Listen to today’s podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/silk-logic-small-business-daily/id1841930957
Small Business Daily Podcast 01/13/2026
Today’s podcast episode was created from the following stories:
Cast AI raises funds at $1B valuation to launch a unified GPU marketplace
Cast AI secured new strategic funding from Pacific Alliance Ventures, surpassing a $1B valuation, to launch Omni Compute—a unified marketplace that makes external GPU capacity act like native compute across clouds. Oracle is the first major provider to offer excess GPU supply through the platform, aiming to reduce lock-in and improve scalability for AI inference. For growing teams, this could translate into more predictable costs and easier access to scarce GPUs across regions.
Everseen adds a conversational intelligence layer to its AI theft-prevention system
Retail AI firm Everseen unveiled Everact, a prototype conversational layer that lets store leaders query loss-prevention insights in natural language (e.g., “show last five non-scan alerts”). The tool sits atop Evercheck and Evershelf, which already monitor 140,000+ checkouts and high-value aisles to curb shrink in real time. Early partners can test Everact in Q2—potentially speeding root-cause analysis and operational responses without digging through petabytes of video.
Space Forge launches a semiconductor factory in space, aiming for more energy‑efficient chips
Space Forge’s ForgeStar‑1 satellite successfully generated plasma in low Earth orbit, validating the extreme temperatures needed to grow advanced semiconductor crystals in microgravity. The company claims materials produced this way could improve energy efficiency by up to 60% for power electronics and AI accelerators, with a follow-on mission (ForgeStar‑2) planned to return samples to Earth. It’s early-stage, but a potential shift in the chip supply chain and performance envelope bears watching.
Enterprise sales automation software that actually delivers ROI
This guide breaks down how to evaluate enterprise AI sales platforms with a focus on governance, deep integrations, and measurable revenue outcomes—not just shiny features. It offers a seven-point checklist (unified data, security, orchestration, extensibility, ROI proof, and more) and highlights tools for forecasting accuracy and deal-risk reduction. SMBs planning to scale can use these criteria to avoid AI-washing and invest in capabilities that directly impact pipeline and productivity.
Smartan launches AI injury prevention platform at CES 2026
India-based Smartan debuted a computer-vision platform that turns ordinary cameras into real-time biomechanics tools, reporting a 42% reduction in form-related injuries across pilots. Backed by celebrity investor Ravi Shastri, the startup is targeting sports academies, corporate wellness, and medical facilities as it expands to the U.S. For programs with tight budgets, the appeal is lab-like analysis without expensive hardware—plus sub‑100ms feedback to prevent injuries on the spot.
Migrating our DOM to Zig
Lightpanda replaced LibDOM with a custom Zig implementation (“zigdom”) to unify memory management, events, Custom Elements, and ShadowDOM—yielding modest performance gains and a much cleaner foundation. The team integrated Rust’s html5ever for parsing and V8 snapshots to cut startup time, highlighting pragmatic engineering over reinvention. Notably, much of the work was paired with an AI coding agent, underscoring how modern dev workflows are evolving.
AI visibility startup Emberos raises $1.2M in pre-seed funding
Emberos, founded by ex-Google exec Justin Inman, raised $1.2M to help brands understand and influence how they appear in AI-generated answers across ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity, and Grok. The platform predicts brand representation, issues “fix packs” into tools like Slack, HubSpot, and Jira, and maps narratives via a proprietary Brand Knowledge Graph. With Emberos estimating 90% of brands have factual errors in at least one model, AI answer optimization is emerging as a new marketing discipline.
Security startup Torq raises cash at a $1.2B valuation
Torq closed a $140M round led by Merlin Ventures, lifting the autonomous SecOps platform to a $1.2B valuation. Built around AI agents, Torq automates high-volume alert triage and remediation so analysts can focus on complex threats—a timely boost for lean security teams. The company pivoted aggressively into agentic AI after late 2022, reflecting how fast security operations are embracing automation.
5 ways SMBs can empower a human‑centric future of work
This piece argues SMBs can outmaneuver larger rivals by focusing AI on customer experience, talent retention, and augmenting human judgment—not chasing every new tool. Key moves include predictive HR analytics, giving teams autonomy and context, and supporting hybrid work with flexible platforms and device choice. The takeaway: pair sensible AI investments with cultural practices that free people to do their best work.
