Kim Kardashian and the financialization of trendsetters

Sep 9, 2022

Kim Kardashian's latest venture into private equity is turning heads as she teams up with a former Carlyle executive. The discussion highlights her evolution from influencer to investor. The podcast also dives into the growth of UserPilot and Varjo, which are reshaping SaaS and XR industries. Moreover, strategic grocery delivery acquisitions are reshaping the market landscape. The conversation wraps up with a lively debate on AI's impact on the creator economy, questioning the essence of AI-generated art.

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ANECDOTE

Kim K's Private Equity Firm

Kim Kardashian, known for her successful mobile game, ventures into finance.
She co-founds a private equity firm, Sky Partners, focusing on consumer brands.

INSIGHT

Financialization of Trendsetters

Kim Kardashian's foray into private equity leverages her business acumen and cultural influence.
This approach allows her to acquire and scale brands rather than building from scratch.

INSIGHT

Userpilot's SaaS platform

Userpilot helps SaaS companies personalize user experiences, going beyond basic onboarding.
Its intelligent prompting customizes user journeys within the application based on behavior.

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Hello and welcome back to Equity, a podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines.

What.

Week.

Alex, Natasha and Mary Ann jumped on the mic, with Theresa on backup, to talk through the biggest headlines. For our Apple coverage, click here. For our YC coverage, click here.

All that aside, here's what we got into on today's episode:

Kim Kardashian surprised us all -- yet again -- with the news that she is co-founding a private equity firm. We also talked about how Userpilot raised $4.6 million to help SaaS companies offer a more personalized user experience and Varjo - an early mover in building XR headsets and software for enterprises - landing $40 million in new funding.
We pivoted to riff on a couple of acquisitions in the grocery delivery space, both of which thought were pretty cool and made sense. Instacart acquired Rosie (gotta love the name) in an example of not putting all its eggs in one basket, and Misfit Markets announced it is buying Imperfect Foods.
Next, we talked about a couple of venture firms -- Kapor Capital and Countdown Capital -- raising new, second funds. Notably, both firms are looking to back historically overlooked founders and industries, which we -- and their LPs -- are 100% here for.
And lastly, we had a lively debate on AI and its impact on the creator economy -- discussing topics such as AI-generated porn and whether AI-driven art is truly art.

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Credits: Equity is produced by Theresa Loconsolo with editing by Kell. Bryce Durbin is our Illustrator. We'd also like to thank the audience development team and Henry Pickavet, who manages TechCrunch audio products.

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