TechCrunch Equity Podcast: TikTok's E-commerce Push and Mistral AI Funding

TechCrunch Equity Podcast: TikTok, Mistral AI, and the State of Tech

Welcome back to Equity, the podcast that dives deep into the business of startups. This week's Monday episode, hosted by Alex Wilhelm (who is a bit under the weather) and Theresa Loconsolo, covers the latest in tech news from the weekend and the early part of the week.

Key Topics Discussed:

• End of Earnings Season: With only Adobe and Oracle left reporting for Q4 2023, the earnings season is largely wrapped up for the year. This provides a good vantage point to assess the overall financial health and performance of tech companies.

• Crypto Market Resurgence: The cryptocurrency market is experiencing a significant upswing, with recent price appreciation driving a massive spike in trading activity. This indicates renewed investor interest and potential for further growth in the digital asset space.

• TikTok's E-commerce Expansion: ByteDance's TikTok is making a strategic move into the Indonesian e-commerce market by forming a joint venture with Tokopedia. This partnership signifies TikTok's ambition to capture a significant share of the growing online retail sector in Southeast Asia, though it comes at a considerable investment.

• EU AI Regulation and Mistral AI's Funding: The European Union has finalized its regulatory framework for Artificial Intelligence (AI), a move that has drawn both praise and criticism. Simultaneously, Mistral AI, a Paris-based competitor to OpenAI, has successfully raised a substantial funding round. This juxtaposition raises questions about the future of AI development in Europe – whether regulatory hurdles will stifle innovation or if the market is robust enough to support growth.

• Broader Tech Trends: The podcast also touches upon other significant trends, including the ongoing "chip war," the increasing number of fintech unicorns being minted, and SumUp's recent funding round. These points highlight the dynamic and evolving landscape of the technology industry.

Episode Highlights:

• Alex Wilhelm's Health: Alex is feeling unwell, but the team decided to push forward with the show to keep listeners updated on the week's crucial tech news.
• Podcast Availability: Listeners can find the podcast on various platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Overcast, and Spotify. Transcripts and more information are available on Equity's Simplecast website.
• Related TechCrunch Content: The episode references several TechCrunch articles, including pieces on Bitcoin's price surge, TikTok's Indonesian venture, the EU AI Act, Mistral AI's funding, fintech unicorns, and SumUp's funding. It also promotes other TechCrunch podcasts covering crypto and founder interviews.

Social Sharing:

The episode includes prominent links and buttons for sharing the podcast on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Reddit, encouraging wider reach and engagement.

Featured Content:

The page also features links to recent TechCrunch articles and podcast episodes, including:

• "The Chainsmokers' Mantis Ventures closes $100M third fund"
• "Amazon's Kuiper satellites to get boost from rival SpaceX"
• "US Army soldier pleads guilty to hacking telcos and extortion"
• "A former OpenAI engineer describes what it's really like to work there"
• "Meta fixes bug that could leak users' AI prompts and generated content"
• "AV startup Pronto.ai acquires off-road autonomous vehicle rival SafeAI"
• "Mira Murati's Thinking Machines Lab is worth $12B in seed round"
• "Hugging Face's new robot is the Seinfeld of AI devices"
• "SaaS is in the past. The future belongs to agents, says Narada AI’s CEO."
• "Why Cloudflare wants AI companies to pay for content"
• "Robinhood’s co-founder is beaming up (and down) the future of energy"

About the Hosts:

• Alex Wilhelm: Senior Reporter at TechCrunch, covering markets, venture capital, and startups. Founding host of the "Equity" podcast.
• Theresa Loconsolo: Audio Producer at TechCrunch, focusing on the "Equity" podcast. Previously a producer at a multi-station conglomerate.

Upcoming Event:

TechCrunch is hosting All-Stage 2025 in Boston on July 15, 2025, focusing on founders and VCs across all stages of investment.

This episode provides a comprehensive overview of the current tech landscape, highlighting key developments in e-commerce, AI regulation, and the crypto market, all delivered through the insightful analysis of the TechCrunch Equity team.