10/06/23

∆ Tech in the News

MrBeast Deepfake Video - A convincing deepfake ad featuring the leading YouTuber bypassed TikTok's ad filters, falsely offering an iPhone 15 Pro for $2.

Google's AI-Powered Assistant - Google’s Bard/Assistant integration across its Apps showcases the vision of an intelligent, context-aware digital assistant. They also just filed a patent for a smart-home system.

Meta's AI Ad Creation Tools - The GenAI tools available via Meta's Ads Manager let advertisers craft content like image backgrounds and text variations.

Amazon Takes on Starlink - The E-commerce titan is set to launch two demo internet satellites on ULA's Atlas V rocket to provide internet service to users.

“Quantum Dots” Nobel Prize - The Chemistry award went to three US researchers for semiconductor nanocrystals with uses in solar and drug delivery.

Shopping on X - Elon Musk and new CEO are betting on shopping and sports with e-commerce tools, one-click checkout, and a partnership with Paris Hilton.

˚The hottest thing in tech this week

AI Wearables Are So Hot Right Now

This week, Naomi Campbell shared the limelight with the OpenAI-backed Humane AI pin at Paris Fashion Week. But its far from the only development in the race to kill (or augment) the smartphone as the most vital piece of tech in our lives. This race includes some of the great minds and brands in tech like:

• The mysterious “iPhone of AI“ device being worked on by OpenAI and former lead Apple designer Jony Ive.

• Meta’s Smart Raybans with video features and an AI chatbot with voice control for tasks like taking a picture or playing music.

• The Rewind Pendant that records and transfers audio to your phone for AI processing and insights to assist in life available for $59.

• The Tab - Another stealthy new smart wearable dropping this year that claims it "ingests the context" of your daily life by listening in.

Meanwhile, Apple and Google aim to consolidate their smartphone domination with new AI features like the Pixel 8 and Apple’s recent AI plans announcement. OpenAI, Meta and Amazon clearly stand to gain more from this emerging device category, but the old guard have the advantages of brand loyalty, the iOS / Android App ecosystems and deep device manufacturing capacity.

Do you think the age of the smartphone is coming to an end?

News Bytes

• The SEC requires Elon Musk to testify over his Twitter purchase

• Canva offers generative AI features for non-designers

• Walmart introduces AI-shopping assistant, search, interior design tools

Deals We’re Watching

Founders to Watch and Opportunities to Catch

Closed Deals:

NICE Deal - Software company NICE acquired AI-driven outreach provider LiveVox for $350M to add AI capabilities to its service system product line.

A Buzz Over Lendbuzz - The AI-Driven Personalized Auto Financing startup secured $45M in equity and a $300M forward flow facility led by Group 1001.

RoboTaxis On Roll - Bill Gates, Khosla Ventures and ACS Group backed a Series B round by Glydways which closed at $56M. Glydways has city-backed trials underway in San Jose and San Francisco.

$2B SaaS Observability Market - Observe makes ground-breaking GenAI error debugging features. A $50M convertible debt raise will help them prepare for a Series B next year.

“Robotic Blacksmiths”- LA manufacturing robotics sensation Machina Labs closed a $45M Series B led by Nvidia's NVentures and Innovation Endeavors.

Dine-Out Loyalty Tech - Andreessen Horowitz led Blackbird's $24M Series A. The restaurant loyalty platform already attracts notable brands like Momofuku.

Companies to Watch:

Sam Altman Backs Teens - Induced AI, a startup founded by two teenagers to build AI browser task automation agents has raised a $2.3M Seed.

Personalized Entertainment - Bill Gates-backed startup Likewise launched an AI-driven chatbot that offers personalized movie and book recommendations.

TrueFace? - Truepic and Hugging Face have partnered to introduce two innovative GenAI image functions to enhance transparency and visibility.

Yahoo Spinoff - The Vespa AI engine is capable of millions of QPS and used by companies such as Spotify, Wix, and big financial groups. Now private, Yahoo is still their largest customer and financial backer.

Smooth Vehicle Repairs - Porsche- and UP-backed California startup Sensigo has deployed new AI tools to enable service technicians to diagnose, resolve and eventually predict repair issues.

Open Deals:

Disrupting $2.3B Dating Market - Planet Theta uses VR and AI to protect dating women. Featured in Forbes, CNBC, BBC, Vice, The Today Show, & more, with a projected $22.8M revenue by 2026. Connect with CEO Chris Crew here.

Democratizing Talent Scouting - SHWDWN is like TikTok for artists, musicians, and entertainers to showcase and monetize their talent and participate in weekly competitions. Connect to CEO John McMahon here.

Anduril Eyes $10B Valuation - The defense tech AI startup with a $1B U.S. Special Ops Command contract seeks $400M to $500M for strategic purchases.

Tools

Magic Studio - Canva has introduced a range of generative AI features aimed at empowering non-designers.

LinkedIn’s AI Tools - The OpenAI-powered tools assist with learning, recruitment campaigns, marketing and sales.

OpenGrant - The best AI tool for writing grant proposals.

If you have a deal or company that you would like to host on our next issue, drop us a line at @ [email protected].

Thanks for connecting with us.

The Tech Buzz Team