Yelp’s AI Can Now Take Reservations over the Phone
Yelp launched two AI voice agents—Yelp Host for restaurants and Yelp Receptionist for broader businesses—that can answer calls, take and modify reservations, provide wait times, capture special requests, send menu links, and handle lead qualification and scheduling. Host is priced from $149/month (or $99/month for Yelp Guest Manager customers) and will add direct Yelp Waitlist integration soon; Receptionist starts at $99/month for eligible businesses with wider rollout planned. The tools, pre-trained on Yelp business data and available 24/7, aim to help understaffed local businesses automate customer interactions and streamline operations amid a broader industry shift toward vocal AI assistants.
Follow a 14‑Day PLG Roadmap to $10M ARR
Most product-led companies will never get to $10M+ ARR. But the ones that do have one thing in common. Their products sell themselves. Their conversion rates are dialed in. Their growth compounds month after month. Most importantly, they’re the obvious...
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Rob Walling and Laura Sprinkle recap MicroConf Europe 2025 in Istanbul, describing the friendly, diverse crowd and the value of off‑stage networking and excursions. They highlight standout sessions on AI, lifecycle marketing, affiliate programs, and scaling SaaS to $2M ARR,...
How to Brace Your Business Infrastructure for the Impact of ChatGPT-5
OpenAI’s ChatGPT‑5 advances to ‘PhD‑level’ reasoning with a unified model and a one‑million‑token context window, enabling enterprises to process larger datasets, automate multi‑step workflows and extract richer insights. Those gains come with heavy infrastructure demands—heightened bandwidth, compute and latency sensitivity—that...
Vision Action Models Accelerate Real‑Time AI Video and Robotics
AI video is doing same as Tesla Self Driving: upgrading quickly. The robotics entrepreneurs in San Francisco told me about VLAs today. Vision Action Models. The AI can now understand the world in real time. Important for robotics. And same kind of...
Serverless Python Hits 250 MB Limit, Trim Dependencies
CURRENT STATUS: Pushing up against the Vercel 250M size limit on a serverless Python function (in my case, app.py for a Flask app). This used to be a 50M limit (which is why I hosted my Python apps elsewhere). When...
Building AI-Ready Cultures in Life Sciences R&D - with Xiong Liu of Novartis
In this episode of the AI in Business podcast, Xiong Liu, Director of Data Science and AI at Novartis, discusses how generative AI and foundation models are reshaping life‑sciences R&D, from clinical workflows to collaborative research. He emphasizes the need...
AI’s Financial Blind Spot: Why Long-Term Success Depends on Cost Transparency
Businesses are racing to deploy AI but lack of cost transparency risks turning promising projects into expensive failures, argues Apptio. With 68% of tech leaders planning bigger AI budgets and 39% expecting AI to drive future budget growth—despite an average...
Launching Professional Image Generation Agent – Stay Tuned
Happy Diwali! Note: I'm working on a new image generation agent built for professionals/businesses. Still early, but stay tuned.
The Unexpected Benefits of AI PCs: Why Creativity Could Be the New Productivity
New research and industry data position AI-enabled PCs—laptops with on-device neural processing—as catalysts for creativity-driven productivity, with MIT Sloan and HP-backed findings showing generative AI can enhance human creativity when workers have the right tools. Early adopters report measurable gains:...
OpenAI Announces ChatGPT Atlas, an AI-Enabled Web Browser to Challenge Google Chrome
OpenAI launched ChatGPT Atlas, an AI-enabled web browser now available on macOS with Windows, iOS and Android support coming soon, and CEO Sam Altman set to formally unveil it in a livestream. Atlas positions OpenAI to challenge Google Chrome and...
AI Voice Boosts Ecommerce Revenue, Solving Phone Conversion Gap
Proud @saastrfund is joining the round for @Consio_AI and the team building the AI voice layer for ecommerce!! Here's why we invested: 1⃣The Obvious Problem: Phone Converts Better Every ecommerce brand knows phone calls convert 3-5x better than web. But staffing a phone...
Why an AGI Delay Doesn't Mean an AI Bubble
Nathaniel Whittemore argues that a slowdown in achieving artificial general intelligence does not signal an AI bubble, pointing to concrete industry shifts that show AI’s transformative impact. He draws on consulting trends—lower delivery costs, evolving client expectations, and the rise...
Optimize Your Content for LLMs and AI
What is #LLMO? Optimize content for AI & large language models! https://t.co/6Jdoo8FXds #LLMs #LLM #genai #GenerativeAI #AI #artificial_intelligence #SEO #searchengine @SpirosMargaris @PawlowskiMario @mvollmer1 @gvalan @ipfconline1 @LaurentAlaus @Shi4Tech @Fisher85M @kalydeoo @Ym78200 @Nicochan33 @chboursin @3itcom @Fabriziobustama @sallyeaves @helene_wpli @ahier @rwang0 @EvanKirstel @RLDI_Lamy @Analytics_699 @Khulood_Almani...
AI-Driven VC Matchmaking for Fundable Startups Only
We’re launching something different at SaaStr AI. VC Matchmaking that actually works. Because most founders are pitching the wrong VCs. Or pitching before they’re ready. Join the waitlist → https://t.co/x5NqYcTMbt Here’s how it works: 1️⃣: You upload your pitch Real revenue. Real metrics. Real traction....
Bryan Cranston and SAG-AFTRA Say OpenAI Is Taking Their Deepfake Concerns Seriously
Bryan Cranston, OpenAI, SAG-AFTRA and major talent agencies issued a joint statement saying OpenAI has “strengthened guardrails” around Sora 2 after unauthorized deepfakes of Cranston—including a viral image of him taking a selfie with Michael Jackson—appeared on the app. OpenAI...
Payment Processing Revenue Can Count as ARR When Predictable
Tech CFOs have been asking a great question lately. Can payment processing revenue be counted as ARR? Let's break it down. When your SaaS or AI platform allows customers to transact (e.g., collect payments) and you receive a percentage of...
Invest in Higher CAC on Meta to Unlock Scale
PSA: Pay the highest CaC possible on Meta. The higher the CaC you can afford you to pay the more scale you'll achieve. Growth comes from a majority of things happening OUTSIDE of the ad account.
Unlock the Power of Images with AI Sheets
Hugging Face updated its open‑source AI Sheets tool to add full vision support, letting users view, extract, analyze, generate and edit images directly inside spreadsheets using thousands of open models via Inference Providers. The release enables tasks from receipt line‑item...
Launch of SuperMe: My AI Persona Powered by Pinterest Experience
For years, I've loved writing and talking about building enduring social products, marketplaces, and AI, not to mention the lessons learned from building at Pinterest. You've asked questions, debated ideas, and pushed me to unpack complex frameworks. Now, I'm playing...
Elsevier Pioneers Decade-Long Responsible AI for Research
Elsevier has been using artificial intelligence responsibly for more than a decade to develop innovative solutions that support researchers, research decision-makers and their institutions. https://t.co/eZ56HGkCmR #AI #Research #Elsevier #ResponsibleAI
Supercharge Your OCR Pipelines with Open Models
A new practical guide maps the rapidly evolving landscape of open‑weight vision‑language OCR models, explaining when to fine‑tune versus use off‑the‑shelf models and how to move beyond basic transcription to multimodal retrieval and document QA. It compares leading open models...
Should Payment Processing Revenue Count Toward ARR?
Can I count payment processing revenue as ARR? The next edition of the SaaS Metrics School podcast drops at 5am PT on Tuesday. https://t.co/a1PSYVb3ph https://t.co/2XzN1uUI1O
Tesla's Self-Driving Beats Waymo, Headlights Upgrade
Holy shit. @tesla Self Driving. Wow. @WholeMarsBlog was right. Even the matrix headlights improved. Waymo is way inferior. https://t.co/FpdBKQlpMB
AI Infrastructure with Flex AI CEO Brijesh Tripathi
The post surveys recent AI‑infrastructure news and interviews, highlighting Amazon’s lawsuit against Perplexity, OpenAI’s $38 billion AWS partnership, Nvidia’s $5 trillion valuation, and emerging AI applications from enterprise workflow to defense and digital legacy. It underscores how shifting cloud alliances, regulatory scrutiny,...
Deploying 20+ AI Agents: Playbook, Lessons, Brutal Truths
A deep dive into the playbook, lessons learned, and brutal truths about deploying 20+ AI agents into production — that actually work. During Dreamforce Jason (CEO) and Amelia (Chief AI Officer) at SaaStr dropped by Qualified’s office for a deep...
DeepSeek OCR: Beyond Text Extraction with AI
DeepSeek OCR, More Than OCR! https://t.co/pIoCgsugxO #OCR #deepseek #deepseekocr #LLMs #genai #AI #GenerativeAI #artificial_intelligence @AlbertoEMachado @Eli_Krumova @postoff25 @Khulood_Almani @anand_narang @NutritiousMind @baski_LA @TanyaSinha_ @devaang @AlAmadi1 @jeancayeux @enilev @efipm @mvollmer1 @Nicochan33 @RagusoSergio @FrRonconi @Shi4Tech @sallyeaves @LaurentAlaus @Fabriziobustama @smaksked @MargaretSiegien @PawlowskiMario @gvalan @Ym78200 @mikeflache...
This Week in Saas Oct 13 - 20, 2025
The post recaps the week’s major SaaS activity, highlighting a wave of large AI‑focused funding rounds—from Deel’s $300M Series E to LangChain’s $125M Series B—alongside notable M&A deals such as Capgemini’s $3.3B acquisition of WNS and Ripple’s $1B purchase of GTreasury. It...
Describe Changes in English, Get Instant Mock-Ups
⌛️Tired of telling your designer what changes you want ... and waiting? 😠 Or your dev team never quite understanding what you want the site to really look like? Just vibe it. Tell @alloy_app what changes you want made to your...
What Factors Are Driving B2B Marketing’s AI Adoption?
Forrester’s survey of over 1,000 B2B marketing leaders finds AI adoption has moved well beyond exploration, with many organizations actively experimenting or deploying AI across marketing use cases. Top decile “leading adopters” distinguish themselves by close CMO–CIO partnerships, stronger data‑driven...
Nicholas Thompson, CEO of The Atlantic, on Leading The Atlantic Through the “AI Hurricane Coming Through”
In a recent episode of the *In AI We Trust?* podcast, EqualAI CEO Miriam Vogel interviews Nicholas Thompson, CEO of *The Atlantic*, about navigating the looming "AI hurricane" and the evolving role of journalists in AI literacy. Thompson outlines his...
Why SaaStr AI London 2025 Is Where You Learn AI + GTM From The People Actually Doing It. At...
SaaStr AI London 2025 (Dec. 1–2 at Park Plaza Westminster Bridge) positions itself as a hands‑on conference for B2B leaders to learn AI‑powered go‑to‑market playbooks directly from operators—over 100 speakers including OpenAI, Intercom, Databricks and Wiz are slated to present....
GPT‑6 Unlikely This Year; GPT‑5 Will Redefine Interaction
GPT-6 by the end of the year? "And honestly, I don't think it's going to be happening. It would be very weird to have this massive launch GPT5 really a fundamental shift in the way users interact with chat GPT...
New Paper Defines AGI by Human‑Level Cognitive Versatility
What even is AGI anymore? A new paper attempts to define it. "So our definition of AGI is an AI that can match or exceed the cognitive versatility and proficiency of a well-educated adult. To measure this, we assess multiple...
Most SaaS Startups Need 2‑5 Years to Hit $1M ARR
Kyle Poyar just analyzed new data from 6,525 SaaS startups and it's WILD. Only 3.3% reach $1 million ARR in less than a year from first revenue. And just 1-in-1000 reach $10 million in less than a year!! Thats not...
Scaling AI: Strategies for Building Intelligent Systems
How do you build AI systems that scale? On Nov 12 in SF, I’ll host Calvin French-Owen (Co-founder & former CTO @Segment, led @OpenAI's Codex launch) for a Theory Ventures Office Hours conversation on scaling intelligent systems. We’ll dig into: ⚙️ Building...
Make Your Site Agent-Ready with Structured Data
🤖 Your website looks great — too bad robots can’t read it AI agents buy and recommend based on structured, trusted, real-time data, not pretty pixels. Check out how some tips on how to get your site agent-ready: #AI #DataLayer...
Aim for a 3‑6 Month Transaction Timeline
How long should a transaction process last? Though there can be significant variance, a well-structured transaction process typically takes 3-6 months. From when you officially start marketing the business to when you close the deal, 3-6 months should give you...
Login Searches Reveal Hidden Growth Signals in Brand Data
Not all brand search is related to buyer interest, but also contains search from customers, potential employees, etc, and trends in that data might tell us a lot about how the category and brand are performing. For example, in a...
AI Proficiency Requires Trainable Mindset, Not Just Technical Skill
Most leaders assume technical competence = AI proficiency. Wrong - it's a separate, trainable skill that needs explicit development across the org. And some people are primed for that mindset. Our AI courses have trained hundreds of thousands of business professionals...
Stop Micro‑optimizing LinkedIn; Focus on Real Value Creation
"What's the best time to post to LinkedIn? And should you edit a post after you publish it?" Been thinking a lot about how so many entrepreneurs and creators focus on the wrong things: things that only matter if you...
Text Diffusion: Simple Bi‑Directional Transformer Beats Autoregression
Nice, short post illustrating how simple text (discrete) diffusion can be. Diffusion (i.e. parallel, iterated denoising, top) is the pervasive generative paradigm in image/video, but autoregression (i.e. go left to right bottom) is the dominant paradigm in text. For audio I've...
We Just Nuked Our Entire AWS Account After Migrations
I swear we didn't plan this, but just today, we finally NUKED our entire AWS account at the 37signals company meetup! This followed moving out compute+dbs in 2023, then S3 this summer, and now finally the entire account is GONE...
Veo 3.1 Dominates Leaderboards with Massive Performance Gains
Awesome to see Veo 3.1 top the LMArena video leaderboards by a large distance with big improvements over Veo 3.0 for text-to-video (+30) and image-to-video (+70)! 🔥Huge congrats to the team! Try it for yourself in https://t.co/QgTpxTL8DQ and the @GeminiApp
Differentiating B2B Brands in an AI‑Saturated Landscape
When every marketer has AI in their toolbox, how will any B2B brand stand out? Get the answer from this post co-created with 14 top marketing pros from the B2B marketing community https://t.co/Q5cv8ECkh0 via @toprank b2b marketing blog https://t.co/D3YmObQEpt
Stop SaaS Sales Leaks: 5 Revenue‑Saving Fixes
5 reasons your SaaS sales process is bleeding revenue (and how to stop it).
Fuel Your OODA Loop for AI-Driven Competition
Quick insights on OODAcon and how we will help add jet fuel to your OODA Loop, with @junaidislam. Bottom line: This is about ensuring you are ready to orient yourself to compete and win in the new AI enabled world....
AI Bridges Agencies, Publishers, and Brands for Smarter Collaboration
"AI doesn’t replace publishers, brands or agencies, but it can connect them more intelligently. Collaboration is key. Agencies bring strategy. Publishers offer premium environments. Brands drive creative. And AI acts as the bridge between them."
AI Tools Multiply Productivity, Making Users Tenfold More Valuable
ClickFlow (my internal AI-powered SEO tool) used to save 20 hours per person each month, now it saves 55 hours. Those who master and implement AI tools, agents, and workflows aren’t 10% better, they’re 10× more valuable. And those who don’t will...
AI Isn't a Bubble, Unlike the Dot‑Com Era
this time last year post-@stateofaireport we heard lots of “is ai a bubble” chatter, just like we do today we wrote a piece on @airstreetpress arguing that ai is not like the dot com thinking of writing up a v2...
