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Borrowing has become more expensive and profits harder to come by, meaning 2023 has been a wild year in startup land. PitchBook data suggests that about 3,200 startups — representing a total of $27.2 billion in venture funding — have been lost, with a significant number of startups in zombie mode: They can’t grow, they can’t raise money, but they almost limp well enough to avoid closure. Layoffs are happening — also in December — and in the next two weeks, many more startups will be shutting down, lest the inevitable be dragged into a new tax year. I’ll be looking deeper into this over the next couple of weeks, so stay tuned.
Also: I was supposed to write this newsletter, but I ended up playing the TechCrunch pub quiz for way too long. My rating was. . . embarrassingly poor considering I’ve read literally every story on the site in the past year to write this newsletter. It was fun though – give it a whirl!
When the AIs come in
Image Credits: Devin Coldewey / TechCrunch
I love it when my colleagues go too deep into nerdland. This is definitely one of the hallmarks of Devin’s work at times. In this case, he’s talking about how fans of “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” are using artificial intelligence to make the old show look better because there’s no official high-quality version. They’re using AI to add detail to the original episodes, which is difficult and requires a lot of effort — but it shows a lot of promise. Devin concludes that the technology could be a good way for companies to upgrade old shows, but there are some legal and technical hurdles to understand. Don’t miss his 3,000 word ode to encryption.
The other AI-related nerd this week comes courtesy of Ron, who dug into the continued relevance of traditional AI models in business, despite the rise of large language models (LLMs). This makes sense: LLMs are kind of the Leatherman tools of AI: They do everything. I never leave home without my Leatherman and it has gotten me out of many situations, but if I’m building a house or fixing a car, I break out the most specialized tool kit.
More startuppy AI news this week:
This really moved me: Just when you thought your photos online were safe, along comes Animate Anyone, which turns them into eerily realistic, deeply fake videos — because plain old fake photos weren’t alarming enough.
G-oops-le: Google’s new Gemini AI model isn’t exactly knocking it out of the park, with early adopters finding more bloopers than brilliance in its responses. It turns out that even Google can have an “oops” moment in the world of artificial intelligence.
The Pokémon approach to startups: Elon Musk, seemingly never tired of starting new ventures, is now chasing $1 billion for his latest AI foray – xAI – because why settle for running a few companies when you can add another AI startup to your collection ;
This week in the Elon Times
Image Credits: CARINA JOHANSEN/NTB/AFP/Getty Images
Look, I’m as bored with Elon Musk as everyone else, but I have to give the man credit for one thing: He doesn’t draw attention. Rarely for good reasons, recently, it must be said.
Darrell sums up the situation in his piece “The end of Elon,” where — tongue firmly in cheek and with the counter set to 11 — he dissects the launch of the Tesla Cybertruck (spoiler: It was a bit of a nothing burger, there’s still a lot unknown about truck) and Musk’s unique approach to managing his various ventures — including telling X (formerly Twitter) advertisers to do something anatomically impossible.
Of course, there’s been (a lot) more Musk-related news this week, and if you want it all, give our Elon Musk tag a quick scroll.
What’s up? . . : SpaceX is throwing $2.2 million into a parachute company because apparently making parachutes that don’t bend in space is harder than rocket science.
Keep on trucking: The Tesla Cyberbeast: Heavy, fast, and a little short on towing compared to its expensive electric rivals — but hey, who’s counting when you’re driving a cornering beast?
Show me the money: X has won licenses to process payments in 12 US states, moving closer to Musk’s vision of turning the platform into an “app for everything.” With recent advertiser exits and controversy, it seems there’s more drama than dollars in Musk’s grand plan — for now.
Shutdown City
Image Credits: Bryce Durbin (opens in new window)
After the boom of 2021, a bunch of startups crash into the ground after failing to meet their goals. Let us observe a moment of silence for some of our fallen brothers:
In its last position: Going from a dismal $450 million valuation at closing, even Goldman Sachs’ backing couldn’t boost ZestMoney’s survival.
So close: Edtech company Doubtnut is learning the hard way that a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush, selling for $10 million after passing a $150 million deal from Byju’s.
Now, not so great: From unicorn to extinct: Prefab developer Veev proves that rising to billions of dollars doesn’t guarantee a solid foundation.
Top reads on TechCrunch this week
Is that not enough for you? Well, here’s a roundup of the most loved, most read articles from the past week:
Is it a bird? Is it a plane?: Anduril’s new fighter jet weapon, the Roadrunner, lands courtesy of a Falcon 9.
Throw me another one: MIT spinoff Liquid AI thinks it’s time for a change in the AI game with its new “liquid neural network,” because who needs another GPT clone when you can have AI inspired by worm brains and run on a Raspberry Pi . . .
Yes, but will he wear a hat?: Former SpaceX engineers are now saving the planet with a “vegetarian rocket engine,” because apparently shooting stuff into space wasn’t good enough. Also, were the previous rockets filled with bacon? I am confused.
It is electrified: GM and Toyota, welcome to the Oops, We Missed the EV Bus Club!
Breaking knees and YouTube records: Grand Theft Auto VI just stole MrBeast’s crown on YouTube, garnering more views in one day than a philanthropist giving money could ever dream of.
