This Week in Startups Jason Calacanis

Acquired co-hosts Ben and David are BACK to discuss the state of the VC market and YC shutting down its Continuity Fund (6:20) before diving into industries that benefitted from ZIRP (26:35). They also break down which social apps they want to own and why (45:29). Then, Ben and Jason wrap up the show by discussing the future of Amazon and Starfish Space, a new space startup (1:11:48)

(0:00) Nick tees up today’s topics

(1:36) David’s time at Stanford

(6:20) Ben’s private market snapshot

(8:49) Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub - Apply in 5 minutes for six figures in discounts at http://aka.ms/thisweekinstartups

(10:19) David’s private market snapshot

(16:19) Reacting to YC closing down its Continuity Fund

(25:35) QuickNode - Go to http://quicknode.com/ and use the code TWIST for a free month on their feature-packed Build Plan

(26:35) Industries that benefitted from ZIRP

(35:08) House of Macadamias - Get 20% off at https://houseofmacadamias.com/twist by using code TWIST20

(36:36) How compelling is AI? 

(45:29) Owning either Instagram, Linked In, or YouTube

(48:15) Rational and Wildcard: Who is likely to acquire TikTok? 

(53:44) Twitter product development

(1:00:51) Reclaiming lost time 

(1:11:48) The future of Amazon 

(1:19:57) Apple to spend $1B on producing theatrical releases + Project Titan

(1:25:21) SOTD: Keeping satellites on course with Starfish Space  



FOLLOW Ben: https://twitter.com/gilbert

FOLLOW David: https://twitter.com/djrosent

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

Jason kicks off today's episode by reacting to TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew's testimony in front of Congress (1:41) before delving into the news that Coinbase was served a Wells notice by the SEC (22:57). Then, he discusses the reports that Do Kwon has been arrested in Montenegro (32:35) before wrapping up with more information on China and TikTok (35:44).

(0:00) Jason kicks off the show 

(1:41) Jason reacts to Shou Zi Chew's testimony in front of Congress

(6:14) China's use of private companies to manipulate its population

(11:02) Linode - Apply to Linode's Rise program for up to six figures in discounts at https://linode.com/twist

(12:29) TikTok's ability to influence our youth 

(16:48) Chinese espionage

(21:27) Lemon.io - Get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://Lemon.io/twist

(22:57) SEC serves Coinbase a Wells Notice

(31:19) Clumio - Visit https://clumio.com/twist to start a free backup or sign up for a demo

(32:35) Do Kwon arrested in Montenegro

(35:44) More information on China and TikTok



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

Jenny Lefcourt of Freestyle VC joins Jason for an insightful conversation. They delve into the mission of All Raise and the importance of diversity in venture capital (2:04). Jenny shares her thoughts on embracing non-consensus bets and her experiences investing in Narvar and Discord (20:04). Additionally, they discuss the value of strategy meetings in comparison to traditional board meetings (59:10).

(0:00) Jason kicks off the show

(2:04) Co-Founding All Raise: Promoting Diversity in Venture Capital

(9:53) Prenuvo - Save $300 on Full Body Scans at http://prenuvo.com/twist

(11:23) Biases Towards Certain Business Models

(15:05) Identifying and Avoiding Unsuccessful Business Models

(18:54) LinkedIn Jobs - Post Your First Job for Free at https://linkedIn.com/angel

(20:04) Embracing Non-Consensus Bets

(22:53) Jenny’s Investment in Narvar

(28:16) Understanding the Economics of a Seed Fund

(35:14) Comparing Hype: Generative AI versus Web 3.0

(40:47) Miro - Collaborate with Unlimited Team Members for Free at https://miro.com/startups/

(42:28) Insights from Jenny's Investment in Discord

(47:05) Attaining Product-Market Fit and Making a Significant Impact

(56:56) Exiting Deals: When to Move On

(59:10) Strategy Meetings Compared to Board Meetings

(1:04:04) Jenny's Ideal Timeline for Committing to Investments



FOLLOW Jenny: https://twitter.com/jennylefcourt

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

Today on the podcast, we have a new format for you! Jason will hear four pitches from Founder University participants and choose ONE startup to invest $25K in! (1:45)



(0:00) Jason kicks off the show and explains the pitch format!

(1:45) Jason brings on Presh and Kelly to explain the fundamentals of Founder University and introduces today's pitches!

(13:44) ⁠Squarespace - Use code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://Squarespace.com/TWIST

(16:18) George Lam pitches Fantastic Funding

(21:18) Naman Dwivedi pitches Promptify

(25:59) Pilot - Go to https://pilot.com/twist for 20% off your first 6 months

(27:30) Phil Boucher pitches OpenSpot

(34:00) Matt Edminster pitches Renegade Labs

(39:22) ⁠Fennel - Join the waitlist and get your first month free at http://fennel.com/twist

(40:35) Kelly and Presh's pick for best return for LPs

(45:33) The live audience votes!

(50:22) What Founder University meant to these Founders

(53:39) Jason makes his decision on who will receive $25K



Check out the startups!:

https://fantasticfunding.com

https://www.promptify.ai

https://www.findopenspot.com

https://www.renegadelabs.io



FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis

FOLLOW Presh: https://twitter.com/preshdkumar

FOLLOW Kelly: https://twitter.com/KSchricks

Rachel Reporting joins Jason to read the news! First, they give an update on the banking crisis and how it’s impacting startups (1:34). Then, they cover Balaji’s huge Bitcoin bet and his predictions for the future (14:17) before breaking down OpenAI’s launch of GPT-4 (35:07). Finally, Jason wraps up with some Jay Trading updates (57:28)!

(0:00) Jason kicks off the show

(1:34) Banking crisis update & how it affects startups

(10:11) Embroker - Use code TWIST to get an extra 10% off insurance at https://Embroker.com/twist

(11:14) Best practices for banking

(14:17) Balaji’s huge Bitcoin bet

(22:18) LinkedIn Jobs - Post your first job for free at https://linkedin.com/twist 

(23:42) Balaji’s predictions for the future

(32:41) Ray Dalio’s The Changing World Order

(33:46) CacheFly - Get 10 Terabyte free forever if you signup at http://twist.cachefly.com

(35:07) A breakdown of OpenAI’s launch of GPT-4

(57:28) Jay Trade update



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

Molly is joined by Laurie Yoler as they dive into her early experiences in VC before discussing how she became the first investor in Tesla (1:45). Next, Laurie talks about her time at Qualcomm and Playground then they wrap with a discussion about AI and how Laurie’s investments were impacted by the pandemic (30:31).

(0:00) Jason kicks off the show

(1:45) Arriving in Venture

(7:36) Laurie’s first investments

(13:39) LinkedIn Jobs - Go to https://linkedIn.com/angel and post your first job for free.

(14:49) Investing in Tesla

(21:21) Prenuvo - Get $300 off at http://prenuvo.com/twist

(22:51) Raising money for a car company

(26:22) Finding strategic partners

(30:31) Laurie’s time at Qualcomm and autonomous vehicles

(37:11) Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub - Apply in 5 minutes for six figures in discounts at http://aka.ms/thisweekinstartups

(38:42) Joining Playground

(41:29) Leaf Logistics

(45:44) Benefitting from the pandemic

(48:54) Investing in AI



FOLLOW Laurie: https://twitter.com/laurieyoler

FOLLOW Molly: https://twitter.com/mollywood

FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis

FOUNDERS! Subscribe to the Founder University podcast:

https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/founder-university/id1648407190