Ex-Anthropic researchers launch AI startup Mirendil to tackle scientific research

Another neo-lab enters the scene, this time from Anthropic's ranks: Mirendil wants to use AI to advance research in fields like biology and materials science. Founders Behnam Neyshabur (CEO) and Harsh Mehta (CTO) left Anthropic in December and are currently negotiating a $175 million funding round at a $1 billion valuation, according to The Information. Andreessen Horowitz and Kleiner Perkins are reportedly co-leading the round, though terms haven't been finalized yet.

Neyshabur led a scientific AI reasoning team at Anthropic and previously spent more than five years at Google DeepMind. Mehta served as a Senior Research Scientist at Anthropic. The founding team also includes Shayan Salehian (previously at xAI) and Tara Rezaei (previously an intern at OpenAI).

Mirendil joins a growing wave of so-called neo-labs: specialized AI startups founded by researchers who left major AI companies. These startups zero in on specific areas like office productivity or try to find fundamentally new AI development approaches that address the weaknesses of current systems, for example through continuous learning.