Why family lawyers are buying AI discovery
Good morning. Consumer AI is a tough sell, but B2B back-office workflows are desperate for it.
Ryan Carson realized nobody wants an AI divorce lawyer—they want human empathy. But behind the scenes, family law firms are facing a massive paralegal shortage. By pivoting from a B2C consumer app to a B2B SaaS tool that automates unstructured discovery documents, he found a market desperate to pay.
Build it tonight
Family law firms are desperate to automate discovery due to paralegal shortages. A single founder can build a document-parsing MVP this weekend and charge immediately.
vertical AI tooling
B2B AI for family law discovery
Pivot from B2C divorce AI to B2B family law software after discovering lawyers will pay to automate discovery workflows amidst paralegal shortages.
Why now: LLMs are finally capable of parsing complex, unstructured discovery documents, solving acute paralegal shortages.
Discussing: Family law firms
“nobody wants to use AI for divorce. They want lawyers... She said, I love it. You know, there's a paralegal shortage. There's this discovery thing we do in divorce is a nightmare. I love it and I want to pay for it.”
OpportunityConsumers facing divorce want human empathy and representation, but the law firms themselves desperately need AI to solve back-office paralegal shortages.
I spent $20,000 on Devin in a month. Here’s what I learned | Ryan Carson (solo founder) · Aug 24, 2026
Sanity check: What would have to be true: family law firms are willing to upload highly sensitive, unredacted client discovery documents to a third-party LLM provider.
Build it without code
Piggyback on legacy brands' expensive in-home sales pitches. Run Facebook ads offering the exact same system for $2,699 to clear $1,000 gross profit per install.
service productization
Discount water filtration installation agency
Let legacy brands do expensive in-home water tests to anchor prices at $8,000, then run static Facebook ads offering the exact same system for $2,699.
Why now: Legacy brands have artificially inflated the market rate for home services, creating a massive price umbrella for lean operators.
Discussing: Homeowners in cities with hard water or high chlorine who recently received high-priced quotes from legacy brands.
“The entire angle, the entire thing we try to do is pick up the scraps left behind by the billion dollar companies... The price point is six, seven, $8,000 for honestly a very comparable system. And we just kind of, we're like following in their wake.”
OpportunityWithhold information in ads to filter for educated buyers. By only showing the product and a $2,699 price, you attract leads who just got an $8,000 quote.
From DoorDash to $81K/M With This Overlooked Business - Ep. #332 · Sep 4, 2026
Sanity check: What would have to be true: homeowners who just sat through a high-pressure $8,000 sales pitch will trust a cheap Facebook ad for the installation.
Today's Startup Ideas
Specific plays distilled from this week's founder/operator podcasts.
vertical AI tooling
B2B AI for family law discovery
Pivot from B2C divorce AI to B2B family law software after discovering lawyers will pay to automate discovery workflows amidst paralegal shortages.
Why now: LLMs are finally capable of parsing complex, unstructured discovery documents, solving acute paralegal shortages.
service productization
Discount water filtration installation agency
Let legacy brands do expensive in-home water tests to anchor prices at $8,000, then run static Facebook ads offering the exact same system for $2,699.
Why now: Legacy brands have artificially inflated the market rate for home services, creating a massive price umbrella for lean operators.
B2B marketplace
Next-day metal servicing platform
An intermediary software platform connecting steel mills to aerospace and defense manufacturers for next-day metal delivery.
Why now: Legacy industries are severely under-digitized, allowing simple software intermediaries to capture massive market share quickly.
B2B SaaS
AI-driven executive CRM and outreach
An automated CRM workflow that analyzes product usage drops and upcoming renewals to pre-draft personalized check-in emails for the CEO every Sunday.
Why now: AI can now synthesize disparate CRM data points into highly contextual, ready-to-send human-sounding emails.
B2B SaaS
AI-native CRM with automated health scoring
A CRM that updates automatically via email and Slack integrations, using playbooks to calculate account health scores and suggest churn-prevention actions.
Why now: AI agents can now reliably parse unstructured data from Slack and email to update structured CRM fields in real time.
B2B SaaS
AI customer success watchdog agent
A background agent that cross-references customer accounts with Sentry errors and open PRs to proactively surface the top three failing issues per client.
Why now: Cloud coding agents can now autonomously monitor production errors, check GitHub for open PRs, and synthesize account health without human intervention.
Consumer Packaged Goods
High-velocity format CPG snack brands
Launch snack brands exclusively in high-velocity formats like bagged chips rather than occasional-use items like crackers to avoid slow inventory turns.
Why now: Retail shelf space is highly competitive; slow-moving products get delisted quickly.
vertical AI tooling
AI Outside Counsel Bill Analyzer
An AI system that analyzes outside counsel bills to help in-house legal teams reduce costs, a model validated by a 425 million euro acquisition.
Why now: Machine learning can now accurately parse complex, unstructured legal invoices at scale to identify billing inefficiencies.
physical-world infra
Dedicated AI Hardware for Field Workers
Pocket sold 300,000 wearable recording devices to field workers and doctors by offering a dedicated $129 hardware button that bypasses smartphone recording friction.
Why now: Open-source transcription models can be fine-tuned for noisy offline environments, enabling 70% software margins on a $20/month subscription.
vertical AI tooling
AI hiring evaluator using historical transcripts
Train an AI on the past interview transcripts of your highest-performing employees to pattern-match and evaluate new candidates during the hiring process.
Why now: Companies now have years of recorded Zoom interviews and transcripts, creating a proprietary dataset ready for LLM pattern matching.
physical-world infra
Plug-and-play hardware for on-premise LLMs
Selling physical hardware boxes that plug directly into enterprise networks to provide secure, on-premise vertical language models.
Why now: Frontier labs are increasingly viewed as competitors by their own customers, driving demand for sovereign, on-premise AI solutions.
physical-world infra
High-end desktop for unmetered local AI
Selling $10k-$20k desktops pre-loaded with open-source models and a routing harness to run continuous, unmetered AI tasks locally.
Why now: Open-source models are now capable enough to run locally on high-end consumer silicon, bypassing expensive cloud API metering.
fintech
Motorcycle Manufacturing And Lending For Drivers
Combine motorcycle manufacturing with small business lending tailored specifically for delivery drivers in emerging markets.
Why now: The gig economy in emerging markets is massive, but traditional banks refuse to underwrite delivery drivers for vehicle loans.
B2B SaaS
Niche Equestrian Service Roll-Up
A media company reached $85M in revenue and sold for $300M by acquiring niche equestrian businesses like roadside assistance for horse trailers.
Why now: Niche hobbyist markets are often fragmented and overlooked by traditional private equity.
physical-world infra
On-Premise AI Servers For Regulated Industries
Deliver physical servers to banking and healthcare facilities so they can train local LLMs without risking data leakage to frontier models.
Why now: Open-source models are now capable enough to run locally, making on-premise AI a viable alternative to cloud-based frontier models.
B2B SaaS
Micro-SaaS factory for first-time buyers
Build simple $250/month local business tools, scale to $50K-$100K ARR, and sell for 4-5x multiples to corporate workers buying their first business.
Why now: The rise of entrepreneurship through acquisition and platforms like Acquire.com has created a liquid market of first-time buyers looking for turnkey, sub-$500k software assets.
service productization
Premium Unconventional Museum Tours
A founder hit $3M in revenue by charging $200 for highly enthusiastic, non-traditional museum tours led by actors and comedians.
Why now: Standard tours are boring; consumers will pay a premium for high-energy, insider entertainment.
service productization
Personalized Perfume Walking Tours
A creator built a full-time business charging $500 for private NYC perfume tours, using pre-tour personality quizzes to curate specific scents.
Why now: Consumers are seeking highly personalized, in-person experiences to counter digital fatigue.
service productization
Retired-Cop Mafia Walking Tours
An ex-police officer built a scalable Airbnb Experience taking tourists to famous NYC mafia crime scenes, eventually hiring multiple retired cops as guides.
Why now: True crime is a massive cultural trend, and platforms like Airbnb Experiences provide easy distribution.
digital health
Direct-to-consumer preventative biomarker testing
Offer 160+ preventative lab tests directly to consumers for $365 a year by partnering with national draw centers and using AI for interpretation.
Why now: Lab testing costs have plummeted, and AI can now interpret the massive data sets that traditional doctors lack the time to analyze.
Movements to Watch
Patterns surfacing across multiple shows. Track these before consensus.
B2B SaaS
AI-Native CRM Automation
Founders are moving beyond basic chatbots to build background agents that passively monitor Slack, email, and production logs to update CRM health scores autonomously.
physical-world infra
Sovereign On-Premise AI Hardware
Highly regulated industries are terrified of data leaks to frontier models, driving a surge in physical servers and plug-and-play hardware designed to run local language models securely.
service productization
High-Ticket Niche Experiences
Creators are monetizing free public amenities and personal expertise by offering hyper-curated, high-energy local tours that command massive price premiums over standard tourist traps.
Founder Signal
How operators are thinking — frameworks, anti-patterns, sharp moves.
Optimize for consumption velocity over personal preference.
Founders often choose product categories based on what they like to eat, ignoring how fast the inventory turns. Launching in high-velocity formats like bagged chips prevents fatal cash flow bottlenecks.
Mine your own Zoom transcripts for hiring signal.
Instead of relying on generic personality tests, train an AI on the historical interview recordings of your highest-performing employees to pattern-match traits that actually correlate with internal success.
Capital Flow
Where money's moving today — funding rounds, M&A, valuation signals.
Brightflag acquired for 425 million euros.
Wolters Kluwer purchased the Dublin-based startup, validating the massive enterprise demand for AI systems that automatically audit and reduce outside counsel legal bills.
Equine Network acquired for $300 million.
The media company reached $85 million in revenue with high-twenties profit margins by rolling up highly specific, unsexy service businesses for high-net-worth horse owners.
From the Conversations
Next-day metal servicing platform
VC experts on why Physical AI funding is heating up | E2333
Sep 2, 2026 · 1h 20m · 4 quotes pulled
▶ Listen“basically nox is an intermediary between the steel mills and then downstream manufacturers in aerospace defense... it's a 200 billion dollar market. And there's less than 40 software engineers currently employed in the industry.”
“Legacy industries are severely under-digitized, allowing simple software intermediaries to capture massive market share quickly.”
Niche Equestrian Service Roll-Up
How to naturally monetize what you love
Sep 4, 2026 · 58m · 4 quotes pulled
▶ Listen“they own a fly control business that has 45,000 people spending like $300 a year... they do $85 million a year in revenue with high twenties profit margins... they just got bought for $300 million.”
“Niche hobbyist markets are often fragmented and overlooked by traditional private equity.”
Motorcycle Manufacturing And Lending For Drivers
Bill Gates foresees massive AI job loss: these VCs disagree | E2330
Aug 26, 2026 · 1h 31m · 2 quotes pulled
▶ Listen“motorcycle manufacturing and small business lending company for delivery drivers in Sao Paulo, Brazil. And that business is on fire. It's doing over $300 million in revenue, profitable, growing 60%, 70% per year.”
“The gig economy in emerging markets is massive, but traditional banks refuse to underwrite delivery drivers for vehicle loans.”
Sources
▶ ListenHow I AI
I spent $20,000 on Devin in a month. Here’s what I learned | Ryan Carson (solo founder)<p><strong>Ryan Carson</strong> is a five-time founder and the current solo founder of Untangle, a B2B SaaS platform for family law firms. Before Untangle, he co-founded Treehouse, an online coding education platform, and has spent the better part of two decades building and leading tech companies. He’s active on X, where he shares his solo founder journey in real time, including what he actually spends on AI tools each month.</p><p><br></p><p><strong>What you’ll learn:</strong></p><ol><li>Why Ryan manages 15 concurrent Devin agents with a folder system and a piece of paper, not a dashboard</li><li>The Watchdog playbook: what he built to replace a customer success team across every law firm account</li><li>How his LAN PR skill closes the loop on 40 daily PRs without a QA team reviewing a single one</li><li>Why he moved off local agents almost entirely, and the one situation where he still reaches for Codex</li><li>The design workflow we’re both using: Claude Design into a Markdown spec, then Codex to build the real thing</li><li>What he found when he got away from his computer and met a real customer, and why it changed his entire product direction</li><li>How he’s hiring his first engineer without a single phone screen or interview</li><li>Why we both think more AI output is actually the wrong goal, and what to optimize for instead</li></ol><p>—</p><p><strong>Brought to you by:</strong></p><p><a href="https://workos.com/?utm_source=lennys_howiai&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=q22025"><strong>WorkOS</strong></a>—Make your app enterprise-ready, with SSO, SCIM, RBAC, and more</p><p><a href="https://jira.dev"><strong>Jira AI SDLC</strong></a>—Get your tokens’ worth with Jira</p><p>—</p><p><strong>In this episode, we cover:</strong></p><p>(00:00) Introduction to Ryan Carson</p><p>(02:55) Ryan’s update: Untangle, the divorce PMF pivot, and B2B growth</p><p>(07:35) Ryan’s current Devin stack: folders, P0 threads, and the paper list</p><p>(16:29) Watchdog playbook: account monitoring across every firm</p><p>(18:09) Managing agent decision fatigue: Ryan’s method vs. Claire’s</p><p>(20:32) Producing more output does not make a better product</p><p>(22:47) Using cloud agents for ops beyond just code</p><p>(25:14) When to use Codex vs. Devin vs. Claude Code</p><p>(27:15) Merge Mommy recap</p><p>(28:15) LAN PR skill: review loops, video walkthrough, and auto-merge</p><p>(30:20) Slack vs. Devin threads for async team communication</p><p>(35:58) Claude Design plus Codex for building a technical design system</p><p>(39:00) EA tools: Polly the OpenClaw vs. Claude Code on a Mac Mini</p><p>(42:09) Quick recap and final thoughts</p><p>—</p><p><strong>Tools referenced:</strong></p><p>• Devin (Cognition): <a href="https://www.cognition.ai/">https://www.cognition.ai/</a></p><p>• Codex (OpenAI): <a href="https://openai.com/codex">https://openai.com/codex</a></p><p>• Claude Code/Claude Design (Anthropic): <a href="https://www.anthropic.com/claude">https://www.anthropic.com/claude</a></p><p>• OpenClaw (Claude-based desktop client): <a href="https://openclaw.ai/">https://openclaw.ai</a></p><p>• Cursor: <a href="https://www.cursor.com/">https://www.cursor.com/</a></p><p>• BugBot (Devin’s built-in PR review): <a href="https://cursor.com/bugbot">https://cursor.com/bugbot</a></p><p>• Sentry (error monitoring referenced in Watchdog): <a href="https://sentry.io/">https://sentry.io/</a></p><p>• Ugmonk (analog to-do system): <a href="https://ugmonk.com/">https://ugmonk.com/</a></p><p>—</p><p><strong>Other references:</strong></p><p>• Devin playbooks/skills documentation: <a href="https://docs.cognition.ai/">https://docs.cognition.ai/</a></p><p>• Jack Dorsey/Buzz (async-first communication referenced): <a href="https://buzz.new/">https://buzz.new/</a></p><p>• Merge Mommy (Claire’s Eve agent for PR risk scoring, deployed on Vercel): <a href="https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/build-an-ai-code-review-bot-in-30">https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/build-an-ai-code-review-bot-in-30</a></p><p>—</p><p><strong>Where to find Ryan Carson:</strong></p><p>X: <a href="https://x.com/ryancarson">https://x.com/ryancarson</a></p><p>Untangle: <a href="https://untangle.us/">https://untangle.us</a></p><p>—</p><p><strong>Where to find Claire Vo:</strong></p><p>ChatPRD: <a href="https://www.chatprd.ai/">https://www.chatprd.ai/</a></p><p>Website: <a href="https://clairevo.com/">https://clairevo.com/</a></p><p>LinkedIn: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairevo/">https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairevo/</a></p><p>X: <a href="https://x.com/clairevo">https://x.com/clairevo</a></p><p>—</p><p>Production and marketing by <a href="https://penname.co/">https://penname.co/</a>. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email [email protected].</p>
▶ ListenThe Koerner Office - Business Ideas and Deep Dives with Chris Koerner
From DoorDash to $81K/M With This Overlooked Business - Ep. #332<p>Check out my newsletter at <a href="https://tkopod.com/">https://TKOPOD.com</a> and join my community at <a href="https://tkowners.com/">https://TKOwners.com</a></p><p>━</p><p></p><p>I sat down with <strong>Parker J. Smith</strong>, a 25-year-old entrepreneur who went from driving <strong>DoorDash</strong> to generating <strong>$81,000 in monthly revenue</strong> from a water filtration business he launched just 85 days earlier. We break down how he started with around <strong>$500</strong>, uses licensed plumbers to handle the installations, and finds customers through simple <strong>Facebook ads</strong> that show the price upfront. Parker also shares his costs, margins, tech stack, follow-up strategy, and why overlooked <strong>home service businesses</strong> may offer more opportunity than crowded online businesses.</p><p><br></p><p>Follow Parker:</p><p>Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/parkerjaysmith/">https://www.instagram.com/parkerjaysmith/</a></p><p>TikTok: <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@parkerjaysmith">https://www.tiktok.com/@parkerjaysmith</a></p><p>X: <a href="https://x.com/parkerjaysmith">https://x.com/parkerjaysmith</a></p><p>LinkedIn: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/parkerjaysmith">https://www.linkedin.com/in/parkerjaysmith</a></p><p>YouTube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@parkerhomeservices">https://www.youtube.com/@parkerhomeservices</a></p><p></p><p>Enjoy!</p><p>---</p><p>Watch this on <strong>YouTube</strong> instead here: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@thekoerneroffice?sub_confirmation=1">tkopod.co/p-yt</a></p><p><strong>Ask me a question</strong> on or off the show here: <a href="http://tkopod.co/p-ask">http://tkopod.co/p-ask</a></p><p>Learn more about <strong>me:</strong> <a href="http://tkopod.co/p-cjk">http://tkopod.co/p-cjk</a></p><p>Learn about <strong>my company: </strong><a href="http://tkopod.co/p-cof">http://tkopod.co/p-cof</a></p><p>Follow me on <strong>Twitter</strong> here: <a href="http://tkopod.co/p-x">http://tkopod.co/p-x</a></p><p><a href="http://tkopod.co/p-x"></a>Free weekly <strong>business ideas newsletter:</strong> <a href="http://tkopod.co/p-nl">http://tkopod.co/p-nl</a></p><p><strong>Share this podcast:</strong> <a href="http://tkopod.co/p-all">http://tkopod.co/p-all</a></p><p><strong>Scrape</strong> small <strong>business data:</strong> <a href="http://tkopod.co/p-os">http://tkopod.co/p-os</a></p><p><a href="http://tkopod.co/p-os"></a>---</p>
▶ ListenThis Week in Startups
VC experts on why Physical AI funding is heating up | E2333<p dir="ltr">VC experts on why Physical AI funding is heating up | E2333</p> <p dir="ltr">This Week In Startups is made possible by:</p> <p dir="ltr">partner 1 - link</p> <p dir="ltr">partner 2 - link</p> <p dir="ltr">partner 3 - link</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Today's show:</p> <p dir="ltr">Are we one step closer to data centers in space? Katelin Holloway of Seven Seven Six and Paige Doherty of Behind Genius Ventures break it down what it would take.</p> <p dir="ltr">Plus investor interest is surging in Physical AI companies. Paige explains why she backs applications of physical AI over general-purpose robotics, and how her thesis on multimodal AI led to the largest check she's ever written.</p> <p dir="ltr">We then dive into the Pentagon's rollout of ChatGPT Mil and Grok for Government. And Katelin gives us her insight into how VCs are investing in Europe and the regulations behind the scenes.</p> <p dir="ltr">Guests:</p> <p dir="ltr">Katelin Holloway on X: <a href= "https://x.com/katelin_cruse">https://x.com/katelin_cruse</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Seven Seven Six: <a href= "https://sevensevensix.com/">https://sevensevensix.com/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Paige Doherty on X: <a href= "https://x.com/paigefinnn">https://x.com/paigefinnn</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Behind Genius Ventures: <a href= "https://www.behindgeniusventures.com/">https://www.behindgeniusventures.com/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Full Transcript and Summary, powered by Plaud</p> <p dir="ltr"><a href= "https://web.plaud.ai/s/pub_772dbc9f-cd78-4de7-911e-8d3ee2883fbb::AF3ncHtIZkSyKKL-K-XUZBAUBEdoQQBEGCQSsja3gXsll8Dm6-Xbrrlhk7g8U-xwIW9kHyYwaB0dBuoC"> https://web.plaud.ai/s/pub_772dbc9f-cd78-4de7-911e-8d3ee2883fbb::AF3ncHtIZkSyKKL-K-XUZBAUBEdoQQBEGCQSsja3gXsll8Dm6-Xbrrlhk7g8U-xwIW9kHyYwaB0dBuoC</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Related Links:</p> <p dir="ltr">Department of War adds ChatGPT Mil and Grok for Government: <a href= "https://fortune.com/2026/09/01/pentagon-chatgpt-grok-government-military-ai-members-pete-hegseth-defense-department/"> https://fortune.com/2026/09/01/pentagon-chatgpt-grok-government-military-ai-members-pete-hegseth-defense-department/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">OpenAI for Government: <a href= "https://openai.com/global-affairs/introducing-openai-for-government/"> https://openai.com/global-affairs/introducing-openai-for-government/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Starshield — SpaceX's government/defense arm: <a href= "https://www.spacex.com/starshield/">https://www.spacex.com/starshield/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">UN work on LAWS (Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems): <a href= "https://disarmament.unoda.org/the-convention-on-certain-conventional-weapons/background-on-laws-in-the-ccw/"> https://disarmament.unoda.org/the-convention-on-certain-conventional-weapons/background-on-laws-in-the-ccw/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">European Commission designates ChatGPT a VLOSE: <a href= "https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/news/commission-designates-chatgpt-reddit-roblox-under-digital-services-act"> https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/news/commission-designates-chatgpt-reddit-roblox-under-digital-services-act</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Commission press release: <a href= "https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_26_1772">https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_26_1772</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Euronews on why a chatbot that searches the live web counts as a search engine: <a href= "https://www.euronews.com/next/2026/08/31/eu-places-chatgpt-reddit-and-roblox-under-strictest-digital-safety-rules"> https://www.euronews.com/next/2026/08/31/eu-places-chatgpt-reddit-and-roblox-under-strictest-digital-safety-rules</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Entrepreneur First: <a href= "https://www.joinef.com/posts/introducing-the-bridge/">https://www.joinef.com/posts/introducing-the-bridge/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Henrick Johansson, the European VC persona: <a href= "https://x.com/compliantvc">https://x.com/compliantvc</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Starcloud — orbital data centers: <a href= "https://www.starcloud.com/">https://www.starcloud.com/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Starcloud raises $250M at a $2.3B: <a href= "https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260821884035/en/Starcloud-Raises-$250-Million-at-$2.3-Billion-Valuation-to-Scale-AI-with-Orbital-Data-Centers"> https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260821884035/en/Starcloud-Raises-$250-Million-at-$2.3-Billion-Valuation-to-Scale-AI-with-Orbital-Data-Centers</a></p> <p dir="ltr">"From Sputnik to Starship: Estimating the experience curve of space launch technology" <a href= "https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/article/5/7/pgag217/8732400">https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/article/5/7/pgag217/8732400</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Cambridge Bennett Schoo: <a href= "https://www.bennettschool.cam.ac.uk/blog/is-space-trade-the-next-global-transport-revolution/"> https://www.bennettschool.cam.ac.uk/blog/is-space-trade-the-next-global-transport-revolution/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Crunchbase News: physical AI startups raised $47.4B across 521 deals in H1 2026: <a href= "https://news.crunchbase.com/venture/physical-ai-funding-startups-robotics-aerospace-h1-2026/"> https://news.crunchbase.com/venture/physical-ai-funding-startups-robotics-aerospace-h1-2026/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Crunchbase News on record defense-tech funding: <a href= "https://news.crunchbase.com/defense-tech/startup-venture-funding-all-time-record-ai-anduril/"> https://news.crunchbase.com/defense-tech/startup-venture-funding-all-time-record-ai-anduril/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Jensen Huang's prediction: <a href= "https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/executive-insights/">https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/executive-insights/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Zipline: <a href= "https://www.flyzipline.com/">https://www.flyzipline.com/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Nox Metals: <a href= "https://www.noxmetals.com/">https://www.noxmetals.com/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">CNBC: Anthropic changes its data retention policy: <a href= "https://www.cnbc.com/2026/09/01/anthropic-data-retention.html">https://www.cnbc.com/2026/09/01/anthropic-data-retention.html</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Bloomberg on the plan to let enterprises hold the 30-day window: <a href= "https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-20/anthropic-plans-to-change-data-retention-policy-for-advanced-ai"> https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-20/anthropic-plans-to-change-data-retention-policy-for-advanced-ai</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Plaud — sponsor; the wearable AI note-taker → <a href= "https://plaud.ai/twist">**</a><a href= "https://plaud.ai/twist**">https://plaud.ai/twist**</a> (code TWIST for 10% off)</p> <p dir="ltr">Harmonic: <a href= "https://harmonic.ai/">https://harmonic.ai/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Timestamps:</p> <p dir="ltr">0:00 Why making it to Fund IV is when it gets real</p> <p dir="ltr">9:24 Pentagon rolls out ChatGPT Mil and Grok for Government</p> <p dir="ltr">10:49 Sentry - Your team should be focused on shipping features — not chasing down bugs. New users can get $240 in free credits when they go to https://sentry.io/twist and use the code TWIST</p> <p dir="ltr">11:53 Paige on defense tech and three years at Northrop Grumman</p> <p dir="ltr">13:40 Katelin: The bottleneck used to be winning the contract, now it's surviving one</p> <p dir="ltr">16:13 Autonomous weapons, robot dogs, and the Boston Dynamics conversation in Paris</p> <p dir="ltr">19:07 Lightfield - Name one person who's ever enjoyed updating a CRM. Exactly. Lightfield's AI agent does it for you — it even prospects and books your meetings. Used by thousands of startups. Free at https://lightfield.app</p> <p dir="ltr">22:03 EU designates ChatGPT a "very large online search engine" under the DSA</p> <p dir="ltr">24:54 Katelin's contrarian take: Europe is undercapitalized</p> <p dir="ltr">29:56 Odoo - The all-in-one business platform. Your first app is free! Get started today at https://Odoo.com/twist</p> <p dir="ltr">31:07 Starcloud raises $250M at a $2.3B valuation</p> <p dir="ltr">53:06 Competing with Elon: the single point of failure for the whole space economy</p> <p dir="ltr">57:49 Physical AI raised ~$47B in the first half of 2026</p> <p dir="ltr">1:03:42 Jason's Zipline regret and the death of "hardware is hard"</p> <p dir="ltr">1:07:07 Is "unc" a compliment? A Gen X / millennial / Gen Z / Gen Alpha</p> <p dir="ltr">1:09:39 Anthropic reverses its data retention policy after enterprise pushback</p> <p dir="ltr">1:12:18 Katelin on data custody: "That's not a procurement question"</p> <p dir="ltr">1:15:31 Back to on-prem: Go.AI, the Go1, and vertical LLMs</p> <p><strong><br /> <br /></strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: <a href= "https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com">https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Check out the TWIST500: <a href= "https://www.twist500.com">https://www.twist500.com</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: <a href= "https://rb.gy/v19fcp">https://rb.gy/v19fcp</a></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Follow Lon:</p> <p dir="ltr">X: <a href= "https://x.com/lons">https://x.com/lons</a></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Follow Jason:</p> <p dir="ltr">X: <a href= "https://twitter.com/Jason">https://twitter.com/Jason</a></p> <p dir="ltr">LinkedIn: <a href= "https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis">https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis</a></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Check out all our partner offers: <a href= "https://partners.launch.co/">https://partners.launch.co/</a></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Great TWIST interviews: <a href= "https://youtu.be/pvJa2pzuXWQ">Will Guidara,</a> <a href= "https://youtu.be/9dHN4YFkgv4">Eoghan McCabe</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/reddit-ceo-steve-huffman-on-mod-revolt-building-a/id315114957?i=1000617333424"> Steve Huffman</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/airbnb-ceo-brian-chesky-on-early-rejection-customer/id315114957?i=1000611761112"> Brian Chesky</a>, <a href="https://youtu.be/y2UMzSqX94Q">Bob Moesta,</a> <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/box-ceo-aaron-levie-breaks-down-box-ai-and-generative/id315114957?i=1000612384545"> Aaron Levie</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/sophia-amoruso-on-branding-raising-a-fund-portfolio/id315114957?i=1000601352978"> Sophia Amoruso</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/reid-hoffman-on-ais-crescendo-moment-regulation-and/id315114957?i=1000612548498"> Reid Hoffman</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/snowflake-ceo-frank-slootman-on-moving-the-needle-win/id315114957?i=1000602560622"> Frank Slootman</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/billy-mcfarland-on-fyre-fest-fraud-failure-hacking/id315114957?i=1000610922577"> Billy McFarland</a></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Check out Jason's suite of newsletters: <a href= "https://substack.com/@calacanis">https://substack.com/@calacanis</a></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Follow TWiST:</p> <p dir="ltr">Twitter: <a href= "https://twitter.com/TWiStartups">https://twitter.com/TWiStartups</a></p> <p dir="ltr">YouTube: <a href= "https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin">https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Instagram: <a href= "https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups">https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups</a></p> <p dir="ltr">TikTok: <a href= "https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartups">https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartups</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Substack: <a href= "https://twistartups.substack.com">https://twistartups.substack.com</a></p>
▶ ListenMy First Million
How a $5B founder is using AI (3 tutorials)How Wade uses AI (steal his prompts): https://clickhubspot.com/efcd Episode 856: Sam Parr ( https://x.com/theSamParr ) and Shaan Puri ( https://x.com/ShaanVP ) talk to Wade Foster ( https://x.com/wadefoster ) about how he uses AI to save himself hours of work every day. — Show Notes: (0:00) intro (2:27) The sales pitch (7:04) My Robot Executive Staff, Waking Up Like The President (14:13) Evening brief (17:39) AI that argues with you (19:32) War Council skill (31:53) How to use AI to hire better (48:15) being a billionaire before 40 (51:17) a case for not having a chip on your shoulder (54:36) 1-dimensional winners (1:00:55) recommended reading — Links: • Zapier - https://zapier.com/ — Check Out Sam's Stuff: • Hampton (joinhampton.com): My community for founders. Average member does $25m/year. Many of the guests are members. Get after it...apply: http://joinhampton.com/mfm — Check Out Shaan's Stuff: • Shaan's weekly email - https://www.shaanpuri.com • Visit https://www.somewhere.com/mfm to hire worldwide talent like Shaan and get $500 off for being an MFM listener. Hire developers, assistants, marketing pros, sales teams and more for 80% less than US equivalents. • Mercury - Shaan uses Mercury across all of his companies. you can too: http://mercury.com/ Mercury is a fintech company, not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services provided by Choice Financial Group, Column, N.A., Members FDIC • I run all my newsletters on Beehiiv and you should too + we're giving away $10k to our favorite newsletter, check it out: beehiiv.com/mfm-challenge My First Million is a HubSpot Media Podcast // Brought to you by HubSpot Media // Production by Arie Desormeaux // Editing by Ezra Bakker Trupiano /
▶ ListenHow I Built This with Guy Raz
Late July Snacks: Nicole Bernard Dawes. Crackers and Cookies were Failing… Tortilla Chips Saved ThemNicole Bernard Dawes spent much of her childhood hanging out in her dad’s potato chip factory on Cape Cod. She liked his kettle-cooked chips a lot more than the flavorless snacks in her mom’s health food store. But when she started her own business, she wanted the best of both worlds: a snack made with natural, organic ingredients…that still tasted good. Nicole launched Late July Snacks in 2003, when most consumers barely knew what “organic” meant. For years, sales limped along. Then, in a moment of crisis, she made a company-saving pivot by launching a brand new product – organic tortilla chips. Within just a few years, Late July grew to over $100M in sales, and Nicole decided to launch a new brand in an even more challenging category: soda. You Will Learn:How growing up in a family business can help–and hurt–when you launch your ownThe pros and cons of financial vs. strategic investorsWhen to cut a product that isn’t workingWhy the fine print in a contract is so importantHow the hardest decision might be the best one for your family and the businessTimestamps:07:22 - The car crash that launched a potato chip company21:00 - Pregnant and craving crackers: The birth of Late July Snacks36:54 - The organic cookies that tasted great but nearly sunk the business40:49 - Tragedy and crisis: a father’s death and a $3 million loan in default50:31 - A tortilla chip Hail Mary57:29 - Nicole’s first big sales call… and her last chance to save the company1:08:49 - “The big fish eats the small fish.” A food giant acquisition1:13:36 - Nicole launches a new brand, moving from a hard category–to an even harder one This episode was researched and produced by Chris Maccini with music composed by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Neva Grant. Our engineer was Robert Rodriguez. Follow How I Built This:Instagram → @howibuiltthisX → @HowIBuiltThisFacebook → How I Built ThisFollow Guy Raz:Instagram → @guy.razYoutube → guy_razX → @guyrazSubstack → guyraz.substack.comWebsite → guyraz.com See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
▶ ListenFounders Podcast
How a Tiny Dublin Startup Sold for $425M<p>Most founders overlook a simple but powerful secret—protecting their ideas with the right legal strategies can turn a modest startup into a multimillion-euro exit. In this episode, Phil Crowley reveals how a Dublin-based AI startup turned a $500 million acquisition, sharing the tactical legal moves that fueled their journey from code to collapse and rebirth.You'll discover how early-stage founders can leverage intellectual property, patents, and strategic legal protections to safeguard their innovations without breaking the bank. Phil breaks down the true value of patents versus trade secrets in software, explains why a limited liability company setup is critical, and offers practical advice on avoiding personal liability traps that could derail your startup.We also explore the often-missed legal vulnerabilities that even successful founders regret ignoring—like improper IP assignments or neglecting formalized agreements with collaborators. Phil shares real-world anecdotes, including a $425 million sale, and distills crucial lessons on building a legally resilient business foundation.Why does neglecting legal infrastructure cost startups millions in lost value or legal trouble? Because in today’s fast-moving tech landscape, protecting your "secret sauce" isn’t just good practice—it's a game changer. If you're an early-stage founder or planning your next fundraising round, this episode arms you with the knowledge to shield your innovation and accelerate your growth confidently.Perfect for entrepreneurs looking to unlock legal strategies that build lasting value, or for anyone curious about how legal foresight can turn a modest idea into a thriving, protected business—this is your blueprint to avoid common pitfalls and claim your rightful share of success.Phil Crowley is Managing Partner at Crowlew Law, known for guiding tech startups through complex legal terrain from Dublin to New York, and for helping them secure millions through strategic IP and legal protections.</p>
▶ ListenTBPN
Model Mayhem, NVIDIA x Hugging Face Deal, GPT-6 Astra | Pablo Torre, Mohit Aron, Akshay Narisetti, Hari Ravichandran, Matt Caldwell & Jordy Leiser, Jeff Thornburg, Charlie O’Neill, Sridhar Ramaswamy<p></p><ul><li>(00:19) - Model Mayhem </li> <li>(13:12) - Why NVIDIA Bought Hugging Face </li> <li>(23:55) - 𝕏 Timeline Reactions </li> <li>(31:25) - Pablo Torre discusses his investigation into an alleged salary-cap circumvention scheme involving Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and Kawhi Leonard. The investigative journalist and host of Pablo Torre Finds Out explains the evidence, the NBA’s punishment, and why Ballmer’s threatened legal battle could further damage the team. </li> <li>(55:06) - Mohit Aron is the founder of SaiFin and previously founded enterprise technology companies Cohesity and Nutanix. Aron discusses SaiFin’s mission to use AI to unify fragmented go-to-market context, support real-time decision-making, and serve companies of all sizes while keeping humans involved to ensure accuracy. </li> <li>(01:01:09) - Akshay Narisetti, founder of Pocket, discusses building an AI-powered recording device that has sold 300,000 units by making professional note-taking more convenient and reliable than phone apps. He explains Pocket’s hardware, subscription model, privacy safeguards, specialized transcription technology, and plans for agents that turn conversations into reports, presentations, and other work products. </li> <li>(01:18:12) - Hari Ravichandran, founder and CEO of consumer security company Aura, discusses the growing threat of AI-enabled scams, identity theft, and data breaches affecting families and businesses. He explains Aura’s personalized, family-centered approach to digital protection, its focus on streamlined onboarding, and its growth to approximately $340 million in annual recurring revenue. </li> <li>(01:26:39) - GPT-6 Astra </li> <li>(01:31:23) - Matt Caldwell, CEO of the Minnesota Timberwolves, discusses how the team is using Jump’s direct-to-consumer ticketing platform to simplify purchases, own fan data, and deepen engagement. He also highlights AI-driven ticket pricing and broader distribution across marketplaces to increase attendance and revenue. Jordy Leiser is the co-founder and CEO of Jump, a sports technology company building an all-in-one platform for teams to manage ticketing, commerce, and the fan experience. He previously co-founded StellaService/Stella Connect, which was acquired by Medallia, and began his career in investment banking at JPMorgan. Jump now works with teams across the NBA, WNBA, MLS, and NWSL. </li> <li>(01:45:50) - Jeff Thornburg, a space-industry veteran and former SpaceX executive, discusses founding Portal Space Systems to build highly maneuverable spacecraft for defense and civil exploration. He highlights the company’s orbital testing progress, growing team, evolving government-industry partnerships, and the importance of tenacity and calm leadership in solving difficult engineering challenges. </li> <li>(01:54:15) - Charlie O, head of AI model training, discusses the future of personalized open-source models, continual learning, and Base Labs’ mission to make AI more useful through open research. He argues that task-specific models can outperform general frontier models economically and emphasizes aggregating real-world data, developing open RL environments, and exploring new ways for models to continuously acquire knowledge and values. </li> <li>(02:08:54) - Sridhar Ramaswamy discusses Snowflake’s strong growth, widespread adoption of its AI products, and strategy for competing in the rapidly evolving enterprise AI market. The Snowflake CEO highlights AI-driven productivity, small-team innovation, efficient token spending, internal communication, customer value, and acquisitions that strengthen the company’s data and AI platform. </li> <li>(02:22:41) - 𝕏 Timeline Reactions</li> </ul><p><br></p><p>TBPN is made possible by:</p><p>Ramp - https://ramp.com</p><p>Public - https://public.com</p><p>Cisco - https://www.cisco.com</p><p>Console - https://www.console.com</p><p>CrowdStrike - https://www.crowdstrike.com</p><p>Figma - https://www.figma.com</p><p>MongoDB - https://www.mongodb.com</p><p>NYSE - https://www.nyse.com</p><p>Railway - https://railway.com</p><p>Shopify - https://www.shopify.com</p><p>Codex - http://openAI.com/codex</p><p><br></p><p>Follow TBPN: </p><p>https://TBPN.com</p><p>https://x.com/tbpn</p><p>https://open.spotify.com/show/2L6WMqY3GUPCGBD0dX6p00?si=674252d53acf4231</p><p>https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tbpn/id1772360235</p><p>https://www.youtube.com/@TBPNLive</p>
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This Week in Startups
Bill Gates foresees massive AI job loss: these VCs disagree | E2330<p dir="ltr">This Week In Startups is made possible by:</p> <p dir="ltr">Lightfield<br /> <a href="https://lightfield.app">https://lightfield.app</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Northwest Registered Agent<br /> <a href= "https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twistdomain">https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twistdomain</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Rippling<br /> <a href= "https://Rippling.ai/twist">https://Rippling.ai/twist</a></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Today's show:</p> <p dir="ltr">*Bill Gates dropped a 6,000 word warning: AI will be "the greatest equalizer ever invented, or the worst sort of injustice." The Microsoft icon has an AI agenda for the US: new national institutions, AI use taxes, and jobs legally reserved for humans only.</p> <p dir="ltr">Our VC roundtable guests — Sheel Mohnot (Better Tomorrow Ventures), Dave McClure (Practical Venture Capital), and Hussein Kanji — push back hard. Is taxing profits a better fix for AI taking jobs than taxing the tokens themselves?</p> <p dir="ltr">PLUS: Meta's $17B kids safety settlement… does it go far enough? Why does Stripe want OpenRouter? A peek at the VC's actual portfolio mark-ups. AND begun, the AI agent wars have. Our panel chooses between OpenClaw, Instinct, and Grok Bot.</p> <p dir="ltr">Guests</p> <p dir="ltr">Sheel Mohnot on X: <a href= "https://x.com/pitdesi">https://x.com/pitdesi</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Better Tomorrow Ventures: <a href= "https://www.btv.vc/">https://www.btv.vc/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Dave McClure on X: <a href= "https://x.com/davemcclure">https://x.com/davemcclure</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Practical Venture Capital: <a href= "https://practicalvc.com/">https://practicalvc.com/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Hussein Kanji on X: <a href= "https://x.com/hkanji">https://x.com/hkanji</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Hoxton Ventures: <a href= "https://hoxtonventures.com/">https://hoxtonventures.com/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Relevant Links</p> <p dir="ltr">GatesNotes: "The turbulent AI era is here": <a href= "https://www.gatesnotes.com/a-turbulent-ai-era-and-critical-choices-to-make"> https://www.gatesnotes.com/a-turbulent-ai-era-and-critical-choices-to-make</a></p> <p dir="ltr">NPR: Meta settlement coverage: <a href= "https://www.npr.org/2026/08/26/nx-s1-5944781/meta-settlement-child-safety-lawsuit"> https://www.npr.org/2026/08/26/nx-s1-5944781/meta-settlement-child-safety-lawsuit</a></p> <p dir="ltr">TechCrunch: Stripe agrees to buy OpenRouter: <a href= "https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/16/stripe-will-reportedly-acquire-ai-gateway-startup-openrouter-for-7b/"> https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/16/stripe-will-reportedly-acquire-ai-gateway-startup-openrouter-for-7b/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Skild AI S1 Demo: <a href= "https://www.skild.ai/blogs/s1">https://www.skild.ai/blogs/s1</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Instinct AI agent (waitlist): <a href= "https://instinct.co/">https://instinct.co/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">TechCrunch: Instinct coverage: <a href= "https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/24/instincts-powerful-ai-assistant-is-raising-privacy-and-security-concerns/"> https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/24/instincts-powerful-ai-assistant-is-raising-privacy-and-security-concerns/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">CNBC: OpenAI CFO says IPO is coming in 2027: <a href= "https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/19/open-ai-ipo-timing-2027-friar.html"> https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/19/open-ai-ipo-timing-2027-friar.html</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Basis: <a href= "https://www.getbasis.ai/">https://www.getbasis.ai/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">TaxGPT: <a href= "https://www.taxgpt.com/">https://www.taxgpt.com/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Cusp AI: <a href= "https://cusp.ai/">https://cusp.ai/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Abacus: <a href= "https://goabacus.co/">https://goabacus.co/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Micro1: <a href= "https://www.micro1.ai/">https://www.micro1.ai/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Mottu: <a href= "https://mottu.com.br/">https://mottu.com.br/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">EquityBee: <a href= "https://equitybee.com/">https://equitybee.com/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Kiva: <a href= "https://www.kiva.org/">https://www.kiva.org/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Timestamps:</p> <p dir="ltr">0:00 It's Hussein's first time on the VC Roundtable!</p> <p dir="ltr">2:09 Gates says "turbulent era" for AI is here</p> <p dir="ltr">8:56 Microloans, Kiva, and "universal basic income"</p> <p dir="ltr">9:23 Thanks to our partner, Lightfield, the AI-native CRM that updates itself, so you never have to! Try it for free at https://lightfield.app</p> <p dir="ltr">13:00 Why sole proprietorships may be AI's biggest beneficiary</p> <p dir="ltr">20:29 Got a new business idea? Northwest helps you bring it to life. Get a free domain, email, phone number, and more, with no purchase required! Learn more at https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twistdomain</p> <p dir="ltr">21:00 Should the gov't take a stake in AI labs?</p> <p dir="ltr">30:24 Thanks to our partners at Rippling! Head to https://Rippling.ai/twist to get the only AI built to give you full visibility across your startup and take complex actions across your entire business.</p> <p dir="ltr">32:44 Meta's $17.1B settlement</p> <p dir="ltr">45:14 Is anything still fundable outside of AI?</p> <p dir="ltr">46:29 Stripe and SpaceX deals</p> <p dir="ltr">55:54 Skild AI's pancake flipping demo</p> <p dir="ltr">59:49 Sheel's Hottest Takes</p> <p dir="ltr">1:04:37 Dave's Charts</p> <p dir="ltr">1:09:07 Who loses money when there are no IPOs?</p> <p dir="ltr">1:16:49 The Agent Wars heat up</p> <p dir="ltr">1:24:56 Everyone's favorite investments</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: <a href= "https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com">https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Check out the TWIST500: <a href= "https://www.twist500.com">https://www.twist500.com</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: <a href= "https://rb.gy/v19fcp">https://rb.gy/v19fcp</a></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Follow Lon:</p> <p dir="ltr">X: <a href= "https://x.com/lons">https://x.com/lons</a></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Follow Jason:</p> <p dir="ltr">X: <a href= "https://twitter.com/Jason">https://twitter.com/Jason</a></p> <p dir="ltr">LinkedIn: <a href= "https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis">https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis</a></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Thank you to our partners:</p> <p dir="ltr">(0:00) PARTNER - AD BLURB</p> <p dir="ltr">(0:00) PARTNER - AD BLURB</p> <p dir="ltr">(0:00) PARTNER - AD BLURB</p> <p dir="ltr">Check out all our partner offers: <a href= "https://partners.launch.co/">https://partners.launch.co/</a></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Great TWIST interviews: <a href= "https://youtu.be/pvJa2pzuXWQ">Will Guidara,</a> <a href= "https://youtu.be/9dHN4YFkgv4">Eoghan McCabe</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/reddit-ceo-steve-huffman-on-mod-revolt-building-a/id315114957?i=1000617333424"> Steve Huffman</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/airbnb-ceo-brian-chesky-on-early-rejection-customer/id315114957?i=1000611761112"> Brian Chesky</a>, <a href="https://youtu.be/y2UMzSqX94Q">Bob Moesta,</a> <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/box-ceo-aaron-levie-breaks-down-box-ai-and-generative/id315114957?i=1000612384545"> Aaron Levie</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/sophia-amoruso-on-branding-raising-a-fund-portfolio/id315114957?i=1000601352978"> Sophia Amoruso</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/reid-hoffman-on-ais-crescendo-moment-regulation-and/id315114957?i=1000612548498"> Reid Hoffman</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/snowflake-ceo-frank-slootman-on-moving-the-needle-win/id315114957?i=1000602560622"> Frank Slootman</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/billy-mcfarland-on-fyre-fest-fraud-failure-hacking/id315114957?i=1000610922577"> Billy McFarland</a></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Check out Jason's suite of newsletters: <a href= "https://substack.com/@calacanis">https://substack.com/@calacanis</a></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Follow TWiST:</p> <p dir="ltr">Twitter: <a href= "https://twitter.com/TWiStartups">https://twitter.com/TWiStartups</a></p> <p dir="ltr">YouTube: <a href= "https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin">https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Instagram: <a href= "https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups">https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups</a></p> <p dir="ltr">TikTok: <a href= "https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartups">https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartups</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Substack: <a href= "https://twistartups.substack.com">https://twistartups.substack.com</a></p>
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My First Million
How to naturally monetize what you love140+ real business ideas database: https://clickhubspot.com/lrgo Episode 858: Sam Parr ( https://x.com/theSamParr ) and Shaan Puri ( https://x.com/ShaanVP ) talk about the weird ways people go all in on strange hobbies and make millions doing it. — Show Notes: (0:00) Intro (0:24) scent social club (1:54) Museum hacks (16:34) Mafia tours (21:39) Dolly Parton--Honorary Billy of The Week (45:04) LeBron James's brilliant business move — Links: • Scent Social Club - https://www.scentsocialclub.com/ • We Don’t Sell Saddles Here - https://medium.com/@stewart/we-dont-sell-saddles-here-4c59524d650d • Equine Network - https://equinenetwork.com/ • Museum Hack - https://museumhack.com/ — Check Out Sam's Stuff: • Hampton (joinhampton.com): My community for founders. Average member does $25m/year. Many of the guests are members. Get after it...apply: http://joinhampton.com/mfm — Check Out Shaan's Stuff: • Shaan's weekly email - https://www.shaanpuri.com • Visit https://www.somewhere.com/mfm to hire worldwide talent like Shaan and get $500 off for being an MFM listener. Hire developers, assistants, marketing pros, sales teams and more for 80% less than US equivalents. • Mercury - Shaan uses Mercury across all of his companies. you can too: http://mercury.com/ Mercury is a fintech company, not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services provided by Choice Financial Group, Column, N.A., Members FDIC • I run all my newsletters on Beehiiv and you should too + we're giving away $10k to our favorite newsletter, check it out: beehiiv.com/mfm-challenge My First Million is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by HubSpot Media // Production by Arie Desormeaux // Editing by Ezra Bakker Trupiano /
▶ ListenBuilt to Sell Radio
Ep 562 Selling 20 Companies at 4x ARR, With Stuart Faught<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW35512052 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW35512052 BCX0"><span class= "TextRun SCXW35512052 BCX0" lang="EN-CA" xml:lang="EN-CA" data-contrast="auto"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW35512052 BCX0">Broadly speaking, there</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW35512052 BCX0"> are two ways to build a company. Some entrepreneurs swing for the fences, spending decades building one big business. Others play for singles, building a series of smaller companies they can sell and repeat.</span></span><span class="EOP Selected SCXW35512052 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335559740":240}"> </span></p> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW35512052 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW35512052 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW35512052 BCX0">Stuart Faught has made a career of the second approach.</span><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW35512052 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335559740":240}"> </span></p> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW35512052 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW35512052 BCX0"><span class= "TextRun SCXW35512052 BCX0" lang="EN-CA" xml:lang="EN-CA" data-contrast="auto"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW35512052 BCX0">He has started and sold 20 software businesses, making him the </span><span class= "NormalTextRun ContextualSpellingAndGrammarErrorV2Themed SCXW35512052 BCX0">number-one</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW35512052 BCX0"> seller on Acquire.com. His model is deliberately small: build a simple tool for a niche of local businesses, grow it to $50K to $100K in annual recurring revenue, sell it for four to five times that, and move on to the next one.</span></span><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW35512052 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335559740":240}"> </span></p> </div>
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This Week in Startups
Dr. Mark Hyman on Function Health & GLP-1 microdosing | E2334<p dir="ltr">This Week In Startups is made possible by:</p> <p dir="ltr">Odoo - <a href= "http://odoo.com/twist">http://Odoo.com/twist</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Northwest Registered Agent - <a href= "https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twistdomain">https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twistdomain</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Rippling - <a href= "http://rippling.ai/twist">http://Rippling.ai/twist</a></p> <p dir="ltr"><br /> <br /> <br /> Today's show:</p> <p dir="ltr">Your doctor almost certainly isn't testing your insulin. Dr. Mark Hyman sits down with Jason to explain the broken system that Function is fixing, and what 100 million biomarkers say about how sick America actually is.</p> <p dir="ltr">Learn why insulin beats blood sugar as an early warning for TKTKTK. Why might "normal" lab ranges be unreliable? PLUS, how does an expert like Dr. Hyman feel about GLP-1s and psychedelics?</p> <p dir="ltr">Guests:</p> <p dir="ltr">Dr. Mark Hyman on X: <a href= "https://x.com/drmarkhyman">https://x.com/drmarkhyman</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Function: <a href= "https://www.functionhealth.com/">https://www.functionhealth.com/</a></p> <p dir="ltr"><br /> <br /> Relevant Links:</p> <ul> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">The Dr. Hyman Show — <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-dr-hyman-show/id1382804627"> https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-dr-hyman-show/id1382804627</a></p> </li> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Function pricing — <a href= "https://www.functionhealth.com/pricing">https://www.functionhealth.com/pricing</a></p> </li> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Ezra — the full-body MRI company Function acquired <a href= "https://ezra.com/">https://ezra.com/</a></p> </li> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Galleri (GRAIL) — the multi-cancer early detection blood test — <a href= "https://www.galleri.com/">https://www.galleri.com/</a></p> </li> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Tufts / JACC study — the source of the "93% of Americans have metabolic dysfunction" — <a href= "https://now.tufts.edu/2022/07/05/only-7-american-adults-have-good-cardiometabolic-health"> https://now.tufts.edu/2022/07/05/only-7-american-adults-have-good-cardiometabolic-health</a></p> </li> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">American College of Cardiology — <a href="https://www.acc.org/">https://www.acc.org/</a></p> </li> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Dr. Jorge Plutzky — <a href= "https://www.health.harvard.edu/authors/jorge-plutzky-md">https://www.health.harvard.edu/authors/jorge-plutzky-md</a></p> </li> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">OpenEvidence — <a href= "https://www.openevidence.com/">https://www.openevidence.com/</a></p> </li> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Stanford Metabolic Psychiatry Clinic — <a href= "https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2022/11/metabolic-psychiatry.html"> https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2022/11/metabolic-psychiatry.html</a></p> </li> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Stanford Medicine on the ibogaine findings → <a href= "https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2024/01/ibogaine-ptsd.html"> https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2024/01/ibogaine-ptsd.html</a></p> </li> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Texas SB 2308 — the $50M state investment in ibogaine trials — <a href= "https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/31/texas-ibogaine-research-clinical-trials-psychedelics/"> https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/31/texas-ibogaine-research-clinical-trials-psychedelics/</a></p> </li> </ul> <p dir="ltr">Timestamps:</p> <p dir="ltr">0:00 What Function actually is</p> <p dir="ltr">6:43 Healthspan vs. sick care</p> <p dir="ltr">10:16 Odoo - The all-in-one business platform. Your first app is free! Get started today at https://Odoo.com/twist</p> <p dir="ltr">11:32 A $300 vitamin D test vs. a $10 one</p> <p dir="ltr">18:08 Should a 25-year-old get a whole-body MRI?</p> <p dir="ltr">20:42 Northwest Registered Agent - Got a new business idea? Northwest Registered Agent helps you bring it to life. Get a free domain, email, phone number, and more - with no purchase required! Learn more at https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twistdomain</p> <p dir="ltr">24:23 Why medicine is still running on paper</p> <p dir="ltr">25:41 The study where the chatbot beat the doctors</p> <p dir="ltr">27:02 micro1, doctors in the loop, and why AI still needs guardrails</p> <p dir="ltr">28:50 Wearables, records, and the CD-ROM problem</p> <p dir="ltr">30:07 Rippling - Thanks to our partners at Rippling! Head to https://Rippling.ai/twist and get the only AI built to give you full visibility across your startup and take complex actions across your entire business.</p> <p dir="ltr">32:51 The wearable that caught Jason's Covid</p> <p dir="ltr">34:31 Alcohol, sugar, and why almost nobody tests your insulin</p> <p dir="ltr">40:00 GLP-1s: Jason's 213-to-168 story</p> <p dir="ltr">42:22 Microdosing GLP-1s, muscle loss, and "skinny fat"</p> <p dir="ltr">48:48 Overdiagnosing mental illness: SSRIs, Adderall, and a lost decade</p> <p dir="ltr">50:17 The biology underneath depression and anxiety</p> <p dir="ltr">54:32 Psychedelics: ketamine, ibogaine, and the second revolution in psychiatry</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr"><br /> <br /> Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: <a href= "https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com">https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Check out the TWIST500: <a href= "https://www.twist500.com">https://www.twist500.com</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: <a href= "https://rb.gy/v19fcp">https://rb.gy/v19fcp</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Follow Lon:</p> <p dir="ltr">X: <a href= "https://x.com/lons">https://x.com/lons</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Follow Jason:</p> <p dir="ltr">X: <a href= "https://twitter.com/Jason">https://twitter.com/Jason</a></p> <p dir="ltr">LinkedIn: <a href= "https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis">https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Thank you to our partners:</p> <p dir="ltr">Check out all our partner offers: <a href= "https://partners.launch.co/">https://partners.launch.co/</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Great TWIST interviews: <a href= "https://youtu.be/pvJa2pzuXWQ">Will Guidara,</a> <a href= "https://youtu.be/9dHN4YFkgv4">Eoghan McCabe</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/reddit-ceo-steve-huffman-on-mod-revolt-building-a/id315114957?i=1000617333424"> Steve Huffman</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/airbnb-ceo-brian-chesky-on-early-rejection-customer/id315114957?i=1000611761112"> Brian Chesky</a>, <a href="https://youtu.be/y2UMzSqX94Q">Bob Moesta,</a> <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/box-ceo-aaron-levie-breaks-down-box-ai-and-generative/id315114957?i=1000612384545"> Aaron Levie</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/sophia-amoruso-on-branding-raising-a-fund-portfolio/id315114957?i=1000601352978"> Sophia Amoruso</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/reid-hoffman-on-ais-crescendo-moment-regulation-and/id315114957?i=1000612548498"> Reid Hoffman</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/snowflake-ceo-frank-slootman-on-moving-the-needle-win/id315114957?i=1000602560622"> Frank Slootman</a>, <a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/billy-mcfarland-on-fyre-fest-fraud-failure-hacking/id315114957?i=1000610922577"> Billy McFarland</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Check out Jason's suite of newsletters: <a href= "https://substack.com/@calacanis">https://substack.com/@calacanis</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Follow TWiST:</p> <p dir="ltr">Twitter: <a href= "https://twitter.com/TWiStartups">https://twitter.com/TWiStartups</a></p> <p dir="ltr">YouTube: <a href= "https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin">https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Instagram: <a href= "https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups">https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups</a></p> <p dir="ltr">TikTok: <a href= "https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartups">https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartups</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Substack: <a href= "https://twistartups.substack.com">https://twistartups.substack.com</a></p>
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