Perplexity AI is booming, and CloudPay scored $120M led by Blue Owl

Top News

• CloudPay just scored a hefty $120 million funding round led by Blue Owl Capital to fuel its global payroll expansion. With this cash infusion, CloudPay plans to sprinkle some AI-powered pixie dust on its services, making cross-border payroll as smooth as butter for its 280+ corporate clients across 130 countries. The future of getting paid just got a whole lot more exciting!

• Perplexity AI is booming, with its revenues surging seven-fold this year and a fresh $250M funding round boosting its valuation to $3B. The startup, known for answering 250M questions last month, is shifting gears from subscriptions to ads, squaring off with Google. Despite some bumps in the road, like plagiarism claims, Perplexity is laser-focused on redefining AI search with a unique revenue-sharing model for publishers.

• Amazon is stepping up its social commerce game by launching deals directly on TikTok and Pinterest. Now, users can snag Amazon products without leaving their favorite app (impulse buys are easier than ever). This latest move shows Amazon’s intent to dominate where social media meets e-commerce, blending entertainment and retail into one experience.

Legal Basic

If you haven’t heard of TWiST’s Legal Basics segment, it's a short segment where we discuss all things legal for startups.

In yesterday’s Startup Legal Basics episode, Wilson Sonsini Partner Becki DeGraw discusses the current state of startup funding, including trends in venture capital and the impact of the market slowdown. She explains key legal concepts like anti-dilution provisions and the importance of due diligence in navigating down rounds. The conversation also covers strategies for re-incentivizing management teams and managing investor relations during challenging times.

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This Week in Startups

E1990: This episode throws it back to our LIQUIDITY Summit! Featuring Antonio Gracias of Valor and Gavin Baker of Atreides Management.

E1989: Our first round of TWiST500 companies! Alex interviews Kyle Hanslovan of Huntress, Olivia Joslin and Toshit Panigrahi of TollBit, and Tamar Bar-Ilan of Cyera.

E1988: Josh Reeves and Alex discuss Gusto's growth, marketing strategies, and product development. A key theme is that serving small businesses presents both challenges and successes. Josh also touches on the competitive landscape, potential fintech ventures, and future expansion plans for Gusto.

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