Investment Trends: AI and Deep Tech Intersections

Investors are excited about AI's intersections with various industries, but challenges remain in securing early funding.

### The Evolving Landscape of Investment: AI and Beyond
* 🤖 The discussion highlights a "**tale of two cities**" in investment, showcasing the dichotomy between **seasoned operators securing large funding rounds** and **newer companies struggling to raise initial capital**.
* 💡 At Lux, the focus is on investing at the intersections of AI with various sectors, including **life sciences and health tech**, emphasizing that while AI is exciting, it is **not the sole area of interest**.
* 💰 There is a growing concern about the exit market, with expectations shifting towards **2025 for potential exits and distributions**, as noted by industry experts.
* 📊 Lux's deep tech fund maintains a **long-term investment strategy**, backed by patient LPs who understand that **transformative companies take time to develop**.
* 🔍 The investment landscape is changing, with **larger mutual funds and strategic players like NVIDIA** entering the market, making it **more competitive for traditional venture firms**.
* 📈 Lux has over a billion in its current fund, allowing for a **diverse portfolio** that spans from **incubation to pre-IPO stages**, while still being able to invest in **innovative companies applying AI** in various fields.
* 🏥 Companies in Lux's portfolio are adapting to the current environment by focusing on **efficiency and revenue growth**, utilizing AI to **enhance their operations** and meet the demands of a **shifting market**.
* 📚 Additionally, Leena Mo, CEO, has authored a book inspired by her experiences in venture capital, illustrating the **challenges of explaining complex concepts** to both **children and adults**.

Does that feel what you're saying? A tale of two halves. Why not? You know, it is in many ways a tale of two cities. But I don't think I would agree with the sentence that there's nothing exciting outside of AI. And at Lux, we love to invest in the intersections. In fact, we just had our summit here in New York on Tuesday. And what you see is a lot of AI but AI intersecting with life sciences, intersecting with physical intelligence, intersecting with health tech, even with Medicaid care delivery. So while I do think AI is very exciting, it's an area we've been investing in for quite some time. It's not necessarily the only area that we're seeing exciting investments these days. That was the point when you launched the new fund, right? I remember all the things that I get excited about robotics, dare I say it, life sciences. But has it been an easy environment to cut checks in?

Because you sometimes have to find willing partners who have the same level of excitement that you do in those fields? Yes, these are all areas we are still excited in. And I think one way in which it's a tale of two cities is that you're seeing these seasoned operators who are on their second or third company who may be building an AI or outside of AI that are getting these very large mega rounds. And then other companies that are struggling to raise those early dollars. That being said, we have companies across different stages and sectors that are continuing to raise. I think the big question, which Kyle pointed out, is really what the exit market looks like. And as we sat here two years ago, Caroline, talking about 2023 being the year 2024 should be the year I think we're all looking to 2025 to be the year where we start to see more of

those exits and distributions. Do you get that question and that pressure from the LPs for there to be exit opportunities? You know, we are a deep tech fund, so we've always had long lifecycles. We invest what we like to invest in the impossible and turn it into the inevitable. And so we have patient LPs who know that these companies take time, and we look for the generational large companies that turn into very big outcomes. Did any of those LPs want you to be in the open around? Well, we'll see. Well, what's interesting is some of the nuances around that round. People are sitting up and saying who's leading it, but they're also sitting up and saying, oh, they're not allowed to invest in competitors. Is that usual? Actually, when you invest in like a runway which you're in, would ultimately you not go out and reallocate to a competitor in that space?

I would say that is normal, but not every fund approach is the same way. From our perspective, we certainly don't intentionally invest in competitive companies. We like to put our resources, our connections, our network behind our investments. Oftentimes, companies will evolve over time and eventually end up intersecting, and that can certainly happen. But we do try to be careful to put our eggs in a basket and really double down on our winners. The song you mentioned a moment ago I think is probably true of whether you're in deep tech or in AI, in industrials or otherwise, which is the type of investor coming in is different. You see the very large mutual funds being a player or NVIDIA comes in. It's like a strategic you're a sizable venture firm. But is it difficult for you to get in on some rounds because of those new types of player? You know, we our current fund is is over a billion.

We're investing in everything from incubation through pre-IPO. And so we have that ability to construct a portfolio across different stages. The job of any good VC, of course, is to buy low, sell high. And so we're able to do that across the spectrum of these companies where we believe there's still a massive outcome. Even investing at a later stage, we will do that and we have the ability to do that. And we also have the ability to start companies ourselves, companies in our portfolio like evolutionary scale, which is applying A.I. to life sciences that we were early into, or alife health, which we were the first institutional capital in applying A.I. to the fertility space. What about the companies that are, as we say, AI natives? You say there's a lot of excitement in the areas of intersection, but how are some of the other companies in the older portfolios able to cope with this?

current environment? Are they steering well? Are they managing to ensure that they're cutting costs and dialing in on revenue growth? Absolutely. And it's those two things, well, three things I would say. One, AI is a way of doing things. It's not AI for my sake. So hopefully it's enabling efficiency, it's enabling better accuracy, it's enabling, you know, better profit margins. And so every company needs to have an answer to that, not because it's what they need for fundraising, although it likely is, but also because it's what they need to survive in the world. This is a huge paradigm shift. It's a seismic shift. So all of our companies are doing that. And some of the most exciting applications I've seen are actually in companies that are very much still human-oriented companies like Way Mark in our portfolio, which is leveraging community health workers to deliver health care in Medicaid communities, but are using AI to help predict emergency room

admissions and to help streamline the operations of health care providers. DNA. You've been busy, you're always a busy person, but you've also become an author. Leena Mo, CEO, very quickly telling me about it. Yes. Leena is CEO, brand new book just released last week. It's a story about a young girl who builds a robot to help shovel snow outside of her house, goes through the process of building a team, raising money, and was inspired by my own journey as a parent trying to explain venture capital to a bunch of preschoolers, which, as it turns out, is just as hard as explaining to a fully grown adult.

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Investing at the Intersection: A Diverse Approach

The speaker emphasizes the exciting intersections of AI with life sciences, physical intelligence, health tech, and Medicaid care delivery.

While AI is a focus, the speaker also sees potential in robotics and life sciences.

The investment environment is challenging, with seasoned operators securing large rounds while others struggle, but there are still companies across different stages and sectors successfully raising funds.

Challenges and Strategies in Deep Tech Investment

Deep tech funds have long lifecycles and patient LPs, focusing on impossible challenges to create generational companies.

While investing, the fund avoids allocating to competitive companies, aiming to provide resources and support to their investments.

The emergence of large mutual funds and strategic players like NVIDIA has made it challenging for traditional venture firms to secure a place in some funding rounds.

Investing Across Stages and the Impact of AI

The investment strategy includes funding from incubation to pre-IPO, aiming to buy low and sell high.

The portfolio features companies applying AI in life sciences and fertility, with a focus on enabling efficiency and profit margins.

All portfolio companies are adapting to the current environment by leveraging AI for better accuracy and revenue growth, while also addressing the need for human-oriented solutions in healthcare.

Leena Mo, CEO, has just released a new book about a young girl who builds a robot to shovel snow.

The story follows the girl's journey of building a team and raising money, inspired by Mo's own experience as a parent explaining venture capital to preschoolers.

The book highlights the challenges of conveying complex concepts to both children and adults.