The AI graveyard: a running list of projects and startups that didn't make it
News Source
β’Sat, 24 Oct 2026 19:00:00 +0000
π° What Happened
TechCrunch has published a running list of AI products and startups that have shut down or faded out. Among them is Relay, a workflow tool built to compete with Zapier, which closed in August. Character.ai filed for bankruptcy just five years after launching.
The report says about 42 percent of AI projects inside big companies are eventually dropped. Reasons include weak demand, money problems, technical trouble and competition from bigger platforms.
π The Backstory
Big tech firms keep folding AI features into their own apps, which squeezes out small companies selling similar tools. Relay lost its reason to exist once OpenAI and Google added automation to their products.
Even OpenAI has had failures, including a redesigned ChatGPT app that users disliked. The list is meant as a record of lessons, not just a scoreboard of flops.
π― Why It Matters
It shows that most AI startups will not survive, which matters for workers, investors and anyone paying for AI tools.
TechCrunch has published a running list of AI products and startups that have shut down or faded out. Among them is Relay, a workflow tool built to compete with Zapier, which closed in August. Character.ai filed for bankruptcy just five years after launching.
The report says about 42 percent of AI projects inside big companies are eventually dropped. Reasons include weak demand, money problems, technical trouble and competition from bigger platforms.
Big tech firms keep folding AI features into their own apps, which squeezes out small companies selling similar tools. Relay lost its reason to exist once OpenAI and Google added automation to their products.
Even OpenAI has had failures, including a redesigned ChatGPT app that users disliked. The list is meant as a record of lessons, not just a scoreboard of flops.
It shows that most AI startups will not survive, which matters for workers, investors and anyone paying for AI tools.