Who's Actually Paying for AI? How VCs Shape the AI We Use

Every AI tool you use is being sold to you cheaper than it actually costs to run and that’s a strategy. So who's really paying the difference, and what happens when they stop? Recorded live at Latitude59 in Tallinn, Ailish sits down with Kart, a VC who's spent 12 years on the inside of those rooms. She co-founded her own firm, backed 30 funds and 15 companies, and now invests in early-stage deep tech. She also runs vibe coding workshops across Estonia, with particular success in women-only setups.Kart pulls back the curtain on how the money actually moves and shapes the tech that shows up on our phones, laptops and everyday lives today. How a company goes from an idea with no product to something worth billions, why a valuation is basically a made-up number until the exit ("it's all trash until it's cash"), and what it really means when an AI company burns through $200 billion and investors keep writing cheques.And we get into the bit that lands on all of us directly. Right now we're living in an era of subsidised tokens, where investors are footing the bill so you and I can use AI far cheaper than it actually costs. This won't last, so now is the moment to figure out where AI is genuinely useful to you, before the real price shows up. But what does that mean for how we use it now and how that might change things in the future?In this episode, we get into:What a VC actually does all day, and how $500k on day zero turns into the apps on your phoneWhy every valuation is a bet on the future, and why half of companies don't make itThe $200 billion question: are we in a bubble, or is this a bet on world domination that pays offSubsidised tokens, and the hidden cost behind the cheap AI we're all enjoyingHow AI has flipped the startup world, so distribution now beats technical skillWhy vibe coding is opening the door for people who were shut out of building beforeThe attention economy problem, and what happens now cold emails stop workingQuick fire: the most overhyped buzzword, and who Kart thinks wins the AI raceWhether you're curious about where AI is heading, unsure who's really steering it, or you just want to understand the money shaping the tools you use every day, this one's for you.0:01 — Live from Latitude 59, Tallinn: welcome to Trust Issues 0:34 — Meet Kart: 12 years inside the rooms that fund AI 2:17 — What a VC actually does, day to day 3:00 — The relay race: how money moves from idea to product 5:42 — What investors are really chasing 6:19 — Luck vs. skill: the Skype and Starship story 7:46 — How AI coding changed what VCs expect from founders 9:44 — When AI stopped being a sector and became the thing 12:35 — What a "valuation" actually means 17:17 — OpenAI's projected $200B burn 21:39 — The Uber playbook, and what it means for your AI bill 23:49 — Vibe coding as an unlock for women in tech 26:46 — Going public, explained 32:05 — The coming era of niche, AI-built software 39:10 — Why cold email stopped working 42:28 — Five years from now, if this goes well 44:52 — Quick fire round