Troy Kirwin
@tkexpress11 • 13,412 subscribers
Investor @a16z | Building @speedrun | ex-@Unity | chase what matters
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![[New] from a16z a16z speedrun 🧊: Come for the Agent, Stay for the Network there's a quiet pattern hiding inside the most defensible vertical AI startups right now: the agent is the wedge the network is the moat. here's what I mean: an HVAC tech needs a part today. >>Traditionally: hours to investigate, 5 calls, emailing for quotes, waiting days, and comparing PDF catalogues by hand >>Now: an AI procurement agent identifies the exact SKU, autonomously contacts suppliers, negotiates price, and orders - in minutes but - the network forming is the real differentiator: when that agent is operating across thousands of buyers, the system starts seeing real transaction prices - not list prices > It can tell you you're paying 18% above market > It can bundle demand across forty facilities and negotiate bulk pricing = Suppliers start competing to be plugged into the agentic network these AI procurement agents can become networked, sticky platforms when an industry has some combo of: + Fragmented supply and demand + Offline suppliers + Opaque yet elastic pricing + Frequent purchases + Different SKUs; or + a commoditized product or services in the past, suppliers thrived off of the offline nature of these markets with an agentic platform, the demand side can be aggregated and the power balance flipped you can start to become the interface buyers default to, the channel suppliers need to be on, and the owner of the richest pricing dataset in the industry by unlocking an efficient marketplace, you can charge on a % of revenue basis vs token or seat basis. we’re seeing this trend emerge across several SR006 a16z speedrun 🧊 companies including Heavi for truck repair shops and Vereda for farmers few examples of industries ripe for AI procurement agents include: -- Freight and logistics -- Agricultural inputs -- Field services -- Food service procurement -- Construction subcontracting -- Industrial MRO -- Healthcare staffing -- And more if this sounds like something you're interested in, apply to speedrun now](https://image.24vids.com/tw-2048784707677294966/amplify_video_thumb/2048782702267203584/img/c9oN3LsMhsTuuaNE.jpg)
[New] from a16z a16z speedrun 🧊: Come for the Agent, Stay for the Network there's a quiet pattern hiding inside the most defensible vertical AI startups right now: the agent is the wedge the network is the moat. here's what I mean: an HVAC tech needs a part today. >>Traditionally: hours to investigate, 5 calls, emailing for quotes, waiting days, and comparing PDF catalogues by hand >>Now: an AI procurement agent identifies the exact SKU, autonomously contacts suppliers, negotiates price, and orders - in minutes but - the network forming is the real differentiator: when that agent is operating across thousands of buyers, the system starts seeing real transaction prices - not list prices > It can tell you you're paying 18% above market > It can bundle demand across forty facilities and negotiate bulk pricing = Suppliers start competing to be plugged into the agentic network these AI procurement agents can become networked, sticky platforms when an industry has some combo of: + Fragmented supply and demand + Offline suppliers + Opaque yet elastic pricing + Frequent purchases + Different SKUs; or + a commoditized product or services in the past, suppliers thrived off of the offline nature of these markets with an agentic platform, the demand side can be aggregated and the power balance flipped you can start to become the interface buyers default to, the channel suppliers need to be on, and the owner of the richest pricing dataset in the industry by unlocking an efficient marketplace, you can charge on a % of revenue basis vs token or seat basis. we’re seeing this trend emerge across several SR006 a16z speedrun 🧊 companies including Heavi for truck repair shops and Vereda for farmers few examples of industries ripe for AI procurement agents include: -- Freight and logistics -- Agricultural inputs -- Field services -- Food service procurement -- Construction subcontracting -- Industrial MRO -- Healthcare staffing -- And more if this sounds like something you're interested in, apply to speedrun now
Troy Kirwin81,390 просмотров • 1 месяц назад
In 2026, Venture Capital will eat Private Equity It used to be that venture capital and private equity lived on two separate planets: VC = San Francisco PE = New York They targeted completely different universes of companies: --> PE - people heavy biz services, stable/low growth, predictable cashflows --> VC - tech-forward, high growth, high risk, massive TAM What was the playbook for B2B VC backed startups? --> Grow to unicorn scale by selling to other early adopter tech companies, then Fortune 500s XX> SMB and mid-market services - think field services, IT staffing, accounting, construction, recruiting - were always tough to sell into for startups Why? -->Thin margins, high labor costs, and small IT budgets >> But as AI eats labor, these businesses are in play << There are 3 ways where VC and PE are colliding: 1/ Private Equity funds will become channel partners for startups. PE funds are focused on financial engineering and cost optimization. Startups building AI products and services can sell across their portfolio to automate the backoffice and uplevel sales and marketing. PE funds have made AI their #1 strategic priority and have hired central leaders to oversee their portfolio adoption efforts 2/ PE portfolio pages are a startup idea menu Private equity will often buyout vertical software companies whose TAM didn’t allow venture scaled returns. As software evolves from data storage and collaboration to agents taking action and completing work, AI should massively expand the TAM for these categories. Founders will set their sights on unseating these legacy incumbents backed by private equity. All they have to do is look at their portfolio pages for category ideas 3/ AI Rollups This is one of the most direct ways that VC is eating PE VC backed AI platform businesses are not just selling software but acquiring legacy business services companies to own the value chain end to end. As an example, our a16z speedrun 🧊 company AgentAstra is acquiring freight forwarding services businesses with mostly debt and integrating AI deeply into their operations These companies aim to increase margins by at least 2x and make them “AI native” tl;dr - While the west coast, Patagonia-wearing VCs and the east coast, PE suits used to live in different universes, in 2026 with AI, I believe, those worlds converge
Troy Kirwin187,158 просмотров • 6 месяцев назад
![[NEW] a16z a16z speedrun 🧊 request for startups: Vibe Creation Platforms We've seen Vibe Coding platforms like Lovable and Bolt emerge for application development serving non-coding consumers --> We'll soon see VIBE CREATION as an entirely new consumer experience for crafting video, visual stories, games, and more The platform will require an end-to-end workflow orchestrated by AI agents --> Today, we have the infrastructure with foundation models across modalities, but most consumers won't jump from model site to model site to then stitch their creations together The winning solution will help consumers go from idea to first draft in minutes while enabling finer creative control for those that seek it --> This is how we go from AI internet memes to compelling human stories AI Vibe Creation platforms are designed for fun and creative flow. They remove the million knobs and sliders professional creators have come to expect --> They feel more like a game than a tool a16z speedrun has already invested in a few teams exploring this space: - VIDEO: Hedra (animated characters), intangible (canva for 3D) - GAMING: Rosebud AI (game generation), Nilo Technologies (3D worldbuilding) - IMAGE: (infinite canvas), Blank (instagram for AI), - VISUAL STORIES: Komiko (anime), Sekai (tiktok for interactive stories) We believe there will be many great vibe creation platforms to be built across medium (video, music, game, etc), genre/niche (anime, 3D, sports) and platform (mobile, web, XR) if you're building in this space, DM us and apply for speedrun!](https://image.24vids.com/tw-1909626333711548526/ext_tw_video_thumb/1909612118699335680/pu/img/fvqhnMCd77xhzK4z.jpg)
[NEW] a16z a16z speedrun 🧊 request for startups: Vibe Creation Platforms We've seen Vibe Coding platforms like Lovable and Bolt emerge for application development serving non-coding consumers --> We'll soon see VIBE CREATION as an entirely new consumer experience for crafting video, visual stories, games, and more The platform will require an end-to-end workflow orchestrated by AI agents --> Today, we have the infrastructure with foundation models across modalities, but most consumers won't jump from model site to model site to then stitch their creations together The winning solution will help consumers go from idea to first draft in minutes while enabling finer creative control for those that seek it --> This is how we go from AI internet memes to compelling human stories AI Vibe Creation platforms are designed for fun and creative flow. They remove the million knobs and sliders professional creators have come to expect --> They feel more like a game than a tool a16z speedrun has already invested in a few teams exploring this space: - VIDEO: Hedra (animated characters), intangible (canva for 3D) - GAMING: Rosebud AI (game generation), Nilo Technologies (3D worldbuilding) - IMAGE: (infinite canvas), Blank (instagram for AI), - VISUAL STORIES: Komiko (anime), Sekai (tiktok for interactive stories) We believe there will be many great vibe creation platforms to be built across medium (video, music, game, etc), genre/niche (anime, 3D, sports) and platform (mobile, web, XR) if you're building in this space, DM us and apply for speedrun!
Troy Kirwin138,681 просмотров • 1 год назад
![[New] from a16z a16z speedrun 🧊: The Outsider founders are winning the AI B2B race we used to say founder x market fit was everything but in this AI wave, Outsider founders who are AI native are outmaneuvering their industry veteran competitors just look at Tennr (healthcare), (finance), (logistics), Eve (legal) & Decagon (customer support)..... these are all Outsider founders w/ no prior experience in the verticals they now sell into so why is this? #1 - right now, AI technical excellency trumps industry expertise --> These founders combine AI fluency w/ exceptional problem solving skills to quickly map the inner workings of a vertical from an Outsiders perspective and how AI can automate that work --> many will bring on a "board of Insider advisors" early to help validate their approaches and leverage their rolodex #2 - new verticals w/out a scaled SaaS player are now in play --> Agentic AI products don’t just help workers become more efficient, they can take action and complete work autonomously --> Therefore companies can spend way more for these products as they don't just tap into IT budgets, they actually displace labor spend --> That means that offline verticals w/ historically small IT budgets and no vertical SaaS winners are now ripe for a venture scaled vertical AI disruptor = from food distribution to car dealerships to home services to agriculture, it will be Outsiders who will come in and automate the backoffice functions for these verticals #3 - the barriers for Outsiders to sell into the enterprise have dropped dramatically --> most companies have a tops-down mandate and dedicated budget to explore AI initiatives. They’re actively pulling new solutions into their organizations and open to experimenting with pilot partners --> for some products, where PLG and bottoms-up adoption makes sense, Outsiders can let their product and marketing strategies be their ticket into their buyer so, today, founder - market fit should be based on required skillsets to win in a space, not simply on tenure & domain expertise in a vertical here at a16z speedrun 🧊 we’ve invested in teams of exceptional Outsiders such as Artifact AI (accounting), Anchr (food distribution), Bead (SOX compliance) + many more if you’re a team of Outsiders primed to disrupt a boring business, head to sr [dot] a16z [dot] com to apply for speedrun](https://image.24vids.com/tw-1963980944542666898/amplify_video_thumb/1963965725288325122/img/cZlcmpJEfpv6Y03r.jpg)
[New] from a16z a16z speedrun 🧊: The Outsider founders are winning the AI B2B race we used to say founder x market fit was everything but in this AI wave, Outsider founders who are AI native are outmaneuvering their industry veteran competitors just look at Tennr (healthcare), (finance), (logistics), Eve (legal) & Decagon (customer support)..... these are all Outsider founders w/ no prior experience in the verticals they now sell into so why is this? #1 - right now, AI technical excellency trumps industry expertise --> These founders combine AI fluency w/ exceptional problem solving skills to quickly map the inner workings of a vertical from an Outsiders perspective and how AI can automate that work --> many will bring on a "board of Insider advisors" early to help validate their approaches and leverage their rolodex #2 - new verticals w/out a scaled SaaS player are now in play --> Agentic AI products don’t just help workers become more efficient, they can take action and complete work autonomously --> Therefore companies can spend way more for these products as they don't just tap into IT budgets, they actually displace labor spend --> That means that offline verticals w/ historically small IT budgets and no vertical SaaS winners are now ripe for a venture scaled vertical AI disruptor = from food distribution to car dealerships to home services to agriculture, it will be Outsiders who will come in and automate the backoffice functions for these verticals #3 - the barriers for Outsiders to sell into the enterprise have dropped dramatically --> most companies have a tops-down mandate and dedicated budget to explore AI initiatives. They’re actively pulling new solutions into their organizations and open to experimenting with pilot partners --> for some products, where PLG and bottoms-up adoption makes sense, Outsiders can let their product and marketing strategies be their ticket into their buyer so, today, founder - market fit should be based on required skillsets to win in a space, not simply on tenure & domain expertise in a vertical here at a16z speedrun 🧊 we’ve invested in teams of exceptional Outsiders such as Artifact AI (accounting), Anchr (food distribution), Bead (SOX compliance) + many more if you’re a team of Outsiders primed to disrupt a boring business, head to sr [dot] a16z [dot] com to apply for speedrun
Troy Kirwin81,762 просмотров • 9 месяцев назад
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