Brain-Inspired AI Lab Flapping Airplanes Secures $180M Seed Funding, Rapid7 Shares Plunge

Flapping Airplanes, a research-focused AI lab, has secured $180 million in seed capital from firms like Google Ventures, Sequoia, and Index Ventures, according to BitcoinWorld. The funding aims to revolutionize how machines learn, drawing inspiration from the human brain.

Shares in cybersecurity solutions provider Rapid7 Inc. plunged more than 18% after giving weak forecasts despite reporting earnings and revenue beats in its fiscal 2025 fourth quarter, reports SiliconANGLE. Rapid7 reported adjusted earnings per share of 44 cents for the quarter that ended on Dec. 31.

Vidya AI, an edtech startup, introduced an AI-based grading and learning assistant to modernize STEM classrooms, according to a GLOBE NEWSWIRE announcement. Vidya AI officially launched in September 2025 and was founded by Dr. Pingakshya Goswami and Dhritiman Talukdar.

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock celebrated the dedication of its new Cyberspace Operations, Research, and Education (CORE) Center to expand cybersecurity education and workforce development across Arkansas, according to News reports.

AI is creating jobs for people with disabilities in China, with data annotation cited as a key area of employment at the Xinlianxin social work services center in Lanzhou, reports the Borneo Post Online.

Stephanie Barry and Natalie Gauvin, graduates of the UH Mānoa College of Education, are making an impact in the tech industry, according to University of Hawaiʻi System News.

Sources:

• Ua Little Rock

• The University Of Hawaii System

• Siliconangle

• Eagletribune

• Bitcoinworld.co.in

• Borneo