Fast-growing startups rise up the GeekWire 200 list | Bezos and Musk spar on social media

Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos renewed their ongoing social media spat after the SpaceX CEO called out the Blue Origin founder for an alleged election prediction and stock recommendation. “100% not true,” Bezos replied to a Musk post. Read more. 

EVs under Trump: While experts largely agree that electric vehicle purchases may slow under the Trump administration, how the different policies and market forces play out aren’t entirely clear. We spoke to industry insiders to get their take on the future of EVs.

Speaking of vehicles: KeySavvy, a Seattle startup that aims to digitize and secure used car sales between private parties, raised $4.25 million. 

• See all recent fundings in the Pacific Northwest here.

Lifting the veil on AI post-training: The art of post-training AI models has long been a critical but mysterious corner of the AI world, mastered by the likes of OpenAI and Google but less accessible to those in the broader research community. The Seattle-based nonprofit Allen Institute for AI (Ai2) is looking to change that with its latest release. Read more.

Three University of Washington students are carrying on the entrepreneurial legacy of Richard Tait, thanks to a scholarship in the name of the Seattle tech veteran who co-invented the board game “Cranium” and left his mark at Microsoft and Starbucks. Read more.

The tech scene in Washington state was small and nascent back in 1984. But a group of people recognized the potential of a new booming sector — and launched the Washington Software Association. Four decades later, the group — now known as the WTIA — celebrated its 40th anniversary and a new CEO.

Hot Links:

• Satya Nadella helped Microsoft go from “lumbering and uncool” to the top of tech. (Wired)

• Researchers from Fred Hutch Cancer Center in Seattle published new findings related to antibodies that could help reduce disease severity. (Fred Hutch)