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Google Cloud didn’t just launch new technology this week, it launched a bold vision for the future of artificial intelligence. At its annual Google Cloud Next 2025 conference, the tech giant unveiled a slate of next-gen innovations and revealed a stunning list of AI startups that have chosen Google Cloud as their launchpad to scale, innovate, and reshape entire industries.
From breakthrough code editors and robotic systems to generative media platforms and legal AI tools, this year’s startup showcase signals a powerful shift in the AI landscape, with Google Cloud right at the center of it. Headlining the conference were two major product announcements:
- Ironwood, Google’s next-generation AI processing chip, designed to push the limits of large-scale machine learning.
- Gemini 2.5 Flash, the latest member of Google’s rapidly advancing Gemini model family, optimized for real-time, low-latency tasks.
But beyond the silicon and software, what truly stole the spotlight was Google’s deepening relationship with the startup world, an ecosystem it’s quietly but aggressively building to take on cloud rivals Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services.
Google revealed a who’s who of elite startups now leveraging its cloud to power their ambitions, many of them already backed by Silicon Valley’s biggest names:
- Safe Superintelligence (SSI): The enigmatic venture from OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever, focused on creating safe, powerful AI. Little is public, but its alignment with Google Cloud is telling.
- Anysphere (Cursor): Maker of the booming AI coding tool Cursor, which now rivals GitHub Copilot. It uses Anthropic’s Claude on Google Cloud and has reportedly reached a $10B valuation.
- Hebbia: A legal-tech darling that uses AI to search and analyze complex documents. With support from a16z, Index, Peter Thiel, and GV, it’s now tapping into Google’s Gemini models.
- Magic: Focused on automating coding and research with frontier models, Magic raised $320M last year with backing from CapitalG and Eric Schmidt. It’s using Google Cloud GPUs to fuel its growth.
- Physical Intelligence: Building foundational robotics software, the startup raised $400M at a $2B valuation with support from Sequoia, Lux, Thrive, and even Jeff Bezos. Founders hail from Google DeepMind.
- Photoroom: Paris-based and one of Europe’s top AI startups, it’s using Google’s Veo 2 and Imagen 3 to pioneer AI photo and video editing.
- Synthesia: Specializing in photorealistic AI avatars, it raised $180M at a $2.1B valuation in January, backed by NEA and GV. It’s building on multiple Google models.
AI Startups Backed by Google Cloud
In a significant strategic move, Google Cloud expanded its VC partnerships, adding Lightspeed Venture Partners alongside existing allies Sequoia and Y Combinator. Startups in these portfolios now gain access to Google’s AI chips, models, and up to $150,000 in cloud credits.
Google didn’t stop with the headliners. It spotlighted a full suite of AI startups spanning sectors from healthcare to creative media:
- Augment Code: Autonomous coding agents
- Autoscience: Scientific AI research tools
- Big Sur AI: AI-powered shopping recommendations
- Captions: Talking video and smart video editing
- Eon.io: Autonomous enterprise data backup
- Fal: Generative tools for text-to-image and video
- Spot AI: Security camera intelligence
- Story: IP storage and licensing via blockchain
- StudyHall AI: Educational support for students
- Ubie: AI-driven healthcare diagnostics from Japan
- Udio: AI music composition platform
- Ufonia: AI healthcare agents for patient interaction
- Wagestream: Financial wellness tools built by charities
- Wondercraft: Ultra-realistic AI-generated audio content
As Microsoft’s Azure continues its focus on OpenAI and AWS prioritizes infrastructure, Google Cloud is positioning itself as a key player in the AI landscape. By fostering a growing network of innovative startups, Google Cloud is not only providing the infrastructure but actively driving the next wave of AI development.
