AI has bedside manner & a shopping addiction
Necessary Nuggets
Happy Wednesday! If you’re new here, welcome to Necessary Nuggets, your one-stop pre-seed shop. We deliver updates from Necessary Ventures and helpful tidbits on our little corner of the world. Every edition is also on our blog.
Jobortunities 🚨
✨NEW FEATURED ROLE✨
Copper: Rethinking the induction stove and making kitchen electrification more accessible than ever. Picture a fossil-free future, without sacrificing aesthetics.
| Senior Embedded Systems Engineer |
Infinite Machine: Envisioning the future of transportation beyond cars and into the realm of personal electric vehicles. Its first product, P1, is the ultimate tool for city navigation.
Reach out with any questions! All 161 open job postings are listed here.
Market Stirrings 🚩
Here's what the week looked like in pre-seed:
$7.6M
Total Amount Raised
8
Total Funding Rounds
$946k
Average Dollars per Round
$4.7M - $9.5M
Estimated Valuation Range
Data aggregated from proprietary research and Crunchbase; valuation estimate based on 10-20% ownership stake.
NOVEMBER WRAPPED
According to Crunchbase data, November 2024 saw fewer deals but higher deal amounts compared to last year. Looking at the highest deal bracket including amounts over $2.5 million, this November saw a 67% increase in the number of deals, including 35 in November 2024 compared to 21 in November 2023.
Good Reads 📖
For the rushed reader …
In a new study from Columbia University's Tow Center for Digital Journalism, researchers found that ChatGPT's search function provides incorrect sources and quotes more than 75% of the time.
Honda added "adorable hospital robot" to its résumé with Haru, a 12-inch desktop AI designed to cheer up sick kids in pediatric oncology units.
Tech companies are on the prowl to develop an AI shopping agent capable of making purchases for you, and Perplexity is the first major AI startup to launch.
For the less rushed reader …
LESS YAPPING, MORE WRITING: ChatGPT has more in common with a “C” student than you might think: it’s always confident, but rarely accurate. In a new study from Columbia University's Tow Center for Digital Journalism, researchers found that ChatGPT's search function provides incorrect sources and quotes more than 75% of the time. After testing 200 citations from 20 different publishers, the researchers discovered that 153 of them were wrong, partially wrong, or fully fabricated—even from OpenAI partner publishers. ChatGPT, it turns out, is more likely to make up a source than admit it can't find one; it only owned up to missing a source 7 times. While OpenAI is working on fixing the bug, publishers are in a pickle, left with no real way to ensure their content gets the right kind of AI-ttention. ChatGPT might have copied too much information from the wrong kid’s homework.
HOSPITALIZED AI: Robots might be cold and mechanical, but Honda just proved they have a tender side too. Honda added "adorable hospital robot" to its résumé with Haru, a 12-inch desktop AI designed to cheer up sick kids in pediatric oncology units. Initially launched in a hospital in Seville, Spain, Haru is also equipped with cameras, microphones, and dual screens that engage patients with supportive responses and also help them continue their education virtually. Since its 2021 trial, 95% of cancer patients have been more actively engaged in their treatment. Additionally, Haru’s ability to collect emotional data has allowed neuropsychologists to speed up assessments. Honda is now rolling out 10 more units to the hospital. Who knew a program with no emotions could know so much about happiness?
CONFESSIONS OF A SHOPAHOLIC: It’s officially the holiday season, and nothing screams borderline breakdown like hours of online gift shopping. Tech companies are on the prowl to develop an AI shopping agent capable of making purchases for you, and Perplexity is the first major AI startup to launch. Partnering with Stripe, Perplexity recently rolled out a shopping bot that can navigate websites and even click "checkout" without you lifting a finger. However, there’s still some ironing out to do as the bot currently struggles with a lag, taking hours to complete your order and sometimes not working at all. Other players like OpenAI and Google are reportedly developing their own shopping bots. However, it’s not all rainbows – AI shopping agents could be bad news for advertisers and retailers that rely on click-traffic and impulse purchases. Fingers crossed AI shopping bots haven’t trained on too much data that says socks are a good gift.
Fire Up the Pre-Seeds🔥
It was a big week for pre-seed raises. Sit down and get comfortable for this exciting list:
climate tech
Ukhi - From rubble to riches.
Ukhi raised $1.2 million led by 100Unicorns. Ukhi is building biodegradable packaging, using compostable biomaterials derived from agricultural residues.
proptech
Elysium Communities - No place like super home.
Elysium Communities raised $5 million. Elysium Communities is developing a new standard of real estate by building affordable and sustainable tech-enabled communities.
SaaS
Consio - Put a ring on it.
Consio raised $520k led by Theory Forge Ventures. Consio is creating an AI-powered platform that enables phone salesmen to close more deals.
LawLoom - Legally AI.
LawLoom raised $250k. LawLoom is creating an AI compliance copilot designed specifically for financial services institutions and fintech companies.
Outro🚪
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