manufacturing

Welcome back to "The Ben & Marc Show," featuring a16z co-founders Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz. In this new episode – the second in a 2 part series – Marc and Ben address a new round of questions regarding the "State of AI" in relation to company building. 

In light of recent developments at Boeing, Marc and Ben commence the episode with a discussion on the real criteria boards utilize to select a CEO. Returning to the topic of AI, they explore the potential for emerging chip startups, the incorporation of AI in robotics, and what America will need to do in order to regain its position as world's leading manufacturer.

Watch on Youtube:

*Part 1: https://youtu.be/XyrBJ0gk-is

*Part 2: https://youtu.be/QyyWsr1NMt8

Article mentioned: 

- "Ones and Twos" by Ben Horowitz https://a16z.com/ones-and-twos/ 

Book mentioned: 

- "Elon Musk" by Walter Isaacson https://amzn.to/3wyGOmo 

Resources: 

Marc on X: https://twitter.com/pmarca 

Marc’s Substack: https://pmarca.substack.com/ 

Ben on X: https://twitter.com/bhorowitz 

Stay Updated: 

Find us on X: https://twitter.com/a16z 

Find us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/a16z 

The views expressed here are those of the individual personnel quoted and are not the views of a16z or its affiliates. This content is provided for informational purposes only, and should not be relied upon as legal, business, investment, or tax advice. Furthermore, this content is not directed at nor intended for use by any investors or prospective investors and may not under any circumstances be relied upon when making a decision to invest in any a16z funds. PLEASE SEE MORE HERE: https://a16z.com/disclosures/

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen sat down with “Marketplace” host Kai Ryssdal to discuss inflation, economic growth, U.S.-China relations and why having a strong democracy matters for our economy. She also highlighted federal investments in clean energy, concerns about Chinese overproduction and more.

Support our nonprofit newsroom today and pick up a fun thank-you gift like our new Shrinkflation mini tote bag or the fan favorite KaiPA pint glass!

The Federal Reserve has a lot of official statistics it can look at to try and gauge the state of the overall economy. But there's also room for incorporating on-the-ground anecdotes and real-time color. When it comes to collecting this kind of information, Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin might be the biggest road warrior on the FOMC. In mid-April, Odd Lots tagged alongside Barkin as he undertook one of his many trips around his district, speaking to local businesses about what they're seeing in terms of inflation, consumer demand, and the labor market. We traveled with him to North Carolina, making stops in Mount Airy, Winston-Salem and Yadkinville, to better understand what it is that a regional Fed president actually does when he's collecting info on the ground, and how it informs his thinking. It's a rare inside look at the day-to-day work of a Fed president. In this episode, you'll learn what kind of questions Barkin is asking businesses. And you'll learn about some local businesses themselves — everything from carport manufacturing to producing thermal underwear to spinning yarn. We also take a look at some of the big picture challenges facing America's smaller towns, including shrinking populations, a shortage of housing, and the scarcity of essential services like childcare.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s a lot of buzz about a slowdown in the electric vehicle market. EV sales, while still growing, are not accelerating at the pace of just a few years ago. At the same time, EV makers from Tesla to General Motors and Ford are pushing back EV plans. So, what gives? On the show today, Robinson Meyer of Heatmap explains what’s really happening with the U.S. EV market, what it’s going to take to rev it back up, competition from China and whether moves by the Biden administration will be enough to help domestic EV producers pull ahead.

Then, can robots make the meatpacking industry safer? Plus, in celebration of Monday’s solar eclipse, a planetary scientist answers the Make Me Smart question.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• • “What happened to EVs?” from Business Insider

• • “Opinion | China’s Electric Vehicles Are Going to Hit Detroit Like a Wrecking Ball” from The New York Times

• • “The key to growing EV adoption is cars with lower sticker prices. They may be on their way.” from Marketplace

• • “Here Comes the Flood of Plug-In Hybrids” from Wired

• • “How Americans view electric vehicles” from Pew Research

• • “Tesla’s Sales Drop, a Sign That Its Grip on the E.V. Market Is Slipping” from The New York Times

• • “The U.S. Urgently Needs a Bigger Grid. Here’s a Fast Solution.” from The New York Times

• • “Meet the Robots Slicing Your Barbecue Ribs” from The Wall Street Journal

• • “Dogs can understand the meaning of nouns, new research finds” from The Guardian

We want to hear your answer to the Make Me Smart question. You can reach us at makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

On today's podcast:

1) Fed Chair Jay Powell Reacts to PCE Data and Reiterates Rate Cut Outlook

2) Congress Returns to Address Ukraine Aid

3) Turkish President Erdogan Suffers Major Election Defeat 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Thanks to the blockbuster musical, Alexander Hamilton has become a modern cultural icon. He's known as an architect of the federal system, building out a strong government with the capacity for both borrowing and spending. But there's another side of his vision that doesn't get as much attention, and that's his belief in the importance of state-directed investment to build out a domestic manufacturing industry. Basically, he was an early advocate for industrial policy. Given that the US is currently in a phase of building out domestic manufacturing capacity in various areas, it's time to go back and look at the history of these efforts in the US. We speak with Christian Parenti, a professor at John Jay College in New York, and the author of Radical Hamilton: Economic Lessons from a Misunderstood Founder, about this other side of Hamilton, and the economic context in which he developed this vision.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Todays show:

Jason welcomes Melengo's Justin Kwong to the show to discuss how his company simplifies the process of developing, financing, and scaling apparel lines for brands and creators. The two dive into Melengo’s business model, initial customers, fundraising, and much more (1:49). Then, Jason breaks down his A.D.D. framework, designed to enhance efficiency and focus within companies (36:50)!

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Timestamps:

(0:00) Jason kicks off the show

(1:48) Justin Kwong from Melengo joins Jason

(4:38) Justin demos Melengo and its use cases

(9:45) Vanta - Get $1000 off your SOC 2 at http://www.vanta.com/twist

(10:37) Melengo’s business model, initial customers, and fundraising

(22:19) Uizard - Get 25% off Uizard Pro for an entire year at http://uizard.io/twist

(23:26) Building Melengo's team and the next steps for finding product-market-fit

(36:50) Eppo. Accelerate your experimentation velocity with Eppo. Visit geteppo.com/twist

(37:50) Jason’s A.D.D. framework (Automate, Deprecate, Delegate)

*

Check out:

Melengo - https://www.melengo.com

A.D.D. Framework - https://calacanis.substack.com/p/startup-productivity-in-the-age-of

LAUNCH Accelerator - https://launchaccelerator.co

Founder University - https://www.founder.university

The Syndicate - https://thesyndicate.com

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LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis

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Great 2023 interviews: Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland

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Developing stories you need to know just in time for your drive home. Get the facts first on Morning Wire.

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Figure AI raises $675 million from Big Tech, Elon Musk sues OpenAI, and LTX Studio challenges Pika Labs. Here's this week's AI news that matters and why it's important to you.

Newsletter: Sign up for our free daily newsletter
More on this Episode: Episode page
Join the discussion: Ask Jordan questions on AI

Related Episodes:
Ep 181: New York Times vs. OpenAI – The huge AI implications no one is talking about
Ep 211: OpenAI Sora – The larger impact that no one’s talking about

Tomorrow' Show: What the Elon Musk vs. OpenAI lawsuit actually means
Upcoming Episodes: Check out the upcoming Everyday AI Livestream lineup
Website: YourEverydayAI.com
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Connect with Jordan on LinkedIn

Timestamps:
03:05 Humanoid robot company Figure raises $675 million
06:40 OpenAI, Microsoft, Bezos, and NVIDIA are key partners for humanoid robots.
10:38 Humanoid robots could bring local manufacturing jobs.
11:45 Elon Musk sues OpenAI
16:37 Debate over Elon Musk's lawsuit against Twitter.
21:32 NVIDIA GTC conference in San Jose, March.
23:20 Lightricks launches LTX Studio - AI video tool
27:31 Challenges in creating consistent AI image tools.
31:00 Cost of new AI tools may rise.
35:40 Generative AI tools produce high-quality lifelike content.

Topics Covered in This Episode:
1. Figure Raises$675 million from Big Tech
2. Elon Musk Sues OpenAI
3. Lightricks releases LTX Studio - AI Video Tool

Keywords:
AI-powered apps, Facetune, Videoleap, LTX studio, AI video making, OpenAI, Pika Labs, lip syncing, AI characters, Alibaba, Emo Video, animated avatar video, Everyday AI, Jordan Wilson, Figures AI, humanoid robots, Azure Cloud Services, robot market projection, lawsuit, nonprofit transition, Elon Musk, Taplio giveaway, NVIDIA GTC conference, NVIDIA GeForce GPU giveaway, manufacturing jobs, LinkedIn for brand growth