Investing in AI, with Amir Shevat, Early stage startup investor, author
Welcome to the Pieces AI productivity podcast, where we dig into how experts use AI to be more productive, as well as geeking out in general on different AI topics.
💰 In todays Episode, Jim talks to Amir Shevat, an early stage startup investor at Darkmode Ventures, an investor in companies like Bluesky, Tessl, and Daytona. Amir has a long history in the tech industry, working at Microsoft, Google, Slack, Twitch, and Twitter, so is well placed to understand the current tech environment and put his money where his mouth is, making small early stage investments in companies. Amir talks about how vibe coding is an interesting idea, and how we need an incentive model for AI tools, rather than guardrails, to guide their behavior.
Jim and Amir also chat about organic applications, evolving over time with AI, the importance of platforms as the basis for AI applications, and how AI is as expensive as it will ever be, so investing in AI companies makes sense now as their costs will come way down over time. Amir also shares his take on what types of companies he is interested in investing in.
🌐 Links:
Connect with Amir on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amirshevat/]
Follow Amir on Bluesky [https://bsky.app/profile/amir.blue]
Darkmode Ventures [https://www.darkmode.vc/]
Bluesky [https://bsky.app/]
Daytona [https://www.daytona.io/]
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Connect with Pieces:
X: https://x.com/getpieces [https://x.com/getpieces]
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/getpieces.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/getpieces.bsky.social]
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/getpieces/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/getpieces/]
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/getpieces/ [https://www.instagram.com/getpieces/]
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In this episode:
0:00:00 - Intro
0:02:09 - Vibe coding
0:05:33 - Running AI code in a sandbox to test your vibe coded applications
0:07:29 - Genetic algorithms and organic coding
0:09:06 - Incentives not guardrails to guide both AI and people
0:11:15 - Social media with the user as the product, and the rise of Bluesky
0:18:32 - What Amir looks for when investing in a company
0:23:37 - Companies still need someone who understands the domain to drive growth
0:26:46 - Ideas that Amir wouldn’t invest in yet
0:31:20 - The cost of AI, and how specialised models would help reduce cost
