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Jason Calacanis

Jason Calacanis covers startups, tech, markets, media, and all the hottest topics in business and technology. He also interviews the world’s greatest founders, operators, investors, and innovators.

This Week in Startups

This Week In Startups is made possible by:

Caldera + Lab - http://calderalab.com/TWIST

Crusoe Cloud - https://crusoe.ai/build

Uber - http://uber.com/twist

Today’s show: 

Why did a power outage in the Bay Area cause Waymos to pile up on city streets?

Jason was actually in San Francisco to take in the spectacle of Waymos blocking traffic. But why did this happen? And can we look forward to a day when automated cars are more graceful and coordinated than ballet dancers performing “Swan Lake”? We’re asking the tough (and also culturally erudite) questions!

PLUS self-driving cars are coming to London, Coinbase’s buying spree continues, another entrant in our nearly-complete Gamma Pitch Deck Competition, AND why Jason predicts that Google is going to buy UBER!

You won’t want to miss this holiday TWiST!

Timestamps:

(00:00) It’s a holiday TWiST! Jason’s calling in from vacay in Lake Tahoe.

(03:11) Jason was in SF for the great Waymo power outage!

(06:06) Why Jason says one day Waymos will be better coordinated than dancers in “Swan Lake”

(07:33) We predicted Starlink coming to every Tesla nearly 3 years ago!

(09:05) Caldera + Lab: Whether you’re starting fresh or upgrading your routine, Caldera Lab makes skincare simple and effective. Head to http://calderalab.com/TWIST and use TWIST at checkout for 20% off your first order.

(11:29) Jason calls what Tesla’s Optimus team is planning “otherworldly”

(14:39) Why Jason thinks we’re all going to live in an “Opt-In Truman Show” someday soon

(18:52) Baidu, Lyft, and Uber bring self-driving cars to London… they don’t have them already?!

(20:49) Crusoe Cloud: Crusoe is the AI factory company. Reliable infrastructure and expert support. Visit https://crusoe.ai/build to reserve your capacity for the latest GPUs today.

(24:02) When do we get to 50% of all rides being done by autonomous vehicles… and how many robotaxis will that take?

(27:50) Why Jason thinks Google is going to buy… UBER?!

(31:12) Uber AI Solutions: Your trusted partner to get AI to work in the real world. Book a demo with them TODAY at http://uber.com/twist

(32:30) Will it eventually come down to which car can drive a mile for the cheapest?

(35:08) Coinbase picks up The Clearing Company, which makes frameworks for prediction markets

(39:50) How much did the biggest AI models improve this year?

(44:09) Who’s going to actually buy Warner Bros? We’re checking the Polymarket.

(47:06) GAMMA PITCH w/ Jonathan Sherman of Lumix Ads

(51:00) Why Jason says Jonathan’s pitch is a 9.5 out of 10

(52:50) What Jason looks for in a founder: “a big audacious vision”

(54:18) How Lumix (safely) collects users’ “mobile ad ID” on the go to identify them

Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com/

Check out the TWIST500: https://twist500.com

Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp

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Follow Lon:

X: https://x.com/lons

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Follow Alex:

X: https://x.com/alex

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm/

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Follow Jason:

X: https://twitter.com/Jason

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis/

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Thank you to our partners:

(09:05) Caldera + Lab: Whether you’re starting fresh or upgrading your routine, Caldera Lab makes skincare simple and effective. Head to http://calderalab.com/TWIST and use TWIST at checkout for 20% off your first order.

(20:49) Crusoe Cloud: Crusoe is the AI factory company. Reliable infrastructure and expert support. Visit https://crusoe.ai/build to reserve your capacity for the latest GPUs today.

(31:12) Uber AI Solutions: Your trusted partner to get AI to work in the real world. Book a demo with them TODAY at http://uber.com/twist

Waymo Madness in SF! Why robotaxis clogged the streets | E2227

This Week In Startups is made possible by:

Luma AI - https://lumalabs.ai/twist

Northwest Registered Agent - https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist 

Lemon IO - https://lemon.io/twist

Today’s show: 

DID YOU KNOW… most of the tried and true techniques devised by marketing gurus in the ‘40s and ‘50s still apply today?

On TWiST, we’re joined by online marketing expert Sam Parr, host of “My First Million” and founder of Hampton. He’s sharing all of his top tips and tricks for making your writing more compelling, and converting your readers into new customers.

In this essential pod for any and all founders, hear Jason and Sam run down their list of the best-ever marketing books, why there’s no such this as “too long” only “too uninteresting,” when to use AI and when to rely on your own brain, why you’re the average of your five best friends, and lots more deep insights.

Timestamps:

(00:00) Sam Parr of The Hustle, Hampton, and My First Million is here to teach us how to become better copywriters

(03:59) How Sam got interested in the (then-shady) world of internet marketing

(06:26) Why Sam recommended THESE advertising books to Jason

(08:15) All the principles that ad execs developed in the ‘50s still work!

(09:43) Glengarry had it right; the magic of A.I.D.A.

(11:19) Luma AI - Stop guessing and start directing with Ray3 Modify from Luma AI, the AI-powered post production tool. Explore it at: https://lumalabs.ai/twist

(14:30) There’s no such thing as “too long,” just “too uninteresting”

(16:15) The goal is to write at a 4th grade reading level

(18:12) Why Sam only uses AI for “The Big Idea,” not the actual writing

(19:37) Why you’re the average of your five best friends

(21:14) Northwest Registered Agent - Form your entire business identity in just 10 clicks and 10 minutes. Get more privacy, more options, and more done—visit https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist today!

(22:15) Using AI to dig in and research, to make your writing more interesting

(23:42) CopyWork: The technique that helped Sam fine tune his writing

(28:41) Avoiding “The Feature Death March”

(30:56) Lemon.io - Get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://lemon.io/twist

(32:00) Words are better than images, but videos are better than anything

(34:43) Why stories make such a huge impact

(37:36) Sam and Jason are both obsessed with the book “How to Be Rich”

(43:02) First World Problems are still problems!!

(44:31) Why Sam launched Hampton and what it takes to get in

(47:10) Why scaling a community is so much harder than launching

(51:04) The lessons founders can take from Ted Turner

(58:36) What Jason likes best about My First Million

(1:00:28) It’s never too early to get your first $10 million

(1:04:07) How accurately did Producer Claude guess what Sam was going to teach us?

*

Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com/

Check out the TWIST500: https://twist500.com

Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp

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Follow Lon:

X: https://x.com/lons

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Follow Alex:

X: https://x.com/alex

LinkedIn: [https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm/

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Follow Jason:

X: https://twitter.com/Jason

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis/

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Thank you to our partners:

(11:19) Luma AI - Stop guessing and start directing with Ray3 Modify from Luma AI, the AI-powered post production tool. Explore it at: https://lumalabs.ai/twist

(21:14) Northwest Registered Agent - Form your entire business identity in just 10 clicks and 10 minutes. Get more privacy, more options, and more done—visit https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist today!

(30:56) Lemon.io - Get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://lemon.io/twist

Level up your copywriting w/ Sam Parr | E2226

This Week In Startups is made possible by:

LinkedIn Ads- http://linkedin.com/thisweekinstartups

Squarespace - https://squarespace.com/twist

Enterpret - http://Enterpret.com/twist

Today’s show: 

How do top tech CEOs hire? AI has thrown out the playbook for getting hired — so what are the most innovative firms looking for? Anyone can learn any skill and automate much of it, what is to be valued in the modern labor market?

On our first AI Roundtable episode of TWiST, Jason is joined by three top tech CEOs: Wade Foster (Zapier), Mikey Schulman (Suno), and Ali Ansari (Micro1). They each give their perspective on the tech talent wars and how to get hired in 2026.

The resounding answer on how to get a job? JUST START DOING THE JOB! If you want to be a designer, start sending designs to companies you want to be hired by — don’t just sit around waiting to be hired. The biggest value you can bring is a “high agency” mindset to your company and the role. Show you get after it!

They are also hitting on:

- How AI is getting used to make music today

- The tech industry’s communication problem

- How to raise kids in the age of AI

Timestamps:

(00:00) It’s our first ever “This Week in AI” Roundtable, and we’ve got an amazing panel

(05:50) How Meta and OpenAI skew how everyone thinks about compensation

(09:37) The importance of looking beyond SF for talent

(10:24) LinkedIn Ads: Start converting your B2B audience into high quality leads today. Launch your first campaign and get $250 FREE when you spend at least $250. Go to http://linkedin.com/thisweekinstartups to claim your credit.

(14:39) Is AI making more people seek out developer jobs?

(18:36) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://squarespace.com/twist

(19:36) When design becomes its own bottleneck… and some workarounds.

(22:37) It’s not how much you know, it’s how adaptable you are

(24:10) The best way to get hired: just start doing the job

(30:09) Why Ali says we’re entering the "Post-Training"

(31:34) Enterpret - Enterpret turns feedback noise into Customer Intelligence, so your team knows exactly what to fix and build next. Head to http://Enterpret.com/twist to book a demo and see it in action.

(33:32) Understanding the value of your company’s data and using it to get better outputs

(41:14) Mikey calls Suno the “GLP-1s of the music industry”: everyone uses it but no one admits it

(46:39) Mikey Talks break out AI artists like Xania Monet

(49:32) Questions raised about how AI will effect job markets

(54:43) How AI and robotics will unlock new jobs and opportunities

(58:48) Possible solutions to the AI and automation question.

(01:04:03) Technology's communication problem and how to fix it.

(01:05:24) Are people replacing their friends with AI?

(01:08:11) How CEOs are thinking about raising young kids in the world of AI.

(01:12:21) Lightning round on AI agents, workflows vs. agents

(01:16:49) Trapped value in sales calls, questions, company meetings that are unlocked by AI

(01:22:10) How Ali pitched the LAUNCH team outside of a Jeni's Ice Cream store

Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com/

Check out the TWIST500: https://twist500.com

Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp

Follow Jason:

X: https://twitter.com/Jason

Thank you to our partners:

(10:24) LinkedIn Ads: Start converting your B2B audience into high quality leads today. Launch your first campaign and get $250 FREE when you spend at least $250. Go to http://linkedin.com/thisweekinstartups to claim your credit.

(18:36) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://squarespace.com/twist

(31:34) Enterpret - Enterpret turns feedback noise into Customer Intelligence, so your team knows exactly what to fix and build next. Head to http://Enterpret.com/twist to book a demo and see it in action.

INSIDE How AI Startups hire, AI Roundtable with Wade Foster, Mikey Schulman, and Ali Ansari | E2225

This Week In Startups is made possible by:

Vanta - https://www.vanta.com/twist

NetSuite - https://www.netsuite.com/twist

Lemon.io - https://lemon.io/twist

*

Today’s show: 

Domestic robots have never been hotter… so why is iRobot in so much trouble?!

On TWiST, we’re investigating the recent troubles facing the automated vacuum robot, Roomba. We’ve all seen these little discs sweeping up our friends’ floors… but now the company behind them is running out of cash.

What happened to iRobot, and would things have turned out differently if they had been sold to Amazon back in 2022?

PLUS why Jason thinks you should spend your disposable income on investing… Is Alex still a journalist, and what does that actually mean for his portfolio?… Are founders and investors too cautious when it comes to signaling risk?… Why did all those internal Pipe documents leak online?… And MUCH MORE!

Timestamps:

(00:00) Why Jason loves Incentivizing New Ventures and Economic Strength Through Capital Formation!

(09:48) Jason warns “no one is coming to help you with your job loss”; you’re on your own!

(10:21) Vanta - Get $1000 off your SOC 2 at https://www.vanta.com/twist

(13:05) Why Jason thinks laid-off HR folks should be starting their own “micro-funds"

(14:13) Does Alex consider himself a journalist? Is it unethical for him to invest in companies? (Let’s get INTO IT.)

(16:02) You can’t become complacent when you’re in the lead!

(20:03) Why you should use disposable “entertainment” income on investing

(22:32) Netsuite - Get the free business guide Demystifying AI at https://www.netsuite.com/twist

(23:36) $9B in new funds?! What is Lightspeed up to?

(26:10) Is everyone too cautious about “signaling risk”?

(28:39) Lemon.io - Get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://Lemon.io/twist

(31:21) How does Jason think those Pipe documents leaked? And WHY?

(38:15) The critical importance of diversification

(39:35) iRobot went BANKRUPT! Who killed the Roomba?

(44:47) Are there ANY potential deals that would bother Jason? It’s all about market share.

(48:18) HuggingFace is moving major Reachy Minis! How open source turns everything upside down.

(53:22) How Polymarket will decide when/if the AI bubble “bursts.”

*

Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com/

Check out the TWIST500: https://twist500.com

Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp

*

Follow Lon:

X: https://x.com/lons

*

Follow Alex:

X: https://x.com/alex

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm/

*

Follow Jason:

X: https://twitter.com/Jason

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis/

*

Thank you to our partners:

(10:21) Vanta - Get $1000 off your SOC 2 at https://www.vanta.com/twist

(22:32) Netsuite - Get the free business guide Demystifying AI at https://www.netsuite.com/twist

(28:39) Lemon.io - Get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://Lemon.io/twist

Great TWIST interviews: 

Will Guidara

https://youtu.be/pvJa2pzuXWQ

Eoghan McCabe

https://youtu.be/9dHN4YFkgv4

Steve Huffman

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/reddit-ceo-steve-huffman-on-mod-revolt-building-a/id315114957?i=1000617333424

Brian Chesky

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/airbnb-ceo-brian-chesky-on-early-rejection-customer/id315114957?i=1000611761112

Bob Moesta

https://youtu.be/y2UMzSqX94Q

Aaron Levie

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/box-ceo-aaron-levie-breaks-down-box-ai-and-generative/id315114957?i=1000612384545

Sophia Amoruso

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/sophia-amoruso-on-branding-raising-a-fund-portfolio/id315114957?i=1000601352978

Reid Hoffman

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/reid-hoffman-on-ais-crescendo-moment-regulation-and/id315114957?i=1000612548498

Frank Slootman

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/snowflake-ceo-frank-slootman-on-moving-the-needle-win/id315114957?i=1000602560622

Is this the end for the Roomba? Why iRobot went bankrupt | E2224

This Week In Startups is made possible by:

LinkedIn Ads - http://linkedin.com/thisweekinstartups

DevStats - https://www.devstats.com/twist

Crusoe - https://crusoe.ai/build

Today’s show: 

FINALLY, you can hang out with Kylo Ren and Olaf the Snowman… thanks to the magic of AI.

On TWiST, we’re digging into the mega OpenAI-Disney deal. Mickey is giving Sam Altman a $1 billion investment AND will allow is copyrighted characters to appear in Sora and ChatGPT images.

Of course, Jason predicted this would happen WAY BACK during the summer months and even showed off his “Darth Calacanis” creation on the “All-In Podcast.”

PLUS Amazon has been launching and pulling AI features from Prime Video… what gives? Jason’s predictions on the coming AI blowback and who’s on what side. Why he’s so focused on Education, Health Care, and Housing as issues. AND why founders should always take calls from Big Companies, even if it might just be a fishing expedition.

It’s a new Friday TWiST! Check it out!

Timestamps:

(00:00) Lon joins Alex and Jason to talk about the big Disney-OpenAI deal bringing Disney characters to Sora

(03:10) Jason totally called the Disney-OpenAI stuff on All-In

(9:42) LinkedIn Ads: Start converting your B2B audience into high quality leads today. Launch your first campaign and get $250 FREE when you spend at least $250. Go to http://linkedin.com/thisweekinstartups to claim your credit.

(18:59) DevStats - DevStats integrates your dev work and your business goals into a shared language that everyone can understand. Get 20% off, plus access to their dedicated Slack channel. Just go to https://www.devstats.com/twist.

(20:15) Why Amazon Prime Video pulled its AI recaps and anime dubs

(24:44) Who gets to set the rules around AI: The Debate Continues

(26:13) Jason’s predictions on the AI blowback coming in 2026… with clips!

(30:11) Crusoe Cloud: Crusoe is the AI factory company. Reliable infrastructure and expert support. Visit https://crusoe.ai/build to reserve your capacity for the latest GPUs today.

(31:21) Is AI here to help people or replace them?

(35:55) It’s all about EHH: Education, Health Care, Housing

(40:47) How all of this and MORE will be impacted directly by AI automation

(45:35) Why Alex wants to lower the temperature around AI Doomerism

(51:19) JUST FOR FOUNDERS: When should you take a call from a BigCo?

(53:45) Why Jason thinks just about everyone in media will lose to TikTok and YouTube

Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com/

Check out the TWIST500: https://twist500.com

Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp

*

Follow Lon:

X: https://x.com/lons

*

Follow Alex:

X: https://x.com/alex

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm/

*

Follow Jason:

X: https://twitter.com/Jason

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis/

*

Thank you to our partners:

(9:42) LinkedIn Ads: Start converting your B2B audience into high quality leads today. Launch your first campaign and get $250 FREE when you spend at least $250. Go to http://linkedin.com/thisweekinstartups to claim your credit.

(18:59) DevStats - DevStats integrates your dev work and your business goals into a shared language that everyone can understand. Get 20% off, plus access to their dedicated Slack channel. Just go to https://www.devstats.com/twist.

(30:11) Crusoe Cloud: Crusoe is the AI factory company. Reliable infrastructure and expert support. Visit https://crusoe.ai/build to reserve your capacity for the latest GPUs today.

Disney and OpenAI sign landmark deal… and we saw it coming! | E2223

This Week In Startups is made possible by:

Uber - http://uber.com/twist

Pilot - https://pilot.com/twist

Northwest Registered Agent - https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist

Today’s show: 

Boom is still making supersonic jets but ALSO plans to start selling their turbines as power sources for AI data centers. It’s a perfect example of problem-solving on the go and how “the best founders… MAKE IT HAPPEN.”

Join us for another insightful VC roundtable episode, featuring special guests Bryan Kim (a16z) and David Clark (Ven Cap).

They’re discussing why Boom’s turbine announcement is about necessity AND opportunity PLUS…

- Why we might NOT be in an AI bubble after all

- Promoting your startup without spending your entire runway on marketing

- Why founders need to be RELENTLESS

- Bill Gurley’s classic response about Uber’s Total Addressable Market

- AND LOTS MORE

Bill Gurley’s iconic “Miss By a Mile” post: https://abovethecrowd.com/2014/07/11/how-to-miss-by-a-mile-an-alternative-look-at-ubers-potential-market-size/

Link to David’s LinkedIn (including the AI Bubble chart): https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7404139606398443520/

Timestamps:

(02:11) It’s a VC Roundtable with special guests Bryan Kim (a16z) and David Clark (Ven Cap)

(03:07) Why Bryan is leading a Series A into learning app Oboe

(06:20) Calculating a startup’s value to make everyone “somewhat unhappy”

(09:19) How Oboe hits a lot of the same metrics that LAUNCH looks for in startups

(11:58) Uber AI Solutions - Your trusted partner to get AI to work in the real world. Book a demo with them TODAY at http://uber.com/ai-solutions

(12:57) How funds decide when to cash out and lock in some DPI

(18:12) When some LPs want to sell and others want to buy…

(19:57) Pilot - Visit https://www.pilot.com/twist and get $1,200 off your first year. 

(24:07) Is the threat of AI job displacement boosting self-improvement apps?

(27:37) Why Jason says we’re all standing on the shoulders of Bill Gurley

(29:46) Northwest Registered Agent - Form your entire business identity in just 10 clicks and 10 minutes. Get more privacy, more options, and more done—visit https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist today!

(31:28) Boom’s turbine pivot, and why it’s about necessity AND opportunity (in that order)

(34:14) THE BEST FOUNDERS find a way to make it happen!

(39:10) So… are we in an AI bubble? David says NOT NECESSARILY! Checking out the actual metrics.

(44:36) We’re still SO EARLY in AI… We’re still seeing mostly skeuomorphic uses! (It’s a real word!)

(48:06) William Gibson was right: “The Street finds its own uses for things”

(51:11) How AI startups should think about margins

(55:58) Why LAUNCH tells founders to “start at the high end”

(57:33) Should founders spend a lot of $$$ on marketing in 2025? The panel disagrees!

(1:00:05) Momentum vs. Product Release Velocity

(1:03:26) It all comes back to the “relentlessness of the founder”

(1:05:17) Our panel’s hopes and dreams for the coming year

*

Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com

Check out the TWIST500: https://twist500.com

Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp

*

Follow Lon:

X: https://x.com/lons

*

Follow Alex:

X: https://x.com/alex

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm/

*

Follow Jason:

X: https://twitter.com/Jason

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis/

*

Thank you to our partners:

(11:58) Uber AI Solutions - Your trusted partner to get AI to work in the real world. Book a demo with them TODAY at http://uber.com/ai-solutions

(19:57) Pilot - Visit https://www.pilot.com/twist and get $1,200 off your first year. 

(29:46) Northwest Registered Agent - Form your entire business identity in just 10 clicks and 10 minutes. Get more privacy, more options, and more done—visit https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist today!

“The best founders find a way to make it happen”: VC Roundtable with Bryan Kim and David Clark | E2222

This Week In Startups is made possible by:

Goldbelly - Goldbelly.com

Every.io - http://every.io/

Zite - zite.com/twist

Today’s show:

Today, Zapier’s a multi-billion company helping enterprises integrate AI agents and other time-saving shortcuts into their workflows… but we had the founder on TWiST when they were just getting started!

In a 2016 chat, founder Wade Foster walked JCal through their 2012 seed round, running a small entirely remote team with no HQ, the complexities of building a tool that relies on third-party APIs, and why Microsoft Office was the “Holy Grail” for his integration software.

PLUS we’ve got a new entrant in your Gamma Pitch Deck competition! Tour CEO/CTO Amulya Parmer tells us how his app is saving property managers time and grief, while eliminating “looky-loos” and increasing their “hit rate.”

FINALLY, Alex chats with Tomas Puig of TWiST 500 marketing analysis startup Alembic. It turns out, LLMs aren’t ideal for scrutinizing marketing campaigns because they lack the requisite historical data. Find out how they’re using Spiking Neural Networks (SNN) to dig deeper than GPT and Claude can go.

Timestamps:

(02:40) Amulya from Tour opens the show with praise for Jason

(03:34) Tour’s 2-minute Gamma pitch: automated property tours for managers

(06:47) Why Jason thinks Tour is an ideal tool for Gen Z

(10:01) Goldbelly - Goldbelly ****ships America’s most delicious, iconic foods nationwide! Get 20% off your first order by going to Goldbelly.com and using the promo code TWiST at checkout.

(13:32) How Tour can eliminate “looky-loos” and increase the “hit rate”

(14:38) Why Tour prices based on individual properties and apartments

(19:13) Every.io - For all of your incorporation, banking, payroll, benefits, accounting, taxes or other back-office administration needs, visit every.io.

(20:23) Jason wants to sprinkle some AI into Tour

(24:29) Welcoming Tomas Puig from Alembic

(25:12) Does epic-scale brand marketing actually pay off for these brands?

(27:27) The hardest thing about being a marketer…

(28:31) Alembic’s origins: organizing huge unstructured data sets

(30:18) Zite - Zite is the fastest way to build business software with AI. Go to zite.com/twist to get started.

(31:27) Case Study: making sense of Delta’s Olympics data

(33:37) Applying simulation models and supercomputers to marketing data

(35:48) How Spiking Neural Networks (SNN) help Alembic spot trends and link causal relationships

(41:13) The key advantage of training models on private data

(43:16) Building their own clusters vs. renting

(44:41) “You don’t ask if you have Product Market Fit… You hold on for dear life.”

(46:28) Flashback with Alex and Lon to Jason’s 2016 chat with Wade Foster of Zapier

(54:48) The dangers of building atop other platform’s APIs

(01:03:00) What Zapier learned pre-pandemic about leading remote teams

(01:13:12) Why MS Office was the “Holy Grail” for early Zapier

Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com

Check out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.com

Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp

Follow Lon:

X: https://x.com/lons

Follow Alex:

X: https://x.com/alex

LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm

Follow Jason:

X: https://twitter.com/Jason

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FLASHBACK: The future of remote work, juggling APIs, and dream integrations with Wade Foster of Zapier | E2221

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Today’s show:

Today, Zapier’s a multi-billion company helping enterprises integrate AI agents and other time-saving shortcuts into their workflows… but we had the founder on TWiST when they were just getting started!

In a 2016 chat, founder Wade Foster walked JCal through their 2012 seed round, running a small entirely remote team with no HQ, the complexities of building a tool that relies on third-party APIs, and why Microsoft Office was the “Holy Grail” for his integration software.

PLUS we’ve got a new entrant in your Gamma Pitch Deck competition! Tour CEO/CTO Amulya Parmer tells us how his app is saving property managers time and grief, while eliminating “looky-loos” and increasing their “hit rate.”

FINALLY, Alex chats with Tomas Puig of TWiST 500 marketing analysis startup Alembic. It turns out, LLMs aren’t ideal for scrutinizing marketing campaigns because they lack the requisite historical data. Find out how they’re using Spiking Neural Networks (SNN) to dig deeper than GPT and Claude can go.

Timestamps:

(02:40) Amulya from Tour opens the show with praise for Jason

(03:34) Tour’s 2-minute Gamma pitch: automated property tours for managers

(06:47) Why Jason thinks Tour is an ideal tool for Gen Z

(10:01) Goldbelly - Goldbelly ships America’s most delicious, iconic foods nationwide! Get 20% off your first order by going to Goldbelly.com and using the promo code TWiST at checkout.

(13:32) How Tour can eliminate “looky-loos” and increase the “hit rate”

(14:38) Why Tour prices based on individual properties and apartments

(19:13) Every.io - For all of your incorporation, banking, payroll, benefits, accounting, taxes or other back-office administration needs, visit every.io.

(20:23) Jason wants to sprinkle some AI into Tour

(24:29) Welcoming Tomas Puig from Alembic

(25:12) Does epic-scale brand marketing actually pay off for these brands?

(27:27) The hardest thing about being a marketer…

(28:31) Alembic’s origins: organizing huge unstructured data sets

(30:18) Zite - Zite is the fastest way to build business software with AI. Go to zite.com/twist to get started.

(31:27) Case Study: making sense of Delta’s Olympics data

(33:37) Applying simulation models and supercomputers to marketing data

(35:48) How Spiking Neural Networks (SNN) help Alembic spot trends and link causal relationships

(41:13) The key advantage of training models on private data

(43:16) Building their own clusters vs. renting

(44:41) “You don’t ask if you have Product Market Fit… You hold on for dear life.”

(46:28) Flashback with Alex and Lon to Jason’s 2016 chat with Wade Foster of Zapier

(54:48) The dangers of building atop other platform’s APIs

(01:03:00) What Zapier learned pre-pandemic about leading remote teams

(01:13:12) Why MS Office was the “Holy Grail” for early Zapier

Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com

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Follow Lon:

X: https://x.com/lons

Follow Alex:

X: https://x.com/alex

LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm

Follow Jason:

X: https://twitter.com/Jason

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis

Thank you to our partners:

(10:01) Goldbelly - Goldbelly ships America’s most delicious, iconic foods nationwide! Get 20% off your first order by going to Goldbelly.com and using the promo code TWiST at checkout.

(19:13) Every.io - For all of your incorporation, banking, payroll, benefits, accounting, taxes or other back-office administration needs, visit every.io.

(30:18) Zite - Zite is the fastest way to build business software with AI. Go to zite.com/twist to get started.

Great TWIST interviews: 

Will Guidara

https://youtu.be/pvJa2pzuXWQ

Eoghan McCabe

https://youtu.be/9dHN4YFkgv4

This Week In Startups is made possible by:

Superhuman - https://superhuman.com/podcast

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Today’s show: 

A screenshot showing a “Target Ad” in ChatGPT results went viral… over the weekend, but the OpenAI chatbot has NOT actually opened the advertising floodgates just yet.

As ChatGPT staffers were quick to explain on social media, this was actually an invitation for a user to integrate their Target account into ChatGPT, for an easier agentic browsing and shopping experience.

But it does prompt Jason and Alex to ask some intriguing questions… Is OpenAI just waiting for Google or someone else to launch AI ads first, and face the inevitable flood of backlash they’ll presumably receive? Is there someone at OpenAI already thinking DEEPLY about how these in-feed ads should work? And what does this mean for their wager on when ChatGPT is going to actually get ads? Is that already decided?

These answers and more are coming your way on today’s action-packed TWiST… PLUS the latest on the Warner Bros Discovery-Netflix deal, PR guru Lulu Cheng Meservey’s new venture fund, and why Jason and Lon are obsessing about Apple TV’s “Pluribius.”

Timestamps:

(01:59) They put Target ads in ChatGPT? Or was it just an integration? Is there a difference?

(5:24) Is someone at OpenAI really thinking deeply about how in-feed ads should work?

(07:36) Is OpenAI just waiting for Google to start running ads to post their own? Jason has suspicions…

(10:01) Why Jason thinks startup people have so much trouble communicating with normies

(10:32) Superhuman - Get AI that works where you work. Unlock your Superhuman potential at http://superhuman.com/podcast

(13:22) The insane competition now facing down OpenAI and Sam Altman

(18:40) Why Jason will no longer use data from SaaS companies looking for a marketing win

(19:52) Does this mean ChatGPT TECHNICALLY has ads? Does Alex win the bet?! What does Polymarket think?

(20:36) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://squarespace.com/twist

(25:17) Why Jason is already tired of the Netflix-Paramount-WBD story

(30:06) Enterpret - Enterpret turns feedback noise into Customer Intelligence, so your team knows exactly what to fix and build next. Head to http://Enterpret.com/twist to book a demo and see it in action.

(34:03) President Jason’s new proposal: A 60-day “pre-approval” antitrust window

(47:29) Why Jason’s not interested in news commentary… just the facts.

(51:40) Jason and Lon take a few moments to praise “Pluribus”

(54:45) PR guru Lulu Cheng Meservey is starting a venture firm… here’s why she wants to start a “movement”

(58:05) Why PR people hate but also respect Jason

Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com/

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*

Follow Lon:

X: https://x.com/lons

*

Follow Alex:

X: https://x.com/alex

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm/

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Follow Jason:

X: https://twitter.com/Jason

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis/

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Thank you to our partners:

(10:32) Superhuman - Get AI that works where you work. Unlock your Superhuman potential at http://superhuman.com/podcast

(20:36) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://squarespace.com/twist

(30:06) Enterpret - Enterpret turns feedback noise into Customer Intelligence, so your team knows exactly what to fix and build next. Head to http://Enterpret.com/twist to book a demo and see it in action.

What’s REALLY going on with those “ads” in ChatGPT | E2220

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Today’s show:

Netflix wants to gobble up Warner Bros. Do they just want to own Batman and Harry Potter, or is this secretly about destroying movie theaters?

Sure, this is usually a startup show, but news THIS BIG warrants attention! So Lon stops by to tell Jason and Alex about the big Netflix acquisition news, why so many theatrical movie fans are terrified for the future, and why this might face particular regulatory scrutiny both at home and abroad.

PLUS… are Googlers gaming Polymarket? This is one scenario in which prediction markets are NOT exactly like stocks.

THEN we’re looking at some of our favorite startups from the Fall ‘25 Y Combinator cohort (and asking Producer Claude for his picks)… Considering why Perplexity keeps getting sued and how they can stop it… and doing a victory lap for Jason’s early investment in breakout AI training project Micro1.

Timestamps:

(02:05) Netflix buying Warner Bros! Jason, Lon and Alex react.

(05:04) Jaytrade Update: J kind of missed the boat on this one

(05:36) What does this mean for theatrical cinema?

(08:42) Sentry - New users get 3 months free of the Business plan (covers 150k errors). Go to http://sentry.io/twist and use code TWIST

(09:52) Jason’s pitch to Disney CEO Bob Iger (please send this to him!)

(19:36) LinkedIn Ads: Start converting your B2B audience into high quality leads today. Launch your first campaign and get $250 FREE when you spend at least $250. Go to http://linkedin.com/thisweekinstartups to claim your credit.

(23:29) Is this deal going to get approval, at home and abroad?

(25:52) Are Googlers gaming Polymarket?

(28:02) Can you do “insider trading” on a prediction market?

(29:23) Pipedrive - Bring your entire sales process into one elegant space. Get started with a 30 day free trial at pipedrive.com/twist

(37:00) How accelerators like Y Combinator serve as “finishing schools” for startups

(37:52) A Quick Look at some of our fav companies from YC’s Fall ’25 cohort

(39:01) Why startups need to “skate to where the puck is going”

(40:08) Why sometimes old ideas (like solar-powered aircraft) are often worth revisiting

(45:29) Jason’s advice for founders (and investors) in the “feel good” or activist space

(50:48) Why Lon, Alex, and Claude ALL thought Hyperspell sounds like a hot startup

(52:58) Perplexity getting sued again! Why can’t they make friends!

(57:51) Meanwhile, Meta’s signing AI deals with news publications.

(59:21) Micro1, which Jason helped to fund, has hit $100M ARR! Why do AI companies need so many experts?

Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com

Check out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.com

Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp

Follow Lon:

X: https://x.com/lons

Follow Alex:

X: https://x.com/alex

LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm

Follow Jason:

X: https://twitter.com/Jason

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis

Thank you to our partners:

(8:42) Sentry - New users get 3 months free of the Business plan (covers 150k errors). Go to http://sentry.io/twist and use code TWIST

(19:36) LinkedIn Ads: Start converting your B2B audience into high quality leads today. Launch your first campaign and get $250 FREE when you spend at least $250. Go to http://linkedin.com/thisweekinstartups to claim your credit.

(29:23) Pipedrive - Bring your entire sales process into one elegant space. Get started with a 30 day free trial at pipedrive.com/twist

Netflix buys WB + why Jason should run Disney | E2219

Check out Thrasio: https://www.thras.io

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

Thanks to our partners...

Fiverr - use code TWiST for 10% off your first order at https://www.fiverr.com

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E1094: Thrasio Co-CEO Josh Silberstein acquires & operates 60+ Amazon brands, shares insights on mastering the marketplace, competing with AmazonBasics & more

E1094: Thrasio Co-CEO Josh Silberstein acquires & operates 60+ Amazon brands, shares insights on mastering the marketplace, competing with AmazonBasics & more

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