QIA-backed unicorn Builder.ai files for insolvency despite $450M in funding

Once hailed as a billion-dollar AI unicorn, UK-based Builder.ai has filed for bankruptcy after investors seized $37M from its accounts, leaving just $5M in cash.

CEO Manpreet Ratia, who replaced founder Sachin Dev Duggal in March, said the company had been operating with "zero dollars" in UK and US accounts and couldn’t recover from prior mismanagement.

Backed by Microsoft, SoftBank, and the Qatar Investment Authority, Builder.ai had raised over $450M to make app creation “as easy as ordering a pizza,” but slashed revenue forecasts by 25% in late 2024 and was previously accused of passing off human-built code as AI.

Duggal is now also named in an Indian money laundering probe.