Upside #34 - Filthy Food, AI Jesus, 7pm Bryan and Startup Spies.

Hosts: Dan, Lomax (Outsized), Andrew J Scott (7%), Mads (SuperSeed VC)
Runtime: ~48 minutes
Topic: Markets, M&A, AI mayhem, longevity hype, startup espionage — and a little bit of Bryan Johnson's bedtime routine.

🔍 This Week on Upside:

We’re going full spectrum this week: markets moving, EVs charging faster than ever, biblical-level AI revelations, Google splashing the cash, and even MI5 making a guest appearance (kind of). The crew breaks down what’s really happening in European tech and beyond.

💸 Markets Corner

• Klarna Files for IPO – Targeting $15B valuation, down from $45B in 2021 but still a major move for European fintech.
• CoreWeave’s Massive Leap – From $16M to $1.9B revenue in 2 years and acquiring Weights & Biases for $1.7B. IPO incoming.
• Google x Wiz – Google’s record $23B acquisition of Israeli cybersecurity firm Wiz. Massive exit, but will the FTC let it slide?

⚡ EV Watch

• BYD’s Battery Breakthrough – 5-minute charge for 470km? Game-changing for the industry. Tesla and Mercedes scrambling to keep up.
• Tesla Recall Woes – Cybertrucks recalled due to panels potentially peeling off mid-highway. Not ideal.

🍽️ Food, Forever?

• Bryan Johnson’s “Foodome” Vision – Sequencing the American diet like the human genome. Lofty or legit?
• ZOE’s churn problem – Are personalized nutrition startups sticky enough?
• UPF, Sugar Taxes, and Regulation – The gang debates whether real change comes from startups… or governments.

🧠 AI Corner

• AI Jesus Speaks (a.k.a. Jensen Huang) – Nvidia’s GTC: new chips (Blackwell Ultra, Vera Rubin, Feynman) and bullish takes on reasoning + agentic AI.
• Stargate vs. AIP – OpenAI’s mega-scale GPU buildout vs. Elon Musk’s counterplay with Microsoft, UAE, and BlackRock.
• Europe Reacts – Macron’s €100B+ bet on sovereign AI and the case for Mistral leading Europe’s AI frontier.

🇪🇺 Europe in Focus

• Data centers are consuming up to 30% of Ireland’s electricity
• European VCs (hello Index Ventures 👋) are behind some of the biggest tech exits ever
• Does Europe need its own AI stack? The guys debate strategic autonomy vs. commoditized smarts

🔐 Startup Espionage Files

• Rippling vs. Deel, Flexport vs. FreightMate – Dirty tactics, source code theft, and lawsuits flying.
• Dan's MI5 Story – An underground bunker, bugs from the CCP, and a face-to-face with British intelligence.
• Lessons from the frontlines – Where does know-how end and IP theft begin? What happens when founders cross lines?

💤 Longevity, Sleep & 7PM Bryan

• Bryan Johnson’s hyperbaric adventures, shocking news (literally), and… nighttime erections?
• Why “7PM Bryan” is the biggest threat to longevity
• Can Europe’s emerging “longevity clinic” wave go mainstream?

🎧 Memorable Quotes

“At some point, we’re going to wake up and realise the food system was as damaging as cigarettes.” – Lomax
 “We should invent our own future, not copy the US.” – Andrew J. Scott
 “20% of Ireland’s electricity goes to data centres — heading to 30%.” – Lomax
 “Only the paranoid survive.” – Dan