Science & Technology

The consumer AI products OpenAI “won’t want to kill” | Equity Podcast

Published

10 months ago

January 7, 2026

Vanessa Larco⁠, partner at ⁠Premise⁠ and former partner at NEA, thinks 2026 will finally be the year of consumer AI.
Larco, who’s been investing in consumer and prosumer for years, thinks we’re about to see a shift in how consumers spend time online, with AI powering “concierge-like” services. The question is, will legacy consumer products like WebMD and TripAdvisor continue to exist as standalone apps, or will they just get absorbed into ChatGPT or Meta AI? And where can startups carve out an AI-powered niche for themselves?
Today on TechCrunch’s ⁠Equity⁠ podcast, Rebecca Bellan sat down with Larco to talk about why consumer is back, what OpenAI won’t kill, and where the real opportunities are hiding.

Chapters:
00:00 – Introduction
00:53 – Why founders are excited about consumer again
04:40 – The moat against OpenAI: Managing real humans
09:22 – Apps as disposable as Word docs
12:48 – Social media in the AI era
18:48 – Meta Ray-Bans and why wearables are actually good
23:35 – Stablecoins and consumer fintech opportunities
26:54 – M&A predictions for 2026

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

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5 Comments

@KLBL-dp8mc

January 7, 2026 at 1:08 pm

OpenAI will be bankrupt by EOY. Burning obscene amounts of cash with no ideas how they’re going to create enough revenue to even pay the interest on the spending commitments they’ve made.

Reply
@أحمدعلي-ط5ه3ش

January 7, 2026 at 2:45 pm

❤❤❤

Reply
@SoyYoErick

January 8, 2026 at 2:09 am

It does seem like the B2C market is wide open for Agentic disruption but more so from a workflow perspective. What do you do on the daily, “which apps do you reference before choosing a place to eat and then navigate with directions”? It feels like we may see the 2.0 version form of smart assistants coming around.

Reply
@shivakhatri3271

January 8, 2026 at 12:43 pm

When did Sam Altman start Podcast?

Reply
@TUNC2-k1e

January 16, 2026 at 11:24 am

Hmmm 🤔

Reply

CNET

iPhone Duo vs. Galaxy Z Fold 8

It’s a battle of passport foldables 👀 #galaxyzfold8 #versus #iphoneduo #allthingsmobile #foldable

Published

1 day ago

October 22, 2026

CYBER TECH TV

It’s a battle of passport foldables 👀 #galaxyzfold8 #versus #iphoneduo #allthingsmobile #foldable

Science & Technology

Meet Wabi, the AI assistant with group chats, multiple threads, and an app-builder | Equity podcast

It seems like every big AI player is building a personal agent. Meta has Muse, OpenAI launched Dots, and a startup called Instinct recently raised $1 billion at a $10 billion valuation. But Eugenia Kuyda thinks the next generation of AI assistants needs to do more than book your restaurant reservations and find you hidden…

Published

1 day ago

October 22, 2026

CYBER TECH TV

Kuyda, who founded AI companion app Replika, has just launched Wabi, a personal AI agent that organizes your life into separate conversations, brings other people into the mix, and builds custom apps around what you’re trying to do. The idea is to make AI less of a solo productivity tool and more of a way to spend time with the people who matter to you.

On this episode of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Rebecca Bellan talks with Kuyda about why she thinks AI agents should bring people together instead of keeping them glued to a single chatbot, how Wabi plans to compete in a crowded and expensive market, and what it takes to get people comfortable giving an AI access to their email.

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

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

1:11 Meet Wabi

5:33 From “YouTube for apps” to a proactive personal agent

7:12 Why AI should bring people together, not just save time

10:17 Multi-thread chats vs. everything in one conversation

13:33 Shared permissions: who sees what inside a chat

14:57 Phones, hardware, and the “MS-DOS era” of AI interfaces

17:39 Funding, compute costs, and the free-for-now business model

24:10 Handing over your Gmail: how Wabi earns trust

28:02 Outro

CNET

How to Choose a Treadmill in 2026: Types, Budget and Specs Explained

Shopping for a treadmill can be overwhelming with so many choices on the market. In this video, we break down everything you need to know to find the perfect treadmill for your budget, space and fitness goals. Whether you’re looking for a heavy-duty running machine, a compact walking pad for your under-desk setup, or an…

Published

2 days ago

October 22, 2026

CYBER TECH TV

You can find the products mentioned in this video linked below
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Read more about treadmills on CNET.com
The 5 Best Expert-Tested and Approved Treadmills for Runners
Run Toward Your 2026 Fitness Goals With These 4 High-Impact Treadmill Workouts

Timecode Chapters:
0:00 – Intro
0:33 – Types of Treadmills
2:30 – Treadmill Budgets (Budget, Mid-Tier & Luxury)
5:56 – Space & Safety Considerations
7:00 – Summary & TL;DW Recap

Video Credits:
Host & Video Editor: Wes Ott
Producer: JD Christison
Camera: Jon Gomez & Dillon Lopez
Thumbnail Designer: Zooey Liao

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