Podcasts about pitchbook

2026 is the year of the mega-IPO. SpaceX, Anthropic, and OpenAI are working their way through the pipeline as anticipation builds for their blockbuster debuts. Elon Musk's conglomerate is leading the shift from private to public markets. Demand is appearing to skyrocket to buy the companies the moment their stocks are publicly available. But is that the right move if you're investing for the long term? Or are there better opportunities among stocks that are down on fears of AI competition, such as software as a service, or SaaS, stocks? These big private firms' public arrivals will also affect index funds and 401(k)s.    So what should you make of all this? Paul Condra is the global head of private markets research for PitchBook, a Morningstar company. He and his colleagues are presenting this topic at the upcoming Morningstar Investment Conference in Chicago.   Why We Think the SpaceX IPO Is Overvalued   On this episode: 00:00:00 Welcome 00:01:46 Why SpaceX, Anthropic, and OpenAI Are Going Public Now 00:03:10 Why Morningstar Values SpaceX at Half the IPO Price 00:04:34 How Retail Investors Should Approach Buying SpaceX Stock 00:05:56Anthropic's IPO and Its Trillion-Dollar Valuation 00:07:12 OpenAI's Broken Economics and IPO Prospects 00:08:47 New Index Rules and What They Mean for Your 401(k)   Watch more from Morningstar: The Portfolio That Has Been Beating the Classic 60/40, and Why It Matters for You https://www.morningstar.com/portfolios/portfolio-that-has-been-beating-classic-6040-why-it-matters-you The Best Opportunities for Fund Investors Today https://www.morningstar.com/funds/best-opportunities-fund-investors-today Will Vacation Inflation Affect Your Summer Travel? Here's What to Know https://www.morningstar.com/stocks/will-vacation-inflation-affect-your-summer-travel-heres-what-know   Follow Morningstar on social: Facebook https://www.facebook.com/MorningstarInc/ X https://x.com/MorningstarInc Instagram https://www.instagram.com/morningstarinc/?hl=en LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/morningstar/posts/?feedView=all Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Details of SpaceX's IPO are expected to be made public this week as it accelerates plans for a stock debut that will likely make CEO Elon Musk the world's first trillionaire, but one analyst warned that trading may be volatile as the stock faces “substantial” downside risks. SpaceX, which filed confidential initial public offering registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission in April, will likely make public its paperwork—offering insight into the firm's operations and finances—this week as it plans for a June 12 debut on the Nasdaq, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Some have expressed concerns about SpaceX's stock listing, including PitchBook analyst Franco Granda, who wrote in March that SpaceX may act like Tesla's stock “on steroids,” suggesting trading volatility. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode SummaryIn this 101 episode, Cheryl and Maxine go deep on the fundamentals of pre-seed investing, from how the stage came to exist to why the perceived risk gap between pre-seed and seed is much smaller than most investors think.They break down the history of how venture stages evolved from single rounds to alphabetized series, how seed investors eventually got pushed up the stack, and why pre-seed emerged around 2017 to 2019 as a distinct category. They unpack why PitchBook's definition of pre-seed as "whatever the investor calls it" muddies the water, how seed preempts from larger funds are inflating average valuations, and why thinking in risk stages rather than round labels is a better framework for evaluating early companies.You'll also hear why graduation rates from pre-seed to seed don't support the idea that pre-seed is two to three times riskier, why the Australian ecosystem is sitting on a talent surplus with a capital gap at pre-seed, and why this stage is particularly well suited for angels building diversified portfolios of 20 to 40 companies. Cheryl shares her framework for evaluating pre-seed opportunities through the lens of problem pain, frequency, and market size, and Maxine walks through how to think about return profiles, dilution, and valuation at a stage where there are no outputs to measure.Time Stamps00:00 Intro01:56 – A brief history of venture stages: how pre-seed became a thing07:14 – Why round labels are broken and risk stages are a better framework09:23 – Seed preempts: how big funds are blurring the line between pre-seed and seed11:48 – Is pre-seed actually riskier than seed? The case that it's not16:41 – Graduation rates: what the data says about pre-seed to seed conversion22:59 – Valuation dynamics: what pre-seed rounds look like in Australia vs the US28:36 – Why Australian founders are leaving for the US at pre-seed and what that means31:29 – How to evaluate pre-seed companies: inputs over outputs35:05 – Cheryl's pain framework: frequency, intensity, and willingness to pay38:28 – Why pre-seed is the best stage for diversifying who gets funded43:44 – The AI revenue problem: why getting in early matters more than everSponsors:First Cheque is supported by our wonderful sponsors:Deel: Founders scale faster on Deel. Set up payroll for any country in minutes, hire anyone anywhere, and get visas handled fast, so you stay focused on scaling. Deel takes care of onboarding, HR, IT, EOR, benefits, and compliance, so your team can grow without borders.It's why more than 40,000 fast-growing companies trust Deel to move fast. Visit https://www.deel.com/dayoneFirst Cheque is part of Day One.Day One helps founders and startup operators make better business decisions more often. To learn more, join our newsletter to be notified of new First Cheque episodes and upcoming shows.This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrpSpotify Ad Analytics - https://www.spotify.com/us/legal/ad-analytics-privacy-policy/

Dave "CAC" Kellogg and Ray "Growth" Rike dig into the Redpoint Ventures 2026 Software and AI Market Update - a 69-page report built on proprietary CIO survey data from 141 respondents, plus public market data from Qatalyst, Pitchbook, Goldman Sachs, RBC, and McKinsey. Big report with even bigger implications. Ray and Dave unpack the data that matter most for B2B SaaS and AI-native software operators.WHAT WE COVER IN THIS EPISODEThe AI Build-Out Is Real and It's Not the Dot-Com BubbleHyperscaler CapEx is projected to hit $765B in 2026, up nearly 50% year over year. More than 90% of new data center capacity is already pre-committed. Compare that to the dot-com era when fiber utilization was under 3%. The other critical difference: today's infrastructure spend is funded primarily by free cash flow, not debt. The more important signal is demand. AI has reached 1 billion monthly active users in four years. The internet took far longer to reach 70 million. The demand is real. The risk of speculative overbuild is also real.The Agent Maturity Curve and Why Most of the Value Is Still AheadPage 7 of the report maps the four phases of agent maturity by runtime: co-pilots (seconds), task agents (minutes), workflow agents (hours), autonomous agents (days). Co-pilots represent roughly $500B in software spend. Task agents, where coding tools live today, push that to $1.2T. Workflow agents expand the TAM to $2.8T. Autonomous agents take it to $6.1T. Coding has been the beachhead use case for good reasons: structured training data, instant verification, self-improving feedback loops. The real enterprise revenue opportunity is still in phases three and four.What the CIO Survey Actually Says This is the buried lead of the report. 54% of CIOs are actively consolidating vendors. 45% of AI budgets are coming from existing software budgets, not net-new spend. 58% say AI feature additions are the top driver of incremental software spend. 54% prefer to stay with incumbent vendors if they deliver on AI. Only 13% have a strong preference for AI-native software. The 33% who are neutral are the swing vote. Incumbents are winning the preference battle but losing the execution battle — the CIO feedback on Agentforce, Copilot, and ServiceNow AI in the survey is not flattering.Terminal Value Is the Real SaaS Valuation StoryThe public SaaS median NTM revenue multiple sits at 4.1x (Meritech says 3.1x), the lowest since the global financial crisis. In a SaaS DCF, 85 to 95% of enterprise value comes from terminal value, not the five-year forecast. The implied long-term growth rate embedded in current SaaS valuations has collapsed from 4.7% to 1.1%. Short-term beats like ServiceNow's recent quarter do almost nothing to move the stock because the market's concern is not next year. It's year ten and beyond. That is a terminal value story, not a growth story.ARR Per Employee - The Benchmark EvolvesCursor and Anthropic hit $100M ARR in roughly two years. Slack took three. Salesforce and Adobe took four to five. ServiceNow took seven to eight. AI-native companies have made $1M revenue per FTE the new floor. The P&L transformation model in slide 39 projects R&D costs down 15 to 20%, sales costs down 15 to 20%, COGS increasing due to inference spend but offset by reductions in customer support and customer success. Net result: potential EBITDA expansion of 100 to 250% on the same revenue base over three to five years.Private Markets Are in an AI Love FestAI-native deals represent nearly 100% of new VC activity in Q1 2026. Deal concentration is accelerating: the top 20 deals captured 44% of total funding in 2025, up from 31% in 2024 and 7% in 2022. At the model layer, dollars and valuations are concentrated while deal volume belongs to the application layer (61% of deals). The model competition is effectively over. The only question is rank order. The application layer is where the volume plays out, and AI-native vendors are winning that battle.Redpoint 2026 Software and AI Market Update: https://www.redpoint.com/reports/2026-market-updateABOUT THE METRICS BROTHERS Ray Rike is the Founder and CEO of Benchmarkit, the leading B2B SaaS and AI-native software benchmarking company. Dave Kellogg is an EIR at Balderton Capital, independent consultant, and author of Kellblog. Together they bring a CFO-meets-GTM lens to the metrics and benchmarks that drive efficient revenue growth and enterprise value.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

How is the ongoing Middle East conflict reshaping the global economy, energy markets, and the tech sector? In this episode of the BRAVE Southeast Asia Tech Podcast, Jeremy Au sits down with Kristie Neo, PitchBook's newly appointed Asia Editor, to unpack the macroeconomic shockwaves hitting Southeast Asia and the Gulf. From surging oil prices and the fuel emergency in the Philippines to the sudden acceleration in green energy and defense tech investments across Singapore and the UAE, we cover what founders and investors need to know to navigate this crisis. Tune in for deep-dive insights on venture capital shifts, global capital flight, the resilience of safe-haven economies, and why times of conflict often forge the strongest technological innovations. 00:00 - Introduction & PitchBook's APAC Expansion 03:10 - The Middle East Crisis & Macro Impacts 06:45 - How the Conflict Affects UAE Venture Capital 09:30 - Inflation, Supply Chains & Asia's Energy Security 12:28 - Surging Demand for Renewables & Nuclear Power 15:28 - Tech Capital, LPs, & Diversification out of the Gulf 22:48 - The Rise of Defense Tech in Singapore & Israel Parallels Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/kristie-neo-global-energy-crisis Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at https://www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VakR55X6BIElUEvkN02e TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter X : https://x.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts #Singapore #TechNews #StartupNews #Business #Podcast #southeastasia #techpodcast

This week, we chat with Marlon Nichols!Marlon is the co-founder and managing general partner of MaC Venture Capital, a leading seed-stage firm backing visionary founders who are redefining industries and shaping the future. Under his leadership, MaC has grown into one of North America's largest seed-stage venture firms, with over $600 million in assets under management.He's backed an incredible portfolio of companies including MongoDB, Gimlet Media, Thrive Market, Blavity, and Pipe—consistently identifying cultural and technological shifts before they hit the mainstream. His ability to spot transformative opportunities has earned him recognition on Business Insider's Seed 100 and PitchBook's top VCs to watch.Before founding MaC Venture Capital, Marlon launched Cross Culture Ventures and served as an investment director at Intel Capital, developing a sharp lens on the intersection of culture, technology, and consumer behavior.A former professional athlete, Marlon brings a leadership style rooted in discipline and long-term vision, and is deeply committed to expanding access in venture capital through his work with Kauffman Fellows.✨ This episode is presented by Brex.Brex: brex.com/trailblazerspodThis episode is supported by RocketReach, Gusto, OpenPhone & Athena.RocketReach: rocketreach.co/trailblazersGusto: gusto.com/trailblazersQuo: Quo.com/trailblazersAthena: athenago.me/Erica-WengerFollow Us!Marlon Nichols @MarlonCNicholsMaC Ventures: MaCVentureCap@thetrailblazerspod: Instagram, YouTube, TikTokErica Wenger: @erica_wenger

Story of the Week (DR):Elon Musk's SpaceX set to go public in $1 trillion share listingElon Musk's rocket and satellite company SpaceX has confidentially filed for an initial public offering with the Securities and Exchange CommissionThe firm could seek a valuation of $1.75 trillion with a public listing around June.A confidential filing means that SpaceX will submit its financials to the SEC before revealing them to the public, which must occur at least 15 days before the IPO roadshow.Musk owns 42% of the SpaceX now, according to Pitchbook, though that figure will change with the IPO when new owners are issued shares.Among current SpaceX owners is Donald Trump Jr, the president's oldest son. He owns a shares through 1789 Capital. That venture capital firm made him a partner shortly after his father won the presidency for a second time and has been buying up federal contractors seeking to win taxpayer money ever since.The White House and Trump himself have repeatedly denied there are any conflicts of interest between his role as president and his family's businesses.Public investors may get low-vote shares, while insiders could hold super-voting stock with roughly 10 to 20 votes per share, if the reported structure is adopted.Reports suggest SpaceX has been adding board members as it prepares for the IPO process.The company's board has historically included Elon Musk, Gwynne Shotwell, Antonio Gracias, Luke Nosek, Steve Jurvetson, and Donald Harrison in reporting about its governance.Gwynne Shotwell is widely reported as president and COO, and Bret Johnsen as CFOBig Banks Seeking a Piece of SpaceX's I.P.O. Must Subscribe to Elon Musk'sMusk is requiring Wall Street firms to purchase subscriptions to his A.I. chatbot if they want to advise on one of the largest initial public offerings in history.Air Canada CEO will retire this year after his English-only crash message was criticizedMichael Rousseau is stepping down following a massive public outcry after he delivered a condolence video almost entirely in English regarding a fatal plane crash that killed a French-speaking pilot.Critics and politicians, including Quebec's Premier, were outraged that Rousseau failed to fulfill a high-profile 2021 promise to learn French, viewing his English-only response to a tragedy as a sign of deep cultural disrespect.Air Canada's board has launched a global search for a successor and explicitly stated that fluency in both English and French is now a non-negotiable requirement for the next CEO.The company clarified that while a "comprehensive internal development program" has been in place for two years, the recent controversy accelerated the timeline for his departure.Rousseau will officially retire at the end of the third quarter (September 30, 2026), staying on until then to ensure a "seamless transition" and assist the board during the handover.Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau initially stated he did not intend to step down following backlash over an English-only video regarding a runway incidentElon Musk called the decision “crazy” and suggested “it is not reciprocal.”“There are many one-sided laws in Canada that mandate French at the expense of English,” he posted to X, along with a Grok answering his request to provide a list of Canada's French language laws and explain “how this is hypocritical compared to no English mandate laws.”“Extremely hypocritical and unfair!”Oracle fired up to 30,000 workers via email after a 95% profit surge. Tech companies are cutting almost 1,000 jobs/day DROracle Corp.'s mass layoffs on Tuesday were part of the company's cost-cutting measures as it continues to build out expensive data centers for powering artificial intelligence.But one aspect of the mass layoffs — which were estimated to be as many as 30,000 people — was alerting workers over email at 6 a.m. Eastern that Tuesday would be their last day.The terse message, sent to workers in multiple regions and time zones, carried no executive name and was instead signed off simply as 'Oracle Leadership.'“We are sharing some difficult news regarding your position.After careful consideration of Oracle's current business needs, we have made the decision to eliminate your role as part of a broader organizational change. As a result, today is your last working day.We are grateful for your dedication, hard work, and the impact you have made during your time with us.After signing your termination paperwork, you will be eligible to receive a severance package subject to the terms and conditions of the severance plan. You will receive an email from DocuSign to your Oracle email address with details on your severance and termination date.Immediate Action RequiredTo receive important follow-up information, including FAQs and separation documents to help you through this transition, you must provide a personal email address.Please click here to submit a personal email address immediately. If you make a submission error, please re-submit a new form. Please Note: The personal email address will only be used for correspondence regarding separation-related information and severance agreements.Access to your computer, email, voicemail, and files will be deactivated soon, and you will be unable to log into your computer. As a reminder, you are prohibited from downloading, copying or retaining (including emailing yourself) any Oracle confidential information.Thank you for your contributions to our organization. If you have additional questions, please reach out to the HR team via the Ask HR page or at (888) 404-2494.Oracle Leadership”“After careful consideration of Oracle's current business needs, we have made the decision to eliminate your role,” an email to one affected employee, obtained by MarketWatch, read.Survivors of the cuts were allegedly told by senior management that they would need to 'ramp up efficiency' and 'stretch' to cover the workload left by departed colleagues, a suggestion that many are resisting.Allegations that automated tools influenced redundancy decisions have become a central issue in the fallout.Iran Claims Oracle Strike in UAE as Dubai Attack Fears EscalateAnti-DEI crusade:Trump ousts Pam Bondi as attorney generalTrump Tells Karoline Leavitt She's 'Doing a Terrible Job,' Asks 'Should We Keep Her?'Is Kash Patel Getting Fired? FBI Director Might Be Next After Pam Bondi OustingHegseth ousts top Army generalArmy Chief of State Gen. Randy George.Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the Army's chief of staff had recently clashed over promotions, leading to his eventual ouster.Hegseth reportedly told Gen. Randy George to pull the names of four Army officers from a list of promotions to the rank of one-star general. The list consisted of about three dozen officers, most of whom were white men. However, two of them were Black and two were women, and those were the names Hegseth wanted removed.According to The New York Times, George refused, citing the officers' history of exemplary service. George reportedly asked Hegseth to meet two weeks ago to discuss the matter, but Hegseth declined. The defense secretary then struck the officers' names from the promotion list, even though it's not clear he has the authority to do so, per The Times.Hegseth has repeatedly taken steps to block or delay the promotions of Black and female senior officers in all four branches of the military.Secretary of the ArmyLabor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemerArmy Secretary Daniel Driscoll (26th Secretary of the Army)2004–2007 Student (B.S. Business Administration)2007–2011 Military service: Officer2011 Investment Banking Associate2011–2014 JDCandidateYale Law School2014–2015 Judicial Clerk2016–2019 Venture Capital Executive Winston-Salem, NC2020Congressional Candidate (NC-11)US House of Representatives (Campaign)2021–2023 Chief Operating Officer (COO) Flex Capital Management LLC2023–2024 Chief Strategy Officer On Call Physician StaffingJ.D. Vance / Senior Advisor 2024 Senior Advisor Donald Trump Presidential Campaign2025–26th Secretary of the ArmyChristine Wormuth (25th Secretary of the Army)1995–1996 Presidential Management Intern Department of Defense1996–2002 Policy Officer / French Desk Officer Office of the Secretary of Defense2002–2006 Principal (Consulting) DFI Government Services2007–2008 Staff Director (Jones Commission) Independent Commission on Iraq Security Forces2008–2009 Senior Fellow Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS)2009–2010 Prin. Dep. Asst. Secretary (Homeland Defense) US Department of Defense2010–2012 Special Asst. to the President / Senior Director National Security Council (White House)2012–2014 Dep. Under Secretary (Strategy, Plans, Forces) US Department of Defense2014–2016 Under Secretary of Defense for Policy US Department of Defense2017–2021 Director, International Defense & Security Center RAND Corporation2021–2025 25th Secretary of the Army Goodliest of the Week (MM/DR):DR: Judge rules Trump order eliminating NPR, PBS funding is unconstitutionalDR: United Airlines and flight attendants reached a tentative deal with $740 million in bonusesMM: Amazon to add 3.5% fuel and logistics surcharge for sellers as Iran war drives up energy pricesGO TO A LOCAL STORE!Assholiest of the Week (MM):Lying-iestChevron and Microsoft Team Up for Giant Texas Gas Power PlantTeam includes Chevron, Microsoft, and ENGINE NO 1Microsoft pledged to be carbon NEGATIVE by 2050Since they keep doing things like building gas plants, they're relying on carbon credits through reforestation to hit their targetSo they went out to buy the credits and picked a company called Mombak, a startup that has signed massive reforestation deals for Amazon reforestation but has yet to actually produce a carbon credit yet, has only started in theory, and the company admits there's still little information on how to quantify the carbon absorption in restoration projects.Despite that, Microsoft and Google both made massive investments to look green as they build out data farms for AI no one asked forEngine No 1, meanwhile, after its climate-darling turn at Exxon 5 years ago, has taken its all white male executive team AND board with climate investment banking and VC/PE expertise to partner with Chevron, who celebrated the Big Bullshit BIll that rolled back renewables and decided to happily take Venezuelan oil at the behest of TrumpInvestor-iestFirst, the results from investors at Starbucks:Average 95.7% approve of the boardMarissa Mayer, the new and highly interlocked director, got a team high 99% approvalResults were more correlated with drink disclosures by directors than performance metricsDespite campaigns by New York State, NYC, Mercyside, Trillium, and others to target Beth Ford and Jorgen Knudstorp, as well as advice from ISS to target just Beth Ford (absurd), given labor issues, Andy Campion instead had the lowest vote total at 87% for reasons that are unclearAnd of course…Then, the reason why there was a campaign to vote out directors in the first place:Starbucks to offer baristas up to $1,200 a year in bonusesWith this nugget:Baristas at unionized locations are unlikely to see the bonus program right away. At approximately five percent of its U.S. locations where employees have union representation, Starbucks acknowledged that federal labor law requires the bonus program to go through the collective bargaining process before it can take effect. According to CNBC, the two sides have not made meaningful progress at the bargaining table in over a yearAI-iestJack Dorsey says he wants 6,000 Block employees reporting straight to himThey already do asshat, you have dual class controlSam Altman says he 'miscalibrated' the mood of distrust toward AI and the government in the Pentagon dealNvidia CEO Jensen Huang's advice to workers scared of AI: You're just confusing your job with the tools you use to do itLarry Ellison Says AI Now Does Oracle's Coding Amid Mass Layoffs—3 Strategic Moves for Tech Workers (Oracle Fires 30,000 With a Cold 6 a.m. Email: Here's What It Said That Devastated Teams)Marc Andreessen says AI layoffs are a farce: Companies are 75% overstaffed, and AI is the ‘silver bullet excuse' to clean house DR“Essentially, every large company is overstaffed,” he said. “It's at least overstaffed by 25%. I think most large companies are overstaffed by 50%. I think a lot of them are overstaffed by 75%.” He added, “Now they all have the silver bullet excuse: Ah, it's AI.”So despite record profits every single year, increasing CEO pay, companies are OVERSTAFFED? They get paid less than inflation, and they have TOO MANY people? Some populist math:Assume “every large company” is companies with market cap > $20bn (~415 companies)Total employment as of last year: 27,795,346Total estimated employed people in US: 162,900,000 (62% labor participation)“Every large company” is 17% of all US employmentCurrently, 7,239,000 unemployed in USAndreessens mid point - “most large companies are overstaffed by 50%” - means he thinks they'll blame AI but that they “overemployed” by 13,897,717He is suggesting they are ALL FIREABLE because they are OVERSTAFFEDEmployment goes from 162,900,000 to 149,002,283, unemployment goes to 21,136,717, and the unemployment rate goes to 12% overnight - a 3x increase on the 4% it's at nowBecause Marc Andreessen thinks we're overstaffed… I wonder why…Studies historically have shown that the few days after layoffs stocks are down - but it depends on the reason for the layoff. Proactive layoffs (not a result of down financials, for instance) are rewardedRecent studies show that layoffs actually push stocks UP as time goes one - up to 22% cumulative return over normal 30 days out, and 5% 10 days out. Let's assume a 5% bump for all the proactive AI job cut assholes - the Block and Oracles of the world Other studies show that CEO pay goes up after layoffs if performance improves - so cutting staff for AI pushes stock up, stock up is better performance, CEO pay goes up Using the CEO pay ratio, the “cost savings” of cutting 14m employees is ~$1.4 TRILLION dollars (that's $1.4tn no longer in the hands of people who would be buying stuff like food and houses and gas and rubber chickens and inflatable pool floats)The cuts would add $3tn to market cap of all companies, save $1.4tn in employee costs - the average CEO pay ratio would go from 306 to 319, and the average CEO would make $22m moreThis isn't about overstaffing or AI - this is about CEOs getting paidHeadliniest of the WeekDR: CEO of Epic Games apologizes after laying off employee with terminal brain cancerDR: BlackRock CEO admits 'woke' era went too farDR: Raising Cane's CEO says he doesn't care for this one menu item, but had to sell it anyway: he always substitutes coleslaw for an extra piece of toastMM: New lawsuit alleges DraftKings and FanDuel are digital heroinMM: Scientists Say Half the World Could Be Nearsighted by 2050, and It's Not Just Screens. This Indoor Habit May Be WhySITTING IN THE DARK. This is where we're at as a society.Jamie Dimon Says…Jamie Dimon's warning: More geopolitical risk for America than since WWIIJamie Dimon blasts remote work as JPMorgan staff revolts over office mandateJamie Dimon says JPMorgan could do prediction markets — with big guardrailsJamie Dimon says the American Dream is ‘slipping out of reach'—and JPMorgan is spending billions to fix itJPMorgan's Jamie Dimon predicts AI will cut the working week to 3.5 days, cure cancers, and free up time for hobbiesWho Won the Week?DR: Angry French people in QuebecMM: Headhunting firms who suddenly can expect as much as 75% of large company employees to be calling them to find them workPredictionsDR: Air Canada hires a woman who speaks 845 languages who continually apologies for something she never didMM: Jamie Dimon says speaking French is stupid

PitchBook's Franco Granda and Elon Musk Reporter Theo Wayt talk with TITV Host Akash Pasricha about SpaceX's confidential IPO filing and whether a $1.75 trillion valuation is actually justifiable. We also talk with Financial Analysis Columnist Anita Ramaswamy about Blackstone's exposure to the SaaS sell-off and the $400 million confidence vote from its own employees, and Emergence Capital's Yazan El-Baba about why the AI sector must pivot to efficiency before hitting the public markets. Finally, we get into the existential regulatory battle facing prediction markets with our Senior Finance Editor Ken Brown.Articles discussed on this episode: https://www.theinformation.com/articles/blackstone-private-credit-fears-miss-big-picturehttps://www.theinformation.com/newsletters/the-briefing/mixed-openai-investor-signalsSubscribe: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@theinformation The Information: https://www.theinformation.com/subscribe_hSign up for the AI Agenda newsletter: https://www.theinformation.com/features/ai-agendaTITV airs weekdays on YouTube, X and LinkedIn at 10AM PT / 1PM ET. Or check us out wherever you get your podcasts.Follow us:X: https://x.com/theinformationIG: https://www.instagram.com/theinformation/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@titv.theinformationLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/theinformation/

What does e-commerce actually look like heading into 2026? In this episode, Lonnie Bloom, Partner and Co-Lead of Withum's E-Commerce Sector, sits down with Eric Bellomo from PitchBook to break down the private market data and consumer trends shaping the year ahead.From capital concentration and the wellness brand explosion to tariff pressure, AI attribution challenges, and the rise of agentic shopping, this conversation covers the full picture for operators, investors, and brand builders in the e-commerce space. Whether you are a brand founder, e-commerce operator, investor, or platform builder, this episode delivers the data and perspective you need to plan for 2026.

Il cambio di strategia di OpenAI e la chiusura di Sora. Il leak del modello di Anthropic troppo pericoloso. Il film con la replica di Val Kilmer. Le cause perse di Meta. La città irlandese coi bambini senza smartphone. Queste e molte altre le notizie tech commentate nella puntata di questa settimana.Dallo studio distribuito di digitalia:Franco Solerio, Michele Di Maio, Giulio CupiniProduttori esecutivi:Filippo Brancaleoni, Valerio Bendotti, Fiorenzo Pilla, Enrico De Anna, Stefano Augusto Innocenti, Fabrizio Reina, Paolo Bernardini, Valerio Galano, Arzigogolo, Alessandro Grossi, Davide Tinti, Manuel Zavatta, Christian Schwarz, Gabriele Gambini, Umberto Marcello, Vito Astone, Giulio Magnifico, Akagrinta@Fountain.Fm, Angelo Travaglione, Matteo Tarabini, Alessandro Morales, Roberto Basile, Fabrizio Mele, Ligea Technology Di D'esposito Antonio, Cristian Pastori, Elisa Emaldi - Marco Crosa, Simone Magnaschi, Giuliano Arcinotti, Silvano Carradori, Fabio Filisetti, Antonio Gargiulo, Riccardo Peruzzini, Edoardo Volpi Kellerman, Luca Di Stefano, Franco, Massimo Pollastri, Alessandro Lago, Davide Bellia, Piero Alberto Mazzo, Fabio Zappa, Nicola Bisceglie, Mattia Lanzoni, Isacco Tacchella, Roberto Tarzia, Gabriele Marinelli, Cristian De Solda, Giuseppe Brusadelli, Paola Bellini, Joanpiretz@Fountain.Fm, Mirto Tondini, Andrea Malesani, Andrea Bottaro, Marcello Spinelli, Fabio Brunelli, Antonio Manna, Sabino Menduni, Jh4Ckal@Fountain.Fm, Claudio Galante, Mattia Vailati, Beconsulting, Marco Siviero, Gianfranco Di Summa, Sandro Acinapura, Alessandro Blasi, Giorgio Puglisi, Douglas WhitingSponsor:Squarespace.com - utilizzate il codice coupon "DIGITALIA" per avere il 10% di sconto sul costo del primo acquisto.Links:OpenAI drops plans to release an adult chatbotOpenAI Plans Launch of Desktop SuperappAnthropic Leaks Claude Mythos (Too Dangerous to Release)We're saying goodbye to the Sora app.OpenAI Will Shut Down Sora Video PlatformDisney's Sora Disaster Shows AI Will Not Revolutionize HollywoodLa prima terribile settimana del nuovo capo di DisneyThe hunger for ‘content' is keeping us culturally stuckVal Kilmer resuscitato dall'AIDopo 80 miliardi Zuckerberg ha chiuso il metaversoSweden's Digital ID System HackedMeta Found Negligent in Social Media Addiction CaseJury says Meta knowingly harmed children for profitMeta condannata per non aver protetto i minorenniMeta Verdict Could End Anonymous Internet AccessAnthropic pentagon risk injunctionLa città di bambini senza smartphoneGoogle Just Patented The End Of Your WebsiteI built an ICE tracking app that can't be pulled from the App StoreThis is Android's advanced flow for sideloading appsBalancing openness and choice with safetyIn futuro i semafori avranno un quarto colore?Gingilli del giorno:PitchBook - leggi i bilanciFineTune - controllo audio avanzato per MacHTTP Shortcuts - chiamate API su AndroidSupporta Digitalia, diventa produttore esecutivo.

Today's guest on The Long View is Hilary Wiek. Hilary is a principal analyst at PitchBook, where she leads PitchBook's coverage of fund strategies and performance, publishing primary research on the alternative space. Hilary also leads PitchBook's coverage of the ESG and impact investing space. Hilary has over 20 years of experience in asset owner, manager, and advisory roles. Prior to joining PitchBook, she was the director of investments at the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundations, where she handled portfolio management, impact and ESG investment, investment due diligence and monitoring, and investment operations. Before that, she worked in senior positions at Segal Rogerscasey, the South Carolina Retirement Systems Investment Commission, Buckingham Financial Group, Dayton Power & Light, and KeyCorp. Wiek received a master's degree in finance and economics from Case Western Reserve University and a bachelor's degree in business leadership and finance from the University of Puget Sound. She is based in PitchBook's Seattle office. PitchBook is a Morningstar company. Episode Highlights 00:00:00 Background in the Private Markets and Joining PitchBook 00:04:49 Drivers of Private Market Slowdown in 2026 and Pockets of Outperformance 00:14:15 Key Lessons for Investing in Private Market Funds 00:18:12 Private Market Fees, Hidden Volatility, and Valuations 00:20:38 Evergreen Investment Growth, Interval Funds, and Questions Investors Should Ask 00:32:26 Is It Worth It to Invest in Private Markets? 00:36:50 ESG, Impacting Investing, and Key Themes for 2026 00:41:05 Private Market Exposure in 401(k)s PitchBook Reports Discussed Benchmarking and Returns: Why Are There So Many Numbers? Evergreen Funds: We Have Questions The Evergreen Evolution The New Face of Private Markets in Your 401(k) US Evergreen Fund Landscape 2025 Impact Investing Update If you have a comment or a guest idea, please email us at TheLongView@Morningstar.com. Follow Christine Benz (@christine_benz) and Ben Johnson (@MstarBenJohnson) on X, and Christine Benz, Amy Arnott, and Ben Johnson on LinkedIn. Visit Morningstar.com for new research and insights from Christine, Ben, and Amy. Subscribe to Christine's weekly newsletter, Improving Your Finances. If you want more Morningstar podcasts, check out The Morning Filter and Investing Insights. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Your host, Sebastian Hassinger, talks with Alumni Ventures managing partner Chris Sklarin about how one of the most active US venture firms is building a quantum portfolio while “democratizing” access to VC as an asset class for individual investors. They dig into Alumni Ventures' co‑investor model, how the firm thinks about quantum hardware, software, and sensing, and why quantum should be viewed as a long‑term platform with near‑term pockets of commercial value. Chris also explains how accredited investors can start seeing quantum deal flow through Alumni Ventures' syndicate.Chris' background and Alumni Ventures in a nutshellChris is an MIT‑trained engineer who spent years in software startups before moving into venture more than 20 years ago.Alumni Ventures is a roughly decade‑old firm focused on “democratizing venture capital” for individual investors, with over 11,000 LPs, more than 1.5 billion dollars raised, and about 1,300 active portfolio companies.The firm has been repeatedly recognized as a highly active VC by CB Insights, PitchBook, Stanford GSB, and Time magazine.How Alumni Ventures structures access for individualsMost investors come in as individuals into LLC‑structured funds rather than traditional GP/LP funds.Alumni Ventures always co‑invests alongside a lead VC, using the lead's conviction, sector expertise, and diligence as a key signal.The platform also offers a syndicate where accredited investors can opt in to see and back individual deals, including those tagged for quantum.Quantum in the Alumni Ventures portfolioAlumni Ventures has 5–6 quantum‑related investments spanning hardware, software, and applications, including Rigetti, Atom Computing, Q‑CTRL, Classiq, and quantum‑error‑mitigation startup Qedma/Cadmus.Rigetti was one of the firm's earliest quantum investments; the team followed on across multiple rounds and was able to return capital to investors after Rigetti's SPAC and a strong period in the public markets.Chris also highlights interest in Cycle Dre (a new company from Rigetti's former CTO) and application‑layer companies like InQ and quantum sensing players.Barbell funding and the “3–5 year” viewChris responds to the now‑familiar “barbell” funding picture in quantum— a few heavily funded players and a long tail of small companies—by emphasizing near‑term revenue over pure science experiments.He sees quantum entering an era where companies must show real products, customers, and revenue, not just qubit counts.Over the next 3–5 years, he expects meaningful commercial traction first in areas like quantum sensing, navigation, and point solutions in chemistry and materials, with full‑blown fault‑tolerant systems further out.Hybrid compute and NVIDIA's signal to the marketChris points to Jensen Huang's GTC 2025 keynote slide on NVIDIA's hybrid quantum–GPU ecosystem, where Alumni Ventures portfolio companies such as Atom Computing, Classiq, and Rigetti appeared.He notes that NVIDIA will not put “science projects” on that slide—those partnerships reflect a view that quantum processors will sit tightly coupled next to GPUs to handle specific workloads.He also mentions a large commercial deal between NVIDIA and Groq (a classical AI chip company in his portfolio) as another sign of a more heterogeneous compute future that quantum will plug into.Where near‑term quantum revenue shows upChris expects early commercial wins in sensing, GPS‑denied navigation, and other narrow but valuable applications before broad “quantum advantage” in general‑purpose computing.Software and middleware players can generate revenue sooner by making today's hardware more stable, more efficient, or easier to program, and by integrating into classical and AI workflows.He stresses that investors love clear revenue paths that fit into the 10‑year life of a typical venture fund.University spin‑outs, clustering, and deal flowAlumni Ventures certainly sees clustering around strong quantum schools like MIT, Harvard, and Yale, but Chris emphasizes that the “alumni angle” is secondary to the quality of the venture deal.Mature tech‑transfer offices and standard Delaware C‑corps mean spinning out quantum IP from universities is now a well‑trodden path.Chris leans heavily on network effects—Alumni Ventures' 800,000‑person network and 1,300‑company CEO base—as a key channel for discovering the most interesting quantum startups.Managing risk in a 100‑hardware‑company worldWith dozens of hardware approaches now in play, Chris uses Alumni Ventures' co‑investor model and lead‑investor diligence as a filter rather than picking purely on physics bets.He looks for teams with credible near‑term commercial pathways and for mechanisms like sensing or middleware that can create value even if fault‑tolerant systems arrive later than hoped.He compares quantum to past enabling waves like nanotech, where the biggest impact often shows up as incremental improvements rather than a single “big bang” moment.Democratizing access to quantum ventureAlumni Ventures allows accredited investors to join its free syndicate, self‑attest accreditation, and then see deal materials—watermarked and under NDA—for individual investments, including quantum.Chris encourages people to think in terms of diversified funds (20–30 deals per fund year) rather than only picking single names in what is a power‑law asset class.He frames quantum as a long‑duration infrastructure play with near‑term pockets of usefulness, where venture can help investors participate in the upside without getting ahead of reality.

A single email can cost millions of dollars. Not because of what it says, but because it didn't reach the right people at the right time. Most companies treat content as marketing fluff until it fails spectacularly. Then suddenly everyone realizes it's the invisible infrastructure holding together every digital experience.Join hosts Chuck Moxley and Nick Paladino as they sit down with Rafael Carranza, who's spent his career proving that content isn't just words on a page. Starting at a wire service during the dot-com boom when thousands of websites suddenly needed live content, Rafael moved to Microsoft where he helped open their content platform to publishers. He then went to Amazon building decision-making systems for thousands of sellers navigating complex rules, and now to PitchBook where data trust drives financial decisions. We explore why trust is the foundation of all content operations, why Microsoft pivoted from being a media company to becoming a platform, and when content stops being marketing and becomes integral to the product itself. Rafael argues that frictionless isn't about improving processes or deploying better technology, it's about how deeply you understand the customer on the other side.Key Actionable Takeaways:Build content governance foundations before implementing AI - Clean your content libraries, audit outdated information, establish clear tagging systems, and align terminology across departments; LLMs can't generate accurate responses from messy, ungoverned dataTreat content as product infrastructure, not just marketing - Critical information about rules, procedures, and product usage directly impacts customer success and costs real money when missing or wrong at decision-making momentsPrioritize quality gates over speed when stakes are high - Create intentional friction through approval processes and pushback mechanisms to maintain quality standards; moving fast without accuracy can trigger legal issues, government involvement, and million-dollar failuresWant more tips and strategies about creating frictionless digital experiences? Subscribe to our newsletter! https://www.thefrictionlessexperience.com/frictionless/ Download the Black Friday/Cyber Monday eBook: http://bluetriangle.com/ebook Rafael Carranza's LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/rafaelcarranza Nick Paladino's LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino Chuck Moxley's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuckmoxley/Chapters:(00:00) Introduction(02:43) Journalism origins(03:15) Wire service dot-com boom(04:30) Microsoft partnership(05:30) Learning user trust(07:15) Trust across organizations(08:35) Microsoft media pivot(09:45) Platform over content(10:30) Content as product(11:15) Amazon seller information(12:30) Operationalizing at scale(13:15) Governance structures(14:30) AI hallucination risks(15:15) Content accuracy guardrails(17:15) Windows to Linux journey(18:15) Business adoption limits(20:00) Human-AI collaboration(21:30) Innovation vs trust balance(22:00) B2B vs B2C content(23:30) Right content right time(24:30) When content fails(25:30) Million-dollar mistakes(26:45) Intentional friction benefits(27:30) Quality over speed(28:45) Biggest misconception(29:30) Conclusion

HSBC Innovations is the global bank's financing arm for American and European startups, especially in the healthcare and life sciences industries. The bank's semi-annual Venture Healthcare Reports document trends in the investment market.Key Tech's Andy Rogers welcomes the report's author, HSBC Innovation Managing Director Jon Norris in Episode 43 of the MedTech Speed to Data podcast.Need to know·       Four core market segments — HSBC Innovation's Venture Healthcare Reports cover investments and exits in Biopharma, Dx/Tools, Med Device, and Healthtech.·       Sourcing investment data — Norris enriches Pitchbook data with additional structure and analyses, making the report more relevant to these market segments.·       Sourcing exit data — Norris supplements media and industry publications with market research and conversations with industry leaders.·       An investment data tapestry — The reports provide “an honest picture of what's going on in the market” so investors and innovators alike “can make targeted smart decisions.”The nitty-grittyAndy and Norris discuss the investment market's recent history before exploring drivers of today's investment headwinds.“2021 was a record-setting year,” Norris recalls. “Every record that could be set for deals and dollars was set across all the sectors.” Things changed in 2022 as new BioTech IPOs struggled, prompting investment reprioritizations.“VCs had done all these… frothy valuations,” Norris says. “They had to go back and look at their own portfolios and say, does this company have enough capital? How do you want to put money to work?”Investments rebounded in 2024, but not the number of deals. Investors poured money into their existing portfolios to boost their exit chances, resulting in today's nine-figure megadeals.“Basically, they're smooshing two rounds together and extending the investors coming in to support that round,” Norris says.Headwinds stiffened in 2025 as tariffs, a more litigious competitive space, and other factors amplified business uncertainty.Norris attributes this progression to the psychology of venture capital. “When you think about what makes these folks tick,” Norris explains, “they want to continue to raise new venture funds because they get paid management fees. But in order to raise their new venture funds, they have to show their investors that they've actually gotten returns.”That means reaching an acquisition or IPO. “They're very focused on getting to exit right now. That's why they're so focused on their existing portfolio. And because of that, they haven't been doing as many new investments.”New investments still happen, of course, but the criteria have changed. “While the dollars are actually up in some of these sectors, especially Med Device,” Norris says, “you're seeing that being put to work on later-stage deals because they'd rather get a shorter time to exit.”Data that made the difference:Norris' insights from the HSBC Venture Healthcare Report let him advise startups fighting today's investment headwinds.Adopt a megaround mentality. “Series B has been extremely difficult,” Norris says. “[Raising] sub two million, that's one thing. But if you're looking to raise five million, it's almost better to raise twelve.”Find investors outside the mainstream. “Traditional venture investors don't want to write small checks.” Norris sees angel groups, innovation centers, and other small investors funding these early rounds.Explore acquisition exits, but be careful. “On the device side, most of the corporates have been pretty darn active,” Norris says. However, some litigate to block emerging competition, especially in the Dx/Tools sector. Norris' recommends researching potential acquirers before taking meetings.Download the HSBC Venture Healthcare Report for Norris' complete analysis, and watch the video below for insights into the Medical Device and Dx/Tools sectors, AI's role in MedTech, and more.

Ireland's cybersecurity sector delivered its strongest year in 2024, closing 40% more VC deals than in 2023 while European cybersecurity funding fell 9.5%, according to a new report powered by PitchBook data and published by Enterprise Ireland. This performance helped Ireland maintain its position as first or second in Europe for cybersecurity VC deal count per capita every year since 2017. Enterprise Ireland participated in more than three-quarters of all deals over the past decade, making it Europe's leading cybersecurity investor by deal count. This sustained ecosystem support has enabled Irish cybersecurity companies to launch, scale rapidly and attract world-class global investors - most recently demonstrated by Tines' €120.7 million Series C raise in Q1 2025, which was led by Goldman Sachs Alternatives, one of the largest venture rounds ever secured by an Irish-founded company. Key highlights from the report: • Since 2014, Irish cybersecurity companies have raised over €450 million across more than 100 VC transactions. • Irish firms such as Tines, Siren, UrbanFox, Cytidel and Vaultree are winning global enterprise and government clients with automation workflow, investigative intelligence, AI-driven threat detection, vulnerability prioritisation and fully encrypted data-in-use solutions. • Ireland is home to over 140 pure-play cybersecurity companies and has ranked first or second in Europe for cybersecurity VC deal count per capita every year since 2017. • The sector currently employs more than 8,100 professionals, projected to grow to 17,000 by 2030. Anna-Marie Turley, Head of Fintech, Financial Services and Cybersecurity at Enterprise Ireland, commented: "Ireland continues to punch well above its weight in European cybersecurity investment, consistently attracting top-tier global investors. With Irish solutions now trusted by leading enterprises and governments worldwide for AI-driven threat detection, investigative intelligence and regulatory compliance, we are seeing unprecedented international demand. Looking ahead, cybersecurity is set to become an absolute non-negotiable priority for organisations everywhere. This positions Ireland's ecosystem for sustained high-growth investment and global leadership in the years to come." The full report, Ireland's Cybersecurity Landscape, is available for immediate download at Ireland's Cybersecurity Landscape | Enterprise Ireland See more stories here. More about Irish Tech News Irish Tech News are Ireland's No. 1 Online Tech Publication and often Ireland's No.1 Tech Podcast too. You can find hundreds of fantastic previous episodes and subscribe using whatever platform you like via our Anchor.fm page here: https://anchor.fm/irish-tech-news If you'd like to be featured in an upcoming Podcast email us at Simon@IrishTechNews.ie now to discuss. Irish Tech News have a range of services available to help promote your business. Why not drop us a line at Info@IrishTechNews.ie now to find out more about how we can help you reach our audience. You can also find and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat.

SummaryIn this episode of the In/organic Podcast, co-host Christian Hassold shares insights from the KPMG Technology M&A Conference, discussing the current landscape of mergers and acquisitions, particularly in the tech sector. In this episode, Christian shares highlights from the conference, including the pervasive influence of AI on M&A decisions, the challenges and opportunities presented by the AI investing landscape, and the importance of creative deal structures in navigating the current market dynamics. The episode also covers the “operator's dilemma” faced by CEOs - that is, the rise in peer pressure to do M&A, and what are the best practices are from leading strategics. Finally, Hassold provides an overview of current B2B SaaS deal activity and market trends based on Pitchbook data.TakeawaysThe KPMG M&A Conference provided valuable insights into current market dynamics.AI is a major factor influencing M&A decisions and strategies.VCs are increasingly making investments in AI startups without getting governance rights, and not always checking the underlying economics of the businessThe operator's dilemma highlights the challenges that CEOs face in mergers and acquisitions (M&A).Corporate development roles are seeing a significant increase in demand.Top CEOs simplify their M&A strategies to focus on core problems.Deal activity in the tech sector is on the rise, indicating a healthy market.Earnouts are becoming a significant component of deal structures.Chapters00:00 Introduction and Context of the Episode02:50 Insights from the KPMG M&A and Tech Conference06:04 AI's Pervasive Influence on Tech and M&A08:54 The AI Investing Landscape11:40 Deal Structures Sparking Innovation16:42 The Operator's Dilemma in M&A21:48 Corporate Development and Deal Activity24:38 Priorities in M&A for Corporates vs. Private Equity29:19 Case Studies of Successful M&A Strategies32:59 Market Update on Deal Activity and EarnoutsConnect with Christian and AyeletAyelet's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-shipley-b16330149/Christian's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hassold/Web: https://www.inorganicpodcast.coIn/organic on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@InorganicPodcast/featuredEpisode ReferencesKPMG M&A Conference AgendaKPMG 2025 Deal Market Study (buyer priorities)Kirkland & Ellis M&A Bring Down Report 2025 (earnout data) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Q3 2025, private equity activity surged, achieving a record US$310b in deal value as firms capitalized on narrowing valuation gaps and renewed market confidence. With 156 deals announced, including six exceeding US$10b, the sector is pivoting towards larger transactions. Improved financing conditions and creative deal structures are facilitating this momentum. Looking ahead, 61% of firms anticipate increased exit activity, signalling a robust outlook as the market embraces a "risk on" approach, balancing optimism with discipline.  All data contained in this document is sourced from Dealogic, PitchBook, and EY analysis unless otherwise noted. The Dealogic data in this report are under license by ION. ION retains and reserves all rights in such data.

Join Marina Franklin on the latest Friends Like Us podcast with special guests Jon Laster & Marlon Nichols as they dive into the world of venture capital, diversity in tech, and the untapped potential in Africa. Don't miss this insightful episode!  Jon Laster is known for One Bedroom (2018), No More Mr Nice Guy (2018) and The 2019 ESPY Awards (2019) and check out his new series An Astute Woman Web Series. He is the Founder and C.E.O. of Blapp. Blapp is a Google-based, geo-located app that will tell you all the Black businesses that are right around you. Marlon Nichols is the co-founder and managing general partner of MaC Venture Capital, a leading seed-stage firm renowned for backing visionary founders who redefine industries. Under his leadership, MaC has grown into one of North America's largest seed-stage venture firms, surpassing $600 million in assets under management (AUM). In October 2024, the firm announced the closing of its third fund ($150 million), further solidifying its influence in the early-stage investment landscape. Marlon's portfolio includes industry-defining companies such as Airspace, Blavity, FINESSE, Gimlet Media, MongoDB, Pipe, Purestream, Thrive Market, and Shekel Mobility, among others. His keen eye for transformative opportunities has earned him widespread recognition, including consecutive placements on Los Angeles Business Journal's LA500 (2022–2025) and Business Insider's Seed 100 (Top Early-Stage Investors) for four years. Additionally, he ranks 25th on the Kauffman Fellows Fund Returners Index and has been featured in PitchBook's 25 Black Founders and VCs to Watch for six years. His expertise is frequently sought by top media outlets such as Axios, CNBC, Fortune, and more. A passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion, Marlon serves on the board of Kauffman Fellows, working to expand representation for underrepresented minorities in venture capital. With a unique blend of technology acumen and leadership principles shaped by his athletic background, he actively mentors CEOs, fosters strategic partnerships, and helps founders scale their businesses into market leaders. Always hosted by Marina Franklin - One Hour Comedy Special: Single Black Female ( Amazon Prime, CW Network), TBS's The Last O.G, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, Hysterical on FX, The Movie Trainwreck, Louie Season V, The Jim Gaffigan Show, Conan O'Brien, Stephen Colbert, HBO's Crashing, and The Breaks with Michelle Wolf. Writer for HBO's 'Divorce' and the new Tracy Morgan show on Paramount Plus: 'Crutch  

UC Berkeley is widely considered a leader in innovation and startups. Pitchbook university rankings from 2025 announced, for the third year in a row, that Berkeley graduates have founded more venture-backed companies than undergraduate alumni from any other university in the world. Some might wonder, says Chancellor Rich Lyons, if this entrepreneurial energy clashes with Berkeley's tradition of top-tier research and teaching. But Lyons sees it differently: These forces fuel each other, combining to drive the campus's ultimate goal of making a lasting difference in the world. It's a dynamic duo, he says, that keeps the campus pushing boundaries and shaping the future. In this Berkeley Talks episode, a panel of prominent Berkeley faculty and an alum join Lyons to discuss how the campus's startup culture has powered their work and encourages the next generation of scholars to grow their ideas. The panel, which took place on Oct. 6 during Homecoming weekend, includes: Ana Claudia Arias, professor of electrical engineering and computer sciencesKen Goldberg, professor of engineeringMarco Lobba, alum and co-founder and CEO of CatenaBio Chancellor Rich Lyons (moderator)Watch a video of the conversation. Read more about the event.Listen to the episode and read the transcript on UC Berkeley News (news.berkeley.edu/podcasts/berkeley-talks).Music by HoliznaCC0.UC Berkeley photo by Keegan Houser. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode OverviewIn this episode, Alex Rawlings welcomes Michael Von Bevern, Co-Managing Director for Sunterra Fund Services, to discuss the evolving landscape of fund administration in private equity. Michael shares nearly two decades of experience, working with over 500 fund managers, and offers invaluable insight into common mistakes first-time managers make, the growing role of fund administration, and why outsourcing has become the gold standard for operational efficiency and investor confidence.

Ahead of the historic Steelers Vs. Vikings NFL game this Sunday (28th September) in Dublin, the Irish government's trade and innovation agency, Enterprise Ireland has launched a report, powered by PItchBook data on Ireland's sports tech sector. The report points to Ireland's robust domestic sports tech sector, home to 93 VC-backed sports tech companies, including 40 homegrown global innovators. These companies include Orreco, Kitman Labs and Output Sports, who joined Enterprise Ireland for the launch of the report. All three companies are working with NFL teams and many other global sporting brands, including NBA, NHL, PGA Tour, F1, Olympians, Premier League and Premiership Rugby. Orreco the global leader in bio-analytics solutions for professional athletes, also announced today that they are supporting the Harvard Football Players Health Study, funded by the NFL and NFLPA. The study leads efforts to develop and support innovative research that has the potential to impact the health of current, former, and future NFL players. Examining the VC level of activity in Irish sports tech, the report, powered by PitchBook data reports that Ireland's sports tech ecosystem has notably defied the recent downward trend in VC activity seen in other regions since 2022. Irish sports tech VC deal count grew by more than 50% in 2023, compared with a drop of more than 30% for Europe overall in the same period. In 2024, Ireland's deal count grew an additional 47.1%, while broader European deal count declined again by 15.5%. Since 2014, Irish sports tech start-ups have collectively raised over €224 million in VC funding across 181 transactions. Notable VC funding rounds include Kitman Labs (€71.1 million raised) and Xtremepush (€18.6 million) and Output Sports with €4.5 million raised in 2025. Year to date 2025 data show that Ireland ranks seventh in Europe for total sports tech VC deal count, despite its relatively small population. On a per-capita basis, this ranking rises to first, and Ireland has maintained a top four ranking nearly every year over the past decade. Enterprise Ireland has emerged as a central force in shaping the sports tech investment landscape, not only in Ireland but across Europe. Since 2024, it has led the region in deal activity with 19 sports tech investments - more than triple the number recorded by the next most active investors. Commenting on the report, Keith Brock, Enterprise Ireland's Senior Client Advisor for Enterprise Solutions, said: "The Irish sports tech industry has expanded rapidly over the past ten years, both in terms of the number of companies, but also in the level of investment they have attracted and the impact they are achieving internationally working with global sports leagues. Across Enterprise Ireland's portfolio of sports tech companies, there are 89 active or pending patents covering wearable devices, augmented reality, diagnostic, exercise equipment and equine health. This level of patents points to the strong level of R&D and innovation happening in the sector, which in turn is accelerating the international sports industry from athlete performance to fan engagement. "We are proud of Enterprise Ireland's role in supporting the Irish sports tech industry, leading sports tech investment not only in Ireland, but in Europe, with 19 sports tech investment since 2024 alone. However, while Enterprise Ireland has been backing the Irish sports tech industry, the industry has also attracted major global VC investment including from Octopus Ventures (UK), Partech (France) and Apex Capital (Portugal)." Irish companies working with NFL Teams: Kitman: Kitman Labs' Intelligence Platform (iP) is an advanced operating system for performance, health, and talent development, unifying data across medical, performance, coaching, and operational domains to deliver AI-driven, evidence-based insights. iP enables leagues, federations, and elite organisations to connect data, streamline workflows, and optimise ath...

Esta semana hablamos de la salida a bolsa de Nutrisa, de PitchBook, del desempeño de Pandora en México, de la repatriación de capital y de los espacios para construir data centers.10:26 - Nutrisa17:37 - PitchBook27:50 - Pandora31:44 - repatriación de capital 36:47 - data centersPrueba Whitepaper 30 días gratisCompra tu gorra o ilustraciones de Whitepaper aquí

Christina Cyr spoke with us about building cell phones, entrepreneurship, social purpose corporations, awards, lithium recycling, and her interesting career path.  We talked about Christina's Cyrcle Phone, the related kit from dTOOR, and her CES Innovation Award. We also mentioned Fairphone in the section about social purpose corporation. There is a great paper from Nature about lithium-ion battery recycling: The evolution of lithium-ion battery recycling | Nature Reviews Clean Technology Christina Cyr Personal Website  Wellfound (formerly AngelList) is a startup focused job site that may lead to non-fulltime positions. Crunchbase may help you figure out is the startup has capital (also Pitchbook thought that generally has a cost). ADH connectors by JST and the SparkFun JST Battery Removal Tool The quote was from Hemlock & Silver by T Kingfisher and it was a lovely fantasy mystery with an incredible first chapter. Note: there are some audio artifacts on Christina's track, we apologize as there was a technical issue that couldn't be resolved. We've tried to clean it up with post-processing. There's nothing wrong with your headphones :) Transcript                                If you're interested in how 3D printing is changing design engineering, Mouser Electronics has some great resources to check out. Their Empowering Innovation Together platform is taking a deep dive into additive manufacturing—covering smarter production, faster prototyping, and breakthrough materials that move ideas beyond prototypes into real-world products. You'll find podcasts, expert articles, and videos that keep you informed and inspired. Sound like your thing? Head to Mouser.com/empowering-innovation and explore.

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast.Today's podcast was a conversation that was recorded live at Morningstar's Investment Conference in Chicago earlier this year.Morningstar CEO Kunal Kapoor took time out of his packed schedule at the event to sit down with me for a thought-provoking conversation that dove into the nuances of many of the trends that are shaping private markets today.Morningstar and Kunal have quite an interesting perch in the market. They occupy a critically important function in the market: helping investors understand the data, structures, and trends in public and private markets. They provide fund ratings, investment analysis, and market data to both individual and institutional investors.As public and private markets experience increasing convergence, Morningstar finds itself at the intersection of markets that are undergoing rapid evolutions across product structures, asset allocation frameworks, and weighty questions around conceptual frameworks of liquidity, risk, volatility, concentration that are on the minds of many. Amongst the wide range of topics Kunal and I covered, one stood out: Morningstar is fiercely on the side of the investor.If there's anyone who has a deep understanding of Morningstar's DNA, it's Kunal. Kunal started at Morningstar in 1997 as a data analyst, holding a variety of roles at the firm, including leadership positions in research and innovation. He served as director of mutual fund research and was part of the team that launched Morningstar Investment Services, Inc., before moving on to other roles including director of business strategy for international operations, and later, president and chief investment officer of Morningstar Investment Services. During his tenure, he has also led Morningstar.com® and the firm's data business as well as its global products and client solutions group.Kunal and I had a fascinating and lively conversation. We covered a number of the most pressing topics in private markets today: the convergence of public and private, liquidity vs illiquidity, investor education, the importance of transparency, and the why, what, and how behind evergreen funds.Thanks Kunal for coming on the show to share your wisdom, expertise, and passion for public and private markets.A word from AGM podcast sponsor, Ultimus Fund SolutionsThis episode of Alt Goes Mainstream is brought to you by Ultimus Fund Solutions, a leading full-service fund administrator for asset managers in private and public markets. As private markets continue to move into the mainstream, the industry requires infrastructure solutions that help funds and investors keep pace. In an increasingly sophisticated financial marketplace, investment managers must navigate a growing array of challenges: elaborate fund structures, specialized strategies, evolving compliance requirements, a growing need for sophisticated reporting, and intensifying demands for transparency.To assist with these challenging opportunities, more and more fund sponsors and asset managers are turning to Ultimus, a leading service provider that blends high tech and high touch in unique and customized fund administration and middle office solutions for a diverse and growing universe of over 450 clients and 1,800 funds, representing $500 billion assets under administration, all handled by a team of over 1,000 professionals. Ultimus offers a wide range of capabilities across registered funds, private funds and public plans, as well as outsourced middle office services. Delivering operational excellence, Ultimus helps firms manage the ever-changing regulatory environment while meeting the needs of their institutional and retail investors. Ultimus provides comprehensive operational support and fund governance services to help managers successfully launch retail alternative products.Visit www.ultimusfundsolutions.com to learn more about Ultimus' technology enhanced services and solutions or contact Ultimus Executive Vice President of Business Development Gary Harris on email at gharris@ultimusfundsolutions.com.We thank Ultimus for their support of alts going mainstream.Show Notes00:00 Introduction to our Sponsor, Ultimus01:18 Podcast Opening and Theme01:55 Welcome to the Morningstar Investment Conference02:29 Convergence of Public and Private Markets03:12 Challenges in Transitioning to Private Markets05:26 Morningstar's Evolution and Impact06:59 Morningstar's Role in Reducing Costs08:15 Evergreen Funds and Transparency08:48 Complexities in Private Market Structures09:36 Liquidity and Innovation in Private Markets12:27 Investor Education and Common Language14:34 Comparing Public and Private Market Investments16:28 Standardized Documentation and Regulation18:00 Educating Investors on Private Markets18:52 Morningstar's Style Box for Private Markets19:14 Data Availability and Analysis20:24 Evaluating Different Investment Structures21:09 Public-Private Partnerships and Transparency21:38 Philosophical Questions on Private Markets22:58 Behavioral Aspects of Illiquidity24:00 Evergreen Funds as Buy and Hold Vehicles24:15 Asset Allocation and Evergreen Structures25:16 Investor Behavior and Market Volatility25:25 Individual Investors vs. Advisors26:32 Stability of Retail Assets26:56 Retail Brokerage Apps and Crypto Trading27:15 Impact of Social Media on Young Investors27:29 Exposure to Private Markets28:01 Market Drawdowns and Young Investors28:27 Advisor-Led Models vs. Self-Directed Investing28:57 Investor Behavior Across Different Age Groups30:06 Morningstar's Role in Investor Validation30:50 Morningstar's Independent Voice32:01 Transparency in Private Markets32:24 PitchBook and Data Transparency33:02 Challenges in Private Market Data33:26 Tipping Point in Transparency34:54 Private Market Indices35:37 Challenges in Benchmarking Private Markets36:29 Lessons from Public Markets37:12 Evolution of Private Markets37:37 Future of Private Markets38:41 Fee Structures in Private Markets39:38 Operational Burden in Private Markets40:50 Pre-Trade Market Structure41:16 Access to Private Markets for All Investors43:06 Returns and Diversification in Private Markets44:51 Building Portfolios in a Lower Return Environment47:15 Brand vs. Performance in Alternative Assets49:18 Favorite Alternative InvestmentsEditing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant.

Meta is readying smartglasses with a display, but also, a look at their theoretical and prototype roadmap for the future of headware hardware generally. Is all the money in the world not actually going to get Zuck what he wants in AI? And is the acquihire in all but name trend of recent months breaking Silicon Valley's fundamental business model? Links: Apple's Vision Pro Is Suffering From a Lack of Immersive Video (Bloomberg) Meta Tiramisu "Hyperrealistic VR" Hands-On: A Stunning Window Into Another World (UploadVR) Meta Boba 3 Prototype Hands-On: Ultra-Wide Field Of View Without Compromise (UploadVR) Startup down rounds are at a 10 year high, according to PitchBook data (Fortune) Meta Plans Fourth Restructuring of AI Efforts in Six Months (The Information) Zuckerberg Squandered His AI Talent. Now He's Spending Billions To Replace It. (Forbes) Big Tech Is Eating Itself in Talent War (WSJ) Enough is enough—I dumped Google's worsening search for Kagi (ArsTechnica) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Show Notes: Sid Masson, co-founder and CEO of Wokelo.ai explains that Wokelo is an agentic platform for investment research and commercial due diligence, automating market research and desk research activities performed by consulting firms, investment banks,  private equity analysts and so on. It offers  private market research and allows the user to pass through hundreds and 1000s of data sets in a matter of minutes, but beyond just research, it automates end-to-end deliverables, all the way to a well formatted PowerPoint deck in a format of your choice. How Wokelo.ai Works Sid mentions that Wokelo has been in production for two and a half years and commercially launched in November 2023. The platform has 40+ paying customers, including big four consulting firms like KPMG, investment banks, and venture capital firms. Pricing starts at $30,000 annually for five seats and proportionate usage. Sid explains that  larger enterprises use bespoke models which cost more and cases where certain boutique consulting firms who may not have may not need five or 10 seats and are offered customized pricing. Wokelo also ensures various security levels, including SOC 2 compliant cloud, private cloud instances, and on-prem deployments. A Demonstration of Wokelo Sid explains Wokelo's web application, which offers several workflows for different tasks. The platform includes standardized workflows like company research, industry research, and market maps, as well as custom workflows designed by users. He demonstrates the process of creating a live report for a company, including adding company attributes, uploading files, and generating insights. The platform generates a detailed, editable notebook with insights, sources, and charts, which can be exported in various formats. Sid lists the data sources Wokelo uses, including third-party data partnerships, public data scraping, and user-uploaded data. The platform has partnerships with CrunchBase, PitchBook, SNP Cap IQ, and IEP Query for patent data. Wokelo's proprietary private company database includes detailed information beyond firmographics, such as product catalogs and management profiles. Wokelo's Custom Workflow Feature Sid explains the custom workflow feature, which allows users to design their own bespoke workflows to mimic their existing methodologies. Custom workflows can include custom analysis, synergy potential mapping, and IC memos, tailored to specific user needs. The platform's user interface is designed to be easy to use, with guardrails and standardized constraints to ensure high-quality outputs. Wokelo's editable notebooks and charts are designed to be user-friendly and customizable, allowing for detailed and professional reports. The Wokelo Team Sid shares the background of the Wokelo team, including his and his co-founder's experience in management consulting and AI. The team has grown from 10 to 25 members in the last 12 months, with a focus on building a solid product and team. Wokelo has raised two rounds of funding: a pre-seed round in 2023 and a seed round in September 2022, totaling $5.5 million. The funding has helped the team build a solid product and team, focusing on quality and value rather than excessive funding. Sid discusses the challenges of selling to large firms and the initial skepticism they face. Wokelo plans to continue iterating and improving the platform, focusing on user experience and domain expertise. The team aims to expand their customer base and offer more customized solutions to meet the evolving needs of their clients. Timestamps: 00:02: Overview of Wokelo and its purpose  02:47: Customer base and pricing  05:51: Demonstration of Wokelo's features  08:50: Data sources and security  19:24: Custom workflows and user interface 27:04: Team background and funding  35:46: Challenges and future plans  Links:  https://www.wokelo.ai/ Unleashed is produced by Umbrex, which has a mission of connecting independent management consultants with one another, creating opportunities for members to meet, build relationships, and share lessons learned. Learn more at www.umbrex.com.  

In this episode, Duane Mancini welcomes to the show Aaron DeGagne, Healthcare Senior Analyst at PitchBook. From quarterly reports to market dynamics, Aaron sheds light on significant healthcare investments, including the rise in surgical tools, devices, and the blurring lines between healthtech and medtech. They delve into the impact of global market uncertainties, interest rates, and the noteworthy deals like Neuralink's $600 million raise. The conversation also explores themes like consumer health advancements, cancer diagnostics, and the potential shifts in IPO activities.Aaron DeGagne LinkedInPitchBook WebsiteDuane Mancini LinkedInProject Medtech WebsiteProject Medtech LinkedIn

Pitchbook reports a modest rebound in private equity deals in Q1 of 2025, and JPalmer Collective's Jennifer Palmer sees reasons for optimism for mission-driven brands and women-owned and -led brands. But both warn the current uncertainty is the new norm

In this episode of Tank Talks, we're joined by Gaurav Jain, co-founder of Afore Capital, one of the earliest and most respected players in the pre-seed investing space. Gaurav shares how growing up in a small town in India, moving to Canada, and working at Blackberry, Amazon, and Google helped him understand the value of momentum, iteration, and building products that truly matter.He walks us through how a random dinner at Harvard led to meeting his future co-founder, how they built Afore around the belief that the best founders are often overlooked too early, and why the firm exclusively focuses on investing before there's a product or sometimes even an idea.Gaurav dives into what makes a great founder at the earliest stage, why he believes momentum is the only moat, and how the rise of AI has only accelerated opportunities for young, technical entrepreneurs to build enduring companies with less capital. He also opens up about the firm's "Founder-in-Residence" and "UTransfer" programs, his view on the Canadian tech scene, and the power of bespoke, high-conviction investing.We explore:* Why is momentum the only true moat in early-stage startups?* Can pre-seed investing still deliver alpha now that it's crowded?* Is seed-strapping the future of venture capital?* How do you identify founders before they've found their idea?* What happens when you give 19-year-olds the capital to build?Building a Pre-Seed Fund Before “Pre-Seed” Was a Thing (00:03:54)* Interning globally to chase experience and perspective* The turning point: joining Founder Collective* Meeting co-founder Anamitra through a lucky dinner at Foundation Capital* Launching Afore in 2016 to fill the pre-seed voidFounder Empathy & Early-Stage VC Lessons (00:08:17)* Mistakes from being a first-time founder* Learning that exits don't matter, products and pain points do* Why Canadian angel advice focused too much on sales, not software* Why product-led growth is a must-have, not a nice-to-haveThe 10,000 Coffees Rule of Venture (00:11:27)* How judgment is built: time, exposure, and repetition* Why investing based on ideas (not teams) is a rookie mistake* Filtering “this could work” vs. “this must work”* The real constraint in VC: time, not capitalAfore's Mission: Investing Before the Idea (00:15:00)* The “Too Early” problem founders face and why Afore exists* How FIR (Founder in Residence) and Transfer University fund ideation* Building a support system, not a portfolio of call options* Why being idea-stage isn't a red flag, it's a sign of ambitionConvincing LPs That Pre-Seed Was Real (00:19:19)* LP skepticism: “Isn't this just the bad deals no one else wants?”* How talking to founders not seed managers won over investors* Working with PitchBook and Crunchbase to split out pre-seed data* Making pre-seed visible helped founders self-identify and alignSeed-Strapping and the Rise of Efficient Startups (00:24:00)* How AI-native startups are hitting $1M ARR 2x faster* Case study: Gamma's hypergrowth on ultra-low burn* Why founders can delay growth rounds longer than ever* Capital efficiency is now a competitive edgeMomentum Is the Only Moat (00:26:07)* How Android's rise taught Gaurav speed = survival* Lessons from RIM's downfall: never rest on product laurels* Why the AI era is reshaping iteration timelines* Pre-seed startups now move at the speed of launches, not quartersPivot-as-a-Service in the AI World (00:34:16)* FIR teams pivoting from speech therapy to CX platforms* Younger founders = more raw talent, less domain bias* Startups pivoting every 6–8 weeks—and why that's healthy* Embracing pivots as a feature, not a flawScaling Afore with Purpose (00:35:21)* Fund IV, $500M+ AUM, and 150+ companies later* Why concentrated portfolios beat spray-and-pray* The dangers of being too dogmatic on stage or valuation* Supporting breakout talent like Neo, Gamma, and BenchGlobal Perspective: Canada's Role in Venture (00:41:19)* Why Canada produces world-class engineering talent* The upside and limits of building in the North* Hybrid models: Canada for R&D, U.S. for GTM* Afore's belief in serving Canadian founders, wherever they buildFailure may define most early-stage startups, but for Gaurav Jain, the real story starts before the pitch, before the product, even before the idea. With Afore Capital, he is betting on people over polish, instinct over perfection, and helping founders build long before the rest of the world is watching. His journey reminds us that great companies don't always start with traction; they start with trust.About Gaurav JainCo-founder and Managing Partner at Afore Capital. Ex-Android, BlackBerry, and founder of Polar Mobile. Afore is known for being one of the first firms dedicated to pre-seed, supporting founders before they even have an idea.Connect with Gaurav Jain on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gjainvcVisit Afore Capital Website: https://www.afore.vc/Connect with Matt Cohen on LinkedIn: https://ca.linkedin.com/in/matt-cohen1Visit the Ripple Ventures website: https://www.rippleventures.com/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

John and Glen ruminate on a pair of major events reshuffling the fintech world- The Circle IPO's impact on venture funding, and the Big Beautiful Bill's unorthodox approach to throttling AI regulation. Also- John gets “spun out on quantum,” and admits a surprising change of heart regarding his outlook for AI.           Links related to this episode:   Glen's blog on the Circle and Chime IPOs: https://www.big-fintech.com/what-the-chime-and-circle-ipos-mean-for-fintech-investment/ The Senate alters the House budget provision curtailing states' ability to regulate AI: https://rollcall.com/2025/06/05/ai-regulation-moratorium-dropped-in-senate-budget-package/  Axios' story about AI's newfound ability to blackmail: https://www.axios.com/2025/05/23/anthropic-ai-deception-risk  CNBC's take on the Genius Act: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/06/13/what-the-genius-act-could-mean-for-crypto-and-other-investors.html  TechCrunch's recap of Chime's circuitous path to a successful IPO: https://techcrunch.com/2025/06/12/chime-almost-died-in-2016-turned-down-by-100-vcs-today-it-ipod-at-14-5b/  Pitchbook's take on the inevitability of Chime's “down round” IPO: https://pitchbook.com/news/articles/chimes-ipo-signals-down-rounds-are-here-to-stay     Join us for our next CU Town Hall- Wednesday July 9 at 3pm ET/Noon PT- for a live and lively interactive conversation tackling the major issues facing credit unions today. Industry developments keep coming fast and furious- the CU Town Hall is the place to make sense of these items together. It's free to attend, but advance registration is required:  https://www.cutownhall.com/   Join us on Bluesky!  @bigfintech.bsky.social;  @154advisors.bsky.social (Glen); @jbfintech.bsky.social (John) And connect on LinkedIn for insights like the Friday Fintech Five: https://www.linkedin.com/company/best-innovation-group/  https://www.linkedin.com/in/jbfintech/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/glensarvady/

Despite what some experts have characterized as an environment increasingly hostile to AI R&D, North America continues to receive the bulk of AI venture dollars, according to data from investment tracker PitchBook. Between February and May of this year, VCs poured $69.7 billion into North America-based AI and machine learning startups across 1,528 deals. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Good morning from Pharma and Biotech daily: the podcast that gives you only what's important to hear in the Pharma and Biotech world.Jefferies predicts an increase in small tuck-in deals in the biotech industry as companies face challenges accessing capital. Companies and industry groups are offering solutions to mitigate the impact of Trump tariffs on rare disease, cell, and gene therapy. Pitchbook suggests a shift towards more sustainable investing in biotech VC firms. Gilead is gearing up to challenge J&J in the $20 billion multiple myeloma CAR-T market. PTP's generative AI is revolutionizing data summaries for biotech QC workflows. Sanofi recently acquired Blueprint for $9.5 billion, while BMS has committed up to $11 billion with Biontech. Lilly has signed a deal worth up to $870 million, and Regeneron is investing nearly $2 billion in a Chinese obesity drug. Merck's CEO is emphasizing diversity in operations following the defeat of an anti-DEI measure. Immuno-oncology drugs Keytruda and Opdivo may face scrutiny in the near future.In other news, Vigil Neuroscience's Trem2 antibody for a rare brain disease failed in a Phase II trial shortly after Sanofi's acquisition of the company. Analysts believe the results were not surprising and should not impact the deal. Lilly has signed a deal worth up to $870 million to develop a long-acting GLP-1 obesity drug, while the FDA is committed to making rare disease drugs available at the first sign of promise. Pharma tuck-in deals are increasing after a slow first quarter for small biotechs. BioAgc Biologics will be attending Bio International in Boston to discuss their global drug production capabilities.Stay tuned for more updates on investing in research, welcoming global talent, the biotech VC cycle, Gilead's challenge to J&J in the multiple myeloma CAR-T market, and much more. Upcoming events and job listings in the pharmaceutical industry are also featured in our newsletter.Thank you for tuning in to Pharma and Biotech daily.

Kern Egan is the founder and CEO of Multiplier, an agency that shapes culture to build brands. Multiplier manages the cultural marketing initiatives for a roster of world-class brands, including Bridgestone, Caterpillar, Chase Sapphire, Invisalign, JP Morgan Payments, On Running, PitchBook, Winnebago, and Wyndham Hotels, among others. Multiplier Ventures is a limited partner in Sapphire Sport Ventures and Elysian Park Golf Ventures and has made direct investments in Leeds United, Overtime, and TMRW Sports, among others. Kern is an advisor for Cal-Berkeley's SkyDeck technology accelerator and is the founder and chairman of Dallas Influencers in Sports and Entertainment (DISE), the area's leading industry nonprofit, granting over $1,000,000 to 46 local youth charities. He is also the former Chairman of the Heart of Dallas Bowl at the historic Cotton Bowl Stadium and served on the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Host Committee. Kern, a graduate of Indiana University, was named a Forty Under 40 honoree by both the SportsBusiness Journal and Dallas Business Journal.

Our analysts Vishy Tirupattur and Joyce Jiang discuss the health of private credit as default pressures are building for borrowers amid weaker growth, fewer rate cuts and policy uncertainty.Read more insights from Morgan Stanley.----- Transcript -----Vishy Tirupattur: Welcome to Thoughts on the Market. I am Vishy Tirupattur, Morgan Stanley's Chief Fixed Income Strategist.Joyce Jiang: And I'm Joyce Jiang, U.S. Leverage Finance Strategist.Vishy Tirupattur: Today we'll take a look at private credit markets. Will it stay resilient in the current macro conditions? Or a reckoning is ahead of us.It's Tuesday, May 13th at 10am in New York.Tariffs and policy uncertainty are on the top of mind for people with an eye on the economy and markets. Certainly, a frequent topic of discussion for us on this podcast. In this environment, there has been growing concern about the health of corporate credit – and within corporate credit direct lending or middle market segments, where companies tend to be smaller in size and have weaker fundamentals are of particular concern. The business models of these companies are sensitive to slower growth.Joyce, can you map out the risks associated with private credit companies?Joyce Jiang: To your point, risks are rising in private credit, but I think these risks would be measured given the still resilient fundamental backdrop. Looking at fundamental trends, there is no clear sign of leverage building up in the system yet, and multiple data sources actually show that the leverage ratios among direct lending companies have either improved or remained flat. And that's very different from the previous cycles where excessive corporate leverage set the stage for the eventual downturn.So, this time around credit, including both public credit and private credit, is not the source of the problem. But, of course, these direct lending companies would be impacted by higher tariffs. So, Vishy what's your view on the tariff impact?Vishy Tirupattur: So, the direct impact of tariffs, Joyce, we think is likely to be muted. It's quite hard to quantify this exposure, but if you look at a number of different data sources, we find that the direct lending loans are more skewed towards defensive and service-oriented sectors.For example, sectors such as a technology, business services and healthcare account for over half of the loans in typical BDC portfolios or Business Development Company portfolios of direct lending loans. But that said, even though the direct impact could be somewhat limited, there could be second order effects because there is higher uncertainty and weaker confidence, and that could weigh on demand. There could be a tail cohort that could be developing.So, some data from Lincoln International, for example, shows that about 15 per cent of direct lending companies have EBITDA interest coverage ratio below 1x. Another way of looking at tail cohort is by looking at companies generating negative free operating cash flow. According to S&P data, that's about 40 per cent. These tail cohorts are stretched and are weakly positioned to weather macro challenges ahead.So, Joyce, another thing that comes up frequently when we talk about private credit is Payment In Kind interest or the so-called PIK interest. Can you walk us through what is a PIK and why is it a concern?Joyce Jiang: So, Payment In Kind interest – it occurs when the company stops paying interest in cash, but instead the interest is accrued and added to the principal balance. It is quite common for companies under liquidity stress to switch to PIKs for cash preservation, But in many cases, PIKs don't really clean up the company's balance sheet, and the companies may still end up in a conventional default. So, PIK is generally considered as a leading indicator of default by market participants.And to be clear, not all PIK loans are bad. PIK toggles are actually a key feature that distinguishes direct lending loans from syndicated loans because it provides non-distressed companies the flexibility to reallocate cash for other business needs. So, PIKs do not necessarily signal higher defaults. And in fact, data showed that BDCs or Business Development Companies with a higher PIK income don't always see a greater increase in nonaccruals. So, in other words, the relationship between PIK income and defaults is not persistently strong.Vishy Tirupattur: So, to summarize, overall fundamentals are on a relatively strong footing, but risks in private credit are rising, especially if we have a potential economic slowdown ahead. On the other hand, there are a few structural features with the private credit loans that could potentially help mitigate some of the vulnerabilities we've just talked about.First thing, direct lending loans are not marked to market by design, so they have lower volatility and are relatively immune from daily price moves. And really related to that, redemption risk of private credit funds has been fairly contained so far. These funds usually have tools like lockup periods and redemption caps to guard against unexpected large outflows.But of course, the effectiveness of these mechanisms has not yet been tested in severe downturns. Moreover, the capital that is going into private credit is relatively sticky capital. Key investors, such as insurance companies and pension funds are hold-to-maturity type buyers, and they're entering in the space for the attractiveness of the higher yields and to harvest illiquidity premia embedded in these loans. So, with that long-term investment horizon, they would be more willing to support companies through temporary liquidity challenges. Also, small lender groups in direct lending market makes it easier to negotiate restructurings.Joyce Jiang: Lastly, there is also ample dry powder. According to PitchBook, there is $570 billion of dry powder in private debt fund, and another $2 trillion in private equity funds. And this capital can be deployed to backstop distressed companies and help keeping defaults in check. And in terms of defaults, we are expecting syndicated loan defaults to end the year at 4 per cent. And that's our base case.And based on the historical relationship, that implies a like for like default rate for perfect credit at 5 per cent, which means a mild uptake from the current level, but is still below the COVID peak.Vishy Tirupattur: Joyce, thanks for taking the time to talk about this.Joyce Jiang: Thanks for having me, Vishy.Vishy Tirupattur: And to our listeners, thank you for your attention. Let us know what you think of this podcast and the topics we cover. And if you think a friend or a colleague might find this information useful, please share Thoughts on the Market with them today.

Send us a textWe explore the life and career of fascinating and worldly sideshow performer Francesco "Frank" Lentini aka The Great Lentini, born with three legs, four feet and two functional sets of genitalia! Join us on our deep dive into his early life, varied show skills and interesting perspectives proclaimed by this famed exhibitor. {This episode contains explicit language}LENTINI'S "PITCHBOOK": https://www.missioncreep.com/mundie/gallery/gallery11.htmMORE : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7iDqmwuKiWk**Check out our IG for images we discuss during the episode!**Head to www.magicmind.com/CIRCUSAPR and enter the code CIRCUSAPR20% off your first order or 48% off a subscription! Support the show+Follow Us on IG @circus.stories+Email us: circusstoriespodcast@gmail.comRate, Review and Subscribe where ever you Listen!Thanks for Listening + Check those Boilers !!

It's the last Friday in April and it's time for Marketplace Tech Bytes Week in Review. This week, we'll talk about how the Federal Trade Commission is suing Uber over its subscription service.Plus, how the VC world is navigating the uncertainty created by the trade war.But first, a nonprofit pivot is facing some challenges. Open AI, the maker of ChatGPT was founded about a decade ago as a nonprofit research lab. It's now looking to restructure as a for-profit — specifically, a public benefit corporationBut that transformation is facing resistance. About 10 former Open AI employees, along with several Nobel laureates and other experts, have written an open letter asking regulators in California and Delaware to block the change. They argue that nonprofit control is crucial to Open AI's mission, which is to “ensure that artificial general intelligence benefits all of humanity."Marketplace's Stephanie Hughes spoke with Jewel Burks Solomon, managing partner at Collab Capital, about how unusual it is to see this kind of conversion. YouTube Video of Marketplace Tech BytesMore on everything we talked aboutAn Open Letter - Not For Private GainEx-OpenAI workers ask California and Delaware AGs to block for-profit conversion of ChatGPT maker - from the Associated PressOpenAI's Latest Funding Round Comes With a $20 Billion Catch - from the Wall Street JournalFTC Takes Action Against Uber for Deceptive Billing and Cancellation Practices - from the Federal Trade CommissionFTC sues Uber over difficulty of canceling subscriptions, “false” claims - from ArsTechnicaWhite House Considers Slashing China Tariffs to De-Escalate Trade War - from the Wall Street JournalVC manufacturing deals were already declining before tariffs entered the picture - from Pitchbook

It's the last Friday in April and it's time for Marketplace Tech Bytes Week in Review. This week, we'll talk about how the Federal Trade Commission is suing Uber over its subscription service.Plus, how the VC world is navigating the uncertainty created by the trade war.But first, a nonprofit pivot is facing some challenges. Open AI, the maker of ChatGPT was founded about a decade ago as a nonprofit research lab. It's now looking to restructure as a for-profit — specifically, a public benefit corporationBut that transformation is facing resistance. About 10 former Open AI employees, along with several Nobel laureates and other experts, have written an open letter asking regulators in California and Delaware to block the change. They argue that nonprofit control is crucial to Open AI's mission, which is to “ensure that artificial general intelligence benefits all of humanity."Marketplace's Stephanie Hughes spoke with Jewel Burks Solomon, managing partner at Collab Capital, about how unusual it is to see this kind of conversion. YouTube Video of Marketplace Tech BytesMore on everything we talked aboutAn Open Letter - Not For Private GainEx-OpenAI workers ask California and Delaware AGs to block for-profit conversion of ChatGPT maker - from the Associated PressOpenAI's Latest Funding Round Comes With a $20 Billion Catch - from the Wall Street JournalFTC Takes Action Against Uber for Deceptive Billing and Cancellation Practices - from the Federal Trade CommissionFTC sues Uber over difficulty of canceling subscriptions, “false” claims - from ArsTechnicaWhite House Considers Slashing China Tariffs to De-Escalate Trade War - from the Wall Street JournalVC manufacturing deals were already declining before tariffs entered the picture - from Pitchbook

Good morning from Pharma and Biotech daily: the podcast that gives you only what's important to hear in Pharma e Biotech world.Roche and Regeneron are both investing heavily in US manufacturing, with Roche committing $50 billion and Regeneron signing a $3 billion deal with Fujifilm. This move comes as Trump's tariffs threaten the industry. Meanwhile, Pfizer, Alnylam, and BridgeBio are competing in the market for ATTR-CM treatment, with Alnylam and BridgeBio vying for patients switching from Pfizer's tafamidis drug and all three companies seeking new patients.Novo Nordisk has filed for FDA approval of an oral weight loss pill, AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo are pushing their drug Enhertu for frontline breast cancer treatment, and Gilead's Trodelvy in combination with Keytruda has shown promise in slowing disease progression in triple-negative breast cancer. Wacker Biotech is offering services for advanced therapies, while Tempest has recently laid off 80% of its workforce.The industry is facing regulatory challenges and economic uncertainty, with Trump's tariffs potentially impacting pharma companies. Lilly has promised to manufacture a weight-loss pill in the US following a phase III win, and Makary discusses rare disease approvals and public distrust in a new interview. Biotech's future may be more focused on American companies according to PitchBook.

Emily Roland, co-chief investment strategist at John Hancock Investment Management, says she is minimizing geopolitical inputs right now because it's impossible to make investment decisions around uncertainty. She says it's particularly important right now to focus on fundamentals and what's real — "We're investing in companies not countries" — and she is not buying the long-term hype on Europe because she says the recent rally doesn't have a strong foundation to stand on. That's one of four interviews from FutureProof Citywide in Miami Beach for today's show. Chuck also talks emerging markets and global income investing with Dan Shaykevich, head of Multi Sector Strategy, co-head of Emerging Markets and Sovereign Debt with Vanguard, discusses the evolution  of new financial products with Alec Davis, head of enterprise reporting at Pitchbook, and covers the stock market and being a patient investor in impatient times with Eddy Elfenbein, editor of the Crossing Wall Street blog and portfolio strategist for the AdvisorShares Focused Equity ETF.

Welcome to another insightful episode of Coffee with a Journalist, brought to you by the team at One Pitch. This week, we're excited to have Kia Kokalitcheva, the Senior Editor of VC News at PitchBook, join us from San Francisco. Kia dives into PitchBook's editorial focus on the deal-making world, shares her approach to managing an influx of press releases, and offers advice for publicists looking to effectively engage with her team. With her extensive background at Axios and Fortune, Kia also highlights the critical elements she considers when covering funding announcements. So grab your coffee and get ready to learn about the power of data-driven journalism and how to navigate the fast-paced media landscape. Enjoy the episode!

In the latest episode of Technology Reseller News, Doug Green sits down with Jeffrey Fidelman, CEO and founder of Fidelman & Company, to discuss an innovative approach to fundraising—Fundraise-as-a-Service (FaaS). The Evolution of Fidelman & Company Founded in 2015, Fidelman & Company initially provided consulting services for early-stage companies, helping them prepare investor materials, financial models, and capital structures. As demand grew, clients requested more than just preparation—they needed execution. This led to the development of FaaS, a structured service that actively helps businesses navigate the complex fundraising landscape. How FaaS Works FaaS streamlines and systematizes investor outreach, ensuring companies connect with qualified investors through a methodical, data-driven process. The service operates in two tiers: Self-Service: Clients access Fidelman & Co.'s proprietary database and systems but handle outreach independently. Full-Service: A dedicated analyst manages all outreach, sequencing investor communications, personalizing engagements, and setting up meetings. Fidelman emphasizes that fundraising is not a numbers game but an efficiency game—increasing conversion rates rather than blindly reaching out to more investors. Making High-Level Fundraising Accessible Many smaller companies struggle with fundraising due to high costs and limited access to key resources. Fidelman & Co. absorbs the costs of premium tools like PitchBook and ZoomInfo—subscriptions that often exceed $125K annually—and provides clients month-to-month access without long-term commitments. Key Benefits of FaaS: Curated investor outreach based on industry, funding stage, and interest. Structured follow-up systems that ensure consistency. Performance-based incentives for analysts, ensuring high-quality engagement. Transparency & flexibility—no six- or 12-month lock-ins. A Personalized Approach to Fundraising Unlike traditional advisory firms, Fidelman & Co. remains hands-on, offering weekly strategy meetings and tailored investor engagement. AI plays a supporting role, but human expertise drives the process. For companies considering fundraising, FaaS offers a scalable, high-touch solution that levels the playing field for startups and growing businesses. Learn More Interested companies can explore Fidelman & Company's services at fidelmanco.com or contact Jeffrey Fidelman directly at jeffrey@fidelmanco.com. For founders looking to raise capital without the complexity—FaaS might be the game-changer they need.  

Pitchbook reports that of venture capital deals in 2024, roughly 30% of them were down rounds or flat, meaning their valuation of the companies either went backwards or were the same round to round. It's a trend that will continue, so how can entrepreneurs break the cycle? Matt Tyner, managing partner of America's most active venture capital firm – Elevate Ventures, joins today to make sense of what's ahead and how innovators can succeed. He gets into: The current state of venture capital – and the criticality of taking a step back to understand where things sit today Investors' increased focus on profitability and not being able to cut your way to growth Artificial intelligence as an enabler – not a vertical Does the future include a shift to debt versus venture The cost of innovation and the role of an investor in this era of venture capital What the current conversation with portfolio companies looks like for Elevate Ventures What Matt sees as emerging trends in agbioscience The most important jobs to be done in the industry

Pitchbook reports that of venture capital deals in 2024, roughly 30% of them were down rounds or flat, meaning their valuation of the companies either went backwards or were the same round to round. It's a trend that will continue, so how can entrepreneurs break the cycle? Matt Tyner, managing partner of America's most active venture capital firm – Elevate Ventures, joins today to make sense of what's ahead and how innovators can succeed. He gets into:  The current state of venture capital – and the criticality of taking a step back to understand where things sit today Investors' increased focus on profitability and not being able to cut your way to growth Artificial intelligence as an enabler – not a vertical  Does the future include a shift to debt versus venture The cost of innovation and the role of an investor in this era of venture capital What the current conversation with portfolio companies looks like for Elevate Ventures What Matt sees as emerging trends in agbioscience The most important jobs to be done in the industry 

Nikola Lazarov is the co-founder and CEO of Eilla AI, a tool that provides AI workers for private market intelligence. Nikola is an AI engineer who started his career at a London-based hedge fund, Marble Bar Asset Management, where he worked as a quant. He realized the value of AI in structuring unstructured data for private companies and decided to start a company almost three years ago. What Eilla AI Does While Nikola mentions that their target clients are investors and investment bankers, Eilla AI's tool does various tasks, such as finding competitors, analyzing their USP, target market, and financials. It also offers a solution for finding comparable transactions and conducting valuation reports. By searching for similar companies, it can determine their multiples, revenues, and valuations. The tool collects data from various data providers, including CrunchBase Zero and PitchBook, and scrapes it on its own. One of the most exciting solutions offered by Eilla AI is finding comparable transactions and doing valuation reports. This involves finding similar companies, analyzing their financials, average multiples, and what is driving these valuations. The tool automatically gathers and compares the data, providing valuable insights for startups, investors, and investment bankers. How Eilla AI Works The conversation turns to how it works. Nikola talks through using the software and explains the visuals on the screen, which includes tabs such as company, profile, competitor, research, buyer, selection, investment highlights, key questions, risks and mitigates, and a one-pager. The company profile page provides a consolidated set of information about the company, including its headquarters location, number of employees, founding status, total raised, and last transaction. The company description, industry, problem solved, key team members, funding, product, clients, business model, digital intelligence, and news are all included. The platform is similar to CrunchBase and other data aggregators, but it aggregates data from various sources, such as LinkedIn, their website, CrunchBase, and Capita. The platform also offers footnotes for each piece of data, allowing users to hover over it to see the source of the information. The platform also provides information on the website traffic, such as the source and the number of followers. Aggregating Data from Various Sources Nikola explains how the tool works using competitor research as the example to find the closest competitors to Pay Hawk. He explains that this process saves time and helps save time by aggregating data.  However, what differentiates Eilla AI is what happens on top of this aggregated data. It uses a proprietary database of in-depth product information to gather information from over 7 million companies, ranking them based on funding, cat count, and other factors. AI is used to determine the number of competitors and similar companies.  A Vertical View of Information Users can select a few companies to dive deeper into, and a vertical view allows for a comparison table. The table includes company name type, description, product description, headquarters location, team, year of founding, last round of funding, status, ownership status, detailed offering, unique selling proposition, and target market. The information is organized in a way that would take weeks to pull together. Users can use the vertical view to see the companies side by side. The platform also includes green dots on product descriptions to indicate high similarity and source information. This tool is unique in that it not only provides data but also replicates the workflow of competitor research. It offers insights such as a SWOT analysis on the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of Pay Hawk versus its competitors. Product and Services The platform also includes a Products and Services tab with bullet points around PayHawk versus its competitors. Each product has a footnote where users can click to see the sources and scroll down to understand the differences between the two companies. Nikola also mentions the upcoming release of Cap IQ Financial, which includes important information like revenue, beta, valuation, and financials. The buyer selection tab is particularly interesting, as it shows all similar companies to Payco, including acquisitions and mergers. These companies are split into potential strategic buyers, competitors, and financial buyers. The tool also highlights the similarities between Pay Hawk and other companies, such as Visma and Instant, a platform that automates control for secure payments and trustworthy suppliers. The platform also assesses the financial capabilities of the company to buy companies like Pay Hawk. Eilla AI Features Eilla AI  Nikola explains that the platform aims to replicate the workflow of investors and investment bankers by breaking down complex workflows into simpler steps. This is done by breaking down data from various sources, such as data providers, CRMs, emails, and nodes. The goal is to provide a comprehensive overview of the company's funding, team, head count, product, services, USP, and detailed offering. The platform also offers a one-pager, which can be easily downloaded and viewed as a PDF. This information provides a detailed overview of the company's funding, team, head count, product, and services, as well as its unique selling points. The platform also provides a free seven-day trial for potential customers, such as corporate executives or business consultants looking for acquisitions. Eilla AI Pricing Schedule The pricing schedule is based on the number of requests per user and the amount of time spent on due diligence. For larger companies, the standard price is $98 per month per seat, while for smaller companies, it is $300 per month per user. The platform also offers a free seven-day trial for those interested in trying out the product without the need for sales meetings. Timestamps: 02:38: Overview of Eilla AI's Services  04:46: Demonstration of Eilla AI's Capabilities  09:50: Competitor Research and Insights  16:08: Buyer Selection and Investment Highlights  20:18: Key Questions and Risks Mitigation  22:09: Customer Base and Pricing  24:50: Conclusion and Next Steps    Links: https://Eilla.ai   Unleashed is produced by Umbrex, which has a mission of connecting independent management consultants with one another, creating opportunities for members to meet, build relationships, and share lessons learned. Learn more at www.umbrex.com.

In this episode, Bill welcomes Andrew Akers, lead quantitative research analyst at PitchBook, to dive deep into private equity and private market replication strategies. Andrew shares his journey from traditional finance to quantitative analysis, discussing the key findings from his seminal paper on private equity replication. The conversation examines the nuances of equity risk premia, operational alpha, and the challenges of building a replicable index for private markets. They also explore the role of machine learning in analyzing patterns within financial data and the growing importance of private markets for high-net-worth investors.

Matthew Le Merle is Managing Partner of Blockchain Coinvestors. Launched in 2014, Blockchain Coinvestors' vision is that digital monies, commodities and assets are inevitable and all of the world's financial infrastructure must be upgraded. ================ All Episodes can be found at www.thecryptopodcast.org   Podcast Coaching + All Social Media + Donations link https://bio.link/podcaster   Our Facebook Group can be found at https://www.facebook.com/thecryptopodcast   ======= Help Support the show through my Business Partners :  Get a Virtual Assistant at https://va.world/ ------- Upgrade Your Brain    Unleash & Use Your Uniqueness   https://braingym.fitness/⁠    --------------------------   Speaking Podcast Social Media / Coaching My Other Podcasts    ⁠⁠⁠https://roycoughlan.com/⁠⁠   Health & Wellness Products   https://partnerco.world/   My Website https://partner.co/?custid=N6543249    ============ About my Guest Matthew Le Merle : Matthew Le Merle is Managing Partner of Blockchain Coinvestors. Launched in 2014, Blockchain Coinvestors' vision is that digital monies, commodities and assets are inevitable and all of the world's financial infrastructure must be upgraded. Our mission is to provide broad coverage of the emerging unicorns and fastest growth blockchain companies and crypto projects. Our investment strategy is now in its 10th year and has to date invested in more than 40 pure play blockchain venture funds in the Americas, Asia and Europe; and in a combined portfolio of 1,250+ blockchain and crypto projects including 95 of all blockchain unicorns. Our first fund of funds ranks in the top quartile amongst all funds in its category on both Pitchbook and Preqin. Headquartered in San Francisco with a presence in Grand Cayman, London, New York, Zug and Zurich, the alternative investment management firm was co-founded by Alison Davis and Matthew Le Merle. Earlier in his career, Matthew spent 21 years as a strategy, operations and corporate finance advisor to Fortune 500 CEOs, boards and executive teams with McKinsey & Company, and as a practice leader with A.T. Kearney and Monitor Group where he led both firms' West Coast practices and at Booz & Company. What we Discussed:   - His journey into the financial market (2 mins) - Has he gotten his children involved in the business (3:45min) - Who he thinks created Bitcoin (4:30 mins) - How Bitcoin was (7:30 mins) - The result of Different Asset Classes from 2008 (9:30 mins) - Does he see transfers of blockchain will be easier in the future (14:15 mins) - How will the market when BRICS currency starts (19:45 mins) - What is a Unicorn Business (24 mins) - What to be aware of when investing in Blockchain (26:45 mins) - More Projects fail than suceed (32 mins) - Know the vested interests of the investment company (33:45 mins) - Lots of Influencers & singers caused people to lose money (35 mins) - Should people invest in funds in different sectors (36:45 mins) - Blockrock, Trump and others changing their minds about Blockchain (41 mins) - How will market change with Trump win (46 mins) How to Contact Matthew Le Merle:   https://www.blockchaincoinvestors.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/fifthera/ https://x.com/BCoinvestors       ==============   Speaking Podcast Social Media / Coaching My Other Podcasts    ⁠⁠⁠https://roycoughlan.com/⁠⁠   Health & Wellness Products   https://partnerco.world/   My Website https://partner.co/?custid=N6543249 

This Week in Startups is brought to you by… Google for Startups. Accelerate your startup journey with the Google for Startups Cloud Program. Get up to $200K in Google Cloud credits – or up to $350K for AI startups – plus training and guidance. Apply at https://startups.google.com/twist Vanta. Compliance and security shouldn't be a deal-breaker for startups to win new business. Vanta makes it easy for companies to get a SOC 2 report fast. TWiST listeners can get $1,000 off for a limited time at https://www.vanta.com/twist AssemblyAI. Get maximum value from voice data with AssemblyAI. Build powerful products and features for your end users on the industry's leading speech-to-text models. Get 100 free hours to start building at https://www.assemblyai.com/twist * Todays show: Alex Wilhelm joins Jason to discuss the evolution of startup costs and media aggregation (3:17), media's addiction to Trump coverage (13:46), Polymarket and Perplexity partnership (40:08), and more! * Timestamps: (0:00) Jason and Alex kick off the show (3:17) Evolution of startup costs and media aggregation (7:47) Jason and Alex discuss Trump and Elon conversation (10:09) Google for startups. Accelerate your startup journey with the Google for Startups Cloud Program. Apply at https://startups.google.com/twist (13:46) Media's addiction to Trump coverage (20:04) Vanta - Get $1000 off your SOC 2 at https://www.vanta.com/twist (21:18) Trump's media strategies and speech analysis (30:04) AssemblyAI - Get 100 free hours to start building at https://www.assemblyai.com/twist (31:17) Societal resistance to tech and the rise of self-driving cars (37:14) Self-driving technology's impact on Uber and Lyft (40:08) Polymarket and Perplexity partnership (47:34) Hacking capitalism and the FIRE movement (54:12) Perplexity's AI competition and the value of proprietary data (1:00:45) Reddit's traffic and monetization (1:07:35) European venture capital and the rise of unicorns (1:13:00) Work culture: Europe vs. US (1:16:11) Investing in AI startups and consulting opportunities * 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 * Mentioned on the show: Trump/X conversation transcript: https://turboscribe.ai/transcript/share/4422534834081521519/HWE18owsC2u8E5u2HpZNikyBdermlV2YSwGlTEPKJJw/donald-trump-and-elon-musk-full-transcript-august-12-2024-https-x-com-i-spaces-1nakepnklwoxl Jason's argument concerning the Trump Bump: https://x.com/Jason/status/1823381839647756392 WeRide IPO filing: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1867729/000119312524197868/d343706df1a.htm Alex's notes on WeRide: https://www.cautiousoptimism.news/p/inside-werides-ipo-filing-and-the Perplexity + Polymarket deal: https://techcrunch.com/2024/08/12/prediction-market-polymarket-partners-with-perplexity-to-show-news-summaries/ Polymarket Dune data: https://dune.com/rchen8/polymarket Balderton raises $1.3B: https://sifted.eu/articles/balderton-1-3bn-fundraise-news PitchBook data concerning recent European VC activity: https://pitchbook.com/news/reports/q2-2024-european-venture-report 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: (10:09) Google for startups. Accelerate your startup journey with the Google for Startups Cloud Program. Apply at https://startups.google.com/twist (20:04) Vanta - Get $1000 off your SOC 2 at https://www.vanta.com/twist (30:04) AssemblyAI - Get 100 free hours to start building at https://www.assemblyai.com/twist * Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland * Check out Jason's suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis * Follow TWiST: Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartups YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartups Substack: https://twistartups.substack.com * Subscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916

In this episode, Scott Becker discusses seven notable private equity stories, including Maxwell Street Capital’s recent strides, KKR and Blackstone’s market performance, and the latest investment by Dental Investment Alliance. He also highlights Pitchbook’s new pharma services report, Iron Path Capital’s $273 million fund, and Peter Thiel’s Piloter Technologies’ impressive year-to-date growth.

Venture investments fell in the first quarter of 2024 to a near five-year low, PitchBook says. Funds started falling when the Federal Reserve first raised interest rates, and large exits have slowed in the past couple of years. Plus, “another test for the community”: Where Baltimore port workers and nearby businesses stand. Also, how campaign ads shape voters' economic views and what the Realtors settlement means for buyers and sellers.