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☆ Critical Role's heartbreak prince helped make 'Dungeons & Dragons' cool. Now he's coming for the gothic horror gaming scene.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-08 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Critical Role recently released "Candela Obscura," a gothic horror roleplaying game. AdvertisementIn October, Critical Role, a crew of eight self-professed "nerdy-ass voice actors," played their long-running "Dungeons & Dragons" game at a sold-out Wembley Arena. These qualities make O'Brien ideal for stepping into the game master role for "Candela Obscura," Critical Role's new gothic horror game, and he's leaning hard into the tragedy. AdvertisementIt's also one of the more punishing gaming systems he's played in, O'Brien told me during our video call. Mercer, the team's designated game master, is the one who crafts the narrative and controls how the story develops.

Persons: Liam O'Brien, —, Matthew Mercer, O'Brien, I've, It's, he's, Twitch, Mercer, — O'Brien, — Taliesin Jaffe, Imari Williams, Aimee Carrero, Alexander Ward —, Taliesin Jaffe, Alexander Ward, Julius Caesar, Irish, Martin McDonagh, Spenser Starke, Rowan Hall, Aabria Iyengar, Starke, Mary Shelley, it's, Amazon, Marisha Ray, Travis Willingham, Ashley Johnson, Sam Riegel, Laura Bailey, Matthew Mercer Robyn von Swank Organizations: Service, Wembley, Darrington Press, Hasbro's, Hasbro, CR Locations: Europe, Ireland, New York, Mercer, Starke

☆ Nerd world's most famous faces are out to conquer the gothic horror gaming space — and their heartbreak prince is here to get the job done
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-08 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Critical Role recently released "Candela Obscura," a gothic horror roleplaying game. These qualities make O'Brien ideal for stepping into the game master role for "Candela Obscura," Critical Role's new gothic horror game, and he's leaning hard into the tragedy. AdvertisementIt's also one of the more punishing gaming systems he's played in, O'Brien told during our video call. Mercer, the team's designated game master, is the one who crafts the narrative and controls how the story develops. "I always prefer complicated narratively satisfying endings to a neat little happy ending," O'Brien told me.

☆ A new startup from 2 Twitch alums is trying to get Gen Z to watch TV
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-08 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Entertainment companies face a generation problem, with Gen Z shunning TV shows and movies over social video and livestreams. A new startup is pitching a solution by bringing TV to Gen Z where and how they already watch, rather than trying to train them in a new habit. The company, Gaggl TV, licenses TV shows and distributes them to creators to watch with their followers on social platforms. In a deal with Fremantle, Gaggl got the rights to old TV shows like '70s-era "The Price is Right: The Barker Era" and is distributing them to five Twitch streamers. "TV companies just put stuff on Twitch and don't realize it's the creators people are coming to see," Harris said.

Persons: Gen, Gaggl, Khleo Thomas, Peter Park, Bridget Case, Richard Karn, Megan Fraher, Fraher, Adam Harris, James Duffield, Greg Miall, Harris, Gen Z's, Twitch, Bob Ross, he's Organizations: Business, Fremantle, Amazon, Greece's, Paramount, Gaggl Locations: Fremantle, livestreaming

☆ Trump Media cofounders were limited to coach flights and lodging under $150 a night while establishing the former president's media empire
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-04 | by ( Lloyd Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

According to their contract, Trump Media & Technology Group's cofounders, Andrew Litinsky and Wes Moss, were limited to cheap flights and hotels as they were entrusted to take Trump's media empire public. The expenses outlined in the contract are a far cry from the typical lavishness executives, let alone social media cofounders, are afforded. As Business Insider's senior correspondent Emily Stewart noted, Trump Media makes close to nothing. The company's financial statements reveal that Trump Media made $4.1 million last year and lost $58 million. A spokesperson for Trump Media declined to comment.

Persons: —, Donald Trump's, cofounders, Andrew Litinsky, Wes Moss, Moss, Litinsky, Moss weren't, Emily Stewart Organizations: Service, Trump Media & Technology, Business, United Atlantic Ventures, Trump, Trump Media, Litinsky Locations: Moss, Litinsky

☆ 2 college friends who started selling custom T-shirts on campus with a $500 budget explain how they grew their fraternity-house merch project into a seven-figure business
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-04 | by ( Kathleen Elkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

By the time Shanadi started his freshman year at the University of Florida, he had nearly a decade of work under his belt. His first brand, Greek House, while "a little bit of an accident," admitted Shanadi, was set in motion. It allowed him and McGurrin to launch Greek House with the limited savings they had. They dedicated weeknights and weekends to growing Greek House. Quitting corporate America, living on $1,000 a month, and learning from a $33,000 mistakeIn 2016, Shanadi quit his job to go all-in on Greek House.

Persons: Karthik Shanadi, Shanadi, Luke McGurrin, Luke, McGurrin, We'd, LUKE SIRIMONGKHON, Brian Chesky, that's, we've, we're Organizations: Business, University of Florida, New, Amazon, House, of Florida, Follett, Dick's Sporting Goods Locations: Bangalore, India, Orlando, New York City, Florida, California, Bay, Los Angeles, America, Salesforce, LA

☆ Trump Media is suing its cofounders, alleging they failed 'spectacularly' and did 'significant damage' to the business
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-03 | by ( Jennifer Sor | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Trump's media company is suing its cofounders, alleging they failed the business before its SPAC deal. AdvertisementTrump Media is suing its cofounders, alleging they failed the company and did "significant damage" to its business, according to documents filed in a Florida civil court. Moss and Litinsky had the potential to "profit handsomely" if Trump Media completed its merger deal. The filing says: "Moss and Litinsky failed spectacularly at every turn. Trump Media did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Persons: Wesley Moss, Andrew Litinsky, Moss, —, Trump, Patrick Orlando, Litinsky Organizations: TMTG, Service, Trump Media, Corp, United Atlantic Ventures, Orlando's, Trump, DWAC, Company Locations: Florida

☆ An internal email hints at the messy aftermath of Microsoft's hires from AI startup Inflection
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-03 | by ( Darius Rafieyan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

The AI startup Inflection raised over $1.5 billion from investors including Bill Gates and Nvidia. Last month, Microsoft hired its cofounders and most of its staff, leaving it a shell of its former self. One exec who was preparing to start in a new role at Inflection had misgivings following the news. Microsoft's unusual Inflection deal may have dented the startup's ability to recruit technical talent, according to an internal email obtained by Business Insider. Calvin Lee, a former director of product management at Uber, was hired as a product lead at Inflection.

Persons: Bill Gates, Reid Hoffman, Calvin Lee, Mustafa Suleyman, Lee Organizations: Nvidia, Microsoft, Business Locations: Greylock

☆ A recent Inflection hire was 'spooked' by Microsoft poaching and has 'a lot to reconsider,' according to internal VC email
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-03 | by ( Darius Rafieyan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

AI startup Inflection raised over $1.5 billion from investors including Bill Gates, Eric Schmidt, and Nvidia. Last month, Microsoft hired Inflection cofounders and most of its staff, leaving the startup a shell of its former self. One exec who was preparing to start in a new role at Inflection had misgivings following the news. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementMicrosoft's unusual Inflection deal may have dented the startup's ability to recruit technical talent, according to an internal email obtained by Business Insider.

Persons: Bill Gates, Eric Schmidt, —, Greylock, Reid Hoffman, Calvin Lee, Mustafa Suleyman, Lee Organizations: Nvidia, Microsoft, Service, Business, Management, Uber

☆ Disney proxy battle is about a lot more than just two board seats
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-03 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

As for the newsletter, in today's big story, we're breaking down Disney's big proxy fight . Activist investor Nelson Peltz's proxy fight against Disney for two seats on the company's board comes to a head at its annual shareholder meeting today. The total amount spent between Disney and its rivals wrangling votes is estimated to be at least $70 million, a record for a proxy fight. The statue of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse at Cinderella Castle at the Magic Kingdom, at Walt Disney World, in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. 3 things in businessWin McNamee/Getty Images; Chelsea Jia Feng/BIIn other newsAdvertisementWhat's happening todayThe Walt Disney Company's annual meeting will be held today.

Persons: —, Congrats, ya, Bob Iger, Nelson Peltz, Neilson Barnard, David A, Grogan, Nelson, Madeline Berg, BI's Peter Kafka, BI's Grace Eliza Goodwin, Walt Disney, Mickey Mouse, Joe Burbank, Rowe Price, Peltz's Trian, Neuberger Berman, Peltz, It's, Trian, they're, Stocks, Ray Dalio, it's, Quincy Krosby, Jeffrey Buchbinder, Alyssa Powell, Win McNamee, Chelsea Jia Feng, Dan DeFrancesco, Jordan Parker Erb, Hallam Bullock, George Glover Organizations: Business, Service, National, Getty, Disney, Magic, Walt Disney World, Orlando Sentinel, Tribune, Wall, BlackRock, Peltz's Trian Partners, California Public Employees, Financial Times, DuPont, Fed, JPMorgan, Bridgewater Associates, Astera Labs, Arm Holdings, LPL Financial, Apple, Nvidia, BI, Walt Locations: —, Virginia, Lake Buena Vista , Florida, China, Haiti's, New York, London

☆ How the businessman who blew up MoviePass tried to create a 'TikTok killer' and cost investors millions
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-01 | by ( Ashley Rodriguez | Jason Guerrasio | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +22 min

At Vinco, Farnsworth employed several of the same tactics that he had at MoviePass and at his earlier ventures. "Ted took these press releases and really treated them like they were works of art for him," Matt Argall, a former advisor to Farnsworth, told BI. Hudson Bay has not been served the lawsuit as of the publication of this story. "Hudson Bay's investment in Vinco Ventures was a standard, fixed price convertible loan of which millions remain unpaid," Hudson Bay told BI in a statement. "If served, Hudson Bay will seek to have these baseless, factually flawed and frivolous claims, which have been repeatedly dismissed in other proceedings against other parties, dismissed expeditiously."

Persons: MoviePass, Ted Farnsworth, Maria Bartiromo, he'd, Farnsworth, Jaeson Ma, Ted Farnsworth playbook, Ted, Barnum, John Fichthorn, I've, Shadwrick Vick, Rudy, Vick, Roderick Vanderbilt, who's, hocking, La Toya Jackson, Helios, Matheson, Brian Quinn, Farnsworth's, Michael Hartstein, Vinco, Matt Argall, Mitch Lowe, Reuters Farnsworth, David, Goliath, TikTok, We're, Argall, Elton John, Jamie McCarthy, Lomotif, Lil Nas X, Snoop Dogg, Grimes, Zash, Allan Stern, Get2it, Stern, Robert N, Scola Jr, Scola, he's, —, Lowe, Getty, Dave Kotinsky, Stringer Vinco, expeditiously, Farnsworth —, Vanderbilt, Jesse Law, Katherine Long Organizations: Fox Business, Hollywood, Business, Zash Global Media, Entertainment, Vinco Ventures, Fox, Hudson Bay, BI, Helios, Matheson, Matheson Analytics, Boston College Law School, Palladium Capital Group, Vinco, BHP Capital, Armistice, CVI Investments, National Enquirer, Reuters, AMC Theatres, AMC, Gemini Valuation, Hudson, Eightco Holdings, Elton John AIDS Foundation, 91st, EDC, Tampa Marriott, SEC, Publishing, National Examiner, Globe, The New York Times, Southern, Southern District of, Bloomberg, Bay, Vanderbilt, Federal Bureau of Investigation Locations: Hudson, Vinco, Zash, Hudson Bay, China, Syracuse , New York, Lomotif, Syracuse, West Hollywood , California, Vegas, Tampa, Argall, Boston, India, The, Miami, MoviePass, Southern District, Southern District of Florida, New York

☆ I'm a Swede who used to work with Americans. These are the main differences I saw in our working cultures.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-31 | by ( Megan Carnegie | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

These are the main aspects of working in Sweden that other cultures might find surprising. AdvertisementSupport for working parentsIn Sweden, parental leave has become an incubator for new ideas and people often change career direction during their leave. Being on leave gives you time to think with some distance from everyday life. I have been financially supported during my parental leave and as my children grow. Collective bargaining, another tenet of Swedish working culture, prioritizes employee needs and gives more power to the employee.

Persons: —, Sofia Brandt, Ally, There's, they're VAB, I'd, wouldn't, that's Organizations: Service, Accenture, Business Locations: Gothenburg, Sweden, American, San Francisco, America

☆ The big push for AI, TikTok bans, and spaces for influencers of color: Here are 3 takeaways for creators from SXSW.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-17 | by ( Shriya Bhattacharya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

AI was very popular, but most panels failed to discuss the consThe harmful impacts of AI dominated the conversation among creators at SXSW. Related storiesIn a session titled "AI in Video: Revolutionizing or Replacing Creators," Vimeo product executive Zohar Dayan's presentation similarly focused on the technology's benefits. Talk of a TikTok ban? Employees and creators are 'bored' of itOutside SXSW, the conversation has picked up about a potential TikTok ban in the US , but there was radio silence about it in Austin among the TikTok employees and creators I met. "We're so bored of that topic, honestly," said two TikTok employees, who spoke on condition of anonymity out of concern about facing repercussions from their employer.

Persons: Cassey Ho, OpenAI's, Peter Deng, Deng, Zohar, Dan Whateley, they've, Kahlil Greene, he's, Jerry Won, Justin Nguyen, Mylen Yamamoto Tansingco, Sam Li, Sean Kim, Sam Yam, Austin Hilton, Tumi Brooks Organizations: Southwest, Delta Air Lines, Business, IBM, SXSW, Snapchat, Pershing House, Talent, Austin, Austin Hilton Hotel, Convention Locations: Austin, Australia, China, member's, TikTok, Netflix's, Singapore

☆ Sam Altman said he texted Elon Musk after the billionaire sued him
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Grace Kay | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sam Altman said he texted Elon Musk after the Tesla CEO sued him. Musk sued Altman and OpenAI earlier this year, alleging the company violated its 'founding agreement.' AdvertisementOpenAI CEO Sam Altman said he fired off a text to Elon Musk right after he found out the Tesla CEO had sued him. In the face of Musk's very public disses, Altman has been more diplomatic in his public response to Musk. "I miss the old Elon," Altman told Swisher.

Persons: Sam Altman, texted Elon Musk, Altman, Musk, —, Elon Musk, Kara Swisher, Swisher, OpenAI, cofound OpenAI, Tesla, Lex Fridman Organizations: Service, City Arts, OpenAI, Microsoft, GPT Locations: Elon

☆ OpenAI hired the lawyer who helped force Elon Musk to buy Twitter
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-12 | by ( Grace Kay | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The firm battling Musk previously helped Twitter in a legal conflict with the billionaire. The billionaire is set to face off again with a lawyer who helped Twitter sue Musk after he attempted to back out of the $44 billion purchase. One of the lawyers from the Wachtell firm, William Savitt, helped lead Twitter's case against Musk. AdvertisementMusk helped found OpenAI in 2015 and has said he invested tens of millions of dollars into the AI venture. Representatives for Musk and OpenAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Persons: OpenAI, Elon Musk's, Musk, —, Elon Musk, Lipton, Katz, Foerster, Sam Altman, William Savitt, Morrison, Ragesh Tangri —, Morgan Chu, Alan Heinrich, Chu, Tesla, Altman Organizations: Twitter, Service, Reuters, Wachtell, Rosen, Morrison, — Jordan Eth, Ragesh, Bloomberg, Microsoft, Musk Locations: — Jordan

☆ OpenAI ridicules Elon Musk’s ‘incoherent’ lawsuit
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

The company refused, and Musk left OpenAI later that year. Seeing the remarkable technological advances OpenAI has achieved, Musk now wants that success for himself,” the filing states. OpenAI also said it believes that “early and swift dismissal” of Musk’s suit is warranted. OpenAI is concerned that Musk could use the discovery process to “seek access to OpenAI’s proprietary records and technology,” according to the filing. Musk is now running his own artificial intelligence company, XAI, which seeks to compete with OpenAI.

Persons: New York CNN —, Elon Musk, OpenAI, ”, ” Musk, Musk, Tesla Organizations: New, New York CNN, ” Locations: New York, —

☆ Nvidia boss Jensen Huang credits his work ethic to his time at Denny's washing dishes
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( Alexandra Bacon | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Jensen Huang is the cofounder and CEO of $2 trillion computer chip giant, Nvidia. He credits part of his success to the strong work ethic he honed while working at Denny's. AdvertisementJensen Huang is the cofounder and CEO of Nvidia, the $2 trillion chip manufacturer powering the AI revolution. In a recent interview with Stanford's Graduate School of Business, Huang reflected on his early career working minimum wage jobs to explain how he has developed the work ethic to succeed as a CEO. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers.

Persons: Jensen Huang, —, Huang Organizations: Nvidia, Service, Stanford's Graduate School of Business, Business Locations: Denny's

☆ This defense-tech startup bootstrapped its way to nearly $30 million in revenue. Now, it has another $35 million from Sapphire Ventures.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-07 | by ( Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Now, Defense Unicorns, a startup that creates open-source software for national security systems, has announced it raised $35 million in a round of funding led by Sapphire Ventures and Ansa Capital. The world of open-source software for the military is small, making the opportunity much greater. TestifySec, a tiny startup building open-source software for the Department of Homeland Security, raised a $6 million seed round last fall. This year, Defense Unicorns says it will use the initial round of funding to go on a hiring spree. Defense Unicorns will compete for talent in artificial intelligence with tons of other startups.

Persons: —, Jai Das, Rob Slaughter, Das, siphoning, Slaughter, it's, Lockheed Martin Organizations: Service, Sapphire Ventures, Unicorns, Business, Defense Unicorns, Ansa, Department of Defense, Air Force, Lockheed, Department of Homeland Security Locations: Chicago

☆ Google's Gemini firestorm shows the risks of the company's race to catch up with its AI rivals
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( Beatrice Nolan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. The company has been defending itself against fierce backlash sparked by its AI chatbot's image-generating feature. The product has landed Google at the center of what was described in some circles as a "woke" culture war. AdvertisementGoogle's 'Gemini era' is all about GPT-4Pichai claimed late last year Google was entering its "Gemini era." The model is widely seen as the company's answer to OpenAI's GPT-4, a product heavily backed by Microsoft and already powering many of the company's AI products.

Persons: —, execs, Critics, Andrés, Sergey Brin, Sundar Pichai, Brin, Alex Heath, Heath, Pichai, OpenAI's, Google's Bard, Bing, Gvirtz, Sandra Wachter, Wachter Organizations: Service, Google, Business, Big Tech, King's Business School, Engineers, Gemini, Microsoft, chatbots, Financial, Oxford Internet Institute

☆ OpenAI cofounder says he's sad to witness the 'unnecessary' feud between Elon Musk and Sam Altman
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( Jyoti Mann | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

OpenAI cofounder Wojciech Zaremba called Elon Musk and Sam Altman's ongoing feud "unnecessary." Several OpenAI cofounders fired back against Musk in a blog post on the company's website. AdvertisementOpenAI cofounder Wojciech Zaremba said it's been "sad" to witness Elon Musk and Sam Altman engage in an "unnecessary fight." Elon wanted majority equity, initial board control, and to be CEO. "Elon wanted majority equity, initial board control, and to be CEO.

Persons: Wojciech Zaremba, Elon Musk, Sam Altman's, Sam Altman, cofounders, —, it's, Musk, OpenAI, Zaremba, we've, Musk's, Elon, OpenAI didn't Organizations: Elon, OpenAI, Service, Microsoft

☆ Elon Musk's emails about OpenAI could be another nail in the coffin for his lawsuit against the company
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( Grace Kay | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The emails could undermine Musk's lawsuit against the AI venture, experts told BI. The AI company on Tuesday released a slew of emails that it claims were sent between Musk and its other founders. Meanwhile, OpenAI might still pay a price for Musk's lawsuit in the form of lost time and resources. Advertisement"I think Musk's lawsuit is already doing what he intended," Hoffman said. "Change your name to ClosedAI and I will drop the lawsuit," Musk wrote on X.Musk's lawsuit comes after the billionaire launched his own AI company last year.

Persons: OpenAI, Elon Musk, —, Elon, Musk, hadn't, Samuel Brunson, Brunson, David Hoffman, Hoffman, Kyle Lawrence, Falcon Rappaport, Berkman, Lawrence, he'd, Tesla Organizations: Elon, Service, Business, Loyola University, University of Pennsylvania, OpenAI Locations: OpenAI

☆ The Juggernaut promised to revolutionize South Asian news. But insiders say the company's founder misled investors, struggled to raise money, and left workers 'heartbroken.'
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( Katie Warren | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +33 min

They were gathered for the inaugural summit of The Juggernaut, a digital South Asian news startup that launched in 2019. The Juggernaut spokesperson told BI that "multiple employees have equity in the company," but BI was unable to identify any such employees. "Twenty years ago, you might've struggled to mention a South Asian actor that you've seen in a movie," he said. As of January, the site had about 10,500 subscribers, Sur told investors in an email viewed by BI. Some feel that the publication has strayed from its mission of delivering "untold, smart South Asian stories and news you won't find anywhere else."

Persons: —, Richa Moorjani, Manish Chandra, Anish Melwani, Sadiq Khan, Amitav Ghosh, Roy Rochlin, Jay Bhattacharya, didn't, Sur, Padma Lakshmi, Moorjani, Mira Nair, Oprah Winfrey, she'd, who've, Josh Benson, Bhattacharya, might've, you've, Dev Patel, Priyanka Chopra, Black millennials, Bhattacharya's, Adam Hansmann, Kevin Lin, Albert Ni, Charles Hudson, Steve Jennings, Sur's, Kyle Stanford, Axios, Stanford, Snigdha, Winfrey, MICHAEL TRAN, hadn't, wouldn't, Fariha Róisín, Meghna Rao, Róisín, Rao, Rao didn't, they'd, she's, it's, Hudson, who'd, Reetu Gupta, Aditi Shah, Sean Gupta, Steven Simione, would've, we're, Brian Morrissey, Morrissey, cofounders, Narendra Modi's, Sneha Mehta Organizations: Spring Studios, Netflix, Business, New Yorker, Harvard Business School, Guardian, American, Old Town Media, Athletic, BI, Indian, Yale, McKinsey, Precursor Ventures, Forbes, Getty, TechCrunch, YouTube's Sustainability, YouTube, Paramount Pictures Studios, Immigration Services, Stanford, Digiday, Gannett Locations: York City, chai, Jean's, hasn't, Sur, New York City, South, Asian, India, Madhya Pradesh, Queens, Sur texted, Indian American, AFP, Róisín, Los Angeles , California, South Asia, Silicon

☆ Sergey Brin says Google 'definitely messed up' after its Gemini chatbot caused a firestorm. He has a lot riding on its success — or failure.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( Beatrice Nolan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sergey Brin says Google "definitely messed up" with Gemini's image generation. The Google cofounder says he came out of retirement because of AI's "exciting" trajectory. AdvertisementGoogle cofounder Sergey Brin has weighed in on the company's Gemini drama. Speaking at San Francisco's AGI House, Brin said the company had "definitely messed up on the image generation." Since then, Brin has been spotted at Google's Silicon Valley headquarters and has been directly involved with developing the company's AI strategy.

Persons: Sergey Brin, —, Brin, Larry Page, Elon Musk, Adolf Hitler, Gemini, Hitler Organizations: Service, Gemini, Google, The New York Times, Big Tech, BI, Business Locations: Francisco's

☆ '2024 will be the year of the zombie VC reckoning.' The first wave of dying venture firms is here and it's already causing headaches for tech founders.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

AdvertisementUnlike other businesses, venture firms do not suddenly go out of business. Why it is so difficult to spot a dying fundOpenView Venture Partners announced in December it was suspending new investments and laying off staff. With the help of Pitchbook, BI looked through data for hundreds of venture firms. Hinge last raised a $19 million fund in 2021 but has not made an investment since November 2022, according to Pitchbook. Do you know of a venture firm no longer actively investing?

Persons: —, VCs, Anna Barber, they'll, they're, Roy Bahat, Brian Brackeen, they're reallocating, Beezer Clarkson, Clarkson, Jake Saper, Bahat, Jordan Fudge, Zachary White, Carlos Adame, Fudge, We're, Paul Weinstein, Weinstein, Cofounders Ryan Swager, Brandon Zeuner, Louie, Alsop Louie Partners, Partners Gilman Louie, Stewart Alsop, Jason Preston, Partners Tyler Peterson, Mike Morgan, Robert Patterson, DEFTA, George Hara, Martin Gedalin, Kevin Ober, Hone, Ben Bergman Organizations: Service, Business, Bloomberg Beta, Lightship, Sapphire Partners, BI, Sapphire Ventures, Venture Partners, Foundry Group, Sinai Ventures, Sinai Capital Partners, Capital, San, Louie Partners, Partners, Ventures Peninsula Ventures, LinkedIn Locations: Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Mateo , California, Seattle, Alto, bbergman@insider.com

☆ '2024 will be the year of the zombie VC reckoning.' The first wave of walking-dead venture firms is here and it's already causing headaches for tech founders.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Unlike other businesses, venture firms do not suddenly go out of business. Limited partners such as pensions and endowments that fund venture firms have been choosier, cutting off capital to firms that have not generated acceptable returns. Why it is so difficult to spot a dying fundOpenView Venture Partners announced in December that it was suspending new investments and laying off staff. In a written statement, he later explained that Sinai Ventures has been rebranded to Sinai Capital Partners. Do you know of a venture firm no longer actively investing?

Persons: VCs, Anna Barber, they'll, they're, Roy Bahat, Brian Brackeen, Brackeen, they're reallocating, Beezer Clarkson, Clarkson, Jake Saper, Bahat, Jordan Fudge, Zachary White, Carlos Adame —, Fudge, We're, Paul Weinstein, Weinstein, Ryan Swager, Brandon Zeuner, Alsop Louie, Alsop Louie Partners, Gilman Louie, Stewart Alsop, Jason Preston, Tyler Peterson, Mike Morgan, Robert Patterson, DEFTA, George Hara, Martin Gedalin, Kevin Ober, Divergent's, Hone, Ben Bergman Organizations: Business, Bloomberg Beta, Lightship Capital, Sapphire Partners, BI, Venture Partners, Foundry Group, Sinai Ventures, Sinai Capital Partners, Capital, San, Alsop Louie Partners, Partners, Ventures Peninsula Ventures, LinkedIn Locations: Los Angeles, San Francisco, Alto , California, San Mateo , California, Lumia, Seattle, bbergman@insider.com

☆ Silicon Valley's elite are moralizing about the future of AI
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( Hasan Chowdhury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

It has reignited the savior complex of Silicon Valley's biggest personalities too. AdvertisementThough some questions are being asked about how much of a case Musk has here, the whole saga has offered plenty of incentive to Silicon Valley's more opinionated leaders to moralize on the future of AI. The open option — in theory at least — champions AI models that are transparent about how they're trained and collectively developed by a global community of developers. (2) Big companies, small companies, independent developers, and open source communities should be free to pursue AI. But which side of the battle the rest of Silicon Valley's AI leaders fall on will be watched just as closely.

Persons: —, Elon, Sam Altman's OpenAI hasn't, OpenAI —, they're, Meta, Sam Altman, Andrew Caballero, Reynolds, Marc Andreessen, Vinod Khosla, Andreessen, shouldn't, isn't, 2VqL6T5qZe, Marc Andreessen 🇺🇸 ( Organizations: Service, Microsoft, OpenAI, Business, Getty, Manhattan, Chinese Communist Party, Big Locations: China, San Francisco, jure

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