About this episode
Today’s show: Startup exits are heating up with $67.7B in Q2 activity, QSBS just got a major expansion, and Robinhood is pushing boundaries with tokenized SPVs. In this episode, @Jason and @alex break down what it all means for founders and investors, plus the rise of Elon’s “America Party,” TikTok’s potential reboot, and why SaaS startups must rebrand around AI to stay competitive. A must-watch for anyone building, investing, or navigating tech in 2025. Timestamps: (04:29) Jason’s thoughts on Elon Musk’s America Party (10:05) Oracle - Try OCI and save up to 50% on your cloud bill at https://www.oracle.com/twist (15:02) M&A keeps heating up and why a big fintech IPO could be on the way! (20:00) OpenPhone - Streamline and scale your customer communications with OpenPhone. Get 20% off your first 6 months at https://www.openphone.com/twist (26:32) Unpacking liquidation preferences for non-experts (29:11) AI companies are soaking up the majority of investment dollars but what does that really MEAN? (30:02) MonarchMoney - Get 50% off your first year by going to MonarchMoney.com and using the offer code TWiST (36:26) Why Jason’s group chat will love the QSBS expansion but it’s not really that big of a deal… (46:27) TikTok seems poised to make a deal… Why Jason thinks they do pose a national security threat. (59:22) Why is CoreWeave picking up Core Scientific, and is now a good time to sell your shares? Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com Check out the TWIST500: https://www.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: (10:05) Oracle - Try OCI and save up to 50% on your cloud bill at https://www.oracle.com/twist (20:00) OpenPhone - Streamline and scale your customer communications with OpenPhone. Get 20% off your first 6 months at https://www.openphone.com/twist (30:02) MonarchMoney - Get 50% off your first year by going to MonarchMoney.com and using the offer code TWiST. Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe , Steve Huffman , Brian Chesky , Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie , Sophia Amoruso , Reid Hoffman , Frank Slootman , Billy McFarland Check out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis Follow TWiST: Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartups YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartups Substack: https://twistartups.substack.com Subscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916