Krutrim becomes India’s first AI unicorn, Apple Podcasts adding auto-generated transcripts

Top News

Krutrim, an AI startup founded by Ola founder Bhavish Aggarwal, has raised a funding round that values it at $1B, making it India’s first AI unicorn. - Link

Apple Podcasts to get auto-generated transcripts, making it easier for listeners to follow along to their favorite shows. - Link

Nintendo plans to introduce a new Switch gaming console in 2024 with an 8" LCD screen; the current seven-year-old Switch has sold over 132M units. - Link

Baidu partners with Samsung to integrate its Ernie chatbot into Galaxy S24 smartphones in China, allowing users to translate calls in real-time. - Link

The UK CMA launches the first stage of its review of Vodafone and Three UK's merger, and sets March 22, 2024 as a deadline to decide for an in-depth probe. - Link

Vanta is a compliance system specializing in simplifying the journey to SOC 2 and ISO 27001 compliance so you can build trust effortlessly. They automate up to 90% of the compliance process, saving you time and money. Enjoy $1,000 off at vanta.com/twist! Ad

Advice of the Day

Founders Have No Balance

Reid Hoffman, the founder of LinkedIn, expresses that founders lack a balanced life. He believes that truly committed founders pour their entire being into their ventures, often leading to an unbalanced lifestyle. While he acknowledges that breaks and personal activities are part of life, he emphasizes that successful founders are intensely focused due to the difficulty and numerous challenges of building a successful business. In his opinion, this intense focus is essential for triumph in the competitive and risky world of entrepreneurship. - Link

Startup Demo of the Day:

Linearity Move enables users to create marketing animations. The motion graphics tool streamlines workflows and brings static assets to life with its intuitive interface and user guide.

Founder University is a 12-week pre-accelerator program run by Jason/LAUNCH for builder founders. We're investing $25k in 20-30 companies from Cohort 7. Apply at founder.university/letsbuild.

This Week in Startups

E1886: David Weisburd, Elizabeth Yin, Zach Coelius, and Jason Calacanis explore the current state of venture funds. Despite a slow market, venture funds are growing in size. The conversation touches on the performance comparison between smaller and larger funds, focusing on Hustle Fund's quantitative approach to evaluating startups. The group also discusses the resurgence of the Bay Area and the increase in the number of unicorns, although liquidity has decreased. The session concludes with a rapid-fire segment highlighting top recent investments. - Watch

E1885: Jesse Lyu from Rabbit joins Jason to discuss their latest innovation, the Rabbit R1, a compact AI device. They cover various aspects of the product, including its introduction, pricing, and the distinction between large language and action models. The video gives insights into Rabbit's early development, Jesse Lyu's journey, AI prospects, along with a discussion about the product's timeline and getting it to early adopters. - Watch

E1884: Sunny and Jason discuss how AI is used at work, especially in remote settings. Sunny shows different AI tools like Hour One, Bland AI, Dinnerfly, and AI Comic Factory. They also talk about Apple's behavior with smartwatches and share a short film called "Borrowed Time" made entirely with AI. - Watch

E1883: David Weisburd and guests delve into various aspects of the venture capital landscape, discussing positive trends in startup valuations for 2024, current valuation methods, and key considerations for investors. The conversation also explores strategies for securing competitive deals, examines controversial practices like round-tripping, and highlights recent developments in the industry, such as Lexington's successful $22.7 million secondary investment raise and increased mergers and acquisitions activity. - Watch

E1882: Joshua Berkowitz from Berkocorp joins host Jason to discuss various facets of VC and fundraising. They cover why family offices are increasingly diversifying into VC, focusing on aspects such as higher returns and the entrepreneurial element. The conversation also explores how venture firms make decisions, weighing consensus against individual decision-making, and what it takes for a VC fund to succeed. - Watch

This Week in Startups Paid Partnerships

Squarespace is an all-in-one content management system that enables you to create a website, host content, sell products, and much more with a single subscription. Use code TWIST for a 10% discount on your first website or domain purchase at https://Squarespace.com/twist.

Northwest Registered Agent is a business formation service providing expertise and confidence in starting a business. Get a 60% discount on your next LLC setup at http://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist.

When your business is ready to make that next hire, find the right person with LinkedIn Jobs. Post your open roles and easily target, prioritize, and manage qualified candidates. Visit https://www.LinkedIn.com/TWIST to post a job for free.