Latest news with #MichaelMartin
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Why VC investments into crypto are seen to hit $25bn in 2025
Venture capital investors will back crypto startups to the tune of $25 billion in 2025. That's according to Michael Martin, director at Ava Labs' incubator Codebase, who said a perfect storm of bullish signals will incentivise investors to back crypto companies. He told DL News that factors like Circle's successful public float, booming crypto market, Stripe's acquisition of Privy, Wall Street pouring into blockchain projects, and new rules of the road for digital assets will drive even more investment in the last half of the year. 'People have the proof points to invest with a level of confidence in earlier stage, real-world blockchain companies that they may not have had in the past,' Martin told DL News. The prediction comes during a week that saw 12 crypto projects raise $121 million, pushing the total amount bagged by industry players this year to $13.2 billion, according to DefiLlama. That investment is already 40% higher in August this year than all investment into crypto last year. That also puts it on the path to break the $18 billion expected by PitchBook analysts earlier this year. Martin's prognosis echoes that of Galaxy Venture's Mike Giampapa, who told DL News earlier this summer that he expected crypto startups to secure $25 billion in 2025. Critical juncture Investor' optimism comes at a critical juncture for the industry. The Trump administration's pro-industry tilt has emboldened not just sector players, but also larger financial institutions and banks to increasingly tap into digital assets. With Trump having rubberstamped the Genius Act in July and more crypto bills coming up for votes on Capitol Hill, the industry is getting the clarity it's clamoured for for years. That clarity is expected to further fuel the adoption of blockchain technology by traditional financial institutions. Wall Street companies and fintech firms may also see this as an opportunity to follow in Stripe's footsteps and acquire crypto companies to embed their solutions in their services 'You're going to see more of that,' Martin said. Macroeconomy risks To be sure, there are clouds on the horizon that risk derailing the investment boom. Even so, macroeconomic uncertainties — particularly those surrounding US President Donald Trump's tariffs — jeopardise the rally, Martin said. Other concerns include whether or not public crypto companies like Circle and Coinbase will perform as well as expected. Martin said that if public crypto companies and leading cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin were to underperform analysts' expectations, that could rattle investors and scare them into tightening their grips around their cheque books. Apart from the risk of public crypto companies underperforming, there is also a chance that macroeconomic conditions will give investors reason to halt their investment strategies. For instance, Trump's tariffs against some of the US' closest trading partners combined with jobs growth having stalled this summer have rattled investors. No one knows what will happen next. 'VCs have capital they need to deploy,' Martin said. 'But how are you going to deploy it if you don't know if X, Y and Z is going to happen?' You're reading the latest installment of The Weekly Raise, our column covering fundraising deals across the crypto and DeFi spaces, powered by DefiLlama. Eric Johansson is DL News' interim managing editor. Got a tip? Email at eric@ Errore nel recupero dei dati Effettua l'accesso per consultare il tuo portafoglio Errore nel recupero dei dati Errore nel recupero dei dati Errore nel recupero dei dati Errore nel recupero dei dati
Wall Street Journal
01-08-2025
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Strava's CEO Has a New Way to Improve Your Workouts
Michael Martin is a lifelong athlete, but these days, he can't join a run club. He's tried, and the minute he mentions his day job, everybody else stops running. That's because Martin, 52, is the chief executive of the popular running and cycling app Strava. 'I consider feedback a gift,' Martin said, 'but, oh my gosh, the run club will stop and I will just get all of this feedback about the product and what they want it to do next.' It's impossible, it seems, to find runners without a workout-ending cacophony of opinions on Strava.
Yahoo
17-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
These Experts Say ChatGPT Can't Beat the Stock Market — But It Can Still Make You Richer
Artificial intelligence (AI) like ChatGPT is showing up in more areas of finance than ever before, but it does not appear to be up to the task of picking stocks that will go gangbusters. In truth, only insider trading or psychic knowledge could do that, but AI isn't even as good as humans at the job yet. Learn More: Read Next: The language model (LLM)-based AI algorithms of ChatGPT and similar don't have the human capacity for nuance and observation that are involved in stock trading. That said, ChatGPT can still help make you richer. Here are some considerations on how to use it. ChatGPT Can Act Like a Broker … Sort Of Michael Martin, vice president of market strategy at said that while generative AI 'can be a fantastic tool for supporting an investor's hypotheses … AI is not truly symbiotic; it pulls its intelligence from human-published knowledge.' While ChatGPT should never replace using an actual stockbroker, it can supplement the tools that brokers provide, Martin explained, making the process of stock analysis faster and more efficient. Other ways it can do this include: Comparing your entire portfolio to 'as many different benchmarks as you can fathom.' Running quick 'what-if' scenarios, like stress-testing your portfolio against historical market crashes or sudden rate hikes. Summarizing complex news fast so you don't get buried in headlines but still catch major events that could impact your holdings. Find Out: To Track Investing Goals Martin also finds ChatGPT useful to check if he's on track with his investing goals, and whether he should put more or less into his equity, bond or even crypto portfolios. 'I'm constantly plugging in new rate scenarios, updated yearly return estimates, and different allocation mixes to see how small shifts might play out over time,' he said. To Check Assumptions Though he never uses ChatGPT for stock recommendations, Martin said, 'I treat it like my portable CFP to stress test my assumptions, catch blind spots I might miss on my own, and fine-tune my portfolio when it makes sense.' To Help With Retirement Planning ChatGPT is also a useful tool when it comes to budget planning and retirement planning, Martin shared. He gave an example prompt and ChatGPT's answer: Prompt: I have $100,000 saved for retirement today. I'm 40. My portfolio is 70% U.S. stocks (Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF — VTI) and 30% international (Vanguard Total International Stock ETF — VXUS). I add $23,000 a year to my retirement account. I'll also get about 80% of the maximum Social Security benefit. At what point can I retire if I'll need $100,000 a year in retirement? ChatGPT's answer: Assuming a 7% average annual return, at age 62 you'd have about $975,000. At 65, you'd have around $1.3 million. At 67, you'd have about $1.55 million. 80% of max Social Security today is roughly $32,000 a year. So you'd need about $68,000 a year from your portfolio to reach $100,000 total income. Using the 4% rule, a $1.7 million nest egg would cover that safely ($68,000 ÷ 0.04). So at 7% growth and your contributions, you'd likely hit that target around age 68. So with these assumptions, you'd be in good shape to retire comfortably around 68. Pretty comprehensive! Use It With Awareness ChatGPT is great so long as you remember to use it as a supplemental tool, not a substitute for real financial advice, Martin said. 'It can help you run numbers, test ideas and catch things you might overlook, but it can't know your full situation or replace the judgment of a qualified advisor who understands tax rules, estate planning or your personal goals.' As a 'Second Opinion' AI can also be valuable to investors as 'a great second opinion tool,' according to Dr. Stephan Shipe, Ph.D., CFP, certifed financial analyst (CFA) and founder of Scholar Financial Advising. 'You can use it to understand financial terminology, summarize tradeoffs or organize questions for your advisor,' he said. Clarity of that kind can help build confidence, which can allow the average investor to take a more active role in their own financial plan. Generalized Advice It's important to remember that AI can only give you generalized advice, Shipe said. 'The biggest risk is thinking AI knows your full situation,' Shipe warned. It can't assess your tax situation, your spouse's benefits 'or how you emotionally react to market volatility.' Taking bad advice from ChatGPT could be catastrophic. Shipe always tells clients, '[G]etting a bad dinner recommendation from ChatGPT is annoying. But getting bad financial advice can be life-altering. The stakes are just too high to blindly follow it.' It's great to use ChatGPT for budgeting, goal-setting or exploring concepts like Roth conversions or asset allocation, Shipe said, so long as you 'treat it like a tool, not the whole toolbox, and not a replacement for human advice.' More From GOBankingRates Mark Cuban Warns of 'Red Rural Recession' -- 4 States That Could Get Hit Hard I'm a Retired Boomer: 6 Bills I Canceled This Year That Were a Waste of Money 10 Cars That Outlast the Average Vehicle This article originally appeared on These Experts Say ChatGPT Can't Beat the Stock Market — But It Can Still Make You Richer
Washington Post
30-06-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
‘Please return me.' Reusable cups are replacing recycling at concerts.
COLUMBIA, Md. — Michael Martin likes to tell people he sells 'ugly cups.' The hope is no one will like them enough to want to keep them. Martin, who runs a reusable serveware company called tried offering nicer-looking cups as part of his quest to reduce the mountains of plastic bottles left behind at concerts and music festivals. For a small refundable deposit, attendees could get their beer and soft drinks in sturdy cups branded with band logos.
Irish Independent
30-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Wicklow N11/M11 upgrade to be considered as part National Development Plan review
The scheme was first introduced in an effort to reduce congestion along the route between the N11/M50 junction west of Shankill and the N11/M11 junction at Coynes Cross. However, in 2022, Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) confirmed that no grant had been allocated to Wicklow County Council to move ahead with design plans, after around €3 million had been spent on the development of the scheme. In March 2025 Taoiseach Michael Martin confirmed to Wicklow TD John Brady the NPD review is due to be published in July with roads being a major part of the plan. 'We are conscious of the serious congestion issues and delays for people on the N11. We will also be investing in public transport, which is very important for the future sustainability of transport. 'There will be a parallel approach comprising roads, public transport and active travel.' he added. In a further update in June, Transport Minister Darragh O'Brien confirmed the project is at the options selection phase. 'While no funding was provided to the N11/M11 Junction 4 to Junction 14 project for 2025, the Bus Priority Interim Scheme between Loughlinstown Roundabout and Junction 9 received an allocation of €1.45 million from TII for 2025.' There has been widespread opposition against the scheme which will see the closure of the Herbert Road junction in Bray to make way for a bus corridor. Locals have been protesting regularly at the junction, with Tánaiste Simon Harris set to meet officials soon.
