Ally Hartenstein

Last year, I had the opportunity to participate in Babson College Miami’s Entrepreneurial Leadership in the Age of AI program, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking to deepen their understanding of AI It was an experience that went far beyond theory. What stood out most were the practical workshops—designed not just to talk about AI, but to apply it. Every session pushed us to experiment, iterate, and walk away with tools we could immediately put into practice. Equally powerful was the community that formed around the program. Babson’s approach doesn’t end when the class is over. Out of this experience, an AI club was born here in Miami where we continue to meet regularly, exchange insights, and stay at the forefront of this fast-moving technology. If you want to understand how AI can be applied in practical, actionable ways, this program is the best place to start.

10

Grubhub Launches Three-Month Drone Delivery Pilot in New Jersey 🚁 Grubhub is partnering with specialized UAV providers to execute a 90-day drone delivery trial in select New Jersey markets. This pilot aims to automate the "last-mile" segment, specifically targeting suburban density where traditional vehicle costs and courier shortages impact delivery speed. 📊 This move transitions the competition from courier-network scale to technical infrastructure ownership. Success here forces competitors to pivot capital expenditure from driver incentives toward automated hardware and FAA regulatory compliance. Drone automation targets the highest cost center in the P&L: the human courier. Replacing gas-powered vehicles with electric UAVs on short-radius trips could reduce last-mile unit costs by an estimated 40% if high-frequency flight paths are established. The industry will move toward "hybrid hubs"—dark kitchens or merchant clusters equipped with automated launch pads—reducing the reliance on public infrastructure and parking. The market is misinterpreting this as a speed play; it is actually a margin defense against the inevitable plateau of consumer delivery fees. By shifting suburban volume to autonomous flight, Grubhub is preparing for a bifurcated labor model where humans handle complex urban drops and machines dominate the high-margin, high-predictability suburban routes. Will regulatory clearance for Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations determine the next market leader more than brand loyalty? 🤔 Stay ahead of the curve with Boolanga Bites. The strategic breakdown of food delivery, every Tuesday.

42

What happens when AI, culture, and creativity collide? 🚀 At NY Tech Week, I joined a high-energy conversation led by Ian Goldstein Fenwick & West with Andrew Chen from a16z speedrun and Gaurav Misra from Captions. The topic: AI Meets Culture—What’s Next for Consumer & Entertainment? Here’s what stood out: 1️⃣ AI Tech Is Moving Faster Than Adoption 🚄 AI is evolving at warp speed, but most users and workplaces are still catching up. For users, this means the need to learn and adapt fast. For AI companies, it’s about making tools simple, useful, and accessible, so people can actually use what’s being built. 2️⃣ Creatives Have the Upper Hand 🎨 If you’re a graphic artist, you can now become a video editor, animator, or audio creator with AI-powered tools. Platforms like Runway, Midjourney, and Captions make it possible for anyone to expand their creative toolkit and reach new audiences. The barrier to entry for creative work has never been lower. 3️⃣ Taste Is Everything ✨ AI can generate endless options, but real impact comes from having taste—the ability to know what works and what feels right. If you’re a creator, your point of view is your superpower. AI will amplify your work, but only if you lead with strong vision and standards from the start. Bottom line: Early adopters, you’re not alone and you’re definitely not behind. Bringing bold ideas to life is only more powerful with AI as part of your toolkit. #NYTechWeek #AI #Culture #Creativity #ConsumerTech #Entertainment #GenerativeAI #Innovation #Tastemakers #a16z #CaptionsAI

13

2 Comments

(WOW!!) Whoop to Expand Staff by 75% to Spur Growth Ahead of Likely IPO The Boston-based company intends to add more than 600 new roles across various departments, including software, research, design, hardware, product development, manufacturing, sales and marketing, founder and Chief Executive Office Will Ahmed said in an interview announcing the expansion. Whoop currently operates in 60 countries, with 60% of sales coming from international markets. That marks a relatively recent change for the firm: Just four years ago, the US made up about 70% of its member base. Whoop, founded in 2012, currently employs nearly 800 full-time staff, after hiring almost 300 people over two years. https://lnkd.in/eRkfRr3S

1

It was great to have Tim De Chant tell a very important part of the Still Bright journey to transform the future of copper. I want to take a moment to build on the article to tell an even fuller story of how Still Bright gives a glimpse into the future of copper. The energy transition and widespread AI deployment are putting a huge strain on the copper supply chain. We need much more copper to meet this demand and we have the solution to meet this problem. The article highlights two key aspects that will underpin our growth. There is also a third that I will also highlight here. One is how our ability to be cheaper than smelting will drive widespread impact. Having 70-90% cheaper CapEx and comparable OpEx with a road map to reduce OpEx allows us to eventually be the economical choice and thus the standard for all copper extraction. Secondly, the article also speaks to capturing the value of the copper lost on the way to smelting. 10-20% of copper in the ore is lost during flotation and go to tailings. There are two ways to capture the lost copper and we can do both. We can process the tailings to recover these copper after the fact, which is more of a drop-in solution. Alternatively we can move upstream to avoid flotation all together. Depending on the preferences of the mine, we can process these low copper weight feedstocks to ensure we efficiently maximize the value of the mine. The third buttress of our impact will be changing the equation of which copper ore bodies are considered economically recoverable. We will convert more resources into reserves by processing ore that is not amenable to heap leaching or smelting. For example, high impurity ore face stiff penalty charges and can make it uneconomical to mine. We have shown that we can process ore with high arsenic and other deleterious elements without the need for blending. Combine that with the potential to skip flotation and we can bring the much needed additional copper to market. We will need all the copper possible to meet future demand and our three pillars of support will allow resource owners to maximize their value, allowing copper rich nations like the US to become copper powerhouses. Stay tuned for more!

38

2 Comments

Returnalyze joins the FINTOP portfolio. FINTOP led the Boston-based company’s $6M Series A as its AI-powered returns prevention platform continues to scale. Returnalyze has demonstrated a 20%+ reduction in return rates for customers such as J.Crew, Abercrombie & Fitch Co., Wolverine Worldwide, & Perry Ellis International, representing millions in recovered revenue. I look forward to working alongside CEO Rick Cramer and Returnalyze leadership as a Board Member. Learn more via https://brev.is/UVCDk

72

1 Comment

Insane to see the state of New York moving backwards on startup-friendly tax policy while neighbors across the river in New Jersey have just taken a startup-friendly step in the opposite direction. The senate's budget bill would hurt our startup ecosystem, on the margin encourage founders to start companies elsewhere, and create disincentives for angel investors and others who are central to the earliest stages of company formation. Thanks to Tech:NYC for their typically clear and progressive leadership on behalf of our community. I hope others will join me in supporting their efforts.

79

3 Comments

**Figma's Imminent IPO: A Game Changer for Design Tech** Figma's potential $1.5B IPO highlights the growing demand for collaborative design tools. With impressive financials and CEO Dylan Field's strategic moves, Figma sets a strong precedent in the SaaS space. At ElevenX Capital, we recognize the importance of scalability and market adaptability for long-term investment success. How do you evaluate the readiness of a tech company for IPO? #investing #innovation #venturecapital #entrepreneurship

4

Mentorship compounds. Especially for early stage women founders. On March 19 in New York, 2M Mentors Live is hosting its 4th annual event in partnership with DVF, focused on expanding access to meaningful mentorship and capital for strong early stage founders. Selected founders will receive: • A high-impact mentorship day • Curated mentor circles aligned to their needs • An opportunity to participate in a founder showcase Learn more and apply here by February 20: https://lnkd.in/eD-nawTn Access matters, and rooms like this can change a founder’s trajectory.

32

Calling emerging founders in advanced materials and applied AI: NYCEDC is supporting two opportunities for early-stage innovators in New York City: The Gotham Foundry Pitch Day and Commercialization Sprint for founders developing materials of the future The AI Nexus Accelerator Cohort for AI-first teams in bio, health, robotics, advanced manufacturing and more Both close March 27. Links to apply commented:

38

3 Comments

We're excited to share Timber Grove Ventures investment in Jampack AI. Wholesale operations for CPG brands are workflow-dense, error-prone, and chronically underserved by software. A single PO can touch ten disconnected systems before it's resolved while the status quo is spreadsheets, email chains, and tools that don't talk to each other. Matteo Rossant lived this challenge helping scale N!CK'S from $0 to $40M in revenue. That operator DNA shows up in the product: Jampack's agentic workflows automate the entire operational layer, meeting brands where they are without ripping out existing systems. In just a few months, they're processing $500M in annualized wholesale volume. We’re proud to partner with Matteo, Rezi Tsulukidze, and the entire Jampack team alongside Maveron. If you are a high growth CPG brand scaling in retail please reach out! Full article in the comments below.

116

14 Comments

📣 Female Tech Founders in NYC — New Accelerator Alert! Scale Ready Studio is a new 12-week, revenue-focused growth program for women building tech startups in NYC, created by Women.NYC in partnership with Get Sh!t Done. This program is designed to help founders scale sustainably through: - Revenue and profit growth - Strong systems and operations - Weekly strategy labs - Hybrid coaching (1:1 + group) - Technical assistance - In-person Founder Days The program culminates in a Deal Day, where participants pitch to a curated group of investors. 🗓 Applications close January 12

71

10 Comments

Aymbré Paige, MBA (Limited Partner, Mendoza Ventures)  Operating at the intersection of early-stage capital and community building, Aymbré Paige supports founders through her role as a Limited Partner at Mendoza Ventures. The Boston-based fund invests in fintech, AI, and cybersecurity, with diversity embedded directly into its thesis - roughly 70% of the portfolio is led by immigrants, people of color, and women. Beyond writing checks, Mendoza Ventures functions as a micro-community builder, intentionally curating small local cohorts of founders. This approach allows founders to receive meaningful support early and then pay it forward by expanding their own micro-communities into broader ecosystems. The result is capital that compounds not just financially, but socially. Senofer Mendoza Adam Kerr Derek Gawrys Ricardo Heredia, Ph.D. Rushi Patel

32

Founders build companies. Ecosystems build founders. 🚀 Behind every "overnight success" is a powerhouse of support, the people who provide the capital, the coaching, and the connections to bridge the gap from a raw idea to a fundable venture. The Reed Smith LLP ROCKY Award by Tech Coast Venture Network (TCVN) is our way of recognizing these pillars of our community. As a Founder’s Choice Award, it is unique because the winners are chosen by the entrepreneurs themselves and the TCVN board. Who we celebrate: We honor the "rock-solid" individuals who help founders become investor-ready, including: * Angel Investors: For providing the critical early-stage belief and capital. * Mentors & Advisors: For guiding founders through the highs and lows of the journey. * Community Champions: For building the infrastructure that makes our ecosystem thrive. By honoring our champions, we ensure the next generation of innovators has a foundation to build upon. Watch this video for a behind the scenes look at the pre-show set up. 👉 Want to see who's leading the way? Check out the full press list to see this year's incredible winners and nominees. #TCVN #ReedSmith #StartupEcosystem #AngelInvestors #Mentorship #FoundersFirst #CommunityChampions

13

📣 When we first partnered with Evan Klein and the Zaelab team in 2023, we saw a clear opportunity: build the go-to partner for digital transformation across the manufacturing and distribution landscape. Zaelab has made incredible progress, accelerating growth and efficiency for its clients, expanding key relationships with platforms like Shopify and Logik.ai (now ServiceNow), and extending capabilities with the acquisition of Trellis. Now, we are excited to announce that Zaelab has merged with TMG, a company with deep manufacturing roots and a standout #Shopify B2B product, Fuse. Together with Zaelab’s own Portul Shopify solution, the combined platform is now the clear leader in the Shopify B2B space. With 350+ experts across commerce and CRM, Zaelab is helping clients drive digital transformation by leveraging modern platforms like Shopify and ServiceNow. The combined company does this through providing enterprises with the vision, scale, and execution capabilities that are best in class. Huge congrats to the teams at Zaelab and TMG! Press release in comments 👇

97

13 Comments

For our second #AI roundtable with other #Boston #builders, we dropped by EnFi, Inc yesterday to chat, demo, learn, and trade some tips. I laughed a lot (and cried a bit on the inside), and walked away with a few takeaways: 💰 Growth expectations are exploding 7-10x increases of revenue/FTE are within line of sight. Might sound outlandish, but I was at a startup that hit $2M/FTE 20 years ago without any of the latest tools. 🧩 Just-in-time UI unlocks new personalization The ability to generate UX on the fly based on contextual data and the path a user took to get there opens up a very sticky user experience. 💻 AI good enough to let non devs ship to prod Business teams vibe, build, and submit PRs. Friday ideas become Monday prototypes and sometimes live product. 🔧 Modular vs. monolithic debates all over again Whether it's code, data, or design, the question of how atomic to make units of work keeps resurfacing. Leaning more on microservices style agents that spawn sub agents. 🚀 Unlearning creates a constant stream of discomfort Institutionalize the expectation that everyone continuously reinvents the playbook. 🎯 Untapped GTM upside Most of the conversation focused on building product and features. Outside of engineering, we barely scratched the surface on how to 10x #sales, #CS, and #marketing. From John Kalogerakis, Mark Faga, Erika Bartucca, and me, huge thanks to Joshua Summers, Scott Weller, James Garfield, and Marco MONTES DE OCA for riffing with Via AI and sharing so openly. Left fired up for what we do next. #AI #startups #engineering #agents #architecture #BUILD617

83

8 Comments

Really great insight here - Michael Currie is a hiring expert speaking with industry leaders on a daily basis. Where is the Boston market trending? Step 1: Find out who's hiring...

10

1 Comment