Another round, another massive jump
Three months. That’s how long it’s been since Cognition last announced a funding round. Now, according to Bloomberg, the AI coding startup is already talking to investors again — and the valuation target is eye-watering.
The company, best known for its AI coding agent Devin, is reportedly seeking a round that would value it at no less than $40 billion. That’s a hefty leap from the $26 billion valuation it landed in May, when it raised $1 billion in a round led by some of the biggest names in tech investing.
What’s driving the jump? A simple number: $1 billion in annualized revenue run rate. Sources familiar with the talks told Bloomberg that hitting that milestone is the key to securing the $40 billion price tag.
Devin’s revenue is climbing fast
When Cognition announced its May raise, CEO Scott Wu told TechCrunch the company had already reached a $492 million annualized revenue run rate. He also shared a figure that explains why investors are so keen: enterprises were growing their usage of Devin by 50% month-over-month for six straight months.
That kind of growth doesn’t stay quiet for long. If the current trajectory holds, hitting $1 billion in annualized revenue run rate within a few months is not out of the question.
Who’s using Devin?
Cognition says its customers include some serious names: Mercedes-Benz, NASA, and Goldman Sachs. That’s a mix of automotive, aerospace, and finance — hardly a narrow niche.
Not a human replacement, says Wu
Despite the hype around AI agents taking over coding jobs, Wu has been careful to frame Devin differently. He told TechCrunch the tool isn’t being sold as a replacement for human programmers. Instead, it’s often assigned the long-tail grunt work that many developers dislike — things like updating legacy software or migrating applications from one platform to another.
That positioning seems to be working. It’s a lot easier for an enterprise to say yes to a tool that handles the boring stuff than one that threatens to put its engineering team out of work.
What this means for the AI coding market
If Cognition closes this round at $40 billion, it would cement its place among the most valuable AI startups in the world. It also signals that investors are still willing to pay premium prices for AI coding agents, even as the broader market for AI funding shows signs of cooling.
The bigger question is whether Devin can keep up the momentum. A 50% monthly growth rate is impressive, but it also gets harder to sustain as the base gets bigger. And competitors are circling — from established players to newer entrants in the AI coding assistant space.
For now, though, the numbers are on Cognition’s side. And if the company hits that $1 billion run rate, the $40 billion valuation might not even be the peak.
