AI NewsThe PhD students who became the judges of the AI industry

The PhD students who became the judges of the AI industry

9:12 PM IST · March 18, 2026

Artificial intelligence models are multiplying fast, and competition is stiff. With so many players crowding the space, which one will be the best — and who decides that? Arena, formerly LM Arena, has emerged as the de facto public leaderboard for frontier LLMs, influencing funding, launches, and PR cycles. In just seven months, the startup went from a UC Berkeley PhD research project tobeing valued at $1.7 billion. On this episode of TechCrunch’sEquitypodcast, Rebecca Bellan catches up with Arena co-foundersAnastasios AngelopoulosandWei-Lin Chiangto determine how a team like theirs can build a neutral benchmark when the companies they’re ranking are also their backers. Listen to the full episode to hear: Subscribe to Equity onYouTube,Apple Podcasts,Overcast,Spotifyand all the casts. You also can follow Equity onXandThreads, at @EquityPod.