TBPN

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Chime Climbs, Tech Titans Join Army Reserve, Meta Buys 49% of Scale AI | Joshua Steinman, Bernt Børnich, John Doyle, Emily Sundberg, Lennart Heim Jun 13, 2025

Show notes

(02:47) - Joshua Steinman, founder of Galvanick, discusses the recent Israeli airstrikes on Iran's nuclear and military facilities, highlighting the precision of modern targeting technologies and the deployment of next-generation asymmetric capabilities. He notes the significant impact on Iran's military leadership and infrastructure, emphasizing the strategic implications of such operations. Steinman also reflects on the historical context of Iran-Israel relations, tracing the shift from pre-1979 alliances to the current adversarial stance, and underscores the potential for further escalation given Iran's history of targeting U.S. interests and the presence of Iranian assets capable of asymmetric attacks.
(55:51) - Bernt Bornich, CEO of 1X Technologies, discusses his lifelong passion for robotics, leading to the development of NEO, a humanoid robot designed to safely and affordably assist with everyday tasks in home environments. He emphasizes the importance of deploying robots in diverse, real-world settings to gather the necessary data for creating truly intelligent machines, highlighting that the variability of home environments provides the rich data needed for advanced AI learning. Bornich also addresses the challenges of scaling humanoid robot production, noting that while 1X has vertically integrated its manufacturing to maintain flexibility, sourcing materials like copper and aluminum in the U.S. presents logistical and cost challenges compared to China.
(01:12:19) - John Doyle, founder and CEO of Cape, a privacy-first mobile network, discusses the critical vulnerabilities in global cellular networks, emphasizing their complete lack of security and the ease with which malicious actors can exploit them. He highlights the strategic decisions by China to infiltrate global telecom infrastructure through subsidized Huawei equipment, contrasting it with U.S. carriers' outsourcing practices that have led to significant security gaps. Doyle explains that Cape addresses these issues by owning all the software that runs the network, allowing for enhanced security without the need to build physical infrastructure.
(01:25:54) - Emily Sundberg is a New York-based writer and director, best known for her daily business and internet culture newsletter, "Feed Me." In the conversation, she discusses her experience at Apple's WWDC, noting the enthusiasm of developers for the announced updates, and highlights the evolving fashion trends among attendees. She also shares insights into the competitive landscape of Substack, emphasizing the importance of quality content and active reader engagement for success.
(01:47:01) - Lennart Heim, a researcher at the Centre for the Governance of AI, focuses on the role of computational resources in AI development and governance. He discusses the impact of China's DeepSeek model on the AI landscape, highlighting its open-source nature and cost-effectiveness, which have raised concerns about potential biases and security risks in widely accessible models. Heim also emphasizes the importance of compute governance in AI regulation, suggesting that controlling access to advanced computational resources could serve as a mechanism to enforce safety standards and prevent misuse of powerful AI systems.

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Air India Crash, Internet Chaos | Delian Asparouhov, Saif Khawaja, Henri Stern, Chris Paik, Joseph Cohen, Zachary Perret, Shirin Ghaffary, Cameron McCord, Anil Varanasi, Shreyas Iyer Jun 12, 2025

Show notes

(41:42) - Delian Asparouhov, a Bulgarian entrepreneur and investor, is a partner at Founders Fund and co-founder of Varda Space Industries, focusing on in-space manufacturing. In the conversation, he discusses the critical role of effective pilot communication in preventing aviation accidents, highlighting that miscommunication has been a significant factor in crashes over the past decades. He emphasizes the need for practical training scenarios that encourage co-pilots to assertively address safety concerns, advocating for role-playing exercises to improve cockpit communication and enhance overall flight safety.
(59:30) - Saif Khawaja, founder and CEO of Shinkei Systems, discusses his journey from a solo founder to leading a company that recently secured a $22 million Series A funding round co-led by Founders Fund and Lagos Capital. He explains how Shinkei's robotic system, Poseidon, utilizes machine learning and traditional Japanese fish harvesting techniques to enhance fish quality and sustainability, offering fishermen the machines for free and purchasing the processed fish at a premium. Khawaja also highlights the company's rapid growth, including expanding distribution to major U.S. cities and supplying over 40 Michelin-starred restaurants.
(01:14:39) - Henri Stern, co-founder of Privy, discusses the company's mission to simplify user onboarding and wallet management in Web3 applications by providing developers with tools for seamless integration. He highlights Privy's role in enabling diverse platforms—from neobanks to trading platforms—to offer embedded wallets, enhancing user experience and accessibility. Stern also emphasizes the growing interest from major fintech companies in integrating stablecoins and crypto functionalities, underscoring the accelerating convergence of traditional finance and cryptocurrency.
(01:28:32) - Chris Paik, a venture capitalist and author of "The End of Software," discusses how advancements in large language models (LLMs) are dramatically reducing the cost of software development by automating code generation, thereby challenging traditional software business models. He draws parallels to the media industry's transformation, where user-generated content platforms disrupted established media companies, suggesting that software companies may face similar upheavals as AI democratizes software creation. Paik emphasizes that creativity and agency will become the scarce resources in this new landscape, as execution becomes commoditized.
(01:57:48) - Joseph Cohen, co-founder and CEO of Infinite Machine, discusses the launch of their second product, Alto, a Class 2 electric bike designed from the ground up to reach 25 mph in bike lanes, featuring convertible pedals, seating for two, and internet connectivity. He emphasizes the importance of adhering to legal definitions of bicycles to avoid the complexities associated with motor vehicle regulations, highlighting that Alto's design ensures it doesn't require registration, insurance, or a license plate. Cohen also outlines the company's direct-to-consumer strategy, including opening a 13,000-square-foot retail space in New York City, and expresses a vision for a post-car future with smaller, smarter urban vehicles.
(02:14:08) - Zachary Perret, co-founder and CEO of Plaid, a leading financial technology company, discusses the launch of "Protect," an advanced anti-fraud product unveiled at Plaid's annual customer conference. "Protect" analyzes data across the Plaid network to identify and prevent fraudulent activities, addressing the evolving challenges in financial fraud, which is increasing by approximately 25% annually. Perret emphasizes the importance of combining cutting-edge tools with consumer education to effectively combat fraud in the financial sector.
(02:36:07) - Shirin Ghaffary is an AI reporter at Bloomberg News, covering the global impact and inner workings of major tech companies. In the conversation, she discusses Anthropic's strategic approach to balancing its commitment to AI safety with business growth, highlighting the company's deliberate partnerships with multiple hyperscalers and its proactive measures to address potential risks in AI development.
(02:53:47) - Cameron McCord, co-founder and CEO of Nominal, a company specializing in validating mission-critical systems, discusses the recent $75 million Series B funding led by Sequoia, with Alfred Lin joining Nominal's board, and additional investments from Lightspeed Venture Partners, General Catalyst, Lux, and Founders Fund. He outlines plans to use the funding to expand into larger enterprises, enhance product development, and grow internationally, emphasizing the importance of increasing test cadence and throughput to accelerate development timelines for customers. McCord also highlights the flexibility of Nominal's products, including a cloud-based core product and a desktop application built on Unreal Engine, designed to meet diverse customer needs in both connected and air-gapped environments.
(03:07:23) - Anil Varanasi, CEO of Meter, a networking company, discusses their recent $170 million funding round aimed at enhancing hardware and scaling operations. He highlights the company's unique approach of offering networking infrastructure as a service, eliminating capital expenditures for customers and integrating hardware, software, and deployment. Varanasi also emphasizes the diverse customer base, including tech firms, manufacturing facilities, and educational institutions, underscoring the critical role of networking across various sectors.
(03:21:49) - Shreyas Iyer, co-founder of Anti Metal, discusses the company's recent $20 million funding round led by Sound Ventures, with participation from notable investors like Buckley Naval and Arash Ferdowsi. He explains Anti Metal's mission to simplify infrastructure management by automating deployment and maintenance processes, addressing the bottleneck that has shifted from coding to operations. Iyer also highlights the challenges companies face with AI integration, such as monitoring and evaluating nascent AI tools, and emphasizes the importance of understanding organizational practices to tailor solutions effectively.

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Live @ YC Demo Day | Garry Tan, Delian Asparouhov, Matteo Franceschetti & Many More Jun 11, 2025

Show notes

Today's show was recorded live on location at Y Combinator Demo Day and is made up of short interviews with a variety of batch founders and investors in attendance. Back to regular programming tomorrow!

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(00:45) - Garry Tan, CEO of Y Combinator
(16:34) - Kaizen
(22:17) - StarSling
(28:28) - Jazzberry
(35:07) - Cotool
(41:29) - Clado
(48:50) - Outset
(01:00:11) - Operative
(01:10:02) - Matteo Franceschetti, Founder & CEO of Eight Sleep
(01:17:52) - throxy
(01:24:56) - Morphik
(01:30:41) - Clidey
(01:34:29) - Cua
(01:43:26) - Delian Asparouhov, Co-Founder of Varda
(01:53:37) - Dave Munichiello, Managing Partner at GV
(02:07:41) - Andrew Lee, Partner at a16z
(02:20:13) - Chonkie
(02:24:30) - Godela
(02:29:55) - Den
(02:35:57) - Eloquent AI
(02:40:18) - YouLearn
(02:46:49) - Blaxel
(02:50:55) - Waffle
(02:55:21) - VibeGrade
(03:01:54) - Avallon AI
(03:04:07) - text.ai
(03:10:25) - ValueMate
(03:14:04) - Bloom
(03:19:26) - MorphoAI
(03:24:06) - Prism AI
(03:26:36) - Clarm
(03:28:30) - Cactus
(03:30:27) - Lumari
(03:32:15) - Third Chair
(03:34:19) - QFEX
(03:36:01) - Minerva
(03:37:26) - Sim Studio

Apple's iOS 26 Review, Meta to Pay $15B for Scale AI Stake | Andrew Huberman, Scott Belsky, Sai Senthilkumar, Karri Saarinen, Roy Bahat, Alex Israel Jun 10, 2025

Show notes

(02:52) - WWDC Recap
(15:17) - Apple's Retreat to its Core Competency
(22:45) - Apple's iOS 26 Draws Mixed Reviews
(52:58) - Meta to Pay Nearly $15B For Scale AI Stake
(01:00:17) - Sai Senthilkumar, a Partner at Redpoint Ventures, focuses on growth-stage investments in enterprise software and AI, and leads the firm's InfraRed initiative, which introduced the first publicly traded index of cloud infrastructure businesses. In the conversation, he discusses the rapid advancements in AI, particularly in developer tools, highlighting companies like Cursor and Anthropic that are transforming software development through AI-powered coding solutions. He also addresses the evolving competitive dynamics between established infrastructure providers and emerging startups, emphasizing the significant opportunities for innovation in the AI-driven infrastructure market.
(01:36:58) - CNBC's Disrupter 50 List Reactions
(01:44:55) - Karri Saarinen, co-founder and CEO of Linear, a project management software company, discusses the company's recent $82 million Series C funding round led by Accel, valuing Linear at $1.25 billion. He highlights the company's efficient growth, noting a 280% profit increase over the past year and a customer base exceeding 15,000, including prominent AI firms like OpenAI. Saarinen emphasizes Linear's focus on streamlined solutions tailored to software development workflows, contrasting with competitors' more customizable but often overwhelming platforms.
(02:01:27) - Scott Belsky, an entrepreneur and author, co-founded Behance, a leading online platform for creative professionals, and served as Adobe's Chief Product Officer and Chief Strategy Officer. In the conversation, Belsky discusses the evolving role of AI in creativity, emphasizing the importance of human elements like taste and storytelling to infuse soul into AI-generated content. He also explores the concept of collective memory within enterprises, highlighting how AI's growing contextual understanding can enhance collaboration and knowledge retention.
(02:32:49) - Roy Bahat, head of Bloomberg Beta, discusses the firm's recent $75 million fundraise, emphasizing their continued focus on early-stage investments in startups that are shaping the future of work. He highlights the firm's commitment to transparency, noting that their operating manual and deal documents are publicly accessible to help founders understand their processes. Bahat also touches on the firm's relationship with Bloomberg L.P., clarifying that while Bloomberg is the sole investor, Bloomberg Beta operates independently without strategic investment directives.
(02:47:24) - Alex Israel, co-founder and CEO of Metropolis Technologies, discusses the company's innovative approach to revolutionizing the parking industry through artificial intelligence and strategic acquisitions. Facing initial resistance from property developers, Metropolis shifted its strategy to a "growth buyout" model, acquiring traditional parking operators to integrate AI-driven, seamless payment systems. This approach has positioned Metropolis as the largest parking operator in North America, with plans to expand its technology to other sectors like gas stations and retail, while also preparing for the future impact of autonomous vehicles on urban infrastructure.
(02:59:24) - Andrew Huberman is a neuroscientist and Stanford professor known for his work on brain function, behavior, and wellness, and he hosts the Huberman Lab podcast, where he translates scientific insights into practical health advice. Huberman addresses concerns about proposed NIH funding cuts of 40%, emphasizing the critical role of both basic and applied research, and discusses strategies for rebuilding public trust in science after the COVID-19 pandemic. He advocates restructuring research funding to prioritize impactful, collaborative, and discovery-driven science, highlighting how significant breakthroughs such as GLP-1 treatments and brain-machine interfaces arise from fundamental research.

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WWDC25 Reactions, Apple Under Pressure for AI Progress, Meta in Talks to Scale AI Investments | Casey Handmer, Patrick Mcgee, Aaron Slodov, Gaurab Chakrabarti, Sean Liu, Garth Sheldon-Coulson, Lukas Czinger, Christian Keil, Vlad Matsiiako, Alex Heath Jun 09, 2025

Show notes

(02:46) - Intern iPhone Assembly
(04:46) - Timeline
(14:05) - Apple Under Pressure for AI Progress
(25:47) - Meta in Talks to Scale AI Investments
(32:58) - Timeline
(43:24) - Casey Handmer, a physicist and engineer with a PhD from Caltech, has worked at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Hyperloop Technologies, and is the founder of Terraform Industries. He discusses the urgency of establishing a U.S. presence on the Moon to counter China's accelerated lunar ambitions, emphasizing the Moon's symbolic significance for freedom and the potential geopolitical risks if China establishes dominance there. Handmer also critiques NASA's bureaucratic challenges, advocates for reforms to expedite lunar exploration, and highlights the need for energy sovereignty through domestic solar panel production to maintain technological and economic leadership.
(01:02:16) - Patrick McGee, a seasoned business journalist and former Financial Times correspondent, authored "Apple in China," a comprehensive examination of Apple's deep entanglement with China's manufacturing sector. In the conversation, McGee delves into how Apple's strategic investments and collaborations with Chinese manufacturers have not only propelled the company's growth but also significantly bolstered China's technological capabilities, leading to the rise of formidable competitors like Huawei. He highlights the challenges Apple faces in diversifying its supply chain, emphasizing the complexities of replicating China's unique manufacturing ecosystem elsewhere, and discusses the potential risks associated with Apple's heavy reliance on Chinese production amid escalating geopolitical tensions.
(01:34:57) - Aaron Slodov, CEO and co-founder of Atomic Industries, is leading efforts to modernize U.S. manufacturing through AI-driven processes. He discusses the success of the inaugural Reindustrialize Summit, which convened diverse stakeholders to revitalize the industrial base, and highlights the formation of the New American Industrial Alliance to advocate for advanced manufacturing policies. Slodov emphasizes the need for a cultural shift and technological innovation to reshore manufacturing, aiming to make American industry globally competitive.
(01:44:57) - Gaurab Chakrabarti, co-founder and CEO of Solugen, holds an MD and PhD in Cancer Biology and Enzymology from the University of Texas. In the conversation, he discusses Solugen's mission to decentralize chemical production by developing small-scale, modular plants that produce hydrogen peroxide and other chemicals closer to end-users, reducing transportation risks and costs. He also highlights the company's innovative approach to sustainable chemical manufacturing, aiming to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and minimize environmental impact.
(01:59:12) - Sean Liu, a Partner at Founders Fund, previously served as CFO of Solugen, where he led finance, strategy, and operations, supporting the company's scale-up from pilot to its first commercial facility. In the conversation, he discusses his transition from Solugen to Founders Fund, emphasizing the importance of understanding technical risks and the necessity of a commercial mindset in hard tech investments. He also highlights the challenges of scaling hard tech companies, including managing capital intensity and navigating supply chain bottlenecks
(02:20:59) - Garth Sheldon-Coulson, co-founder and CEO of Panthalassa, discusses the development of self-propelled ocean-based systems designed to harness renewable energy for computing and synthetic fuel production. He highlights the scalability and sustainability of these platforms, emphasizing their potential to rapidly expand energy capacity beyond traditional terrestrial infrastructure. Sheldon-Coulson also details the manufacturing process, noting the simplicity and efficiency of producing these steel-shell systems, which can be mass-produced to meet the growing energy demands of AI and other applications
(02:39:57) - Lukas Czinger, co-founder and president of Czinger Vehicles and Divergent Technologies, discusses the development of a fully autonomous, 3D-printed structure, highlighting Divergent's integration of airframes to enhance speed, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness. He elaborates on Divergent's Adaptive Production System (DAPS), which combines AI-driven design, additive manufacturing, and robotic assembly to produce complex structures for industries like automotive, aerospace, and defense, serving clients such as Ferrari, McLaren, Bugatti, Lockheed Martin, and Raytheon. Czinger emphasizes the system's ability to rapidly design and manufacture product-agnostic structures, enabling flexible, high-volume production without hardware changes, and notes that advancements in additive manufacturing have made it more cost-effective than traditional methods, allowing for the production of thousands of units annually.
(02:53:39) - Christian Keil, Vice President of External Relations at Astranis, a company specializing in low-cost satellites for high orbits, discusses the company's recent achievements, including the launch of four satellites and the development of five more in their factory. He highlights new government contracts, notably a resilient GPS mission aimed at enhancing the robustness of GPS systems against potential threats. Additionally, Keil shares insights into Astranis's innovative approach to showcasing their manufacturing processes through authentic, in-house produced content, moving away from traditional promotional materials.
(03:03:44) - Vlad Matsiiako, co-founder and CEO of Infisical, an open-source secrets management platform, discusses the company's journey from launching as an open-source project on Reddit to securing a $60 million Series A funding round. He highlights the critical role of secrets management in preventing security breaches, noting that over 50% of such incidents stem from mishandled credentials. Matsiiako also emphasizes the importance of integrating with various infrastructure tools and the balance between offering free developer features under the MIT license and monetizing enterprise functionalities.
(03:16:24) - Intern iPhone Assembly
(03:19:40) - Timeline
(03:38:23) - Alex Heath, reporting live from the Steve Jobs Theater during WWDC, discusses the absence of a new Siri announcement, suggesting that this indicates no significant Siri updates for at least a year. He notes that Apple's stock declined as the event began, reflecting investor disappointment over unmet AI expectations. He also highlights concerns about Apple's AI strategy, particularly in China, where regulatory issues have blocked the rollout of Apple Intelligence, potentially impacting Apple's position in that market.

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Weekly Recap | Elon vs. Trump, Ukraine's Drone Attack, Cluely Update & OpenAI CRO Jun 07, 2025

Show notes

(00:00) - Intro and Overview
(02:57) - Ukraine’s drone attack on Russia
(03:21) - Soren Monroe-Anderson (Neros)
(09:02) - Connor Love (Lightspeed Ventures)
(13:45) - Erik Prince (Off Leash)
(15:20) - Elon Musk Vs. Donald Trump
(21:44) - Delian Asparouhov (Varda)
(32:48) - Cluely Update from dropout Roy Lee
(46:52) - Kian Sadeghi (Nucleus)
(01:00:12) - AI Day on TBPN
(01:00:14) - Mark Chen (OpenAI)
(01:28:49) - Sholto Douglas (Anthropic)

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Trump-Musk Fallout Recap, Circle IPO Post-Game with CEO | Dylan Patel, Jeremy Allaire, Kat Cole, Dana Settle, Anastasios Angelopoulos, Patrick Blumen, Blake Scholl Jun 06, 2025

Show notes

(05:24) - Elon-Trump Crashout Recap
(27:59) - Timeline
(43:34) - Patrick Blumenthal. Patrick discusses his experiences at New York City Tech Week, highlighting the diverse range of industry events and sponsorships. He provides insights into Ukraine's recent military operations, emphasizing the strategic impact of targeting Russian airfields to degrade their nuclear triad and the challenges posed by Russia's porous borders. Blumenthal also shares his perspective on the evolving landscape of drone warfare, noting the rapid advancements and the complexities involved in counter-drone technologies.
(01:00:05) - Jeremy Allaire, CEO and founder of Circle, has a background in building internet software platforms and infrastructure. He discusses his journey from founding Circle in 2013 with the vision of creating a protocol for digital dollars on the internet, to the company's recent successful IPO, which he views as a significant milestone for mainstream adoption of digital currency. Allaire emphasizes the importance of trust, transparency, and compliance in Circle's operations, highlighting the company's role as a market-neutral infrastructure platform that enables other institutions to build upon its technology.
(01:20:35) - Anastasios Angelopoulos, a Ph.D. candidate at UC Berkeley, discusses Lumarina, an open platform for evaluating AI models through human preferences. Users can input prompts to compare responses from leading LLMs like Google's Gemini, OpenAI's ChatGPT, and Anthropic's Claude, voting on preferred outputs to generate leaderboards across various tasks. Angelopoulos highlights Lumarina's recent $100 million funding round, emphasizing its role in guiding AI development by capturing diverse human opinions.
(01:32:49) - Dylan Patel, Chief Analyst at SemiAnalysis, is known for his sharp analysis of AI chips, compute infrastructure, and global supply chains. He explores the technical and political forces shaping AI—from OpenAI’s scaling bottlenecks and China’s industrial edge to the risks of centralization and the potential of decentralized, open-source alternatives.
(02:32:23) - Dana Settle, co-founder and managing partner at Greycroft, discusses her extensive experience in venture capital since 1998, highlighting early investments in networking equipment and semiconductors. She emphasizes Greycroft's focus on AI infrastructure and applications, as well as their sustainability fund in partnership with companies like Coca-Cola, addressing the intersection of AI and energy consumption. Settle also shares insights into the evolving IPO landscape, citing the recent public offering of Mountain, a company Greycroft invested in back in 2011, and discusses the impact of celebrity partnerships, such as Ryan Reynolds' involvement with Mountain, on business growth.
(02:48:28) - Kat Cole, CEO of AG1, has a rich background in the consumer industry, having previously served as President and COO at Focus Brands, overseeing brands like Cinnabon and Jamba. In the conversation, she discusses her journey from starting as a hostess at Hooters to leading global brands, emphasizing the importance of customer experience and operational excellence. Cole also highlights AG1's strategic growth, including expanding manufacturing to the U.S., investing in clinical trials, and entering retail partnerships like Costco, while maintaining a focus on product quality and customer trust.
(03:15:33) - Blake Scholl, founder and CEO of Boom Supersonic, discusses the recent reversal of the 1973 ban on supersonic flight over land, highlighting that technological advancements now allow for supersonic travel without disruptive sonic booms reaching the ground. He explains that Boom's XB-1 demonstrator achieved supersonic flight without generating audible booms, paving the way for their Overture airliner to operate over land. Scholl also shares plans to build the first full-scale pre-production prototype of Overture next year, aiming to revolutionize air travel with faster, more efficient flights.
(03:29:45) - Timeline

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Elon Musk vs. Donald Trump, AI Day | Shaun Maguire, Mark Chen, Sholto Douglas, Jack Whitaker, Aarush Selvan, Michael Mignano, Oliver Cameron, Delian Asparouhov Jun 05, 2025

Show notes

(17:15) - Shaun Maguire. Shaun is a partner at Sequoia Capital and discusses the resilience and innovation at X and XAI, highlighting the successful integration of Grok into X despite initial skepticism about the platform's stability. He compares the evolution of foundation models to operating systems, predicting a diverse ecosystem with both proprietary and open-source models, where open-source models may have broader deployment but less value capture. Maguire emphasizes the importance of early market capture and anticipates significant moats for foundation model companies due to hardware investments and application layer advantages. He also notes the rapid revenue scaling of companies like Starlink, surpassing previous benchmarks set by AWS, and underscores the necessity of a diversified energy strategy, advocating for increased natural gas, oil, solar, and nuclear energy to meet future demands.
(31:55) - Jack Whitaker. Jack is an AI expert and entrepreneur with a PhD from Cambridge University, specializing in generative AI, large language models, and multimodal systems. In the conversation, he discusses the current landscape of AI development, highlighting OpenAI's dominance in both product distribution and research, and noting Anthropic's strong position among developers. He also touches on the challenges of model naming conventions, the role of data in AI advancements, and the varying strategies of companies like Google, X.ai, and Meta in the evolving AI ecosystem.
(50:58) - Aarush Selvan. Aarush is a Product Manager at Google, leads the Gemini Deep Research project, which enables Gemini to act as a personal research assistant. In the conversation, he discusses the development of Deep Research, highlighting its ability to generate comprehensive reports by leveraging long context windows and reasoning models, and emphasizes the importance of balancing efficiency with the depth of information provided to users.
(01:04:45) - Oliver Cameron. Oliver is the co-founder and CEO of Odyssey. He discusses his transition from leading self-driving car initiatives to pioneering AI-driven storytelling. He introduces Odyssey's latest innovation, "interactive video," an AI-generated medium that allows real-time interaction without traditional game engines, envisioning it as a new form of entertainment. Cameron highlights the potential of this technology to revolutionize content creation by enabling models to generate film and game-like experiences instantly, reducing production costs and time.
(01:19:18) - Michael Mignano. Michael is a Partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners and co-founder of Anchor, and discusses the evolving dynamics between AI foundation labs and application layer startups, highlighting the shift from a symbiotic relationship to direct competition. He emphasizes the growing importance of unique data contexts, noting that models are increasingly seeking novel information, which prompts labs to compete directly with startups possessing such data. Mignano also suggests that this trend may drive startups back to established incumbents like Google and Amazon, as they might be perceived as more reliable partners in the AI ecosystem.
(01:31:44) - Mark Chen. Mark is OpenAI's Chief Research Officer. He discusses the evolving landscape of AI research, emphasizing the shift from large-scale pre-training to enhanced reasoning capabilities. He highlights the importance of reinforcement learning (RL) in developing autonomous agents and the challenges of scaling RL effectively. Chen also addresses the significance of interpretability in AI systems, advocating for models that transparently convey their reasoning processes to ensure reliability and user trust.
(02:00:59) - Sholto Douglas. Sholto is a researcher at Anthropic. He discusses the challenges and advancements in scaling reinforcement learning (RL) within artificial intelligence. He highlights the significant gains achieved by increasing compute resources in RL, noting that a tenfold increase still yields linear improvements. Douglas also addresses the complexities of reward hacking, emphasizing the need for careful guidance to align AI behaviors with human values.
(02:28:34) - Skip to Elon Musk vs. Donald Trump Reactions
(02:28:34) - Breaking News: Elon Musk vs. Donald Trump
(02:35:00) - Delian Asparouhov. Delian is the co-founder and president of Varda Space Industries and a partner at Founders Fund. He discusses the recent policy shifts in NASA's budget, particularly the reallocation of funds to the Space Launch System (SLS) program, which had been advocated for cancellation by figures like Jared Isaacman and Elon Musk. He highlights the immediate consequences of this decision, including SpaceX's announcement to decommission its Dragon spacecraft, leading to a lack of vehicles capable of servicing the International Space Station. Asparouhov also reflects on the unprecedented nature of the current dynamics between influential private sector leaders and the U.S. government, noting the escalating tensions and their potential impact on the future of space exploration.

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Deel–Rippling Update, Microsoft Bets on Agents | Shawn “swyx” Wang, Augustus Doricko, Brad Porter, Kian Sadeghi, Kathleen McMahon, Chungin “Roy” Lee Jun 04, 2025

Show notes

(03:02) - Deel-Rippling Drama
(09:58) - Microsoft Bets on Agents to Fuel AI Growth
(30:43) - Snowflake Buying Crunchy Data for $250M
(45:57) - Augustus Doricko. Augustus is the founder and CEO of Rainmaker, a California-based startup using drones and advanced modeling to modernize cloud seeding and address water scarcity in the American West. A former UC Berkeley physics student and Thiel Fellow, he previously co-founded Terra Seco, a company that automates groundwater compliance. Doricko integrates his Christian faith with a mission to "terraform" arid regions, aiming to revitalize agriculture and infrastructure through scalable weather modification.
(01:00:46) - Brad Porter. Brad is the founder and CEO of Collaborative Robotics (Cobot), a startup building AI-powered collaborative robots designed to work safely and intuitively alongside humans in sectors like logistics, healthcare, and manufacturing. Before founding Cobot in 2022, Porter served as VP and Distinguished Engineer at Amazon Robotics, where he led the deployment of over 500,000 robots across global fulfillment centers. Cobot's first robot, Proxie, launched in late 2024 and is already in use by companies like Maersk, Mayo Clinic, and Moderna.
(01:18:04) - Kian Sadeghi. Kian is the founder and CEO of Nucleus Genomics, a consumer health platform offering whole-genome sequencing and polygenic risk scores for over 800 conditions, aiming to make personalized medicine accessible to all. Motivated by a cousin's sudden death from a suspected genetic disorder, he left the University of Pennsylvania in 2020 to start Nucleus from his bedroom, later securing $32 million in funding from investors like Founders Fund and Seven Seven Six. In 2025, Nucleus launched a service analyzing embryos for disease and longevity risk, sparking ethical debates about the future of reproductive genetics.
(01:32:03) - Kathleen McMahon. Kathleen is the Head of Life Sciences at Palantir Technologies, where she leads product strategy, customer operations, and business development for the pharmaceutical and biotech sectors. Under her leadership, Palantir's Foundry platform has been instrumental in supporting organizations such as the National Institutes of Health and the UK's National Health Service in areas including clinical research, vaccine distribution, and biomanufacturing. McMahon has also co-founded a stealth startup focused on AI and platform technologies.
(01:48:06) - Chungin “Roy” Lee. Roy is the co-founder and CEO of Cluely, a San Francisco-based startup that offers an AI tool designed to assist users during tasks like job interviews, exams, and sales calls. Originally developed as "Interview Coder" while Lee was a student at Columbia University, the tool led to his suspension and eventual departure from the university. Despite the controversy, Cluely has raised $5.3 million in seed funding and reports over $3 million in annual recurring revenue.
(02:09:59) - Shawn “swyx” Wang. Shawn is the founder of Smol.ai and editor of Latent Space, a newsletter and podcast exploring the rise of the AI engineer. After transitioning from a finance career, he led developer experience at AWS, Netlify, Temporal, and Airbyte, and authored The Coding Career Handbook to guide developers in career growth. Wang is known for his “Learn in Public” philosophy and for organizing the AI Engineer Summit, fostering a global community of applied AI practitioners.

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Coatue's Public Market Update, Wall Street Sounds the Alarm on U.S. Debt, Nvidia's Business Booms, and Nike Returns to Amazon | Doug Philippone, Divyansh Kaushik, Aaron Ginn Jun 03, 2025

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(01:55) - Coatue's Public Market Update
(46:23) - Wall Street Sounding the Alarm on U.S. Debt
(57:57) - Nvidia's Business is Booming
(01:18:25) - Nike Returns to Amazon
(01:29:14) - Doug Philippone. Doug Philippone is the co-founder and General Partner of Snowpoint Ventures, a venture capital firm established in 2021 that invests in dual-use technologies for defense and government applications. He previously served as Head of Global Defense at Palantir Technologies from 2008 to 2024, where he expanded the company's defense business to support over 19 allied nations. A former U.S. Army Ranger, Philippone completed six deployments and was awarded multiple commendations, including three Bronze Stars with two for valor
(02:02:26) - Divyansh Kaushik. Dr. Divyansh Kaushik is Vice President at Beacon Global Strategies, where he advises on AI, semiconductors, biotech, and data security to bolster U.S. national security and technological competitiveness. Previously, he served as Associate Director for Emerging Technologies and National Security at the Federation of American Scientists, contributing to AI R&D policy, tech standards, and STEM immigration reform. Kaushik holds a Ph.D. from Carnegie Mellon University, where his research on robust machine learning models earned him accolades from Amazon and the Siebel Foundation.
(02:17:51) - Aaron Ginn. Aaron Ginn is the co-founder and CEO of Hydra Host, a platform that simplifies access to GPU infrastructure by enabling data centers to offer bare-metal compute on demand. Previously, he led growth product management at Everlane and StumbleUpon, and co-founded the Lincoln Network, a tech policy think tank. Ginn also serves on the board of the Foundation for American Innovation, focusing on the intersection of technology and national security.

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