GoKawiilVals raises $40M Series A led by Andreessen Horowitz to overhaul AI benchmarking
Vals, a startup founded in 2024 by former Palantir intern and Stanford student Rayan Krishnan, has raised a $40 million Series A led by Andreessen Horowitz, following an earlier seed round from 8VC and Bloomberg Beta. The company aims to replace outdated academic AI benchmarks, which it says fail to keep pace with rapidly improving models, with more rigorous evaluation methods.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
AI companies routinely tout benchmark scores as proof of superiority, but many existing tests are easy to game or too old to reflect real-world capability, undermining trust in industry claims. A credible, independent benchmarking standard could reshape how enterprises and consumers evaluate which AI models actually deliver on their promises.
- Vals raised $40M in a Series A led by Andreessen Horowitz after an earlier seed round from 8VC and Bloomberg Beta.
- Founder Rayan Krishnan argues legacy benchmarks can't keep up with fast-advancing AI models.
- The startup positions itself as a check on companies' marketing claims about model performance.
Source: techcrunch.com — Lucas Ropek, 2026-09-19
Published there as: “Vals, backed by Andreessen Horowitz, is looking to become the gold standard for AI benchmarking”
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