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1 May

Did you know you can't steal a charity? Don't worry. Elon Musk will remind you.

Elon Musk spent the better part of three days on the witness stand this week in his lawsuit against OpenAI, and it's already getting messy. Emails, texts, and his own tweets are surfacing in court, and there are plenty more witnesses to come. Musk's argument against OpenAI? By converting the company to a for-profit model, Sam Altman betrayed the “nonprofit for the benefit of humanity” mission Musk signed up to fund. As Musk keeps reminding the courtroom: “You can't steal a charity.” On this episode of TechCrunch's Equity podcast, Kirsten Korosec and Sean O'Kane break down what's actually at stake in the courtroom and what to watch for as Altman and others take the stand, plus deals, defense tech, and what Big Tech's earnings week revealed about the limits of the AI spending era. Listen to the full episode to hear about: Why cloud was the winner of earnings week, and what AWS, Google, and Microsoft's numbers say about where enterprise AI spending is actually landing The scholarship app founder taking Sallie Mae to court after they acquired his startup…and began selling its student data to ad networks and universities BMW i Ventures new $300 million fund with its sights set on AI How defense tech startup Scout AI is pitching “military AGI” using vision-language-action (VLA) models 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 Jul

The New Rules of Early-Stage Fundraising with Charles Hudson

Raising your first round has always been hard — but in today’s market, the rules are changing fast. In this episode of Build Mode, our host and Startup Battlefield lead Isabelle Johannesen sits down with Charles Hudson, Founder and Managing Partner of Precursor Ventures, to talk about what early-stage founders need to know before raising their first institutional round. Charles shares a candid look at how the venture landscape has shifted, why AI is changing what investors pay attention to, and how founders can better navigate fundraising when the old playbooks no longer apply. They get into: • Why raising pre-seed and seed funding feels harder right now• How AI is reshaping venture capital• What founders should know before choosing an investor• Why the highest valuation is not always the best deal• How to build momentum during a fundraise• Why storytelling and a strong blurb matter more than ever• What happens when a startup raises too much too soon• Why the biggest risk may not be a down round — but no round at all• How to think about whether venture capital is actually the right path Whether you're preparing to raise, currently fundraising, or just trying to understand how early-stage venture is changing, this conversation is packed with practical, honest advice for founders building in today’s market. Subscribe to Build Mode on⁠ Apple Podcasts⁠, ⁠Spotify⁠, or⁠ wherever you like to listen⁠. And watch the full videos on⁠ YouTube⁠. New episodes of ⁠Build Mode⁠ drop every Thursday. Chapters: 00:00 – The New Rules of Startup Fundraising 02:00 – What VCs Look for in First-Time Founders 08:50 – The Biggest Fundraising Mistakes Startup Founders Make 13:20 – Why Startup Valuations Are So Unpredictable in 2026 18:20 – Why Raising Too Much Money Can Hurt Your Startup 25:55 – Should Every Startup Raise Venture Capital? 29:20 – How to Choose the Right VC Investor 33:55 – Why Silicon Valley Still Gives Founders an Advantage 36:40 – How to Build Momentum During a Startup Fundraise Hosted by Isabelle Johannessen. Produced and edited by Maggie Nye. Audience development led by Morgan Little. Special thanks to the Foundry and Cheddar video teams.
28 Oct

The 'Vulnpocalypse' is coming for the internet’s aging code, says Wiz’s CTO

The PHP scare may have faded from your feed, but the cleanup is far from over. Last week, two critical bugs in the open source language behind roughly 70% of websites left organizations scrambling to fix their systems, with some taking sites offline until the vulnerabilities could be patched. According to researchers who found the bugs, this is only the beginning, as AI changes how quickly novel vulnerabilities can be uncovered and exploited. On this episode of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Rebecca Bellan talks with Tomer Schwartz, CTO of Exposure Management & AppSec at Google-owned Wiz, who was part of the scramble --- alongside OpenAI, research group Calif, and the PHP team --- to fix the bugs. On the show, Schwartz and Bellan get into what the race looked like from the inside, how early-stage startups can build with security in mind, and why patching by hand won’t scale. Listen to the full episode to hear more about: Why Tomer says Wiz couldn’t have found these bugs without AI, and how custom tooling tested dozens of ideas over a weekend. How a bug was able to sit in plain sight for more than a decade, and what changed to make it exploitable. Why leaks are almost baked into coordinated disclosure, and how Wiz planned for it. Who’s still unpatched and whether small business owners running WordPress sites need to worry. Subscribe to Equity on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, and all the casts. You can also follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
29 May

Does your CEO have AI psychosis? Aaron Levie thinks most of them do.

The people deciding that AI can replace your job are also the ones least likely to understand what your job truly involves, according to Box founder Aaron Levie, who pointed to this as an example of "AI psychosis.” Indeed, ClickUp recently cut 22% of its workforcefor AI agents, tech layoffs in 2026 are already nearly matching all of 2025, and DuckDuckGo installs are climbing from users who want Google to stop forcing AI into search and just give them links. On this episode of TechCrunch's Equity podcast, Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, and Sean O'Kane dig into what happens when the AI-pilled and the AI-skeptical are both right at the same time, plus three deals worth knowing about and Waymo's new robotaxi hitting the road. Listen to the full episode to hear: Kirsten's first look at Waymo's new Ojai robotaxi in Phoenix, and the crew's thoughts on the company's path to profitability Cloud data storage giant Snowflake’s $6 billion five-year agreement with AWS Why Stord, the "anti-Amazon" fulfillment startup, just raised $250 million at a $3 billion valuation What OpenRouter's $113 million raise says about the picks-and-shovels layer, and how long that interest lasts How the AI agent wave is actually reshaping hiring, not just headcount 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 Intro 01:18 Waymo's new Ojai robotaxi 06:41 Stord raises $250M to take on Amazon fulfillment 12:46 Snowflake signs $6B deal with AWS 15:39 OpenRouter raises $113M Series B 20:07 The AI divide & anti-AI backlash 27:31 AI psychosis & how AI is reshaping headcount and hiring 37:04 Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
10 Sept

How Mbodi Is Solving Robotics’ Scaling Problem with Xavier Chi

Robotics is having an AI boom, but don’t expect it to have a ChatGPT moment. In this episode of Build Mode, host Isabelle Johannesen sits down with Xavier Chi, co-founder of Mbodi, a startup building AI software that lets people teach industrial robots new skills using natural language. Xavier first joined Isabelle on the Startup Battlefield stage, where Mbodi became a crowd favorite with a live robot demo. Now, he’s back to talk about what happened after Battlefield and why he believes this generation of AI could finally help robotics companies overcome some of the problems that have historically made them so difficult to scale. Xavier breaks down why traditional industrial automation still requires so much programming and customization, how Mbodi is working with ABB Robotics to bring its software into factories and warehouses, and why deploying robotics in the physical world creates a very different set of challenges from building traditional software. He also explains why robotics startups have struggled to build scalable software businesses and how generative AI could begin to change that. They also get into what VCs are looking for in robotics startups, how founders can de-risk an investment before fundraising, whether the excitement around humanoid robots is justified, and why Xavier believes robotics won’t experience a single ChatGPT-like breakthrough. Plus, he explains why reliability is so critical on the factory floor — and how Mbodi recently achieved a 99.6% success rate during an eight-hour test. They get into: Why industrial automation is still surprisingly manual How Mbodi lets people teach robots using natural language Why labor shortages are driving demand for automation How winning an ABB Robotics competition led to a major partnership What Mbodi gained from Startup Battlefield Why robotics software companies have historically struggled to scale How generative AI could reduce the need for custom robotics integrations What VCs want to see before investing in a robotics startup Why robots don’t necessarily need to look human Why software could capture more of the value in robotics as hardware gets cheaper Why robotics won’t have a ChatGPT moment Why reliability is so important when robots enter production How Mbodi achieved a 99.6% success rate in an eight-hour test Chapters: 00:00 — Mbodi’s unforgettable Startup Battlefield demo01:32 — Why industrial automation is still so difficult03:55 — What companies are actually using robots for06:33 — How Mbodi landed its partnership with ABB Robotics08:30 — Are startup competitions worth a founder’s time?10:00 — Why Xavier wanted to compete in Startup Battlefield11:18 — The hardest question Mbodi faced at Battlefield13:04 — Why robotics software has struggled to scale16:35 — Raising venture capital for a robotics startup18:02 — Convincing VCs you’re the right team19:12 — Do robots really need to look human?21:42 — What needs to improve across the robotics stack25:08 — What VCs want from robotics startups28:00 — How to de-risk a robotics investment30:06 — What’s next for Mbodi31:30 — When will robots enter our homes?35:35 — Why robots can’t afford to fail36:01 — Mbodi’s 99.6% reliability test Subscribe to Build Mode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you like to listen. And watch the full videos on YouTube. New episodes of Build Mode drop every Thursday. Hosted by Isabelle Johannesen. Produced and edited by Maggie Nye. Audience development led by Morgan Little. Special thanks to the Foundry and Cheddar video teams.
3 Jun

Every defense startup wants to be the next Anduril. Here's what its first backer is looking for now.

Defense tech is red hot right now, with a proposed 40% increase to the federal defense budget, Anduril doubling its valuation to $61 billion, and a wave of startups chasing government contracts. But according to Ross Fubini, the venture investor who wrote Anduril's first check, most of them won't make it. The valley of death between a prototype contract and a real production deal is about to claim a lot of companies. On this episode of TechCrunch's Equity podcast, Rebecca Bellan asks Fubini — the founder and managing partner of XYZ Venture Capital, built on the Palantir alumni network and now approaching $2B AUM — what separates the survivors from the rest. Listen to the full episode to hear: Why Ukraine and Iran have become live testing grounds for US defense startups, and which companies are getting in the field How other countries are building their own defense tech ecosystems, and what that means for where startups build and sell The sustainment problem nobody wants to talk about, and why autonomous logistics is the real moat Where Fubini is writing checks next, from AI-driven US manufacturing to government software for health and human services 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
11/07/2025

Why Hugging Face's new robot is the Seinfeld of AI devices

Hugging Face just launched Reachy Mini, an open source AI robot with big googly eyes and not much utility, and that’s kind of the charm. On this episode of Equity Kirsten Korosec, Max Zeff, and Anthony Ha break down the bot's debut, why it’s giving Seinfeld energy, and what it says about the future of open source hardware. Listen to the full episode to hear more news from the week, including: Grok’s wild week and Linda Yaccarino’s abrupt exit from X How Rivian’s micromobility spinoff, Also, snagged another $200 million to build e-bikes, even though it hasn’t launched a product yet. LangChain reportedly closing a new round that would push its valuation to $1 billion, thanks in part to a pivot toward monetizing its developer tools Equity will be back next week, so stay tuned! Equity is TechCrunch’s flagship podcast, produced by Theresa Loconsolo, and posts every Wednesday and Friday. Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod. Credits: Equity is produced by Theresa Loconsolo with editing by Kell. We’d also like to thank TechCrunch’s audience development team. Thank you so much for listening, and we'll talk to you next time. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
20 Mar

Nvidia has an OpenClaw strategy. Do you?

Jensen Huang took the stage at Nvidia's GTC conference this week in his signature leather jacket to deliver a two-and-a-half-hour keynote, projecting $1 trillion in AI chip sales through 2027, declaring that every company needs an “OpenClaw strategy,” and closing with a rambling Olaf robot that had to get its mic cut. The message was hard to miss: Nvidia wants to be foundational to everything, from AI training to autonomous vehicles to Disney parks. On this episode of TechCrunch's Equity podcast, Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, and Sean O'Kane break down what Nvidia's growing web of AI infrastructure partnerships actually means for startups, and more of the week's headlines. Listen to the full episode to hear about: Travis Kalanick’s return building a "wheelbase for robots" with his new startup Atoms, and the crew has questions about Kalanick’s acquisitions along the way Rivian’s partnership with Uber to build robotaxi versions of its R2 in a deal worth up to $1.25 billion, while pushing back its EBITDA target to do it Frore landing a $1.64 billion valuation for its AI chip cooling systems xAI rebooting, again, with only two of its original eleven co-founders still standing Garry Tan's Claude Code setup went viral at SXSW (Spoiler: the crew is not impressed). 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 Intro 00:20 Garry Tan's Claude Code setup goes viral at SXSW 03:37 Travis Kalanick is back with a new startup 12:51 Uber and Rivian's $1.25B RoboTaxi deal 20:54 Chip cooling startup Frore becomes a unicorn 22:56 Nvidia GTC recap: $1 trillion in sales projections 31:42 Elon Musk is rebooting xAI...again 36:37 Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
21/05/2021

Lindsay Tjepkema, Casted

As a career marketer, Lindsay Tjepkema was used to trying a lot of different strategies and seeing what works. She started to see one type of marketing consistently paying off, however — particularly for B2B brands. That's how she came up with the idea for Casted, a B2B podcast platform that makes it easy technically and in tiers of content for enterprise companies to create their own podcasts to reach their clients and potential customers. Links for this episode: Casted Casted raises $7M to scale its B2B podcast platform Lindsay Tjepkema on Twitter Connect with us: On Twitter On Instagram Via email: found@techcrunch.com Found posts every Tuesday. Subscribe on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts to be alerted when new episodes drop. Check out the other TechCrunch podcast: Equity . Subscribe to Found to hear more stories from founders each Connect with us: On Twitter On Instagram Via email: found@techcrunch.com
06/06/2025

Inside Anthropic's AI Ambitions with Jared Kaplan

Instead of our usual Friday news rundown, we’re bringing you a conversation from this week’s TC Sessions: AI event out in San Francisco. Our friend and co-host Max Zeff sat down with Jared Kaplan, Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer at Anthropic. If you’ve been following Anthropic, you’ll know it’s been a busy year for the AI startup. Back in March, the company announced it raised $3.5 billion at a $61.5 billion valuation in a round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners. Since then, it’s launched a blog for its Claude models and, according to Bloomberg reporting, partnered with Apple to power a new “vibe-coding” software platform. Listen to the full conversation to hear more about: ⁠Who has direct access to Claude’s AI models⁠, Windsurf’s response, and how it all ties into Anthropic’s broader goals around openness, safety, and sustainability. The company’s pivot away from chatbots and toward agentic AI systems that can perform real tasks. How internal tools like Claude Code are shaping the future of AI-powered development. What it means to build AI that enterprises can actually trust, and how that affects the way humans interact with software, work, and each other. Equity is TechCrunch’s flagship podcast, produced by Theresa Loconsolo, and posts every Wednesday and Friday. Subscribe to us on⁠ Apple Podcasts⁠,⁠ Overcast⁠,⁠ Spotify⁠ and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on⁠ X⁠ and⁠ Threads⁠, at @EquityPod. Credits: Equity is produced by Theresa Loconsolo with editing by Kell. We’d also like to thank TechCrunch’s audience development team. Thank you so much for listening, and we'll talk to you next time. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

TechCrunch podcasts cover the business of technology, startups, venture capital funding, crypto, and the humans behind it all.

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TechCrunch

Top Shows

Did you know you can't steal a charity? Don't worry. Elon Musk will remind you.

The New Rules of Early-Stage Fundraising with Charles Hudson

The 'Vulnpocalypse' is coming for the internet’s aging code, says Wiz’s CTO

Does your CEO have AI psychosis? Aaron Levie thinks most of them do.

How Mbodi Is Solving Robotics’ Scaling Problem with Xavier Chi

Every defense startup wants to be the next Anduril. Here's what its first backer is looking for now.

Why Hugging Face's new robot is the Seinfeld of AI devices

Nvidia has an OpenClaw strategy. Do you?

Lindsay Tjepkema, Casted

Inside Anthropic's AI Ambitions with Jared Kaplan

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