Sequoia’s annual “AI Ascent” conference provides an excellent summary of the industry so far.
Some key takeaways: 👇🏼
The difference between Web 1.0, cloud and mobile: versus AI, is that AI had zero barriers to adoption. ie, 1.8 billion already use AI (mostly indirectly through Alphabet, Meta, etc).
💰The application layer is where most of the value will “accrue” in the AI stack. Foundational models are great but require massive amounts of capital. But startups have a chance by going “customer out”—staying close to the customer and working backwards towards the foundational models.
🌎That means also that startups in every country can leverage foundational models to capture the value of their markets.
YouTube video of Sequoia AI Ascent Keynote: