage of the agentic shopping journey, from discovery and comparison to checkout, fulfillment, and service.

See 90+ startups building the infrastructure for AI-powered shopping.

The +1

Source: The Guardian

China-US scale war. Misleading dual scales. 

I love you.

Anand

@asanwal 

Co-Founder & Exec Chair

P.S. Want to learn about the top 50 early-stage defense startups? Download the Book of Scouting Reports here.

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