About this episode

The episode explores the implications of AI agents owning businesses, featuring a demo of an AI vending machine.

This Week In Startups is made possible by: Pilot - https://pilot.com/twist Shopify - https://shopify.com/twist Grasshopper Bank - https://grasshopper.bank/twist Today’s show: An AI agent named Valerie is running a real vending machine in San Francisco — setting prices, ordering inventory, managing a bank account, and posting to Instagram. And it's not just a stunt. We’re getting an early look at the future of one-agent companies. There’s still work to do to help agents ease into the economy, potentially opening up new startup opportunities. Jason Calacanis and Alex Wilhelm cover a stacked docket: Christian van der Henst demos the Valerie AI vending machine powered by OpenClaw; Robert Myers, CEO of Manifold Labs, breaks down Targon, a confidential GPU compute marketplace running on Bittensor Subnet 4; Jason calls Bitcoin "played out;" Alex is impressed by Anthropic's stunning $900 billion upcoming valuation; and the guys discuss Big Tech's accelerating CapEx spend, Chinese AI models in Congress crosshairs, and the NBA Playoffs. Timestamps: 0:00 Intro & sponsor reads (Pilot, Shopify, Grasshopper Bank) 1:06 Christian van der Henst: Valerie the AI vending machine demo…

People in this episode

Host: Jason Calacanis

Guest: Christian van der Henst

Sponsors

Pilot, Shopify, Grasshopper Bank

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Manifold Labs, Anthropic, Bittensor

Products: Valerie, Targon, OpenClaw, Bitcoin

Places: San Francisco

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