Gm.
Alright, absolutely huge response to Monday’s poll.
One readers’ response really stood out.
“Money is a tool for impact and influence and companies are vehicles to drive change this world desperately needs”.
Important to remember.
Ok, time for today’s poll. Drum roll please.
FRESH POWDER
Looking at three startups that just raised. Congrats!
If you want to get your company in front of 19,500+ founders, investors, and operators, let us know!
Contact [email protected] with any questions
AI
Hello, Bard
This is the story of the week!
About a month ago, Google CEO Sundar Pichai declared a “code red” over ChatGPT. Needless to say, he is not a fan of our beloved robot BS-spewer.
Add in the fact that search engine little brother Bing was beefing up with AI, and the threat to Google had become existential.
So, what does Google do?
They follow the time-tested principle of “if you can’t beat them, join them” and invent their own AI Chatbot.
Enter…Bard.
Go Bard Or Go Home
Bard is a “conversational AI service” (i.e., a chatbot) powered by a Language Model for Dialogue Applications (LaMDA), which Google has been developing for two years now.
Right now, Bard is being tested by a small group of users, but Google’s eventual goal is to integrate it with the search engine.
The aim is for people to be able to ask deeper questions and receive richer answers. For example, instead of only being able to ask, “how many keys does a piano have”, people will be able to ask, “is the piano or guitar easier to learn, and how much practice does each need?”.
Basically, ChatGPT but make it Google search.
Chatbot Cambrian Explosion
Bard is the latest in an increasingly long line of AI chatbots:
ChatGPT, obviously.
And now, Bard.
The Oprah meme has never been more relevant.
QUICK HITS
Seed Round
Stat: 6,650: The number of employees that Dell’s laying off.
Story we're watching: The infamous and perpetually delayed Tesla Full Self-Driving Beta v11 update is supposedly coming this week. If it does, Tesla would be one step closer to being the self-driving car of the future it wants to be. But, we’ll believe it when we see it.
Rabbit hole: Why Socrates Was A Monster (The Bigger Picture)
WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON
Apple is still working on reverse wireless charging.
Amazon’s delivery drones aren’t exactly lighting the world on fire.
The TikTok transparency center is an…interesting place.
If you’ve ever thought to yourself “damn, I wish I had another arm right now”, you might soon be in luck.
THREE LIES AND A HEADLINE
News is so weird these days. Three of these headline are fake stories from The Onion while one is actually true. Can you spot the truth amongst the fakes?
A. Harry Styles Figures He Should Listen To His Album Now That It Won A Grammy
B. The Quest To Find Rectangles In A Square
C. Geneticists Announce They Have Resurrected Woolly Mammoth’s Trunk Only
D. U.S. Officials Call For Correct Amount Of Violence
LAYOFFS TRACKER
Notable layoffs this week
TenureX: 20 people (100%)
Daraz: 1,100 people (11%)
Zoom: 1,300 people (15%)
FOUNDERS CORNER
The best resources we came across this weekend that will help you become a better founder, builder, or investor.
🍓 Jam is my new favorite Chrome extension for screenshots. It’s like Loom but faster and more user-friendly.
🤝 Our friend Nick Gray wrote an article titled 79 Tasks for My Virtual Assistant. Helpful resource of ideas for anyone with VAs.
🙉 Google’s Moonshot division founder Astro Teller wrote a great article on why you should tackle the monkey first.
IRL
If you're in NYC or LA, make sure to subscribe to our IRL events newsletters:
3 Lies Answer:
B.