Top News | Nvidia beats earnings expectations: The stock market can breathe now that Nvidia beat earnings expectations in its most recent quarter. And the chip giant managed the feat in style, posting $35.1 billion worth of top line and a net income of $19.3 billion. Those are globe-straddling figures, and back up Nvidia’s world-leading market cap. Shares of Nvidia fell a point or two after it indicated that its current quarter results will be largely in-line with expectations, but it seems that the AI hype train has a few more stops ahead of it. Enterprise AI spend leaps: A recent Menlo Ventures report digging into how quickly enterprise AI spend is growing is worth a minute of our time. While the report’s headline figures — enterprise generative AI spending rose to $13.8 billion in 2024 from $2.4 billion last year — are a bit broad, it does note that vertical AI spend from large companies scaled from $100 million in 2023 to $1.2 billion this year. Mix in similar jumps in corporate AI spend on horizontal and “departmental” AI offerings, and it seems that, yes, there really is real AI spend for startups to capture today. An o1 challenger emerges: OpenAI’s recently released o1 model preview was met with positive reviews. The ‘reasoning’ model is able to perform more complex tasks by taking its time before answering. Now, Chinese AI company DeepSeek has released a model that operates along similar lines to o1, and — the company claims — is competitive with the OpenAI product. Mix in a plan to open-source the technology in the future, and the AI race should stay interesting for the foreseeable future.
| TWiST500 | There are two TWiST500 updates today: | We’re adding Allen Control Systems to the TWiST500. The company came on the podcast today, and Jason and I both really liked the CEO, the product, the vision, and the market. I am a journalist and not an investor, but if I was. Well, you get the idea. And Cyera, a data security company that has been on the TWiST500 for a little while now — and came by the show for a chat back in August — just raised another $300 million. The company also recently made news by spending nine-figures on Trail Security, but put that aside for now.
| The new Cyera round pushes the company’s valuation up to $3 billion, and was led by by Accel and Sapphire Ventures. Other venture firms, including Sequoia, took part in the investment. Certainly, megarounds are not extinct in 2024, but to see a non-foundation model company raise two in a year is certainly bullish for Cyera. — Alex | p.s. I’ll try to get the company back on the podcast for a short update, if possible, so that we can go deeper. | | A message from OpenPhone | Create business phone numbers for you and your team that work through an app on your smartphone or desktop. TWiST listeners can get an extra 20% off any plan for your first 6 months at https://www.openphone.com/twist | This Week in Startups | E2048: Jason and Alex kick off the show with a deep dive into Nvidia’s expected $33B Q3 revenue and its shift from gaming GPUs to dominating AI workloads. Plus, we had two amazing guests: Steven Simoni, founder of Allen Control Systems, shared how their counter-drone robotic gun systems are revolutionizing defense, and Rami Abi Habib, founder of Querio, gave a great demo of their intuitive data query platform. | E2047: Spenser Skates and James Evans join Alex to discuss Amplitude's acquisition of Command AI, shedding light on recent startup M&A trends and the strategic vision behind this move. The conversation delves into Command AI's user assistance technology and its integration into Amplitude, which aims to enhance user surveys and feedback. They also cover the acquisition deal structure, regulatory concerns, and the decision-making process between raising funds and selling. | E2046: Jason and Alex dive into the evolving landscape of streaming, covering Netflix's live event hiccups, sports streaming rights, and advertising vs. subscription models. They explore tech's intersection with regulation, including TikTok's challenges and Brendan Carr's FCC chairmanship. Wrapping up, they touch on Emil Michael's potential cabinet position and strategies for balancing the federal budget and reducing national debt. | TWiST Partner Offers | Vanta: Compliance and security shouldn't be a deal-breaker for startups to win new business. Vanta makes it easy for companies to get a SOC 2 report fast. TWiST listeners can get $1,000 off for a limited time at https://www.vanta.com/twist Cloud Devs: Building the best remote team is tough, but you don’t have to do it alone. Visithttps://www.clouddevs.com/twist for an unbeatable offer on hiring elite Latam talent today Sprig: The Product Experience platform that generates AI-powered opportunities to continuously improve your product at scale. Visit https://www.sprig.com/twist to book a demo and get a $75 gift card.
| LAUNCH Cloud Kitchens Incubator | Applications are open for Cohort 2 of the LAUNCH CloudKitchens Incubator (LiCK). We're looking for food entrepreneurs who wish to expand into the ghost kitchen space or tech founders with a team and a great idea. The application and more information can be found at https://ck.launch.co/. | | The TWiST500 newsletter is the new, updated, and improved TWiST Ticker. |
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