New Delhi:- Tech veteran Chris Messina and writer/podcaster Brian McCullough are launching a new $15 million fund for AI startups. Backers include tech investors and founders like Marc Andreessen, Chris Dixon and Dennis Crowley, all of whom are personally invested.

McCullough has been running his Ride Home Foundation for two years now, a fund that comes from his hosting of the Techmeme Ride Home podcast. Messina, the former head of Google, Uber and the former founder of an artificial intelligence startup, is also known as the inventor of the hashtag. He is also the #1 product hunter on Product Hunt, which makes his ability to promote products quite unique. Over email, McCullough told me:

"Not only did our inflows and trades go to 90% AI, but Chris was like:

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"The people who are off the bench right now are the people who haven't been in crypto, haven't been in web3, but they're getting there right now and they're the people you're going to invest in regardless. what they do. Then, by definition."

He added that due to layoffs across all tech platforms, college graduates are no longer getting job offers from big tech companies, so they're splashing out on jobs. quick checks of $100,000 to $500,000 to "go with this idea of ​​AI," he said. speak.

“It was the best talent from the previous generation and the best talent from this generation pulling the trigger at the same time. It was almost a perfect storm situation,” he added.

The fund plans to be the first to apply for seed or seed money and deploy its full capital within the next 12-18 months. The 506c fund and fundraising will end on October 31. As a 506c fund, any accredited investor can become an LP, as long as they can accumulate the required minimum amount of $100,000.

Messina has finally jumped to the VC side of the table after becoming a prolific angel investor.

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In an email interview, I asked Messina how would investors avoid the pitfalls of the current wave of AI hype that could drag them into overvalued companies?

"We believe this is a generational reset in the way people use technology. With my experience building social networks, I now see a shift similar to what I saw back in the day. 2005," he said. “Innovative AI is changing the way software is created and used, beyond what the iPhone started 16 years ago.

This is leading to next-generation software companies like Airbnb and Uber (where I work), adopting new technological capabilities (GPS, payments, notifications) to change the way people understand and coordinate transportation. transportation and housing.

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"We're also optimistic that the companies we're currently investing in will similarly lead the way in redefining calcified industries. We're investing in the general production of AI by people. founders have tactical knowledge of vertical spaces like compliance or self-correction (yes, we've already written the checks), he added.

However, given that the biggest players in AI - the underlying platforms - are just as big, what will allow smaller startups to compete with these giants?

He told me: “The opportunities that we invest in are too small and relevant for the big companies to focus on. “They create general-purpose platforms that, by definition, cannot be trained too sophisticatedly on a particular application space.

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Additionally, designing the best experiences with generalized AI requires in-depth knowledge and empathy with customers in specific industries – something big tech companies often lack (again, which I can discuss after working at Google). It's just that they can't move fast enough with products that are fashionable enough to capture the markets that we believe have an opportunity to capture," he said.