Vivek Pathela

I find it hard to believe that with millions of EVs entering the market and the proliferation of AI compute that PGE is actually going to have excess capacity in 2040 without any additional generation from 3rd parties. I am also curious if there are enough transmission lines and if PGE views that as someone else’s problem. Maybe they are planning on AI and ACTUAL figuring it all out! https://lnkd.in/gybsMmaw

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iPad sales will get a nice boost in June and September. That tailwind will likely fade in 2025. Separately, Apple is moving faster to get new silicon in the market, a competitive advantage in AI. https://lnkd.in/g3mfdzMt

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Science-fiction is inherently speculative. Author George #Orwell of ‘#1984’ predicted concepts such as doublethink, little earbuds and society’s obsession with the black mirror screens that dominate our lives — and according to the BBC, novelist and short story author JG Ballard, of “High-Rise” and “Crash” fame, has predicted the current tool and cultural fixation of #GenerativeAI in the modern society — only he didn’t just speculate them within a story, he is actually one of the first use-cases of a generative AI used in a creative context — Ballard was so fascinated with the growing technological advancement of computers that he used one to compose poems, essentially the precursor to what we have now with ChatGPT. Today, the debate about the creative use of generative AI and its value on creative industries is an extremely fraught and controversial topic, but if controlled in a space that doesn’t replace human labor or try to equate itself to traditional art forms, it is interesting to see what computers can do and how they are creatively limited in comparison. Ballard’s two poems, The Yellow Back Novels and Machine Gun City are generated, and both include notes on how Ballard achieved producing them. Regardless of quality (Ballard himself probably wouldn’t describe these two poems as his best work), it is interesting to see primitive versions of the technology that we utilize on the daily today, and how these moral conversations that concern them would continuously evolve.

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Earlier this week Texture, led by CEO & co-founder Sanjiv Sanghavi, announced its $7.5m seed round of fundraising with participation from Abstract Ventures, Day One Ventures, Equal Ventures, Lerer Hippeau, and a handful of angels. Dorothy Chang and I feel fortunate to count ourselves among the “handful of angels.” We didn’t invest just because Sanjiv is a close friend - though knowing him for over a decade has given us a lot of insight into his mind and how he operates. We invested for a lot of the typical reasons a VC would: Solving big problems with big potential returns - Venture investments only make sense if they have the chance to make massive returns. Texture is building the data infrastructure for energy networks - becoming a common data collection and sharing platform for every player in the energy grid, no matter the type of energy. There is already a huge gaping problem and a huge market here. Building for an inevitable future - On a macro level, as a society, we are moving more and more toward complex, interconnected energy sources as we optimize for the right balance of efficiency, sustainability and costs. Unique insight and founder-market fit - At a first glance, Texture seems like a big departure from what we originally knew Sanjiv from, as a Co-Founder of ClassPass. But since then, he has also played roles as the Chief Product officer at Arcadia, a successful energy data company (Arcadia’s CEO is also an investor in Texture) as well as an investor at Day One Ventures, investing in the energy/climate tech sector.  More details in this week's post: https://lnkd.in/eGBzXHwC

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Thrilled to share our latest podcast episode featuring Peter Marton, co-founder & CEO of OpenMeter! We talked about how OpenMeter is transforming AI billing with their usage-based pricing model. Peter shares his journey from Netflix & Stripe to building this Y Combinator-backed startup, plus insights on: - The pain points of traditional billing for developers - Why open-source is key to transparency in AI monetization - How OpenMeter is empowering companies to manage AI costs effectively - ...and much more! Check out the full episode here: https://lnkd.in/ebAQFhi7 Let me know: What's your biggest challenge with adopting usage-based billing for your products or services? #startups #entrepreneurship #AI #API #monetization #OpenMeter

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I am honored to host Nolan Bushnell for a fireside chat at TechCon SoCal 2024 in San Diego on May 24th. We'll discuss how his innovations at Atari laid the groundwork for today's tech landscape and what lessons we can draw for the future. 🌟 Why Nolan Bushnell is a Must-Hear for Every Tech Enthusiast🌟 🕹️ Pioneering the Video Game Industry: Bushnell's creation of Atari and the iconic game Pong marked the beginning of the video game era, democratizing technology through entertainment. By democratizing technology through entertainment, Bushnell made electronics and computing accessible, inspiring a generation and catalyzing the tech ecosystem. 👔 Redefining Startup Culture: Bushnell invented a new breed of Silicon Valley entrepreneurs: visionary, bold, and nonconformist. His management style and the work environment he fostered at Atari—including laid-back elements like beer and ping pong—helped set a template for Silicon Valley's informal and innovative corporate culture, influencing giants like Google and Facebook. 🌱 Innovating Venture Capital: Bushnell became a crucial pivot in VC history by becoming the first example of how new business models over technology advancement become VC "fundable". Sequoia Capital's first seed investment concept in Atari demonstrated the profitability of supporting early-stage consumer tech businesses. It broadened VC horizons to include software and entertainment, impacting how venture capital operates today. 🚀 Driving Silicon Valley's Evolution: The Foundation of Silicon Valley was Arthur Rock funding Fairchild Semiconductor & Intel, establishing the semiconductor industry, and putting the silicon in Silicon Valley. The expansion phase was Don Valentine's investment in Atari, expanding the focus from hardware to software and entertainment, creating the video game industry, and expanding Silicon Valley's tech ecosystem. Bushnell's role enabled the Transformation Phase of Silicon with the 1980 IPOs of Apple and Genentech, showcasing SV's innovation breadth across multiple sectors. 🔗 Enabling Icons: Bushnell provided Steve Jobs, who did not have a college degree, with his first job inspiration for the idea of bringing computers to home users, invaluable introductions and opportunities, and influenced the birth of Apple. 🎮 Inspiring Future Innovators: By integrating fun into computer use, Bushnell likely accelerated technological innovation by making computing appealing to those who might not have otherwise engaged with it. His work at Atari made the daunting world of computers relatable and exciting, inspiring many future founders and technologists. Nolan's influence is evident in the increased computer literacy and the surge in tech-driven career interests among the youth of his time. Connect with over 80 early-stage investors and hundreds of founders from San Diego, the Bay Area, Austin, Denver, and New York. Explore more about the event at https://lnkd.in/gTYMN65n

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Bill McKibben's latest post on the impact of climate change on economies resonates with me. We have seen major climate disasters in recent years, and it's clear that they are not just impacting local economies but also global ones. It's concerning that big businesses continue to resist change, despite the long-term economic benefits of sustainable practices. Why do some businesses choose to churn through resources when it's ultimately bad for their bottom line and branding? Sustainable solutions are the way forward, and the data shows that they ultimately provide better returns. By using resources sustainably, we can ensure the longevity of our brands and economies. It's time for businesses to shift their thinking and embrace climate change solutions. Short-sightedness and small-minded thinking will only lead to further danger for all of us. Let's work together towards a sustainable future. #climatechange #solar #batterystorage #DER #climatechangesolutions #decarbonization

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What do you do when a radical new technology puts your main product right in the crosshairs of disruption? Listen to David Okuniev — co-founder of Typeform | Ask awesomely — discuss the challenges of innovation within existing structures. David shared a game-changing insight: Radical innovation is really, really difficult to do inside your own product. He emphasized the need to break free from the constraints of familiarity and embrace change from outside the box. Henrik Werdelin and I have both seen our fair share of this in our respective careers. What struck us most was how David leveraged structure to overcome the innovator’s dilemma. By creating a culture of experimentation and providing space for bold ideas, he propelled Typeform beyond incremental improvements. What other hacks have you seen or employed to help your organization overcome the innovator’s dilemma? Share your stories below! 👇 And if you want to dive deeper into our conversation, click the link in the comments to catch the full podcast episode!

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It was very fun to develop this AI judge for Climatech's Great Global Innovation Challenge and see it in action. Research has demonstrated that "Data-driven initiatives have been shown to help VC firms reduce gender bias and make better, fairer investment decisions" (https://lnkd.in/g2afQDnv / https://lnkd.in/gDnf4att). Additionally, "Machine learning models have already been proven to outperform human investors in deal screening" (https://lnkd.in/g2afQDnv / https://lnkd.in/gwGAmbET), helping to identify high-potential startups more effectively. By incorporating AI into our evaluation process, we aimed to ensure a more equitable and objective selection of startups. Thanks Tod Hynes Daniela G. Alejandro Sevilla Russ W. ClimaTech Live for the great collaboration. #climate #AI #climatechange #startups #startupcompetition

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Microsoft just unveiled VASA-1, a groundbreaking AI model for generating ultra-realistic talking avatars from a single image 🤯 Hemant Mohapatra and I were amazed by the early synthetic video tech from Rephrase.ai in 2019, but VASA-1 pushes those boundaries even further! Ashray Malhotra Shivam Mangla Nisheeth Lahoti As impressive as the tech is, regulating synthetic media will be crucial. Upcoming election cycle will stress test our ability to identify AI-generated misinformation and deepfakes at scale 😬👀 https://lnkd.in/gGiWRYi5 #syntheticvideo #gan #video #generativeai #vasa #gpt4 #stablediffusion #dalle #gemini #google #azure #deepfake #ethics

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For decades, progress in fusion energy has been roughly tracking to Moore's Law (doubling every two years). This work has led the industry to the historic breakeven moment at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the emergence of top tier startups seeking to make commercial #fusion a reality. Today, we're thrilled to team up with Xcimer Energy Corporation as part of their most recent round alongside Hedosophia, Breakthrough Energy , Prelude Ventures, Lowercarbon Capital, Gigascale Capital, and Starlight Ventures to help bring inertial fusion to the grid. Big things to come! #deeptech #venturecapital #climatetech #energy #hardtech

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An interesting article below, that demonstrates out how San Diego is punching above its weight.  And how Connect's strategy and execution over time, contintues to be central to that success. The article describes the current state of the market in Seattle.  (And i love Seattle.) It's a market that we tend to track with relative to venture fundings.  They used to kick our butts, we outraised them each of the last three years.  This despite the fact they have 3x as many funds there, and 9x the amount of resident capital there. (per pitchbook) Some key takeaways:  * They continue to compare themselves to SIlicon Valley. Instead, we leverage our proximity. *They whine there's not enough local investors (see note above - they have more than us). We bring over 200 VCs to SD annually! * They say founders are not connected with one another. We bring CEOs together regularly, in a variety of ways - private dinners and through our Springboard program. * They say they need to elevate their image on a national & international stage. Why we created and continue to build Five.Ten.Thirty (aka Inno Day).  * And the last paragraph - they need to concentrate on making their region a great place to live. Our mantra: "It's about Better, not Bigger." (See XEO, TL Fund). THANK YOU FOR ALL OF YOUR SUPPORT. WE ARE ON A MISSION TOGETHER!!!  (Comments, whining, suggestions on SD always welcome.) https://lnkd.in/g6Rq_f2Y

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Alon and David meet with the Tezos / Etherlink Accelerator companies to learn about the new Tezos EVM compatible layer 2 and some of the products being built on it!

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Are you developing a medical device or digital health? Come learn about regulatory and legal impacts and how design for manufacturing is critical to your startup's success.

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Can poop save the planet? 🤔 Well, in Silicon Valley, it's not just a punchline—it's a multimillion-dollar climate solution. Big players are teaming up with startup Vaulted Deep, paying $58.3 million, to pump organic waste underground. The deal was brokered by Frontier Climate, a coalition launched in 2022 by Stripe, Alphabet, Meta, Shopify, and McKinsey Sustainability. But why are tech giants getting their hands dirty with sewage and manure? Vaulted Deep's technology, rooted in decades-old methods used for oil and gas fracking cleanup, gives them an edge. But instead of sludge, they're tackling carbon-rich waste, aiming to sequester CO2 underground. They plan to sequester 152,480 tons of carbon dioxide by 2027 as part of the deal (That equates to 36,000 gas cars off the road for a year). Is this greenwashing, or a silver bullet? Critics warn of cost, the need for rigorous carbon accounting, and potential environmental trade-offs - i.e. emission prevention versus carbon removal. #decarbonization

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I'm not sure why when I post this YouTube video it doesn't auto play on LinkedIn, but if anyone wants a peak at what we were up to in South Korea, here it is: https://lnkd.in/eecUeRH2 And if you know how to correctly post YouTube videos on LinkedIn, that would be helpful too #founders #venturecapital Antler

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So much packed in those ~95 seconds wrt Economics of EV market, TAM. 4 success factors for any EV vendor, and US, China & India’s posture. Brilliant analysis from David Vellante!

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OpenAI today announced their new GPT-4o model. Here are the key points you should know: Omni: The "o" in GPT-4o stands for Omni. OpenAI is now focusing on a cross-functional user experience, integrating text, audio, and images into the same AI pipeline. Unlike previous versions of ChatGPT, where you had to convert images into prompts or text into voice, the Omni model offers a seamless experience. This results in faster and more intuitive interactions. Improved Performance: GPT-4o is faster, a LOT FASTER, and more capable across many tasks. It outperforms previous versions of GPT-4, as well as popular models like Gemini and Claude, in numerous publicly listed tasks and test comparisons. While further research will validate these claims, the progress across text, audio, and other AI applications is impressive. When you don't have to wait, you can iterate on prompts and answers much more quickly. Desktop Version: OpenAI is releasing a desktop version of GPT-4o that can access the context of your desktop and screen. This feature enables various collaborative scenarios where ChatGPT understands the application in use. This is perhaps what Clippy was always trying to be, only this AI is exceptionally more helpful. Another significant development is that AI computation is now happening both on-device and off-device. This is expected to be further enhanced by upcoming technology from Apple, likely through next-generation assistants. Additionally, streaming camera and audio input allows for fluid conversations, interruptions, and continuations without losing context. Despite the technology being only a day old, my initial experience over the past few hours indicates that while the AI revolution is well underway, the UX revolution driven by these technologies is just beginning.

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