This Month's AI Agents News

Nous Research confirms it hit $1.5B valuation, launches AI agents for business users

# Nous Research confirms it hit $1.5B valuation, launches AI agents for business users ## Related ### [The next hurdle for AI agents: getting websites to let them in](https://techcrunch.com/2026/10/06/the-next-hurdle-for-ai-agents-getting-websites-to-let-them-in/) - [Sarah Perez](https://techcrunch.com/author/sarah-perez/) 1 day ago ## Latest in AI -  In Brief ### [Nous Research confirms it hit $1.5B valuation, launches AI agents for business users](https://techcrunch.com/2026/10/07/nous-research-confirms-it-hit-1-5b-valuation-launches-ai-agents-for-business-users/) - [Marina Temkin](https://techcrunch.com/author/marina-temkin/)

Techcrunch 2 days, 10 hours ago

Are we creating a ticking AI time bomb?

Artificial intelligence is transforming government and industry faster than any technology we've seen in decades. Federal agencies are deploying AI to...

Federalnewsnetwork 2 days, 11 hours ago

Midwest Wheel builds toward AI agents that fix problems

Midwest Wheel builds toward AI agents that fix problems - SiliconANGLE [Skip to content](https://siliconangle.com/2026/10/07/midwest-wheel-builds-ai-agents-fix-problems-inforvelocity/#sa-page-content) ### Midwest Wheel builds toward AI agents that fix problems Infor (US) LLC is [embedding industry-specific AI agents](https://siliconangle.com/2026/10/05/agentic-ai-infor-velocity-week-inforvelocity/) into its applications as businesses move AI into day-to-day operations.

Siliconangle 2 days, 11 hours ago

Video: Why A.I. Agents Are Going Rogue

Our journalists Sheera Frenkel and Dylan Freedman break down what A.I. agents are, how they differ from chatbots and why A.I. companies are worried about...

Nytimes 2 days, 11 hours ago

Senate Probes Rogue AI Agents, Eyes OpenAI Liability

# Senate Probes Rogue AI Agents, Eyes OpenAI Liability Wednesday, October 7, 2026 · 3 min read  ## The Big Picture In September, Hawley [launched an investigation into OpenAI](https://www.hawley.senate.gov/chairman-hawley-launches-investigation-into-openai-for-hacking-existential-risk-of-ai-products/) over the incident, requesting documents with an Oct. 1 deadline, which OpenAI has now missed. Reuters reported that OpenAI found roughly two dozen undesirable agent incidents as of mid-September, including a leak of 53 images from a user-data source. ## What They're Saying Marius Hobbhahn, CEO, Apollo Research, described a coordinated 700-agent attack on Hugging Face and said: "These are our warning shots. ## The Bottom Line [AI agents](https://legis1.com/search?q=AI%20agents) [rogue AI](https://legis1.com/search?q=rogue%20AI) [AI security](https://legis1.com/search?q=AI%20security) [Senate hearing](https://legis1.com/search?q=Senate%20hearing) [corporate liability](https://legis1.com/search?q=corporate%20liability) [Josh Hawley](https://legis1.com/search?q=Josh%20Hawley) [homeland security](https://legis1.com/search?q=homeland%20security) [AI oversight](https://legis1.com/search?q=AI%20oversight)

Legis1 2 days, 11 hours ago

ESET launches new B2B features ready for the AI era

ESET is refining its ESET PROTECT B2B portfolio to help organizations address the emerging risks and opportunities of the agentic AI era.

Eset 2 days, 12 hours ago

AI Agents Are Creating a New Identity Security Challenge

### AI Agents Are Creating a New Identity Security Challenge The company also introduced what it calls SailPoint Autonomous Agents, specialized AI agents designed to govern other agents. "Autonomous agents are no longer just experimental copilots; they are becoming the primary execution layer of modern enterprises," SailPoint President Matt Mills said.

Redmondmag 2 days, 13 hours ago

AWS launches open-source AI agent sandbox to prevent YOLO mode disasters

Strands Box is the latest open source AI control tool from the cloud giant; like its predecessors, it promises tighter reins on autonomous agents.

Theregister 2 days, 13 hours ago

Incognia Launches AI Agent Detection to Secure Autonomous Financial Transactions

Incognia launches AI Agent Detection to secure autonomous payments. Learn how Web Behavioral Biometrics and cross-device intelligence stop fraud. Read more.

Ffnews 2 days, 15 hours ago

Exclusive | Nous Research Scores $90 Million to Bring Open-Source AI Assistant to Enterprises

# Nous Research Scores $90 Million to Bring Open-Source AI Assistant to Enterprises ## The startup’s Hermes tool has been downloaded more than 22 million times since February ### Latest in Venture Capital #### [Nous Research Scores $90 Million to Bring Open-Source AI Assistant to Enterprises](https://www.wsj.com/pro/venture-capital/nous-research-scores-90-million-to-bring-open-source-ai-assistant-to-enterprises-516f9208?mod=pro-venture-capital_latest_article_pos2&tpl=vc) [](https://www.wsj.com/pro/venture-capital/arboretum-with-a-fresh-30-million-wants-to-use-its-genetic-testing-for-more-diseases-b8feeeaf?mod=pro-venture-capital_latest_article_pos3&tpl=vc)

Wsj 2 days, 15 hours ago

Nous Research raises $90M to take its Hermes AI agent to businesses

Nous Research has raised $90M to build a business version of Hermes, its open-source AI agent. Nvidia, Microsoft’s M12, Samsung, Robot Ventures, Union Square Ventures, Y Combinator and Menlo Ventures are among the investors, chief executive Dillon Rolnick wrote in a [note on the company’s website](https://nousresearch.com/a-note-on-our-fundraise). The round values Nous at $1.5bn, [The Wall Street Journal reported](https://www.wsj.com/pro/venture-capital/nous-research-scores-90-million-to-bring-open-source-ai-assistant-to-enterprises-516f9208), which first broke the news. ## From fine-tuned models to an agent The Journal reported more than 22 million downloads since February. ## Hermes for Businesses Personal AI agents have drawn large sums this year. Instinct raised $1bn at a $10bn valuation for an agent that [rings restaurants itself](https://thenextweb.com/news/instinct-1bn-agent-calls-eu-rule).

Thenextweb 2 days, 16 hours ago

Nikesh Arora sees 40 companies racing to secure AI agents. At least 20 are Israeli

# Nikesh Arora sees 40 companies racing to secure AI agents. At least 20 are Israeli ## Palo Alto Networks is deliberately watching the emerging market before deciding which companies to back or buy, as Israeli-founded startups have already raised roughly $900 million to secure autonomous software. 16:50, 07.10.26 Seventeen of the startups have disclosed funding, with their combined total now reaching roughly $900 million. The majority of the companies were founded only in the past few years, making AI-agent security one of the fastest-emerging areas in Israel's cybersecurity industry. Palo Alto Networks CEO Nikesh Arora said [recently](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLy3fp63xv4&t=1455s) that about 40 companies are currently being funded in the agentic security market, including a significant number of Israeli startups. “And suddenly what you'll find is that about 40 companies get funded in the space of agentic security. You'll fund some and a bunch of Israeli companies get funded, a bunch of your peers in the industry will fund them.” # z.calcalist.co.il is blocked Other funded companies include Cymphony, which has raised $30 million, Bloom Security with $20 million, Rig Security with $12 million, Pillar with $9 million, Rein, Pluto and Arrakis with $8 million each, Capsule and Willow with $7 million each, and Tenet with $6 million. - [Zenity raises $125 million Series C as AI agent security startup accelerates global expansion](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/b1ahbbcbfe) - [Wiz veteran raises $12 million Seed to secure AI agents at Rig Security](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/byxasxfcgl) In August, Israeli companies including NewCore, Oak and others were betting that AI agents would turn identity into a new cybersecurity battleground.

Calcalistech 2 days, 17 hours ago

From Ballet To Breach Prevention: How A Magician’s Son Raised $4.2M In Seed Funding For His Cybersecurity Startup

A later trip to a hackathon in Waterloo introduced him to venture capital investors.

News 2 days, 18 hours ago

AI Agents That Improve Themselves Face a Safety Paradox, Major Survey Finds

A sweeping new systematic review has mapped the fast-moving world of autonomous artificial intelligence agents and arrived at a sobering conclusion: the...

Bioengineer 4 days, 1 hour ago

OpenAI Reportedly In Talks With UAE Funds For $30B Funding – Even As Its AI Agents Raise Fresh Concerns

OpenAI is reportedly in talks with investment funds from the United Arab Emirates, including Abu Dhabi-based MGX, to help anchor a new $30 billion funding...

Tradingview 4 days, 1 hour ago

Anthropic says AI agents didn’t breach Australian government websites – video

 # Anthropic says AI agents didn’t breach Australian government websites – video ## Related stories ### Revealed: the five-paragraph email OpenAI used to inform Australia about agent attack  ## More from News 

Theguardian 4 days, 2 hours ago

Cloudflare Introduces CLI for AI Agents, Sunsetting Wrangler

# Cloudflare Introduces CLI for AI Agents, Sunsetting Wrangler Oct 06, 2026 2 min read #### Follow us on 0:00 0:00 ## About the Author #### **Renato Losio** - Related Editorial - [Cloudflare Announces Kitesurf, a Browser Engine for Agents](https://www.infoq.com/news/2026/08/cloudflare-kitesurf-browser/) - [Cloudflare Announces Agent Memory, a Managed Persistent Memory Service for AI Agents](https://www.infoq.com/news/2026/04/cloudflare-agent-memory-beta/) - [Cloudflare Sandboxes Reach General Availability, Giving AI Agents Persistent Isolated Environments](https://www.infoq.com/news/2026/04/cloudflare-sandboxes-ga/)

Infoq 4 days, 2 hours ago

AI Agents Knock. Retailers Decide How Wide to Open the Door.

# AI Agents Knock. Retailers Decide How Wide to Open the Door. By[PYMNTS](https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/) | October 5, 2026 [Share on Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https://www.pymnts.com/news/retail/2026/ai-agents-knock-retailers-decide-how-wide-to-open-the-door/&t=AI+Agents+Knock.+Retailers+Decide+How+Wide+to+Open+the+Door.)[Tweet This Post](https://twitter.com/share?text=AI+Agents+Knock.+Retailers+Decide+How+Wide+to+Open+the+Door.%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20-&url=https://www.pymnts.com/news/retail/2026/ai-agents-knock-retailers-decide-how-wide-to-open-the-door/)[Share on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://www.pymnts.com/news/retail/2026/ai-agents-knock-retailers-decide-how-wide-to-open-the-door/&title=AI+Agents+Knock.+Retailers+Decide+How+Wide+to+Open+the+Door.&summary=&source=)[Share via Email](mailto:?subject=AI%20Agents%20Knock.%20Retailers%20Decide%20How%20Wide%20to%20Open%20the%20Door.&BODY=I%20found%20this%20article%20interesting%20and%20want%20to%20share%20it%20with%20you.%20Check%20it%20out:%20https://www.pymnts.com/news/retail/2026/ai-agents-knock-retailers-decide-how-wide-to-open-the-door/) | Listen to ArticleListen  Highlights Walmart is betting it can let AI in without giving the customer away. When a shopper picks a Walmart item inside Gemini, Walmart’s Sparky agent takes over the basket. About 61 million U.S. consumers start shopping research with AI. Retailers are drawing different lines on how far artificial intelligence (AI) shopping agents can go on their sites. [Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/) blocks outside agents while it builds its own. [QVC](https://www.qvc.com/) lets agents complete purchases. [Walmart](https://www.walmart.com/) lets [Google](http://google.com/)’s [Gemini](https://gemini.google.com/) surface its p

Pymnts 4 days, 2 hours ago

No Model Fully Blocks AI Attacks in Government Evaluation…Long-Term Memory Attack Success Rate Hits 91.2%

South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT AI Safety Institute conducted safety evaluations on seven autonomous AI agent models, finding that average…

Finance 4 days, 3 hours ago

Menos AI Raises $5.1 Million Pre-A Round, Bringing Total Funding To More Than $10 Million

Menos AI Raises $5.1 Million Pre-A Round, Bringing Total Funding To More Than $10 Million Menos AI has raised $5.1 million in Pre-A financing led by returning investor Copper Sky Capital, bringing total funding for the institutional investment AI company to more than $10 million. Jack Selby, who also serves as Managing Director at Thiel Capital, led the investment for Copper Sky.

Pulse2 4 days, 3 hours ago

Nvidia-backed Reflection unveils open AI model to rival Chinese models

The model, called Beam, is designed to perform well for business customers and developers on coding and AI agent tasks while costing less than many...

Business-Standard 4 days, 3 hours ago

An AI Agent for Physics Could Speed Up Quantum Computing and Dark Matter Searches

Key Takeaways -- Amplifiers auto-tuned by an AI agent could speed up quantum computing development. -- This Genesis Mission–funded project at PNNL is also...

Newswise 4 days, 4 hours ago

AI Agents Get to Work in Retail

# AI Agents Get to Work in Retail Apparel Group rebuilt its entire operating model around AI, with forecasting, replenishment, pricing and shift scheduling now running autonomously across 85 brands and 2,500 stores. ## The Retailers Building AI-Native Operations Are Already Pulling Ahead Autonomous AI agents are helping employees across merchandising, finance, procurement and retail operations by removing friction from daily decisions so teams can focus on higher-value work.

Pymnts 4 days, 5 hours ago

California Subpoenas OpenAI Over AI Agent Cybersecurity Breaches

## TL;DR — Key Takeaways – California Attorney General Rob Bonta has subpoenaed OpenAI as part of a broader investigation into cybersecurity incidents involving the company’s autonomous AI systems. California Attorney General Rob Bonta has issued a formal subpoena to OpenAI as part of an expanding state investigation into cybersecurity breaches linked to the company’s autonomous artificial intelligence (AI) systems.

Securityboulevard 4 days, 5 hours ago

New AI Memecoin projects in 2026: How trend discovery and smart contracts are changing launches today

AI memecoin projects are moving beyond viral stories as trend research, agent tools, and smart contracts reshape how new tokens are proposed and launched.

News 4 days, 5 hours ago

Nvidia-backed AI startup Reflection unveils Beam model

US startup [Reflection AI](https://reflection.ai/), founded by two former Google DeepMind researchers, has unveiled [Beam](https://reflection.ai/beam), an open-weight AI model for coding and AI agent tasks. The startup had reportedly held talks to raise US$2.5 billion at a US$25 billion valuation. ### Recommended reads - [\ They built AI agents on WhatsApp. Then Meta entered the chat\ \ 7 min read](https://www.techinasia.com/built-ai-agents-whatsapp-meta-entered-chat?ref=recommender-1026246) # GCash gets reality check with IPO ## Trending news ### Recommended reads - [\ They built AI agents on WhatsApp. Then Meta entered the chat\ \ 7 min read](https://www.techinasia.com/built-ai-agents-whatsapp-meta-entered-chat?ref=recommender-1026184)

Techinasia 4 days, 5 hours ago

Booking.com develops internal platform to build modular AI agents

[Booking.com](https://booking.com/) has shared information about AgentHub, an internal platform that provides modular artificial intelligence (AI) agents for its teams. According to the blog post, with AgentHub, teams can deploy AI agents “in a matter of hours.” One of the first agents built on AgentHub, the AI Trip Planner Q&A, answers travelers’ property-related questions. Expedia Group chief AI and data officer Xavier Amatriain also recently outlined the company’s [operating model for AI](https://www.phocuswire.com/news/online/expedia-hotel-booking-meta-muse), defining an agent as “an AI-powered system that works toward a goal.” ## More From PhocusWire [](https://www.phocuswire.com/opinion/technology/ai-agents-having-their-spotify-moment-why-travel-needs-take-note)[AI agents are having their 'Spotify moment': Why travel needs to take note](https://www.phocuswire.com/opinion/technology/ai-agents-having-their-spotify-moment-why-travel-needs-take-note) ## From Our Partners - [Latest Stories](https://www.phocuswire.com/news/technology/booking-develops-internal-platform-build-modular-ai-agents#latest-b6efa2b8-2150-4509-b9fc-c644944ec6b9) [](https://www.phocuswire.com/opinion/technology/ai-agents-having-their-spotify-moment-why-travel-needs-take-note) [AI agents are having their 'Spotify moment': Why travel needs to take note](https://www.phocuswire.com/opinion/technology/ai-agents-having-their-spotify-moment-why-travel-needs-take-note) [![Booking.com develops internal platform to build modular AI agents](https://ik.imgkit.net/3vlqs5axxjf/ex

Phocuswire 4 days, 5 hours ago

How embedded agents are accelerating defense AI adoption

Microsoft Copilot illustrates how AI agents, built within commonly used, pre-approved and secure defense environments, can boost employee productivity.

Defensescoop 4 days, 5 hours ago

AI agent hardware startup Ghost, led by its 19-year-old-founder, raises $11M

AI agent hardware startup Ghost, led by its 19-year-old-founder, raises $11M - SiliconANGLE [Skip to content](https://siliconangle.com/2026/10/05/ai-agent-hardware-startup-ghost-led-by-its-19-year-old-founder-raises-11m/#sa-page-content) ### AI agent hardware startup Ghost, led by its 19-year-old-founder, raises $11M  by [Mike Wheatley](https://siliconangle.com/author/mikewheatley/) Artificial intelligence hardware startup [Ghost AI](https://ghost.ai/) said today it has raised $11 million in funding to build what it believes is the first personal computer that’s dedicated to running personal AI agents. The round was led by Silicon Valley heavy-hitter Andreessen Horowitz and saw participation from Abstract, Audacious Ventures, Nova and SV Angel. Ghost AI was founded by a team of young entrepreneurs led by 19-year-old Chief Executive Zain Javaid (pictured), which has spent the last year developing a high-powered computer called Core that doesn’t need a monitor or any peripheral devices. Instead, it should be thought of as a “brain in a box” that’s designed to do nothing more than continuously run AI agents that act on behalf of its user. Ghost’s founding team believes that existing AI agents, which run in cloud-based servers controlled by big corporations, is fundamentally flawed. AI agents need to access vast amounts of their user’s data, including some very personal and private information, which requires a lot of trust. But as Ghost explains in its first-ever post on X, an AI agent that has an intimate understanding of your life should “not live on infrastructure someone else owns.” Twitter Embed [Visit this post on X](https://x.com/ghostai/status/2107162749675721173?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E2107162749675721173%7Ctwgr%5E4365e258c534bca052ef8ab9dd163c6ae97a389e%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fsiliconangle.com%2F202

Siliconangle 4 days, 6 hours ago

I wouldn’t trust Meta’s Muse AI agent with my personal data yet

# I wouldn’t trust Meta’s Muse AI agent with my personal data yet Oct 5, 2026 _Welcome to Safe Mode, your weekly report for pressing security and privacy news—and what steps to take next._ Letting an AI agent work autonomously on multi-step tasks (like booking travel, [making purchases](https://www.pcworld.com/article/3243549/metas-muse-ai-assistant-was-born-to-shop.html), and even offering suggestions based on your plans) offers a deep view into your world. Mistakes like a [zero-day exploit](https://go.skimresources.com/?id=111346X1569483&xs=1&url=https://arstechnica.com/security/2026/09/muse-metas-extraordinarily-privileged-ai-assistant-has-a-serious-0-day/&xcust=2-0-3250739-1-0-0-0-0&sref=https://www.pcworld.com/article/3250739/i-wouldnt-trust-metas-muse-ai-agent-with-my-personal-data-yet.html) that gave macOS apps and terminal commands access to Muse (and all its connected services), discovered just a couple of weeks after Muse’s launch. Or [Muse allegedly gaining access to private messages](https://go.skimresources.com/?id=111346X1569483&xs=1&url=https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/apple-says-it-will-flag-ai-requests-mac-data-after-metas-muse-draws-complaints-2026-10-02/&xcust=2-0-3250739-1-0-0-0-0&sref=https://www.pcworld.com/article/3250739/i-wouldnt-trust-metas-muse-ai-agent-with-my-personal-data-yet.html), due to configuration settings in macOS that can allow the AI agent to see data in other apps A zero-day exploit briefly allowed macOS apps and terminal commands to commandeer Meta’s Muse AI agent. We also know that AI agents made by rival companies like Anthropic and OpenAI have [escaped their sandboxes more than once](https://www.pcworld.com/article/3204040/openais-ai-broke-out-its-time-for-digital-disaster-planning.html). ## In the news I’m wary of Meta and AI agents both individually and comb

Pcworld 4 days, 6 hours ago