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We track Product so you don't have to. Top Podcasts summarised, the latest AI tools, plus research and news in a 5 min digest.
Hey Product Fans!
Welcome to this week’s 🌮 Product Tapas.
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What’s cooking this week? 🥘
What's on the menu this week? 🧑🍳
OpenAI triples revenue to $20B while Musk seeks $134B in damages (the math: $38M seed became worth billions), software stocks collapse as companies realise Claude Code can build their CRM in a weekend, Apple admits defeat by choosing Google Gemini to power Siri instead of building their own, healthcare becomes the next AI land grab with Anthropic and Amazon launching same week, and the Venezuela opportunity emerges as the blueprint for building 21st century infrastructure from scratch. Plus: Why Spotify automated 90% of tech debt and Meta finally killed VR.
📰 Not Boring → The $20B question, build vs buy revolution, Apple's AI scramble
⌚️ Productivity Tapas → Waylight's computer-wide AI, LyzrGPT enterprise security, Simpl. Postgres browser
🍔 Blog Bites → Bandan Singh on why chasing competitors is a fool's errand, Paweł Huryn unlocking Claude Desktop without the subscription, John Cutler on mastering collaborative problem-solving
🎙️ Pod Shots → Jeanne DeWitt Grosser reveals how one GTM engineer plus AI agents replaces 30 SDRs at Vercel
Let's go 🚀
📰 Not boring
🏗️ The $20B Question: AI Economics at Scale
OpenAI hits $20B+ ARR: Up from $6B year before (233% jump), tracking with compute expansion from 0.6 to 1.9 GWs - Link
Musk seeks $134B from OpenAI + Microsoft: Claims wrongful gains from $38M seed funding (60% of initial capital), expert calculates OpenAI owes $65-$109B, Microsoft owes $13-$25B, trial April 2026 - Link
Microsoft's Anthropic spend: Microsoft now spending $500m/year at Anthropic after up to $5bn investment commitment - Link
Humans& raises $480M seed: At $4.48B valuation pre-product, former Anthropic/xAI/Google researchers building "human-centric AI" - Link
OpenAI tripling revenue while tripling compute isn't efficiency - it's scale. The Musk lawsuit asks: who owns the gains from $38M becoming $134B? Microsoft hedging with Anthropic shows the moat is compute, not models.
🤖 Build vs Buy: The Claude Code Revolution
Software stocks collapse: Intuit, Salesforce, HubSpot all dropped double digits - worst selloff since 2022, companies questioning expensive subscriptions - Link
Goose launches: Block's free, open-source alternative to Claude Code ($20-$200/month), connects to any LLM, runs locally - Link
Anthropic launches Cowork beta: Desktop app to work with apps and files on Mac/PC, still very rough - built in 10 days using Claude Code - Link
Claude Code 2.1.0 adoption: Developers switching from Cursor, uses 5.5x fewer tokens, delivers full 200K context vs Cursor's truncated 70K-120K - Link
Spotify AI for tech debt: Built background coding agents, 1,500 pieces of code merged to production, over half automated, 60-90% time savings - Link
Software stocks collapsed while Anthropic built Cowork in 10 days. Why pay $100K/year for Salesforce when Claude Code builds your CRM in a weekend? Spotify automating 90% of tech debt means build vs buy is already decided.
🍎 Apple's AI Scramble
Apple picks Google Gemini for AI: Will use Google's models to power rebuilt Siri, running locally with Apple's privacy protections - Link
Apple developing AirTag-sized AI Pin: Wearable AI pin with dual cameras, speaker, and microphones, will run new Siri chatbot launching in iOS 27 - Link
Apple Creator Studio launches: $12.99/month subscription for Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, Pixelmator Pro, new AI features - launches Jan 28 - Link
Apple choosing Google Gemini admits they're years behind. An AI pin in 2027 when Humane already failed? The company that defined personal computing now licenses its future from Google.
💊 Healthcare Goes AI-Native
Anthropic and Amazon launching health AI same week is a $4 trillion land grab. The convergence of personal health data and AI assistants creates unprecedented opportunities for preventive care.
Introducing the first AI-native CRM
Connect your email, and you’ll instantly get a CRM with enriched customer insights and a platform that grows with your business.
With AI at the core, Attio lets you:
Prospect and route leads with research agents
Get real-time insights during customer calls
Build powerful automations for your complex workflows
Join industry leaders like Granola, Taskrabbit, Flatfile and more.
⌚ Productivity Tapas: Time-Saving Tools & Workflow Automation
Waylight: AI assistant that understands everything you do on your computer — your meetings, documents, tabs, and messages.
LyzrGPT: private, enterprise-grade AI chat platform built for security-first teams
Simpl.: A pleasant Postgres browser for working with real data
Remember. Product Tapas subscribers get our complete toolkit - 550+ personally tailored, time-saving tools for PMs and founders. Your shortcut to efficiency and what's hot in product management 🔥
Check the link here to access.
🍔 Blog Bites - Essential Reads for Product Teams
Strategy: Press Pause Before Chasing Competitors
Competitors can provide interesting observations but focusing on them as a source of product insight is mostly a fool’s errand. Bandan Singh offers practical advice for product managers contemplating reactive strategies to competitors' moves. Known as the "Three Questions" framework, it encourages teams to evaluate real user needs, strategic fit, and the authenticity of competitor announcements before rushing to adapt. Read the full article here.
💡 "Your roadmap should be a capital allocation document, not a fear-response log."
Key Takeaways
• User-Centricity: Always ask if a competitor's feature solves a significant problem for your users. If users don't express this need, it may be a distraction rather than an opportunity.
• Strategic Alignment: Consider if the feature aligns with your current strategy and financial realities. Understanding where your product stands can help avoid misallocated resources and maintain focus.
• Critical Analysis: Don't fall for marketing hype. Evaluate if a competitor's announcement is substantive or just a promotional ploy. Knowing the difference will help you craft appropriate responses.
• Response Options: After analysing the three questions, decide on your move—build the feature, create a more effective solution, ignore it, or monitor for insights. Each choice comes with its own implications and requires careful consideration.
Automation: Unlocking AI Potential with Claude Desktop
As per last week's newsletter I think the jury is still out on Claude Code despite being an enormous Claude Code fanboiiii. That said it's clearly the way things will move as the terminal UI is suboptimal for Product people.
In this piece, Paweł Huryn discusses how to leverage autonomous AI agents through Claude Desktop without needing macOS, or Claude Code, OR Co-Work OR a premium subscription. Read the full article here.
💡 "Claude Desktop + Desktop Commander MCP gives you async, long-running work full file access." Bish, bosh wallop.
It's not as powerful as Claude Code but still some great practical advice for those of you that don't yet feel you want to dive straight into the terminal or don’t have a mac.
Key Takeaways:
• Productivity Enhancements: Claude Desktop facilitates various tasks, from analysing data and drafting emails to creating presentations, enhancing workflow for users without relying on any macOS features or subscription fees.
• Custom Instructions: Users can configure Claude with custom instructions to improve its autonomous behaviour, making it capable of running tasks for extended periods without needing constant user input.
• Integration with Extensions: Leveraging specific Claude Desktop and Chrome extensions allows deeper integration with personal applications, enhancing the AI's functionality by enabling it to interact directly with files and online services like Gmail and GitHub.
• Actionable Examples: The article provides concrete examples of tasks that can be accomplished using Claude Desktop, such as assembling reports from CSV data or managing file organization, showing its versatility in real-world scenarios.
Leadership: Mastering the Art of Problem Solving
John Cutler reflects on a transformative experience in his career, shaped by a leader's commitment to developing workstreams and fostering good habits. He highlights the importance of collaborative problem-solving and iterative learning, emphasising that the process itself is part of the practice. Read the full article here.
💡 "The learning happened in the arguing, the reframing, and the small adjustments over time." This quote underscores the value of dialogue and adaptability in team dynamics.
Key Takeaways:
• Effective Leadership: A strong leader shapes frameworks and advocates for their team, enabling members to flourish while navigating ambiguity. This balance fosters collaboration and respect, creating an environment conducive to success.
• Iterative Learning: Establishing lanes for work is a dynamic process that requires constant refocusing and adjustment. Each iteration not only clarifies direction but encourages team engagement and accountability.
• Ownership and Responsibility: Defining clear ownership within teams strengthens commitment and accountability. Genuine co-ownership among team members fosters deeper collaboration and a sense of shared purpose.
• Continuous Calibration: Frequent reviews of goals and processes ensure that teams remain aligned and responsive to evolving challenges. Regular touchpoints facilitate honest discussions about progress and prevent stagnation.
🎙 Pod Shots - Bitesized Podcast Summaries
Remember, we've built an ever-growing library of our top podcast summaries (120 or so). Whether you need a quick refresher, want to preview an episode, or need to get up to speed fast - we've got you covered.
Check it out here
🎙️ Pod Shots #120 - Jeanne DeWitt Grosser, "What world-class GTM looks like in 2026" — Lenny's Podcast
Most companies are still running go-to-market like it's 2015—hiring 30 SDRs to do work that one person plus AI agents can now handle. Jeanne DeWitt Grosser (COO at Vercel, former CPO at Stripe) reveals how the "GTM engineer" role is already letting her team operate 10x faster, why 80% of enterprise buyers care more about avoiding risk than chasing upside, and how to treat your entire sales process as a product—not just a revenue function..
Key insights:
🏗️ GTM is every function that touches customers -include customer success, support, partnerships, and field engineering in your integrated lifecycle
🤖 The GTM engineer role combines sales expertise with AI development to automate workflows, cutting SDR teams from 30 people to 1 person + agents
💰 80% of buyers prioritise risk reduction over upside -enterprises buy to avoid missing revenue targets, not chase the "art of the possible"
🎯 Treat your GTM process like a product -map the entire customer journey from awareness to high LTV with product-level rigour
📊 AI agents handle repetitive tasks, humans do consultative work -sales reps now spend 70% of time with customers (up from 30%)
🔬 Deal bots reveal why you really lost deals -AI analysis showed "lost on price" was actually "never reached economic buyer"
⚡ Build your own agents before buying -internal GTM agents cost $1K/year to run, take 6 weeks to build, and capture your esoteric context
🧪 Segmentation must be consistent across all GTM functions -marketing, sales, and success often pursue misaligned strategies
👥 The SDR role is evolving, not disappearing -AI handles rote prospecting, freeing SDRs for higher-value consultative work
🚀 Document your sales process early -you can't automate what isn't replicable
That’s a wrap.
As always, the journey doesn't end here!
Please share and let us know what you would like to see more or less of so we can continue to improve your Product Tapas. 🚀👋
Alastair 🍽️.