Happy Thursday. I’m excited to be sharing this week’s episode with Vasu Kulkarni, a Founding Partner at Courtside Ventures who has invested in companies like StockX, The Athletic, Rare Candy, and many more. I’ve recently gone headfirst into the collectibles world, and this conversation has been a keystone of that journey. I hope you enjoy learning from Vasu as much as I did.

In today’s issue:

ICYMI: The Diligent Observer Exclusive went live last week, and thanks to those of you who have already joined! What it is: find out which deals are still actively raising, plus get a memo, the deck, and a warm intro to the founder if you want it. The first 4 deals are already live, and I’ve got 3 more queued up to share this week. Founding seats are still open.

Angel funding rounds announced in recent weeks, compiled from public sources or via direct announcement. These deals represent the elite few that survived an angel network’s vetting process. Note: I have not personally analyzed these companies and am sharing for informational purposes only.

📊 Angel Network Investment Tracker: 218 Deals, 112 Networks.

🔓 The Exclusive: 4 Actively Raising Deals Shared to Date

Participating Group: Aggie Angel Network

WarpWare is developing space mission software that gives companies a share of their flight and operations code already built, so teams can focus on their mission. According to WarpWare, the company reached $1M in 2025 revenue across 14 licensing customers, with one client using the platform to go from design to launch in five months. WarpWare was selected for the NATO DIANA Accelerator Programme, a NATO-backed defense innovation initiative, and The Aggie Angel Network recently participated in WarpWare's $750,000 seed round.

Alex Reynolds | $750K Seed Round | Broomfield, CO | July 2026 | Direct, Source

Participating Group: Baylor Angel Network

Familify is developing Theo: Prayer & Meditation, a mobile app that guides children through prayers, Bible stories, and calming content to help families build daily spiritual and mindfulness habits. The company says Theo is used by more than one million actively engaged families across the US and Latin America. Baylor Angel Network recently announced an investment in the company.

Francisco Cornejo | Miami, FL | July 2026 | Source

Participating Group: Silicon Catalyst Angels

Phosio is developing a thin-film materials platform designed to integrate high-performance displays directly into lightweight, everyday eyewear for AR/AI glasses. The company says its approach reduces the cost, bulk, and power demands that have limited mainstream adoption of smart glasses. Phosio recently secured $4M in seed financing led by MESH, with participation from Silicon Catalyst Angels and other investors, to move from proof-of-concept to commercial production.

Omid Sadeghi | $4M Seed Round | Corvallis, OR | June 2026 | Source

🔓 Claude Accidentally Hacked Three Companies: Anthropic disclosed that Claude models reached the open internet and breached three organizations' live production systems during cybersecurity evaluations.

🚮 FINALLY LinkedIn Added a "Seems Like AI Slop" Button: Users can now flag AI-generated posts to help clean up the feed.

👥 Agents Belong on the Org Chart: Gigi Levy-Weiss of NFX argues the real AI-native test is whether you can say exactly which work is human, AI, or AI reviewed by a human.

What makes a collectible a collectible has NOTHING to do with the intrinsic value of the thing. A game-worn Michael Jordan jersey is $10 of fabric made in China. A Van Gogh is oil and canvas.

What makes the thing valuable is the story that it tells.

Takeaway: When evaluating a collectibles deal, investors MUST understand the narrative machine. A company that can manufacture and scale a great story (provenance, community, mythology, etc.) has a powerful moat. A logistics company simply moving physical goods does not.

P.S. This is one of the top 5 conversations I’ve ever had on the show. Seriously. Had such a blast chatting with Vasu and learned a ton - I think you will too. Check it out if you have a few minutes this week and let me know what you think.

Want more? Check out my full conversation with Vasu 👇

Listen now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and more.

Thanks for reading - have a great week.

-Andrew

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