Most people think GPS is “good enough”, until you realize 90% of human and object movement happens where GPS doesn’t work at all. Warehouses, hospitals, tunnels, battlefields… completely blind spots.

In this episode of Lobster Talks, Raymond Lee (Twill, YC) sits down with John Ferrara, solo founder of Juxta (YC S25), who’s building a Universal Positioning System... a no-hardware GPS alternative that works indoors, underground, and anywhere humans or machines move.

We break down the tech, the wedge into logistics and defense, and how he raised $5M at a $40M cap in ~48 hours as a 21-year-old solo founder straight out of YC.

You’ll learn:

- Why 90% of location data on Earth is currently invisible — and why that’s such a big deal.

- How Juxta uses IMUs, 3D simulations, and “synthetic fingerprinting” to localize devices without satellites or beacons.

- Real use cases across logistics, warehouses, defense, and hospitals — and why these buyers are leaning in.

- How deeptech founders should think about tech risk vs market risk when pitching VCs.

- What it’s like to go through YC S25 as a solo founder, and why so many deeptech founders end up solo.

- The inside story on raising a fast, oversubscribed round from CRV, PG, SV Angel, Liquid 2, and more.

📌 Watch now and subscribe for more smart, fast, founder-first interviews.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to GPS-Denied Spaces

00:44 Sponsor Message: Stable

01:45 Welcome to Lobster Talks Podcast

02:10 Meet Jonathan Ferrara from Juxta

03:39 Understanding Juxta's Technology

08:50 Applications and Use Cases of Juxta

10:34 Onboarding Process for Juxta

15:37 Competitors and Market Landscape

25:27 Deep Tech and Solo Founders in YC

34:47 Solo Founders and the Victim Complex

35:15 The YC Experience and Going Solo

37:18 Support Systems and Coping Mechanisms

40:23 Raising Funds as a Solo Founder

44:25 Choosing the Right Investors

56:17 Vision for the Future

59:05 Conclusion and Contact Information

🎧 Listen on the go:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1u1JyRKH8JYFjhBkvTUOAP

Apple: https://apple.co/4cZ8RMm

My other YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@lobstercap

This podcast episode is sponsored by Stable. Click here to sign up for a virtual address:

https://dashboard.usestable.com/onboard/begin?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=description&utm_campaign=influencer_lobster&promoCode=lobster50

YC pivot. Creator taxes. Real savings.

Fernando from Beluga Labs explains how AI moves tax planning from “black box” to one-click, year-round optimization, starting with the messiest edge case: content creators.

In today’s episode, Nikki hosts Fernando (Beluga Labs, YC S24) on building AI-first tax planning for creators, why they pivoted in-batch, and how YC’s “light cone” advice shaped a focused GTM.

We cover messy creator income, quarterly taxes, line-by-line deductions, and fundraising with discipline…not vibes.

You’ll learn:

- Why creators are the hardest (and best) wedge for tax software

- How YC’s niche-first “light cone” shaped Beluga’s roadmap

- The two biggest ways creators lose money on taxes (and how to stop it)

- What a 3-star → 10-star tax UX looks like (from “not going to jail” to one-click refunds)

- Fundraising discipline: setting milestone-based use of proceeds

- The creator economy reality: followers ≠ revenue; niche and brand matter more

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to AI-Powered Tax Planning

00:21 Stable: A Solution for Business Addresses

01:21 Welcome to Lobster Talk Podcast

01:40 Meet Fernando from Beluga Labs

02:03 Fernando's Journey to Entrepreneurship

05:14 Beluga Labs: Revolutionizing Tax Planning

06:32 The Pivot to Tax Solutions

11:56 The YC Experience and Support

16:32 Exploring Other Opportunities

19:20 The Future of Content Creation

21:50 Key Industry Insights and Data

24:14 The Financial Reality of Content Creators

24:43 Maximizing Income Through Investments

25:19 The Value Proposition of Tax Solutions

25:53 Streamlining Tax Filing for Creators

27:42 Aggressive Tax Savings Strategies

31:45 Future Plans and Expansion

36:59 Fundraising and Business Growth

43:19 Final Thoughts and Advice

📌 Watch now and subscribe for more smart, fast, founder-first interviews.

🎧 Listen on the go:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1u1JyRKH8JYFjhBkvTUOAP

Apple: https://apple.co/4cZ8RMm

My other YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@lobstercap

This podcast episode is sponsored by Stable. Click here to sign up for a virtual address:

https://dashboard.usestable.com/onboard/begin?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=description&utm_campaign=influencer_lobster&promoCode=lobster50

A YC insider walked away from the best seat in the Valley… to build “prank call” voice AI that now powers serious enterprise sales. 

Simple AI started as a consumer assistant that people used to troll their friends—and turned into a phone agent platform that’s replacing entire call centers.

In this episode of The Lobster Talks, I sit down with Cat, founder of Simple AI and former YC product lead behind Startup School and YC’s co-founder matching tools. We go deep on the real difference between a business and a startup, why YC went all-in on AI before the rest of the market, and how voice agents are quietly becoming the most valuable “employee” in the building.

You’ll hear how a side-project consumer app turned into inbound from enterprises like Omaha Steaks, why B2B isn’t boring when the hair is really on fire, and what the future looks like when calling a business means talking to an AI that actually solves your problem.

In this episode, we cover:

• How Cat went from building Startup School at YC to founding Simple AI
• Why “making money” isn’t enough to call something a startup—and why tech-enabled scale still matters
• The origin story of Simple AI: consumer assistant, prank calls, and the first “holy sh*t” user feedback
• How large enterprises are using voice agents today for inbound sales, support, and real revenue lift
• Why high-quality, high-conversion calls beat “cheap” AI—and how Simple AI thinks about upsell and A/B testing
• B2C vs B2B in voice AI, YC’s early bet on LLMs, and whether this is a winner-take-most market

📌 Watch now and subscribe for more smart, fast, founder-first interviews.

Chapters:

00:00 The Power of Voice AI: Pranks and Beyond

00:34 Sponsor Message: Stable - Your Virtual Business Address

01:34 Introduction to Lobster Talks and Today's Guest

01:41 Meet Cat from Simple AI

01:55 Cat's Journey at YC and the Birth of Simple AI

02:46 Building Tools for Founders at YC

04:25 The Distinction Between Business and Startup

05:49 The Role of Technology in Startup Scalability

09:03 The Visionary Leap into Voice AI

10:58 The Early Days of AI and YC's Influence

15:58 The Consumer Focus of Simple AI

17:49 Real-World Applications of Simple AI

21:00 How Simple AI Works: Practical Examples

22:44 The Power of Simple AI: No Marketing Needed

22:58 Celebrity Endorsement: Reese Witherspoon's Favorite AI

23:41 How Simple AI Benefits Businesses

24:03 AI in Call Centers: A Game Changer

24:39 The Omaha Steaks Case Study

25:45 AI vs. Human: The Upsell Advantage

26:15 Seasonal Workforce Challenges Solved by AI

27:47 The Future of AI in Sales and Support

31:57 The Synergy Between B2C and B2B Products

34:10 The Potential of Voice AI in B2C

44:08 The Competitive Landscape of Voice AI

45:51 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

🎧 Listen on the go:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1u1JyRKH8JYFjhBkvTUOAP

Apple: https://apple.co/4cZ8RMm

My other YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@lobstercap

This podcast episode is sponsored by Stable. Click here to sign up for a virtual address: 

https://dashboard.usestable.com/onboard/begin?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=description&utm_campaign=influencer_lobster&promoCode=lobster50

YC F25 just produced one of the wildest Demo Days we’ve seen: AI everywhere, hardware roaring back, and a drone startup raising at ~$200M straight out of the batch. 

If you care about where early-stage markets are really going, this is your field report.

In this episode of The Lobster Talks Podcast, we break down YC F25 Demo Day just hours after it wrapped. 

We walk through the real themes behind the noise: AI as default, healthcare and finance getting rebuilt, deeptech and defense going mainstream, and why some YC valuations are starting to look… ambitious. 

We also dig into Absurd (AI launch videos as a service), whether AI-powered services can be truly venture-backable, and what a $200M YC seed round means for fund math and future returns.

You’ll learn:

• Why “every startup is an AI startup” is no longer a hot take, it’s table stakes.
• 
  
• The under-discussed YC F25 trends: healthcare, financial services, “AI for the real world,” and deeptech/hardware.
• 
  
• How AI-enabled service providers like Absurd are rewriting the rules on what’s considered “venture-backable.”
• 
  
• The inside view on a YC F25 drone company raising at ~$200M and what that implies for fund-return math.
• 
  
• How YC valuations have quietly crept back up post-2023, and what that means if you’re raising or investing.
• 
  
• Why narrative, defense, space, and truly hard tech (Starcloud, Astroforge, Array Labs, Harper, etc.) are shifting what “normal” outcomes look like.
• 
  

📌 Watch now and subscribe for more smart, fast, founder-first interviews.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction: Surprising Valuations and Market Dynamics

00:54 Sponsor Message: Stable's Business Address Solution

01:54 Welcome to Lobster Talks Podcast

02:45 Recap of YC F25 Demo Day

03:56 Diverse Categories in YC F25 Batch

05:31 AI's Impact on Various Industries

06:26 Deep Tech and Hardware Innovations

07:23 Consumer Startups in YC F25

09:53 The Rise of AI-Enabled Service Providers

16:11 Debate: Service Providers and Venture Backed Outcomes

22:44 Scaling Ad Production Challenges

23:11 The Future of Video Content

23:58 Absurd Valuations in YC Companies

24:21 Drone Company with a $200M Valuation

25:59 Investment Returns and Valuation Math

28:47 High Valuations and Market Trends

36:43 Ambitious YC Startups and Their Potential

39:17 The Cycle of YC Valuations

42:50 Conclusion and Upcoming Episodes

🎧 Listen on the go:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1u1JyRKH8JYFjhBkvTUOAP

Apple: https://apple.co/4cZ8RMm

My other YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@lobstercap

This podcast episode is sponsored by Stable. Click here to sign up for a virtual address: 

https://dashboard.usestable.com/onboard/begin?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=description&utm_campaign=influencer_lobster&promoCode=lobster50

YC to 200K users without a marketing budget? HeRA is trying to become the Figma of motion design and put After Effects on notice.

This is a builder’s story: fast pivots, AI-native product, and a bold bet to scale from Berlin, not SF.

In this episode, Chia, co-founder & CTO of HeRA breaks down how they pivoted into AI motion design, grew to hundreds of thousands of users, and why they’re betting on an onsite Berlin team post-YC.

We cover PMF vs. virality, the UI/UX of AI video, the Figma vs. Adobe playbook, and how HeRA wants to power every SaaS launch video.

You’ll learn:

- Why the motion graphics wedge beat “all-in-one” AI video editors

- The YC pivot moment: prototype in two days → interview in a week

- Berlin vs. SF: talent, costs, and staying plugged into the Valley

- PMF litmus test for AI video: “1 min product video in less than 30 minutes”

- How HeRA generates code to animate motion (and why time makes it hard)

- The Figma analogy: AI-native UX vs. legacy add-ons—and why Adobe should worry

📌 Watch now and subscribe for more smart, fast, founder-first interviews.

Chapters

00:00 The Origin of Hera: From Video Editor to Motion Graphics

00:29 Sponsorship Message: Stable's Virtual Address Service

01:28 Introduction to the Podcast and Guest

02:07 Chia's Journey with YC and Hera's Evolution

02:51 The Birth of Hera's Core Idea

05:25 Decision to Move Back to Berlin

14:53 Technical Insights: How Hera Works

19:46 Marketing Success and Product Market Fit

25:00 Creating Continuous Motion Graphics

25:22 Challenges in Long Video Generation

27:55 Competing with Adobe After Effects

30:28 The Future of Motion Graphics with AI

31:20 Collaborative Features and Market Vision

36:38 Trends in AI and Video Creation

43:23 Hera's Impact on the Industry

48:32 Closing Remarks and Future Outlook

🎧 Listen on the go:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1u1JyRKH8JYFjhBkvTUOAP

Apple: https://apple.co/4cZ8RMm

My other YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@lobstercap

This podcast episode is sponsored by Stable. Click here to sign up for a virtual address:

https://dashboard.usestable.com/onboard/begin?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=description&utm_campaign=influencer_lobster&promoCode=lobster50

YC Fall ’25 Demo Day isn’t here yet, but the signal is already loud. We went through 150+ companies and picked the ones we’d fight to get allocation in.

From AI-native banks and eBay killers to fusion reactors in space and crowdsourced drug discovery, this episode is a pre–Demo Day breakdown of YC’s Fall ’25 batch. We go category by category (B2B, Consumer, Fintech, Healthcare, Industrial/Real Estate) and call our shots before founders hit the stage. No hindsight bias, just real-time conviction.

In this episode, we cover:

- Why AI video tool Waffer might become the Canva of motion, not just another Sora clone.

- How Sorce hit 500k+ users and got Drew Houston to Venmo them a $200K angel check.

- The AI-native consumer plays: SellRaze (the “AI eBay”) and Sunflower (sobriety companion that actually prevents relapse).

- Fintech 2.0 with Selfin (AI bank aggregator) and Fernstone (AI-powered insurance brokerage in a Berkshire-sized market).

- Wild upside in healthcare and deeptech: Exonic’s crowdsourced drug discovery and LunaBill’s AI phone agents for U.S. healthcare billing.

- The industrial moonshots: Axial Composites’ next-gen carbon fiber and Zephyr Fusion’s bid to do fusion… in orbit.

📌 Watch now and subscribe for more smart, fast, founder-first interviews.

Chapters:

00:00 The Crazy Story of Sorce's Founding

00:56 Introducing Stable: The Business Address Solution

01:56 Welcome to Lobster Talks: Fall 25 Demo Day Preview

03:28 Diving into B2B Startups: Laurie's Top Pick

08:43 Exploring B2B Startups:Gabriel's Top Pick

16:31 Consumer Startups: Laurie's Favorite Pick

21:09 Consumer Startups: Gabriel's Top Pick

25:10 FinTech Startups: Laurie's Top Pick

28:43 AI Native Banking Revolution

29:45 AI in Insurance: Fernstone's Disruption

32:01 Healthcare Innovations: Exonic and LunaBill

38:21 Industrial and Real Estate Picks

42:21 Fusion Energy in Space: Zephyr Fusion

47:17 YC's Hardware and Deep Tech Push

50:36 Demo Day and Final Thoughts

🎧 Listen on the go:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1u1JyRKH8JYFjhBkvTUOAP

Apple: https://apple.co/4cZ8RMm

My other YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@lobstercap

This podcast episode is sponsored by Stable. Click here to sign up for a virtual address:

https://dashboard.usestable.com/onboard/begin?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=description&utm_campaign=influencer_lobster&promoCode=lobster50

Hospitals are bleeding $260 billion a year to denied insurance claims — and AI is making it worse. One YC founder decided to fight back, using AI to beat insurers at their own game.

In this episode, we dive deep into how Aegis, a Y Combinator startup, is using AI agents to help healthcare providers recover billions lost to claim denials. Founder Ong shares his journey from Calcutta to Carnegie Mellon to YC, the inside story of getting into YC at the last minute, and how his team is tackling one of healthcare’s most entrenched problems.

What you’ll learn:

- How YC companies are attacking trillion-dollar industries with AI

- Why healthcare loses $260B a year to denied insurance claims

- The hidden incentives driving insurers to deny payments

- How Aegis built real traction in just 10 weeks

- What YC really teaches founders beyond the playbook

- The power of the YC network and why it still compounds after demo day

📌 Watch now and subscribe for more smart, fast, founder-first interviews.

Chapters:

00:00 The YC Application Journey

00:48 Introducing Krishang from Aegis

01:21 Krishang's Entrepreneurial Background

02:30 The Birth of Aegis

04:53 The Power of YC Content

07:03 Getting into YC: The Application Process

10:00 The YC Batch Experience

14:25 Maintaining Momentum Post-YC

17:59 Advice for Aspiring YC Applicants

19:09 Tackling the Healthcare Industry

21:41 Targeting Medical Billing Companies

22:07 AI in Insurance: A Growing Challenge

22:21 The Impact on Hospitals

24:31 Investor Perspectives on AI in Healthcare

26:48 Strategies for Success in Healthcare Startups

33:12 The YC Advantage

33:49 The Power of the YC Network

38:14 Silicon Valley's Collaborative Ecosystem

39:58 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

🎧 Listen on the go:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1u1JyRKH8JYFjhBkvTUOAP

Apple: https://apple.co/4cZ8RMm

My other YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@GJarrosson

They applied to YC with 90 minutes on the clock—and got in. Then they pivoted into the most operationally gnarly corner of fintech: global payroll. Avi Konduru (Shor) breaks down how AI agents + stablecoins can vertically rebuild EOR, cut costs by an order of magnitude, and expand the market beyond today’s incumbents.

In this episode, we go deep on YC as an ambition amplifier, pivot mechanics under real pressure, price vs. TAM strategy, and why launch videos (done right) are still YC’s most underrated distribution hack.

You’ll learn:

• How a 90-minute YC application (and one-take demo) still cleared the bar
• The precise wedge: vertically owning entities + automating back office with AI
• Why “someone else’s margin is your opportunity” actually maps to EOR
• Pricing strategy: undercut to expand TAM vs. match to maximize margin
• How YC Launch video distribution compresses customer discovery into days
• The pitfalls: agent reliability, compliance debt, and scaling beyond the batch

Chapters

00:00 The Last-Minute Application Rush

00:42 Welcome to Lobster Talks

01:07 Introducing Shor: Reinventing Global Payroll

02:38 The YC Experience: A Rollercoaster Journey

05:02 The Pivot: From Stablecoin Infra to EOR

10:29 Bootstrapping Challenges and Lessons Learned

18:00 The Unexpected Turn: Applying to YC Again

23:27 Competing with Deel and Rippling

27:07 Understanding Reseller Margins and Fees

27:27 Deel's Automation and Disruption in Entity Management

27:46 Setting Up Entities in High-Traffic Countries

28:49 Challenges and Regulatory Issues in Global Payroll

30:06 AI Agents Revolutionizing EOR Operations

32:33 Pricing Strategy and Market Expansion

40:11 The Power of Launch Videos in YC

44:07 The Role of Influencers in Marketing

48:07 Future Challenges and Customer Acquisition

51:31 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

📌 Watch now and subscribe for more smart, fast, founder-first interviews.

🎧 Listen on the go:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1u1JyRKH8JYFjhBkvTUOAP

Apple: https://apple.co/4cZ8RMm

My other YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@GJarrosson

We finally found a voice assistant that actually ships work. Not a demo, not a hype reel—April closes the loop on email and calendar while you’re driving, lifting, or walking to your next meeting.

In this YC-insider conversation, Neha (co-founder of April) breaks down how a narrow, vertical agent can outperform “do-everything” assistants, why dogfooding—not retention dashboards—built their product moat, and what a screen-lite future means for founders and operators. We also cover YC batch dynamics in a crowded voice category, Demo Day strategy, and the roadmap to a true “voice OS.”

What you’ll learn:

- Why narrowing scope (email + calendar first) beats generalist agents for real outcomes

- The dogfood standard: building to a founder’s own bar, then scaling

- How YC treats multiple “competing” companies—and why that can help you ship faster

- Demo Day tactics: being live, iterating weekly, and selling the founder, not the fantasy

- Voice vs. screens: trust, closed-loop execution, and the path to screenless workflows

- April’s roadmap: LinkedIn, WhatsApp, Slack, Notion—and verticalizing for sales & investors

📌 Watch now and subscribe for more smart, fast, founder-first interviews.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to April: The AI Voice Assistant

00:24 Welcome to Lobster Talks: Meet Neha from April

01:12 Diving into April's Features and Use Cases

02:46 The Journey of Building April

03:58 Challenges and Successes in the Voice AI Space

05:36 The Future of Voice AI and Investor Insights

07:37 YC Experience and Investor Reactions

08:47 The Competitive Landscape and Collaboration

12:25 The Role of YC and the Voice AI Market

20:08 The Vision for a Screenless Future

23:06 Preparing for YC Demo Day

25:38 The Importance of Execution in Business

26:16 Advice for Startups: Ship Quickly and Get Feedback

26:50 Future Integrations and Features

28:37 Challenges and Strategies During YC Journey

32:31 Maintaining Momentum Post-YC

33:20 Mental Resilience and Personal Well-being

38:10 Exciting Future Plans for April

40:17 Predictions and Insights on AI Assistants

41:09 Lessons from Zoho and Book Recommendations

43:23 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

🎧 Listen on the go:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1u1JyRKH8JYFjhBkvTUOAP

Apple: https://apple.co/4cZ8RMm

My other YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@lobstercap

A Netflix storage engineer walks into YC and ships an “infinite, shareable disk” on top of S3—30× faster and up to 90% cheaper—then dials GTM for the AI era. This is the file system’s comeback story.

Today I sit down with Hunter Leath (ARL) to unpack how a decade inside AWS + Netflix revealed a gap the hyperscalers won’t close: developers want storage that feels local, scales like S3, and doesn’t nuke the budget. We get into: YC as confidence engine, moving a family to SF, rebuilding for speed, why AWS won’t copy this, and why the file system—not object storage—becomes AI’s universal interface.

You’ll learn

-Why the clouds won’t ship a product that cannibalizes billions in revenue

-The architecture that makes ARL 30× faster and up to 90% cheaper

-How to catch customers exactly when new AI workloads start (the real ICP)

-Post-batch velocity: how SF energy kills the YC slump

-Why “serverless everything” needs a serverless disk to persist state

-The contrarian bet: the file system is the future data interface for AI

📌 Watch now and subscribe for more smart, fast, founder-first interviews.

Chapters

00:00 The Risk of Leaving Big Tech

00:33 Introducing Hunter Leh and Aril

01:32 Hunter's Journey from AWS to Netflix

02:47 The Birth of Aril

06:55 Challenges and Insights from YC

07:26 The Solo Founder Experience

19:39 Building and Launching Aril

21:01 Go-to-Market Strategy and Customer Acquisition

24:04 The AI Industry's Growing Demand

24:49 Fundraising Journey and Investor Insights

26:35 AWS and Market Dynamics

29:17 Innovations in Data Storage

36:23 Maintaining Momentum Post-YC

38:27 Future Predictions in Data Infrastructure

42:22 Contrarian Views on AI and Data Storage

44:20 Conclusion and Contact Information

🎧 Listen on the go:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1u1JyRKH8JYFjhBkvTUOAP

Apple: https://apple.co/4cZ8RMm

My other YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@GJarrosson