This Week in Startups

• Grammarly is now Superhuman! CEO Shishir Mehrotra explains the rebrand | E2201

  Today’s show:*Why rebrand an app with 40 million daily active users?On TWiST, Grammarly CEO Shishir Mehrotra swings by to explain why he’s renaming his company after the mail app he just purchased, Superhuman.Plus he’s giving us a first look at the startup’s new AI assistant, Superhuman Go, digging into their new agent-centered strategy, looking ahead at the potential for AI job displacement, and more.Jason and Alex also talk about our new nuclear deal with Westinghouse and Japan, OpenAI’s conversion and what it means for Microsoft, 1x’s tele-operated Neo-bot for chores, and much more!Timestamps:(00:07:56) Jason is headed to Tokyo, and NOT just for skiing this time!(10:00) Uber AI Solutions**:** Your trusted partner to get AI to work in the real world. Book a demo with them TODAY at Uber.com/twist(00:12:21) Untangling this US government-Japan-Westinghouse deal for nuclear power… and why nuclear power is SO important(20:00)DevStats translates complex engineering metrics into a shared language everyone at your company can understand. Get 20% off by going to https://www.DevStats.com/twist(00:20:04) Why Jason says sabbaticals and 4 day work weeks are for established brands, not startups(30:00) Perspective AI: Real insights, straight from your customers, and your first two months are on us. Just go to getperspective.ai/twist.(00:33:01) Will income inequality become a concern, even for the wealthy? Jason says YES.(00:37:29) Shishir Mehrotra from Gram— NO WAIT, Superhuman! joins us to talk name changes(00:38:16) Using Grammarly as a model for the new AI assistant, Superhuman Go.(01:08:39) Nvidia shot past $5 TRILLION in value… How is no one freaked out about this?!(01:14:52) OpenAI executed their conversion… but Jason says “public benefit corporation” status is pretty meaningless(01:25:02) Checking out the Neo robot from 1x… he wants to help you with chores and he’s for sale!(01:32:09) Uber’s speeding up its self-driving plansSubscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcpFollow Lon:X: https://x.com/lonsFollow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelmFollow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanisThank you to our partners:Perspective AI - Real insights, straight from your customers, and your first two months are on us. Just go to getperspective.ai/twist.DevStats translates complex engineering metrics into a shared language everyone at your company can understand. Get 20% off by going to https://www.DevStats.com/twistUber AI Solutions: Your trusted partner to get AI to work in the real world. Book a demo with them TODAY at Uber.com/twistGreat TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarlandCheck out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanisFollow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.comSubscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916

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• iPhone Air is “inspiring,” and a first step toward Apple Glasses (w/ Zach Handshoe of SpatialGen) | E2200

  Today’s show:Jason’s been skeptical on Apple lately, but he’s BLOWN AWAY by his new iPhone Air.Hear why JCal thinks Cupertino’s latest release is “completely inspiring,” and why he’s sure it’s the next step on the road to Apple Glasses.We’re chatting with LAUNCH founder Zach Handshoe of spacial video startup SpatialGen about designing products for Cupertino AND the intense pressure of performing a Steve Jobs-level keynote.PLUS Raiza Martin of Huxe stops by to tell us why they’re using audio to make AI assistants more personalized AND proactive, and how they’re already getting noticed in an increasingly crowded App Store.AND we’ve got another Gamma Pitch Competition entrant! Chess Grandmaster Vasif Durarbayli presents his expert-focused app, ChessEver.Timestamps:(2:05) Friend of the pod @ZacharyHandshoe stops by to talk about supporting Apple Immersive Video (and staying up during the AWS outage)(9:37) Enterpret - Turn feedback noise into Customer Intelligence, so your team knows exactly what to fix and build next. Head to Enterpret.com/twist to book a demo and see it in action.(15:55) The iPhone Air can already shoot spatial video! Just part of why Jason calls it a “completely inspiring” product.(21:25) Crusoe Cloud - Crusoe is the AI factory company. Reliable infrastructure and expert support. Visit crusoe.ai/startup to reserve your capacity for the latest GPUs today.(24:30) Jason offers viewers a peek inside LAUNCH’s Whisper Network(32:09) Lemon.io - Get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://Lemon.io/twist(33:10) Huxe co-founder (and NotebookLM vet) Raiza Martin wants to make your AI assistant more personalized and proactive.(37:14) Why Raiza and her team went with an audio-forward interface instead of a chatbot.(43:25) How Huxe is getting noticed in the App Store as a brand new arrival.(50:25) The big LLMs still aren’t great at writing engaging content for humans, so Huxe is doing it themselves.(52:41) Chess Grandmaster Vasif Durarbayli from ChessEver joins us for his Gamma pitch!(54:26) Why Vasif is focusing on very serious players FIRST before appealing to more casual chess fans(1:05:28) Jason thinks ChessEver is at the moment of “triangulation” in their journey to finding Product Market Fit… what do Grandmasters really want?Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcpFollow Lon:X: https://x.com/lonsFollow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelmFollow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanisThank you to our partners:Enterpret - Turn feedback noise into Customer Intelligence, so your team knows exactly what to fix and build next. Head to Enterpret.com/twist to book a demo and see it in action.Crusoe Cloud - Crusoe is the AI factory company. Reliable infrastructure and expert support. Visit crusoe.ai/startup to reserve your capacity for the latest GPUs today.Lemon.io - Get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://Lemon.io/twistGreat TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarlandCheck out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanisFollow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.comSubscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916

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• Jason Unpacks Sequoia’s New Funds | E2199

  Today’s show:Australia has accused Microsoft of employing a dark pattern… Hear why Jason says these kinds of sneaky tactics aren’t usually worth it.It’s a brand-new Monday TWiST and it’s PACKED with news. In addition to Australia’s allegations against MSFT, we’re looking at Chinese drone fails and wondering how live experiences will change in the age of AI.PLUS has Tesla finally “solved” FSD after years of promises? Does it matter that so much of Mercor’s revenue goes back out to contractors? Do Chinese LLMs have a major advantage when it comes to the stock market over Western counterparts? Why Jason avoids overseas deals when he doesn’t speak the language or know the culture. And much more!Timestamps:(00:03:44) Fall is here! And Jason is already looking ahead to “BFCM” and the holiday season.(00:07:13) We’re bringing back the TWiSTies and a Prediction 2026 show(00:07:33) People are using AI to create fake receipts for fraudulent invoices!(10:00) Pipedrive - Bring clarity and control to your sales process with Pipedrive, the #1 CRM for small and medium sized businesses. Supercharge your sales today. Start with a 30-day free trial at pipedrive.com/twist.(00:14:23) It’s earnings week for Meta AND Alphabet AND Microsoft AND AMAZON!(00:19:55) What happened with the disastrous Chinese drone and fireworks show?(20:00) Monarch - Thanks to our partner, Monarch! Try the app and get 50% off your first year by visiting monarchmoney.com/twist.(00:27:37) Why Jason thinks live experiences are going to get much bigger and more impressive in the age of AI(00:29:34) Why Tesla is training FSD on synthetic data now… Has FSD finally been “solved”?(30:00) AWS Activate - AWS Activate helps startups bring their ideas to life. Apply to AWS Activate today to learn more. Visit https://www.aws.amazon.com/startups/credits(00:45:10) What’s going on with these new Sequoia funds? Jason unpacks the strategy…(00:50:50) Jason doesn’t like to invest overseas unless he speaks the language and knows the culture(00:51:11) Jason’s thoughts on the controversy surrounding Sequoia partner Shaun Maguire’s comments(00:58:34) Mercor pays out 60-70% of its toppling revenue to contractors… does this MATTER?(01:06:14) Do Chinese LLMs have a major advantage when it comes to investing? (Humans are now betting on all this on PolyMarket)(01:09:45) Australia alleges that Microsoft is employing a dark pattern… why Jason says that’s a problem.Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcpFollow Lon:X: https://x.com/lonsFollow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelmFollow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanisThank you to our partners:AWS Activate - AWS Activate helps startups bring their ideas to life. Apply to AWS Activate today to learn more. Visit https://www.aws.amazon.com/startups/creditsMonarch Money - Get 50% Off Monarch Money, the all-in-one financial tool at www.monarchmoney.com/TWISTPipedrive - Bring clarity and control to your sales process with Pipedrive, the #1 CRM for small and medium sized businesses. Supercharge your sales today. Start with a 30-day free trial at pipedrive.com/twist.Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarlandCheck out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanisFollow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.comSubscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916

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• If you’re not working 9-9-6, are you working hard enough? | E2198

  Today’s show:*Working from 9 am to 9 pm, 6 days a week, might seem like TOO INTENSE a commitment for some, but Jason argues that elite performance — and the mega-compensation that goes along with it — sometimes requires personal sacrifice. While 72-hour weeks might lead to burnout for some, it really comes down to individual choice.PLUS Jason and Alex deep dive the NBA gambling scandal and the sketchy reality behind high-stakes home games of poker. PLUS Presh Kumar takes us behind the scenes, to see how AI apps helped him develop and workshop the video for his new wellness startup, Tempo, and what’s with Anthropic buying chips from their AI rivals, Google? It’s a can’t miss This Week in Startups.Timestamps:(00:06:49) Jason and Alex are poker fans… what do they think about this insane NBA gambling scandal?(10:00) LinkedIn Ads - Start converting your B2B audience into high quality leads today. Launch your first campaign and get $250 FREE when you spend at least $250. Go to http://LinkedIn.com/ThisWeekinStartups to claim your credit.(20:00) Nexos.ai - Stop Shadow AI in its tracks with the unified platform for secure AI adoption and productivity. Try it with a free 14-day trial at https://nexos.ai/twist.(00:25:09) Is working “9-9-6” a reasonable goal? A guarantee of success? Why Jason compares it to being an Olympian.(30:00) Every.io - Running a startup is hard enough. Every takes care of incorporation, banking, payroll, benefits, accounting, taxes and more so that you focus on building, not back-office admin. Visit every.io.(00:38:00) Our old buddy Presh walks us through the process of making his Tempo launch video(00:42:28) Jason and Alex check out some of Ridley Scott’s famous storyboards(00:48:03) Anthropic is buying TPUs from Google… Are these companies in LIKE with each other?Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcpFollow Lon:X: https://x.com/lonsFollow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelmFollow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanisThank you to our partners:LinkedIn Ads - Start converting your B2B audience into high quality leads today. Launch your first campaign and get $250 FREE when you spend at least $250. Go to http://LinkedIn.com/ThisWeekinStartups to claim your credit.Nexos.ai - Stop Shadow AI in its tracks with the unified platform for secure AI adoption and productivity. Try it with a free 14-day trial at https://nexos.ai/twist.**Every.io -** Running a startup is hard enough. Every takes care of incorporation, banking, payroll, benefits, accounting, taxes and more so that you focus on building, not back-office admin. Visit every.io.Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarlandCheck out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanisFollow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.comSubscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916

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• Amazon’s “Age of Efficiency,” LLM distribution, AI wearable worries, and more with Elad Gil | E2197

  Today’s show:*Amazon’s dropping a LOT of employees for AI and robots… are Jason’s darkest predictions coming true?Legendary investor Elad Gil joins Jason and Alex for the full show today! Together, they’re digging into the Amazon news, looking back at Jason’s predictions from just last month, and theorizing about just how many people will lose their jobs to computers, and what we’re going to do about it. (Is it possible the US hasn’t been massively hit by job displacement so far because those gigs already moved overseas?)PLUS… Anthropic’s Dario Amodei responds to criticisms from JCal’s bestie David Sacks, Sesame emerges from stealth to work on AI wearables, and where will people in the future interact with their favorite apps? A headset? Phones? Somewhere else? The great debate continues.Timestamps:(00:04:04) Our guest is iconic angel investor Elad Gil! What’s he working on…(00:04:54) Alexandria AI translates public domain books into all commonly spoken languages… Do people actually prefer AI translations?(00:09:16) Why compute tends to centralize over time… (It’s because of economies of scale!)(00:09:29) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://www.Squarespace.com/TWIST(00:12:49) So are we building TOO MANY datacenters? Will AI apps eventually run on your phone anyway?(00:16:39) Jason says “The Age of Efficiency is upon us.”(00:19:24) When companies trade inference for market share(00:19:27) Sentry - New users get 3 months free of the Business plan (covers 150k errors). Go to http://sentry.io/twist and use code TWIST(00:21:57) Why one of the main challenges of adopting AI is buy-in and convincing teams to use it.(00:25:47) Elad’s robotics questions: (1) What % of winners will be incumbents?(00:27:50) Jason called the Amazon news last month and we have the receipts!(00:29:36) Pilot - Visit https://www.pilot.com/twist and get $1,200 off your first yea(00:45:33) Jason says Adobe and Figma should abandon the UK entirely.(00:45:55) Time for a Polymarket: The sharps say 80% chance Tesla beats their quarterly earnings(00:51:02) What is Sesame? They just emerged from stealth, they raised $250M, and they’re working on AI wearables.(00:53:21) Jason has concerns about AI wearables that are always recording… Does Elad share these concerns?(01:03:17) The crypto industry is now one of the largest purchasers of US government debt… what does that mean? Who owns who?(01:08:53) Anthropic responded to JCal’s Bestie David Sacks… Is Dario Amodei a doomer? Fearmongering?(01:19:12) Why Jason thinks AI companies need to self-regulateSubscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcpFollow Lon:X: https://x.com/lonsFollow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelmFollow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanisThank you to our partners:Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://www.Squarespace.com/TWISTSentry - New users get 3 months free of the Business plan (covers 150k errors). Go to http://sentry.io/twist and use code TWISTPilot - Visit https://www.pilot.com/twist and get $1,200 off your first yeaGreat TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarlandCheck out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanisFollow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.comSubscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916

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