Jordan Crook

Jordan Crook is a partner at Betaworks, where she invests in the intersection of AI and gaming. Previously, she was Deputy Editor at TechCrunch.

[KATY PERRY @katyperry]

THE LIFETIMES TOUR
EUROPE ♥️

Get ticket info at https://t.co/VoZK5zdbbA

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

It was close to what we expected, yet it set an interesting and high bar that merited some recalibration of prior thinking.

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

Technology Changes
During the last camp (fall 2024), OpenAI had just released the o1 model, aka Strawberry.

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

We’ve gotten an even better sense for what has the greatest chance of venture-scale success and want to double down on our thesis.

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

(System 2 thinking) of the models, increasing context windows, and growing demand for AI (and agentic) software.

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

What we learned in the last six months is that there is unprecedented capacity in the market for new AI enabled products and services, especially given the advancement in reasoning capabilities

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

would pave the way for a flourishing and innovative application layer of products and services.

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

Our first camp was built on the belief that the ecosystem writ large — a competitive, and fast-advancing foundation layer, and an evolving middleware/tooling layer

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

We believe the technology continues to evolve and that opportunity is large enough to stand up another camp focused on AI at the application layer, with a refinement of our thesis.

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

In the process of doing AI Camp: Native Applications, and seeing so many incredible companies in the space, we have witnessed the increasing capabilities of the foundational technologies of the AI ecosystem drive the creation of radically new products.

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

That’s why we just invested in nine companies (at $500k each) building native AI at the application layer. You can check out those investments here.

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

the fun, exciting layer where everyone gets to do new magical things).

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

This has created the marketplace dynamics that we have been expecting and hoping for, where value is rapidly being pushed up the stack to the application layer

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

Massively capitalized and talent-rich foundation model companies are knife fighting, pushing each other to keep leaping forward.

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

The speed of progress in the last several years has brought us model after model, each better than the last, and new and powerful techniques to harness them.

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

Compared to previous shifts in technology, AI builders have been spoiled as of late. Spoiled with speed.

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

with a special interest in applications that touch the workflows and productivity of individuals, SMBs, and antiquated vertical industries.

[Jordan Crook @JordanCroo70469]

building products that deliver value quickly to a well-defined user profile;