together with

Gm. I’m happy to say science fiction is officially becoming reality. Today’s issues features a whole lotta robots and metaverse. Let the fun begin.

TOGETHER WITH UPSIDE

Don’t Cut Back, Get Cash Back

The cost of eggs has risen 190.9% since 2020. And with costs continuing to rise, we’re all trying to figure out where we can cut back a little bit.

That’s where Upside comes in. It’s a free app that gets you cash back on everyday items, like groceries, gas, and at restaurants. You get to go about your normal business while Upside earns a little bit of cash back here and there along the way.

Upside users earn 3x more cash back than other apps and rewards programs. On average, frequent users earn $340 a year.

Get an extra 25¢/gal cash back on your first tank of gas. Download the free Upside app and use code: “BHTech25”.

POLLS

Yesss ski fam.

“Shreddin some gnar pow during ETH Denver this Friday 🤙” Jealous.

“Trees are not to be f*ed with…” Ok we need a story. You can’t leave us hanging like that. Let’s hear it.

“Not at the moment because my startup is my priority.” Respect. But I do recommend the good ol’ gondola VC pitch. Works every time.

Alright on to today’s poll. I was having a convo with my Dad and he didn’t understand why YouTube premium is a business expense. Wbu?

FRESH POWDER

Looking at three startups that just raised. Congrats!

If you want to get your company in front of 21,000+ founders, investors, and operators, let us know! Contact [email protected] with any questions

TECH

Meta’s AR/VR Masterplan

I know Meta’s metaverse bet hasn’t paid off yet. You know Meta’s metaverse bet hasn’t paid off yet. The American people know Meta’s metaverse bet hasn’t paid off yet.

But, that doesn’t mean Meta’s Robot-In-Chief Zuck is giving up just yet.

On the contrary, Meta’s execs have their AR/VR hardware plans for the next 4 years(!) all mapped out.

The Roadmap

So, what’s on the docket for Meta’s mixed reality division?

As it pertains to Meta’s flagship Quest VR headset:

• The regular Quest is getting an update later this year, and it will be two times thinner, at least twice as powerful, and cost slightly more than the current Quest 2. Unfortunately, it will still not be a full VR experience, as the front-facing cameras still pass through video of the outside world.

• A more “accessible” headset codenamed Ventura is due for launch in 2024. Basically, it’s the headset for us peasants.

• The successor to the Meta Quest Pro, codenamed La Jolla, will be released “way out in the future”.

Meanwhile, VR isn’t all that Meta has cooking in the pot. Zuckerberg is famously obsessed with AR glasses, and Meta’s plans reflect this obsession:

• The 2nd-generation of Meta’s camera-equipped smart glasses is coming this fall.

• The 3rd-generation of the smart glasses is due for 2025, decked out with the ability to view incoming text messages, scan QR codes, and translate text to another language in real time.

• The much-anticipated full-stack AR glasses will come out in 2027. These are the glasses where you’ll be able to project high-quality avatars. Sci-fi as fuc….

Innovate, Or Die

Meta was early to the metaverse trend, but they are definitely not alone. Apple is working toward its own VR headset, Sony just released their own well-received VR headset, and pretty much the entirety of Big Tech is striving for AR glasses.

If Meta wants their metaverse bet to ever pay off, they have to continue to innovate, improve, and stay ahead of the pack.

This roadmap is a good start.

HARD TECH

Rise of the Planet of the Robots

Yesterday, Figure came out of stealth in fashion.

Founder Brett Adcock posted a Twitter thread saying “Here’s what the future will look like.” You just know whatever he was gonna say next would be wild.

“One robot for every human on the planet”

Figure is building autonomous humanoid robots.

This isn’t science fiction folks. This is real life.

“Physical labor is the largest market on the planet = 50% of GDP (~$40T/yr),” Adcock wrote. “Predictions indicate 85 million job shortages by 2030. If we want growth, we need more productivity — and this means more automation.”

Ok Brett let’s just admitted we all want a robot friend named WALL-E.

But forreal, this is amazing.

Adcock’s vision is “a future where humanoid robots work alongside us on a global scale.” And the future seems to be right now.

As Adcock points out, the last 10 years have seen enormous advances in:

• Compute and GPU

• Energy and Power Density (Batteries, Motors, Power Electronics)

• Bipedal Locomotion Control

• Autonomy (Perception, Manipulation, SLAM, Prediction)

And it’s now the moment all of us sci-fi nerds have been waiting for: robot time.

The Figure 01 Robot

Here’s a shot of the first “commercially viable autonomous humanoid.”

It’s fully electromechanical (batteries/motors), designed to work safely alongside humans, and its hardware is capable of doing whatever humans can.

“Humanoids will revolutionize a variety of industries,” Adcock wrote. A few examples he gave were corporate labor roles, caring for the elderly, consumer housework, and building new worlds in space. Incredible.

Ok, I gotta go grab burritos with my robot. Check out Brett’s thread for more.

QUICK HITS

Seed Round

Stat: $0.002: The price of 1000 tokens for ChatGPT’s API, 10x cheaper than OpenAI’s existing GPT-3.5 model. Not bad.

Story we're watching: Tesla’s “Master Plan 3” was light on details on new products, but big on Elon’s visions for a sustainable Earth. Unfortunately, investors care more about new products than Elon’s dreams, and thus, shares are down ~6%. So, the question now on everybody’s mind is: where does Tesla go from here?

Rabbit hole: A Beginner's Guide To Category Design: How To Create A Category For Yourself And Your Business (Category Pirates)

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON

• TikTok is limiting people under 18 to an hour of use a day…that is until they figure out how to change the settings.

• New YouTube head Neal Mohan is teasing future generative AI tools.

• The Moon might be getting its own time zone soon.

• Salesforce is still paying Matthew McConaughey $10 million a year for “creative help”. I wish I was famous bro.

GUESSTIMATE

How many startups do you think Y Combinator has funded?

FUNDRAISING FRIDAY

Wise words from OnDeck founder Julian Weisser.

LAYOFFS TRACKER

trueup.io/layoffs

Notable layoffs this week

Waymo: 209 people (8%)

iFood: 355 people (6.3%)

Thoughtworks: 500 people

FOUNDERS CORNER

The best resources we came across this weekend that will help you become a better founder, builder, or investor.

🤝 Check out Community Powered Marketing for breakdowns and tips on running a community-driven company.

🔑 Hey VC/startup marketing ppl. I wrote up a guide to Y Combinator’s content strategy. See why it’s known as the best accelerator in the world.

🔥 Are you a 90s baby and too young to remember the dot-com bubble? Same. That’s why I read F’d Companies: Spectacular Dot-Com Flameouts.

IRL

If you're in NYC or LA, make sure to subscribe to our IRL events newsletters:

Guesstimate answer: 3,500+