Legendary venture capitalist Tim Draper, who became a billionaire through early investments in Skype, Hotmail, Tesla, and Baidu, has compared OpenAI to AOL from the early internet era, suggesting the AI leader may not be the ultimate winner of the current AI revolution. The comparison comes as Draper embraces AI technology extensively in his own venture capital operations, creating multiple AI avatars of himself while predicting we’re near the peak of AI hype before an inevitable market correction.
What he’s saying: Draper draws parallels between today’s AI landscape and the early internet boom, positioning OpenAI as potentially vulnerable to future competition.
- “OpenAI is the equivalent of AOL in the first internet wave,” Draper said. “AOL and Netscape were the center of everything, and then came Yahoo and then Google.”
- Despite calling OpenAI “fantastic,” he admits regretting not investing early due to concerns about its unusual non-profit structure: “It had such a weird structure that I didn’t do it. I probably should have.”
Market predictions: Draper believes we’re approaching the peak of AI hype but expects the technology to ultimately exceed expectations after a market correction.
- “We’re at the top of the hype,” he said. “It’ll dip, then explode upward again and be bigger than anybody ever imagined.”
- He compares the current AI bubble to past technology cycles: “The same people who were saying, ‘I’m not putting my credit card on that Amazon thing,’ later couldn’t live without it.”
AI integration at Draper Associates: The venture capital firm has extensively integrated AI avatars and automation across multiple business functions.
- Students at Draper University can interact with a holographic version of Draper trained on years of his speeches and writing, with some sessions lasting up to 2.5 hours.
- Portfolio entrepreneurs can access an AI hotline featuring Draper’s digital twin for common questions before escalating to human partners.
- An AI system automatically reviews startup pitch decks and provides feedback to entrepreneurs before they present to the firm.
- The firm uses AI to identify five potential investment opportunities weekly that might otherwise be overlooked.
Technology capabilities: Draper’s AI systems analyze both content and behavioral patterns during startup evaluations.
- The firm records all startup pitches and uses AI to analyze tones and emotions, including potential deception detection.
- “We have an evaluator that determines emotions and it detects lies,” Draper explained.
- The AI avatar’s main weakness is providing balanced perspectives on issues rather than definitive answers, which Draper is working to refine.
Human vs. AI investing: Despite his extensive AI adoption, Draper maintains that venture capitalists won’t be replaced by artificial intelligence in the near future.
- “There’s an X-factor to every entrepreneur that AI can’t really evaluate,” he said, noting that AI struggles with backing entrepreneurs pursuing unprecedented ventures.
- Draper emphasizes his curiosity-driven approach: “I ask the second question and the third question and the fourth question to try to dig in and figure out whether this is something really promising.”
- “I can still outperform any AI in investing,” he added.
The bigger mission: At 67 years old with a $3.4 billion fortune according to Forbes, Draper continues venture capital work as what he considers a moral mission.
- “It’s good for the world, it’s good for society,” he said. “If people feel like they can start new businesses and they can change the old establishment, then you are going to make a better world.”
Recent Stories
DOE fusion roadmap targets 2030s commercial deployment as AI drives $9B investment
The Department of Energy has released a new roadmap targeting commercial-scale fusion power deployment by the mid-2030s, though the plan lacks specific funding commitments and relies on scientific breakthroughs that have eluded researchers for decades. The strategy emphasizes public-private partnerships and positions AI as both a research tool and motivation for developing fusion energy to meet data centers' growing electricity demands. The big picture: The DOE's roadmap aims to "deliver the public infrastructure that supports the fusion private sector scale up in the 2030s," but acknowledges it cannot commit to specific funding levels and remains subject to Congressional appropriations. Why...
Oct 17, 2025Tying it all together: Credo’s purple cables power the $4B AI data center boom
Credo, a Silicon Valley semiconductor company specializing in data center cables and chips, has seen its stock price more than double this year to $143.61, following a 245% surge in 2024. The company's signature purple cables, which cost between $300-$500 each, have become essential infrastructure for AI data centers, positioning Credo to capitalize on the trillion-dollar AI infrastructure expansion as hyperscalers like Amazon, Microsoft, and Elon Musk's xAI rapidly build out massive computing facilities. What you should know: Credo's active electrical cables (AECs) are becoming indispensable for connecting the massive GPU clusters required for AI training and inference. The company...
Oct 17, 2025Vatican launches Latin American AI network for human development
The Vatican hosted a two-day conference bringing together 50 global experts to explore how artificial intelligence can advance peace, social justice, and human development. The event launched the Latin American AI Network for Integral Human Development and established principles for ethical AI governance that prioritize human dignity over technological advancement. What you should know: The Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, the Vatican's research body for social issues, organized the "Digital Rerum Novarum" conference on October 16-17, combining academic research with practical AI applications. Participants included leading experts from MIT, Microsoft, Columbia University, the UN, and major European institutions. The conference...