This Week in Startups

• Creative Structures w/ Becki DeGraw | Wilson Sonsini Startup Legal Basics

  Today’s show:Wilson Sonsini Partner Becki DeGraw returns to Startup Legal Basics with Jason. This time, they dive into the “have” companies — the breakout startups with multiple term sheets, competitive valuations, and unusual deal terms.From founder voting proxies to mandatory follow-on investment clauses, Becki breaks down the creative “off-menu” structures showing up in today’s financings, and what founders and investors need to watch for.Whether you’re a founder navigating investor FOMO or a VC competing to get on the best cap tables, this conversation will give you insight into the new rules of the game.*Timestamps:(0:00) Jason welcomes Becki back to Startup Legal Basics(0:32) The “haves” vs. “have-nots” in today’s startup market(1:28) Creative legal structures: the “off-menu” items(4:19) Travis’ Uber favor & modern founder asks(7:05) Rise of secondaries & unusual board structures(11:22) Mandatory follow-on investment clauses in seed rounds?(14:13) Crypto’s resurgence and legal implications(15:55) The decline of proper diligence in hot deals*Check Out Wilson Sonsini: https://www.wsgr.comCheck out all of the Startup Basics episodes here: https://thisweekinstartups.com/basics*Follow Becki:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-degraw-639bbb62/*Follow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis*Follow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.com

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• Uber, Lucid & Nuro team up on robotaxis by 2026 | E2173

  Today’s show:Jason and Alex are joined by Nuro’s Dave Ferguson to unpack the Lucid–Uber–Nuro deal aiming to launch fully driverless Gravity SUVs on Uber by 2026. They dig into why off-the-shelf sensors and Nvidia’s Thor chip drive costs down, how mapping 150 cities improves safety, and why lidar still matters for night and edge cases. Plus: lessons from Cruise’s collapse, how regulators think about safety multiples, and why autonomy could finally make rides cheaper than owning a car.Timestamps:(00:00) Show intro…(06:23) Uber x Lucid x Nuro: why this 2026 robotaxi deal matters(09:57) Lemon.io - Get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://Lemon.io/twist(11:13) What the self-driving “cost stack” really looks like in 2025(14:08) Road-mapping at scale: Nuro’s 150-city data collection push(15:38) Can AVs handle snow & rain? Weather rollout and Uber Black positioning(20:05) Northwest Registered Agent - Form your entire business identity in just 10 clicks and 10 minutes. Get more privacy, more options, and more done—visit https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist today!(21:07) Show Continues…(24:24) Probabilistic vs. deterministic driving models — and the DARPA roots(30:08) Stripe Startups - Stripe Startups offers early-stage, venture-backed startups access to Stripe fee credits and more. Apply today on stripe.com/startups.(31:08) Show Continues…(35:38) Post-Cruise reality check: transparency, regulators & trustSubscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcpFollow Lon:X: https://x.com/lonsFollow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelmFollow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanisThank you to our partners:(09:57) Lemon.io - Get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://Lemon.io/twist(20:05) Northwest Registered Agent - Form your entire business identity in just 10 clicks and 10 minutes. Get more privacy, more options, and more done—visit https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist today!(30:08) Stripe Startups - Stripe Startups offers early-stage, venture-backed startups access to Stripe fee credits and more. Apply today on stripe.com/startups.Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarlandCheck out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanisFollow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.comSubscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916

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• Jason’s Tesla Optimus prediction, Anthropic’s latest mega-raise and more | E2172

  Today’s show:Find out why it’s important to “get curious,” and more deep founder insights on a new TWiST.Jason and Alex are back with a look at Robot vs. Human violence spilling out into the streets, Elon Musk’s vision for humanoid robots, and a reconsideration of Apple’s open-source AI models. Is the hardware giant not getting enough credit for its smaller-scale innovations?Plus Grok has another hit model, AND a chat with Scale Social founder Runbin Dong about the importance of knowing your worth.Timestamps:(0:00) Robot vs. Human violence in the streets! Is anti-clanker behavior inevitable?(05:13) Producer Claude’s company Anthropic is growing FAST, raising BIG money(09:21) More on why Jason is convinced Tesla’s Optimus robots are the future(10:35) Monarch Money - Get 50% Off Monarch Money, the all-in-one financial tool at www.monarchmoney.com/TWIST(11:50) Show Continues…(20:00) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://www.Squarespace.com/TWIST(21:19) Show Continues…(23:31) Ask Jason: Should you get a ticket for messing with an autonomous vehicle?(27:04) Is Apple not getting enough credit for its open-source AI models?(30:30) AWS Activate - AWS Activate helps startups bring their ideas to life. Apply to AWS Activate today to learn more. Visit aws.amazon.com/startups/credits(31:55) Show Continues…(38:08) Grok has another hit AI model… how can anyone even keep track of this?!(40:27) Runbin Dong of Scale Social stops by from ICELAND(42:54) How Runbin’s job delivering homemade dumplings inspired his startup(47:05) Why founders need to know their WORTH when pricing their products(59:21) Jason’s advice for companies that are creating their own categorySubscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcpFollow Lon:X: https://x.com/lonsFollow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelmFollow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanisThank you to our partners:(10:35) Monarch Money - Get 50% Off Monarch Money, the all-in-one financial tool at www.monarchmoney.com/TWIST(20:00) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://www.Squarespace.com/TWIST(30:30) AWS Activate - AWS Activate helps startups bring their ideas to life. Apply to AWS Activate today to learn more. Visit aws.amazon.com/startups/creditsGreat TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarlandCheck out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanisFollow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.comSubscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916

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• KPop Demon Hunters breaks records, Grok speeds up, and an AI-powered browser deep dive | E2171

  Today’s show:*“KPop Demon Hunters” is one of the year’s biggest smashes… AFTER Sony sold it off to Netflix for cheap! Hear about what went wrong with one of the year’s worst deals…PLUS Grok is counting on SPEED to help it outpace rivals… How Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) ran into trouble on the podcast circuit… Nvidia’s big earnings report, and why everyone is watching that company in particular SO closely… PLUS a new Polymarket predicting the future of OpenAI!Timestamps:(0:00) How Sony missed out on “Kpop Demon Hunters”(10:15) .TECH: Say it without saying it. Head to get.tech/twist or your favorite registrar to get a clean, sharp .tech domain today.(11:20) Show continues…(13:59) Why some politicians struggle so much on podcasts(19:30) AWS Activate - AWS Activate helps startups bring their ideas to life. Apply to AWS Activate today to learn more. Visit aws.amazon.com/startups/credits(20:53) Show continues…(30:24) Alphasense - Get deeper insights into your business with the power of AI search and market intelligence. Start with a free trial at https://www.alpha-sense.com/twist(31:37) Grok is relying on SPEED to outpace rivals… and it’s working(41:23) Are AI companies playing a mega-budget game of chicken?(42:31) Why everyone’s watching Nvidia’s earnings so closely(47:50) Jason says he’ll NEVER go back to a non-AI browser(53:32) Polymarket: Is OpenAI going to release their own browser?Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcpFollow Lon:X: https://x.com/lonsFollow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelmFollow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanisThank you to our partners:(10:15) .TECH: Say it without saying it. Head to get.tech/twist or your favorite registrar to get a clean, sharp .tech domain today.(19:30) AWS Activate - AWS Activate helps startups bring their ideas to life. Apply to AWS Activate today to learn more. Visit aws.amazon.com/startups/credits(30:24) Alphasense - Get deeper insights into your business with the power of AI search and market intelligence. Start with a free trial at https://www.alpha-sense.com/twistReady to level up your AI collaborations?Head to www.claude.ai/twistYou can’t do everything we’re doing without a paid plan…But TWiST listeners get 50% off their first three months of Claude Pro.Just go to Claude dot AI Slash TWiST to get started.Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarlandCheck out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanisFollow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.comSubscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916

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• Market Update and Trends w/ Becki DeGraw | Wilson Sonsini Startup Legal Basics

  Today’s show:Wilson Sonsini Partner Becki DeGraw returns to Startup Legal Basics with Jason to break down what’s happening in today’s startup market. From excess dry powder on the VC side to companies struggling to “grow into” their valuations, Becki shares what founders need to know about deal terms, pay-to-play provisions, and the shift from the 2021 heyday to today’s more structured environment.Why down rounds and structured deals are becoming more commonHow “pay-to-play” works (and why it’s showing up so often now)The psychology of VCs vs. founders during tough fundraisesWhat the M&A landscape really looks like in 2025Legal provisions investors are using to protect themselves in today’s talent warsWhether you’re a founder preparing for your next round or an investor navigating tougher terms, this conversation will help you understand the new realities of startup fundraising.*Timestamps:(0:00) Becki DeGraw joins Jason for Startup Legal Basics(1:12) The “perfect storm” shaping today’s startup market(4:30) Companies struggling to grow into 2021 valuations(6:31) Why down rounds and structured deals are rising(8:59) Pay-to-play explained: what happens if investors don’t participate(15:43) The mid-market M&A wave vs. big tech acquisitions(20:37) Talent wars, acqui-hires, and protective legal provisions*Check Out Wilson Sonsini: https://www.wsgr.comCheck out all of the Startup Basics episodes here: https://thisweekinstartups.com/basics*Follow Becki:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-degraw-639bbb62/*Follow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis*Follow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.com

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