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Sean
Replace myself, phone myself.
Frank
But have you seen though, coming out of China, they have like skins that they'll actually put over the robot that look really human.
Sean
Like holy crap.
Frank
Crazy.
Sean
Did you see the one AI and it might have been China that went haywire, started attacking everyone. You saw that right at the. Oh my. Yeah, it was spinning like non stop.
Landon
No.
Frank
Was it. Is it real?
Sean
Okay, guys, got Frank and Landon here today from the Easy Day Foundation. It's their first episode. Thanks for joining me, guys.
Landon
Thanks for having us.
Sean
Yeah. Could you guys give a brief summary of what Easy. Easy Day foundation is about?
Landon
Yeah. Easy Day foundation is a non profit grant making organization at Landon and I started about a year and a half ago. We were founded on Veterans Day 2023. And the idea we had was to basically put on large scale live events and use them as a platform to help raise awareness and funds for veterans. We focus on three pillars in the veteran community, Mental health, job placement and family support services. We try to use those three pillars to give to organizations that do operational services that focus on one or more of those three pillars. And we try to kind of tailor a holistic approach to the process of reintegrating back into society after veterans leave the service. We are planning a big event. Our first big event is the American Music Awards which are moving to Las Vegas May 26th, Memorial Day Live on CBS and Paramount Plus. So.
Sean
Nice. That's a big deal. That's going to be a lot of people at that event.
Frank
Yeah, I think it'll be, you know, massive, obviously. I think if you think about the American Music Awards, this is, you know, a 50 year franchise and you know, to be able to partner with them after starting our organization 18 months ago and, and do this on, you know, the platform like CBS and Paramount plus I think is. We're very excited about it.
Sean
Yeah, that's huge. And you guys have already helped over 4,000 veterans. 80% of your funding goes directly towards their programs. That's really high for a charity, I feel like.
Landon
Yeah, yeah, we've had a great first year. We had an event last May, smaller one, kind of more banquet style where we raised over a million dollars. We've distributed a good chunk of that so far and we're hoping that this event is a success so that we can keep doing it in subsequent years and kind of turn Memorial Day into the holiday that it's meant to be.
Sean
I love it.
Frank
Yeah, I think it's like it's not a new thing that we're trying to do. I think like if you look back historically at events like Live Aid. Right. I think all of us kind of, you know, whether we were born or not, kind of remember the significance of having a live, you know, huge event that kind of just brings people together. So I think, you know, this is probably the beginning of, you know, hopefully a lot more that we'll do across different live events to kind of activate for. For bats.
Sean
It's going to be huge. I have on a lot of bets on the show, so I'm a big supporter. Yeah, can't wait to hear that. Yeah, can't wait to support you guys. And I'll be at the event, hopefully.
Frank
Yeah.
Sean
Please do. Let me know if you need anything.
Landon
Welcome.
Sean
Yeah, yeah.
Landon
Have you.
Sean
Frank, you've been in Vegas for a minute, huh?
Landon
I was born here, raised here, so I'm very deeply rooted in Vegas. I moved away for college at USC and master's degree at nyu. And other than that, I've been here my whole life.
Sean
Yeah. So you've seen a lot of growth in the city and there's still a lot more seems like coming, huh?
Landon
Yeah, I mean, it's just grown outward massively since the time I was a kid up by Red Rock. It was all desert when I was little, and now it's like, you know, beautiful neighborhoods and.
Sean
Yeah, Red Rock's a spot now. Yeah.
Landon
Durango is the spot, too.
Sean
Yeah. You guys, for sure with Durango. Yeah. And there's more on the way, right?
Landon
More on the way. Can't talk too much about it yet, but hopefully within the next 12 months or so, we'll be able to announce the next project. But we are working diligently to. To get in the ground with that.
Sean
I love it. You guys met at usc?
Landon
We did, yeah.
Sean
What was that like?
Landon
I mean, it was great. Landon and I were in business school there together, had a lot of fun, and we met one of my other good friends. Mutual friend introduced us, and Landon and I have been buddies ever since. It's been 10 years now.
Frank
Yeah.
Sean
You come from the VC private equity world.
Frank
Yeah, that's. That's kind of my background. You know, obviously we have kind of.
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Frank
A sambrosa.com completely different I think kind of business focuses, right. Him being in hospitality, me kind of more pure play like investing and venture. You know, when I kind of finished school, you know, started with a couple partners and, and launched kind of a venture fund that was, you know, really focused on partnering with kind of amazing late stage technology companies. And you know, we, we've, we've scaled that platform, you know, incredibly quickly over the last decade. We've worked with some amazing companies. The first investment we made a decade ago into SpaceX which.
Sean
Wow, that was your first one.
Frank
Yeah. So it's, everything is like downhill.
Sean
Yeah, that's crazy.
Landon
Like to go big every time we do something for the first time.
Frank
That's why we're here.
Sean
Yeah, that's why we're here. Yeah. Starting off with a big pot. Yeah, ex, let's go.
Frank
Exactly. So you know, that's been, that's been really amazing. We've made now hundreds and hundreds of investments. You know, we have amazing companies in the portfolio, you know, typically have skewed towards on the equity side of our business to like hard tech names. So SpaceX that everyone knows we did the series A of a company called Archer Aviation which if you guys are familiar with those vertical takeoff and landing electric, they're almost like a helicopter but they have eight turbines throughout. So you know, super, super interesting companies. They're going to be launching. Actually Archer, it's now a public company, will be launching to the public probably over the next year or two where folks can actually start to use these vehicles.
Sean
But wow. So you don't need a Runway anymore. You could just.
Frank
Yeah, I mean kind of like one of the first markets they're launching in is will be San Francisco and New York. And so if you're familiar with New York, sometimes Blade, if you know that service, the helicopter service, you know, they're actually going to be working to kind of replace that with these. They're called EVTOLs, and they'll have, you know, one at JFK Newark, and you'll be able to come onto coming to Manhattan. And the cost is, you know, it's fully electric, so you don't have the fuel cost that you have with a helicopter. So, you know, it's hundreds of dollars for the total ride to bring people back and forth. Wow.
Sean
That's way cheaper, right?
Frank
Extremely cheap. You know, really, really exciting. So many companies like that. Yeah, I could, I could go on about the different businesses that we have in the port.
Sean
I know 3,5B AUM. That's a lot of companies, man.
Frank
Yeah, yeah. Well, a lot. You know, we're fortunate with SpaceX that one kind of compounds on its own. And we're, you know, we're a longtime holder there. We think that Elon and the team are building, you know, an amazing business that will be, you know, around for many decades.
Sean
I love it. One of the companies Figure AI. I use AI every day. What. What does that company do?
Frank
So figure is actually super interesting if you. So the, the company Archer Aviation was started by Adam Goldstein and Brett Adcock. You know, after Archer was taken public, you know, Brett stepped away from the company and founded figure and you know, the, the business is, you know, effectively they're creating humanoid robots.
Sean
Wow.
Frank
Which is insane. And, you know, the, the idea is, you know, we live in a, a human like world. Right. So, you know, this bottle of water here is built for someone with a hand to pick up, you know, this, you know, if everything around us is built for humans. And so, you know, the idea is, as we think about super intelligence, you know, ChatGPT, you know, these foundational models, the, the actual bodies that will power this technology will be human like. And so they're building robots that, you know, have the dexterity of us that can, you know, zero shot. I could say to you, Sean, pick up, you know, the purple hat on the table. And you know, the robot without having that in its data set would know to pick that up and put it on a table, do whatever.
Sean
That's crazy.
Frank
It's crazy technology.
Sean
That's nuts. Are you using any AI these days?
Landon
We're looking into it for sure. So kind of working through all the different applications that we can use in the gaming and Hospitality business. But you know, we're in the pretty early stages of that.
Sean
Yeah, I checked into my hotel in Miami and it was AI crazy. Yeah, like there was no humans at the desk. It was just, yeah, it was just screen and they had blank key cards and they said take one. So I took it and then you scan it and it gives you a room number. So yeah, it was all AI and it's insane. Even at the Miami airport, you know, there's wheelchairs that come to the airplane. No one was pushing the wheelchair anymore. It was AI. That's crazy. Yeah, it automatically went to the gate and it had a name on the screen and it picked up the person. Isn't that crazy? That's wild.
Landon
I will say in our business we like to keep, keep the aspects of like the human touch, you know, from the time you pull your car into valet, check in, you know, the whole experience. Front of house for guests. I think super important. So we, we're not really trying to get rid of that just yet.
Sean
But yeah, I wasn't a fan of the hotel check in one to be honest. Cuz hotels I want that. This is more frustrating. Yeah, I want that personal touch for sure at a hotel.
Frank
But who knows, maybe you have a humanoid robot that they're dealing with, might have a little, little human touch.
Sean
But yeah, they're advancing fast. I saw some in Asia that are. They're doing humanoid girlfriends.
Frank
It's in.
Sean
Yeah, it's nuts.
Landon
I don't know if I can get on board with that.
Sean
Yeah, I'll pass on that.
Frank
I've.
Sean
I've seen too much black mirror.
Frank
Yeah, I. Look, I, I think the early applications will probably not be hospitality. I think it's, you know, like picking and packing, you know, in, you know, facilities like an Amazon facility. If they're picking up boxes and putting it on a rail or resorting things or taking apart and just putting it into a machine, that makes a lot of sense initially. So, you know, it's definitely early innings.
Sean
But we'll see what happens. I, I was wondering if AI was going to be a bubble, but it seems like it. It's here to stay.
Frank
Yeah, I mean do you use like Chachi BT every day?
Sean
Yeah, literally every day even.
Frank
I'm sure like prepping for this. You can plug things.
Sean
Yeah, prepping for gas, it's amazing for health too. Like you could get a blood work done and put it in there and it'll give you a plan on how to improve all your results.
Frank
It is crazy. I actually use that there's you know those body scanners, you put that in, you can do a body scan like every 30, 60 days and just keep it in one thread and it'll continuously update. Here's what you need to be doing differently. Here's what, like it just picks up wow things. It's amazing.
Sean
It's good. Yeah. It's good for generating email scripts too.
Frank
Right.
Sean
Like, if you're sending out some cold emails, there's so many uses, it's crazy. Yeah, I'm a fan.
Frank
It's amazing technology.
Sean
But I do like the human component with luxury stuff especially.
Frank
Sure.
Sean
I don't know if that could be replaced. Yeah, Especially like anything creative.
Frank
Right?
Sean
Like podcasting and movies.
Frank
Yeah, I don't think you're going to be replaced with a human.
Sean
Not yet at least. They might develop them, they might develop emotions.
Landon
Might not really have to show up for work anymore.
Sean
Yeah, I just replace myself from myself.
Frank
But have you seen though, coming out of China, they have like skins that they'll actually put over the robot that look really human.
Sean
Like, holy crap. Did you see the one AI and it might have been China that went haywire, started attacking everyone. You saw that right at the. Oh my. Yeah, it was spinning like, non stop.
Frank
No. Was it, Is it real?
Landon
Started like yelling someone in front of a crowd, actually.
Sean
Real video. Yeah.
Frank
Unbelievable.
Sean
There's been a few, like, things I've seen where the AI kind of goes off on its own.
Frank
Yeah.
Sean
Like, I think Google or someone big like had to shut theirs down.
Frank
Wow.
Sean
Just generating weird images.
Frank
I mean, there are like hallucinations in the data, so like sometimes you'll input something and it will actually come back with stuff that's incorrect.
Sean
Yeah.
Frank
Um, so there's definitely work to be done. I don't think we're at AGI yet.
Sean
But, you know, you think that's common AGI?
Frank
I don't know. I, I, I think probably eventually, I think, like, my view is it will probably be a lot longer than we think. I don't think it's as near as everyone thinks, but, you know, I think, I think the mo, the rate of improvement with the models month over month across, if you look at the major model providers, whether it's OpenAI or XAI or, you know, any of these guys, you know, they're basically leapfrogging one another, you know, every couple months. So it's, it's, it's pretty, pretty incredible.
Sean
Yeah. A lot of competition. I'll say. Like, the videos now are getting so good that I almost can't tell.
Frank
Yeah.
Sean
Like three years ago I could tell the mouth would be off when they're talking.
Frank
Right.
Sean
But now it's like, is that AI or is that deep?
Frank
Fake is scary.
Sean
It's insane.
Frank
Yeah.
Sean
Like, I feel bad for like celebrities because they're gonna have to keep an eye on that.
Frank
It's true.
Sean
There's a lot of like, I'll get Joe Rogan ads. Yeah. When I'm scrolling on Tick Tock.
Frank
Oh. And it's like it's an AI app.
Sean
It's an AI, but it looks so real. Like it could definitely fool most people.
Frank
Yeah. Yeah. I wonder. I mean, that must be illegal to do, right?
Sean
Yeah. I guess in their eyes they'll just get a season desist or whatever and stop for now. Yeah.
Frank
Yeah. It's crazy.
Sean
Crazy times around.
Frank
Crazy.
Sean
What other inventions and I guess trends are you guys excited about coming up? What do.
Frank
What else are we looking at that we like? It's a good question. I think there's, you know, obviously a lot of exciting stuff in AI, I think, you know, in our, in our credit portfolio. You know, one of the things that, you know, the businesses that we're super excited about, you know, I saw actually you had someone on the podcast who also invested in Liquid Debt.
Sean
Yeah.
Frank
Which is a cool company.
Sean
They crushed it.
Frank
Amazing marketing and also kind of like disrupting, you know, liquor and making it, like cool to drink, you know, water based non alcoholic beverages. So that's a business we like, but we kind of do everything. So we, we definitely see a lot of. A lot of cool, different stuff. All right. Yeah.
Sean
What about you, Frank?
Landon
On my end, our investment office kind of focuses a lot more on live events, sports and entertainment. So like, Power Slap is a great one that's really entertaining that people seem to love. I think you've been to a match before. They're a lot of fun. Dana White's done a great job with that.
Sean
Crushed it.
Landon
Yeah. There's the amount of impressions it gets on social media and whatnot. Aliens. Absolutely insane. So. And it's only two years old that just absolutely took off. So that's been a lot of fun to watch over the last couple years as well.
Sean
I had the two champs on for Power Slap, the Flying Hawaiian or Crazy Hawaiian. And the Butcher. Brandon Bo.
Frank
Butcher.
Sean
What a name. Yeah, he's actually a butcher though, actually. Yeah, he was a butcher before. Power Slot. But he just retired because the power slot money's getting pretty good now.
Frank
No way.
Sean
Yeah. And he's champ and then local to.
Frank
Vegas or Is he like a.
Sean
So he's not. He's. He's a butcher somewhere. Where? And then. Yeah, Paige is coming on in a couple days.
Landon
Paige Van Zant out there as well.
Sean
Yeah. She's undefeated.
Frank
Who's, like, the biggest name now in power slots?
Sean
I think Hawaiian or the guy that beat him. Dumpling.
Frank
Yeah, the Dumpling.
Sean
Wow. Yeah, there's some good names.
Frank
Yeah, there are some great.
Sean
I always ask my friends, like, yo, would you do power slots for, like, X amount of dollars? And everyone has, like, a price, right? I don't know if I would do it for any amount of money personally.
Landon
But they're pretty brave getting up there.
Sean
Dang.
Landon
Like, yeah, for sure, dude.
Sean
Some of those hits are. Have you seen it?
Frank
I. I've, like, seen the clips. We came with one. Yeah. It's. I mean, it's crazy.
Sean
Oh, my gosh.
Frank
It's crazy.
Sean
Some guys get knocked out cold.
Frank
What is the percentage of knockout? Is it, like, pretty?
Sean
I think it depends by weight class or.
Landon
I don't know exactly, but. Yeah.
Sean
Yeah. Like, the heavier the weight, the higher the chance. Like.
Frank
Yeah, it's.
Landon
It's high that.
Frank
How do they train? Do they.
Sean
I actually asked the champs on the pod. There's, like, chin exercises. You could train to, like, chin in the neck. Yeah.
Landon
Strengthen.
Sean
And then you got to train technique, too, because it's not just about strength.
Frank
Right.
Sean
It's not just about who has the most muscle. There's a lot of technique that goes into it. I actually have respect for them. I know a lot of people make fun of them, but. Yeah, you need to be on point.
Frank
Right.
Landon
You gotta be super tough, too.
Sean
Yeah. Do you.
Frank
Can you hit them only with a certain part of the hand or, like.
Sean
Yeah.
Landon
Like, you can't hit, like, behind the ear.
Frank
Yeah.
Landon
On the neck. It's called clubbing at the land.
Sean
Like.
Landon
Like smack dab on the cheek.
Frank
Wow.
Sean
Yeah.
Landon
True slap.
Frank
Yeah, true slap.
Sean
It's actually hard to do that with tower at the same time. Right. That's why a lot of people misfire.
Landon
Some people miss and then see the love on their face, and then the next guy is up.
Sean
You only got two misses and you're out. Right.
Landon
Everyone in the crowd is talking about, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Sean
Shout out to Power Slap. And now Dana's getting into boxing, too. That's going to be interesting.
Landon
Yeah, he's. He's got a lot going on. It's very exciting. UFC boxing. Power slap.
Sean
You guys see the fights? Was it last night or two nights ago?
Landon
I did, and I Was at the ones in Miami a few weeks ago. Great fights. But I grew up going. Going to all the UFC fights and it was. It was a lot of fun.
Sean
Yeah, looks like Jon Jones Aspinall might happen, huh?
Landon
I. I don't know. I'm probably shouldn't give details either, but it's got my new world anymore, so we'll see. But people are talking about it for sure.
Sean
That's a go for me.
Frank
Jon Jones, I think. I think Jon Jones is one of the most amazing fighters.
Sean
Yeah.
Landon
It's hard to not say that he's the best of all time.
Sean
He hasn't lost, right. I guess the one technically lost, but when he did the 12 to 6, but I don't count that as a loss.
Landon
He had a draw one time. Thought, I can't. I can't remember.
Frank
Yeah, a long time ago.
Sean
Yeah, it's been a while. Shout out to him, man.
Frank
How. Who was the main event? Oh, it was Patty, right, In Florida.
Landon
Patty was the co. Main and the main was. Was Volkanovski, right. And Diego Lopez.
Frank
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Sean
I'm rooting for Patty. The baddie, man.
Landon
He's a. He's a very entertaining guy.
Sean
Yeah, he's Irish, right? Yeah, I'm half Irish.
Landon
He's. He's from England, I think.
Frank
Oh, he's English, I think.
Sean
I think the accent and the.
Frank
The dad bod, he's un.
Sean
He's likable for sure. Yeah, yeah, he's actually like relatable, cuz, like, he'll just bulk up offseason and people are like, oh, I kind of look like him.
Frank
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Sean
And he'll get in the ring pretty shredded that night. Yeah, when he's in the ring, he looks shredded.
Frank
Yeah, he trains. But he probably also goes to the pub every now and again too.
Sean
Oh, easily. Yeah. He's with. With McGregor at the pub.
Frank
Yeah, exactly. Exactly.
Sean
Anything else you guys got coming up other than the amas, Any plans?
Landon
We're laser focused on that until May 26th and then hopefully get a little time off after that. But it's taken up a lot of our time over the last couple. Set the, you know, next two weeks leading up to it. We got a lot still to do, making sure everything was perfect and get this first big event out of the way and then hopefully on to the next. We're kind of in the works right now on that, but not. Not much we can share just yet.
Sean
Where can people support if they're watching this?
Landon
Yeah. So we'll be on CBS live And Paramount. Plus we'll have a few different opportunities throughout the broadcast for people to scan a QR code and send in a donation. We'll have a couple performances throughout the night during the AMAs that are going to be like easy day branded performances with some big A list names. Haven't released those yet, but stay tuned. It's going to be hosted by Jennifer Lopez Nice. At the Fountain Blue here in Las Vegas. And then for the first time ever, we're doing a veteran award. So we're going to be giving that to a celebrity or artist that has, you know, made a big impact in the, in the veteran community. And that will be presented by a veteran and a celebrity duo. We'll kind of share some stories and some background and, and then give that award out, but followed by a lot of really great performances throughout the night.
Sean
Love it.
Frank
Yeah. And this hopefully will be the first of many events that we do. So I think we've certainly set the bar high with the first one being that it's on CBS. It's, you know, I think last year at the AMAs, there was over 13 million people that tuned in.
Sean
Holy crap.
Frank
It's, you know, it's super exciting to be able to take that scale and then kind of amplify the impact for veterans. And, you know, we have, you know, some amazing partners that we're working with because the night of the event, if you donate, so if you, you know, click onto the QR code, go, you know, through the, the telecast, 100 of those donations will go to the eight partner orgs that we work with.
Sean
Nice.
Frank
So we have Bob Woodruff Foundation, Boot Campaign, Fisher House, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, unlv. So local, kind of in Vegas, folded fly.
Sean
I didn't know they had one. That's cool.
Frank
Yeah.
Sean
Yeah.
Frank
So, you know, it'll be, it'll be really like, awesome. I think in terms of, you know, the impact and for people donating, too, it's like, you know, I think to be able to know that the donation that you're making goes 100% through to the orgs that are actually working and providing the service, I think is a really interesting piece of the puzzle because oftentimes with these, you know, what we've learned in our experience over the last 18 months is not every single organization has super high throughput in terms of, like, if you donate the dollars actually make it to the programs. And so that's kind of our commitment through this event.
Landon
The organizations that we choose, we vet them all out to make sure. That they are responsible with their money as well. So they're all very trusted, solid foundations.
Sean
I love it. Yeah. I've donated to some charities and you mentioned the throughput. And I've later researched what it actually was.
Frank
Right.
Sean
And it could be super low.
Frank
Yeah.
Sean
On some of these. It's actually nuts.
Landon
There are some horror stories out there. So we're. We are steering clear of that and we're. We're doing our best to make sure that every dollar goes straight to the. Straight to them.
Sean
That's important. Well, we'll link your socials and your website below.
Frank
Yeah.
Sean
Anything else you guys want to close off with?
Frank
I don't think so. I think, I mean, we're super, super excited about this first event, I think, you know, excited to have people kind of support and, you know, continue to kind of follow along. I think there'll be a whole lot more that we'll do.
Landon
I just would say that, you know, this is a cause that is unfortunately rampant in this country, and our veterans make it possible for us to live in the best country in the history of the world. And the sacrifice that they. That they put down, you know, for us to be able to live here is. That's, you know, it's massive. And they don't deserve to come home and have to struggle. So we, we really want to make sure that in every situation we can. We can make it as easy as possible for them to have a sense of purpose when they get home and reintegrate back into society, you know, seamlessly. So if you're feeling generous, go and donate and easyday.org Easy know, we're. We're trying to. Trying to help people that. That really need it and really deserve it. Most importantly.
Sean
Perfect. We'll link it below. Thanks for coming on, guys. That was awesome. Check them out, guys. Check out the AMA. May 26th, right?
Frank
Yes, that's right.
Landon
5 p.
Podcast Summary: Digital Social Hour
Episode: AI Robots & Tech: The Surprising Future Unveiled | Easy Day Foundation DSH #1782
Release Date: May 24, 2025
In this episode of Digital Social Hour, host Sean Kelly welcomes his guests Frank and Landon from the Easy Day Foundation, marking their inaugural appearance on the show. The conversation swiftly delves into the foundation’s mission, upcoming events, and broader discussions on technology and its intersection with society.
Frank and Landon provide an insightful overview of the Easy Day Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting veterans through three main pillars: mental health, job placement, and family support services.
Foundation Origins and Goals:
Landon explains, “Easy Day Foundation is a nonprofit grant-making organization that we started about a year and a half ago on Veterans Day 2023. We aim to reintegrate veterans back into society by supporting organizations that focus on mental health, job placement, and family services” (01:37).
Achievements and Future Plans:
Frank highlights their success, “We’ve already helped over 4,000 veterans with 80% of our funding going directly to their programs” (02:26). They are gearing up for a significant event: partnering with the American Music Awards on May 26th, which will be broadcast live on CBS and Paramount Plus.
Upcoming Event – American Music Awards:
Landon shares excitement about their first major event, “Our event at the American Music Awards will feature branded performances, a veteran award presented by a celebrity-veteran duo, and opportunities for live donations via QR codes” (21:11). This event aims to raise substantial funds and awareness for veteran support programs.
The discussion transitions to Frank’s background in venture capital and his investment ventures, providing listeners with a glimpse into cutting-edge technological advancements.
Venture Capital Background:
Frank describes his journey, “I started with a couple of partners and launched a venture fund focused on late-stage technology companies. Our first investment was in SpaceX, and we’ve since scaled our portfolio to include hundreds of companies” (05:57).
Key Investments:
Frank elaborates on notable investments:
A significant portion of the episode is dedicated to discussing the rapid advancements in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and robotics, exploring both their potential and the challenges they pose.
Current AI Applications and Concerns:
Sean shares personal experiences, “I checked into my hotel in Miami and it was all AI – no humans at the desk, just screens and key cards. It's insane” (10:44).
Frank adds, “There are hallucinations in the data; sometimes AI generates incorrect information, indicating we’re not yet at Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)” (14:22).
Humanoid Robots and Ethical Implications:
The conversation touches on humanoid robots developed in China, with Frank noting, “They have skins that make robots look really human” (00:02).
The guests discuss scenarios where AI behaves unpredictably, emphasizing the need for cautious advancement:
"There’s been a few things I’ve seen where the AI kind of goes off on its own. Like, I think Google or someone big had to shut theirs down just generating weird images." (13:58)
Deepfakes and Misinformation:
Sean expresses concern over realistic AI-generated content: “The videos now are getting so good that I almost can’t tell” (15:06).
Frank concurs, highlighting the potential for misuse:
"Fake is scary. It's insane. Celebrities will have to keep an eye on that." (15:40)
Shifting gears, Sean, Frank, and Landon engage in a spirited discussion about Power Slap, a combat sport gaining popularity.
Overview of Power Slap:
Landon remarks, “Power Slap is a great entertainment sport that’s been taking off, especially with figures like Paige Van Zant and local fighters in Las Vegas” (16:30).
Training and Safety:
The hosts discuss the rigorous training involved, emphasizing technique over brute strength:
“You’ve got to train technique, strengthen your chin, and master the art of the true slap.” (18:32)
Upcoming Events and Fighters:
Sean shares excitement about future matchups and fighters, mentioning prominent names like “Crazy Hawaiian” and “The Butcher,” highlighting their backgrounds and the thrilling nature of the sport (17:12).
Returning to the core mission, Frank and Landon elaborate on how the Easy Day Foundation ensures that donations effectively support veterans.
Transparency and Trust:
Frank assures listeners, “We ensure that 100% of donations go directly to our partner organizations, avoiding the low throughput rates seen in some charities” (23:30).
Landon adds, “We vet all organizations to make sure they are responsible and trusted foundations” (24:36).
Partner Organizations:
The foundation collaborates with reputable partners such as the Bob Woodruff Foundation, Boot Campaign, Fisher House, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, and local Las Vegas entities like Folded Fly.
Mission Statement:
Landon passionately states,
“This is a cause that is unfortunately rampant in this country, and our veterans make it possible for us to live in the best country in the history of the world. They don’t deserve to come home and struggle” (25:07).
As the episode wraps up, Sean encourages listeners to support the Easy Day Foundation and participate in their upcoming American Music Awards event. The guests reiterate the importance of supporting veterans and ensuring that contributions make a tangible difference.
Event Details:
Landon provides final details, “Easy Day Foundation will be on CBS live and Paramount Plus, with opportunities to donate via QR codes throughout the broadcast. The event will feature performances by A-list artists and a veteran award presentation” (21:43).
Final Encouragement:
Frank concludes, “We’re excited about this first event and hope it’s the beginning of many more to amplify our impact for veterans” (25:13).
Notable Quotes with Timestamps:
Landon on Foundation’s Mission:
“[...] We try to tailor a holistic approach to the process of reintegrating back into society after veterans leave the service.” (01:37)
Frank on Venture Capital:
“Our first investment was in SpaceX, and we’ve since scaled our portfolio to include hundreds of companies.” (05:57)
Sean on AI Experiences:
“I checked into my hotel in Miami and it was all AI – no humans at the desk, just screens and key cards. It's insane.” (10:44)
Landon on Donor Trust:
“We vet all organizations to make sure they are responsible and trusted foundations.” (24:36)
Landon on Veterans’ Sacrifice:
“They don’t deserve to come home and struggle. We want to make it as easy as possible for them to have a sense of purpose.” (25:07)
To support the Easy Day Foundation and participate in their upcoming event:
Join Sean, Frank, and Landon in making a meaningful impact on the lives of veterans and their families.
This summary captures the essence of the episode, highlighting the Easy Day Foundation’s initiatives, insights into modern technology and AI, and the vibrant discussions on combat sports. For a deeper dive, listeners are encouraged to tune into the full episode of Digital Social Hour.