My girlfriend just texted me this……. fuck
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Just ran into this dude in Japan lol
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100m views, 500k users, 25k MRR in 2 months by 3 dropouts who didn't want to write their essays. The story of @myjotbot, inspired by @thepatwalls The team: @_dcai @singleclap1
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We're working on something new — a home for our projects 9 months ago, @_dcai and I dropped out to chase a dream Our only guiding question has been: What do we enjoy working on? We’ve built a lot of stuff, failed, pivoted, kept going Right now we’re working on Minutes, JotBot, and something new We're small, lean, and very profitable And having a lot of fun every day We work on whatever is most exciting to us That’s it We don't know what we'll be building next month or next year We're just following our curiosity We're growing really fast and need some help If you're a dev, designer, or just generally cracked, we’re hiring You might find yourself working on something you love too
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I just ran a 100km ultra marathon because our company is called SLAM sprint like a marathon
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The last 2 months have been interesting: @_dcai and I dropped out of college to go all in on our ideas at @_buildspace - $25k MRR - 450k users - 100 millions impressions later Here's what we've done so far at @myjotbot and how we plan to take this to the next level: The training arc We never had any success with any of our previous launches. We tried EVERYTHING. A social alarm app, an AI voice alarm, a gratefulness journal, an AI Tutor for Special Ed… We made dozens of TikToks, Reels, and Shorts daily trying to market all this stuff. Crickets every time. 200, 300, 600 views at best on hundreds of videos, for weeks. It was brutal. We were desperate. We were planning to drop out of @cal to build full time, but with no revenue and no users, our parents were never going to let that happen. The Aha Moment One day, defeated, I was on the toilet trying to think of new video ideas. It hits me, and I yell out to Derrick “yo, we should just get a super long and specific URL like ihaveanessaydueatmidnight. com and direct traffic to our site.” We didn’t have any better ideas and anything to lose so he recorded the dumb video below. We didn’t expect anything — we didn’t even buy the domain at first lol. But a few hours later the video on reels was at 30K views so we bought the domain and the traffic started to hit. That dumb video peaked at 7 million views. I remade the video with the exact same script and it got another 10 million views. Then we paid a friend to make some videos for us and they got another 2 million. Understanding how this was working broke my brain. Time to blow up? We were blowing up on repeat but our conversion rate was terrible, mainly cuz our product was riddled with bugs, but also cuz it wasn’t that useful long term. It was just a cheating tool. It also didn’t feel good. We wanted to do better and create something of real value. So here’s the new + improved direction we’re taking things in. Introducing the new JotBot. Instead of just taking over your writing process and generating walls of text in one click, we deliver a tailored, interruption-free writing experience that keeps you in your flow. No matter what you’re writing—newsletters, social post, blogs, essays, video scripts, we think you’re gonna love the new JotBot. If you read this far and want to try out the new JotBot for 3 free months, leave a reply asking for a promo code - we’ll DM you. We’d love to know what you think. Link below!
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Two years ago, Derrick and I skipped our summer internships and stayed in my tiny Berkeley studio apartment to work on a random app idea we had Somehow that turned into: - A writing app with 1.5M users - A meeting minutes app with 500K downloads - A journaling app with 100K users - A skincare app with 20K downloads - 2 alarm apps with 50K downloads We never raised money, hired full-time employees, or gave up equity—so we don't really need an office. But it's probably time we move out of that apartment. So we signed a lease on a beautiful office space in SF. It's not for us, though—it's for a few people who want to spend 3 months betting on themselves, just like we did. Maybe that's you? slam[dot]ventures/space
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🌉
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Hit 200k jotbot users!
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If anyone wants to fund this, I promise you will be airborne within 6 weeks
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A week ago we didn’t even want an office Two days ago, we checked out a spot “just to see” Yesterday we signed the lease Today we paid Tomorrow we move in Not exactly sure what we got ourselves into, but we can’t wait to show you what's next!
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Some crazy impressions recently for jotbot 🤯
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Thank you for the shoutout @FarzaTV You will see me in air soon
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So much love for you guys
I have some tough news. Today, @_buildspace is closing. I wanna be real about everything. It’s not because of investor pressure, runway, internal drama, monetization, or any of those reasons. The actual reason is a bit more personal. I wrote a letter about it below. I know this company means so much to so many people. I hope after reading the letter, you can understand. Ty for the five best years of my life. No matter what happens, ily. buildspace.so/letter
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We left buildspace yesterday and the only thing running through my head was this quote “I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
When i think of great work, i think of @_buildspace. S5 irl was a blast.
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this morning my grandparents got a call from me - crying, saying I was in jail, and needed money scammers cloned my voice, and almost convinced them talk to your older family members, and set up a pass code, or something this is happening, now
call your grandparents and figure out a way so they don't get scammed, today
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Hit the goal (a couple days late) @_dcai
Next goal: 10k mrr end of month!
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A lot can happen in 2 years!
We're SLAM Ventures—a bootstrapped team of builders and creators. And this is the SLAM Digest, our blog about the journey. Check out the pilot essay in our bio.
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what if it all works out?
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Guys I already have the helmet, I’m half way there
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We just spent $2000 on TikTok ads… and got 2 conversions I think we suck at ads. We talked to @FarzaTV and after showing him our ad flow, he asked if WE would convert. The honest answer was no. We were relying too much on flashy, attention-grabbing ads that pushed users straight to a paywall, hoping they'd pay on impulse. But we learned that actually using the product was irreplaceable. We’re trying some new really creative flows, and will see if we can get our CPA to < $1000 lol
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This is the tiny apartment we worked out of to build projects that reached millions of people and let us drop out of school to do our own thing full-time But honestly it f-ing sucks Working in the same cramped space with the same one or two people every day (sorry guys) makes you lose energy Two years later, even though things are better than ever on paper, things feel harder than they should, and you kinda just lose your spark One thing we've learned tho: inspiration is contagious We're inspired by artists, designers, makers—people chasing their dreams who remind you anything is possible So we're building the creative community we've always wanted, starting with a beautiful physical space in SF If you're tired of working alone in your apartment too, come join us (for free)
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I had a couple shots left on my roll of film, so i took some photos of my desk at 6am
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I want to try cycling from sf to point reyes and back (100-115 miles) next weekend I don’t own a bike (yet), but I run a lot, so I think I can do it If you want to attempt this with me, dm and let’s figure it out! (photos from when I’ve gone before)
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Some photos i've taken recently
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It’s impossible to get students to pay for anything. At least that’s what we thought, when we saw our < 1% conversion rate for @myjotbot At first we thought it was something all products dealt with, but then @_dcai @singleclap1 brought up Sephora. They have lines of teenagers who begged their parents to buy them hundreds of dollars of beauty products. It seems impossible for us to convince students to buy a SaaS, but when you see a beauty influencer advertising a new lipstick or Logan Paul advertising Prime, kids flock - no matter how little money they have. Our actionable takeaway: - figure out who your customers want to be - how you are going to help them get there We were wasting time with influencers who did comedy sketches and funny clips. They went viral, but don’t convert. Now, we look for creators who have relationships with their audience and can sell the dream of better grades and productivity. Let’s see how it goes
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Replying to @tunguz
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My favorite type of graph good work @_dcai @singleclap1
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We got scammed $2000 by one of our @myjotbot affiliates Our affiliate program was largely unsuccessful - hundreds of people signed up, but no one was driving meaningful traffic. Until… our boy Minh signed up From day one, he started pushing thousands of sign ups. We reach out, and our first interaction with him is that is from Vietnam, talking to us through Google translate, and wants to add us on WeChat. His gmail photo is this: We ask how he’s getting the traffic He says that he is running google banner ads He sends this photo: Kind of sus, but alright We let him continue, and pay him $500 But something was off The new users he referred said (on onboarding) that they were coming from instagram and TikTok (our usual channels) I did some digging... And it turns out he bought search ads for the term “JotBot”, and was completely funneling off our organic traffic 💀
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Never thought I'd have to do this... But in solidarity with sam and greg I will be charging back all of my openai api bills
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yesterday my feet were cold today they are not thank you @RevenueCat
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Hello @_buildspace @_dcai and I are ready to build
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hey here's what we've been up to
Hey. We’re two dropouts who have been hustling all our lives. Now we’re working on a space for people like us. Here’s our @slamco_ story.
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Only up from here @RevenueCat YouUp.io
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I just finished Twitter Machine (no name yet) Alpha ‼️ If you want to test, comment below and I will dm a few of you the link when I get back from Oppenheimer cc @_dcai @codyschneider
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sama’s location is wild
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buildspace after dark
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i forgot how fun it is to wake up early, drink a lot of caffeine, and run!
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The @RevenueCat slack integration is saving me so much time refreshing the dashboard :D
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Buildspace changed my life - you guys have a special place in my heart
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Just ran my first marathon
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Proud to announce that we are officially influencers
Update: We've been pumping these videos for the past three days. Best videos: 3.4m views on Instagram 1.1m views on TikTok And counting :) Last time we went viral for our alarm app (YouUp) we lost all our momentum, so we're laser focused on executing!
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Yesterday was a great day to have a great day
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update on iron man suit funding: sent 80 emails to relevant companies - 20 out of office replies - 2 "ill send this to my manager" - $0 (so far) guys help! i need to fly (soon) 🦅
I will be working on my iron man suit project under my new club berkeleyaerotech.com (mainly to help get funding) If you’re a Berkeley student (or nearby), and want to fly, dm or fill out the form on the site
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I went to Austin for the first time, ate some bbq, ran a race, and now i can't walk
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His voice is buffering
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I will be working on my iron man suit project under my new club berkeleyaerotech.com (mainly to help get funding) If you’re a Berkeley student (or nearby), and want to fly, dm or fill out the form on the site
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Tony Stark’s Jarvis woke me up this morning avoalarm.com cc @_buildspace @_nightsweekends
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I was supposed to talk to @big_schmitz about SEO just now, but we immediately started talking about running 15 mins in I convinced him to register for the Berkeley half marathon lol
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Yoooo thank you @RevenueCat
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Anyone know how to recreate the draggable orange thing in swiftui
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.@arloalarm surpassed $100 MRR 🥳🥳
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I listened to this talk 3 hours ago and can’t stop accelerating
No one is mentally ready for this talk @agihouse_org
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My plan: 1. bootstrap avoalarm.com to 10k mrr 2. use all profits for iron man suit 3. fly
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Replying to @aheze0 @ehalm_
and called @AviSchiffmann "one blue-check user"
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Replying to @ChipotleTweets
Thank you 🙏🏼
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Anyone else getting this error in iOS 17?
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“yeah so Elon, we’re just… um, checking if it fits on a tow truck”
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we are looking for a really cool office space in sf, if anyone has any leads!
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damn apparently we aren't allowed to try things anymore
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Replying to @declangessel
ok but fr let’s improve this slide. 1st line: A suit that lets you fly like Ironman. 2nd line: (Seriously.)
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Here’s what we’re working on I’m so excited slam[dot]ventures/space
A few days ago, we signed a lease for an absolutely beautiful office space in the heart of San Francisco. It's got high ceilings, hugeee windows, and a rooftop with a gorgeous view of the SF skyline. But this space isn't for us. It's not an office. The plan was never to just have employees come work here. Our businesses are extremely lean, so the desks would feel pretty empty if that were the case. No, this space is meant for someone else. Honestly... we're not quite sure yet who. But if you're reading this, it might just be you. Let me explain. Two years ago, Declan and I went down an alternate life path. Rather than going to our college classes, we hunkered down in Declan's tiny studio apartment to build products together. We weren't confined to a specific niche or looking for a specific outcome; we thought that if we did the work we love, the rest would take care of itself. And it did. In what seemed like a blink of an eye, the projects we worked on became full-on businesses. We could support ourselves full-time. We had no one looking over our shoulder, telling us when to get to work or what to do. Above all, our work never felt like work because we loved what we were doing. And, well... we made enough money to pay for this sick space. The thing is, while this seems like the obvious path to us in retrospect, the journey was lonely and full of doubt and uncertainty. Our parents wanted us to stop. We didn't know any other people doing what we were doing. We didn't take the "startup" path and raise money. Nor did we wait to "gain experience" through college or corporate experience. We had a hunch that we were capable enough to figure something out. In other words, we took a bet on ourselves. And now, we're inviting a handful of you into this space to take a bet on yourselves too. Three months, all in. We don't care what you work on. You could be an artist trying to sell paintings, a founder scaling a business, or a woodworker designing chairs -- as long as it's something you want to commit to and turn into your living. Taking a bet on yourself is a lonely journey of doubt and uncertainty. We've found that the most important part is just showing up. You might think that the day you choose to start is the most difficult. While that certainly is a big choice, what's more dangerous is the looming decision that will stare at you in the face every day: the decision to show up again the next day, or quit. When there's no one telling you what to do and when to do it, it becomes much easier to not do anything at all. This space will help you fight that. This can take on many forms. For some people, this space might be a valuable work space separate from home. For others, it could mean an excuse to turn down a summer internship or to take a leave from work. Regardless of your circumstances, my guess is that working alongside other people here will be much more motivating than working by yourself at home. Our hope is that by giving you this space to work on your craft, a community of people who are also going all-in on themselves alongside you, as well as bottomless coffee and snacks... showing up will get easier. We're willing to bet that if a bunch of cool people keep showing up, day after day, some pretty awesome things are bound to happen. And while we'll certainly be there to give our take on things or encourage you, we in no way are going to be your mentor, or teacher, or boss. We definitely won't be telling you what to do and when to do it. We'll host events often and provide helpful resources where we can, but this isn't some sort of program or accelerator. Honestly, we thought those things were pretty pointless when we were first starting out. For 3 months, access to this space will be completely free. We think that's just long enough for things to happen, but short enough to give urgency. You'll have your own desk (or any other work station you might need) and you'll be surrounded by awesome people trying to make it themselves. People like our good friend Phillip, an ex-professional gamer who moved here from New Jersey and runs a wildly successful content creation program. Or our other friend Jason, who designed a viral keyboard set and is now starting his own clothing brand. This is something we've been wanting to do for a while; I'm unbelievably excited. By having you here, working alongside us, we'll feed off of your energy, too. Just because we've been able to find some success with our past ventures doesn't mean our journey is over. We're still showing up, each and every day, working on things we love. If you want to show up, apply. We can help you figure out the complications -- money, school, jobs, etc. One person will be leaving their consulting job in London and flying here for the summer. Ready to take a bet on yourself? Apply at slam[dot]ventures/space
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Prioritize figuring out what to work on over actually doing the work
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Next goal: 10k mrr end of month!
crazy what a bit of consistency can do. multiple times, @declangessel were set on quitting jotbot and working on something new, or splitting our focus with jotbot and something else now it's our most successful product by far still a long way to go :D
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Replying to @ChipotleTweets
I’m on free burrito #6 this is so easy
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Damn they blocked you
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Had the drink this morning, felt amazing Just made the nutty pudding, pretty good Will update
I am starting @bryan_johnson’s Blueprint this week with Green Giant
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This is what Twitter Monster is becoming - Generate tweets/threads based on your exported data - Copy paste tweets from other accounts, emulate their style - Save, edit, and post these tweets from the site What it can't (yet) do - look back on new analytics, refresh itself - only plug in account handle Basically you would have to upload a new csv each time if you want to see how your new tweets are doing. Twitter API Is pretty useless Is this a dealbreaker? What twitter monster features would you want? How do you envision using it? If you want to test, comment below cc @_dcai @codyschneider
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Replying to @jmitch
@BjoernKarmann I’m down to make the app if you want to collaborate!
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Hit $1k rev on @avoalarmapp 🫡
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Raj and I ran a marathon today, and he wrote a blog (not really) about it
Read about @declangessel and @OberoiRajveer 's epic 15 mile run on the SLAM digest (See below).
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Felt like goggins today
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Replying to @ChipotleTweets
Oh man this is good
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Replying to @ChipotleTweets
LETS GO GOT ANOTHER
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i just signed @singleclap1 and @_dcai up for the berkeley half marathon, and this tweet is how they find out loll neither of them are runners, but we are SLAM sprintlikeamarathon[dot]com
I was supposed to talk to @big_schmitz about SEO just now, but we immediately started talking about running 15 mins in I convinced him to register for the Berkeley half marathon lol
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Replying to @_dcai
not anymore 😭
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Haven’t talked about @avoalarmapp in a while but we recently pushed a bunch of updates I've been waking up to goggins telling me to go run, and it's been great If you leave a review, DM me and I’ll give you a free month of premium!
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If you want to come to the birthday party for @markrachapoom @hardeep_gambhir and me in Berkeley, dm!
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Replying to @FarzaTV
Short form converts!
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side note: we are *now* profitable and raising our seed
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🌁🏃🏼
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I am starting @bryan_johnson’s Blueprint this week with Green Giant
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Good morning Seoul
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DEMO BY WEEKEND
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First 2 active trials on youup.io. Let's see if they convert!
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anyone know how where to get more openai credits? (already used microsoft for startup credits)
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A reunion of sorts @aheze0 @_dcai
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who wants to buy this with me
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Startup merch normally sucks We didn’t feel right about buying some blanks and putting our logo on it So we decided to make a hoodie, completely from scratch @OberoiRajveer wrote a blog about the experience so far You should read it, it’s funny (raj is funny)
This week, we wrote about making custom hoodies. Read more about it here:
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It’s a great day to have a great day
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My friend @OberoiRajveer made a hardware product that publishes his cold shower temps to the internet and now anyone can see when he skips a shower (and exactly how cold it is when he doesn’t) lol
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The content machine is starting to warm up 🥘
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About yesterday’s rebrand… My mom saw the tweet, so we’re going back to Arlo 😅 This is awkward. But there’s 1️⃣ day til launch, so we’re giving away 1️⃣ lifetime code to someone who retweets. @arloalarm (prev Morning 🪵) syncs with your info to wake you up to AI voices.
Can't get it up?🫦 You're not alone - I also struggle with getting my 🍑 out of bed. With 2 days until our launch💦, we've decided to rebrand @arloalarm to MorningWood™ We are giving away 2 Pleasure Packs that can be redeemed for 1 year of PREMIUM 😼 Retweet to enter 👇🧵
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30 days ago I told myself I was a runner I have ran every day since What I learned: you are what you eat (for breakfast)
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We made a tool that is trained on your past tweets and analytics data, and generates viral tweets that sound like you We need your feedback and are giving free unlimited access for a month in return 5 minutes, any day any time 9:00AM - midnight. calendly.com/derrickcai/feed… Twitter Monster is launching monday. Stay tuned Comment or dm if you want early access, or have feedback
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Replying to @ianzelbo
There’s one on eBay ebay.com/itm/166095473112?mk…
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I love our jotbot users
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