ScholarAI Founders Pod
The ScholarAI Founders Pod is a weekly series where our seasoned founders share their diverse experiences and insights on the rapidly evolving world of tech and AI. Each episode brings a unique blend of perspectives from various fields including entrepreneurship, engineering, business & more. Our founders discuss the latest developments in AI, dissect the challenges and opportunities these advancements present, & explore ScholarAI's role in shaping the future of this transformative technology. Join us weekly as we navigate through the complexities and chaos of working with AI together.
Episodes
In this episode of the ScholarAI Founders Pod, the founders dive into one of the most controversial collapses in recent SF startup history: the failed $3B acquisition of Windsurf by OpenAI. What went wrong? Who got left behind? And why are top engineers calling it “morally bankrupt”?
They break down the shift in power between founders, early engineers, and big tech suitors—especially as Cognition Labs swoops in to salvage scraps wh...
In this episode of the ScholarAI Founders Pod, the founders explore the shifting boundary between design and development. From diffusion models that can’t quite get the details right, to tools like Vercel’s V0 and Figma’s Dev Mode, they unpack why the design-to-code handoff is breaking down, and what comes next.
They also break down why Claude 3.5 is outperforming GPT-4 for UX copy, the unexpected value of AI-generated “ugly UIs...
(0:00) Intro – Moving to SF, culture shock, and founder ethos
(4:35) Skipping college vs. startup school: is it worth it?
(10:40) The ROI of grad school and MBA programs
(14:50) Favorite AI tools this week: Lovable, Clay, and V0
(19:30) Open source acquisitions: Windsor, Neon, and what they signal
(25:10) Klarna’s AI reversal: hype vs. reality of workforce replacement
(28:20) Is Perplexity AI here to stay? Growth, acquisition, ...
OpenAI just acquired Windsurf (formerly Codium), and developers everywhere are asking: is this the beginning of the AI IDE wars?
In Episode 55, the Founders break down the future of coding tools in an AI-first world—from Cursor’s rapid growth to OpenAI’s strategy to dominate the developer experience. We cover Claude vs. GPT, VS Code’s uncertain future, and what this all means for solo devs, startups, and big players.
(0:00) Intro – C...
Claude is outperforming GPT-4 for developers - and Cursor is turning engineering into a product manager’s game. In this episode, the founders unpack how they’re using Claude every day, why function calling is such a big deal, and what it means for the future of dev work.
They also explore the decline of protected research time in medicine, the rise of hedge fund PhDs, and what happens when traditional career paths start to break...
(0:00) Welcome & Google’s Surprise Earnings(3:25) Why AI Overviews Aren’t Hurting Google (Yet)(8:10) Is YouTube Search Powering Google’s Growth?(12:40) AI's Role in Google’s Global Dominance(16:45) Meta’s Massive Growth & Why It's Still Winning(20:50) The Secret Behind Meta’s Ad Revenue Model(24:00) Netflix’s Retention Strategy & Studio Power(28:30) Why Netflix Isn’t Losing the Streaming War(32:15) Tesla's S...
Trump’s 90% tariffs. Market drops. Bitcoin stalls. Are we heading for a recession—or something bigger?
In Episode 52 of the ScholarAI Founders Pod, Damon, Shashi, and Lakshya unpack the global market chaos unfolding in real time. From inflation and rate pressures to Bitcoin’s failure as a safe haven, the founders dive into what this moment really signals: a temporary correction, a fundamental realignment, or a full reset of how ...
Three founders. One unfiltered take on AI’s future.
In this episode of the ScholarAI Founders Pod, Damon, Shashi, and Lakshya return for a packed discussion on:
- The real implications of open-source AI vs. closed models
- Whether Anthropic, OpenAI, and Mistral are over- or under-valued
- NVIDIA’s dominance and how founders should think about compute
- Why the next great AI company might not be a chatbot
- Whether GPT-4.5 is quietly...
In this episode, Lakshya and Shashi dive deep into how AI has completely changed what it means to “build” as a founder. From using tools like Cursor, Claude, and GPT to ship real products without engineers — to launching Notillo, a “Duolingo for college classes".
We reflect on what’s changed since the early days of ScholarAI, why distribution and user love now matter more than technical moats, and how tools like Cursor have qu...
(0:00) AI’s role in research and experimentation
(3:15) AI tools accelerating research—where they work and fail
(7:40) Can AI actually plan and run experiments?
(12:10) AI as a no-code tool—can anyone build software now?
(16:45) The rise of AI-powered startups—why execution matters
(21:20) AI and the hiring shift—how companies are adapting
(26:50) Why SaaS is evolving—AI’s role in reshaping business models
(31:25) The challenges of sellin...
The PhD Funding Crisis & AI’s Role in Research(0:00) PhD programs are cutting funding and reducing student intake
(4:30) Universities like Cornell, UPenn, and Pitt scaling back PhD admissions
(9:10) Postdocs are disappearing as research budgets shrink
AI Upgrades & Industry Shifts(14:40) Sonnet 3.7 and GPT-4.5 release—what’s actually new?(
19:15) How AI model selection is changing user behavior
(23:50) AI replacing Google—ho...
🚀 AI Disruption & Job Market(4:00) "Deep Research just changed the game—AI can now write full reports."(10:10) "These jobs are at risk first—analysts, paralegals, and data entry."(15:20) "Most people have no idea how powerful AI is right now."📉 The Market Shakeup(20:10) "AI models like this will replace jobs—it’s just a matter of when."(26:30) "Palantir’s stock is up 65%—but is it ...
(0:00) The AI Model That’s Shifting Everything(4:20) Tesla’s FSD: Game-Changer or Overhyped?(10:30) The Cybertruck Debate: Too Much Attention?(16:40) A New AI Model Just Disrupted the Entire Industry(22:00) The Market Reaction: Billions Lost in One Day(27:30) Do We Still Need More GPUs, or Is AI Moving Beyond That?(32:00) The Future of AI Computing: Edge vs. Cloud(38:50) Will Open-Source AI Make Paid Models Obsolete?(45:10) A Major...
(0:00) Intro – What is Project Stargate? (1:30) AI Compute Wars & Why OpenAI is Running Out of Resources (4:20) Microsoft, NVIDIA, and SoftBank’s Role in AI Infrastructure (10:00) Is OpenAI a Financial Bubble? (16:40) Who’s Actually Funding This $500B AI Project? (22:20) Do We Really Need More Data Centers? (25:30) Will AI Become a Monopoly or an Oligarchy? (30:30) Who Owns the Future of AI? (35:20) Google’s AI Advantage &...
(0:00) NVIDIA at CES (2:20) NVIDIA and self-driving cars (14:37) Legacy car manufacturers: Can they keep up? (18:06) What is the dead internet? (21:50) Meta’s AI personas and their implications (29:30) The positives of the dead internet (31:27) Ethics of AI-generated content (38:39) Opportunities for solopreneurs Follow the Founders: https://x.com/DamonBurrow https://x.com/Lakshya__Bakshi https://x.com/reShashi Follow the Pod on ...
(4:45) Personal goals for 2025 (7:40) AI products in 2024 and 2025 (12:30) Wearables in 2024 and 2025 (18:30) Providers in 2025: Anthropic, NVIDIA (29:50) Apple Intelligence and On-Prem (35:30) Are agents going to work? (41:00) Blockchain in 2025 (45:38) What are we most excited about in tech/business in 2025?
Follow the Founders: https://x.com/DamonBurrow https://x.com/Lakshya__Bakshi https://x.com/reShashi
Follow the Pod on Socia...
(0:00) intros (2:45) The drone debate (8:30) Tesla and Figure’s humanoid robots (15:10) The physics problem in robotics (22:20) Google’s AI strategy (28:45) Predictions for AI and robotics in 2025 Follow the Founders: https://x.com/DamonBurrow https://x.com/Lakshya__Bakshi https://x.com/reShashi Follow the Pod on Socials: - X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/ScholarAI - Instagram: https://instagram.com/scholarai_ - TikTok: https...
In this episode of the ScholarAI Founders Pod, we explore the rise of AI tools in the workplace, with a spotlight on Devon AI—a new platform promising to replace junior developers but raising questions with its steep $500/month price tag. Is it worth the cost, or is it overhyped? Beyond Devon, we dive into other pressing topics like: - How AI tools like Cursor, OpenAI, and others are reshaping workflows - The challenges of using A...
In this episode of the ScholarAI Founders Pod, we explore the explosive growth of Bitcoin as it crosses $100,000 for the first time, setting an all-time high. From the implications of pro-crypto regulations under the new administration to discussions around Bitcoin’s role as a speculative asset, we dive deep into the milestones and risks shaping the future of cryptocurrency. Key Topics Covered: - Bitcoin’s 100K milestone and what’...
In this episode of the ScholarAI Founders Pod, we explore the evolving AI landscape, focusing on trust, enterprise adoption, and competition among major players like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta. Key Topics Covered: - The growing importance of trust in enterprise AI tools - How Anthropic is gaining ground against OpenAI in enterprise market share - Why Llama is uniquely positioned to disrupt the market - The challenges enterprises ...
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