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Normally, I have a breakdown and then a birdie (my insider bits edited just for you). But today I’m combining them because I just have too many little birds talking to me about the new talent wars.
About seven years ago, the founder of a self-driving vehicle company told me that competition with other guys Waymo because the talent was “like a knife fight.” Now it appears a new poaching war is underway, according to a handful of birdies. And it pushes base salaries (not including equity and other benefits) between $300,000 and $500,000.
Here’s what’s happening. The crowded field of natural artificial intelligence is filled with robotics and defense technology companies looking for people with a certain skill set (to quote Liam Neeson). And these people mostly work at companies that develop autonomous trucks and robotaxis.
As these workers drift into other sectors — including defense — automakers and startups are being pushed to raise wages or risk losing talent to better-paying “natural AI” jobs.
The ideal candidate for an autonomous vehicle company has hybrid skills, a mix of classic robotics and artificial intelligence expertise, according to one founder. It is this specific understanding of how to integrate AI into hardware such as humanoid robots, industrial robots and autonomous forklifts, as well as construction, mining and agricultural equipment that has companies scrambling for talent.
Defense tech startups are apparently the most generous in terms of compensation, thanks to the Department of Defense’s open wallet. Jobs looking for applied researcher or AI engineer (or something similar) are hot tickets right now.
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That probably won’t hurt Waymo. As one founder noted, Waymo is not price sensitive. But startups and the auto industry, which have invested heavily in self-driving vehicles, will likely be affected the most, several birds told me.
I predict a two-fold fallout. Automakers will struggle to keep engineers working on automated driving, driving an exit. Meanwhile, startups will have to raise even more money or become much smarter about how to use those funds.
A little bird
Well, you already have the birdie for the week. Scroll up! But I’m keeping this cute graphic to remind you all to reach out, call or email me with tips!
Do you have a tip for us? Email Kirsten Korosec at kirsten.korosec@techcrunch.com or my Signal at kkorosec.07 or email Sean O’Kane at sean.okane@techcrunch.com.
Offers!
Remember in 2016 when the words “self-driving” in a stadium seemed to instantly generate a term sheet? While the aftershocks of 2016 have seeped into 2026, founders and investors have moved on. Now, as you’ve probably noticed, it’s all about natural artificial intelligence, a loose category that extends far beyond robot taxis and autonomous trucks.
The Palo Alto-based venture capital firm Eclipse has put itself at the center of natural AI action and now has another $1.3 billion to invest in it. The new $1.3 billion in new capital is split between a $591 million early-stage incubation fund and another geared toward growth startups.
I talked to the Eclipse partner Jiten Behl about the fund and where those dollars are likely headed. I was particularly interested in his thoughts on Eclipse’s role in incubating startups. Eclipse hasn’t cut new controls yet, but Behl said the company will incubate more startups and said, “We’re definitely working on some very interesting ideas.”
So stay tuned. And see the full story here.
Other offers that caught my eye…
Candlea Swedish electric hydrofoil company, landed a Order of 20 boats with the Norwegian company Boreal. Meanwhile, the founder and CEO of Candela Gustav Hasselskog recedes. Sofia Graflund is the new CEO and Hasselskog will take on the role of executive chairman.
Hermesa Los Angeles-based defense startup that develops unmanned aerial vehicles, has raised $350 million at a $1 billion valuation. This funding includes $200 million in equity led by Khosla Ventures. The remaining $150 million comes in the form of debt.
Sora Fuela sustainable aviation fuel startup based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has raised $14.6 million in a round led by Spero Ventures and Inspired Capital; Axios said.
Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy he said during an interview with CNBC that there is space for airline mergers in the United States.
Notable reads and other items
Avride is the latest autonomous vehicle company to face criticism from residents upset about the behavior of its robotic machine. In this case, it involved an autonomous vehicle (with a human safety operator) that ran over and killed a mother duck in Austin, Texas, an enclave of Lake Mueller. “He didn’t slow down or hesitate at all, he just steamed past,” said one witness. Read the story to find out how Avride handles it.
Gas prices it’s not the only factor fueling used EV sales.
John Deere arrived at a $99 million settlement agreement to resolve “right to repair” disputes pending in the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. Wired has a good one analysis of the subject and why this matters.
If you didn’t get the memo, startups and big tech companies are both working on natural AI and automation. Mariana Mineralswhich focuses on the mining industry, is one of them. Senior reporter Sean O’Kane interviewed the founder Turner Caldwellformer Tesla engineer who founded the startup in 2024 on the company’s latest partnership with the self-driving technology company Quickly (and yes, that’s Anthony Levandowski-founded Pronto that was just acquired by Uber co-founder Travis Kalanick’s startup Atoms).
Remember when Elon Musk you said a smaller, cheaper $25,000 EV is pointless and stupid? Well, according to Reuters sources, Tesla develops one brand new smaller, cheaper electric SUV.
Volkswagen will no longer produce the all-electric ID.4 at its US plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee. His replacement? High-volume vehicles like the upcoming Atlas SUV with natural gas.
The ID.4 will be available to US consumers while the current stock lasts. VW tells me it will last until 2027.
Meanwhile, subsidiary of Volkswagen MOIA of America is making a little progress on the autonomous vehicle front. MOIA of America and Uber have begun testing autonomous minibuses in Los Angeles ahead of a robotaxi service the companies plan to launch by the end of 2026. Watch out! When this service starts, it won’t be driverless at first. The company expects to retire the human safety operator from the vehicles in 2027. Also, the term “minibus” might be a bit of a stretch. These vehicles will only have four seats.
Waymo and Waze launched a data-sharing pilot program that will feed pothole data collected by robotaxis into a free Waze platform designed for cities. Any city or state (or regular ol’ Waze user) where Waymo operates will be able to access this data as the program expands.
In other Waymo news, the Alphabet-owned company opened its robotaxi service to the public in Nashville. Eleven cities and counting.
