Talok Capital

As an investor, I'd rather hear about your co-founder breakup, pivot or runway issues as soon as possible, so I can dig in and help, than you hide it and I find out about it at the "eleventh hour," when it's too late. There is really no shame in any of these things; startups are challenging and there are going to be bumps along the road. If you don't feel comfortable being honest with the people on your cap table, why are you taking their money in the first place?

Today's job: onboarding our first beta testers. The Trovio Brand Dashboard goes live on Product Hunt Wednesday, but this week a small group of brands is getting in early, poking at everything, and telling us what's confusing before the rest of the world sees it. There's something clarifying about watching someone use your product with no explaining, no caveats, no "well normally it would." You find out fast whether the thing actually speaks for itself. I think this one does. You can judge for yourself on Wednesday. Want in early? DM me if you or a brand you know would like to try it out for free and give us feedback. I'll get you set up personally.

In the tech world, humanism is no longer in vogue. Much of Silicon Valley obsesses over building AI systems to automate as many tasks as possible, replace as many jobs as possible, and render obsolete as much of our species as possible. People obsess over ensuring their startups succeed in order that they might avoid becoming part of the proposed "permanent AI underclass". But morality is not a popularity contest. Whether or not humanism is popular, centering the value of humanity, both collectively *and* individually, remains the right thing to do. Emerging technologies do not need to stand in opposition to the worth, dignity, and fundamental human rights of each individual. The trajectory we pursue as a species comes down to each and every one of us working to shape the future, and it is likewise a responsibility held by each of us. No path is inevitable. We can choose things like neurotechnology, human augmentation, and narrow, supporting AI systems rather than chasing human-replacing systems whose inevitably destructive implications are so obvious that even many of their most vehement supporters now say the quiet part out loud. The timing of Jane Goodall's parting words to our species is poignant. "I want to make sure that you all understand that each and every one of you has a role to play. You may not know it, you may not find it, but your life matters, and you are here for a reason. And I just hope that reason will become apparent as you live through your life. I want you to know that, whether or not you find that role that you’re supposed to play, your life does matter, and that every single day you live, you make a difference in the world. And you get to choose the difference that you make. ...even today, when the planet is dark, there still is hope. Don’t lose hope. If you lose hope, you become apathetic and do nothing. And if you want to save what is still beautiful in this world — if you want to save the planet for the future generations, your grandchildren, their grandchildren — then think about the actions you take each day. Because, multiplied a million, a billion times, even small actions will make for great change." Hers is a vision of humanism, of placing humanity first, which I firmly endorse.

The best rooms I've ever been in had fewer than 25 people in them. So that's what Evan Buhler and I are putting together. Here's the thing: I spend all day thinking about consumer products, and the honest truth is most of the apps we live in haven't had a new idea in a decade. Meanwhile AI is flooding the internet with infinite content that all looks the same. Which means taste — actual human judgment about what's good — just became the scarcest resource in tech. We are hosting an intimate hackathon in SF next week. Twenty consumer builders taking a swing at how AI is rewriting design. Who it's for: founders, designers, and engineers who obsess over the products people actually live in. Spots capped at 20. Comment below if you want the link to the event! 👇 p.s. a beautiful photo I took while waiting for the bus in sf

Introducing: Talok Research, our new content series dedicated to rigorous analysis of emerging tech and market dynamics. Our first publication explores "Brain-Computer Interfaces" - arguably the most compelling frontier in the tech industry today and one where market pricing hasn't caught up to the trajectory of innovation. Our General Partner co-authored this piece with his Talok teammate, Bryce-Allen Bagley, MD, MS (Stanford-trained physicist, computer scientist, engineer and medical doctor). Bryce-Allen's multidisciplinary lens helped us examine BCI through technical, clinical and commercial frameworks simultaneously. Thank you Bryce-Allen! The initiative is inspired by Contrary and Theory Ventures (amongst others), who've consistently demonstrated that both venture capital (the industry) and venture capitalists (individually) benefit immensely from disciplined research practices. Writing a piece like this requires that you take deep, technical dives into industries and technologies, then put your ideas on paper to stress-test your assumptions. This forces you to expose your blind spots and refine your theses before they become investments/actions. The act of articulating what you believe - and why - reveals whether an investor actually understands the underlying dynamics at play in the market or, alternatively, whether they are simply riding "narrative momentum." Talok Research will focus on technologies that advance the frontier of human capability - pro-social innovations that augment human potential and underinvested areas others dismiss as "too early" or "too risky." If you're an expert who wants a platform to publish your research, get compensated for your thinking and critically analyze emerging technology sectors, we'd love to collaborate! https://lnkd.in/geKPMX5Z