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☆ Exercise may help you store fat better, new research suggests
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-10 | by ( Madeline Holcombe | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Exercise doesn’t just help you lose fat. Exercise is important for many facets of health, and it may even impact how fat is stored, a new study showed. “Fat tissue itself is very, very important for health,” he said. The goal isn’t more fat tissue, but better capacity to store it, Horowitz said. Fat tissue is supposed to be stored under the skin, and if it can’t go there it’s going to go other places such as your liver, heart or pancreas, he added.

Persons: ”, Jeffrey Horowitz, Horowitz, ” Horowitz, Andrew Freeman, Freeman, “, ” Freeman Organizations: CNN’s, CNN, University of Michigan, Jewish Health Locations: kinesiology, Denver

☆ How plaid became popular for school uniforms
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-05 | by ( Jacqui Palumbo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —As students return to school, one patterned textile now synonymous with uniforms will make its seasonal reappearance on pleated skirts, jumpers and ties: plaid. It’s a family of textiles with broad scholarly appeal, with both religious and secular schools worldwide incorporating plaid into uniforms, from Mexico to Japan to Australia. Centuries of romanticizing Highlander clanship and identity has likely influenced our contemporary understanding of the textile, Maxwell noted. But the textile didn’t become a fixture of school uniforms until the 1960s, according to historian and educator Sally Dwyer-McNulty, who authored “Common Threads: A Cultural History of Clothing in American Catholicism” in 2014. (Dwyer-McNulty herself attended two different Catholic schools in Philadelphia, wearing plaid uniforms through high school).

Persons: “, Plaid, Ralph Lauren, Brooks, Cher Horowitz, ”, Mhairi Maxwell, you’re, Gogo Yubari, Maxwell, Royal Stewart, Stuart, Vivienne Westwood’s, Naomi Campbell, Zhang Peng, Dundee, ” Maxwell, Jane Barlow, Charles Edward Stuart —, Bonnie Prince Charlie —, Queen Victoria, Thomas Trutschel, Sally Dwyer, McNulty, Bendinger, Eisenberg, Flynn, t.A.T.u, Bruno Vincent, Dwyer, Olivia Rodrigo, Jenna Ortega, Thom Browne, Lydia Deetz, Bill Clinton, It’s, Alicia Silverstone, Kim Kardashian, Christian Siriano, “ It’s Organizations: CNN, “ Derry Girls, Brooks Brothers, “, Paramount, Everett, Miramax, Scottish, University of Alabama, Scottish Tartans Authority, Jacobite, Scottish Highland, Getty, Plaid, Gotham, Silverstone, preppy Ivy League Locations: Scotland, madras, India, It’s, Mexico, Japan, Australia, American, Dundee, Nara, Glen Affric, ”, Queen, Puebla, O’Hara, Philadelphia

☆ Andreessen Horowitz just dealt a blow to tech's move-to-Miami movement
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-04 | by ( Sarah Jackson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read previewAndreessen Horowitz has reportedly given up on its Miami office after just two years in the space. "The firm is now virtual, but can materialize physically on command," Horowitz said at the time. Andreessen Horowitz did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment. VC investment in Miami also saw a huge decrease in 2023, dropping 70% to $2 billion, according to the Journal.

Persons: —, Andreessen Horowitz, cofounders, Ben Horowitz, Horowitz, Marc Andreessen, Keith Rabois, Rabois, Florida . Austin, Elon Musk, he'd Organizations: Service, Miami Beach, Bloomberg, Business, Miami, Street Journal, SpaceX Locations: Miami, Miami Beach, Miami Beach , New York City, Santa Monica, Francisco, California, San Francisco, Fort Lauderdale, Florida ., Austin, Texas

☆ Free TV Streaming Is Surging, and It's a Problem for Hollywood
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-29 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

The basic problem: It's unclear how these free services could support new, Hollywood-style programming even if they wanted to. Now, with YouTube making the jump to TV screens and "free, ad-supported TV" (FAST) services having a moment, where does that leave Hollywood? Tech and legacy media will battle over free TV in the coming monthsLooking ahead, the major players already ahead in free TV will likely continue to gain share. Free streaming may seem like a way for Hollywood to claw back viewers. If not, it's hard to say what winning in the battle for free TV will actually get them.

Persons: Prognosticators, YouTuber Jamie Clement, Tubi's, Sarah Lee, Evan Shapiro, There's, Jenn Vaux, it's, Max, Peacock, Roku, It's, Tubi, Adam Lewinson, WBD, Laura Florence, Horowitz Organizations: Netflix, Business, YouTube, Hollywood, Disney, Hulu, Warner, Comcast, FX Networks, Parks Associates, Nielsen, Media, Fox, ABC News, NFL, FAST, Horowitz Research, Hub Entertainment Research, Tech, Fire TV, Paramount, Pluto, SVP, Global, Fremantle, JPMorgan, CNBC Locations: Hollywood, Fremantle

☆ VCs are fighting, investors are annoyed, and the presidential election has become a constant distraction that Silicon Valley just wants to be over
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-24 | by ( Ben Bergman | Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. She didn't sign, not because she doesn't support Harris (she does) but because she sees no upside in broadcasting her political intentions. The former president has also received endorsements from famous VCs Marc Andreessen, Ben Horowitz, Doug Leone, and David Sacks. Now, executives are waiting until after the election concludes to make any decision, according to a source familiar with the matter. Publicly supporting candidates has no upside for LPs, especially considering many LPs have their own agendas, added a VC.

Persons: —, Kamala, Kamala Harris, Harris, We're, Joe Biden, David Hornik, Israel —, There's, Leslie Feinzaig, VCs, Elon Musk, Trump, Marc Andreessen, Ben Horowitz, Doug Leone, David Sacks, Reid Hoffman, Reed Hastings, Ron Conway, Graham, Walker, MAGA, they're, Divya Kakkad, Sacks, Jesse Middleton, Middleton, Cameron Lester, Lester, tradespeople, ServiceTitan, I've Organizations: Service, Business, San Francisco, Lobby Capital, August, Republicans, Israel, Netflix, Graham, Craft Ventures, Jefferies, Publicly Locations: San, Silicon Valley, Los Angeles, Bay, New York

watch nowAs the 2024 U.S. elections reach their home stretch, crypto companies are opening their wallets to try and influence the results. Nearly half of all the corporate money flowing into the election has come from the crypto industry, according to a report this week from the nonprofit watchdog group Public Citizen. More than 90% of the corporate crypto cash that's been raised was brought in this election cycle. Public Citizen's report found that of the 42 primary races that attracted money from crypto-backed super PACs, the candidate picked by the crypto industry won 36. "When Fairshake and its affiliates spend money to influence races, either by attacking crypto skeptics or boosting crypto supporters, the ads don't mention crypto at all," said Claypool.

Persons: Biden, Donald Trump, Rick Claypool, Coinbase, Andreessen Horowitz, Crypto, Brian Armstrong, Fairshake, It's, Claypool, Chuck Schumer, Kamala Harris's, Joe Biden, Harris, Faryar Shirzad, Trump, CNBC hasn't Organizations: Public Citizen, Securities and Exchange Commission, Republican, Senate, Supreme, Citizens, Federal, PAC, Public, CNBC, Trump, White Locations: Nashville , Tennessee, New York, California, cryptocurrencies, San Francisco, Nashville, United States

☆ Leaked Microsoft salary data shows the pay gap between Microsoft AI and the rest of the company
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-23 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The doc includes more than 500 submissions from people who identified themselves as Microsoft employees in the US. The move came in response to a growing number of its workers feeling underpaid compared to Microsoft's tech peers like Amazon . AdvertisementAs a reminder, this pay data is based on Microsoft employees' self-reporting, so it's not a complete picture. However, the pay gap between Microsoft AI and the rest of the company is undeniable. These are the 100 most-used AI apps, according to a top VC.

Persons: —, Chelsea Jia Feng, Insider's Ashley Stewart, Ashley, Satya Nadella, Drew Angerer, Mustafa Suleyman, it's, they're, Tyler Le, Jerome, Jerome Powell's, Goldman Sachs, Jamie Dimon's, Dimon, Ned Davis, Justin Sullivan, Andreessen Horowitz, Jenny Chang, Rodriguez, Jack, Jerome Powell, Sabrina Carpenter, Dan DeFrancesco, Jordan Parker Erb, Hallam Bullock, Milan Sehmbi, Amanda Yen Organizations: Service, Microsoft, Business, Microsoft Microsoft, Getty, Bloomberg Creative, JPMorgan, Treasury, Ned Davis Research, Big Tech, RBC Capital Markets, Consumer, Engineers, BI Locations: Washington, New York, London

☆ Startup using blockchain to prevent copyright theft by AI is valued over $2 billion after fresh funding
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-21 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Generative AI models require huge amounts of training data to enable their systems to produce advanced outputs. But the data that goes into them is often from sources where copyright restrictions are in place. The round values the two-year-old company at $2.25 billion, sources familiar with the matter told CNBC. Fighting AI copyright theftStory is now trying to tackle a timely problem with its tech — theft of copyrighted media on the internet by powerful generative AI models like OpenAI's ChatGPT. But the data that goes into fueling these AI models is often from sources where there's copyright restrictions in place.

Persons: Story, Andreessen Horowitz, Polychain, Smart, Story's, Lee, it's, Dolce Organizations: Getty, San, CNBC, Balmain, Gabbana, Brands, New York Times, Microsoft, Times, Big Locations: Francisco

☆ A16z's Jennifer Li went from business school to computer science to the startup world. Here's how she parlayed that experience into AI investing.
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-20 | by ( Samantha Stokes | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Read previewJennifer Li didn't know from the get-go that she was interested in computer science and software engineering. AdvertisementIn school, Li made the unusual jump from business to computer science. Related storiesShe studied technology commercialization and management at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, a well-known science and engineering school in upstate New York, and later earned another master's degree at Carnegie Mellon University in computer science. Both of her parents are engineers, and Li said that she began exploring the world of computer science and engineering to satisfy a curiosity of how things are created. Computer science helped with that system of thinking."

Persons: —, Jennifer Li didn't, Andreessen Horowitz, Marc Andreessen, Ben Horowitz, Li, she's, Kleiner Perkins, Mamoon Hamid, Andy Chen, Asheem, chatted, we're, that's Organizations: Service, Business, Silicon Graphics, Shanghai University of Finance, Economics, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Cisco, Zoom, a16z Locations: a16z, China, New York, San Francisco, AppDynamics, Solvvy

☆ Adam Neumann's new startup Flow faces trouble in Nashville
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-20 | by ( Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Read previewAdam Neuman's post-WeWork venture Flow was launched with a $350 million check and stakes in six buildings. Now, one of those buildings is struggling, and equity investors risk being wiped out. Crowdfunding platform Yieldstreet, which has helped raise money for the property, recently told its equity investors that their investments could be wiped out. Flow launched in 2022 with investments in six apartment buildings, including the now-troubled Nashville property, and a $350 million check from venture firm Andreessen Horowitz. A Flow spokesperson sought to distance the Miami-based startup from the 2010 West End property, saying that Flow has never managed the building and is only the minority equity owner.

Persons: —, Adam Neuman's, Andreessen Horowitz, Neumann, WeWork, Neumann's, Yieldstreet, Nazare, Adam Neumann, They're, they're Organizations: Service, Business, Nazare, Yieldstreet, BI, SEC Locations: Nashville, Miami, Denver, Fort Lauderdale

☆ Exclusive: Buzzy mental health startup Slingshot AI just grabbed $30 million from A16z
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-20 | by ( Rebecca Torrence | Sri Muppidi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Slingshot AI raised about $30 million in an Andreessen Horowitz-led round, per multiple sources. The startup grabbed a fast-follow from Menlo Ventures shortly after the initial round, sources say. Go to newsletter preferences Thanks for signing up! Slingshot AI, which launched this year to build large-language models for behavioral health, just grabbed about $30 million in a fresh funding round led by top VC firm Andreessen Horowitz, according to three people with knowledge of the deal. Two sources said the round valued Slingshot at more than $100 million.

Persons: Andreessen Horowitz, — Organizations: Menlo Ventures, Service, Business

☆ Mark Cuban says Silicon Valley tech bros have lost their grip on reality and now want to be the board of directors to Trump's CEO
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-13 | by ( Kwan Wei Kevin Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Go to newsletter preferencesSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Now, Trump enjoys the support from Silicon Valley bigwigs like Tesla CEO Elon Musk and venture capitalists Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz. They want to vote for normal people they can relate to," Cuban wrote in an X post on August 6. Representatives for Cuban and the Trump campaign didn't immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.

Persons: —, Mark Cuban, Donald Trump, It's, Jon Stewart, Trump, Cuban, Stewart, they've, Peter Thiel, Elon Musk, Marc Andreessen, Ben Horowitz, Vance, Musk, Sen, JD Vance, Ohio, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Biden, Harris, Tim Walz, Walz, Walz didn't, didn't Organizations: Service, titans, Business, PayPal, Tesla, Trump, Democratic Party, Republican Party, Democratic, Ivy League, University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, Yale Law School, Cuban, Business Insider Locations: Silicon, United States, America, Silicon Valley, San Francisco Bay, Minnesota

☆ Secret to Startup Success: Being an Obnoxious Risk-Taker
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-13 | by ( Nate Silver | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Of the billionaires on the 2023 Forbes 400 list — the 400 richest people in the United States — 70% are basically self-made. In 1982, only 40% of the Forbes 400 had started their own business; the majority were simply scions of inherited wealth. The Forbes 400, however, is the extreme right tail of the curve. But you're not sniffing the Forbes 400 list, where the bidding starts at about $3 billion. I don't think VCs are deliberately picking founders they think are unreliable, although sometimes it seems like it.

Persons: Raj Chetty, That's, Chamath Palihapitiya, Palihapitiya, Josh Wolfe, Wolfe, Elon Musk, Thiel, Jeff Bezos, we're, Sam Bankman, Andreessen Horowitz, A16z, Adam Neumann, Neumann, WeWork, Marc Andreessen, Ben Horowitz, Horowitz, they've, Benchmark's Gurley, Gurley, Nate Silver Organizations: Forbes, United States —, Social Capital, Burger, Lux, VCs, New York Times, Penguin Press, Penguin Publishing, Penguin Random Locations: United States, America, Sri Lanka, Canada, Coney, Israeli, Silicon, Canyon Point , Utah

☆ A private-equity takeover is coming for startups
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-12 | by ( Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The European private equity firm had been eyeing the late-stage startup for five years, impressed by its traction and focus on customer success. The speed of the deal, and the flashy multiple, illustrate how private equity funds are able to swallow startups more often lately. But in the face of rising inflation and interest rates, software customers from tech startups to mom-and-pop shops trimmed their budgets. Andreessen Horowitz plans to invest in the private equity asset class through its family office division. With high interest rates and a liquidity crunch reshaping the landscape, private equity is seizing the moment.

Persons: —, Scott Arnold, AuditBoard, Michael Brown, They're, Brown, Derek Hernandez, Aaron Fleishman, Fleishman, they're, Thoma, Yoni, Rechtman, it's, Catalyst, Andreessen Horowitz Organizations: Service, Business, Battery Ventures, Battery, Tola Capital, Thoma Bravo, Vista Equity Partners, Slow Ventures, Eldridge Industries, Sequoia Locations: Southern California, VCs, Big Tech, Metropolis, North America

Stars from Hollywood's golden age are being reborn through celebrity estate AI voice cloning deals, a sign of how some of the "Wild West" concerns about unauthorized AI impersonation are being addressed by new business models. Safeguards include active moderation of content, accountability enforceable with bans, and special provisions for safeguarding the impact of AI voice on the 2024 election. Among the current generation of actors, there remains significant anxiety surrounding the use of AI in generating voice content. Voice actors for video games have raised concerns, and last year's film and television strike had significant roots in anxieties over the use of AI. AI voice licensing could alleviate workload for voice actors, he added, without supplanting them, as they "intercede in the process by focusing on offering correction or enhancement to ineffable aspects such as intonation, warmth, and emphasis, which still present challenges."

Persons: Burt Reynolds, Andreessen Horowitz, Judy Garland, James Dean, Sir Laurence Olivier, ElevenLabs, Sam Sklar, Scarlett Johansson, " Sklar, Frito, Tom Waits soundalike, Waits, Lovo, Steve Cohen, Pollock, Cohen, Bette Davis, Sklar, Nauman Dawalatabad, Dawalatabad, Michele Cobb Organizations: Golden Globe, Beverly Hilton Hotel, Sequoia, New York Times, Washington Post, Disney, Google, Apple, MIT Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Audio Publishers Association, CNBC

☆ Turns out being a venture capitalist can be really hard and some VCs want out
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-09 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

In today's big story, turns out being a venture capitalist can be really hard, and some VCs want out . The big storyWe were promised big returnsiStock; Rebecca Zisser/InsiderFor venture capitalists, when the going gets tough, the tough get going…toward the exits. Some VC workers are reconsidering their future as the industry goes through a rough patch, writes Business Insider's Sri Muppidi. The ink was barely dry on a deal before startups were raising another round, doubling their VCs' investment (on paper) along the way. One Bay Area partner told Sri junior investors need to meet dozens of companies a week.

Persons: —, Rebecca Zisser, It's, That's, VCs, dobi, Goldman Sachs, duMond, Chip Somodevilla, Alyssa Powell, Jamie Dimon, we're, Jamie, David Zalubowski, Chelsea Jia Feng, Meta's Instagram, Grzegorz Wajda, Elon Musk, Musk's X, he's, Grimes, Sam Altman, Kamala Harris, Dan DeFrancesco, Jordan Parker Erb, Hallam Bullock, Amanda Yen Organizations: Service, Business, VCs, Tiger Global, Area, JPMorgan, YouTube, Dell, Getty, Elon, Federation, Global Alliance, Responsible Media, UK Prime, Democratic, Trump, Disney Locations: Patagonia, Dimon, Anaheim , California, North Carolina, Virginia, New York, London

☆ Hamas' new political leader Yahya Sinwar is seen as more extreme — and less willing to compromise
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-07 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Yahya Sinwar (C), Palestinian leader of Hamas in Gaza Strip, greets people during an event marking the 35th anniversary of the establishment of Hamas in Gaza City, Gaza on December 14, 2022. Ali Jadallah | Anadolu | Getty ImagesHamas on Tuesday appointed Yahya Sinwar as the leader of its political wing following the assassination of its former political chief, Ismail Haniyeh. The Middle East has been on edge following the killing of Haniyeh in Iran on July 31, which Iran and Hamas blamed on Israel. In 2015 he was designated a terrorist by the U.S. government, and in 2017 he was elected the leader of Hamas. Yahya Sinwar chairs a meeting with leaders of Palestinian factions at his office in Gaza City, April 13, 2022.

Persons: Yahya Sinwar, Ali Jadallah, Ismail Haniyeh, Michael Horowitz, Le, Sinwar, –, Victor Tricaud, Tricaud, Butcher, Khan, Gilad Shalit, Adel Hana, Benjamin Netanyahu, Yoav Gallant Organizations: Anadolu, Getty, intel, Le Beck, Palestinian, Israel, Hamas, CNBC, U.S ., Criminal Court Locations: Gaza, Gaza City, Haniyeh, Iran, Israel, Qatar

☆ Sequoia's Michael Moritz says Trump's Silicon Valley supporters are making a 'big mistake'
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-05 | by ( Sri Muppidi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewWhile some Silicon Valley investors and startup leaders are going red hoping for a more "tech-friendly" White House, Michael Moritz, a storied Sequoia Capital investor, believes that does not reflect the Valley overall. "Fortunately, at least in Silicon Valley, Trump will not prevail," Moritz wrote in a Financial Times opinion piece, which was also posted on LinkedIn. Like the rest of the nation, Silicon Valley is deeply divided over whom to support in the upcoming presidential race. In his piece, Moritz chided Trump supporters in Silicon Valley. Moritz added that Trump had historically not performed well among Silicon Valley voters.

Persons: —, Michael Moritz, Trump, Moritz, Kamala Harris, Donald Trump, Doug Leone, Shaun Maguire, Roelof Botha, Andreessen Horowitz, Marc Andreessen, Ben Horowitz, Fund's Peter Thiel, David Sacks, Chamath, Vance, Sen, JD Vance, Palmer Luckey, Elon Musk, VCs, Kamala, Harris, Vinod Khosla, Reid Hoffman, Mark Cuban, Ron Conway Organizations: Service, Sequoia Capital, LinkedIn, Business, Google, PayPal, Democratic, Republican, Tech, Trump, VR, Bloomberg, PAC, Street Journal, Netflix, Harris, Politico Locations: Silicon Valley, Sequoia, Park City , Utah, Silicon, Palo Alto , California, Newport Beach , California, Washington ,, Francisco, San Jose

☆ Trump's tech backers are 'making a big mistake,' Sequoia's Mike Moritz says
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-05 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

As leading tech investors continue to vocally take sides ahead of the 2024 presidential election, legendary venture capitalist Michael Moritz is making his preference clear. In a Financial Times opinion piece published Monday, Moritz wrote that those in the industry who are supporting Donald Trump "are making a big mistake." Moritz was referring to Trump's conviction, earlier this year, on 34 felony counts in New York State court. Other Trump backers include venture capitalists David Sacks and Joe Lonsdale as well as Doug Leone, Moritz's longtime partner at Sequoia. Moritz wrote in his op-ed that Trump's tech financiers and supporters were "making the same mistake as all powerful people who back authoritarians."

Persons: Michael Moritz, Moritz, Donald Trump, Moritz —, LinkedIn —, Trump, Andreessen Horowitz, Marc Andreessen, Ben Horowitz, Elon Musk, David Sacks, Joe Lonsdale, Doug Leone, Moritz's, He's, Reid Hoffman, Kamala Harris, Joe Biden, VCs, Harris, Kamala, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mitt Romney, John Kasich's, OpenSecrets Organizations: Sequoia Capital, Google, PayPal, LinkedIn, Trump, Tesla, Sequoia ., Democratic, Trump Lincoln Project, Republican, Tech Locations: Sequoia, New York, Silicon Valley, California, Ohio

☆ Wall Street analysts think investors should buy the dip in Amazon, call cloud business a 'bright spot'
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-02 | by ( Samantha Subin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Investors may way to consider buying the dip in Amazon , according to some Wall Street analysts. A 'bright spot' in AWS Despite Thursday's disappointing results, many Wall Street analysts are finding the positive in the company's Amazon Web Services division. Many expect this business to continue gaining steam, with Susquehanna Financial Group's Shyam Patil referring to this acceleration as a "bright spot" in the results. Evercore ISI's Mark Mahaney referred to accelerating AWS growth as one of "three fundamental catalysts" for the stock. Bank of America's Justin Post named the stock the firm's top large cap picks, citing the AWS acceleration and opportunity within artificial intelligence.

Persons: Deutsche Bank's Lee Horowitz, Deutsche Bank's Horowitz, Mark Shmulik, Shyam Patil, Patil, Morgan Stanley's Brian Nowak, Evercore, Mark Mahaney, Bank of America's Justin Post, We're, Doug Anmuth, Anmuth Organizations: Deutsche, Wall, Web Services, Susquehanna, Bank of America's

☆ Reddit's CEO says Microsoft, Anthropic, and Perplexity scraping content is 'a real pain in the ass'
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-01 | by ( Lian Kit Wee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Reddit's CEO slammed Microsoft, Anthropic, and Perplexity for using the social platform's data for free. The three companies previously landed in trouble for training their AI models on data without permission. Paying for data could cost AI companies "hundreds of billions of dollars," Andreessen Horowitz said last year. Steve Huffman, the CEO of Reddit, has called out Microsoft, Anthropic, and Perplexity for using Reddit's data to train their AI models without paying. "We've had Microsoft, Anthropic, and Perplexity act as though all of the content on the internet is free for them to use," Huffman told The Verge, saying that blocking these companies has been "a real pain in the ass."

Persons: Andreessen Horowitz, —, Reddit, Steve Huffman, We've, Huffman Organizations: Microsoft, Service, Business

☆ Meta's new AI chatbots are already getting weird — and horny
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-01 | by ( Sydney Bradley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Read previewI've spent one day interacting with chatbots made with Meta's new AI Studio, and I already have six new boyfriends and four new girlfriends. Character AI also has its own share of AI boyfriends and girlfriends to talk to. When prompted to engage in NSFW content, the Meta AI bots I interacted with generally shut it down (often, politely). Meta's AI studio has a parody "MrBeast" chatbot and its popular characters include a "Gay Bestie" and "Relationship Coach." Unlike Meta's character AIs, creators can see the messages you send to their inbox, even if their automated AI responds.

Persons: —, I've, chatbots, I'm, Meta, Paris Hilton, Snoop Dogg, Mark Zuckerberg, Sydney Bradley, Ash, Andreessen Horowitz, it's, OpenAI's, Eric, George Organizations: Service, Meta, Business, AIs, Sydney, Olin Business School, GPTs Locations: MrBeast, Minnesota, DMs

☆ With tech leaders like Elon Musk turning to Trump, more than 100 Silicon Valley investors pledge support for Harris
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-31 | by ( Alice Tecotzky | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A group of right-wing venture capitalists have voiced support for Donald Trump and JD Vance, who was once a venture capitalist himself. "They don't speak for me," she said of Musk and other right-wing Silicon Valley leaders. "They don't speak for most of us. Harris, who was born in Oakland and is known as a pro-business politician, has a more sustained connection to Silicon Valley than Biden did. Next month, Harris will travel to Silicon Valley for a fund-raising trip in her continued effort reclaim the region amid its rightward tilt.

Persons: —, Kamala Harris —, Harris, Reid Hoffman, Mark Cuban, Ron Conway, Leslie Feinzaig, Graham, Walker, Donald Trump, JD Vance, Elon Musk, Marc Andreesen, Ben Horowitz, David Sacks, Trump, Feinzaig, MAGA, " Harris, Biden, Vance Organizations: Service, VCsForKamala.org, LinkedIn, Dallas Mavericks, Business, New York Times Locations: Oakland, Silicon, Silicon Valley

☆ Kamala Harris gets support of more than 100 VCs and tech execs in online pledge
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-31 | by ( Lora Kolodny | In Lorakolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign rally at the Georgia State Convocation Center in Atlanta on July 30, 2024. More than 100 VCs on Wednesday pledged their support to Vice President Kamala Harris, the de facto Democratic nominee, as she ramps up her campaign to take on Trump in the November election. The group, calling itself VCs for Kamala, is made up of investors and entrepreneurs from a range of established and rising funds, and different demographic groups. "We spend our days looking for, investing in and supporting entrepreneurs who are building the future," the group said in its pledge. The VCs for Kamala list highlights a deepening political divide in Silicon Valley and the broader tech industry.

Persons: Kamala Harris, Donald Trump, Kamala, Vinod Khosla, Reid Hoffman, Mark Cuban, Aileen Lee, Rebecca Kaden, Elon Musk, VCs Marc Andreessen, Ben Horowitz, Trump, Musk, Shaun Maguire, 8VC's Joe Lonsdale, Musk's, David Sacks, Hoffman, Greylock, Harris, Erika Lucas Organizations: Republican, Democratic, Trump, Khosla Ventures, LinkedIn, Dallas Mavericks, Cowboy Ventures, Union Square Ventures, America PAC, Sequoia, Craft Ventures, Republican National Convention, Musk, Convention Locations: Georgia, Atlanta, Silicon Valley, Chicago

☆ Why Silicon Valley Is Going to War Against the Media, Journalists
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-30 | by ( ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +21 min

Just 20 years ago journalists covered the tech industry "like it didn't matter, like it was this hobbyist, interesting, plucky thing." The pro-tech media gives tech's main characters the chance to write their way back to the original storyline. Trae Stephens, a partner at Founders Fund, described Pirate Wires as a kind of daily affirmation for Silicon Valley. Related storiesTrae Stephens, a partner at Founders Fund, described Pirate Wires as a kind of daily affirmation for Silicon Valley. Of the members of the news media I talked to about pro-tech media, some were backhandedly laudatory.

Persons: Mike Solana, Solana, Peter Thiel, —, David Sacks, Jason Calacanis, Chamath Palihapitiya, David Friedberg, Elon Musk, Sam Altman, Tucker Carlson, Donald Trump, There's, Coogan, John Coogan, Andreessen Horowitz, Marc Andreessen, they're, Balaji Srinivasan, Mark Zuckerberg, Donald Trump's, Tyler Le, Sam Bankman, Warren Buffett, Trae Stephens, Andreessen, Palmer Luckey, It's, Dick Lucas, Lucas, Joe Rogan, Kamala, Stephens, Packy McCormick, Taylor Lorenz, Ryan Mac, Kevin Roose, Jesse Singal —, Casey Newton, Casey isn't, Casey, Newton, Erik Torenberg, Anthony Fauci, Ellen Pao, Katherine Maher, George Soros, Joe Biden, Chesa Boudin, Boudin, Gavin Newsom, Palihapitiya, Sacks, Trump, JD Vance, Brian Merchant, Ben Smith, Eric Newcomer, he's, Lulu Cheng Meservey, Balaji Srinivasan's, Zoë Bernard Organizations: Fund, Tech, Founders Fund, Apple, Elon, Elite, Sequoia Capital, Pirate, Penguin Group, Big Tech, Card Industry, Washington Post, TechCrunch, Media, NPR, Google, Disney, Twitter, Republican National Convention, Bloomberg, monetization, San, Business Locations: San Francisco, Substack, Silicon Valley, New York, Silicon, Solana, Miami, Francisco, California, Los Angeles

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