Personal branding for founders – AI tools and the secret to raising capital and growing fast

Hi ,

AI for Founders is now live here, on Apple Podcast. I’d really appreciate a follow and review. The show is in its infancy, but I have some really cool interviews coming soon.

I’m beginning the Scaling Founder Series with the workshop Personal Branding for Reluctant Founders, on Thursday at 1pm mst. It’s a 20 minute session. I would love to see you there. You can RSVP here on Linkedin to attend or just get the replay. It will be packed with actionable steps founders can take to add revenue and funding ops for their business. Short, direct, and 6+ tool recos. Good times.

let’s dive in…

Tip of the spear:

Trump announces US crypto reserve LINK

• President Donald Trump has expressed his support for a federal reserve of cryptocurrency assets, highlighting XRP, Solana, and Cardano, but excluding Bitcoin and Ethereum.

• In January, Trump issued an executive order to establish a working group to explore crypto policy, including creating a national digital asset stockpile potentially from lawfully seized cryptocurrencies.

• Following Trump's announcement, the prices of XRP, Solana, and Cardano surged by over 20%, reflecting market optimism towards the potential establishment of a U.S. Crypto Reserve.

T-Mobile and Perplexity announce new AI phone LINK

• T-Mobile is collaborating with Perplexity and other companies to develop an "AI Phone," priced under $1,000, with plans to launch it in 2026, incorporating a new AI assistant app called "Magenta AI."

• Perplexity is transitioning from providing answers to performing actions, enabling the phone to book flights, send emails, and make reservations, signaling its shift towards creating proactive AI products.

• The phone will feature AI integrations from Google Cloud, ElevenLabs, and Picsart, while Magenta AI will also be accessible on existing Android and iOS devices for T-Mobile's 300 million customers.

OpenAI unveils GPT-4.5 LINK

• OpenAI has launched GPT-4.5, its latest large language model, available to ChatGPT Pro subscribers and developers through paid API tiers, with plans to expand access to lower tiers next week.

• GPT-4.5 offers improved natural conversations, emotional intelligence, and fewer hallucinations compared to previous models, but lacks multimodal features like voice and video, which may be added later.

• The release has sparked debate regarding its cost-effectiveness and performance, with mixed reactions on social media about its computational efficiency and benchmark results compared to other models.

Amazon unveils its first quantum computing chip LINK

• Amazon introduced its first quantum computing chip, named 'Ocelot', which features a scalable design and significantly reduces the cost of error correction by up to 90%.

• The Ocelot chip is a significant milestone towards creating fault-tolerant quantum computers, with the potential to solve complex problems beyond the capability of current traditional computers.

• By integrating cat qubit technology with additional quantum error correction components, Amazon's chip aims to lower production costs and accelerate the development timeline for practical quantum computing by up to five years.

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Keep it moving:

Lenovo’s new concept laptop can be charged by the sun LINK

Private company achieves first moon landing LINK

SoftBank in talks to borrow $16 billion for AI after $2.4 billion loss—Is this bet sustainable? LINK

Google's newest moonshot delivers internet by firing lasers through the air LINK

Microsoft to shut down Skype in favor of Teams LINK

DeepSeek AI models have a 545% profit margin LINK

Anthropic launches world’s first 'hybrid reasoning' AI LINK

Perplexity AI unveils a new browser LINK

The SEC is dropping an investigation into Robinhood LINK

Google launches a free AI coding assistant LINK

Bitcoin dips below $90K hours after SBF tweets for first time since entering prison LINK

Firefox deletes promise to never sell personal data, asks users not to panic LINK

OpenAI’s startup empire: The companies backed by its venture fund LINK

Google’s Sergey Brin says 60 hours per week in the office is ‘sweet spot’ for AI workers LINK

Amazon unveils Alexa+ LINK

Apple shareholders vote to keep its diversity policies LINK

More than 1 billion people are now watching podcasts on YouTube every month LINK

Grok's new voice mode can curse, scream, and more LINK

What I’m thinking about:

• Webinars Are Dead. Do This Instead to Build Authority & Get Leads

• The Dark Side of AI: When ChatGPT Takes You for a Ride

• How a failed music career made me a better entrepreneur

• Why your job is next on ai’s hit list

• The most beautiful orange bird I have ever seen.

Top AI tools:

Wildcast: B2B influencers for the world’s top technology brands. LINK

Dreamteam IQ: helps marketing agencies and startups staff top overseas talent, providing cash-saving solutions for roles on elite marketing teams. LINK

FivePointFive: Transform your wellness instantly with FivePointFive’s science-backed breathwork, personalized biometric insights, and music from your favorite artists. LINK 50% OFF and 3 days free

Clik: Clik helps you effortlessly repurpose your podcast archives into engaging short-form content to increase brand visibility and audience engagement. LINK

Foundations of Large Language Models: the paper explains the core principles, architecture, and challenges involved in building and using large language models. LINK

Lindy: Build AI agents in minutes to automate workflows, save time, and grow your business. LINK

Replit: On-demand coding assistance for self-guided projects LINK

Bolt: Prompt, run, edit, and deploy full-stack web and mobile apps. LINK

Lovable: Idea to app in seconds. LINK

Thanks for listening.

-Ryan

p.s. When you are ready, here are two ways I can help.

1. We have successfully booked podcast interviews for over 800 funded startup founders, entrepreneurs with exits, and C-suite executives. If you're ready to lead your company from the front, let Kitcaster handle your podcast scheduling and create a powerful stream of content for you and your brand.

2. Our sister company, Wildcast, connects B2B, Tech, SaaS, and Business creators with companies targeting hard-to-reach customers. We deliver the most relevant online audiences through branded conversations, host-read podcast ads, and 360 sponsorships for tech companies aiming to scale their marketing. Start with a free audience psychographic and opportunity assessment tailored to your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP).

I write about Revops, Product, and Founder-led marketing on Linkedin, Twitter, and my blog. 

And if you are in Denver, we have the #1 culture and discovery podcast dedicated to the Queen City of the Plains —> realgooddenver.com