#194 | Current State of AI Apps, Physical design software, & more
#194 | Current State of AI Apps, Physical design software, & more
Aug 25th | The latest from Benchmark, FirstMark, Felicis, Altimeter, and others
SandHill.io aggregates and shares the latest investment themes, market insights, and best practices for operating and investing from 700+ VCs, analysts, and operators.
This newsletter curates a selection of posts featured on the website each week.
Investment Themes, Industry Developments, & Analyses
The big stack game of LLM poker (Sarah Tavel, GP @ Benchmark)
Current State of AI Apps (Dez Fleming, VC @ FirstMark)
Physical design software: the only moats in SaaS (Gabriella Garcia & Eric Flaningam, Felicis)
Climate tech on the ballot (CTVC Team)
Insurance Pricing Power (Adam Chadroff, Principal @ Equal Ventures)
Rethinking Connectivity in a Cloud (Ayla Jeiroudi, Sr. Associate @ Lotus Capital)
AI's little power problem: are we ready for all the demand that's to come? (Gaby Lorenzi, VC @ Primary)
Deep Dive Into The Security for AI Ecosystem (Zain Rizavi & Francis Odum, Ridge Ventures)
Guides, Case Studies, & Best Practices for Operating
Don't Wait (Jamin Ball, Partner @ Altimeter Capital)
Gong’s Path to Product-Market Fit (First Round Review)
Strategic investors don’t matter in venture (Sammy Abdullah, GP @ Blossom Street)
Overbuilding in AI: A Modern Twist on an Old Tale (Tanay Jaipuria, Partner @ Wing)
What Enterprise Anxieties over Generative AI Implementation Mean for Sellers (Scott Goering & Evan Witte, Battery Ventures)
The hidden traits of great startup hires, and how to uncover them (Jake Flomenberg, Partner @ Wing)
Your guide to going account-based (Kyle Poyar, Partner @ OpenView)
Additional Reads
Thrive, Consolidate or Die (Abhishek Maran, VC @ Rampersand)
Divergent vs. Convergent Thinking (Alfred Lin, GP @ Sequoia)
The Premium of Platforms (Sophia Dodd & Rick Zullo, Equal Ventures)
AI Builder Survey (Jacob Effron & Tony Shi, Redpoint)
Beyond the Hamster Wheel (Daniel Kimerling, GP @ Deciens)
The #1 Thing Venture Studios Need to Succeed (Ben Yoskovitz, Partner @ Highline Beta)
Open Questions About AI (Akash Bajwa, VC @ Earlybird)
SaaS Founder Ownership at IPO (Sammy Abdullah, GP @ Blossom Street)
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