This Week in Startups

First up, Taylor Lorenz joins to talk about her newest scoop for the Washington Post: Facebook hired a GOP firm to trash TikTok (2:18)! Then, we discuss the SEC considering cracking down on SPACs (39:40), lastly we cover Fast, a 500-person one-click checkout startup, reportedly generating less than $1M in revenue (1:01:14).  Read Taylor's Article: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/03/30/facebook-tiktok-targeted-victory/ Taylor Lorenz’s book: www.goodreads.com/book/show/58818667-extremely-online FOLLOW Taylor: https://twitter.com/TaylorLorenz FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis FOLLOW Molly: https://twitter.com/mollywood (00:00) Jason and Molly intro the show (02:18) Taylor Lorenz from the Washington Post on Facebook using Targeted Victory (11:27) Coda - The All-in-one doc for teams, get a $1,000 credit at https://coda.io/twist (12:41) Separating the legitimate concerns from fake stories (21:03) Lemon.io - Get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://Lemon.io/twist (22:21) Measuring the likelihood of TikTok being banned in the U.S. (31:20) Embroker - Get an extra 10% off insurance for your business at https://Embroker.com/twist (32:37) Should journalists be encouraged to build their own brands? (39:40) SEC meeting TODAY (3/30/22) to discuss crackdown on SPACs, specifically allowing investors to SUE over “embellished projections” (1:01:14) Bolt’s one-click checkout competitor “Fast” having trouble raising $100M at a $1B valuation, according to The Information

First we explain the $625M hack of Axie Infinity’s Ronin Bridge (1:34), then we discuss the engineers at Twilio who allegedly insider traded (17:30). Next we discuss Robinhood extending its trading window by four hours a day (29:50) and wrap with our startup of the day is Subject, a company providing high school courses for credit online (37:39). 00:00 Molly tees up today's topics 01:34 Axie Infinity’s Ronin blockchain was hacked for over $600M 13:31 Wealthfront - Get your first $5,000 managed for free, for life at https://wealthfront.com/TWIST15:00 Regulation and Axie Infinity hacks 17:30 SEC has charged three Twilio employees for insider trading 28:39 iTrust Capital - Visit https://itrust.capital/twist to create your Crypto IRA today 29:50 Robinhood extends trading window by 4 hours 36:22 Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://Squarespace.com/TWIST 37:39 Startup of the Day: Subject.com (accredited learning platform) 48:22 Final thoughts on the 2022 Oscars moment FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis FOLLOW Molly: https://twitter.com/mollywood

All news show. First, we recap the Oscars, including "The Slap" and Apple winning Best Picture (02:17).  Then, we discuss $32B crypto derivate exchange FTX not having investors on its Board of Directors (42:45), Apple's reported hardware subscription (01:02:12) and Jason's Hot Tub story (01:09:57). (00:00) Jason and Molly intro the show (02:17) Talking about the 2022 Oscars slap: initial thoughts, reactions, etc. (11:47) LinkedIn - Post your first job for free at https://linkedIn.com/twist (13:18) More thoughts on the 2022 Oscars slap (23:47) Rocket - Go to http://getrocket.com/twist and use promo code TWIST for 20% off your first placement. (24:58) “Coda” from Apple TV+ becomes first streaming movie to win best picture at Oscars (37:28) OpenPhone - Get an extra 20% off any plan for your first 6 months at https://openphone.com/twist (38:45) Toxic celebrity culture and how that ties into founders (42:45) FTX, one of the fastest growing crypto exchanges in the world is worth $32B and no investors have board seats (01:02:12) Bloomberg reported that Apple is working on a hardware subscription for iPhones and iPads (01:09:57) The Hot Tub story FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis FOLLOW Molly: https://twitter.com/mollywood

Sunday Double-header! First, in VC Sunday School, Jason explains non-dilutive funding's impact on startups (2:18). Then, Molly interviews Continuum Ag Founder Mitchell Hora. His company helps farmers analyze their soil and create a roadmap improve it via a holistic approach known as regenerative agriculture (21:33). (00:00) Jason and Molly tee-up the show (02:18) VCSS: Discussing non-dilutive funding (12:37) Intercom - Get advanced Intercom features and Early Stage Academy at a 95% discount https://www.intercom.com/early-stage (13:53) More on venture debt and factoring (18:33) Jason and Molly Introduce the Climate Guest (20:17) Cyvatar - Get your first 2 months free at https://cyvatar.ai/twist (21:33) TWiCS w/ Mitchell Hora of Continuum Ag (30:20) Thorne - Personalized, scientific wellness. Go to https://Thorne.com/u/TWIST (31:23) Mitchell Hora on the importance of healthy, balanced soil Check out Continuum Ag: https://continuum.ag FOLLOW Mitchell: https://twitter.com/Continuum_Ag FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis FOLLOW Molly: https://twitter.com/mollywood

Another Friday variety show! First up, Jason and Molly break down the 16-year old hacking phenom who was allegedly behind the recent hacks at Microsoft, Nvidia and Okta, and might have just been caught (1:13). Then, the duo covers Molly's induction into LIBSYN's Podcasting Hall of Fame (6:46) and reminisces on the early days of podcasting including their first podcast together over 16 years ago (11:19). Finally, Producer Rachel is back with another edition of OK Boomer, this time with Miami Hack Week founder Ja’dan Johnson (20:19).

Lon Harris joins Molly and Jason to talk WeCrashed, The Dropout and Super Pumped! First, they play a round of "Boff, Marry, Kill" between the three shows (1:16), before breaking down the first three episodes of WeCrashed (16:15) and the two lead performances (24:25). They finish with a quick chat on The Dropout and examine the potential of a "tech cinematic universe" (34:15).

Jason and Molly take on another Five in Five! Five stories in (a little over) five minutes each: Katie Haun's record-breaking $1.5B debut web3 fund (2:50), Yuga Labs raising $450M at a $4B valuation (12:42), Apple's potential BNPL play (25:23), Worldcoin's $100M raise and privacy concerns (29:59) and Nothing's new iPhone competitor (40:13). Then, Molly talks to ChroniFI Founder & CEO Ben Miller on building a consumer software product that helps people plan for financial independence. (48:59)

Tuesday news day! Jason and Molly break down the following stories: Apple's "new" creator tools, and brainstorming on how they could dominate podcasting again (2:23), Jeff Bezos' letter to shareholders from 2000, when Amazon's share price was down ~80% from its dot-com bubble peak (16:02), understanding search funds and why elite MBA grads are raising them (38:23). Finally, they wrap with a WLiTF segment about the FDNY purchasing a couple of Boston Dynamics "robodogs" to help with search and rescue missions. (47:15)

Monday news! Jason and Molly have some big stories to discuss: Sequoia's new "catalyst" program, called Arc (2:37), SEC considering mandating climate disclosures from public companies (19:21), another Startup of the Day (33:28), and they wrap by covering some interesting ongoings at Disney regarding its new CEO and Bob Iger (41:13). 0:00 Jason and Molly intro today’s news: Sequoia debuts Arc, SEC to vote on disclosures of emissions/climate risks, Startup of the day: Heirloom, Disney's CEO fallout 2:37 Sequoia announces Arc, startup “catalyst” 11:14 Coda - The All-in-one doc for teams, get a $1,000 credit at https://coda.io/twist 12:37 Arc accepting Russian founder applications 18:12 OurCrowd - Check out the deal of the week at https://ourcrowd.com/twist 19:21 SEC to vote on disclosures of emissions/climate risks 32:11 OpenPhone - Get an extra 20% off any plan for your first 6 months at https://openphone.com/twist 33:28 Startup of the day: Heirloom (climate-tech co. using heated limestone to remove CO₂ from atmosphere) 41:13 CNBC reports former Disney CEO Bob Iger and his replacement Bob Chapek have had a falling out since Iger stepped down FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis FOLLOW Molly: https://twitter.com/mollywood

Sunday Double-header! First, in VC Sunday School, Jason discusses and defends his pro rata strategy (1:26). Then, Molly interviews ClimateCheck founder Cal Inman. His company analyzes and risk-rates real estate based on expected changes to the world’s climate (14:43)! Show Notes (00:00) Pro Rata VC Sunday School + Assessing Climate Risk (01:26) Why some investors warn against Super Pro Rata (08:02) Is there an advantage to having more investors on the cap table? (13:27) Embroker - Get an extra 10% off insurance for your business at https://Embroker.com/twist (14:43) This Week in Climate Startups - Cal Inman of Climate Check (17:49) How ClimateCheck integrates data for predictions (23:17) How climate predictions are influencing buying decisions (24:46) Bubble. Get one month free of a no-code plan at https://bubble.io/twist (26:14) How financial partners are responding to increasing climate risks (30:45) Incorporating resilience preparedness into ClimateCheck (35:33) Rocket - Go to http://getrocket.com/twist promo code TWIST for 20% off your first placement. (37:14) Next steps for ClimateCheck (43:28) The latest from the TWIST team Check out ClimateCheck: https://climatecheck.com FOLLOW ClimateCheck: https://twitter.com/MyClimateCheck FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis FOLLOW Molly: https://twitter.com/mollywood