The “people’s airline” and the enterprise AI gold rush

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<p id="speakable-summary" class="has-text-align-left wp-block-paragraph">Everyone wants a piece of the enterprise AI pie, and this week, we saw a string of companies making their moves. From <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/04/anthropic-and-openai-are-both-launching-joint-ventures-for-enterprise-ai-services/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Anthropic and OpenAI announcing new joint ventures</a> targeting enterprise AI deployment to <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/05/sap-bets-1-16b-on-18-month-old-german-ai-lab-and-says-yes-to-nemoclaw/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">SAP dropping $1B</a> on German AI startup Prior Labs, it’s becoming clear that if you’re a startup building enterprise tools, you’re likely an acquisition target. </p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">On this episode of TechCrunch’s <a href="https://techcrunch.com/podcasts/equity/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Equity</a> podcast, hosts Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, and Sean O’Kane dig into the week’s enterprise AI deals, the <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/06/is-xai-a-neocloud-now/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">xAI-Anthropic compute arrangement</a>, and what it all means ahead of what could be a big IPO season. </p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Listen to the full episode to hear about: </p>
<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li class="wp-block-list-item">Why a TikToker is trying to <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/03/well-take-it-a-tiktoker-rallies-pledges-to-buy-spirit-airlines-after-its-abrupt-weekend-collapse/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">crowdfund the purchase of Spirit Airlines</a>, and whether anyone really loves Spirit enough to make it work </li>
</ul>
<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li class="wp-block-list-item">Why <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/04/katie-haun-raises-1-billion-for-new-venture-funds/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Katie Haun’s venture fund</a> and Andreessen Horowitz are <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/05/as-crypto-cools-a16zcrypto-raises-a-2-2b-fund/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">both raising billions</a> to back a crypto comeback </li>
</ul>
<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li class="wp-block-list-item">Aurora Innovation’s <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/06/aurora-lands-mclane-deal-to-run-driverless-truck-routes-in-texas/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">milestone commercial trucking contract</a> with a Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary, announced shortly after we <a href="https://techcrunch.com/podcast/auroras-chris-urmson-on-why-self-driving-trucks-are-finally-ready-to-scale/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">caught up with Aurora’s CEO, Chris Urmson</a>, at HumanX </li>
</ul>
<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li class="wp-block-list-item">The Pentagon’s latest AI spending spree,<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/01/pentagon-inks-deals-with-nvidia-microsoft-and-aws-to-deploy-ai-on-classified-networks/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> inking deals with Nvidia, Microsoft, and AWS</a> </li>
</ul>
<p class="has-text-align-left wp-block-paragraph">Subscribe to Equity on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@TechCrunch" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow">YouTube</a>,<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id1215439780" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow"> Apple Podcasts</a>,<a href="https://overcast.fm/itunes1215439780/equity" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow"> Overcast</a>,<a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/5IEYLip3eDppcOmy5DmphC?si=rZDFHv2sQUul_g94iCRgpQ" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow"> Spotify</a> and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on<a href="https://twitter.com/EquityPod" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow"> X</a> and<a href="https://www.threads.net/@equitypod" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow"> Threads</a>, at @EquityPod. </p>