Your weekly briefing on all things AI
Presented by Clark Valberg

2024 was the year AI went from “what if” to “watch this.” What started as exciting innovation for early adopters quickly evolved into concrete and valuable use cases (Google recently listed 321 examples). 

A McKinsey survey reported that 65% of organizations now regularly use generative AI, nearly doubling from the previous year. From $100M+ funding rounds building AI’s infrastructure to JP Morgan’s LLM Suite rolling out to 200k employees, AI is quickly moving beyond novelty. Yet, its rise has also sparked cultural debates, regulatory shifts, and new expectations for transparency and trust.

Let’s dive in… 

> Popular AI Roundups of 2024
> AI Across Industries: Trends and Predictions
> EliseAI: Bots Make Better Rent Collectors
> Perplexity Raises $500M
> Most Used Prompt in 2024

As 2024 closes out, I wanted to share a few noteworthy “2024 reviews” & “2025 predictions” that I’ve come across, besides the 321 actual use cases of GenAI mentioned above: 

49 AI Startups That Raised $100M+ in 2024

 The concentration of $100M+ raises in AI startups focused on infrastructure, enterprise integration, and autonomous systems signals a shift toward building the backbone for AI as a utility—positioning AI not as a feature but as a fundamental layer of business and technological operations.

AI Moments That Captivated Mainstream News

 In 2024, AI made headlines—and sparked firestorms. AI wowed with lifelike avatars, then worried critics over deepfakes. Google’s Gemini faced backlash for biased outputs, and Scarlett Johansson sued over an AI voice clone. These moments proved AI’s rise is as much about ethics and perception as it is about innovation.

AI-empowered Scientific Discoveries in 2024

 AI has already enabled major leaps in scientific discovery. From ancient scrolls to animal communications to protein structures, AI is decoding the world around us.

More Stories

• Arizona’s New Online School Run Completely by AI. (techcrunch)

• How Large Language Models Trick Us with Fake Alignment. (anthropic)

• Tesuwan Scientific Developed Robots That Run Their Own Experiment Ideas. (techcrunch)

• A Fully Autonomous Grocery Store Launches in German Train Station (retailtechinnovationhub) 

• Google Gemini 2.0 Flash Can Do Business Analysis in Minutes Instead of Hours. (venturebeat)

• Wistron, a Global Electronics Manufacturer Cut Construction Time in Half with AI Generated Factory Simulations (nvidia)

Real Estate | There’s an AI For That

Powerful tools are popping up to enhance and automate everything from deal discovery to property/tenant management. In 2025 automation will likely become much more mainstream and accessible to smaller operators. (propertyonion)

Healthcare & Biotech | AI Trust Gap: Fixing Adoption Hurdles

Explainability (AI showing its work), seamless workflow integration, and clearer regulations are crucial to overcoming the trust deficits blocking more rapid adoption of AI in the healthcare sector. (humanfactors)

Finance & Banking | AI Keeps Finance Sharp and Secure

Banks flag fraud in real time, CFOs use AI to predict cash flow and prevent shortfalls, and compliance teams automate audits to avoid fines. As finance leaders double down on accuracy and governance, AI is becoming the key to staying sharp and secure. (citizensbank)

Technology | Humanoid Robots Redefine Work

The surge of humanoid robots in 2024, like the small fleet recently deployed at a Spanx Facility this year, signals a shift from task-specific automation to adaptable, human-centric machines—unlocking opportunities across industries where labor shortages and dynamic environments demand flexibility without reengineering workflows. (therobotreport)

Retail & E-commerce | AI Powers Faster, Smarter Shopping

Driven by consumer demand for speed, convenience, and predictive engagement across every touchpoint—AI is setting new standards for frictionless shopping experiences by enabling hyper-personalization, conversational commerce, and seamless omnichannel interactions. (sitecore)

Media & Entertainment | AI Reshapes Content and Revenue

AI’s transformation of home entertainment in 2024 signals a shift toward hyper-personalized experiences, faster content creation, and immersive technologies—reshaping audience expectations, democratizing content production, and creating new revenue models. (videonuze)

EliseAI: 52% reduction in Rent Delinquency

Major property owners like Brookfield and Equity Residential are adopting AI-driven tools like EliseAI to tackle rising rent delinquencies, achieving up to 99.6% collection rates—a 2% improvement—and cutting payment delays by 14 days.

EliseAI automates property management for real estate operators with AI-driven tools for 24/7 communication, smart tour scheduling, and lead qualification—boosting conversions while reducing costs. It integrates seamlessly with CRMs and property systems, streamlining workflows and enhancing resident support. Backed by $75M Series D funding, EliseAI is reshaping leasing efficiency.

More Tools:

• MakeItQuick: quickly generates content and automates tasks for your business.

• WebSparks: optimizes websites, improves engagement, and enhances user experience.

• SEOKatana: improves your website’s SEO performance with automated strategies.

• UpMeals: creates personalized meal plans and optimizes nutrition.

• GenFuseAI: helps businesses fuse data and automate decision-making processes.

• Interruptible: manages tasks and improves workflow efficiency in the workplace.

• HoppyCopy: copywriting tool that generates high-quality content for marketing and sales.

• Perplexity Completes $500M Funding Round to Fuel Growth. (techcrunch)

• Decart Raises $32M to Drive AI and Open-World App Development. (techcrunch)

• Cartesia Secures $22M to Build Cutting-Edge Real-Time AI Models. (pulse2.o)

_. Prompting Tip _.

AIPRM & The Most Copied Prompt of 2024

AIPRM is a Chrome extension and resource for pre-written ChatGPT prompts. Their default sorting by usage reveals that the top prompt “Human Written | 100% Unique |SEO Optimised Article”  had a whopping 11.3M uses! To download the extension, click here, and it will automatically update your ChatGPT interface when you log in. If you ever want to turn it off, simply remove the extension from your browser.