Reacting to Humanoid Robots

PLUS: Beating Perfectionism... 5 Tactics That Made AppSumo $10m Each... Why AI Startups Require New Strategies... And More...

Author

Ethan Brooks
March 14, 2024

Welcome to this issue of Austin Business Review, a weekly roundup of local events and insights for Austin business owners (plus some other cool stuff for your life outside of work).

My name’s Ethan and I’m the one writing this (holler at me here!).

This week, we’ve got a few things on-deck:

  • 📅 Upcoming Events

  • 📣 Word On The Street

  • 📸 Local Artist of the Week

  • 📈 Austin by the numbers

  • 🤠 Local Getaway of the Week

Did someone forward this to you? If you like it, you can sign up here!

-Ethan

Upcoming Events

Running a business is tough. Here are a few great places to meet cool people going through the same sh*t you are.

If you’re hosting something you think is a fit, let me know here!

Fun Stuff Coming Up

…Annd if you’re anything like me, you work too much already. So here’s some fun stuff to do around town that’s not necessarily related to business.

  • Mar. 14-17: Mix ‘n Mash: Art sale - 200 Local artists celebrate Austin

  • Mar. 14-31: Round Top Antique Show - 4k+ dealers and 80 venues

  • Mar. 15: Bar Kodama - Japanese whiskey and listening room

  • Mar. 16: Musical Mixology

  • Mar. 17: Sunday Rugby Church at Zilker

  • Mar. 18: History of the Martini Kinfolk Cocktail Workshop

  • Mar. 19: Stretching & Recovery at Zilker Botanical Garden

  • Mar. 20: Climate talk with bestselling author Jeff Goodell

  • Mar. 21: French Cultural Festival at Bullock Museum

  • Mar. 22: David Spade Live - Catch Me Inside

  • Mar. 23: Caffeinated Conversations on AI

  • Mar 29-31: Balloons Over Horseshoe Bay - Hot air balloon fest

Word On The Street

Thought-provoking ideas and stories published by founders in ATX

1. Freedom in Obscurity: If there’s any part of you struggling to do your work because you’re worried all eyes will be on you, read this. Zac Solomon does a great job showing how even mega-stars like Taylor Swift need help getting attention, and you, my friend, are no Taylor Swift… There’s freedom in that, so get to work.

2. These 5 Tactics Made Us $10m Each: Looking back on AppSumo’s path to $90m+, founder Noah Kagan breaks down five of the most impactful marketing lessons, along with some tips on how he’d approach them if starting out today.

3. AI Startups Require New Strategies: Historically, startups have had a few key advantages against bigger, slower, more risk-averse incumbents. But things are different in the AI race, where incumbents are…

  • In control of the important data

  • Rushing to adopt the new, unproven tech

  • Attracting great talent and keeping them happy

Unicorn founder Jason Cohen dives deep on why AI startups need a new playbook if they’re going to break in.

4. Beating Perfectionism: If you’re reading this newsletter, you’re probably pretty type-A and grapple with perfectionism from time to time. In this piece, MacKenzie Seale, founder of Merry Makery, shares how she learned to question the voice of perfectionism, and get to the root of what she actually wants.

5. Reacting to Humanoid Robots: You’ve probably seen companies like Tesla and Figure demoing their increasingly capable terminator humanoid robots. Awesome? Terrifying? Local founder Seyi Fabode does a poetic job pointing out both sides of the coin here. Bonus points for the timely Dune reference.

Local Artist of the Week

You may not recognize Emily Eisenhart’s name, but with dozens of murals all over town, you’ve definitely strolled past her work. Those colorful stares on South Congress? She did those. The Madewell storefront? She did that too.

Whole Foods, YETI, Warby Parker, Austin FC, and The LINE Hotel are just a few recent clients. Oh, and you can also see her art way up on the wall overlooking Symphony Square.

With a background in brand strategy, she cut her teeth at IDEO, working with clients like Nike, Microsoft, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and is also the founder of Broad Studios, an all-female art collective here in ATX.

You can shop prints and originals on her website, or check out her latest show, Vivid Terrain, on display at the Preacher Gallery now through Mar. 21st. Follow her on Instagram for more!

Austin by the Numbers

  • 2 - Number of new film studios breaking ground in Austin

  • 8/1/24 - Date UT Austin reinstates standardized test scores

  • $435k - Price of Texas’ most expensive luxury tiny home

  • 167m - Square feet Elon Musk’s businesses occupy in ATX

  • $1.6B - Amount Joe Lonsdale’s company, OpenGov, was recently acquired for.

Local Getaway of the Month

If you’re looking for an offsite venue, or just craving a weekend out of the city, check this out…

Back when I worked at Hampton, we hosted one of our first-ever founder retreats at Camp Lucy, this little hill country escape in Dripping Springs. I didn’t see much of the property then (we spent most of our time driving rally cars nearby). But the rooms were excellent, the staff was welcoming, and the fire pit was a great place to share drinks and stories at the end of each day.

But the real gem – and the reason that you must go, even if only for a few hours – is the restaurant, Tillie’s.

Named for world traveler Atilla Hancock (the owner’s great-grandmother) the dining room is stunning, with pillars and carved wood rafters that were once part of a 19th century town hall in Vietnam.

Resident Chef André Natera has three decades’ experience, including time spent as Culinary Director and Executive Chef at Fairmont Austin, the world’s largest 4-star hotel.

And the food… The food.

Handmade sourdough from Abby Jane, topped with whipped ricotta, pickled grapes, and candied walnuts; Roasted duck with charred radicchio, and pickled cherries; Handmade gnocchi, served with confit potatoes and bacon in a gruyere fondue.

I took my dad here to kick off a recent visit, and it was so good it was almost a mistake. We ate at other great restaurants every night of the week, but none of them came close to topping gruyere fondue.

No hotel reservations needed, they’re open to the public and do breakfast, afternoon tea, brunch, lunch, and dinner. Looks like they’ve also got a special Easter Dinner coming up. Check it out, thank me later.

Photos courtesy of Tillie’s

That’s all for this week. If you liked this, do me a favor and forward it to another business owner here in town you think might get some value from it!

You can also email me here if you’re hosting something for local founders that might be a fit for the newsletter.

Until next week,

-Ethan

Thank you to everyone who shares great insights and events. You can follow and connect with them here…