Generative Now | AI Builders on Creating the Future

When the world of AI feels so dramatically new, it’s hard to look anywhere except toward the future. But previous examples of technological innovation can teach us a lot about building public trust and collaboration.  This week on Generative Now, Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano talks to Verity Harding, one of TIME magazine’s most influential people in AI. Her debut book is AI Needs You: How We Can Change AI's Future and Save Our Own. She points to moments like the Space Race, the development of IVF, and the internet as inspiration for today’s potential regulatory framework for AI.  Verity is the Director of the AI and Geopolitics Project at the Bennett Institute of Public Policy at Cambridge. She also runs the tech consultancy Formation Advisory. She previously directed policy for Google DeepMind and worked for Deputy Prime Minister the Rt Hon Sir Nick Clegg. Episode Chapters(00:00) Introduction to Verity Harding (01:36) Verity Harding's Transition from Politics to Google DeepMind (08:28) AI Needs You: Unpacking the Book's Message (11:43) Building Public Trust and Engagement in a Polarized Environment (20:34) Advice for Builders Who Don’t Want to Decelerate  (24:11) Who are the Stakeholders of AI Governance?  (36:06) AI and the Future: Optimism, Challenges, and the Path Forward (41:18) Closing Thoughts and Where to Find the Book Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com

What if AI could understand what we, humans, are feeling? This week on Generative Now, Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano talks to Alan Cowen, CEO & Chief Scientist of Hume AI. Hume creates empathic AI that learns our preferences from our vocal and facial expressions. Their goal is to maximize our happiness and quality of life. Hume is now announcing their API for EVI, Hume’s Empathic Voice Interface.  The conversation covers Cowen's journey from being a researcher to founding Hume AI, the importance of emotional intelligence in AI for quality human interaction, and the potential to transform user experiences across various apps and devices. Plus, we ask how empathic AI could impact the road to AGI. Episode Chapters(00:00) Introduction to Alan Cowen & Hume Demo  (01:38) The Genesis of Hume AI: From Research to Startup (04:01) Affective Computing and Its Impact (10:55) Hume AI: Bridging Human Emotions and Technology (15:37) The Future of AI: Beyond Text to Empathic Interactions (20:37) Introducing EVI: Empathic Voice Interface (21:46) Real-World Applications of Empathic AI  (31:19) The Potential Role of Empathic AI in Achieving AGI (36:53) Trust and Privacy (40:02) Opportunities with Hume AI (41:18) Closing Thoughts  Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

AI news moves fast. But reporters covering AI move faster. This week on the podcast, Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano talks to journalist Alex Heath about predictions for independent model companies, the conversation around training data, and how journalists are adapting to AI disruptions. Alex Heath is the Deputy Editor of The Verge and the author of Command Line, a weekly newsletter about the tech industry’s inside conversation. Episode Chapters (00:00) Introduction to Alex Heath (1:20) Inside the AI News Cycle  (6:41) Covering OpenAI and Meta Rebrand Breaking News (10:14) Top of Mind Trends: Databricks, Perplexity, Meta  (13:35) Google’s AI Strategy and Gemini Fallout  (20:25) Second Order Effects of Microsoft’s Inflection Deal (24:02) Journalism Adapting to AI & Future of Industry (32:08) What’s Beyond SEO? (36:19) The Value of Content in Training (38:10) Elon Musk’s X and Grok (41:11) Closing Thoughts Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

Imagination becomes a reality when building the design tools of the future. This week on Generative Now, we’re talking with someone who has been tinkering with AI and design for about ten years. Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano talks to Jordan Singer, Product Designer at Figma, about how Figma acquired his startup Diagram, what it’s like building AI tools at Figma, and how the role of designers is evolving.  Episode Chapters (00:00) Introduction to Jordan Singer (01:19) Jordan Singer's Journey from Coder to Designer (09:27) Creating the Experiment that Became a Startup (14:10) Leaving Square to be CEO & Founder of Diagram (22:09) Figma's Acquisition of Diagram  (30:24) Designers as Creative Directors in the AI Era (37:14) Other Areas of Interest in AI (40:41) Closing Thoughts  Stay in touch: ⁠www.lsvp.com⁠ X: ⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠ Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠generativenow.co⁠ Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see ⁠lsvp.com/legal⁠.

Semil Shah, General Partner at Haystack and Venture Partner at Lightspeed, is known for at least two things: his insightful Twitter presence and his smart investments at Haystack VC. Semil joins Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano to talk venture capital insights and the unpredictable nature of startup success. The conversation also covers the evolving landscape of AI investments, the unique nature of Reddit's IPO, and the future of unique user-generated content. Additionally, they discuss the dynamics between LPs, venture funds, and startups in the current market environment. Episode Chapters (00:00) Introduction to Semil Shah  (03:31) Semil Shah’s Twitter Presence  (05:46) Navigating the AI Investment Landscape: Insights and Predictions (10:19) The Role of Acquisitions and Talent in Shaping AI's Future (18:57) Venture Capital Strategies (19:33) Capital as a Weapon in Venture Capital (23:27) The Art of Investment Decisions (25:45) How AI has Changed the  Venture Landscape (27:52) The Venture Ecosystem: LPs, Funds, and Startups (32:22) The Future of AI and Open Source (36:26) The Reddit IPO: A Market Turning Point? (41:21) Closing Thoughts Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

What is the role of a human content creator in a world with AI generated content? It’s a critical piece of the puzzle, according to Scott Belsky, Chief Strategy Officer and EVP of Design and Emerging Products at Adobe. Lightspeed Partner and Host Michael Mignano for a conversation about the evolution of marketing with generative content, the future of personalization, and overlooked opportunities in the AI landscape.  This conversation took place at the Robin Hood Opportunity x AI Summit. Robin Hood is the largest foundation fighting poverty in New York City.  The group has invested nearly $3.5 billion over 35 years and Robin Hood supports all five boroughs with food pantries, high-performing schools, job-training programs, shelters and more. The group has a venture-like approach; they scale programs that are working and found new programs to fill gaps. Robin Hood has also announced $1 million challenges for tools using AI to fight poverty. You can learn more at  https://www.aipovertychallenge.org/. You don't have to be a non-profit or based in NYC to apply. Episode Chapters(00:00) Robin Hood Opportunity x AI Summit.(00:43) Robinhood: Fighting Poverty with AI(01:42) Scott Belsky on AI and Creativity(02:02) The Impact of AI on the Creative Process(05:16) The Role of Creators(6:28) AI Generated Content on Social Media(9:09) Customers Inspiring Product Development(11:09) The Hyper Personalization of Digital Experiences(15:07) Overlooked Business Opportunities in AI(19:48) How AIs Can Scale SMBs(21:56) Legal Risks with Enterprise Adoption(26:12) Custom Tuned Models Generated From IP(27:44) The Rise of AI Agents(30:22) Why Scott Belsky is An AI Optimist Stay in touch: ⁠www.lsvp.com⁠ X: ⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠ Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠generativenow.co⁠ Email: ⁠generativenow@lsvp.com⁠ The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see ⁠lsvp.com/legal⁠.

Since the beginning of cinema, movies have held to the same format - a linear narrative, told the same way each time. Filmmaker Gary Hustwit wants to change all that. With his new documentary Eno, he’s broken the mold on movies. Hustwit has harnessed the power of generative AI to produce a movie you can never see twice. Through careful editing and groundbreaking software development, Hustwit and his collaborators built an engine that assembles a one-of-a-kind movie for every viewing. Same footage, different sequence. You have to see it to believe it. Episode Chapters(00:00) Introduction to Gary Hustwit(04:06) “Eno,” Generative Film about Brian Eno  (10:14) Making a Movie That’s Different Every Time(13:04) Programming a Generative Film(15:56) Poetry, Code and Software(19:09) Role of Human Editors(21:09) How will Streaming Platforms Adapt?(24:44) AI Disrupting Traditional Filmmaking(28:19) Sora from OpenAI(32:07) Anamorph, Filmmaking and Technology Company(36:45) What’s Next for Gary Hustwit Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

Most of the hype around AI has revolved around its text capabilities, and the powers of LLMs like ChatGPT. But Suno is focusing on the unsung hero of AI - music. Suno is building a future where anyone can make good music - all you need to do is type in a prompt, and out will come a song that’s never existed before. Mikey Shulman, CEO and Co-Founder of Suno, joins Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano to talk through the intricacies of programming for sound, and what this technology could mean for music.  Episode Chapters (00:00) Introduction to Mikey Shulman and Suno (04:03) How transcribing S&P earnings calls inspired Suno (08:41) There’s no Common Crawl for audio - they had to make their own (12:37) Hacking text-to-speech to make music (16:25) What’s the product market fit for generative music?  (21:15) How will AI change the format of music? (28:44) Suno’s highlight reel so far (31:39) Designing with the end user in mind (38:26) Can AI transcend the creativity ceiling?  (40:48) How does Mikey think regulation and music rights will shake out? (46:19) Is Suno hiring? Stay in touch: ⁠www.lsvp.com⁠ X: ⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠ Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠generativenow.co⁠ Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see ⁠lsvp.com/legal⁠.

Spotify’s personalized recommendations have set it apart from the pack of music streaming platforms for years. Those curated recommendations have only gotten stronger with the onset of AI, with the ability to power things like your own personal AI DJ. In this episode, Spotify’s Co-President, CPO & CTO, Gustav Söderström, joins host and Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano to talk about building UX that can power more efficient AI, the future of AGI, and what the technology could look live over the next few iterations.   Episode Chapters (00:00) An introduction to Gustav Söderström (01:29) How Spotify became one of the first consumer AI companies (05:57) A philosophical shift: UI that works for AI, not the other way around (12:52) “Talk is cheap, so do a lot of it” (15:00) Building for the tech we will have, not the tech we do have (19:43) What will AI do for media creation? (25:00) The Wild West of model training (29:45) How anthropomorphizing AI can help you understand its potential (37:04) What happens when cognitive labor gets automated? (40:42) How much more intelligent could AI get? (47:45) Is AGI on the horizon, or already here? (53:48) Should we be worried about AGI? Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

In this episode, long-time entrepreneur and startup investor Elad Gil and former Greylock General Partner and Conviction founder Sarah Guo join host and Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano to take a look at the broadening world of AI investing. The three discuss the surprise of ChatGPT3, the future of AI consumer products, and the potential UI evolution AI platforms could bring. Episode Chapters (00:00) Sarah Guo and Elad Gil, investors extraordinaire  (03:45) 2023 was the year of AI - did they see it coming? (11:12) The go-forward opportunity for foundational models (16:31) What does the next app wave look like? (19:01) Who’s winning AI: Consumer or Enterprise?? (23:35) Will SMBs leverage AI or will SMBs be the new BigCo’s as a result of AI?? (31:30) Vertically integrated models (39:54) Chat as an interface: the future or the past? (49:19) Hardware x AI (55:45) Will Web3 be the way to verify authenticity? (01:00:11) Where is regulation headed? (01:02:13) Where to listen to No Priors Stay in touch: ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.lsvp.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ X: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠⁠⁠⁠generativenow.co⁠⁠⁠⁠ Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see ⁠⁠⁠⁠lsvp.com/legal⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Generative AI took the world by storm with the launch of ChatGPT, and set companies worldwide scrambling to catch up to the possibilities. Navan, the only integrated business travel and expense solution, knew it had to run hard towards AI. Navan co-founder and CEO Ariel Cohen sat down with host and Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano to discuss the mechanics of shifting a big company on the fly, and how Navan managed to pull it off. Episode Chapters (00:00) Introduction to Ariel Cohen and Navan (06:39) How Navan makes business travel less of a headache (10:11) Navan leverages personalization to make bookings more efficient (12:38) Leveling up on expense tracking through innovation (17:34) How a company with a $500 million run rate ran hard towards AI (23:29) UI’s post-AI future (25:29) The mechanics of pivoting a 3,000 person team in a new direction (29:09) Will AI be a platform shift? (33:07) Navan uses AI to make expenses a breeze (39:09) A look into the year ahead for Navan (39:58) Is Navan hiring? Stay in touch: ⁠⁠⁠www.lsvp.com⁠⁠⁠ X: ⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠⁠⁠ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠⁠⁠generativenow.co⁠⁠⁠ Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see ⁠⁠⁠lsvp.com/legal⁠⁠⁠.

A collaborative digital whiteboard. Sounds simple, right? Steve Ruiz, founder of tldraw, found out the hard way that building this kind of tool was anything but easy. Steve joins host and Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano to talk about iterating with an audience, following a problem through to its end, and his take on the future of open source software.  Episode Chapters [00:00] Introduction to Steve Ruiz, founder of tldraw [07:41] Building out an audience by building out the perfect arrow graphic [12:42] Your idea of the end result shifts the way you build the product [14:20] How the quest to draw the perfect line kicked off Steve’s development career [19:10] Twitter spurred on Steve’s developer chops [25:16] Steve’s philosophy on open source [27:41] Perfect Freehand’s perfect line led to tldraw’s perfect whiteboard [31:04] Taking 6 months off to see the whiteboard project through [36:14] A split in the road - go to Adobe or go all in on tldraw? [41:26] What ChatGPT-4 Vision brought to tldraw [46:36] Making a collaborative whiteboard into an AI-powered web developer  [54:07] Make Real’s tension - developer tool or end user product? [59:15] What else will AI open up for tldraw? [01:04:21] Is tldraw hiring? Stay in touch: ⁠⁠www.lsvp.com⁠⁠ X: ⁠⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠⁠ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠⁠generativenow.co⁠⁠ Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see ⁠⁠lsvp.com/legal⁠⁠.

Over the last year, AI and LLMs have experienced an explosion of use. But the tech isn’t foolproof - hedging and hallucinations are just a couple of the concerns. That’s where Arthur AI comes in. They’ve built out firewalls, validation tools, and benchmarks to make sure that an LLM’s answer is one you can trust, whether you’re a military contractor or investment broker. Arthur AI Co-Founder and CEO Adam Wenchel sat down with Lightspeed Partner and Host Michael Mignano to talk about just how Arthur AI is allowing for the safe, responsible, and trustworthy adoption of AI. Episode Chapters (00:00) Intro to Adam Wenchel, co-founder and CEO of Arthur AI (5:31) Working on AI at DARPA 20 years ago (8:39) From cybersecurity to Capital One (14:20) How Arthur lends transparency to AI decision-making (21:45) ChatGPT ripped up Arthur AI’s roadmap (26:18) Arthur AI’s guardrails can make AI trustworthy (31:46) Who will win the LLM wars? (37:00) What the ChatGPT sea change looked like at Arthur AI (44:22) How Arthur AI’s firewall clamps down on hallucinations (47:11) Are we on the right path for regulation? (51:22) Adam’s prediction for the year ahead? Unpredictability (52:39) Is Arthur AI hiring? Stay in touch: ⁠www.lsvp.com⁠ X: ⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠ Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠generativenow.co⁠ Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see ⁠lsvp.com/legal⁠.

In this last episode of 2023, Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano takes a look back at the first ten episodes of Generative Now to share a few favorite moments. Episode Chapters(00:00) Introduction (00:41) Connor Zwick on sneaking into early Berkeley courses on AI (04:08) Max Child on being first to a new platform (07:49) Gaurav Misra on how product market fit and a surprise $500k changed their business plan (15:19) Hilary Mason on the nuanced definitions in AI (20:57) Victor Riparbelli on the new paradigm AI can bring into being (23:58) Scott Belsky on his AI “aha” moment Stay in touch: ⁠www.lsvp.com⁠ X: ⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠ Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠generativenow.co⁠ Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see ⁠lsvp.com/legal⁠.

Duolingo is a worldwide powerhouse for consumers looking to learn a language, with a reputation for being engaging and interactive. Less known? All that AI does to power it.  In this episode, Duolingo’s Head of AI sits down with Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano to chat about AI’s exponential growth, the connection between AI and the human brain, and what comes next.  Episode Chapters (00:00) Klinton Bicknell at the Generative NYC Meet-Up (03:04) What separates the human mind from an LLM? (08:15) What exactly makes Duolingo an AI company? (10:49) Why a behemoth like Duolingo can keep pace with nimble startups (13:33) How will AI transform learning down the line? (18:36) Caught off guard by ChatGPT (21:19) What will AI revolutionize beyond education? (22:48) Audience Q & A - Solving tricky learning modalities with AI (25:53) Audience Q & A  - Is AI development nearing a plateau? (29:45) Audience Q & A - Quality vs. Quantity of data (32:15) Audience Q & A - Harnessing AI’s learning efficiencies (33:57) Audience Q & A - Will language-learning become obsolete? (38:30) Audience Q & A - How AI can teach pronunciation Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

Captions.AI is taking the world of video creation by storm. With features like AI-corrected eye contact and automatic captions in 28 languages, more creators than ever can bring their ideas to life. Captions.AI Co-Founder and CEO Gaurav Misra joined Lightspeed Partner and Host Michael Mignano for a conversation spanning from his days as a design engineer at Snap to finding a surprise $500k in his Apple account.  Episode Chapters (00:00) An intro to Gaurav Misra, co-founder and CEO of Captions.AI (06:03) Gaurav got an early start in startups  (09:24) Getting a phD in machine learning before it was cool  (12:04) From Lattice Engines to Microsoft to Localytics (17:26) Making the leap to Snapchat’s elite engineering team (20:57) Keeping innovation alive at a huge consumer  company (26:48) Being on the ground floor of Snapchat’s major feature overhauls (30:47) Leaving Snapchat to found a top-tier AI company (33:48) It all started as a social network (38:10) The happy accident of the original Captions.AI tool (44:08) They raised a series A for the social network only to find a $500k surprise (50:00) Building a text-based video editor from the ground up (58:25) Beyond the editor - launching the AI-powered Lipdub  (01:04:14) What will video editing look like 5 years from now? (01:06:52) Is Captions.AI hiring? Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

Kylan Gibbs got his start in social sciences, but after stumbling into startups via a winning pitch at a Singaporean business competition, he never looked back. He spent time as co-founder of FlowX, a consultant at Bain & Company, and Product Manager at Google.  Kylan talked with Lightspeed Partner and Host Michael Mignano about where he’s at today, and how Inworld AI is leveling up is changing the way people interact with games throughAI powered NPCs. Episode Chapters (00:00) Intro to Inworld’s Co-Founder (11:16) How a background in social science helped launch AI interactive gaming (17:54) Accidental success with FlowX - building infrastructure for autonomous vehicles (23:41) Innovating in a traditional firm - Kylan’s experience at Bain & Co. (28:49) Generative AI has massive untapped capacity (30:44) How Inworld brings the world of gaming to life (33:48) Making social puzzles part of the core gameplay (39:45) Leveraging unique interaction without derailing the plot (44:04) A day in the life of a Chief Product Officer (47:17) Keeping the lid on hallucination (51:08) Scaling up over long time horizons (54:40) AI can level up gaming with more than just characters  (01:02:19) Inworld works beyond the world of gaming (01:04:44) ChatGPT woke up the market (01:09:49) Is Inworld hiring? Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

Pinecone is one of the preeminent companies building in the generative AI space. Pinecone is able to integrate AI models and vector search databases to ensure that AI applications are getting the most relevant and up to date information as quickly as possible. Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano spoke with Pinecone Founder and CEO Edo Liberty at a Generative NYC meet-up in early 2023. Episode Chapters (00:00) An intro to Edo Liberty and Pinecone (04:02) “It’s either now or never.” (05:11) Building the “smartest person in the room” (06:48) Giving AI the context it needs (08:02) Building an AI startup before it was the coolest thing in the world (12:09) Incumbents vs. Startups - where do we go from here? (14:41) “We’ve been stumbling in the dark and someone flipped the switch.” (16:52) Model dominance vs. Vector database dominance (19:01) What role do vector databases play in a world of LLMs? (21:29) Go-to-market insights from Pinecone (23:26) An on-the-fly feature request Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

Rewind is a personalized AI powered by everything you’ve seen, said, or heard. Rewind’s co-founder and CEO Dan Siroker lived several lifetimes before starting the company: product manager at Google, Director of Analytics for the 2008 Obama campaign, and co-founder of Optimizely. Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano spent some time with Dan talking about the roads that got him to Rewind, and where he sees things going next. Episode Chapters (00:00) Early days (06:32) How going deaf inspired products that give humans superpowers (09:53) How A/B testing helped Obama win  (12:57) The worst ways to come up with startup ideas (14:36) A breakthrough at Y Combinator (18:42) Getting Optimizely off the ground (22:18) Customer empathy is the most important thing (23:50) Bad advice for a CEO (25:45) How Dan’s “grass is greener” mentality led to Rewind (27:31) What exactly is Rewind? (31:03) How Rewind is creating a shift in user behavior (36:22) Hacking the standard fundraising model (40:26) The mechanics of Rewind for macOS and iOS (44:58) New Rewind release: the Rewind Pendant (47:48) How Rewind thinks about privacy (50:43) Privacy product decisions (53:21) Incumbents’ next moves (57:27) When will the Rewind Pendant be available?  (01:01:04) Is Rewind hiring? Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

Hilary Mason was on the ground floor of data science research, and now she’s bringing that same pioneering spirit to generative AI. For this episode, Host and Partner at Lightspeed, Michael Mignano, talks with Hilary about how to safeguard probabilistic systems and how researchers and founders can form the most effective teams. Episode Chapters (00:00) - Intro (05:18) - A founder’s thoughts - NYC vs. Silicon Valley (09:50) - Why Hilary thinks non-linear storytelling was wrong (13:44) - Understanding online traffic through bit.ly (15:57) - The taxonomy of data science (19:06) - Founding Fast Forward Labs - “Hire your nerd best friend” (23:05) - Can academia and startups coexist? (26:50) - Machine learning  (ML) vs. Artificial Intelligence (AI) (34:00) - Selling Fast Forward Labs to Cloudera (38:51) - Hidden Door’s inception (44:29) - The challenge - and opportunity - of AI hallucinations (48:07) - What is Hidden Door? (52:38) - Building an architecture for unstructured input (57:38) - How can you try Hidden Door? (01:00:45) - Shifting the software engineer mindset (01:04:17) - How will product-building shift with generative AI? (01:07:34) - Is AI hype dangerous? (01:12:36) - Where to learn more about Hidden Door  Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.