IPO Mania hits the TWiST 500! Three companies are ready to go public | E2206
This Week in Startups
Jason Calacanis
4.4 • 1.3K Ratings
🗓️ 10 November 2025
⏱️ 65 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
👉 Register here for Founder University Japan’s Kickoff! https://luma.com/cm0x90mk
Today’s show:
*Three of our favorite TWiST 500 startups — Ledger, 1Password, AND Mercury — are circling IPOs. Find out why the cybersecurity space remains so hot… AND why Jason says you really need to have multiple banks.
PLUS Marc Andreessen called The Pope an AI Doomer on X, then thought better of it. We’re tracking the entire viral controversy…
SPEAKING OF viral feuds, allegations are FLYING around about recently-funded AI agent makers Giga. Does the startup pose some genuine red flags, or was it just a questionable launch video?
AND why Alex and Jason remain optimistic the AI vibes could turn around, presentation maker Gamma is growing FAST, plus an update on Jason and Alex’s Polymarket IPO wager…
Timestamps:
(02:17) Jason is hosting the big show from Tokyo today (tonight for him)… Where is Founder U headed next?
(04:03) Jason’s eating his way across Japan… what are his top “bang bangs” so far?
(07:47) Is The Pope a Doomer? Why Andreessen called out His Holiness (then deleted it)
(9:22) Quo - Streamline and scale your customer communications with OpenPhone. Get started free, plus get 20% off your first 6 months, at http://quo.com/TWiST
(12:08)Why Jason still thinks mass AI job displacement is coming
(17:48) Will AI-related job loss lead to an explosion in startups and small businesses?
(19:24) Coda - Empower your startup with Coda’s Team plan for free—get 6 months at https://www.Coda.io/twist
(20:39) Have lots of Americans suddenly turned on AI Why?
(25:30) Why Alex and Jason remain optimistic that the AI vibes could turn around
(29:44) Gusto. Check out the online payroll and benefits experts with software built specifically for small business and startups. Try Gusto today and get three months FREE at Gusto.com/twist.
(31:01) Alex’s new favorite definition of Product Market Fit, or “Market Pull,” as Jason clarifies
(33:31) Delving into the Giga controversy… “ugly” talk, wild X allegations, etc.
(46:11) THREE TWiST 500 are readying IPOs… Catching up with Ledger, 1Password, and Mercury
(53:42) Why Jason and Alex think you need multiple banks
(57:40) Why presentation maker Gamma is growing even faster than we thought!
(1:00:37) Checking in with Jason and Alex’s Polymarket IPO bet…
(1:03:44) Could startups become so richly valued that they become “uninvestable” without an IPO?
Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com
Check out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.com
Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp
Follow Lon:
Follow Alex:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm
Follow Jason:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis
Thank you to our partners:
(9:22) Quo - Streamline and scale your customer communications with OpenPhone. Get started free, plus get 20% off your first 6 months, at http://quo.com/TWiST
(19:24) Coda - Empower your startup with Coda’s Team plan for free—get 6 months at https://www.Coda.io/twist
(29:44) Gusto. Check out the online payroll and benefits experts with software built specifically for small business and startups. Try Gusto today and get three months FREE at Gusto.com/twist.
Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland
Check out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis
Follow TWiST:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartups
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartups
Substack: https://twistartups.substack.com
Subscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | If you can't get a job and you can make half the amount of money or double the amount of money |
| 0:06.1 | or any of those numbers in between working for yourself and having a small mom and pop business, |
| 0:11.1 | you're going to do it. People used to do it. They're going to be doing it again, not out of a |
| 0:15.4 | function of wanting to necessarily, but as a function of needing to. I think it's going to be a situation where we're |
| 0:22.9 | already seeing with college graduates, they don't have jobs. So what are they going to do? They're |
| 0:27.0 | going to start companies. They're going to try to find a product or service. They can provide to other |
| 0:31.0 | companies to consumers and put out a shingle and try to get money for a product or a service from individuals. |
| 0:40.8 | And it's going to be every person for themselves. |
| 0:44.0 | It's going to take a lot of self-reliance and rugged individualists. |
| 0:48.3 | I predict when this transition occurs and the transition is occurring. |
| 0:53.3 | And it's creating a low anxiety in the country. It's creating a |
| 0:56.9 | low anxiety in households where people are like, I kind of feel like my job's going away. I kind of feel |
| 1:03.5 | like my cousin's job is going away. I wonder how long I'll even have this job. And the managers |
| 1:08.9 | are saying, I wonder how long I'm going to have my job. I wonder how long you're going to have your job. |
| 1:12.7 | I'm also wondering that because if I don't have 10 people to manage, then why am I here? |
| 1:18.8 | Why do they need me? |
| 1:20.4 | If you're not here, why do they need me? |
| 1:21.9 | I'm a middle manager. |
| 1:23.2 | This week in startups is brought to you by Gusto. |
| 1:26.9 | Check out the online payroll and benefits experts with software built specifically for small business and startups. |
| 1:33.2 | Try Gusto today and get three months free at gusto.com slash twist. |
| 1:38.0 | Coda. |
... |
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