This Week in Startups

Jason Calacanis
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May 23, 2023 • 59min

Demoing Google’s MusicLM, AssemblyAI, and other AI tools with Sunny Madra | E1747

This Week in Startups is presented by: Issuu is the all-in-one platform for creating and distributing beautiful digital content. Get started with Issuu today for free or sign up for an annual premium account and get 50% off when you go to http://issuu.com/podcast and use promo code twist. Vanta. Compliance and security shouldn't be a deal-breaker for startups to win new business. Vanta makes it easy for companies to get a SOC 2 report fast. TWiST listeners can get $1,000 off for a limited time at http://vanta.com/twist .Tech domains are the go-to namespace to build anything in tech… and home to the world’s most innovative startups. Secure your .Tech domain today and lock down a 1-year domain for $10, or a 5-year domain for $50 at http://go.tech/TWIST today! * Today’s show: Sunny joins Jason to discuss the latest in AI. They chat about the launch of ChatGPT’s new iOS app and demo Google’s MusicLM (1:24). Then, Sunny tests AssemblyAI’s LeMUR and Wondercraft AI before wrapping with a look at Stable Diffusion’s deep fake capabilities (29:38). Follow Sunny: https://twitter.com/sundeep * Time stamps: (0:00) Sunny joins Jason (1:24) ChatGPT launches its IOS app (4:59) Sunny demos Google’s MusicLM (8:14) Issuu - Sign up for free or get 50% off an annual premium account by using promo code twist at https://issuu.com/podcast (9:33) Having taste, and how did Google train MusicLM (21:02) Vanta - Get $1000 off your SOC 2 at https://vanta.com/twist (22:09) The legal issues with training MusicLM (29:38) Sunny demos AssemblyAI’s LeMur (38:34) .Tech domains - lock down a 1-year domain for $10, or a 5-year domain for $50 at http://go.tech/TWIST (39:58) Sunny demos Wondercraft AI (47:18) Stable Diffusion’s deep fake technology (51:36) Creating more content with AI * Read LAUNCH Fund 4 Deal Memo & Apply for Funding Buy ANGEL Great recent interviews: Brian Chesky, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland, PrayingForExits, Jenny Lefcourt Check out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis * Follow Jason: Twitter: https://twitter.com/jason Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jason LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis * Follow TWiST: Substack: https://twistartups.substack.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartups YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin * Subscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.founder.university/podcast
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May 19, 2023 • 1h 41min

Fireside chat with Jason Calacanis & Brad Gerstner hosted by Mubadala’s Ibrahim Ajami | E1746

This Week in Startups is presented by: Squarespace. Turn your idea into a new website! Go to http://squarespace.com/TWIST for a free trial. When you’re ready to launch, use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain. Trovata. Starting up is hard. Trovata makes managing cash easy. Start automating your cash management at http://trovata.io/TWIST.Use Code TWIST for 30% off one full year of premium features like AI forecasting. OpenPhone. Create business phone numbers for you and your team that work through an app on your smartphone or desktop. TWiST listeners can get an extra 20% off any plan for your first 6 months at http://openphone.com/twist Today’s show: Jason and Brad speak with Mubadala Capital’s Head of Ventures, Ibrahim Ajami, at Hub71 in the UAE. The three discuss how startups can survive and thrive in an economic downturn (1:02) before diving into the sacrifices that founders must make to create an incredible product. (14:16) They also explain how the AI revolution will affect software, startups, capital allocators, and more! (40:36) Follow Mubadala: https://twitter.com/MubadalaCapital Follow Ibrahim: https://twitter.com/IbrahimAjami Follow Hub71: https://twitter.com/hub71ad Follow Brad: https://twitter.com/altcap Time stamps: (0:00) Nick kicks off the show (1:02) Surviving the downturn (12:46) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://Squarespace.com/TWIST (14:16) Sacrificing to build a great product (26:34)Trovata - Use code TWIST at https://trovata.io/twist for 30% off one year of premium features, like AI forecasting (27:47) Brad’s letter to Mark Zuckerberg and AI creating ultra-efficient startups (39:02) OpenPhone - Get 20% off your first six months at https://openphone.com/twist (40:36) The AI revolution (50:48) The implications of AI on the software industry (55:50) Creating the Silicon Valley culture (59:32) Reflecting on the success of the Launch Accelerator (1:06:23) Building culture within your firm and dealing with failure (1:19:03) Opinions on WFH (1:25:05) Recognizing product velocity (1:29:11) Advice for young founders (1:34:47) Advice for founders in emerging markets Read LAUNCH Fund 4 Deal Memo & Apply for Funding Buy ANGEL Great recent interviews: Brian Chesky, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland, PrayingForExits, Jenny Lefcourt Check out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis Follow Jason: Twitter: https://twitter.com/jason Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jason LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis Follow TWiST: Substack: https://twistartups.substack.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartups YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin Subscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.founder.university/podcast
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May 18, 2023 • 48min

Viral fundraising tactics with Rewind AI’s Dan Siroker + How to build a strong brand | E1745

This Week in Startups is presented by: Merge. Let your developers get back to their core product. Merge is a single API to add hundreds of integrations to your app. Integrate up to 3 customers for free today at http://merge.dev/twist. Embroker. The Embroker Startup Insurance Program helps startups secure the most important types of insurance at a lower cost and with less hassle. Save up to 20% off of traditional insurance today at http://embroker.com/twist. While you’re there, get an extra 10% off using offer code TWIST. Hyperice. Warm up and recover faster with the Hypervolt 2 massage gun and Normatec compression therapy boots. Save $50 off your order of $150 or more with code TWIST50 at checkout on http://hyperice.com Today’s show: Rewind AI CEO and Co-Founder Dan Siroker joins Jason to break down his viral fundraising strategy before diving into a demo of Rewind’s AI software (1:27). Then, Scott Bair of Lunour gives a talk on how to build a strong brand, where he dives into topics like branding, creating a logo and more! (34:49) Follow Dan: https://twitter.com/dsiroker Check out Rewind: https://www.rewind.ai Time stamps: (0:00) Dan Siroker joins Jason  (1:27) Dan discusses his method of raising capital publicly and the valuation they settled on (9:08) Merge - Integrate up to 3 customers for free today at ⁠https://merge.dev/twist (10:38) Advice for founders taking a high valuation, choosing the right firm, and differentiating Rewind AI from file search (19:03) Embroker - Use code TWIST to get an extra 10% off insurance at ⁠https://Embroker.com/twist (20:35) Dan demos Rewind AI (25:04) Privacy concerns, dealing with legal issues, and Rewind’s enterprise use cases  (33:21) Hyperice - Get $50 off your order of $150 or more with code TWIST50 at ⁠http://hyperice.com/ (34:49) How to build a strong brand with Scott Bair Read LAUNCH Fund 4 Deal Memo & Apply for Funding Buy ANGEL Great recent interviews: Brian Chesky, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland, PrayingForExits, Jenny Lefcourt Check out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis Follow Jason: Twitter: https://twitter.com/jason Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jason LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis Follow TWiST: Substack: https://twistartups.substack.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartups YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin Subscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.founder.university/podcast
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May 17, 2023 • 57min

Magic.dev CEO Eric Steinberger on making developers bionic | E1744

This Week in Startups is presented by: Crowdbotics. Great ideas can change the world, and Crowdbotics is the fastest way to turn those ideas into code. Get a free scoping session for your next big app idea at http://crowdbotics.com/twist. The Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub helps all founders build a better startup, at a lower cost, from day one. Startups get up to $150K in Azure credits, access to free OpenAI credits, free dev tools like GitHub, technical advisory, access to mentors and experts, and so much more. There is no funding requirement, and it only takes minutes to join. Sign up today at http://aka.ms/thisweekinstartups. Release. Large enterprises pose unique challenges for SaaS startups. Unlock customers with unique needs for private and single-tenant hosting without the toil of DIY with Release Delivery. Get your first month free at https://release.com/twist. * Today’s show: Jason is joined by Magic.dev CEO and Co-Founder Eric Steinberger to discuss how his startup makes developers more efficient with AI by auto-generating code. The first portion of the interview features Eric demoing his software. Then, Jason and Eric dive into the impact that these rapid AI advancements will have on society (31:28), how their tools have the potential to significantly minimize coding time and what that means for entrepreneurship (13:55), and much more! * Time stamps: (00:00) Eric Steinberger joins Jason (1:44) Eric and Jason explain what Magi.dev is (3:43) Eric Demos Magic.dev (9:13) What makes this AI model unique (11:02) Crowdbotics - Get a free scoping session for your next big app idea at ⁠http://crowdbotics.com/twist⁠ (12:11) Magic.dev's motivation behind building their own language model (13:55) The efficiency gains achieved with Magic.dev (17:32) Exploring reinforcement learning and grounding the AI model (19:45) Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub - Apply in 5 minutes for six figures in discounts at http://aka.ms/thisweekinstartups (21:19) The two parallel paths unfolding (23:57) How close we are to developing more capable AI systems (31:28) The impact of Moore's Law on technology and society (37:34) Release - Get your first month free at ⁠https://release.com/twist (39:03) Alternative perspectives on the pace of AI advancement (43:14) The origins of Eric's positive outlook on AI (47:49) Thought's on AI regulation and choke points * Read LAUNCH Fund 4 Deal Memo & Apply for Funding Buy ANGEL Great recent interviews: Brian Chesky, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland, PrayingForExits, Jenny Lefcourt Check out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis * Follow Jason: Twitter: https://twitter.com/jason Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jason LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis * Follow TWiST: Substack: https://twistartups.substack.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartups YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin * Subscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.founder.university/podcast
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May 17, 2023 • 1h 4min

AI girlfriends, memories & recreations + Sam Altman testifies | E1743

Rachel joins Jason to discuss Caryn AI and its rapid rise in popularity before explaining Gen Z everyday uses for AI (1:11). They wrap up by breaking down the Senate hearing regarding AI regulation (49:56). (0:00) Rachel joins Jason (1:11) Rachel breaks down CarynAI  (10:33) LinkedIn Jobs - Post your first job for free at https://linkedin.com/twist  (11:59) The ethics of Forever Voices and creating digital AI clones (21:25) Notion - Apply for Notion for Startups at https://notion.com/jason (22:40) How Gen Z is using AI, AI-powered filters, and Milli Vanilli (32:01) Hampton - Join Hampton's community of high-growth founders today at https://joinhampton.com/twist (33:20) Jason gives a history lesson, Rupert Murdoch's infamous trial and Snapchat's AI chatbot (49:56) AI Senate hearings  FOLLOW Rachel: https://twitter.com/_rachelbraun FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis Subscribe to our YouTube to watch all full episodes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkkhmBWfS7pILYIk0izkc3A?sub_confirmation=1 FOUNDERS! Subscribe to the Founder University podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/founder-university/id1648407190
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May 16, 2023 • 1h 8min

Open-source vs. "ClosedAI," demoing new AI tools & more with Sunny Madra & Vinny Lingham | E1742

Sunny and Vinny are back to demo some new AI tools (14:08), discuss open-source vs. "ClosedAI" (38:45), and more! (0:00) Jason kicks off the show (1:31) Jason's trip to the UAE and Abu Dhabi's 30-year investment horizon (12:39) Miro - Sign up for a free account at https://miro.com/startups (14:08) Sunny demos ChatPDF and LLMs' future in the workforce (24:23) Lemon.io - Get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://Lemon.io/twist (25:41) Google's new universal translator (30:11) What is Hugging Face?  (37:26) iConnections - Get 20% off iConnections Miami 2024 event at http://iconnections.io/twist (38:45) Open-source vs. "ClosedAI" and the race to build AI hardware (48:28) Comparing Google Bard to ChatGPT (1:01:13) Google's vision for Gmail and AWS's partnership with Hugging Face FOLLOW Vinny: https://twitter.com/VinnyLingham FOLLOW Sunny: https://twitter.com/sundeep FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis Links: https://www.semianalysis.com/p/google-we-have-no-moat-and-neither https://www.chatpdf.com https://huggingface.co/espnet/kan-bayashi_ljspeech_vits Subscribe to our YouTube to watch all full episodes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkkhmBWfS7pILYIk0izkc3A?sub_confirmation=1 FOUNDERS! Subscribe to the Founder University podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/founder-university/id1648407190
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May 12, 2023 • 46min

Using AI to revolutionize video game development with Scenario CEO Emmanuel de Maistre | E1741

Emmanuel de Maistre joins Jason to demo Scenario’s AI-powered game asset generator (3:54) before breaking down future applications of Scenario’s technology. Then, Presh gives a presentation on how to build no-code apps (26:41). (0:00) Emmanuel de Maistre joins Jason  (1:29) The cost of developing video games (3:54) Emmanuel demos Scenario  (11:29) Vanta - Get $1000 off your SOC 2 at https://vanta.com/twist (12:45) Emmanuel demos Scenario continued, and the cost and use cases for this technology (22:49) House of Macadamias - Get 20% off and a free bottle of cold-pressed macadamia oil at https://houseofmacadamias.com/twist by using code TWIST20 (24:20) Addressing artist’s concerns  (26:41) Other applications for Scenario’s technology  (29:08) Emmanuel’s prior ventures  (31:23) Regulating AI  (36:50) Crowdbotics - Get a free scoping session for your next big app idea at http://crowdbotics.com/twist (37:59) How to build No-Code apps FOLLOW Emmanuel: https://twitter.com/emmanuel_2m FOLLOW Presh: https://twitter.com/preshdkumar FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis Subscribe to our YouTube to watch all full episodes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkkhmBWfS7pILYIk0izkc3A?sub_confirmation=1 FOUNDERS! Subscribe to the Founder University podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/founder-university/id1648407190
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May 11, 2023 • 1h 1min

Building brands and community + influencer marketing that actually works with Dee Murthy | E1740

Dee Murthy joins Jason to discuss the origin of the Group Chat podcast before talking about his new startup, Ghost (1:44). They then delve into fostering a community, staying true to your brand, and more! (30:12)  (0:00) Dee Murthy joins Jason  (1:44) The Origin of Group Chat podcast (11:32) Embroker - Use code TWIST to get an extra 10% off insurance at https://Embroker.com/twist (13:06) The impact of the Group Chat podcast (18:49) The premise of Ghost (22:57) QuickNode - Get one month free by using code TWIST at https://go.quicknode.com/twist (24:15) Focusing on your customers and raising capital (30:12) Fostering a community (37:26) OpenPhone - Get 20% off your first six months at https://openphone.com/twist (39:00) Understanding your brand’s voice (46:09) Effective influencer marketing  (52:01) More on Ghost   FOLLOW Dee: https://twitter.com/deemurthy FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis Subscribe to our YouTube to watch all full episodes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkkhmBWfS7pILYIk0izkc3A?sub_confirmation=1 FOUNDERS! Subscribe to the Founder University podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/founder-university/id1648407190
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May 10, 2023 • 1h 2min

Reid Hoffman on AI's "crescendo moment," regulation and real-world applications | E1739

Reid Hoffman joins Jason to discuss AI's current "crescendo moment," and its ability to amplify human capabilities (1:50). Then, they discuss AI regulation, real-world use cases, and much more! (25:55) (0:00) Reid Hoffman joins Jason (1:50) AI’s “crescendo moment,” (12:48) Release - Get your first month free at https://release.com/twist (14:20) AI's ability to amplify human capability  (24:21) Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub - Apply in 5 minutes for six figures in discounts at http://aka.ms/thisweekinstartups (25:55) Regulating AI  (35:35) Veed - Head to https://www.veed.io/pricing?utm_campaign=TWIS&utm_medium=Marketing&utm_source=YouTube and start creating professional-quality videos in minutes! (36:45) The future of AI startups and Inflection AI's mission (44:01) AI's real-world applications  (48:20) Compensating creators and real-world uses for AI (57:27) Google's ability to compete in the AI race  FOLLOW Reid: https://twitter.com/reidhoffman FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis Subscribe to our YouTube to watch all full episodes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkkhmBWfS7pILYIk0izkc3A?sub_confirmation=1 FOUNDERS! Subscribe to the Founder University podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/founder-university/id1648407190
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May 9, 2023 • 1h

Box CEO Aaron Levie breaks down Box AI and generative AI’s impact on business | E1738

Aaron Levie joins Jason to discuss the launch of Box AI (19:13), AI as a platform shift, its potential effects on employment dynamics (25:53), and much more! (00:00) Aaron Levie joins Jason (4:12) Thoughts on the impact and pace of AI (6:54) Aaron's "Aha!" moment (10:02) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://Squarespace.com/TWIST (11:33) Getting consent to use data from customers (13:50) Creating an AI model for early adopters (19:13) Aaron demos Box AI (24:33) MasterClass - Get up to 35% off for Mother’s Day at https://masterclass.com/startups (25:53) AI making the workforce more efficient (33:29) How AI technology affects morale (36:45) The non-obvious uses of AI (38:24) Hampton - Join the Hampton community today at http://joinhampton.com/twist (39:44) The Writers Guild strike in Hollywood (46:57) Copyright and citations (53:49) The challenges with Crypto FOLLOW Aaron: ⁠⁠https://twitter.co/levie FOLLOW Jason: ⁠https://linktr.ee/calacanis⁠ Subscribe to our YouTube to watch all full episodes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkkhmBWfS7pILYIk0izkc3A?sub_confirmation=1 FOUNDERS! Subscribe to the Founder University podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/founder-university/id1648407190

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