Google's newest search competitor
Search GPT, Tokenized USD, Neuralink Malfunction, Crypto SuperPAC, Microsoft's $3B Data Center, FTX repaid, Lendbuzz, Holistic, Wiz, Alembic, Altera Deals +more
∆ Tech in the News
Tokenized USD Settlements - Mastercard, JPM, Visa, Citibank & other big banks are testing shared-ledger tech for USD & other asset settlements.
$3.3B Data Center - Microsoft is building an AI data center in Wisconsin, creating 2.3k union construction jobs and 2k permanent jobs.
Neuralink Malfunction - The first human brain-chip implant experienced a malfunction in some neural threads, but the error was compensated for.
Crypto SuperPAC - Fairshake PAC, mostly backed by corporate money, has amassed a $100M political war chest, the third largest PAC in this cycle.
Made Whole - FTX’s attorneys secure $16B in assets, and plan to fully repay the $11B owed to most customers affected by its 2022 collapse.
The Hottest Thing in Tech this Week
OpenAI's SearchGPT Targets Google Search
On Monday OpenAI is expected to reveal its new search-engine AI product to rival Google’s SGE and Perplexity per Bloomberg. This is a declaration of war by the most popular AI product builder on the biggest tech revenue stream of all time to coincide with Google’s I/O 2024 dev con. Google made $190B in 2022 and $175B in pure profit from search in 2023 with ~90% market share. So it has a lot to lose, and disruptors see much upside.
SearchGPT
The domain search.chatgpt.com now shows a search bar but will host a conversational search bot that pulls 300-character answers from the live net by citing sources including blogs and Wikipedia. It will also offer image-based searches and answers and widgets for weather, sports, & finance etc.
AI-powered search is blowing up among young users, with 61% of GenZ and 53% of Millennials opting for them over legacy search engines. This has benefited Microsoft’s Bing, but also AI Search upstarts like the $1B pmv Perplexity (our feature) and fresh new stealth AI search startup Upend. Both target students and enterprises by tapping the best LLMs available.
A Crowded Field
The AI search shake-up could be the best window ever to disrupt Google’s search engine chokehold, and OpenAI with its powerful AI summarization and deep pockets could be the catalyst. In Google’s favor, its “SGE” Search Generative Experience is in roll-out now and initial results are impressive. Also, crucially, on its Q1 earnings report call Satya Nadella said Google’s cost of serving AI search results has dropped by 80% over the past year.
Google’s problem is AI search directly conflicts with its ad revenue model, so does it have enough of a Moat to protect its outsized market share?
Get our Deep Dive on Perplexity AI and how AI Search is adding value to Enterprises, Professionals, and Investors » Get Premium Deep Dives
"The problem is that LLMs like GPT4 are going to disintermediate and perhaps destroy Google search, the bulk of its business.”
— Cathie Wood, the CEO and investment lead at Ark.
Go Premium to get the Perplexity AI DEEP DIVE featuring:
Full AI search market analysis
Full Business case and competition comparison
How companies are using Perplexity to add value
Job Candidates (For Employers)
Request an intro to candidates - jobs@thetech.buzz
Lockheed Martin Software Engineer, ex-Rutgers Junior Full Stack Developer. Secret clearance. Expertise in C++, PHP, SQL. Rutgers BA in Computer Science.
Deloitte VP Strategy, ex-FedEx Kinko's Sr Director, ex-Bain Sr Associate Consultant, ex-Goldman Sachs Jr Advisor. Led $25B+ M&A. UCLA Econ BS.
Software Engineering Leader, providing AI solutions. Ex-StoneRiver Enterprise Architect, Arthur Andersen Sr Manager. Arizona State CS degree.
Deals We’re Watching
Founders to Watch and Opportunities to Catch
Open Deals:
Request an intro to founders - invest@thetech.buzz
Multilingual Messaging Portal - Sydney, AU - Global, AWS-backed SaaS platform for businesses to communicate with clients without language barriers. $300k secured, seeking $650k for U.S. expansion. (Series A)
Digital Twins - Miami, FL - Applying proprietary digital twinning tech to remote patient monitoring and therapy. Over $1 million revenue projected in 2024. Grants received for DoD applications. Raising $2 million in SAFEs with 25% discount for angels and 20% discount for VCs and family offices.
Homepage for Founders and Investors - Irvine, CA - A platform for investors to meet founders and for founders to grow their businesses with access to high-value community members, vendors, securitization tools, and capital. (Seed)
AI Agent Employees - New York - Sophisticated workflow automation for businesses, by a previously-exited founder. Building towards fully autonomous organizations. Backed by Tribe & Kenetic, rolling out to extensive waitlist.
Personalized Talent Marketplace - Delaware - Hiring platform with a focus on personalization and tailored guidance through an AI feature set. Founder experienced in recruiting and talent acquisition, seeking $300k. (Pre Seed)
Trending Tools and Buzzy Tech
Tools
Google - Budget Pixel 8a on pre-order with genAI photo, video tools.
Mercury - Adds accounting automation and bill payment features.
Intently - Founder AI generates warm investor intros from your network.
Tech
AlphaFold 3 - Predicts how drugs interact with proteins & molecules.
UrbanLink - Electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) taxis in Florida.
Rainmaker - a16z, Balaji S. back $6.3M seed round for US cloud seeding.
Closed Deals:
$12B Valuation - Wiz was in our ‘companies to watch’ recently, the NY cloud cybersecurity startup just closed a $1B Series E co-led by a16z & Lightspeed. It’s now in talks to acquire rival Lacework for $150-$200M.
AI Vehicle Loans - Boston AI-based fintech Lendbuzz closed a $216M securitization to offer clients access to credit for vehicle purchases.
SUBSCRIBE TO PREMIUM TO READ THE REST
Paying members get access to the rest of this post and other subscriber-only content. Subscribers get:
Premium deep dives and market reports
Access to exclusive content
Unlimited access to ‘Open Deals’ & ‘Startup Directory’
Unlimited warm introductions to founders and job candidates
Up to 50% OFF advertising in The Tech Buzz
0% management fee on Buzz Capital syndicate investments