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Thrive dropped $500M on AI dreams while Amazon’s Rufus actually delivered, doubling Black Friday purchase sessions like a chatbot with commission. Meanwhile, Flock shipped U.S. surveillance footage overseas for gig-economy second opinions, construction vets jumped into $40/hr data-center roles to feed the GPU beast, and Coupang leaked data on 33.7M customers because—of course—security is optional.
Video pick: The Dangerous Success of GPT Therapy
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🎙 Catch the punchline hidden in this week’s headlines 🎙
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Eight bullets of updates
🤔 All eyes on whether startups can turn OpenAI-powered hype into real profits—or just higher valuations—after Thrive’s $500M AI play.
📹 Thousands of hours of US surveillance footage get an extra set of eyes overseas as Flock outsources review to gig workers in the Philippines.
🏗️ Construction vets are stepping into data center supervisor roles as demand for AI infrastructure creates new $40/hr+ jobs.
🛡️ A major data breach compromised info from 33.7M Coupang customers across South Korea.
🤖 Google’s AI may feel more helpful—or invasive—with access to a decade of your personal data.
🌱 A new €30M fund hopes to fill Europe’s VC gap by backing startups in overlooked regions and sectors.
📈 Nvidia-backed n8n targets a European IPO, aiming to tap into regional capital markets amid increasing growth.
🌪️ Homebuyers lose access to climate risk scores for 94M listings as Zillow pulls data following agent backlash.
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The Cold Email That Landed $3M
Photo by orva studio on Unsplash
Adam Joseph cold-emailed Mark Cuban—and instead of a quick “no,” he got a barrage of questions. Cuban sent nearly 20, Joseph answered them all, and then went a step further: he built a custom media report for Cost Plus Drugs to prove what his product could do. That proof turned the conversation into a deal. Cuban ended up co-leading a $3M seed round with Commonweal and Carpenter.
The story shows that cold outreach still works when you have real traction and can show receipts. Joseph’s company was already bootstrapped to seven-figure ARR with about 200 customers, and the product was genuinely AI-native—pulling from news, social, and podcasts. His approach was simple: be brief, be prepared for tough questions, and offer a precise, tailored demo instead of vague promises.
What this signals: PR tools are shifting from keyword trackers to true context engines, traditional vendors will feel margin pressure, and investors will expect live, asset-specific proof during diligence. When the demo hits, the money moves fast.
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The Dangerous Success of GPT Therapy
🧩 Chatbots Cure Depression, but there’s a catch. AI is proving shockingly effective at treating anxiety and depression. Real studies show measurable results. But there’s a darker side; privacy breaches, dependency, and the risk of replacing real connection with code. This episode breaks down what AI therapy gets right, what it dangerously gets wrong, and why millions are doing it anyway.
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Level up commitment at startup speed
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Learn the people side of leading in a high-impact, 3 day masterclass, so your culture drives performance instead of sabotaging it. Join us in Pittsburgh, PA on April 8-10, 2026.
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⚖️ AI testing can catch 40% more bugs but hide dangers—see 10 risks—and fixes—for AI testing ethics to ship safer models.
🍏 Jobs’ playbook: say no to 1,000 things and focus — he cut 350 products to 10 to ship insanely great experiences.
Slidebean Revenue Data
Mistakes were made as we grew Slidebean, but those mistakes shaped the lessons that helped us thrive. The journey wasn’t just about surviving—it was about learning and evolving.
To give you an honest glimpse into what growth really looks like, we’re sharing our actual financial numbers from the formative years of Slidebean. Download them now and see the ups, downs, and everything in between that built the company we are today.
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Amazon AI chatbot Rufus drives significant Black Friday sales surge
Photo by Xiaolong Wong on Unsplash
Amazon’s shopping copilot Rufus is driving real sales. On Black Friday, purchase sessions with Rufus doubled, vs. a 20% lift without it. Usage also surged 75% day-over-day, compared to 35% overall.
Across retail, AI shopping traffic is up 805% YoY and converts better—though some “record spend” comes from higher prices (+7%) despite fewer orders (−1%).
Takeaway: conversational AI is acting like a 24/7 sales associate.
Implications: retailers add copilots to search/compare flows; brands clean up product data for LLMs; ad teams feed promos into chat. Expect friction over privacy, attribution, and who owns the customer relationship.
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