Bezos’ AI Lab Nears $10B Funding Round at $38B Valuation, Musk Calls Him a ‘Copycat’

Context Project Prometheus, co-founded by Jeff Bezos and Vikram Bajaj in November 2025, is advancing the field of physical AI. The company trains its models using real-world experimental data, robotics interactions, and engineering workflows. This approach diverges from AI systems primarily reliant on text-based data. Bajaj, holding a PhD in physical chemistry from MIT, brought experience from Google X, where he contributed to projects like Wing and Waymo. Prometheus targets applications in aerospace, automotive, advanced manufacturing, and drug discovery. The company has enhanced its capabilities by acquiring agentic AI startup General Agents and recruiting researchers from leading AI organizations, including OpenAI, xAI, Meta, and DeepMind.

Key Facts Project Prometheus is finalizing a $10 billion funding round. This infusion of capital would establish the AI lab's valuation at $38 billion. Upon its closing, the total funding secured by Prometheus will surpass $16 billion. This includes the initial $6.2 billion raised during the company’s launch in November 2025. Elon Musk publicly referred to Jeff Bezos as a "copycat," citing perceived similarities between Project Prometheus's focus on the physical world and xAI's own strategic direction.

What It Means This significant investment positions Project Prometheus as a major player in the evolving AI sector. The funding allows the company to accelerate its development of physical AI, a domain focused on enabling AI to interact with and understand the physical environment. Bezos reportedly seeks up to $100 billion more to form a holding company. This entity would acquire industrial businesses, aiming to integrate their operational data into Prometheus’s models. The company's operations in London and Zurich indicate an early expansion into European industrial markets.

Looking Ahead Market participants will observe how Project Prometheus leverages this substantial funding to commercialize its physical AI solutions and whether its unique data strategy yields breakthroughs in targeted industries.