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We are never never ever getting back together - Except we are

Or at least that's what Sam Altman, former CEO and current CEO—yeah, we know, it's confusing—of OpenAI did after a week of twists and turns and some good old startup drama. HE IS BACK - Say whaaaaat?!

Altman said on X: "I love OpenAI, and everything I’ve done over the past few days has been in service of keeping this team and its mission together.(...) With the new board and with Satya’s support, I’m looking forward to returning to OpenAI and building on our strong partnership with MSFT".

⏱️ Super short summary for our super busy readers: he’s back, and so is his fellow Greg Brockman, who made the very serious announcement in the only possible way, a selfie 🤳🏻 Open AI will reform its board and say good bye to some of its members involved in the drama. Read more.

⏱️ Here are some quick, juicy takeaways for those with just 3 minutes:

🔦 Beware of Vendor lock-in - Dog’s fine. As explained by Techcrunch: ‘OpenAI isn’t only widely estimated to be leading the current AI race but also has in less than a year assumed the position of kingmaker for thousands of other startups that are building on top of its software offerings’. Read more about this itchy topic.

🔦 The timeless clash of Safety vs Growth. We sort of lost sight of why it all started in the first place. Some OpenAI board members were a bit spooked by Altman's need for speed. As Kevin Roose eloquently puts it: ‘Sutskever is among a faction of A.I. experts who are fearful that A.I. may soon surpass human abilities and become a threat to our survival’. Terrifying, right? Buckle up for more.

🔦 How powerful true leadership can be. According to Wired, 95% of Open Ai employees were willing to follow Altman (+ 730 employees signed an open letter on  Monday threatening to leave)

🔦 Governance is crucial, and while we were already aware of this fact, a heartfelt reminder never hurts. OpenAI, which was operated by a nonprofit board overseeing a for-profit subsidiary, holds the power to vote and replace its leaders. This saga is far from over.

📅 Nov 30- Dec 1st 2023 | Slush, Helsinki | Founder-focused, largest gathering of VC

📅 Nov 24-26th 2023 | Startup Weekend, El Faro, Portugal | Get ready for a high-speed startup experience!

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Follow the $$

These companies just raised money

• Colombian fintech RapiCredit cashes in on a sweet $7 million deal with Almavest, selling off a slice of its loan portfolio. The funds will be used to expand microcredit offerings 👏🏽

• Founded in 2021 by Moni Alli, FrontEdge just scored a cool $10 million in seed funding! Ready to turbocharge SME exporters and importers for smoother cross-border transactions 👏🏽👏🏽

• AI21, the cool kid challenging OpenAI in the generative AI playground, just snagged an extra $53 million in its series C round. With this cash splash, the total round pumps up to $208 million, and AI21's piggy bank now boasts a whopping $336 million! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

• Kinterra Capital, a Canadian private equity firm, closes a $565 million debut fund to secure crucial battery mineral assets 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

Deepdive: Headline's GPS for Startups - Navigating Chaos, Ignoring OPM, and Making 'Fit' Cool Again!

Don’t worry, it’s not about Crossfit again, it’s about your startup thriving. 

In a world where startups dance on the precipice of success or obscurity, VC fund Headline unveils its secret weapon: Deepdive, an AI-infused analytics tool. Frustrated by the OPM train (Other People’s Money) leading startups to the abyss, Headline developed Deepdive to cut through the funding frenzy and unveil true product-market fit. Unlike traditional tools fixated on revenue, Deepdive dives into the soul of startups, dissecting customer behavior and retention dynamics, offering founders a compass in the chaotic sea of growth.

As this knight in digital armor battles premature scaling, it's offered for free, embodying Headline's creed of responsible investing and a vision for a startup ecosystem where potential speaks louder than profit charts. While Deepdive lacks its own business model, Headline hopes it becomes a beacon, guiding startups toward sustainable growth, proving that sometimes, the best things in the tech realm are free and fueled by a passion for responsible scaling 🚀💡

Keep reading!

Rushin’ Roulette

Six bullets of updates

1. Stability AI dives into the video-making biz with Stable Video Diffusion, and stands out as one of the limited open-source or commercial video-generating models, with access restricted during its current phase. Bye-bye Stability, hello Hollywood! 🤖🎬
   

2. Despite scouting for potential acquisitions, Bolt has yet to find a startup that meets its high criteria, says CEO Markus Villig 🚗
   

3. Time to say goodbye. After 14 years, Omegle, the chat service once hosting 50M visitors per month, shuts down due to misuse ⛔
   

4. European tech faces a downround dilemma in 2023, with a PitchBook report revealing the highest level since 2014, unicorn deals taking a cliff dive, and the unicorn stable looking emptier than a Friday afternoon office. Valuation crunch? Buckle up, it's a bumpy ride! 📉🦄🎢
   

5. Founded by Spandana Nakka, Pump's unique group-buying strategy pools businesses with similar AWS spending, optimizing savings and reducing risk.
   

6. Tomorrow is Black Friday – the ultimate symphony for selling more and turning discounts into the sweet sound of success 🚀🛍️🎶

In Memoriam…

Like the Oscars, but broke