el producto #416 đ
xAI funding, Telegram hits profitability and 12M paid subscribers, OpenAI shares for-profit plans, Improving Map Search at Airbnb, When to use AI, Betterment metics & more
Hi folks đ
Happy holidays and welcome to a new edition of el producto
đ° The week in figures
$6B: xAI, Elon Muskâs AI company, has secured $6B in Series C funding, doubling its valuation to $45B
$1B: The organization behind the Encyclopedia Britannica transformed into an AI company, and plans a $1B IPO, as it expands into digital education and AI tutoring while aiming to double revenue
12M: Social network and messaging service Telegram has 12M subscribers who pay it a monthly fee. But that that accounts for less than 50% of its total revenue, with Telegram doing very well on the advertising front. Founder Pavel Durov says Telegram is now profitable
đ° Whatâs going on
OpenAI ended its "shipmas" series of reveals with its o3 model family, the successor to o1, claiming near-AGI capabilitiesâŠ(with plenty of caveats)
OpenAI announces plan to transform into a for-profit company. OpenAIâs board said it will replace the companyâs existing structure with one that puts control into the hands of its for-profit arm
DeepSeek V3, the latest release from Chinese AI firm DeepSeek, has set a new standard for open AI models. With an impressive 671B parameters, it outperforms competitors like Metaâs Llama 3.1 and OpenAIâs GPT-4o in tasks such as coding, translation, and writing. Whatâs even more remarkable is its training costâjust $5.5M, a fraction of what similar models require. However, DeepSeek V3âs design reflects Chinese regulatory influences, avoiding discussions on politically sensitive topics to align with âcore socialist valuesâ
Instagram tests a way to show you Story Highlights you didnât get a chance to see. The social networkâs latest test feature experiments with a way to ensure you arenât missing original content from your friends and family
Hertz tests asking EV renters if they want to keep it, permanently. Renting a Tesla or Polestar from Hertz might lead to an offer to buy one if youâre interested. One 2023 Model 3 renter shared on Reddit that they were offered a price of $17,913, which is similar to deals currently showing on the Hertz Car Sales site
đ Good reads
Improving search ranking for maps at Airbnb. Rankings are straightforward, but how do you prioritize on a map? Airbnb introduced a two-tiered model, using regular pins for high-probability listings and mini-pins for lower ones. This approach prioritized user clicks on listings more likely to be booked, enhancing overall engagement
In defense of ridiculous Product ideas. In this inspiring article, Abi Siegel explains why the best founders get laughed at before they get rich. âYou know what didnât sound reasonable? A search engine in 1998. A phone with no keyboard in 2007. An app for strangers to sleep in your house in 2008â
âThe Betterment metric.â What do you do with the empty trays when youâre waiting for your belongings to go through the security screening at the airport? Angie Jones makes the case that your behavior in this situation is a good analogy for what her company calls the âBetterment metric,â which assesses whether someone identifies areas for improvement and makes them better without being prompted
â15 times to use AI and 5 not toâ. Just as the title of this article suggests, Ethan Mollick outlines 15 times when you can (or should) use AI and 5 cases when itâs better not to. You probably shouldnât rely on AI to learn or synthesize informationâthis is still something that youâll need to do for yourself!
Thatâs all for this week. As usual, feel free to reach out and share your thoughts by replying back to this email or commenting on Substack
Thanks for your support, and have a great end of the year!
Angel