Founder Fashion

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Happy Thursday, Future Party. For the surprisingly low price of $1.5 million, the house that OpenAI called its first office is up for sale in San Francisco. With all the money OpenAI has raised, you might expect the company would’ve wanted to buy it back and preserve it as a museum. Instead, any engineer with some money to spare can scoop it up and turn it into what we believe could be one of the most successful themed Airbnbs in the city. Still skeptical? Silicon Valley is selling out of sweaters with tech founders’ faces on them. There’s more on that below.

TV networks, cable brands, and streamers are returning to the once tried-and-true strategy for developing shows: pilots.

The Big Picture: Prior to the streaming revolution, networks would often order over 100 pilots to work out the kinks before either committing to a season or getting out early. It was a smart, economical way to ensure shows were put through the wringer before being given a hefty investment. With Peak TV over and the market contracting, bringing back pilots could give more shows a fighting chance to air.

Behind The Scenes: According to Variety, the new (old) motto in TV seems to be “try it before you buy it”… well, the whole season, that is.

Final Decision: TV studio chiefs say the desire to return to pilots stems from wanting to make shows that have more episodes and can turn around seasons quicker than the typical premium streaming show — think the multi-year waits for series like Severance and Stranger Things. Sarah Aubrey, who heads up programming for HBO Max, says there’s an eagerness to make more shows like The Pitt, which is the most broadcast-type of show HBO has had in recent memory (and still wins Emmys).

So far, the pilot orders are paying off. Hulu ordered two pilots (Nick Paley’s Phony and Elgin James’ reboot of Prison Break) to full seasons last year, FX did the same with Peter Gould’s Disinherited and a spinoff of Snowfall, and Netflix even joined the trend (a sequel series to A Different World).

Next Season: It wouldn’t be surprising if a streamer starts letting users vote on which pilots should go to series in an attempt to build a fan base for projects the company may not be fully sold on yet.

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The hottest style in Silicon Valley right now might be putting your boss’s face on your clothes.

The Big Stitch: Silicon Valley has always been a cult of personality, but now full devotion to tech leaders is exploding across offices beyond the Bay Area. Going to work with tech titans splayed across your chest isn’t just a way to win brownie points; it could also signal that you’re a true believer in the company’s mission.

Between The Threads: Big Tech is reprogramming its employees’ closets, per The WSJ.

Bonus: Mark Zuckerberg strolled onstage at Meta Connect 2024 in an oversized black T-shirt reading “Aut Zuck Aut Nihil” (a play on the Latin phrase “Aut Caesar aut nihil,” meaning “Either Caesar or nothing”) created by LA designer Mike Amiri. Meta never sold it, but it would probably be a hit if it did.

Last Looks: Tech-focused executive coach Alisa Cohn told The WSJ that splashing a founder’s face on merch “is a sign that the companies want people to associate the startups with the personas of their CEOs.” That idea has plenty of pros and cons (just look at how Elon Musk’s antics have hurt X and Tesla), but it makes a lot of sense in the influencer age — brand loyalty is a reflection of fandom.

Every company needs a mascot.

The Future: How long until Silicon Valley debuts tech-leader trading cards? Fanatics would be all over it.

AI promises speed and efficiency, but it’s leaving many leaders feeling more overwhelmed than ever.

The real problem isn’t technology.

It’s the pressure to do more with less — without losing what makes leadership effective.

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80.6% of you voted No in yesterday’s poll: Do you follow any newsinfluencers?

“Let’s leave news coverage to professional journalists, please.”

“There’s already enough ‘influence’ in newscasts without adding outright influencers to the mix.”

“Subconsciously, I’m sure I’m influenced in a million different ways, but I don’t follow any influencers.”

“Yes, I follow Aaron Parnas and AmandasMildTakes on IG.”

Let’s keep the conversation going. Join Poll Of The Day, so your opinions can shine. Discover how your views line up with your peers’, check out cool insights, and have some fun. It’s data with personality.

🚓 South Korea is seeking to arrest Bang Si-hyuk, the founder and chairman of the top K-pop label Hybe, on fraud charges.

👀 YouTube is opening its proprietary deepfake-detection tool to anyone in Hollywood at high risk of having their likeness copied.

🤳 Keke Palmer is launching a talk show on Twitch called Keke Live.

🤖 SpaceX may acquire AI-coding giant Cursor for $60 billion later this year.

🤑 Robinhood invested $75 million in OpenAI and is now opening that investment up to traders on its platform.

🫠 A Discord group has apparently gained unauthorized access to Anthropic’s dangerous, yet-to-be-released Mythos model.

✈️ The White House’s proposed $500 million rescue plan for Spirit Airlines could leave the US government owning 90% of the company.

💰 ARK Invest Venture Fund has made its first-ever lead investment — a startup called Lucra that “reimagines corporate loyalty programs into interactive, esports-like events.”

⌚ Timothée Chalamet has become a partner in independent Swiss-Danish watchmaker Urban Jürgensen — his first equity investment in a brand.