Startup Stash - Yeasty And The Pointless Things 🍳

Making New Eggs

Egg enthusiasts have had plenty to grumble about lately, thanks to soaring prices and ongoing shortages. But there’s one group that isn’t complaining—the egg substitute startups.

With traditional egg costs climbing and concerns over avian flu growing, consumers are increasingly looking for alternatives. This shift has fueled demand for egg substitutes, benefiting both companies specifically focussed on egg alternatives and those offering them alongside other products. And these egg alternatives aren't just coming from plants, but from all kinds of healthy things such as yeast and milk.

Leading the charge among egg-focused startups is The Every Co. (formerly Clara Foods), which has raked in over $240 million in funding (image below by Crunchbase). Based in San Francisco, the company has rolled out the Every Egg, a yeast-brewed egg protein, and is actively collaborating with restaurants to get it on more menus.

Sadly, no amount of investment and innovation in the fake egg-space can give you the same amount of proteins and nutrition as an actual egg. But until we bounce back from the egg-ergency, we can at least soothe out tastebuds with something similar.  

Steps to Redeem the Offer
1. Simply log in to Notion using this link 
2. Select Startup Stash from the partners list
3. Use Code: STARTUP4110P70786 to redeem

In a bold and unexpected move, a designer and entrepreneur is offering something no one saw coming—a $1.5 million fashion business, available for purchase with a simple Add to Cart click. The iconic brand Built by Wendy Inc.—with over 30 years of history—can now be yours, complete with trademarks, digital archives, patterns, lookbooks, and a fully functional website.

Wendy Mullen, who launched her first retail shop in the back of a New York City record store, has spent decades crafting a brand that blends timeless fashion with sustainability. But after years of navigating the shifting retail landscape, she’s stepping away from online commerce.

The move isn’t just personal; it underscores a broader industry struggle. Independent brands must constantly battle rising costs, social media demands, and an algorithm-driven marketplace that favors fast fashion and viral trends over slow, sustainable growth. 

Your Sentiments Are a Tradeable Asset

Could we tokenize emotions, package them into financial instruments, and trade them on decentralized exchanges, where AI models continuously update sentiment scores in real-time?

The Pointless Things in Life

No one asked for an AI-designed sneaker. Parents weren’t pleading for smart baby-changing pads. And let’s be honest—your cat could not care less if its litter box is AI-enhanced.

Yet, here we are. Silicon Valley’s relentless push for progress has ensured that AI seeps into every product imaginable, whether it makes sense or not. Case in point? Super Bowl commercials. OpenAI, Salesforce, and Google all flexed their AI muscles during Sunday’s game, proving that artificial intelligence isn’t just an industry trend—it’s a full-blown societal obsession.

How did we end up in a world where AI-powered teddy bears and chatbots specializing in erectile dysfunction exist? Simple. Startups and tech giants alike have hitched their wagons to AI because it’s the fastest way to grab attention (and investor dollars). In 2023 alone, AI startups raked in $100 billion in VC funding—nearly a third of all tech investments.

The result? A flood of AI-infused products no one asked for. Experts have already drawn comparisons to the dot-com bubble, warning that this AI gold rush could lead to a similar crash. But until that happens, you can buy AI perfumes and scented candles—because, apparently, even wax needs machine learning.

Copyright © 2024 StartupStash, All rights reserved.

Drop us a line:

hello@startupstash.com