Research questions, answered

Which industrial and 'real economy' categories — automation, aerospace & defense, power equipment, and shipping — are experts most and least constructive on heading into 2026?

Experts are most constructive on sectors directly enabling the artificial intelligence buildout, particularly automation-related capital goods and power equipment. A fierce competi

What are experts saying about the outlook for China and emerging-market internet and consumption in 2026 and beyond?

The consensus outlook for China's economy in 2026 is one of continuity, characterized by a fundamental disconnect between rhetoric and policy regarding domestic consumption [2, 18]

What are experts saying about the outlook for China and emerging-market internet and consumption — and where global investor sentiment for 2026?

Analysts project a continued disconnect between rhetoric and reality in China's economic policy for 2026, creating a challenging outlook for domestic consumption . While leadership

What are experts saying about the outlook for China and emerging-market internet and consumption — and where global investor sentiment is heading into 2026?

Analysts project a challenging outlook for China's domestic consumption into 2026, driven by a fundamental disconnect between government rhetoric and policy action . While Chinese

What are experts saying about how long the AI compute build-out can run — where demand for chips, networking, and data-center hardware is headed, and which layers face the most oversupply risk?

The AI compute build-out is widely viewed as a sustained, multi-year cycle, with some experts predicting the underlying supply-demand imbalance for key hardware will persist for a

What are experts saying about how AI and data-center power demand reshapes utilities, power, and the industrial supply chain over the next 2–5 years?

The surge in artificial intelligence is triggering an unprecedented electricity demand shock, ending two decades of stagnant energy growth in the United States [3, 15, 25]. Project

What are experts saying the 'future of payments' will look like, and which players are leading this change in Fintech?

The future of payments is being reshaped by the parallel rise of new financial infrastructure and artificial intelligence. Stablecoins are achieving significant scale, with transac

What are experts saying the 'future of payments' will look like in an AI-focused world?

Experts predict a fundamental restructuring of commerce and payments driven by AI agents that autonomously execute transactions on behalf of users . This shift to an "agentic econo

Which fintech and financial categories are showing the strongest signals of durable growth in 2026 — and what are experts saying the 'future of payments' looks like?

The fintech industry is entering a period of maturation and strategic reorientation following a dramatic venture capital cycle [1, 15]. Investment focus is pivoting away from high-

What are experts saying on what the next 2–5 years of GLP-1s and obesity drugs mean for med-tech, devices, and hospital volumes?

The widespread adoption of GLP-1 agonists presents a complex and uncertain outlook for medical device procedure volumes and hospital utilization over the next five years. While the

What are experts saying about the health of the consumer into 2026, and which consumer and commerce categories are showing the strongest versus weakest demand signals?

Analysts project a bifurcated consumer landscape for 2026, with overall retail sector growth masking underlying financial strain for certain demographics. While the U.S. retail ind

"Which software and AI categories are building the most durable moats — and which are most at risk of being absorbed by the hyperscalers and foundation-model providers over the next 18 months?"

The fundamental nature of software moats is being re-evaluated, with a consensus that while artificial intelligence is a powerful tool for differentiation, it is not a durable moat

What are the most and least promising categories to invest in, within branded consumer and digital media?

A broad consensus among executives and investors indicates a strategic shift away from diversified consumer conglomerates and toward specialized, "category killer" business models

What are the factors that lead to success vs. failure for companies in the bridge between seed and Series A?

Successfully navigating the bridge from seed to Series A hinges critically on achieving investor consensus, which is often signaled by the caliber of the firm leading the next roun

Who do experts think will IPO first between OpenAI and Anthropic?

What is Mercor's interview process? Did the CEO mention how they do Super Days?

The provided research materials do not contain specific details regarding Mercor's internal interview process for its own employees, nor is there any mention by CEO Brendan Foody o

Real Returns

Recent performance in traditional public markets has been challenging for investors seeking real returns. Over the last decade, the Bloomberg Aggregate Index produced absolute annu

What are experts saying on what spatial computing looks like in the next 2-5 years?

Within the next two to five years, the spatial computing landscape will be defined by a race to establish a dominant hardware form factor and a symbiotic relationship with artifici

What are the most and least promising categories to invest in, within manufacturing automation and hardware?

A new hardware revolution is underway, driven by the convergence of physical AI, robotics, and geopolitical imperatives to re-industrialize the U.S. manufacturing base for defense

What are the factors that lead to success for European deep-tech founders that are focused on winning globally?

European deep-tech founders aiming for global success must navigate a landscape of structural disadvantages while capitalizing on emerging geopolitical and technical opportunities.

What are the factors that lead to success for European consumer founders building today?

European consumer founders operate within a complex ecosystem marked by both structural disadvantages and unique competitive advantages. The region is criticized for a fragmented a

What are the factors that lead to success for European fintech founders that are focused on winning across the EU?

Success for European fintech founders hinges on navigating a paradoxical regulatory environment that is both a unique advantage and a significant hurdle. The ability to secure a li

What are the most and least promising categories to invest in, within seed-stage AI SaaS?

A primary strategic division has emerged in AI SaaS investing, separating the infrastructure and application layers. The infrastructure layer, encompassing data platforms and found

What are the factors that lead to success vs. failure for studio-built startups?

A significant factor in startup failure, particularly in the artificial intelligence sector, is the gap between demonstration and production-ready reliability. A predicted "mass ex

consumer wellness and longevity space

A fundamental shift is underway in consumer behavior, moving from a reactive "sick care" system to a proactive pursuit of wellness and longevity [6, 18, 24]. This trend, accelerate

What are the factors that lead to success for cybersecurity software?

The cybersecurity market presents a paradoxical landscape of immense opportunity and exceedingly low success rates. The sector is poised for massive growth, with some predicting a

Which contrarian consumer markets do VCs feel are the most interesting to invest in today, and which are the hardest?

Venture capitalists identify consumer internet as a significant contrarian opportunity, created by a widespread investor pivot towards AI and SaaS [3, 6]. This shift has resulted i

What are experts saying on what 'future of work' looks like for B2B and B2C in the next 2-5 years?

Over the next two to five years, the future of work will be defined by the integration of autonomous AI agents, or "digital labor," into core business operations [5, 12, 21]. This

What are experts saying on what the future of seed technology investing looks like?

The seed technology investing landscape is undergoing a structural transformation characterized by commoditization and strategic divergence . The number of funds writing sub-$1 mil

What are investors describing as the criteria for 'category-creating' software?

Investors are defining category-creating software by its ability to perform entire jobs, rather than merely enhancing human productivity [5, 8]. This represents a fundamental shift

What are the factors that lead to success for female founders building consumer tech companies?

Successful female founders in consumer technology emphasize building a superior business model over purely technological innovation . Michelle Zatlyn of Cloudflare argues that whil

What are experts saying on what the future of gaming looks like in the next 2-5 years?

Experts anticipate that artificial intelligence will fundamentally reshape game content and development within the next five years. Tim Sweeney predicts that a compelling simulatio

What are experts saying on what data platforms look like in the next 2-5 years?

Experts anticipate a fundamental shift in data platforms over the next two to five years, evolving from passive "systems of intelligence" to active "systems of action" driven by AI

What are the biggest market trends affecting IT Ops Software?

The IT operations software market is undergoing a fundamental paradigm shift driven by artificial intelligence, which is now considered a fourth pillar of infrastructure alongside

What are the factors that lead to success for PLG dev tool founders moving into enterprise?

Successfully transitioning a product-led growth (PLG) developer tool to an enterprise sales motion requires layering a sophisticated sales function on top of a strong bottoms-up ad

What are experts saying on what enterprise AI looks like in the next 2-5 years?

Experts project that enterprise AI adoption is proceeding at a pace **5 to 7 years faster** than the cloud computing transition, bypassing the typical early resistance phase [2, 12

What are the most and least promising categories to invest in, within vertical SaaS?

The vertical SaaS landscape is undergoing a significant re-evaluation driven by the advent of generative AI and a sharp downturn in investor sentiment. The market narrative of a "S

What are the factors that lead to success for LatAm fintech founders that are focused on winning & succeeding in cross-border markets?

Successful Latin American fintech founders targeting cross-border markets employ an aggressive go-to-market strategy that challenges conventional wisdom . Rather than sequential ex

What are experts saying on what modern enterprise data infrastructure looks like in the next 2-5 years?

Experts predict that artificial intelligence will fundamentally reshape enterprise data infrastructure over the next five years, rendering the entire computing stack, from hardware

What do analysts say about the future of interest rates and monetary policy?

Analysts observe a significant hawkish pivot in Federal Reserve policy, driven by a deep internal division within the FOMC [4, 8]. The committee's recent decision to hold rates ste

What are experts saying on what 'meaningful work' looks like for people in the next 2-5 years?

Experts anticipate a fundamental "reconstitution of the workforce" over the next three to five years, driven by a new balance between human and digital labor [20, 27]. There is sig

What are VCs saying about fintech banks (e.g., Mercury, Nubank)

Venture capitalists view the maturation of fintech banks as a fundamental shift in the financial services landscape, moving beyond niche products to directly challenge incumbents [

What are experts saying on what computer vision and visual AI looks like in the next 2-5 years?

Experts anticipate the next two to five years in computer vision will be defined by a push beyond generative content toward a deeper understanding of the physical world. Dr. Fei-Fe

What are the most interesting startups building, based in Los Angeles?

The Los Angeles technology ecosystem has achieved significant scale, with companies in the region creating approximately **$450 billion in enterprise value** during the last major

What are the factors that lead to success for LA-based founders building data and AI software?

Successful data and AI software ventures are built not on the commoditized model layer, but on proprietary data and deep workflow integration [1, 2]. Defensibility is achieved by c

What actions have the top AI infra & application startups taken to stay ahead in the AI market?

Top AI startups are navigating a market defined by the central tension between vertical integration by foundation model providers and the pursuit of defensible application-layer mo

What activities are the top AI application and infrastructure startups doing to stay ahead?

Leading AI startups are navigating a rapidly consolidating market by building deep, defensible moats that are increasingly independent of the underlying foundation models. A primar

Richard thaler

Richard Thaler's work in behavioral economics is founded on the principle that human economic behavior deviates from classical models of rationality in predictable ways . Core find

Is Veeva's moat eroding from healthcare AI startups?

The defensibility of incumbent healthcare software providers is rooted less in pure technology and more in their deep integration into the industry's operational and regulatory com

Quotes from Sam Altman on AGI timelines

Sam Altman characterizes the arrival of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) as a continuous process rather than a sudden, disruptive event, suggesting society will adapt more rea

Where do VCs and economists disagree about Fed policy?

A core disagreement between venture capitalists and economists on Federal Reserve policy centers on the anticipated economic impact of artificial intelligence. VCs and technology e

Enterprise AI

Despite a significant shift from proofs-of-concept to production deployments in critical sectors like banking and healthcare [17, 21], enterprise AI adoption faces a stark reality

What are people saying about AI's threat to SaaS pricing?

A consensus is forming that AI poses a significant threat to traditional SaaS pricing, particularly the per-seat, per-month model [3, 9]. This model is seen as a strategic vulnerab

Automation and AI: Masters in Business with the CEO of Honeywell

Honeywell is undergoing a significant strategic de-conglomeration, splitting into three specialized public companies: a pure-play automation firm, an aerospace business, and a spec

How does Dario Amodei's view of AI scaling compare to what other CEOs predict?

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei posits an aggressive timeline for AI scaling, driven by a Moore's Law-like dynamic for intelligence itself, where a model's cognitive ability is **doubli

i am looking to extract some quotes from the recent invest like the best podcast with the cfo of anthropic. Can you help with that?

Anthropic's strategy is defined by extreme capital intensity and exponential growth, positioning it as a key player in a market where access to compute is a primary prerequisite fo

What are the factors that lead to success for creator-economy infrastructure startups?

Successful creator-economy infrastructure startups often employ a "come for the tool, stay for the network" strategy to overcome the cold-start problem [1, 15]. This involves first

Which markets outside SF and NYC do VCs feel are the most interesting to invest in today?

Venture capitalists are engaged in a significant debate regarding geographic investment strategy, with a strong contingent arguing for the continued, and even increasing, dominance

What are the most and least promising categories to invest in, within developer tools and infrastructure?

The current investment landscape for developer tools and infrastructure is being reshaped by artificial intelligence, which is framed as a new, fourth pillar of infrastructure alon

What are the most and least promising categories to invest in, within climate-adjacent consumer?

Investment opportunities in climate-adjacent consumer sectors are shifting from direct renewables to enabling technologies and adaptation solutions, particularly in emerging market