Alex Konrad
Forbes
New York, NY, United States
Contact Alex
Discover and connect with journalists and influencers around the world, save time on email research, monitor the news, and more.
| Recent: |
|
| Past: |
|
Past articles by Alex:
Inflection AI, The Year-Old Startup Behind Chatbot Pi, Raises $1.3 Billion
Mustafa Suleyman's chatbot startup Inflection AI is now valued at $4 billion, backed by Microsoft, Nvidia and tech billionaires Reid Hoffman, Bill Gates and Eric Schmidt. → Read More
Sequoia Is Splitting Into Three VC Firms
Sequoia’s China and India and Southeast Asia funds are shedding their brand ties, becoming new firms HongShan and Peak XV Partners. → Read More
For Top VCs, ByteDance’s Historic Windfall Remains A $220 Billion Mirage
The world’s most valuable startup does more than any other investment to put VCs on the Forbes Midas List, including its No. 1. But tens of billions in profits remain blocked by a regulatory standoff with no resolution in sight. → Read More
Silicon Valley Bank’s Abrupt Closure Leaves Venture Capitalists And Founders Scrambling
Investors told Forbes they’re now focused on damage control such as ensuring portfolio startups can make payroll with the bank’s uninsured deposits now frozen. → Read More
Buzzy Storytelling Startup Tome Raises $43 Million From A Who’s Who In AI
Now valued at $300 million while still pre-revenue, per a source, Tome says it’s the fastest productivity software maker to ever reach 1 million users since its September release. → Read More
Longtime Snap Exec Ben Schwerin Joins Coatue To Launch Investor’s Los Angeles Office
Ben Schwerin will lead consumer and internet investments for Coatue, the private equity firm that first invested in Snap in 2013. → Read More
Inside ChatGPT's Breakout Moment And The Race To Put AI To Work
Forbes spoke to OpenAI’s Sam Altman and Greg Brockman — and more than 60 other leaders, from Bill Gates to Fei-Fei Li — about the new wave of AI hype, driven by the viral popularity of ChatGPT and Stable Diffusion. Here’s why AI is about to change how you work, like it or not. → Read More
OpenAI Releases First $20 Subscription Version Of ChatGPT For Businesses
AI unicorn OpenAI is ready to make money off its popular AI chatbot released in November. → Read More
After Layoffs And A CEO Swap, Cometeer’s Frozen Coffee Pod Business Is In Hot Water
In December, Cometeer quietly conducted layoffs and installed its chief operating officer as co-CEO. Former employees spoke of dysfunction and high executive turnover as growth has slowed at the most-funded coffee startup ever, where headcount is down nearly 50%. → Read More
Midas List 2023: Submissions Are Now Open For The Definitive Ranking Of The World’s Best Venture Capitalists
The Midas List, Forbes’ data-driven ranking of the top 100 private tech investors in the world, is back for a 22nd year. Submissions are open through February 14. → Read More
The Most Anticipated Tech IPOs In 2023: Stripe, SpaceX Headline An Uncertain Class
The tech IPO market in 2022 was the worst in years. Here are the startup unicorns and dark horse plodders that investors are hoping can heat it back up, starting with Stripe. → Read More
Peloton Ex-CEO John Foley Is Back—With A Custom Rug Startup And $25 Million
Foley and two other ex-Peloton cofounders are launching Ernesta, a direct-to-consumer custom-cut rug business, with $25 million from Addition and True Ventures and a team of former managers from their former company. → Read More
Midas List Investor John Curtius Is Leaving Tiger Global Amid Firm’s Ongoing Startup Slump
John Curtius, a Midas List investor who backed more than 250 startups including Databricks, Snyk, Hopin and Olive AI, is leaving Tiger Global as the firm continues to mark down its private company portfolio. → Read More
Kapor Capital, Black-Led VC Firm Focused On ‘Impact,’ Raises $126 Million
The funding, which makes Kapor Capital one of the largest Black-led VC firms by assets, will help it continue to invest in “gap-closing” impact-minded startups. → Read More
Y Combinator Names Venture Capitalist Garry Tan As Its Next President
Midas List investor and Initialized Capital cofounder Garry Tan will take the reins at influential startup accelerator Y Combinator in 2023. → Read More
Australian, South Korean Investors Pour More Cash Into SpaceX At $125 Billion Price Tag
South Korea’s Mirae Asset and Australia’s QIC were behind a $250 million cash injection into SpaceX, sources tell Forbes, maintaining SpaceX's recently-set valuation at $127 billion. It's the most for any U.S. startup. → Read More
Exclusive: Amazon’s Consumer Chief Dave Clark Joins Supply Chain Startup Flexport As CEO
Exclusive interview: Former Amazon consumer chief Dave Clark has a new job: co-CEO, and eventually sole CEO, of $8 billion-valued supply chain software startup Flexport. Founder Ryan Petersen plans to step into an eventual executive chairman role. → Read More
A16z Crypto’s Record New $4.5 Billion Fund Doubles Down On Web3 Amid Market Crash
Midas List No.1 Chris Dixon and a16z crypto's $4.5 billion fund, a record for venture funds in the sector, comes as prices have crashed recently. → Read More
The Cloud 100 List: Submit Your Company To Join The Cloud’s Best And Brightest In 2022
Submissions for the 2022 Forbes Cloud 100 list are now open through May 31. → Read More
VC Heavyweight Sequoia Names Roelof Botha As New Global Leader
Sequoia Capital has tapped Midas List investor and 'PayPal Mafia' veteran Roelof Botha as Senior Steward, making him global leader of its storied venture capital firm. Doug Leone steps back. → Read More