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The new competition for your cap table | Equity Podcast

The VC middleman is getting cut out faster than anyone expected. Family offices and private wealth firms are going direct: writing checks, taking board seats, even incubating companies from scratch. And more founders are starting to notice. In February alone, family offices made 41 direct investments, including one Midwest-based firm that led a $230 million…

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The VC middleman is getting cut out faster than anyone expected. Family offices and private wealth firms are going direct: writing checks, taking board seats, even incubating companies from scratch. And more founders are starting to notice. In February alone, family offices made 41 direct investments, including one Midwest-based firm that led a $230 million Series B into an AI chip startup.

On this episode of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Rebecca Bellan caught up with Mitch Stein and Ari Schottenstein, founder and head of alternatives at ARENA Private Wealth, to find out what this shift means for founders, cap tables, and the future of AI investment.

Subscribe to Equity on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod.

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

03:13 Why family offices are going direct now

06:03 The gen 2 & gen 3 family office shift

07:22 Is this strategic or just AI FOMO?

10:17 How Arena got into the Positron deal

14:30 Why founders want private wealth on their cap table

18:31 Due diligence on technical companies

21:56 Red flags founders should watch for

25:04 Are VCs threatened by this trend?

27:47 Taking board seats & level of involvement

34:17 Outro

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CNET

Unboxing the $120 Clicks Power Keyboard

Let your thumbs fly! 👍🏽 The Clicks Power Keyboard works on iPhone and Android phones with Qi wireless charging, like the iPhone Air or iPhone Pro Max as well as the Pixel 10 Pro. Not only is it a nifty Bluetooth keyboard, it can also charge your phone with its 2300mAh battery. Let’s unbox it…

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Let your thumbs fly! 👍🏽

The Clicks Power Keyboard works on iPhone and Android phones with Qi wireless charging, like the iPhone Air or iPhone Pro Max as well as the Pixel 10 Pro. Not only is it a nifty Bluetooth keyboard, it can also charge your phone with its 2300mAh battery. Let’s unbox it with CNET Director of Content Patrick Holland.

📽️: Faith Chihil #allthingsmobile #unboxing #clickskeyboard #clicks #keyboard #clickspowerkeyboard

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Science & Technology

Lightspeed is building its edge on followers, not just funds | Equity Podcast

Venture firms are turning to creators to build trust with the next generation of founders before a check is ever written. It’s a trend that’s been building with a16z’s acquisition of Erik Torenberg’s Turpentine podcast and OpenAI’s acquisition of TBPN. Lightspeed Venture Partners just made its own notable hire in that vein, bringing on Claire…

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Venture firms are turning to creators to build trust with the next generation of founders before a check is ever written. It’s a trend that’s been building with a16z’s acquisition of Erik Torenberg’s Turpentine podcast and OpenAI’s acquisition of TBPN. Lightspeed Venture Partners just made its own notable hire in that vein, bringing on Claire Zau, a seed investor with a major following on Instagram and TikTok, to source deals and co-host the firm’s new show, Lightwork, alongside CMO Josh Machiz.

On this episode of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Dominic-Madori Davis is joined by Zau and Machiz to dive deep into whether the “creator-investor” is becoming a real function in venture or just something firms are still trying to figure out.

Subscribe to Equity on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod.

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

1:03 Getting hired…via Instagram DM

3:36 Creating for the tech-curious, not just tech Twitter

8:12 What Instagram taught Claire about Gen Z and AI

10:44 Does audience feedback shape investment decisions?

11:19 Do founders now expect investors to be creators?

13:13 Inside the editing grind: hours per video

15:42 Who’s actually doing creator VC well right now

18:52 The risk of being taken less seriously

21:41 Measuring ROI: brand awareness and founder conversion

27:41 What’s next for Lightspeed’s media empire

29:22 Outro

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CNET

Google Demos Google Glass in 2012 by Jumping Out of a Plane | CNET Archives

At Google I/O in June, 2012, co-founder Sergey Brin showcased Project Glass by streaming live Hangout footage of skydivers jumping from a plane while wearing the smart spectacles. Read more about it on CNET.com Everything We Know About Google’s Upcoming Smart Glasses Ahead of I/O 0:00 Sergey Brin interrupts the presentation for a special demo…

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At Google I/O in June, 2012, co-founder Sergey Brin showcased Project Glass by streaming live Hangout footage of skydivers jumping from a plane while wearing the smart spectacles.

Read more about it on CNET.com
Everything We Know About Google’s Upcoming Smart Glasses Ahead of I/O

0:00 Sergey Brin interrupts the presentation for a special demo
0:46 Sergey connects with skydivers via a Google Glass Hangout
1:58 The view from a mile above the Moscone Center
2:49 The airplane doors open
3:15 Skydivers exit the plane and fly over San Francisco
4:02 Parachutes deploy
5:07 Skydivers land on the roof of the Moscone Center
6:01 Bikers receive the Google Glass unit on the roof
6:21 Rappelling down the side of the building
7:05 The final bike ride through the conference hall
7:37 The Google Glass unit successfully arrives on stage

Video Credits
Video Editor – Vatsal Upadhyay
Thumbnail Designer – Tharon Green

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#google #smartglasses #skydiving #googleglass #googleio #sergeybrin

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