Serge Z.

The most successful products of the next decade won't just automate tasks; they will automate success. 🚀 Most companies believe the best use of AI is to automate chores, but the real winners in 2026 will be those automating outcomes. If you automate a broken task, you get a faster version of a bad process. High-level Product Management today isn't about "adding AI" to a feature list; it's about embedding autonomous agents into your product’s core cycle to drive specific, measurable results. The shift is simple: - Don't just automate the email; automate the conversion. - Don't just automate the ticket; automate the resolution. - Don't just automate the data entry; automate the insight. Stop using AI to do busy work and start using it to drive your product’s bottom line. We’re diving deeper into some of these real-world hurdles at our upcoming talk by Mariia Riabushenko: “The AI Adoption Gap: Lessons from Helping a Company Actually Use AI.” RSVP Now https://luma.com/jhbde4ex to learn how to move past the hype and build systems that actually deliver. #AIAutomation #GlobalAIHub #AIHub #TechInnovation #ProductManagement #NovaForge #VentureLab #AIOps #FutureOfWork

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🚀 u.ventures portfolio company Embedd.it has raised $2.7 million in pre-seed funding Seedcamp led the round, with additional backing from u.ventures, Cocoa 🍫, Vesna Capital, Connect Ventures, 2100 Ventures, Common Magic, Underline Ventures, and Roosh Ventures. Founded by Ukrainian entrepreneurs Michael Lazarenko, Maxim Gorinov, and Valentin Gololobov, Embedd is developing software infrastructure for physical AI. Its platform uses digital twins and AI agents to automate chip integration into software ecosystems, including those used in robotics, automotive technology, drones, and medical devices. The team will use the funding to further develop its platform and expand partnerships with semiconductor manufacturers. ✨ Through its investment in Embedd via u.ventures, UMAEF is backing Ukrainian founders developing globally competitive technologies and addressing complex engineering challenges.

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What I wish I knew earlier about startup fundraising: the narrative is paramount. It's not just about the numbers, though they are crucial. It’s about weaving a compelling story that connects the problem, your solution, and the massive opportunity ahead. I’ve learned that investors are buying into a vision, a future you're building. Your pitch deck and conversations need to reflect that clarity and conviction. A well-articulated story can bridge gaps and create excitement. It’s about inspiring belief in what’s possible. How do you craft your startup’s founding narrative?

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Most startups claim they have a competitive advantage. But is it actually a moat—or just a temporary head start? Features can be copied. Discounts can be matched. Marketing can be outspent. The real question is whether the startup has something that becomes harder to replicate as it grows: data, network effects, distribution, brand, operational excellence, or structural advantages. In this article, we explore how investors should evaluate competitive advantage, defensibility, and whether a startup's edge can survive serious competition. Read the full article: https://lnkd.in/gD5hVxFS Check out the video: https://lnkd.in/gNjVBuv2   #StartupFunding #VentureCapital #Startups #Fundraising #InstitutionalCapital #Entrepreneurship #VC #InvestmentReadiness #StartupGrowth #Innovation #Founders #BusinessGrowth

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ITCAPITAL Ventures is officially open! This is a new chapter and a restart of the venture direction originally launched in 2021 under ITCAPITAL INVEST. Today, we are relaunching this direction as ITCAPITAL Ventures — a venture platform focused on Physical AI, Robotics, AI Hardware, Automation, and Intelligent Systems. Our mission is to connect founders, investors, operators, and strategic partners building technologies for the real-world economy. ITCAPITAL Ventures is part of a broader entrepreneurial ecosystem built by Oleh Podobied, a Ukrainian-American entrepreneur based in Silicon Valley. Over the past 13+ years, Oleh has launched 16 startups and created more than 10 educational courses across technology, education, business, real estate, and startup development. The broader ecosystem includes: • ITCAPITAL • ITCAPITAL VENTURES • EDCAPIT • Roboasis - Robotics Oasis Marketplace EDCAPIT is an American online education platform focused on global learning, career development, and AI-powered education. Roboasis is a robotics marketplace connecting companies, suppliers, developers, integrators, and customers across the robotics and Physical AI ecosystem. ITCAPITAL Ventures is now focused on supporting the next generation of founders building intelligent physical systems — from robotics and automation to AI hardware and real-world AI infrastructure. Founders building in Physical AI, Robotics, AI Hardware, Automation, or Intelligent Systems can submit their companies through our website. Website: https://www.itcapital.net #ITCAPITALVentures #PhysicalAI #Robotics #AIHardware #VentureCapital #Startups #SiliconValley #Automation #Founders

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Three New Acquisitions. One Emerging Category. 🤖 Adding three domains to the portfolio around the future of AI, robotics, and autonomous machine intelligence: 🔹 AILifeForms.com — the concept of AI evolving into new forms of artificial life. 🔹 RoboticEntity.com — a powerful category for autonomous robots and intelligent physical entities. 🔹 MachineEntities.com — broader positioning for intelligent machines, autonomous systems, and next-generation AI. What makes these interesting is the same underlying trend: AI is moving from software that we use → to entities that can act, interact, and operate autonomously. These domains target that emerging intersection between AI, robotics, artificial life, and machine intelligence. Building the portfolio around where technology is heading. 🚀 #AI #ArtificialIntelligence #Robotics #HumanoidRobots #AutonomousAI #FutureTech #Domains #DomainInvesting #Tech

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One of the clearest observations from WEF is this: people don’t lack networks - they lack clarity in how they use them. Many professionals have strong connections, but still struggle to turn conversations into outcomes - because requests stay too broad or undefined. What works best is structure: 1. define your profile (strengths + what you can offer) 2. define the need in one sentence 3. write the use case step-by-step 4. make the request guided and actionable The future is moving toward network economies - where trust, identity and real-time data become infrastructure. The winners will be those who can structure collaboration, not just expand contact lists.

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Large exits do more than reward early investors; they fund the next generation of startups. The Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2026 tracks exits over $50 million by quarter, and the value of those exits rose 112% in the past year, while deal count grew a more modest 4%. Our analysis finds these events are critical to recycling capital and experience within ecosystems, giving the founders and investors behind one generation of companies the resources to back the next. Ukraine shows what a landmark exit can signal. Swarmer, whose AI-powered drone swarm coordination software has supported more than 100,000 combat missions, became the first Ukrainian DefenseTech company to list on Nasdaq in March 2026, with shares increasing more than sixfold on the first day of trading. For the next wave of Ukrainian founders, it is evidence that a path to a global public listing exists. See how large exits have trended by quarter in the #GSER2026: startupgenome.com/gser2026

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A real privilege to be at the 2nd annual AI Compute Summit by The Economist in Amsterdam, hosted by Economist Enterprise. The agenda captured exactly where the industry's tension sits right now: GPU scarcity, energy demand, sovereign AI capability, and the leap from agentic to physical AI. Few rooms bring together this calibre of enterprise leaders, policymakers, and infrastructure providers in one place. Big thanks to the organisers Hannah Flynn, Tetiana Omelchenko, Eddie Royle, Cailin Birch, Wilmer Gonzalez Frascone, Caitlin M., Crystal Kirkley, Eddie Milev, Matus Samel for the thoughtful curation, and to everyone I had the chance to connect with over the day. The hallway conversations were every bit as valuable as the panels. Onwards. #AICompute #AIInfrastructure #EconomistImpact

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