Danny Crichton, Head of Editorial & Riskgaming at Lux Capital, joins the podcast to break down the state of U.S. export bans on AI chips — and whether they’re actually working. Danny explains why NVIDIA is so central to the policy debate, how sales are still finding their way to China through workarounds like Singapore, and why the U.S. may not be able to stop China from achieving AI parity if their models keep catching up in performance.We also discuss the tension between national security and commercial success, the importance of measuring output rather than input when it comes to China’s AI capabilities, and what it really means for the U.S. to "stay ahead."Finally, we covered Klarna’s reversal on AI-only customer support, Google’s new AI Futures Fund, a biotech startup linked to Elizabeth Holmes, and Omada Health’s IPO filing.
--------
8:59
Is AI Masking a VC Bear Market?
Today, Kyle Harrison, general partner at Contrary, joins the podcast to talk about the early-stage venture bear market and why it’s being masked by the AI hype cycle. While valuations for seed and Series A rounds have remained relatively stable, the number of rounds has plummeted, and Kyle argues that the true state of venture is far worse than it appears.Next, the discussion turns to why capital destruction is overdue, how AI has warped investor incentives, and why many great companies are struggling to get attention despite solid fundamentals. Kyle and Eric also discuss the graduation rate from seed to Series A, the role of liquidity at later stages, and how the value chain of capital shapes what gets funded.Finally, the episode covered Klarna’s pivot back to human support, Figma’s new “vibe-coding” AI feature, Waymo’s safety study results, OpenAI’s corporate governance reversal, and Fidji Simo’s appointment as head of applications at OpenAI.
--------
14:10
Why Mid-Sized Tech Is Leading the M&A Charge with Alex Konrad
A few years ago, all eyes were on Big Tech when it came to startup acquisitions. But with regulatory pressure mounting, a new cohort of acquirers has emerged: mid-sized, AI-native companies like Databricks, Datadog, and OpenAI.In this episode, Alex Konrad of Upstarts Media joins Eric to break down the new wave of $100M–$1B deals — from Databricks’ pending $1B acquisition of Neon to Datadog’s Eppo pickup and OpenAI’s pursuit of Windsurf. They unpack the strategic motives behind these deals, what they signal about the current state of the market, and why companies that once would've been IPO-bound are now attractive targets.We also covered Stripe’s new AI foundation model, Apple moving away from Google search, Amazon’s new touch-sensitive robot, and OpenAI’s quiet meetings with the FDA.
--------
11:38
NewLimit Raises $130M to Reverse Cellular Aging
Jacob Kimmel, co-founder and President of NewLimit, joins us to talk about the company’s newly announced $130 million Series B and its ambitious plan to develop reprogramming-based medicines that can reverse cellular aging.We explore how NewLimit’s therapies use mRNA to deliver transcription factors that restore liver cells to a younger state, why the company is targeting alcohol-related liver disease first, and how advances in single-cell sequencing and AI made this work possible. Jacob also shares how NewLimit is expanding into the immune and endothelial systems—and what that could mean for extending human healthspan.We also covered OpenAI’s acquisition of Windsurf, DoorDash’s Deliveroo and SevenRooms deals, Legora’s new raise in legal AI, and Uber’s $700M push into Turkey’s delivery market.
--------
15:42
The Race to Control the Weather with Augustus Doricko
Cloud seeding isn’t new, but Rainmaker is giving it a second life. On today’s episode, Augustus Doricko, founder and CEO of Rainmaker, joins Eric to explain how his company uses drones, radar, and remote sensing to make it rain on command. Augustus outlines how Rainmaker's technology solves the attribution problem that has long haunted cloud seeding, and why their $25M Series A marks the beginning of a new infrastructure layer for the American West. We also discuss the company’s long-term ambition: building programmable weather systems to green deserts, stabilize water supply for agriculture and industry, and compete with China's state-run weather engineering programs.Finally, we covered 11x’s CEO transition, OpenAI’s decision to remain under nonprofit control, Databricks’ possible $1B acquisition of Neon, and Anduril’s newest buy and portable edge computing system.
UK