Top News | Google plans app store tweaks: After being found in contravention of the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), Google announced changes to its Android app store for users in the European Economic Zone. The new policies include: making it easier for developers to send users off-app to complete a purchase, allowing for non-store downloads, and reduced fees. Whether the changes will be enough to ameliorate the EU and its regulatory bodies is not clear. Still, mobile operating systems are becoming increasingly open in many markets— and that can’t be anything but good for startups. Meta shakes up AI division: Meta’s AI efforts are being reshuffled inside the social giant. The Times reports that Meta’s AI team will be split into four parts: one focused on AI research, one on superintelligence, one on products, and one on infrastructure and hardware. Staff cuts may rear their head, not a surprise during a reorganization. The Times adds that Meta is also considering pursuing fully closed-source AI models (something that its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, hinted at during a recent earnings call), a break from its former efforts to release new AI technology that was at least partially open. UK backs off breaking encryption: Per the current Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, the UK has dropped its “mandate for Apple to provide a ‘back door’ that would have enabled access to the protected encrypted data.” Moves by nation-states to break consumer encryption in the name of security are not new. Thwarting them is not new. It’s still good to see that, once again, consumer privacy has won the day and those who would shatter encryption have lost.
| TWiST500 | Another day, another raft of major AI updates from TWiST500 companies. | Today, DeepSeek released an update to its V3 model. Called V3.1, the new model features a longer context window. Beyond that, the market is still digesting what the new model has on offer. Early reviews are too nascent to judge, and no major benchmarking has been released. | Why do we care? DeepSeek’s open-source models are very popular, snagging 15% of recent inference requests on OpenRouter’s platform — ahead of OpenAI. Thus, if V3.1 is good, it could once again raise doubts that the closed-source approach that most Western AI companies are taking is mistaken. Comparisons to OpenAI’s two recently released open models will prove irresistible. | OpenAI is busy, too. India is proving a fertile market for its AI services, coming in as either the leading country for ChatGPT usage or second place to the United States, depending on which source you decide to trust. | Given high usage levels, it’s no surprise that OpenAI introduced ChatGPT Go today, a subscription product aimed at the Indian market that includes greater access to GPT-5 and image generation tooling, longer memory, and access to more “advanced data analysis.” The cost? ₹399/month, or about $4.60 every thirty days. | OpenAI has grown to massive scale in part thanks to explosive demand for its consumer-facing ChatGPT product. With 700 million weekly active users, the service is one of the most popular products in the world, period. If OpenAI can convert a fair number of its Indian users to paid customers, its impressive revenue growth projections for 2025 and 2026 will become easier to meet. Recall that OpenAI expects revenue to reach $13 billion this year, and $29 billion next year. To get there, it has to get a lot more people to put up their personal payment information. — Alex | A message from NetSuite | The business landscape is very chaotic right now. That’s why you need NetSuite, by Oracle. If your revenues are at least in the seven figures, download the free e-book “Navigating Global Trade: 3 Insights for Leaders” at netsuite.com/twist. | This Week in Startups | E2166: Dean Leitersdorf of Decart joins to talk about squeezing maximum productivity out of your GPUs. But it’s not all talk: he also shows us the incredible open world model that can magically transform live footage. Then, Jason and Alex chat with Syncere AI founder Aaron Tan about Lume, his robotic lamp device that went viral for folding laundry. Hear why Aaron thinks the future of robotics is not necessarily humanoid, and all about his future plans for the Lume arms | E2165: Jason’s FIRED UP on today’s TWiST about the internal Meta doc laying out their rules and regulations for AI, including what the chatbots can and cannot say to users as young as 8 years old. (It’s unsettling!) PLUS is AI job displacement actually here? Why Jason’s feeling antsy about the spread of surveillance tech, those massive Cohere and Cognition rounds, AND combing through Sam Altman’s post-GPT 5 launch interview with The Verge. | E2164: It’s another all-star VC roundtable, with Jason’s special guests Dave McClure (Practical VC), Grady Buchanan (NVNG), and Tomasz Tunguz (Theory VC). Together, they’re going DEEP on the current venture landscape, discussing why companies are staying private for longer, whether VC marks are BS, when it’s time to embed an expert in a struggling company, and much much more. | TWiST Partner Offers | Squarespace: Turn your idea into a beautiful website! Go to http://www.squarespace.com/twist for a free trial. When you’re ready to launch, use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain. Northwest Registered Agent: Starting your business should be simple. With Northwest Registered Agent, you can form your entire business identity in just 10 clicks and 10 minutes. From LLCs to trademarks, domains to custom websites, they’ve got you covered. Get more privacy, more options, and more done—visit https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist today! AWS Activate: AWS Activate helps startups bring their ideas to life. As you build and scale your business, Activate Credits* grow with you to support your changing needs. Apply to AWS Activate today and receive up to $100,000 in credits. Visit aws.amazon.com/startups/credits *All AWS Activate Credits are in USD and subject to the AWS Promotional Credit Terms & Conditions.
| Angel University is Back! | Jason and Mike Savino are hosting our next virtual Angel University workshop on Tuesday, October 7. Jason will share proven strategies he’s used to invest $200M+ in over 500 startups. Whether you’re new to angel investing or looking to sharpen your skills, this is your chance to learn directly from one of the most active angel investors in the world. Register now at angel.university! | Founder U Cohort 11 is Accepting Applications | Applications are open for Founder University Cohort 11, a 10-week remote pre-accelerator program, where you will learn how to build a venture-scale startup, use AI to become a more efficient founder, and delight early customers. Submit your application at Founder.University - Cohort 11 will kick off in September 2025! | Founder U is Coming to the MENA Region! | Our 12-week pre-accelerator—designed to help early-stage founders build and grow—kicks off this fall in Saudi Arabia. The first cohort launches in Riyadh on November 3rd, followed by in-person and virtual sessions throughout the program. Founders in MENA: this is your chance to turn your idea into a business and get world-class insights on building a successful startup. Apply today: https://mena.founder.university/ | SF Live-Work Space Now Available | Need a flexible living and working environment in San Francisco? This thoughtfully designed loft-style residence at 787 Bryant St., the heart of the vibrant SOMA district and the city’s creative hub, is now available for rent or purchase. Check the listing for more details. | The TWiST500 newsletter is the new, updated, and improved TWiST Ticker. |
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