Christina Cacioppo on high growth v. high margins: "I think in the fullness of time, an 80% growth business with 80% margins will actually be better than a 160% growth business with 30% margins. One of these will return more cash in the fullness of time. But today the latter is valued at 10x the multiple of the former. And so there's a part where everyone's being irrational here. And then there's a very clear game-on-the-field piece. If you need to be financed, you're looking at investors today, many of whom are AI maximalists, that are like, 'We'll invest in the labs and we'll invest in tractors in Iowa. Nothing in between.'"

After October 7th, we doubled down on Israel, betting that its reservists, intelligence operators and fighters would build generational, global companies. 3 years later, the founders walking into our office are the most ambitious / sophisticated I’ve ever seen. Breathtaking.

Mark, someone also needs to teach companies how to recognize whether candidates have the capabilities the job duties require without relying on a personal introduction. Networking is a workaround for broken hiring, not evidence that someone can perform the work. When who you know matters more than whether you can fulfill the job’s duties, we're selecting for access, not capability.

Marseille city hall has fallen & they have put up Palestinian flags inside

🚨BREAKING: The historic Limoges town hall has just completely collapsed after far-left rioters set it on fire It was built in 1876. It survived World Wars. It did not survive modern France.

A billionaire sat in a room for 42 minutes and listed every psychological trick that makes people lose money. for free. the finance industry has spent thirty years pretending this recording does not exist. he didn't sell a course. he didn't write a newsletter. he sat in a chair at 96 years old and explained why brilliant people do the dumbest things with their money. then he explained why they will keep doing it. MBA programs charge $200,000 to teach behavioral finance. he covered 25 biases in one sitting. some of them are still not in any curriculum. he gave the entire framework away on camera. the part nobody talks about: he called crypto antisocial. he said index funds will crush most managers. he said private equity is full of wretched excess. he said all of this in a room full of people who manage money for a living. nobody argued. a hedge fund analyst at a top firm told me this is the first thing they send to anyone who joins the desk. not a book. not a model. a 42-minute video of a 96-year-old man explaining why you will be wrong and how to recognize it before it costs you everything. 40 million people have heard his name. almost none of them have watched him explain the 25 ways their own brain is working against them. the lecture is free. he died the following year. it is in the video.

The U.S. is $40 trillion in debt with capitalism.

Some have asked about this: Susan and I wanted our gift to give 25 million children a stronger start and to reach communities where it could make the greatest difference. We began with all eligible children born between 2016 and 2024 who signed up before auto-enrollment and lived in ZIP codes with median family income of $150,000 or less. We wanted families who took that first step to know they could count on our commitment. Next were military children living overseas who also signed up before auto-enrollment. They represented a very small share of our $6.25 billion gift, but we didn’t want to leave them out because their military addresses didn’t fit the usual ZIP-code income framework. Their parents are serving our country abroad, and we want these children included in the future we are investing in. When all American children were auto-enrolled at the beginning of this month, we immediately began funding the accounts of all children born 2016 to 2024 in eligible ZIP codes, beginning in ZIP codes with lowest median family income and moving progressively to higher median family income, up to 25 million accounts in total. We chose this approach with care and a simple hope: that these investments will open doors and help millions of children build the futures they dream of. 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

Lessons from @elonmusk and Mark Zuckerberg and Napoleon: “Elon has demonstrated that if you have a small, incredibly cracked, highly technical team, that's very flat, you can accomplish a lot very quickly.” “Mark has internalized that failure doesn't matter. It just matters when you win, how big you win.” “That concept enables Mark to operate without fear because he’s just very comfortable taking lots of risk.” “Mark has this great quote that says: The biggest risk is not taking any risk. In a world that's changing the only strategy that is guaranteed to fail is not taking risks.” “In the book The Mind of Napoleon, Napoleon repeats that hesitation is fatal. Napoleon says before you engage in a course of action you should deliberate thoroughly. He'd study from every angle to make sure he's making the right decision. But once he’s sure he’s on the right path, he goes all in. I feel there's an echo with the way Mark operates. Once Mark knows what he wants to do, he empties the clip.”

One year ago today, on October 9, 2025, we reached an agreement on President Trump’s 20-point peace plan for Gaza many believed impossible. After two years of devastating war, the agreement created a path to reunite hostage families with their loved ones, bring security to Israel, relieve the suffering of the Palestinian people in Gaza, and build a different future for the region. One year later, it’s remarkable how much has changed. The situation is far from perfect, but the progress is real, and the world is better for it. A look at the past year: ✅October 9, 2025: Hamas accepts President Trump’s 20-point peace plan, launching a ceasefire that has largely endured for a year. ✅October 12, 2025: Israeli forces complete first withdrawal to the agreed yellow line. ✅October 13, 2025: All 20 living Israeli hostages return home. Something many believed would never happen. ✅November 17, 2025: UN Security Council passes Resolution 2803, endorsing the peace plan and authorizing an international stabilization framework and the Board of Peace. ✅January 5, 2026: UN reports 100% of basic food needs being met in Gaza for the first time since 2023. ✅January 17, 2026: National Committee for the Administration of Gaza established, creating a Palestinian technocratic administration focused on restoring essential services and rebuilding Gaza. ✅January 26, 2026: Remains of the final deceased hostage returned. For the first time since 2014, no Israeli hostages, living or deceased, in Gaza. ✅February 19, 2026: The Board of Peace holds its inaugural meeting, hosted by Chairman President Trump. Landmark partnership with FIFA announced, including a $50 million commitment toward a football stadium, academy, and facilities for Gaza’s children, and billions of dollars in commitments for the people of Gaza. ✅May 2, 2026: UN reports that humanitarian aid entering Gaza had increased by 72% compared with before the ceasefire. ✅July 31, 2026: Hamas signs an actionable, step-by-step framework for decommissioning its weapons, developed with the support of Nickolay Mladenov and mediators from Egypt, Turkey, Qatar, and the United States. Implementation remains a critical next step. ✅2026: Five nations commit forces toward the International Stabilization Force, with several more working on logistics for deployment this fall. ✅September 23, 2026: Board of Peace hosts an open meeting on the sidelines of UNGA releasing the next steps in the Gaza recovery plan. A year ago, so much of this seemed impossible. First, many doubted we could reach an agreement. Then came the harder question of whether the parties would honor their commitments. Over the past year, we have seen what can be achieved when people with profound differences find ways to work together toward a common objective. Steve Witkoff @SEPeaceMissions and I are grateful to @POTUS Trump for his leadership, @VP, @SecRubio, the Board of Peace team, led by @TB, @nmladenov, @lightstonea, @AliShaathNCAG, Gen. Jasper Jeffers, Liran Tanchman, Yakir Gabay, Josh Greunbaum, Josh Halpern and many others, and our partners in Egypt, the UAE, Qatar, Turkey, Bahrain, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Morocco and Israel. Special thanks to Sheikh Mohammed, Ali Al-Thwadi, Hakan Fidan, General Hasan, Bader Abdulhamdi, @mikeeisenberg, and @AmbDermer. I’m also grateful to the many talented people who have volunteered their time and energy because they believe that the horrors of October 7 and the suffering in Gaza must never happen again. There is still hard work ahead. Disarmament must be implemented, security established, essential services restored, and communities rebuilt. None of this will be easy. But we have a thoughtful plan, committed partners, and a path forward that did not exist a year ago. It’s worth recognizing how far we’ve come, even as we acknowledge how much remains to be done. Hopefully, the year ahead will bring even more progress, and a few more miracles.

Founders and Fundraisers, here's your AI hack of the day. Go to the semi-secret @shaig Google doc of almost 1,000 smaller VC funds that have recently raised. In the right hand Gemini panel describe your startup in general terms - or upload your full deck. Then ask which funds might be a good fit - I just did and was super impressed with the results. docs.google.com/spreadsheets…