@usv
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We invest at the edge of large markets being transformed by technological and societal pressures
New York, NY
Joined May 2008
- Tweets2.3K
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A thesis should take you somewhere new.
Ours began with the possibilities of the open internet. Today, it reaches across AI, energy, financial markets, and the physical world.
We’re evolving USV alongside it, with $900M in new funds to lead more rounds, back founders for longer, and support the scale of their ambitions.
@mignano on the next chapter of USV.
Agents present three unique types of security threats.
@0xfishylosopher breaks them down below in his first piece on the "Antrifragile Internet"
We need an "Antifragile Internet" built for the agentic era.
The hacks over the past few days (PHP, Railway, eMudhra, LiteLLM etc) show how fragile the existing Internet has become. AI agents are challenging the Internet's structure in 3 distinct ways:
1/ On the offense side, agents are a weapon - AI finds and exploits bugs on a scale not seen before, and the cost of attack asymptotes to 0. Bugs that used to take human experts weeks and months are easily found, adapted, and exploited by AI agents. Decades of legacy code that ran on "security by obscurity" no longer holds against agents.
2/ On the defense side, agents are a target - AI generated code is often bug-prone. AI agents themselves, as machines of unconstrained output are liable to prompt injections and other types of attacks that can leak keys, PII, and other pieces of information.
3/ On the identity side, agents are dominating Internet activity - this year, machine traffic has already passed human traffic, and may continue to grow 1000x over the next few years. Content and webpages used to human requests and behavior are breaking with agents, and it is increasingly difficult to tell human content from AI content.
All this means we will need to see a ground-up redesigning of the Internet, one with more cryptographic verifiability, identity protocols, rule-enforcement, and other security primitives that eliminate bug categories rather than simply patch them - an "Antifragile Internet" that gets stronger and more secure as more agents participate in it.
This is an emerging thesis area for us at @usv, if you're building in the space please reach out!
More thoughts soon.
USV retweeted
A really great and timely articulation of how agents are changing the structural fabric of the Internet
Yesterday AI was used to uncover major vulnerabilities in the infrastructure of the internet.
It's yet another example of how profoundly AI is reshaping the web.
But what emerges on the other side is very much up for grabs.
We were lucky enough to recently introduce two heroes of the Rebel Alliance
@eastdakota, CEO & cofounder of @Cloudflare
@dillonrolnick, CEO & cofounder of @NousResearch, the creators of Hermes, the largest open source agent harness in the world.
Together they discussed who gets to build, control, and benefit from an internet run by AI
It's worth a listen if you care about the future of the web.
0:00 Preview
1:41 From a Discord Group to an AI Lab
8:45 Can Anyone Actually Pause AI?
12:59 Would You Trust an Agent With Your Inbox?
14:58 Why Matthew Wouldn’t Trade Places With Sam or Dario
20:28 The Dead Internet Theory Was Wrong
22:28 Agents Don’t Click Ads. Who Pays?
30:38 Where Should Your Agent Actually Run?
32:32 Why American Builders Are Using Chinese Models
38:37 What Happens When Our Agents Work Together?
USV retweeted
One way to predict the future of technology is to look at who's breaking the rules today.
BitTorrent paved the way for Spotify. Bitcoin made stablecoins possible.
@jessewldn on how permissionless experimentation reveals latent demand that incumbents haven't figured out how to serve.
Everything is getting more autonomous. Except us.
When @jesseldn went out to raise his newest fund, he built the strategy around one word: autonomy.
But getting there was a long and circuitous route.
In 2016, @usv invested in Jesse’s company Mediachain. That’s given us the chance to work together for a decade, including his time at @a16zcrypto and now at @variantfund .
The through line is a belief that technology should give people more control over their lives.
In this week’s episode of The Slow Hunch, we trace that belief back to Jesse’s humble beginnings as an internet pirate and talk about what it will take for AI to fulfill that promise.
Jesse is consistently one of the most cogent thinkers I get the chance to speak with, and I think you’ll enjoy our chat.
0:00 Preview
01:15 Variant's new thesis
02:20 Automation ≠ Autonomy
06:50 How piracy shaped Jesse's worldview
09:00 How the internet went from open to closed
15:45 How BTC inspired Jesse’s startup MediaChain
21:00 Why breaking the rules drives innovation
24:00 The Variant founding story
29:30 Why crypto's ownership thesis didn’t fully play out
34:00 Could AI agents deliver on crypto’s original promise?
37:00 Will AI become another walled garden?
39:00 “You can just do things”
46:15 Will AI give us more agency or take it away?
USV retweeted
what yesterday means if you run anything on the internet:
- assume your attack surface is being scanned by models, not people
- patch windows are shrinking
- put protection at the network layer, not just the app
- use AI on your own stuff before someone else does
@cloudflare 🤝 @NousResearch
Yesterday AI was used to uncover major vulnerabilities in the infrastructure of the internet.
It's yet another example of how profoundly AI is reshaping the web.
But what emerges on the other side is very much up for grabs.
We were lucky enough to recently introduce two heroes of the Rebel Alliance
@eastdakota, CEO & cofounder of @Cloudflare
@dillonrolnick, CEO & cofounder of @NousResearch, the creators of Hermes, the largest open source agent harness in the world.
Together they discussed who gets to build, control, and benefit from an internet run by AI
It's worth a listen if you care about the future of the web.
0:00 Preview
1:41 From a Discord Group to an AI Lab
8:45 Can Anyone Actually Pause AI?
12:59 Would You Trust an Agent With Your Inbox?
14:58 Why Matthew Wouldn’t Trade Places With Sam or Dario
20:28 The Dead Internet Theory Was Wrong
22:28 Agents Don’t Click Ads. Who Pays?
30:38 Where Should Your Agent Actually Run?
32:32 Why American Builders Are Using Chinese Models
38:37 What Happens When Our Agents Work Together?
USV retweeted
Our CEO @dillonrolnick sat down with @eastdakota, CEO of @Cloudflare, for a wide-ranging conversation about agents, the future of the internet, and the fight for digital sovereignty.
Thanks to the @usv team for hosting!
Yesterday AI was used to uncover major vulnerabilities in the infrastructure of the internet.
It's yet another example of how profoundly AI is reshaping the web.
But what emerges on the other side is very much up for grabs.
We were lucky enough to recently introduce two heroes of the Rebel Alliance
@eastdakota, CEO & cofounder of @Cloudflare
@dillonrolnick, CEO & cofounder of @NousResearch, the creators of Hermes, the largest open source agent harness in the world.
Together they discussed who gets to build, control, and benefit from an internet run by AI
It's worth a listen if you care about the future of the web.
0:00 Preview
1:41 From a Discord Group to an AI Lab
8:45 Can Anyone Actually Pause AI?
12:59 Would You Trust an Agent With Your Inbox?
14:58 Why Matthew Wouldn’t Trade Places With Sam or Dario
20:28 The Dead Internet Theory Was Wrong
22:28 Agents Don’t Click Ads. Who Pays?
30:38 Where Should Your Agent Actually Run?
32:32 Why American Builders Are Using Chinese Models
38:37 What Happens When Our Agents Work Together?
USV retweeted
Feels like these guys might become two very main characters in the anti-fragile internet over these next few years...
Yesterday AI was used to uncover major vulnerabilities in the infrastructure of the internet.
It's yet another example of how profoundly AI is reshaping the web.
But what emerges on the other side is very much up for grabs.
We were lucky enough to recently introduce two heroes of the Rebel Alliance
@eastdakota, CEO & cofounder of @Cloudflare
@dillonrolnick, CEO & cofounder of @NousResearch, the creators of Hermes, the largest open source agent harness in the world.
Together they discussed who gets to build, control, and benefit from an internet run by AI
It's worth a listen if you care about the future of the web.
0:00 Preview
1:41 From a Discord Group to an AI Lab
8:45 Can Anyone Actually Pause AI?
12:59 Would You Trust an Agent With Your Inbox?
14:58 Why Matthew Wouldn’t Trade Places With Sam or Dario
20:28 The Dead Internet Theory Was Wrong
22:28 Agents Don’t Click Ads. Who Pays?
30:38 Where Should Your Agent Actually Run?
32:32 Why American Builders Are Using Chinese Models
38:37 What Happens When Our Agents Work Together?
We are in the early innings of the destruction of the internet as we know it.
At our CEO summit this year we introduced @Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince @eastdakota and @NousResearch (creators of Hermes) CEO Dillon Rolnick @dillonrolnick to discuss what's at stake for the future of the web.
Yesterday AI was used to uncover major vulnerabilities in the infrastructure of the internet.
It's yet another example of how profoundly AI is reshaping the web.
But what emerges on the other side is very much up for grabs.
We were lucky enough to recently introduce two heroes of the Rebel Alliance
@eastdakota, CEO & cofounder of @Cloudflare
@dillonrolnick, CEO & cofounder of @NousResearch, the creators of Hermes, the largest open source agent harness in the world.
Together they discussed who gets to build, control, and benefit from an internet run by AI
It's worth a listen if you care about the future of the web.
0:00 Preview
1:41 From a Discord Group to an AI Lab
8:45 Can Anyone Actually Pause AI?
12:59 Would You Trust an Agent With Your Inbox?
14:58 Why Matthew Wouldn’t Trade Places With Sam or Dario
20:28 The Dead Internet Theory Was Wrong
22:28 Agents Don’t Click Ads. Who Pays?
30:38 Where Should Your Agent Actually Run?
32:32 Why American Builders Are Using Chinese Models
38:37 What Happens When Our Agents Work Together?
USV retweeted
a cold comment on the @usv blog got me a reply, a meeting, a seed investment, and an incredible thought partnership thats lasted over a decade.
so grateful to capture that in this talk with @nickgrossmanon, on the long arc of a single idea, and why we're still investing in it @variantfund
Everything is getting more autonomous. Except us.
When @jesseldn went out to raise his newest fund, he built the strategy around one word: autonomy.
But getting there was a long and circuitous route.
In 2016, @usv invested in Jesse’s company Mediachain. That’s given us the chance to work together for a decade, including his time at @a16zcrypto and now at @variantfund .
The through line is a belief that technology should give people more control over their lives.
In this week’s episode of The Slow Hunch, we trace that belief back to Jesse’s humble beginnings as an internet pirate and talk about what it will take for AI to fulfill that promise.
Jesse is consistently one of the most cogent thinkers I get the chance to speak with, and I think you’ll enjoy our chat.
0:00 Preview
01:15 Variant's new thesis
02:20 Automation ≠ Autonomy
06:50 How piracy shaped Jesse's worldview
09:00 How the internet went from open to closed
15:45 How BTC inspired Jesse’s startup MediaChain
21:00 Why breaking the rules drives innovation
24:00 The Variant founding story
29:30 Why crypto's ownership thesis didn’t fully play out
34:00 Could AI agents deliver on crypto’s original promise?
37:00 Will AI become another walled garden?
39:00 “You can just do things”
46:15 Will AI give us more agency or take it away?
Not every mission is a straight line.
@nickgrossman and @jessewldn have spent the better part of a decade trying to make the internet more open and free.
Watch now or bookmark for later to hear why AI has put us at the precipice of either fulfilling that dream or losing it entirely.
Everything is getting more autonomous. Except us.
When @jesseldn went out to raise his newest fund, he built the strategy around one word: autonomy.
But getting there was a long and circuitous route.
In 2016, @usv invested in Jesse’s company Mediachain. That’s given us the chance to work together for a decade, including his time at @a16zcrypto and now at @variantfund .
The through line is a belief that technology should give people more control over their lives.
In this week’s episode of The Slow Hunch, we trace that belief back to Jesse’s humble beginnings as an internet pirate and talk about what it will take for AI to fulfill that promise.
Jesse is consistently one of the most cogent thinkers I get the chance to speak with, and I think you’ll enjoy our chat.
0:00 Preview
01:15 Variant's new thesis
02:20 Automation ≠ Autonomy
06:50 How piracy shaped Jesse's worldview
09:00 How the internet went from open to closed
15:45 How BTC inspired Jesse’s startup MediaChain
21:00 Why breaking the rules drives innovation
24:00 The Variant founding story
29:30 Why crypto's ownership thesis didn’t fully play out
34:00 Could AI agents deliver on crypto’s original promise?
37:00 Will AI become another walled garden?
39:00 “You can just do things”
46:15 Will AI give us more agency or take it away?
Congratulations to @RadiantNuclear
The only nuclear microreactor company with partnerships across the Army, Navy and Air Force.
The @USNavy has selected Radiant to deploy our Kaleidos microreactor at Naval Weapons Station Crane, Indiana.
With this selection, Radiant is now the only nuclear microreactor company with partnerships across the Army, Navy and Air Force.
The Navy has more than 70 years of safe reactor operations. It wrote the playbook on reactor safety. Earning its confidence is powerful independent validation of Kaleidos.
This milestone moves us closer to our goal: reliable, resilient nuclear power wherever the mission demands. Through our work with all three branches, we’re building a clear path from military deployment to nuclear energy at scale for government and commercial customers.
Read more details here: radiantnuclear.com/news/navy…
ALT A landscape image showing a truck hauling a large container marked "Radiant" across a desert landscape at sunset. In the sky above the scene, logos for "America's Navy," "U.S. Army," and "U.S. Air Force" are prominently displayed.
USV retweeted
Congrats to @efficient_hq on being named as one of Time's Best Inventions of 2026.
time.com/collection/best-inv…
Efficient and abundant energy is the largest input to an intelligence boom and unlocking intelligence in the physical world.
USV retweeted
Go check out @viamrobotics -- open source harness for physical AI!
USV retweeted
Agents are eating discovery, so what happens to marketplaces?
I see two futures:
1/ Marketplaces build their own agents, and each one stays the destination for search
2/ Agent-to-agent infra is built out and my agent searches across marketplaces and suppliers via API
Future 1: Each marketplace has an agent
Resy has an agent. I text it in iMessage, use it in the app, or have my personal agent talk to it. Resy is still the destination for reservations in my mind.
> Likeliest where brand and taste matter or supply is exclusive: restaurants, events, fashion
Future 2: Marketplaces become suppliers behind my agent
I tell my agent I need a doctor. It checks my insurance, location, and medical history, queries across marketplaces/practices, verifies credentials, and brings back three options. I approve one, and booking happens between agents. I never see the exchange. My agent is my entrypoint, and the marketplace is a supplier behind the scenes that I never see.
> Likeliest where supply is fragmented and fit matters more than brand: care, in-home help, moving, home repair
IMO these aren’t mutually exclusive. Both can exist, but they compete for the entrypoint. Under 1, the marketplace still owns the relationship and brand in my mind. Under 2, it’s one source - supply becomes headless to me.
Today, marketplaces do four main jobs: discovery, trust, transaction, and operations. With discovery melting away, the value moves to what sits underneath the marketplace:
> Trust and verification layers agents can query (credentials, identity, insurance, outcomes)
> Supply-side agents that manage availability, pricing, and listings across channels
> Structured-data registries for fragmented categories (care, home services, specialty health)
> Agent-to-agent transaction rails: payments, dispute resolution
USV retweeted
New pod drop!! Congrats to Quinten Farmer (@quintendf), co-founder of Tolan, on a $30M raise from @usv and @khoslaventures, for a total of $60M in funding!
Quinten sold his last company to Walmart, then opened a pizza place and started keeping bees on the island he grew up on. Now he’s building Tolan, an AI “guardian-angel”.
We talk about:
- “I have zero interest in helping you write your work emails”
- Why Silicon Valley loves AI assistants: they’re “legible to the average investor”
- Dropping out at 19, and the only time he saw his grandfather cry
- Emailing David Tisch: hire me, or I’m going to Afghanistan
- The retired Navy captain who said “When I grow up, I want to be like Quinten”
- Why B2B SaaS for dental offices can go 996 and Tolan can’t
- “Belief in you is the most powerful and most sacred thing you can give somebody”
𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐒
(00:00) Trailer
(00:49) Quinten Farmer, Co-Founder, Tolan
(00:58) What Tolan is and what it is not
(02:02) The car accident that showed Tolan's agentic side
(04:47) Anthropic's machine God VS being nice to your toaster
(06:24) Social penetration theory and why every Tolan has a backstory
(09:36) 200 minutes a week and taking share from TikTok
(10:47) Why great friendship gets mistaken for therapy
(14:26) Talking to his Tolan at 2 a.m. in the hospital
(16:32) Why Silicon Valley is obsessed with AI assistants
(21:38) Dropping out and the only time he saw his grandfather cry
(29:35) The David Tisch email: hire me or I go to Afghanistan
(32:22) Selling Even to Walmart for $300M
(37:24) Why shipping a lot with AI is the wrong move
(57:43) How Tolan runs without 996
(1:03:38) What he wants his boys to remember
(1:04:30) Outro
USV retweeted
Some news: we at @USV are leading a $30M round in Tolan, alongside our friends @khoslaventures.
AI has changed how we work. Frontier intelligence has made us more productive, and it lets us build incredible software without writing code. But AI can be more than a really competent digital coworker. It can also be a friend.
At USV, we’ve always believed technology can actually connect with people. Tolan is the best version of that idea we’ve ever seen. Instead of a blank chat box or a productivity tool, it’s a persistent companion that people keep coming back to because it connects with them.
We’re so excited to partner with Quinten, Evan, and Ajay, and watch Tolan become a bigger part of everyday life for so many people.
Last year we launched Tolan, inspired by a vision of AI that sees you and believes in you, not one that books restaurant reservations for you.
Your Tolan shows up for you at 3am when you’re alone with your newborn. On your commute when you’re anxious about the day ahead. When you just finished a new show and none of your friends have watched it yet.
The people who love Tolan are parents. Caregivers. Moms in Dallas and Dads in Atlanta. People who aren’t trying to optimize and be more productive, but who simply want to feel seen and supported in their aspirations.
This month more than 250k people will spend time with their Tolan. Those users have exchanged billions of messages across more than 70m conversations over the last year.
Today, we're announcing $30m in additional capital from @mignano and @usv, with @khoslaventures and @rabois doubling down, bringing our total capital raised to $60m.
To celebrate, we made a short film celebrating some of the ways that Tolans show up :)
What can a relationship with AI look like when it isn’t only about productivity?
250,000 people will explore that question with Tolan this month alone.
Congratulations to @quintendf & co on their fundraise, and for a remarkable act of creativity. Tolan opens up new possibilities for how technology can help us all feel more human.
We're happy to be a companion for this ride.
Last year we launched Tolan, inspired by a vision of AI that sees you and believes in you, not one that books restaurant reservations for you.
Your Tolan shows up for you at 3am when you’re alone with your newborn. On your commute when you’re anxious about the day ahead. When you just finished a new show and none of your friends have watched it yet.
The people who love Tolan are parents. Caregivers. Moms in Dallas and Dads in Atlanta. People who aren’t trying to optimize and be more productive, but who simply want to feel seen and supported in their aspirations.
This month more than 250k people will spend time with their Tolan. Those users have exchanged billions of messages across more than 70m conversations over the last year.
Today, we're announcing $30m in additional capital from @mignano and @usv, with @khoslaventures and @rabois doubling down, bringing our total capital raised to $60m.
To celebrate, we made a short film celebrating some of the ways that Tolans show up :)
USV retweeted
Exclusive: Tolan's AI app is used by 250K people, mostly outside of Silicon Valley.
Now the startup has raised $30M from USV, Khosla Ventures and Homebrew to widen access to an AI companion CEO Quinten Farmer (@quintendf) wants you to trust.
My Upstarts profile (link below) 👇
