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Big money, bigger bets, and zero patience for fluff.
This edition jumps from Netflix deal drama and $100B robotaxis to AI image wars, Windows finally killing ancient crypto, and Apple turning factory ops into a competitive sport.
Plus: MoEngage’s not-so-subtle march toward IPO shape, why founders still overpitch, and how leaders are learning to decide at 70% instead of waiting forever.
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Eight bullets of updates
🎬 Board leans away from takeover as shareholders are urged to reject the $26B offer in favor of an existing Netflix deal.
💻 AI projects stumble when leaders ignore culture; 70% fail without the right mindset.
🤖 Underwater drones can coordinate in real time as Skana’s new algorithm boosts fleet reaction speeds by 45%.
🎨 OpenAI's new model produces images 4x faster, setting off a fresh round of AI rivalry with Google in the race for creative supremacy.
🚗 Alphabet’s self-driving unit could pull in $4B in new funding as its valuation rides past the $100B mark.
🔐 After decades of risk, Microsoft will retire the weak RC4 cipher that enabled a decade of Windows hacks targeting admin accounts.
🌱 Oxford startup secures £1.5M pre-seed to create biodegradable absorbents that break down in just 45 days.
🛰️ Border protection is using drones to expand surveillance beyond the border, operating over 10,000 flights last year.
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MoEngage Series Funding Round Lifts Indian SaaS Startup Valuation
Investors just pumped another $180M into India’s customer-engagement platform, only weeks after a $100M round, at a post-money “well over $900M” valuation. Marketing automation isn’t dead; it just got a bigger allowance.
Why it matters: late-stage capital is chasing AI-native lifecycle tooling; think Braze/CleverTap adjacency with heavier first‑party data and automation. Expect spend on GTM, product breadth (journey orchestration, channel expansion), and global enterprise push.
Stakes: investors are betting on near-term operating discipline or an IPO-ready profile. Competitors face pricing and acquisition pressure. Customers win on features but risk deeper platform lock‑in as ecosystems consolidate.
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The Biggest Telescope has an Impossible Problem
The biggest telescope on Earth me can see galaxies millions of light-years away — so why can’t it show us the flags we left on the Moon?
This video explains the real, physical limits of cameras and telescopes, and why no amount of megapixels, AI, or money can solve this problem. From aperture and light diffraction to atmosphere distortion and scale, we break down the surprisingly brutal physics that makes the Moon flags effectively invisible from Earth.
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A New way to Earn Income from Real Estate
Commercial property prices are down as much as 40%, and AARE is buying income-producing buildings at rare discounts. Their new REIT lets everyday investors in on the opportunity, paying out at least 90% of its income through dividends. You can even get up to 15% bonus stock in AARE.
This is a paid advertisement for AARE Regulation CF offering. Please read the offering circular at https://invest.aare.com/
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🚩 Kim Perell says trying to do too much too soon is a pitch red flag; nail it, then scale it. Founders get 60 seconds.
🧠 Senior execs misread confidence: 5 myths busted by a tech exec coach to help you build quiet, durable leadership.
🛀 72% of entrepreneurs hit burnout; use the holidays to make rest feel purposeful and come back sharper.
🧭 In 2026, winning leaders stop chasing perfect data and act on a principled 70% rule to build resilient teams.
Investor Data Room Checklist
An investor data room is a storage space, digital or physical, where companies store information relevant to due diligence. We've compiled a FREE Template/Checklist of all the items your data room should include and resources and tools for obtaining them.
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Apple Launches Manufacturing Academy to Boost US Factory Innovation
Apple’s new Manufacturing Academy is less pep talk, more pit crew: Detroit workshops and MSU-backed training plus engineers inspecting bacon labels, sensor rollouts, and computer-vision code that prevented a costly misprint.
Participants report unusually frank playbooks (think Bendgate postmortems) and tailored help using Little’s Law to de-bottleneck lines; consulting many SMBs can’t afford. The program sits inside a multi-year U.S. manufacturing push and just added online courses.
Upshot: for small manufacturers, crisp problem statements can unlock unexpected bonus support that trims scrap and downtime; for automation vendors and consultants, expect higher buyer sophistication and shorter sales cycles; for Apple, goodwill, policy cover, and a deeper U.S. supply base.
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Startup Events and Deadlines
TODAY! Crash Course in Financial Modeling | December 18 | Webinar
Startmate | Jan 2026 | Accelerator deadline