🫤 Using AI wrong? SaaS-pocalypse, vertical startups, paper unicorns, money and more

This is a monthly newsletter of curated actionable insights and resources for over 22,000 underestimated founders, funders, and friends.

Daniela V (Storybook), Rehan C (Chptr), Disney P (LiquiDonate), Jordon D (Tallee)

AI has been on my mind a lot lately. I've been watching how people actually use it and most of us are doing it wrong.

Literally. It's like having a brilliant assistant. If you don't give them the right job, they end up creating more work, not less.

Here’s how I’m starting to think of AI:

• Automate: let it run the repetitive low-context stuff

• Collaborate: figure it out together on complex tasks

• Manual: do it myself if I’m faster or high-stakes

If it takes longer to explain what I want than to just do it, I do it myself. Sounds obvious, but most people pick one mode and never switch. And the consequences go beyond wasting your own time. Companies are burning real resources on AI pilots that aren’t delivering because they’re stuck in the wrong mode. Then again folks are talking about an AI SaaS-pocalypse.

Next time you open ChatGPT, Gemini, or Claude, ask yourself: automate, collaborate, or manual?

🍉 Lolita Taub, GP at Ganas Ventures | X | LinkedIn | Lolita AI

Ganas Ventures invests $100K checks into early-stage startups.
Featured in Forbes, Nasdaq, Techcrunch, and more

---

Congrats

LiquiDonate released their State of Retail Return Fraud 2026 whitepaper and was featured on All Access with Andy Garcia. Leracom raised $1M for their pre-seed round. Shappi acquired Comparto My Maleta. Storybook grew 400% in 2025 and their Theo App was selected as an SXSW Pitch 2026 finalist. Tallee hit profitability in 2025. Chptr announced a partnership with Carrillo Funeral Home and Telemundo. Vitrinnea was named a most admired company in Central America by Revista Estrategia & Negocios. Bump wrapped up the 500 Creators Ventures Accelerator.

---

Events

• Founders Office Hours: March 4 on “Investors keep saying ‘interesting.’ What does that actually mean?”

• Investors Office Hours: March 18 on “Everyone has a great story. How do you find what’s real?”

---

Investors

PitchBook | Q4 2025 AI VC Trends: Money is moving to AI companies that solve one specific problem really well, not the ones trying to do everything. If you’re investing in horizontal AI infrastructure instead of vertical solutions, expect it to take longer to deploy your capital and see returns.

GoingVC | New Architecture VC Funds: The best-performing funds use AI to handle the boring stuff so they can spend time with founders. AI is quickly becoming table stakes.

AngelList | Fund Benchmarks Report 2025: Funds that started more recently are making better returns than older funds. Startup prices dropped to realistic levels, which means it’s actually a good time to invest.

Startup-Investor Matching Tool | Investors: meet thesis-aligned founders

---

Founders

The Guardian | Headed Toward a ‘SaaS-pocalypse’?: AI is replacing traditional software companies, but the ones with their own unique data are surviving. Make sure you build something AI can’t easily copy.

The Odin Times | Too Big to Succeed: Consider raising from smaller funds. Look for investors who actually understand what you’re building and can move fast, not just the ones with the best logo on their website.

PitchBook | Sizing the Unicorn Herd: Most billion-dollar startups are still using inflated 2021 valuations, but they’re probably worth way less now. The good news? Deals are priced more realistically. Show investors how you save money and stay lean, not just how fast you’re growing.

Startup-Investor Matching Tool | Founders: get intros to investors that get you

---

Money

Ganas Ventures | Pre-seed & seed founders: apply for $100K on a rolling deadline

Meta AI Glasses Impact Grants | Wearable AI-tech founders: apply for $25K–$200K by Mar 9

Skip’s Monthly Grants | All founders: apply for $10K by Mar 6 (next round deadline)

LA2050 Grants Challenge | LA impact founders: apply for up to $75K by Apr 22 (Part 1 Screening)

CodeLaunch LATAM 2026 | LATAM startups: apply for $50K–$100K in services/funding by May 10

The Philadelphia Small Business Catalyst Fund | Small businesses in Philly: apply for $50K on a rolling deadline

The McKinney Innovation Fund | Texas-based founders: apply for $50K–$500K on a rolling deadline

Power Forward Small Business Grant | Black-owned businesses in New England: apply for $25K on a rolling deadline

---

Want more? Follow Lolita on X or LinkedIn for additional resources. Support our newsletter and get featured to our 22K+ community by becoming a sponsor.