2026 Starts with a bang: META AI Drama and Nvidia’s $20B Groq Acquisition | E2230

2026 Starts with a bang: META AI Drama and Nvidia’s $20B Groq Acquisition | E2230

Author: Jason Calacanis January 6, 2026 Duration: 54:39

This Week In Startups is made possible by:


Crusoe Cloud - https://crusoe.ai/build


Uber - http://uber.com/twist


Every.io - http://every.io/


Today’s show: 


Jason and Alex are BACK on TWiST for 2026! 


This holiday season was anything but calm, with deca-corn acquisitions, massive Polymarket bets, and major new startups breaking from stealth!


Jason talks the recent Nvidia-Groq $20B acquisition, a major exit for Chamath as the lead investor back in 2017! Jason delves into how the VC fund math shapes out for pre-seed VC funds vs. Series A VC funds.


Jason and Alex delve into drama swirling META’s AI team. Yann LeCun, META’s former Chief AI Scientist, announced that he would be leaving META to become Executive Chairman at AMI Labs. LeCun left the META team in the new year, calling the new Chief AI Scientist, Alexandr Wang, inexperienced. LeCun now looks to move AI beyond the era of LLM at AMI Labs.


PLUS Jason and Alex talk about the new social media app Tangle, from Biz Stone, co-founder of Twitter, and Evan Sharp, co-founder of Pinterest. Their Startup, West Co, launched tangle, which seeks to become an “intentional living” app. The two look to improve how humans interact with modern tech. Jason points out that very few news products have worked, but is eager to see how two industry veterans build in the space. 


Timestamps:


(00:00) Why Restaurants are OVER — Peptides and other self medications


(06:41) Nvidia Acqui-Hires Groq for $20 BILLION


(9:48) Crusoe Cloud: Crusoe is the AI factory company. Reliable infrastructure and expert support. Visit https://crusoe.ai/build to reserve your capacity for the latest GPUs today.


(11:00) The VC fund math between seed vs. Series A funds


(15:00) META buys TWiST 500 Company, Manus! Why it matters.


(20:20) Uber AI Solutions: Your trusted partner to get AI to work in the real world. Book a demo with them TODAY at http://uber.com/twist


(21:24) Why Yann LeCun left META, and what could be behind it


(25:27) Producer Claude on the Gondola Crash in Zurich


(29:13) Jason’s Request for Augmented human intelligence


(30:11) Every.io - For all of your incorporation, banking, payroll, benefits, accounting, taxes or other back-office administration needs, visit http://every.io/


(32:04) How one Trader made $436.8k on one bet on polymarket!


(36:05) Jason’s Predictions for 2026 IPOs


(40:01) Is news broken? How Tangle is tackling it.


(45:53) How much should startup incur in legal expenses? Should founders try to use AI to avoid costs?


(50:59) Why Google should let NotebookLM cook, make it a standalone brand! 


*


Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com/


Check out the TWIST500: https://twist500.com


Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp


*


Follow Lon:


X: https://x.com/lons


*


Follow Alex:


X: https://x.com/alex


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


*


Follow Jason:


X: https://twitter.com/Jason


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


*


Thank you to our partners:


(9:48) Crusoe Cloud: Crusoe is the AI factory company. Reliable infrastructure and expert support. Visit https://crusoe.ai/build to reserve your capacity for the latest GPUs today.


(20:20) Uber AI Solutions: Your trusted partner to get AI to work in the real world. Book a demo with them TODAY at http://uber.com/twist


(30:11) Every.io - For all of your incorporation, banking, payroll, benefits, accounting, taxes or other back-office administration needs, visit http://every.io/


Every week, Jason Calacanis dives headfirst into the swirling vortex of Silicon Valley and global tech with This Week in Startups. It’s a direct line to the conversations shaping our digital future, moving far beyond surface-level news. You’ll hear Jason’s unfiltered analysis on everything from market shifts and media trends to the underlying mechanics of building a business, all delivered with a blend of enthusiasm and seasoned skepticism. The core of this podcast, however, lies in the guests. Jason sits down with the very people driving change-founders who have scaled impossible heights, operators managing daily chaos, and investors who spot trends before they become obvious. These conversations are less like formal interviews and more like insider debriefs, pulling back the curtain on real strategies, painful failures, and unexpected successes. For anyone curious about how technology is built, funded, and ultimately changes the world, this series offers a front-row seat. It’s the context behind the headlines, providing a deeper understanding of the forces at play in startups and technology. Tune in for a consistently engaging and insightful look at the ecosystem, straight from someone who lives and breathes it.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 100

This Week in Startups
Podcast Episodes
We Asked 3 Experts How to Get More Value out of OpenClaw | E2253 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:08:36
This Week In Startups is made possible by:Gusto - https://Gusto.com/twistCircle - https://circle.so/twistNorthwest Registered Agent - https://northwestregisteredagent.com/twistToday’s show:*Getting OpenClaw set up and ru…
When Will Openclaw go Mainstream? | E2252 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:26
This Week In Startups is made possible by:Gusto - Try Gusto today and get 3 months free at gust.com/twistCrusoe Cloud - Reserve your capacity for the latest GPU’s at crusoe.ai/savingsUber AI Solutions - Book a demo today…
Will OpenAI Tank OpenClaw? | E2251 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:26:33
Will OpenAI Tank OpenClaw? | E2251This Week In Startups is made possible by:Northwest Registered Agent - https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twistLemon IO - https://lemon.io/twistLinkedIn Jobs - http://linkedin.com/…
OpenClaw is Our Friend Now | E2250 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:06:28
This Week In Startups is made possible by:Sentry - http://sentry.io/twistCircle - http://Circle.so/twistWispr Flow - https://wisprflow.ai/twistToday’s show: What makes OpenClaw feel so much more ALIVE than other AI agent…
Why J-Cal Invested to 200K in a former Employee | E2249 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 40:27
This Week In Startups is made possible by:NetSuite - https://www.netsuite.com/twistLuma AI - https://lumalabs.ai/twistSquarespace - https://squarespace.com/twistToday’s show: On today’s epsiode of TWiST, Jason gets pitch…
How These 3 Founders are building on Open Claw | E2248 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:04
This Week In Startups is made possible by:Hubspot - http://clickhubspot.com/twist2Deel - http://deel.com/twistIru - http://www.iru.com/Today’s show: Today on TWiST we’re joined by 3 founders building on Open Claw, Presh…
We built OpenClaw Ultron to replace 20 people at our company | E2246 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:10:51
This Week In Startups is made possible by:Crusoe Cloud - https://crusoe.ai/savingsLemon IO - https://Lemon.io/twistNorthwest Registered Agent - https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twistThanks to our guests:Alex Chee…
Savvy is HQ Trivia + Wordle (feat. Scott Rogowsky) | E2245 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:41
This Week In Startups is made possible by:Circle - http://Circle.so/twistCaldera Lab - http://calderalab.com/TWISTLinkedIn - http://linkedin.com/twistToday’s show: There was a time, not long ago, when offices everywhere…
Where early-stage founders MUST focus to success | E2244 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:07:08
This Week In Startups is made possible by:Quadratic - http://quadratic.ai/twistToday’s show: Don’t get distracted! Here are the MOST CRUCIAL aspects of running a startup, where founders need to keep their full and uninte…