Take the Meta and run

Top News

• Meta’s still on a hiring blitz: Bloomberg reports that Mark Zuckerberg & Co. have taken yet another AI researcher away from Apple Inc., bringing on multimodal expert Bowen Zhang to join their growing superintelligence team. That’s the fourth Apple AI expert lost to Meta so far, a trend which is sure to continue setting back the device giant’s “Apple Intelligence” plans even further. And they’re not alone in their suffering; Wired suggests that Meta’s also been attempting to sneak off with staffers from OpenAI vet Mira Murati’s startup, Thinking Machines Lab.

• OpenAI introduces “study mode”: The ChatGPT maker is such a popular favorite among high school students seeking a (potentially unfair) edge, its daily use spikes whenever kids return to their classrooms. So perhaps it’s unsurprising that the startup announced a new mode designed specifically for students doing their homework, which doesn’t directly give them the answers but instead asks open-ended questions designed to guide them to the answers themselves. (You know, the Socratic Method.) Of course, students who grow weary of their AI tutors can just flip back to regular answer-providing ChatGPT mode, but hey, an attempt was made.

• Tea-Gate worse than we thought: Private chats and personal data collected by the “whisper network” mobile app — designed for an audience of exclusively women to share dating tips and “red flags” — were exposed to the entire world by 4chan users last week, in a story that made headlines beyond just the app business. As it turns out, there were multiple security breaches at Tea, and while initial reports had suggested that all the publicly posted data was 2 years old or more, in fact, one database that was accessed had messages dating back just one week. Hackers also apparently had access to a push notification system that could be used to contact all Tea users at once. Suffice it to say… don’t download the Tea app.

TWiST500

Runway AI — a TWiST 500 startup using AI tools to produce and enhance video production, animation, and multimedia content — is having an insane blockbuster summer. In a few short weeks, Runway has graduated from a bit of an online curiosity — one of those text-to-video generators you’d often see going viral on social media for producing a few seconds of original animation — to a real player on the media and entertainment scene, collaborating on huge projects with high-profile partners.

The torrent of positive news started with Netflix’s Q2 earnings report. During a chat with investors, co-CEO Ted Sarandos noted that the streamer had collaborated with Runway on the Spanish-language sci-fi series “The Eternaut” from Argentina. Runway provided tools used by the show’s special effects team to help realize a scene in which a building collapses.

The announcement sort of answers the question of whether or not audiences will care if AI is used within post-production workflows. It already was… and no one noticed until Netflix pointed it out.

Runway also announced a collaboration this week with mega-movie camera makers IMAX. 10 shorts from the 2025 AI Film Festival — all produced with assistance from Runway’s AI tools — will screen at IMAX theaters across the US from August 17-20. There was the usual whining and moaning about the announcement on Bluesky, but every new partnership between Runway and an established media brand like IMAX just gives them and their products more credibility.

As well, The Information reports today that Runway and fellow video AI startup Luma have already started looking beyond Hollywood, considering ways to potentially collaborate with robotics, video game, and self-driving car companies. (For example, using their tech to generate 3D models of real world spaces to help automated cars find their way around.)

While dismissing AI outputs as “slop” remains the trend in some pockets of social media, as companies like Runway become ever more embedded into mainstream studio workflows, their arrival has started to feel undeniable. You can resist the AI revolution for so long until you must concede that it’s here. – Lon

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This Week in Startups

E2157: We’re breaking down some media stories, so Lon’s joining Jason and Alex to talk about Astronomer’s viral response to the Coldplay Canoodling meme (starring Gwyneth Paltrow!) and Sydney Sweeney’s extremely divisive American Eagle ad. (It’s not EXACTLY tech but there are some founder lessons here for sure!) Plus, Figma’s big IPO, everything that went wrong with the Tea app, and why Jason thinks app stores should ban “anonymous” forums.

E2156: Jason just got back from the big All-In AI Summit in DC, and he’s got a ton of behind-the-scenes anecdotes and observations to share. Hear about his immigration back-and-forth with VP JD Vance, his solar power debate with Energy Sec. Wright, Jensen Huang and Lisa Su’s thoughts on AI job displacement, and even getting a shoutout from POTUS himself. PLUS Alex and Jason have a little free trade vs. tariff tet-a-tet, and we’re answering YOUR top queries from Reddit.

E2155: Alex returns with another three awesome TWiST 500 founder interviews. FIRST, Trey Holterman from Tennr on streamlining the process of seeing a health care specialist. THEN, Gill Verdon tells us about the future of thermodynamic computing and how it could fuel the AI revolution. FINALLY, Tyler Denk from Beehiiv on hitting $20M ARR, maintaining product velocity, and how his newsletter service differs from Substack.

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Founder U is coming to the MENA region!

Our 12-week pre-accelerator—designed to help early-stage founders build and grow—kicks off this fall in Saudi Arabia. The first cohort launches in Riyadh on November 3rd, followed by in-person and virtual sessions throughout the program. Founders in MENA: this is your chance to turn your idea into a business and get world-class insights on building a successful startup. Apply today: https://mena.founder.university/

LAUNCH Accelerator

Our current Accelerator batch is graduating! Watch 11 strong startups pitch to Jason and our investor-judges. We are livestreaming the event on Monday, July 28th at 12:30 PM PT. Register here.

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