Tanay’s Newsletter

Tanay’s Newsletter explores the intersections of technology, business, and the digital economy with a focus on the impact of AI, the strategies of tech giants and startups, developments in the tech industry, and the evolution of digital marketing, ecommerce, and product development.

Technology Trends Business Strategies Digital Economy Artificial Intelligence Tech Industry Analysis Digital Marketing Ecommerce Product Development Regulatory Challenges

The hottest Substack posts of Tanay’s Newsletter

And their main takeaways
170 implied HN points 10 Jun 25
  1. Stablecoins, like USDC and USDT, are now important for payments, moving large amounts of money much like traditional banking systems. USDC alone has handled over $25 trillion since it started.
  2. Circle, which runs USDC, makes most of its money by investing the dollars that back USDC in U.S. Treasuries. This means if interest rates drop a lot, their profits could take a big hit.
  3. Coinbase plays a huge role in Circle's success by helping to distribute USDC. They share the profits from USDC, so a lot of Circle's earnings are paid to Coinbase as part of their agreement.
113 implied HN points 03 Jun 25
  1. Agentic commerce involves AI agents doing the work for you in shopping. This means AI will help find, compare, and buy products without much human input.
  2. AI tools like ChatGPT are already playing a role in how people discover products. As these tools improve, they will change the whole shopping experience.
  3. Many companies are creating new technologies and platforms to support agentic commerce. There's a big opportunity for innovation in areas like product data, payments, and customer services.
220 implied HN points 29 Jan 25
  1. AI is becoming more common in workplaces, taking on roles similar to human coworkers. This means more companies are using AI to help with tasks that were once done by people.
  2. These AI workers are designed to do specific jobs, promising to make work easier and faster. They are often created to handle certain tasks well, rather than do everything a human does.
  3. AI workers can change how businesses spend money, as they focus on labor budgets instead of software budgets. This could lead to new pricing models based on actual work done, rather than just user licenses.
113 implied HN points 19 Feb 25
  1. The cost of using advanced AI models has dropped dramatically, making it easier for businesses to experiment and integrate AI into their products. This change opens up new possibilities for reaching millions of users.
  2. Reinforcement learning is proving effective for tasks with clear outcomes, which could lead to better performance of AI models over time. As these models improve, we can expect more widespread use of AI.
  3. The journey to adopting AI takes time, but it's happening faster than past innovations like electricity or telephones. Today, a significant portion of people are regularly using AI tools.
82 implied HN points 10 Feb 25
  1. DeepSeek has introduced important new methods in AI training, making it more efficient and cost-effective. Major tech companies like Microsoft and Amazon are already using its models.
  2. The rapid sharing of ideas in AI means that any lead a company gains won't last long. As soon as one company finds something new, others quickly learn from it.
  3. Even though AI tools are becoming cheaper, total spending on AI will actually rise. This means more apps will be built, leading to increased overall use of AI technologies.
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82 implied HN points 30 Dec 24
  1. Databricks is growing faster than Snowflake, with a revenue growth rate of 57% compared to Snowflake's 27%. However, Snowflake remains more profitable at this point.
  2. Databricks is currently valued higher than Snowflake due to its strong growth potential and better positioning in the AI market. This could lead to a significant payoff for them in the long run.
  3. Snowflake and Databricks have different business strategies, with Snowflake focusing on profitability and Databricks investing heavily in growth and product development, especially in AI technologies.
56 implied HN points 22 Jan 25
  1. Having clear rules and structured frameworks helps AI work better. By defining specific inputs and outputs, AI can understand what to do more easily.
  2. Using well-organized and detailed data helps AI learn faster. The more context and reasoning behind data points, the better AI can make decisions.
  3. Measuring how well AI performs with clear goals and regular tests is important. This allows AI to keep improving and adapting to different situations.
63 implied HN points 08 Jan 25
  1. AI is getting better at solving problems during its reasoning process. This means we might see smarter AI that can think through complex issues and improve its answers.
  2. Multimodal AI, which handles different types of data like text, images, and videos, is on the rise. In 2025, we can expect more creative and useful applications that actually change how we work.
  3. AI agents, or smart systems that can work independently, are likely to become more common. This year, they might really start acting like human coworkers, helping businesses run more smoothly.
75 implied HN points 16 Dec 24
  1. Voice AI helps businesses automate customer interaction, making it easier to handle calls and inquiries. This saves time and cuts costs while providing support 24/7.
  2. Unstructured data parsing allows companies to turn messy, unorganized information into useful data. This helps employees work faster and more accurately by reducing the need for manual data entry.
  3. Verticalized search tools aid in focused research by retrieving relevant, domain-specific information. They are particularly useful in fields like law and finance where specific data is crucial for decision-making.
82 implied HN points 05 Dec 24
  1. ServiceTitan is a software company that helps tradespeople like plumbers and electricians run their businesses better. They provide tools for managing customer relationships and service workflows.
  2. The company has been growing quickly, with a revenue increase of 24% in the last year. They make money from subscriptions, payment processing fees, and professional services.
  3. ServiceTitan is preparing for an IPO and plans to manage investor concerns about profitability. They have strategies in place to handle potential valuation drops and minimize shareholder dilution.
63 implied HN points 04 Nov 24
  1. Amazon is making big strides in AI by providing tools for developers and creating custom chips. They are seeing huge interest in their AI services, which are growing fast despite lower profit margins.
  2. Google is using AI to improve its search capabilities and has rolled out new features to enhance user experience. Their AI models, called Gemini, are being adopted widely across their products and they are investing significantly in infrastructure.
  3. Apple has launched its AI system, Apple Intelligence, focusing on privacy and enhancing the user experience of their products. Although they're investing in AI, their spending is still lower compared to competitors, but they plan to increase their efforts.
63 implied HN points 28 Oct 24
  1. OpenAI's o-1 model shows that giving AI more time to think can really improve its reasoning skills. This means that performance can go up just by allowing the model to process information longer during use.
  2. The focus in AI development is shifting from just making models bigger to optimizing how they think at the time of use. This could save costs and make it easier to use AI in real-life situations.
  3. With better reasoning abilities, AI can tackle more complex problems. This gives it a chance to solve tasks that were previously too difficult, which might open up many new opportunities.
44 implied HN points 11 Nov 24
  1. Meta is focusing on open-source AI with the Llama models, claiming they are the most cost-effective and customizable option for developers. They are set to release even better versions soon.
  2. Microsoft’s AI business is booming, especially through their Azure Cloud, with expected revenue surpassing $10 billion. They are integrating AI across many of their products, driving impressive growth.
  3. Both companies are seeing success in using AI to enhance user engagement and advertising effectiveness. Meta has increased user time on their platforms, while Microsoft's AI tools are helping businesses save time and improve efficiency.
164 implied HN points 27 Feb 24
  1. Reddit boasts a massive user base with 500M monthly active users but faces challenges in user engagement and monetization compared to platforms like Facebook and Snap.
  2. In terms of revenue, Reddit earns primarily from advertising, making $804M in 2023, but needs to address its high R&D spending to achieve profitability.
  3. Reddit holds valuable conversational data with 1 billion posts and 16 billion comments, making it attractive in the AI market; however, it must also navigate potential challenges where AI models could replace users asking questions on the platform.
170 implied HN points 30 Dec 23
  1. Open-source AI models are catching up to GPT-4's performance.
  2. AI applications will expand beyond chat interfaces to include voice-first interfaces and generative interfaces.
  3. Expect an explosion in multimodal AI applications in 2024.
119 implied HN points 22 Feb 24
  1. AI is enhancing productivity and quality in knowledge work like software engineering and customer support.
  2. AI benefits are not uniform; it tends to help lower performers more, but can also assist top performers by reducing menial tasks.
  3. AI is not a cure-all; it has limitations and understanding when to use it is crucial for optimal results.
233 implied HN points 11 Jul 23
  1. Thoughtfully solve the cold start problem by implementing strategies like importing social graphs and pre-seeding content.
  2. Distribution is crucial for rapid growth - leverage existing user bases for quick awareness and adoption.
  3. Timing matters - launching your product at the right moment when competitors weaken can be strategic and impactful.
201 implied HN points 29 Aug 23
  1. Klaviyo is a marketing automation platform that helps retail and eCommerce businesses drive revenue growth through digital channels like email and SMS.
  2. Klaviyo has strong financial metrics, with $585M in revenue over 12 months, impressive retention rates, and profitability with 76% gross margins.
  3. The efficient growth model of Klaviyo, its ability to resonate with eCommerce businesses, and reliance on partnerships like Shopify have contributed to its success.
214 implied HN points 25 Jul 23
  1. Many platforms are moving towards closed ecosystems to retain users and monetize data.
  2. Communities have shifted from open forums to more private spaces, limiting accessibility and searchability.
  3. The rise of AI-generated content for search engines could harm the discoverability of genuinely useful content on the open web.
132 implied HN points 15 Nov 23
  1. OpenAI announced GPT-4 Turbo with longer context length, better cost, and improved function calling.
  2. OpenAI introduced multimodal capabilities in GPT-4 including image generation, speech-to-text, text-to-speech, and vision API.
  3. OpenAI unveiled the GPT Store allowing users to create and monetize custom mini GPTs, fostering indie entrepreneurship and potentially reshaping interface design.
100 implied HN points 30 Jan 24
  1. Elon Musk's leadership style involves intensity and high standards, pushing employees to their limits for groundbreaking achievements.
  2. Musk's "Algorithm" for product development includes questioning every requirement, deleting unnecessary parts, simplifying, optimizing, accelerating cycle time, and automating.
  3. Musk's problem-solving approach is based on first principles thinking, stripping down complex problems to fundamental truths.
145 implied HN points 06 Sep 23
  1. Instacart offers different products like an online grocery marketplace, an enterprise platform, and advertising services.
  2. The US grocery market has significant online growth potential, and Instacart is a major player in capturing that online market share.
  3. Instacart operates as a three-sided marketplace connecting retailers, customers, and shoppers, along with indirect involvement from CPG brands.
170 implied HN points 16 May 23
  1. Microsoft is making strides in Generative AI with Azure x OpenAI services and AI integration in various applications.
  2. Meta focuses on AI recommendations, new experiences, and an open approach to AI models and tools.
  3. Google aims to reimagine core products with AI, offering infrastructure, search enhancements, and AI-based applications.
189 implied HN points 06 Feb 23
  1. Microsoft is heavily investing in AI, integrating it into all apps like Teams Premium and Microsoft 365.
  2. Google is developing a ChatGPT alternative called Bard and enhancing Google Search with powerful language models.
  3. Meta is focusing on generative AI for end users, internal efficiency, and advertisers while Apple remains tight-lipped about its AI plans.