GM, winners. Welcome back to another fine edition of the Leaderboard. We've got wingmen for VCs, AI vocals for MCs, UX hacks with ease (see what we did there?)...and of course the rundown on yesterday's top launches. Let's get into it.
Vela OS: Invest in startups with the help of data and insights from AI agents
Vela is a super interesting take on venture capital. I wonder if something so AI- and quant-driven will be able to succeed in such a people-focused industry. It’s cool that they can track when companies are growing very quickly and doing well financially, but generally that’s when investors will need to pay a premium. On the other hand, when investors underwrite on trusted relationships, they can generally get in at lower prices and reap higher returns. How will Vela confront that challenge?
Card Sorting by Ballpark: Improve UX by watching how users organize information.
Ballpark lets you share research links with your customers for free or narrow down their tester pool by specific demographics (hobbies, health, streaming habits, etc.). I think the option to record users as they navigate UI is a great feature for deep design insights. The pricing model — flat monthly rate with optional per-use charges — seems more practical than the usual per-seat fees. The goal is probably to become a central hub for targeted user research. Maybe Ballpark will eventually compete with tools like Typeform.
ACE Studio: AI vocal workstation for music professionals
ACE claims it lets you generate “studio quality” natural singing vocals from MIDI [Musical Instrument Digital Interface] and lyric inputs. At first glance, the possibilities here seem pretty amazing — you can choose between over 80 royalty-free AI voices across styles as far-ranging as R&B, opera, Jpop, and soul, and the UI gives you lots of flexibility to modify the output as you go. I’m excited for the first fully AI-generated viral album, though I do wonder: what does the future of concerts look like? Hatsune Miku-esque hologram tours?
In an era where AI is reshaping how businesses operate, the journey of building an early-stage startup has never been more dynamic—or complex. How do founders navigate finding product-market fit, delegation, and scaling, all while adapting to technological innovations?
Join on January 14 at 3 pm PT for a fireside chat with Christina Cacioppo, CEO and Co-founder of Vanta, and Eric Ries, author of The Lean Startup and Founder of LTSE, as they explore the journey of the modern startup founder.
Eric and Christina will discuss:
We're oversubscribed (~450 signups for 250 spots) for our demo night this Wednesday, 12/4, at Shack15 in SF, but we might be able to find some extra spots for loyal newsletter readers 😼. Interested in coming? Subscribe to our events page here and reply to this email; we'll do our best to get you in!
