Trump-Xi Summit, Benioff: "Not My First SaaSpocalypse," OpenAI vs Apple, Multi-Sensory AI, El Niño
(0:00) Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff joins the show!
(1:14) Trump-Xi summit, doing business in China as a US company, impact on Americans and the midterms
(18:46) Taiwan, chips, AI models, and peace through trade
(31:41) AI's impact on software: What SaaS thrives, what SaaS dies?
(47:26) OpenAI is considering suing Apple over failed ChatGPT integration
(56:54) Thinking Machines releases real-time model, future of consumer AI, multi-sensory models
(1:02:24) Science Corner: Impacts of a historically strong El Nino in 2026
(1:11:40) Anthropic goes after "Dark SPVs"
Follow Marc Benioff:
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Apply for Summit 2026:
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Intro Music Credit:
https://rb.gy/tppkzl
https://x.com/yung_spielburg
Intro Video Credit:
https://x.com/TheZachEffect
Referenced in the show:
https://polymarket.com/event/will-china-invade-taiwan-before-2027
https://polymarket.com/event/will-china-invade-taiwan-by-december-31-2027
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/14/world/asia/china-xi-trump-taiwan-warning.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/13/technology/andreessen-horowitz-politics.html
https://www.instagram.com/reels/DYJZFn0R6oY
https://finance.yahoo.com/sectors/technology/articles/openai-launches-4-billion-ai-134916653.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KO53gwuqZUQ
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-05-14/openai-apple-partnership-frays-setting-up-possible-legal-fight
https://siliconangle.com/2026/05/11/thinking-machines-drops-new-highly-responsive-model-designed-humanlike-interactions-real-time/
https://x.com/thinkymachines/status/2053938892152435174
https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2026/05/12/anthropic-fights-unauthorized-stock-exposure-as-token-markets-imply-trillion-dollar-valuation
https://support.claude.com/en/articles/13704655-unauthorized-anthropic-stock-sales-and-investment-scams
EP 149: Marc Benioff (CEO, Salesforce) Predicts Half of Conversations Will be With AI Agents Next Year
Logan is joined by Marc Benioff, the legendary co-founder and CEO of Salesforce, for a wide-ranging conversation on the rise of AI in enterprises. Marc explains how Salesforce has become the testing ground for its own “agentic” technology, using AI agents to handle customer support, boost sales, and transform marketing. He also shares his perspective on what’s hype vs. reality in the AI race, the opportunities for startups, and why the future is about humans and agents working together.
(00:00) Introduction and Salesforce's Lead Management
(00:35) Reflecting on the Last Eight Months
(01:14) The Impact of AI on Salesforce Operations
(02:15) AI's Role in Customer Support and Sales
(03:45) Salesforce's Vision for an Agentic Enterprise
(05:00) Public Market Sentiment and AI Adoption
(06:15) Salesforce's Data and Application Foundations
(08:13) The Future of CRM and ITSM Markets
(12:57) Managing Agents and Human Workers
(17:45) Salesforce's Growth and AI Product Line
(19:38) Pricing Models and Customer Success Stories
(23:26) The Role of AI in Different Market Segments
(28:51) Salesforce Ventures and Startup Investments
(36:05) Advice for Young Professionals and Future Trends
(41:04) Dreamforce
Executive Producer: Rashad Assir
Producer: Leah Clapper
Mixing and editing: Justin Hrabovsky
Check out Unsupervised Learning, Redpoint's AI Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@UCUl-s_Vp-Kkk_XVyDylNwLA
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About the Show
Logan Bartlett is a Software Investor at Redpoint Ventures - a Silicon Valley-based VC with $6B AUM and investments in Snowflake, DraftKings, Twilio, and Netflix. In each episode, Logan goes behind the scenes with world-class entrepreneurs and investors. If you're interested in the real inside baseball of tech, entrepreneurship, and start-up investing, tune in every Friday for new episodes.
SaaStr 801: AI, M&A, and the Future of SaaS: Lessons from Marc Benioff, Chair, CEO & Co-Founder of Salesforce
SaaStr 801: AI, M&A, and the Future of SaaS: Lessons from Marc Benioff, Chair, CEO & Co-Founder of Salesforce
Join us for as SaaStr CEO and Founder Jason Lemkin sits down for a conversation with Mark Benioff, the CEO, Chair and Co-Founder of Salesforce. Together, we delve into the practical applications of AI in the B2B space. With 40 billion under Salesforce's belt, this discussion sheds light on how AI is transforming enterprise software. Learn about Salesforce's major acquisitions like Tableau and Slack, the evolution of their product offerings, and how they seamlessly integrate AI with business intelligence and analytics. Mark also shares insights on the strategic direction of Salesforce, the significance of data management, and the role of AI assistants in revolutionizing customer service and product development. Tune in for a glimpse into the future of enterprise software and the impactful initiatives driven by Salesforce.
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Hey everybody. SaaStr Annual is almost here. It's May 13th to the 15th, right here in the SF Bay, the heart of the AI Revolution, and you've gotta be part of it in B2B and be it SaaStr 2025. We'll have an incredible line above speakers, the best in SaaS and AI. From HubSpot and Perplexity from Anthropic, to OpenAI, from Snowflake to Cursor, to Google Coud, to Box to IBM and more.
We'll have AI matchmaking for founders and investors for the first time, and we'll have over 1,000+ C-level executives at our VIP summits. It's gonna be great. So we'll see you there. If you want to come in person, use my code Jason20 before tickets sell out.
And we'll see anyone that can't make it in person on our live streams. It'll be all over my Twitter and LinkedIn and everywhere. May 13th to the 15th 2025.
It's gonna rock.
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EP 127: Marc Benioff (CEO, Salesforce): the Future of Digital Labor & the Agentic Era
In this episode, Marc Benioff (CEO, Salesforce) responds to Satya Nadella’s recent predictions and shares his thoughts on the current reality of Agi. He dives into the rise of digital labor, the multi-trillion-dollar potential of agentic technology, and what the future split between software and agentic revenue might look like. Marc also discusses why CEOs need to stay grounded in delivering actionable solutions, and he emphasizes the moral obligation businesses have to retrain employees and invest in communities as AI continues to evolve.
(00:00) Intro
(01:45) Salesforce's AI Impact on Business
(03:03) The Future of Digital Labor
(05:28) Agentic AI and Customer Success
(07:42) Salesforce's Competitive Edge
(11:48) Marc Benioff's Response to Satya Nadella
(14:16) The Role of AI in Enterprise Software
(20:14) The Balance of AI and Human Labor
(28:34) Salesforce's Philanthropic Efforts
(36:24) The Future of AI and Regulation
(40:24) Conclusion and Farewell
Executive Producer: Rashad Assir
Producer: Leah Clapper
Mixing and editing: Justin Hrabovsky
Check out Unsupervised Learning, Redpoint's AI Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@UCUl-s_Vp-Kkk_XVyDylNwLA
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About the Show
Logan Bartlett is a Software Investor at Redpoint Ventures - a Silicon Valley-based VC with $6B AUM and investments in Snowflake, DraftKings, Twilio, and Netflix. In each episode of The Logan Bartlett Show, we sit down with the people behind today’s most important startups and extract the tactics, lessons, and frameworks they’ve learned the hard way. Conversations span hiring to GTM, product, growth, fundraising and everything in between - collectively forming the ultimate playbook to make you a better CEO, investor or board member.
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Behind the founder: Marc Benioff
Marc Benioff is the co-founder and CEO of Salesforce, the second-largest software company in the world. He started programming at age 15, selling his first program for $75, and went on to build Salesforce into a company worth more than $300 billion that also owns Slack, Tableau, Quip, and MuleSoft. Marc is known as a marketing legend, and is now leading Salesforce into the era of AI agents. In our conversation, we discuss:
• The importance of maintaining a beginner’s mind
• His approach to product launches and marketing
• Managing through tough times and layoffs
• His relationship with Steve Jobs and lessons learned
• Why Salesforce is betting big on AI agents
• Many stories from his entrepreneurial roller coaster
• Much more
—
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Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/behind-the-founder-marc-benioff
—
Where to find Marc Benioff:
• X: https://x.com/benioff
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbenioff
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Introduction to Marc Benioff and Salesforce
(03:54) Marc’s early career and domain names
(05:59) The App Store story and lessons from Steve Jobs
(15:18) Lessons from launching Salesforce
(22:03) The importance of keeping a beginner’s mindset
(29:53) Why Marc calls Salesforce the “25-year startup”
(31:47) Agentforce
(36:09) Why Marc says AI is the defining technology of our lifetime
(40:12) AI’s impact on the workforce
(42:31) Entrepreneurs need to be like conductors
(46:02) Failure corner
(50:32) The future of AI agents
(56:34) Final thoughts and farewell
—
Referenced:
• Bill.com: https://www.bill.com
• App Store: https://www.apple.com/app-store/
• Salesforce: https://www.salesforce.com
• Oracle: https://www.oracle.com
• Larry Ellison on X: https://x.com/larryellison
• Siebel Systems: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siebel_Systems
• Saba Software: https://talentedlearning.com/lms-vendor-directory/saba-software
• Tom Siebel on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomassiebel
• Avon: https://www.avon.com
• Salesforce Chief Has Pulled Some Crazy Stunts: https://www.businessinsider.com/marc-benioff-salesforcecom-chief-has-pulled-some-crazy-stunts-2012-3
• Matthew McConaughey on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/officiallymcconaughey
• Woody Harrelson on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/woodyharrelson
• “Ask More of AI” with Matthew McConaughey: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLnobS_RgN7JaxOsLD8WH0I9E6osK3UrfI
• Marc’s tweet about the ad with McConaughey and Harrelson: https://x.com/Benioff/status/1866175950062239784
• Chris Rock on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chrisrock
• Sushi Iwa: http://www.sushiiwa.jp/en/
• Ryoanji Temple Rock Garden: https://www.japan.travel/en/spot/1145/
• Neil Young Archives on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/neilyoungarchives
• Mount Tam: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Tamalpais
• Spirit Rock: https://www.spiritrock.org
• Jack Kornfield: https://www.spiritrock.org/teachers/jack-kornfield
• Agentforce: https://www.salesforce.com/form/agentforce/demo
• Minority Report on Prime: https://www.amazon.com/Minority-Report-Tom-Cruise/dp/B00A2FSSHK
• Peter Schwartz on X: https://x.com/peterschwartz2
• UCSF Health: https://www.ucsfhealth.org
• A.I. Chatbots Defeated Doctors at Diagnosing Illness: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/17/health/chatgpt-ai-doctors-diagnosis.html
• Does AI improve doctors’ diagnoses? Study puts it to the test: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/11/241113123419.htm
• A.I. Will Transform the Global Economy—if Humans Let It: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/07/special-series/ai-transform-global-economy.html
• Wargames on Prime: https://www.amazon.com/Wargames-Dabney-Coleman/dp/B0011EQBOS
• Her on Prime: https://www.amazon.com/Her-Joaquin-Phoenix/dp/B00KATY250
• AI (Einstein) at Salesforce: https://www.salesforce.com/in/artificial-intelligence
• Salesforce Signs Definitive Agreement to Acquire Airkit.ai: https://www.salesforce.com/news/stories/salesforce-signs-definitive-agreement-to-acquire-airkit-ai
• Salesforce Buys Big Data Startup RelateIQ for Up to $390M: https://techcrunch.com/2014/07/11/salesforce-buys-big-data-startup-relateiq-for-up-to-390m
• Salesforce to cut workforce by 10% after hiring ‘too many people’ during the pandemic: https://techcrunch.com/2023/01/04/salesforce-to-cut-workforce-by-10-after-hiring-too-many-people-during-the-pandemic
• Michael Dell on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mdell
• Bret Taylor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brettaylor
• Akio Toyoda: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akio_Toyoda
• Kaizen: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaizen
• TRS-80: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TRS-80
• CLOAD Magazine: https://archive.org/details/cload_newsletter
—
Recommended books:
• Ghost Fleet: A Novel of the Next World War: https://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Fleet-Novel-Next-World/dp/054470505X
• Behind the Cloud: The Untold Story of How Salesforce.com Went from Idea to Billion-Dollar Company—and Revolutionized an Industry: https://www.amazon.com/Behind-Cloud-Salesforce-com-Billion-Dollar-Company/dp/0470521163
• Trailblazer: The Power of Business as the Greatest Platform for Change: https://www.amazon.com/Trailblazer-Business-Greatest-Platform-Change/dp/1984825194
—
Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.
—
Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe
Marc Benioff on Elon, AI Agents, and the “DOGE”
How will AI agents change the economy and the workforce — and are Americans ready? Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff has some thoughts. After a stellar quarter boosted by the customer resource management company’s new AI autonomous agents, Agentforce, Benioff explains to Kara how employers and employees will be impacted by a new era of digital workers; why he thinks investing tens of billions in AI capital expenditures (like his competitor Microsoft) is a “race to the bottom”; and what he hopes will come from Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency.
Plus: Kara and Marc go another round on “DOGE Master” Elon Musk, and whether it’s still possible for business leaders to still defend their values and workers without fear of political repercussions. They also remember their mutual friend, former YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki, who died earlier this year.
Questions? Comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on Instagram and TikTok @onwithkaraswisher
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20VC: Salesforce Founder Marc Benioff on The Future of LLMs | The Future of Agents | The Future of Labour | Management Lessons from Steve Jobs
Marc Benioff is one of the iconic founders and visionaries of our time. From the founding of Salesforce 25 years ago, Marc has in many ways created an entire industry. He has scaled the company to a market cap of $346BN, $38BN in revenue and over 72,000 employees.
Ask Me Anything with Marc Benioff:
The Future of Models:
Why does Marc believe we are at the upper end of LLMs and they are commoditising?
Why does Marc believe the future of models is many smaller, verticalised models specialised in different areas?
OpenAI vs Anthropic vs Xai. Which would Marc buy and which would he short?
What is the single biggest barrier to Salesforce winning the AI war in the next 10 years?
The Future of Agents:
What does Salesforce need to do to prevent becoming a database in the next generation of AI?
To what extent do agents hurt vs help Salesforce?
What do very few people understand about agents that is very important?
The Future of Labour:
Will Salesforce replace it's human labour with digital labour? Will Salesforce be bigger or smaller in 10 years time, people wise?
Why does Marc believe that layoffs are a crucial tool for CEOs to win?
How will a future of digital labour change the pricing model of SaaS tools today?
Management Lessons from Marc Benioff:
How did one meeting with Steve Jobs change how Marc views leadership?
How does Marc analyse the required mindset to win as a CEO today?
What has Marc changed his mind on most in the last 12 months?
Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff Has Thoughts on AI Agents, Automation, and The Future of Your Job
Marc Benioff is the CEO and co-founder of Salesforce. Benioff joins Big Technology Podcast for a wide ranging discussion on AI agents, automation, and the future of labor. In this episode, we discuss his vision for AI agents and how they'll transform the way companies interact with customers. Tune in to hear why Benioff believes the future isn't about personal AI assistants, but rather company-specific agents built on robust data systems that can take effective action on our behalf. We also cover his thoughts on Microsoft's Copilot, Klarna's provocative statements about abandoning traditional software, whether he'll sell Time Magazine, and what happened with Elon's purchase of Twitter. Hit play for an illuminating conversation about the future of work, enterprise software, and how AI might create a new era of business productivity.
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Marc Benioff says it’s ‘crazy talk’ that AI will hurt Salesforce
Today on Equity, TechCrunch Editor Julie Bort is sitting down with Marc Benioff, the CEO of Salesforce and one of the tech industry’s biggest hype men, about his latest work with Time Ventures and Salesforce Ventures, and why he thinks AI agents are the next big thing for enterprise software.
Listen to the full episode to hear about:
The impact of AI on customer experience
The application of AI agents in the healthcare space - and what it could mean for data privacy
Marc's thoughts on Salesforce competitor Microsoft's Copilot
The range of gadgets that have piqued Benioff’s interest lately
As always, Equity will be back on Friday with our news round-up!
Equity is TechCrunch’s flagship podcast, produced by Theresa Loconsolo, and posts every Wednesday and Friday.
Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod. For the full episode transcript, for those who prefer reading over listening, check out our full archive of episodes over at Simplecast.
Credits: Equity is produced by Theresa Loconsolo with editing by Kell. Bryce Durbin is our Illustrator. We'd also like to thank the audience development team and Henry Pickavet, who manages TechCrunch audio products.
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20VC: Marc Benioff on The Future of San Francisco and What He Would Do if in Charge? Marc Benioff's Five Step Process to Priorities and Why Money Does Not Make You Happy & Work From Home vs In-Person; How to Manage in Changing Worlds
Marc Benioff is Chair, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Salesforce and a pioneer of cloud computing. Under Benioff's leadership, Salesforce is the #1 provider of CRM software globally and one of the world's fastest-growing enterprise software companies. Benioff founded Salesforce in 1999, and it is now a Fortune 150 company with 70,000+ employees. Benioff is the owner and co-chair of TIME, and the founder of TIME Ventures. Benioff is the author of the New York Times bestseller Trailblazer: The Power of Business as the Greatest Platform for Change. Benioff was named "Innovator of the Decade" by Forbes and is recognized as one of the World's 25 Greatest Leaders by Fortune.
In Today's Episode with Marc Benioff We Discuss:
1. The Future of San Francisco:
What would Marc do if he were in charge of San Francisco today?
What would he change with regards to housing, policing and crime?
Why does Marc believe there are doomsday proclaimers on SF? What do they have to gain?
Will Dreamforce always be held in San Francisco?
2. Money and Ambition: The Mind Behind a $200BN Machine
Does Marc believe that money makes you happy?
How has Marc's relationship to money changed over time?
How does Marc think about bringing children up in a more affluent home?
What does Marc advise anyone who is seeking "happiness" today?
3. Mastering Decisions and Prioritisation:
How does Marc assess his own decision-making framework today? Has it changed with time?
What is Marc's 5 step process to understand your own priorities today?
What does Marc believe are the three biggest priorities for Salesforce today?
What are the single biggest blockers that would prevent Salesforce from achieving their goals?
4. Marc Benioff: AMA:
What does great fatherhood mean to Marc?
Who would win the cage fight, Zuck or Elon?
What does a day in the life of Marc Benioff look like?
What does Marc think about work from home?
Marc Benioff’s Toughest Conversation with Kara Swisher
Kara has interviewed Salesforce CEO and co-founder Marc Benioff many times but he says she'd never been as prepared to grill him as she was this time. It’s a showdown between a savvy CEO who is deft at turning the tables…and an interviewer who is unafraid to pin him down. Taped in front of a live audience at the Upfront Summit, the two tackle whether Marc will be able to keep up the victory lap of a surprisingly strong earnings report, his succession plan, their divergent takes on a divisive Elon Musk – and why having activist investors breathing down his neck is “fun” for Benioff.
Questions? Comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on Twitter @karaswisher and @nayeema
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BONUS EPISODE: Marc Benioff at Code Conference 2021
Kara and Stephanie Ruhle sit down with Salesforce CEO, Marc Benioff. Recorded live at Code 2021 in Los Angeles.
This interview has been condensed and lightly edited.
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Recode Decode: Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff
Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff talks with Recode's Kara Swisher on the latest episode of her MSNBC TV show, "Revolution." Fan of the show? It helps to leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts.
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