Though the US stock market has officially lost its post-election Trump bump, some investors and tech founders still seem hyped on AI growth — at least in the short term — with tech companies like Broadcom surging ahead on the trading floor.

That's good news for Google's cofounder Larry Page, who's reportedly launching a new AI startup called Dynatomics, according to The Information.

Details on Dynatomics are scarce, but the centibillionaire has apparently hired a handful of engineers to work on AI for "highly optimized" product manufacturing.

What that means is anyone's guess. Manufacturing is already a hugely optimized industry, as evidenced by profit-motivated labor practices like outsourcing and seasonal hiring. It's unclear what adding AI would do to further optimize factory production — beyond adding another expensive middleman to the process — but Page is going for it anyway.

And heck, the guy did start Google. As such, he joins a number of tech moguls who've splintered off from their behemoth corporations to enter the lucrative world of solutions-based AI startups, like former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati, who launched a startup meant to "encode human values" into AI systems, whatever that means.

Right now, Dynatomics' website is scarce on details, teasing in a goofy art deco font that it's "working on something new." If older AI startups are any indication, we can probably take a stab at decoding the cypher: the company will revolutionize the industry by leveraging cutting edge technology to yield enhanced optimization and deliver returns to key stakeholders. Sound familiar?

There's been a lot of bluster these past few years about AI's ability to revolutionize work — most of which turned out to be marketing hype meant to sell deep-pocketed investors on nebulous tech startups.

That's not to say the pitch didn't land: from April to June 2024, investors dumped $27.1 billion into American AI startups, accounting for almost half of all startup funding in the quarter. Where those companies end up is a whole different question.

At the moment, any "AI model" paraded by Silicon Valley types is what's called a machine-learning algorithm — meaning they blend all sorts of human data into something that looks human, without understanding why. The effect can be dazzling at first, but whether the tech actually counts as "intelligent" is much dicier — and despite the sector's promises, it's unsure when that'll change, if ever.

That hasn't stopped AI startups from latching onto every industry on the planet in a bid to prove their bona fides to investors. From insurance and marketing to video games and restaurants — no sector has resisted the "AI trap," allowing AI startups to reel in a whopping 46.4 percent of all venture capitalist spending in 2024.

But as AI startup founders swim laps in pools of gold, skepticism around AI's actual abilities is growing.

Indeed, some chickens are already coming home to roost as investors and clients alike grow impatient with the hype and deferred profits. In February, GitLab, the "most comprehensive AI-powered DevSecOps Platform," was sued for the third time in just five months for misleading investors about its AI's true capabilities.

Far from "revolutionizing" software development, as GitLab claimed, the company "misled investors by continually highlighting its AI-driven innovations to develop software more efficiently and drive market share demands," according to the class action lawsuit.

"[GitLab] provided these overwhelmingly positive statements to investors," the suit continues, "while at the same time disseminating materially false and misleading statements... concerning GitLab’s ability to develop AI features that would generate code more efficiently."

But promises are lucrative things, especially when AI is involved. Just before the class action hit, GitLab's longtime CEO and co-founder Sytse "Sid" Sijbrandij ripped the cord on his golden parachute, safely ejecting from the company which had lavished him with a $600,000 annual salary, plus $600,000 in annual bonus eligibility. That's all on top of GitLab stock awards worth about $24 million.

Though Sijbrandij left the company for health reasons, he did so as a billionaire. All told, it's a pretty penny for someone whose net worth has skyrocketed on the back of AI hype — and a sign that the consequences for misleading investors are as imaginary as artificial intelligence. No wonder the other billionaires are cashing in.

More on AI startups: Startup Investors Foaming at the Mouth To Carve Up Your Job With AI


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