Loudoun is the richest large US county. It also has the world’s largest concentration of data centers. Its data centers generate ~$1.3B, nearly half of property tax revenue. Infrastructure is easier to build, even in the richest communities, when locals captures the upside.

The fact that Databricks is growing nearly the same rate at $7b revenue as it was when the growth fund invested at ~$200m revenue 6 years ago never ceases to blow my mind. Today no one is better positioned to help the enterprise get true ROI out of AI. Congrats @alighodsi @rxin and the entire @databricks team! Honored to be your partners.

I've learned a lot in nine years of building @Flock_Safety. Some of it from our customers, and some of it from the communities they serve. Today we’re announcing the changes that came from listening. A new standard for privacy, security, and accountability in public safety technology. We're also asking state legislators to go further. Mandate real auditing on every law enforcement data system. Raise the penalties for misuse. And if your state wants help building it, we'll do it for free.

Having sat through plenty of city council meetings on Flock and similar technologies, I’ve noticed the same pattern again and again. Much of the organized opposition comes from police abolitionists, including activists tied to DSA, FRSO, and even CPUSA. But last night in Columbus, Police Chief Elaine Bryant laid out what Flock has actually helped officers accomplish. • identify suspects in a double homicide • arrest a 15-year-old murder suspect within 18 hours • recover a kidnapped 3-year-old and make three arrests within hours • locate an armed shooting suspect who fled to Sandusky • track suspects in an armed robbery • recover an abducted child unharmed • locate two missing people with dementia Bryant was hardly arguing for unchecked surveillance. She explicitly called for “accountability, education and transparency” in how Flock is used. When the loudest critics also want to abolish policing, it is fair to ask whether the real objection is safeguards or simply giving police an effective tool.

"A panic about a 'slave state' shouldn’t determine public policy. Intelligently regulated, ALPRs can be one among many tools in the toolbox of smarter—and therefore less severe—police forces. Dumping the cameras would just be foolish." great piece @CharlesFLehman @TheAtlantic

Congrats to @Whatnot on their Series G! When we @a16z first partnered in '21, live shopping was mainstream in China but hadn't meaningfully shown up in the US. Now, Whatnot is the standard for live commerce and is the largest live commerce platform in North America and Europe. @GrantLaFontaine and @loganhead13 are relentless, and they'll keep expanding categories and service levels.

NYC taxpayers are effectively short snowstorms, heat waves and federal funding cuts. The city just adopted a $126B budget. When these risks break the wrong way, taxpayers absorb the variance. Prediction markets could turn some of those budget surprises into priced, hedgeable risk.

Ever feel like you're being watched? You might be right. But Flock Safety cameras aren't interested in you—unless you're a kidnapper, a thief, or up to no good. @SulkinMaya dives into why people need to stop destroying tech that's actually stopping crime.

Every child in this video is home tonight because Flock gave officers the right information at the right second. That’s the mission. That’s the whole company. I wouldn't trade that for anything.

Max has read every memo, model, and email your firm has ever produced. It takes two years to train a top bucket analyst. @hebbia built one that arrives that way out of the box.