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9 ENE

CES 2026 was all about “physical AI” and robots, robots, robots

After years of chatbots and image generators, AI is finally leaving the screen. At CES 2026, that shift became impossible to ignore. The annual tech showcase in Las Vegas was dominated by "physical AI" and robotics, from Boston Dynamic's newly redesigned Atlas humanoid robot to AI-powered ice makers (yes, really). The companies in attendance clearly want consumers to know: AI isn't just capable of answering questions anymore. It's ready to movecar parts in factories, catchcatching drones with net guns, and dance in automaker booths. Today on TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, hosts Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, and Sean O’Kane break down everything we saw at CES 2026 and more deals from the week that caught our eye. Listen to the full episode to hear about: Discord’s rumored IPO, years after shutting down a Microsoft acquisition xAI's massive $20 billion raise and the dark side of Grok's content moderation failures How Mobileye is getting into the humanoid robotics game with its acquisition of Mentee Robotics OpenAI's potential shift toward audio-first, screenless AI experiences Chapters: 00:00 - Intro 00:38 - Discord's surprise IPO filing 03:24 - xAI's $20B raise amid CSAM controversy 11:06 - Mobileye's pivot to humanoid robotics 14:41 - Physical AI takes over CES 18:31 - Why humanoid robots still don't make sense 24:26 - OpenAI's war on screens and ambient computing 29:56 - Wrap-up Subscribe to Equity on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

9 ene

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34 min
HACE 3 DÍAS

The multibillion-dollar AI security problem enterprises can't ignore

AI agents are supposed to make work easier. Instead, they're creating a whole new category of security nightmares. As companies deploy AI-powered chatbots, agents, and copilots across their operations, they're facing a new risk: how do you let employees and AI agents use powerful AI tools without accidentally leaking sensitive data, violating compliance rules, or opening the door to prompt-based injections? Witness AI just raised $58 million to find a solution, building what they call "the confidence layer for enterprise AI." Today on TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Rebecca Bellan was joined by Barmak Meftah, co-founder and partner at Ballistic Ventures, and Rick Caccia, CEO of Witness AI, to discuss what enterprises are actually worried about, why AI security become an $800 billion to $1.2 trillion market by 2031, and what happens when AI agents start talking to other AI agents without human oversight. Listen to the full episode to hear: How enterprises accidentally leak sensitive data through "shadow AI" usage. What CISOs are actually worried about right now, how the problem has evolved rapidly over 18 months, and what it will look like over the next year. Why traditional cybersecurity approaches don't work for AI agents. Real examples of AI agents going rogue, including one that threatened to blackmail an employee. Subscribe to Equity on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

hace 3 días

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31 min
7 ENE

Investing in the consumer AI products OpenAI ‘won’t want to kill’

Vanessa Larco, partner at Premise and former partner at NEA, thinks 2026 will finally be the year of consumer AI. Larco, who's been investing in consumer and prosumer for years, thinks we're about to see a shift in how consumers spend time online, with AI powering “concierge-like” services. The question is, will legacy consumer products like WebMD and TripAdvisor continue to exist as standalone apps, or will they just get absorbed into ChatGPT or Meta AI? And where can startups carve out an AI-powered niche for themselves? Today on TechCrunch's Equity podcast, Rebecca Bellan sat down with Larco to talk about why consumer is back, what OpenAI won't kill, and where the real opportunities are hiding. Listen to the full episode to hear about: Why Larco thinks OpenAI won't build marketplace businesses that require managing real humans. Larco’s take on "disposable software" and why AI apps “should be treated like Word docs.” How Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses turned Larco into a believer in voice interfaces (and why she thinks screens are optional for most tasks). More predictions for 2026, including another huge year for M&A. What new business models stablecoins could unlock. 00:00 - Introduction 00:53 - Why founders are excited about consumer again 04:40 - The moat against OpenAI: Managing real humans 09:22 - Apps as disposable as Word docs 12:48 - Social media in the AI era 18:48 - Meta Ray-Bans and why wearables are actually good 23:35 - Stablecoins and consumer fintech opportunities 26:54 - M&A predictions for 2026 Subscribe to Equity on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

7 ene

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32 min
26/12/2025

Equity's 2026 Predictions: AI Agents, Blockbuster IPOs, and the Future of VC

TechCrunch's Equity crew is bringing 2025 to a close and getting ahead on the year to come with our annual predictions episode! Hosts Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, and Rebecca Bellan were joined by Build Mode host Isabelle Johansson to dissect the year's biggest tech developments, from mega AI funding rounds that defied expectations to the rise of "physical AI," and make their calls for 2026. The group tackles everything from why AI agents didn't live up to the hype in 2025 (but probably will in 2026), to how Hollywood will push back against AI-generated content, to why VCs are facing a serious liquidity crisis. Listen to the full episode to hear: Why world models are the next big thing in AI and how they're different from large language models The death of "stealth mode" for AI startups and the rise of alternative funding sources Predictions on regulatory chaos around AI policy and what Trump's recent executive order means for startups Hot takes on IPOs: Will OpenAI and Anthropic actually go public in 2026? Rapid-fire predictions including Johnny Ive and Sam Altman's inevitable public breakup, the return of dumb phones, and why everyone will be calling themselves "AI native" What's coming in Build Mode season 2: A deep dive into team building, hiring, and finding co-founders Subscribe to Equity on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod. Chapters: 00:00 - Introduction 01:43 - Rating our 2025 predictions 04:19 - Funding in the bubble era 06:35 - World models and the future of AI 09:05 - The year of AI agents (for real this time) 11:58 - Physical AI everywhere 15:19 - AI meets Hollywood 16:25 - Regulatory chaos and federal preemption 18:34 - The liquidity crisis and LP direct investing 22:19 - IPO predictions for 2026 23:57 - Startup trends for 2026 27:06 - Buzzwords we're sick of hearing 28:15 - Rapid fire predictions 32:50 - What's next for Build Mode Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

26/12/2025

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35 min
31/12/2025

Fizz CEO on why anonymous social is winning with Gen Z

Fizz is betting that Gen Z is tired of performing their lives on Instagram and TikTok. What started as a pandemic-era group chat frustration has turned into the dominant social platform on college campuses across the US, focused on the 99% of life that doesn't make it into a highlight reel. Capturing the attention of a demographic typically glued to Instagram and TikTok, the app's hybrid anonymous model and hyperlocal focus has made it what Solomon calls "the biggest college social app since Facebook.” Today we're bringing you a conversation that Dominic Madori Davis had with Fizz’s co-founder and CEO Teddy Solomon from this year's Disrupt, digging into why he thinks social media stopped being social. Listen to the full episode to hear: Why Solomon thinks Instagram and TikTok became pure entertainment platforms, and why that created an opening How Fizz uses 7,000 volunteer student moderators plus AI to keep the platform safe The company's expansion strategy beyond college and what "Global Fizz" actually means Solomon’s case for why New York is a better place to build a consumer company than San Francisco Subscribe to Equity on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod. Chapters: 00:00 - Introduction 01:34 - What broke in social media 04:03 - Building for the 99% of life 07:29 - Content moderation at scale 11:16 - The risks of anonymous social 13:22 - Pandemic origins and IRL community 16:49 - Why the company moved to New York 19:45 - Scaling with "arguably the most retentive social product in history" 21:32 - Almost getting arrested at Pepperdine…for donuts 26:09 - The future of social media Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

31/12/2025

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33 min
19/12/2025

Hardware's brutal week: iRobot, Luminar, and Rad Power go bankrupt

The hardware world had a brutal week, with iRobot, Luminar, and Rad Power Bikes all filing for bankruptcy. Each company faces its own mix of tariff pressures, supply chain issues, and shifting markets, but together they tell a larger story about the challenges of building physical products in an era of global trade tensions and cheap overseas competition. From the Roomba maker that almost got acquired by Amazon to the e-bike company that couldn't escape its Chinese supply chain, this week's bankruptcies are a warning sign for hardware startups everywhere. Today on TechCrunch's Equity podcast, hosts Anthony Ha, Rebecca Bellan, and Sean O'Kane discuss what went wrong for three once-promising hardware companies, plus Amazon's massive OpenAI bet and Trump's new approach to AI regulation. Listen to the full episode to hear more news from the week, including: How "slop" became Merriam-Webster's word of the year — and why it's become bigger than just AI-generated content Why Databricks raised $10 billion at a $134 billion valuation (in a Series L!) instead of just going public already The Coursera-Udemy merger and whether online course platforms can survive the AI era Chapters: 00:00 - Introduction 00:24 - AI slop is Merriam-Webster's word of the year 06:07 - Amazon's $10 billion OpenAI investment 10:43 - Databricks raises $10 billion in a Series L 14:14 - Coursera acquires Udemy 19:17 - Hardware bankruptcies: iRobot, Luminar, and Rad Power Bikes 26:21 - Trump's AI executive order targets state regulation Subscribe to Equity on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

19/12/2025

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33 min
07/11/2025

SoftBank is back, and the AI hype cycle is eating itself

SoftBank and OpenAI announced a new 50-50 joint venture this week to sell enterprise AI tools in Japan under the brand "Crystal Intelligence." On paper, it's a straightforward international expansion deal. But SoftBank’s role as a major investor in OpenAI is raising questions about whether AI's biggest deals are creating real economic value or just moving money in circles. On TechCrunch's Equity podcast, Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha and AI editor Russell Brandom break down why this deal has people skeptical, and what it signals about the sustainability of AI's current investment model. Listen to the full episode to hear about: Andreessen Horowitz’s move to shut down its Talent x Opportunity fund, and the Equity crew’s take on the firm's explanation What former FTC chair Lina Khan’s role in NYC mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani's transition team could mean for Big Tech, ride-hailing, and AVs What Box CEO Aaron Levie had to say about whether we're in an AI bubble at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025, and why the shift from training to inference might actually be reassuring Beta Technologies' successful $1B IPO and what it signals about the thawing public market — even though massive M&A deals are still going through Subscribe to Equity on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

07/11/2025

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27 min
2 ENE

How AI is reshaping work and who gets to do it, according to Mercor's CEO

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2 ene

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25 min
14/11/2025

Are data centers the new oil fields?

A new report from the International Energy Agency (IEA) shows that $580 billion will be spent globally on AI data centers in 2025 alone. This is $40 billion more than will be spent on new oil supplies — leading us to conclude that data centers are the new oil fields. But is this a net positive for the environment or just a different kind of resource drain? On TechCrunch's Equity podcast, Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, and Rebecca Bellan dig into what this spending shift means for the energy grid, climate tech, and whether taxpayers should be footing the bill for Big Tech's infrastructure ambitions. Listen to the full episode to hear about: The anti-AI disclaimer at the end of Pluribus Israeli AI agent startup Wonderful's massive $100 million Series A, and why customer service might be the killer app for AI agents Swedish autonomous vehicle company Einride's SPAC deal — yes, SPACs are back — and whether its electric truck business can carry the autonomous pod dream Why OpenAI's CFO walked back comments about government "backstops" for data center loans, and what the company is actually asking for from the CHIPS Act The rise of government spyware targeting journalists and activists, and why mobile phone design makes it nearly impossible to detect How China-backed hacking groups like Salt Typhoon are "pre-positioning for sabotage" in critical infrastructure worldwide Disclaimer: This podcast was (also) made by humans Subscribe to Equity on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

14/11/2025

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33 min
29/10/2025

Startups should rethink how they pursue sales and traction, according to VC Tim Chen

After a small startup exit and being turned down by every VC firm he applied to, Tim Chen began angel investing and eventually stumbled into raising his own fund. Now, as the solo investor behind Essence VC, he just closed his fourth fund at $41 million "without even trying." Chen's secret weapon? Being technical enough to debate PhD founders on implementation details while understanding the market dynamics that turn scrappy startups into category leaders. Today on TechCrunch's Equity podcast, Julie Bort sat down with Tim Chen to explore the rise of solo VCs and who's rewriting the traditional venture playbook. Listen to the full episode to hear about: Why the YC playbook of "revenue at all costs" doesn't work for infrastructure startups, and what Chen tells technical founders to focus on instead The strategic pivot Chen pushed one portfolio company to make that completely changed their trajectory What being a "small exit founder" taught Chen about venture capital, and why he thinks the industry has it backwards Subscribe to Equity on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

29/10/2025

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31 min

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CES 2026 was all about “physical AI” and robots, robots, robots

The multibillion-dollar AI security problem enterprises can't ignore

Investing in the consumer AI products OpenAI ‘won’t want to kill’

Equity's 2026 Predictions: AI Agents, Blockbuster IPOs, and the Future of VC

Fizz CEO on why anonymous social is winning with Gen Z

Hardware's brutal week: iRobot, Luminar, and Rad Power go bankrupt

SoftBank is back, and the AI hype cycle is eating itself

How AI is reshaping work and who gets to do it, according to Mercor's CEO

Are data centers the new oil fields?

Startups should rethink how they pursue sales and traction, according to VC Tim Chen

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