Oil prices hit 4-year highs; Anthropic aims for a $900BN valuation
Tear Sheet #1: May 1, 2026
All the best reads and need-to-know news to finish the week. Published every Friday AM.
THE BRIEF
Why demand might matter more than supply in the token economy
Packy McCormick on the “abundance-driven scarcity supercycle”
AI & ROBOTICS
Anthropic is considering raising a $50BN round at a $900BN valuation.
SemiAnalysis breaks down the shifting capture of AI value between the layers of the industry.
Why demand might matter more than supply in the token economy.
Figure’s Brett Adcock joined the Sourcery podcast.
What happens when AI runs a store?
BIOTECH
Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan put $500MN into a new initiative to accelerate AI biology.
Profluent announced a $2.25BN partnership with Eli Lilly to develop AI-designed gene insertion.
Massive Bio is partnering with OpenAI to improve access to clinical trials through automated pre-screening and parameterization.
Core Memory covered Medra and the use of robotics in bio labs.
ENERGY
Oil prices hit 4-year highs amid the US-Iran standoff.
Meta signed a deal with Overview Energy for night-time solar, beamed from space.
Five myths about nuclear power.
Also: Alex Chalmers wrote about the failure of British nuclear.
And also: it’s time to make a plan for nuclear waste.
DEFENSE & INDUSTRY
Scout AI raised $100MN to train AI models for military technology.
Kyle Harrison (GP, Contrary) published a 300-page book on Anduril strategy and US military history.
He joined the Sourcery podcast to talk about it.
Google signed a new contract with the Department of Defense for access to its AI systems.