YC Valuations, VC Slowdown, and Office Hours with CustomerIQ | E2136

This Week in Startups

Today’s show: Jason and Alex dive into why Y Combinator startups are raising at sky-high valuations with relatively low ARR—what does that mean for investors and founders? VC funds are slowing down and returning to pre-ZIRP pacing, signaling a reset in the market. Plus, in this week’s Office Hours, Sean Steigerwald, founder of CustomerIQ, demos his AI sales agent that lives in your inbox, drafting follow-ups using CRM context. It’s a deep look at early-stage investing, startup efficiency, and where AI is headed in enterprise.

Timestamps:

(0:00) Episode Teaser(2:09) Jason's Singapore trip recap and SoCal update(9:51) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://www.Squarespace.com/TWIST(11:40) New rumblings from Mistral; is the French AI startup catching a tail wind?(19:40) Fidelity Private Shares℠ - Visit ⁠https://fidelityprivateshares.com⁠! Mention our podcast and receive 20% off your first-year paid subscription.(26:23) VC investing pace is slowing... what does this mean for founders(29:42) INBOUND - Use code TWIST10 for 10% o your General Admission ticket at https://www.inbound.com/register (Valid thru 7/31)(33:33) Founders' guide to raising capital(36:31) Gen AI companies are growing FAST but are there concerns about churn?(42:46) Is YC still worth it? Debating paper gains vs. DPI as metrics.(52:18) Office Hours with Sean Steigerald from Customer IQ: managing active users and more.

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Links from episode:

Customer IQ: https://www.getcustomeriq.com/

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

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Thank you to our partners:

(9:51) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://www.Squarespace.com/TWIST

(19:40) Fidelity Private Shares℠ - Visit ⁠https://fidelityprivateshares.com⁠! Mention our podcast and receive 20% off your first-year paid subscription.

(29:42) INBOUND - Use code TWIST10 for 10% o your General Admission ticket at https://www.inbound.com/register (Valid thru 7/31)

Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland

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