Innovation in motion: week one of GAIA 2025

In October, teams from 40 visionary startups gathered in Seattle. They represent a broad range of industries spanning robotics, manufacturing, life sciences, cybersecurity, fintech, media—and more. These founders, co-founders, CTOs, COOs, and others are among the leading thinkers in their fields, the boldest builders of technology, and the savviest business minds in the startup ecosystem.

What unites them in their mission is generative AI. Each brings a unique story, an ambitious vision of where their company is headed, and the transformative impact their technology will have. To help turn their big ideas into real-world solutions, they gathered in Seattle for the launch of the AWS Generative AI Accelerator (GAIA) Program 2025. 

GAIA: fierce competition and ground-breaking technology

Now in its 3rd year, GAIA is an eight-week program that supports startups to develop and scale AI solutions. Participants benefit from resources including up to USD $1 million in AWS credits, personalized mentorship, and access to a curated support network. With fierce competition and an acceptance rate of less than two percent, it’s no surprise that behind every participating startup stands a grand vision for ground-breaking technology.

Gabriel Renault, Founder and CEO of Dharma-AI, for instance, describes its small language models’ (SLMs) business as “the future of high-volume agent use cases” delivered “10 times cheaper than other labs.” Tricia Biggio, Co-founder and CEO of end-to-end content creation platform, Invisible Universe, started out to become “the Pixar of the internet.” Meanwhile, drug discovery company, Manifold Bio, has a “very ambitious mission,” says Co-founder and CEO Gleb Kuznetsov, to “create many new medicines that were not possible before.” This is a mere snapshot of the innovation evident at GAIA’s opening week, with each startup in our cohort representing AI design and development at the cutting edge of technology in their respective fields.

A program that matches the speed of startups

Working at a startup demands focus, resilience, and a willingness to push boundaries. That mindset was reflected from day one of GAIA, with the program launching at full speed. Its opening days featured a packed agenda designed to challenge, support, and equip participants to scale their ideas with intention and impact. Practical guidance was provided in a milestone tracking session, and discussions on areas like navigating enterprise sales, AI risk management, and how to differentiate offerings in the AI era. Participants also began their mentorship journeys with a fireside chat from Matt Garman, CEO of AWS, as well as individual sessions with communications coach, Allison McGuire. 

This hands-on support from AWS is central to the program and was a key attraction for many participants joining GAIA. “Connecting to technical help for using SLMs in a more optimized way in inference and training,” drew Renault to apply for the program in order to “accelerate our go-to-market with AWS Marketplace” and connect with enterprise customers.

For startups juggling product development, customer acquisition, and growth strategy, having access to tailored guidance can accelerate progress in ways that matter. Biggio emphasizes how critical this kind of backing is at Invisible Universe’s stage of growth, saying she was especially looking forward to receiving “continued support in our go-to-market, and advice that is practical and tactical in how we can continue to scale the business.” Even in the first week alone startups have already tapped into this value, working side-by-side with AWS experts to chart future strategy, sharpen their messaging, and identify opportunities to scale more efficiently and strategically.

The value of community

While access to AWS resources is a core strength of GAIA, many participants also find value in making connections with others in the cohort. “The GAIA program is great because first of all, you get together with all of the people from AWS, but at the same time, all of the startups, and it helps you to really build up a long-term relationship,” says Fabian Beringer, CEO and Founder of VidLab7.

The opportunity to meet and learn from fellow founders—who understand the unique pressures of early-stage building—fosters a sense of community that may be hard to find elsewhere. “I think for anybody as a part of a founding team at a startup, it can be a lonely road,” says Biggio. “You can feel like you’re the only person bearing the burden of the weight of the business on your shoulders 24/7.” For Biggio, it was this sense of shared experience and support that stood out most: community, she says was “first and foremost.”

Peer-to-peer learning

That sense of shared experience extends beyond personal connection—GAIA also creates a space for practical, peer-to-peer learning that can be just as valuable as more formal sessions. By meeting in person in Seattle, participants have gained knowledge alongside and from each other, sharing insights, giving feedback, and offering new ways of thinking about common challenges.

Claire Nouet, Co-founder and COO at Pathway captured this spirit of collaboration, describing GAIA as “an amazing program for gen AI startups. It’s just started but we’ve met a number of incredible companies across industries, from drug discovery to robotics and many other fields. For us it's incredibly helpful to meet those founders and have their feedback on how they’re using AI and how they could potentially also use [Pathway’s] BDH architecture.”

Whether it’s comparing notes on product-market fit, technical implementation or offering perspective on shared challenges, the opportunity to connect with others on the same startup journey ensures the road doesn’t have to be a lonely one.

Powering growth with AWS

That shared journey includes a common thread in the technology powering these startups: AWS. Many of the participants have already built or scaled on AWS infrastructure, leveraging services and solutions to launch products, manage data, and develop AI at scale.

“AWS hold a special place in my heart,” says David Zhu, Co-founder and CEO of Reevo. “This is the third time around working with AWS,” he explains, with collaboration helping to “power our growth journey.” This trajectory will continue over the course of the program, he says, with GAIA “helping entrepreneurs like ourselves be successful in this AI-forward age.”

GAIA offers an opportunity to take collaboration further, learning how to use AWS tools more effectively and efficiently in order to power the next wave of AI solutions. In doing so, these startups are defining what’s possible and assuming leadership positions in the development of AI.

“Every generation, there’s a technology shift,” Zhu continues. “The last few decades have been cloud, and going forward it’s going to be AI. Making sure that we pick a long-term partner provider that’s able to grow with us and help drive our growth in an organic manner is critical.”

Building momentum for the road ahead

As the first week of the program drew to a close, it’s clear that GAIA is about more than short-term gains—it’s about building lasting partnerships, accelerating innovations, and laying the foundations for long-term growth. With deep technical support from AWS as well as global infrastructure and a commitment to helping startups succeed, participants are not only better equipped to navigate the AI landscape—they’re empowered to lead it. And while the journey is just beginning, the momentum and energy from week one signals a promising journey ahead.

In addition to GAIA, AWS provides a range of tools and resources to startups looking to embark on or progress their own AI journeys, through AWS Activate. More than 330,000 startups have joined AWS Activate since its inception in 2013, accessing the technical tools, guidance, support, and community to build, launch, and grow. AWS Activate has also provided over USD $7 billion in AWS Activate Credits, helping startups scale cost effectively and with confidence. Discover more and join AWS Activate today.