Alex Macdonald
@alexfmac
Founder & CEO - @joinsequel / Co-Founder Velocity Black (exited to Capital One)
Progress is a choice. Impossible is an opinion. The future belongs to optimists.
The investors who have ‘top decile’ performance in a venture vintage at 1 year, 5 years, 10 years and 20 years are typically very different.
Them: I pay $10m a year for the most advanced sourcing signals in venture. I know when an OpenAI engineer leaves their desk for the toilet for slightly too long. Me: cc @ArfurRock
‘It’s not that good soldiers become veterans… It’s that lucky soldiers become veterans… and veterans become good soldiers.’ Another gem from Charlie Songhurst 🤌🏽 Early startup success is simply about avoiding failure. Study failure.
Die with memories, not dreams. A great couple of days with 60 of Europe’s best founders at Camp Concept 🫡 Thank you Reece and the concept team for the invite p.s. the smartest founders don’t wait in line 😉 @paddy_dex
The peak of startup PR is no longer TechCrunch or Bloomberg. It is TBPN. Congratulations to the @slingshotai_inc team on the laugh today. I am a former cynic of therapy - who has been shown the light and converted following our investment a year ago. I’ve been using Ash as…
IN NEWS: @slingshotai_inc raises $93M for AI Therapy. We asked founders @neilparikh and @danielreidcahn about how they're reinventing therapy. "We're inventing a whole new modality of therapy. Crises might happen at 2 AM, right? Your therapist isn't going to answer the phone."…
I'm on TV!
"ChatGPT and Claude are not made for therapy. They're instruction following models. If you tell them you're upset, they'll give you three tips. Ash might ask you 'why is anger a bad thing?" @neilparikh @danielreidcahn on @tbpn talking about @AshAITherapy
NEW: Slingshot AI, a foundation model developer for psychology, raised $53M in a Series A extension (total $93M) to launch Ash—the first AI therapy chatbot. Trained on real sessions & 50+ modalities, Ash is now live on iOS/Android after 18 months of testing with 50K+ users.
Rare to see companies with the chance to impact a billion minds. Proud to be a part of the slingshot journey and a pleasure to work with the team on the launch video. 🤌🏽🚀
They said it couldn't be done. They said it *shouldn't* be done. We tried anyways. Today we're launching Ash, the first AI designed for therapy, and announcing $93M in funding from @radicalventures @ForerunnerVC @a16z @felicis @trailmixvc @joinsequel and many more. We've had…
We believe everyone can use a little help with their mental health. That doesn't mean everyone needs a label or a diagnosis. And it definitely doesn't mean its easy or possible to get the help people need. Introducing Ash, the first AI built for therapy.
In WW2 Hitler planned to drop millions of pounds of bank notes from Luftwaffe planes across Britain (£7.5b in today’s money). He knew it would lead to rampant inflation and destabilise the country. Nowadays we don’t need our enemies to do this - our own governments do.
Long Covid in many cases is vaccine injury. Diagnostic tests are coming to prove this. Then we will hold companies and governments accountable for their actions.
Always listen to the ‘experts’. They definitely do not have an agenda.
Our energy policy in the UK is a core driver of poverty and inequality.
It's fascinating how many environmentalists have become enthusiastic supporters of the two industries - wind and solar - that do most to reward the rich at the expense of the poor. You can be worried about climate without loving wind and solar eyesores.
I’ve been cheating on my iPhone with the Nothing phone the past couple of days (using both at the same time.) I think the Nothing hardware is objectively better, both functionally and aesthetically (more buttons, touch to unlock). Still getting used to android software…
What’s the easiest way to transition from iOS to Android? My iPhone era, after 18 years is coming to a close.
Reminder: all we need to do is build more.
As ever, Gary is wrong. Housing is so expensive because supply has failed to keep up with demand - especially in major towns and cities due to the restrictive planning system. Rich people aren't to blame. It's the government.
One reason I will likely never buy a modern / connected car with software updates: I fear in situations like another epidemic the govt could force car companies to limit their range or use at all. And freedom will be lost. Old school ICE for me all the way.
If I could travel back in time 20 years I would make myself listen to: ‘@naval : how to get rich’ as an entrepreneur + ‘Charlie Songhurst w/ @patrick_oshag’ on angel / venture investing I try to listen to both of these every year now.
The higher education bubble is starting to pop 🎈💥 I am excited for the talent unlock this will bring the world.
Male college grads are now just as likely to be unemployed as people who never went to college Same is not true for women, who are much more likely to land a job once they graduate college The data is just eye opening. We are leaving young men behind like never before
I can imagine similar vigilante security groups emerging in other parts of the country.
Announcing my private security pilot for Bedford Town Centre - - - - - - - - - - - Starting this August, I’m personally funding a pilot project to provide private security in Bedford. Every Saturday, 10 guards will patrol the town centre and oversee safe parking at Lurke…
Prompting is for losers. The future of consumer AI is prompt-less. A prompt window is a portal to unlimited possibility but also it creates a tyranny of choice. Consumer AI will be proactive. It will not wait for a prompt. In order for it to do this - it will need access…