👋 Good morning. There will be some new guests at Thanksgiving this year (thankfully not those weird estranged cousins of yours). New York’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is celebrating its 100th walk through Manhattan with seven new balloons, including a Minion riding a banana, Hello Kitty, and Bluey. Each balloon takes around six months to create and is manned by a pilot-led team of handlers.
NEWS FLASH
🚪 Hanging up the leather jacket: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang resigned after news of his two extramarital affairs — one with a suspected Chinese spy and another with an Nvidia executive — sent the company’s stock spiraling, with $700B+ projected to be lost. Nvidia’s current CFO Colette Kress will serve as interim CEO as the board starts its search for the next leader to take the helm. Toss your hat in the ring — you never know.
📸 Picture perfect: Tired of endlessly tinkering with your photo edits before posting to Instagram? Phota Labs raised $5.6m to transform your everyday shots into professional-looking photos with a personal AI photo assistant that enhances photos while maintaining a natural look. Users choose between a variety of photography styles, framings, and a range of edits from subtle to dramatic. The app is available for iPhones with an Android version in the works.
🏥 The doctor is (virtually) in: Triplemoon raised $4m to bring virtual mental health care to pediatric practices. Twenty-one percent of children ages 3-17 have been diagnosed with mental, emotional, or behavioral health conditions, yet ~25% of families aren't receiving mental health support. With the AI-enabled platform, doctors can connect patients with a mental health diagnosis to Triplemoon's behavioral health coaches. Available in seven states and D.C. and covered by most insurance, Triplemoon now plans to expand coverage.
MORE NEWS TO KNOW
- Sea and be seen: Australian startup Uluu is collaborating with Norwegian clothing brand Norrøna on water- and windproof apparel made from seaweed that will launch in late 2027.
- Whoop it up: Fitness wearable maker Whoop is launching a social network called Whoop Humans that lets members share the health data of their choosing — from sleep and recovery, to workouts and achievements — with friends. Frankly, our workouts are none of your business.
- Travel ban: United Airlines is banning AI agents from booking reservations and checking in passengers. The company warns agents could expose personal data or lead to unintended purchases — like that last-minute Hawaii trip you accidentally bought.
- The price is right: NYC plans to ban surveillance pricing — algorithmically charging customers different prices for the same product — for both online and in-person shopping. It joins New York State and others with similar measures.
TIME TO BUILD
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What you get:
- Insights: See what's working, what’s not, and how to fix it.
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- Proof: Tie every campaign back to pipeline.
THE BIG IDEA
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Braiding takes 8 hours — this startup automates one
Hairstyles have always been a powerful way for people to show identity, culture, and confidence. Yet haircare brands and beauty schools have often had limited education on textured hair — which represents 65% of the US population.
Only eight states legally require cosmetology schools to train and educate on textured hair as part of their mandatory licensing curriculum.
That gap shows up when it comes to braiding textured hair: an appointment can take eight hours, and, on average, about one of those hours is spent preparing before a single braid is even started, according to Aisata Diallo, founder of the textured hair tech company Tressfecta.
A frustrating gap she has been addressing through innovation since college:
“You would have to have that frustration to understand why this is something worth innovating towards,” Diallo told The Hustle.
How it started
Diallo had been braiding her own hair long before college, but she noticed that many of her friends at school struggled to afford or access textured hair care appointments — braided styles often cost $200+.
She braided her cohort’s hair for about three years, often working on weekends and during summer breaks.
During that time she came up with the Plait Pilot, a prep tool that separates “braiding hair” into sections before the appointment starts.
“I honestly sat on the idea for a few years,” Diallo said. “I was studying business, and I didn’t really have that technical knowledge that I felt at the time could allow me to move forward.”
How it’s going
The company is entering at the right time — the textured hair market is valued at $15B+ in 2026.
Now, the company:
- Has a prototype in development, with multiple versions so far
- Has 50+ braiders and stylists in a private community, including salon owners
- Is focused on braiding prep, not braiding itself
- Is preparing to fundraise and targeting hardware and beauty-tech investors
- Was one of TechCrunch's Startup Battlefield 200 companies this year
The challenges for Diallo are investing and education.
“I find myself leaning into the educational framing of my pitch,” the founder said. “This is such a niche issue that you would have to really come from that styling experience.”
She said she is really excited because she is starting to see innovation in the textured hair category — a historically ignored category.
“We're looking at something very positive in the next five years.”
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Lazy investing? Yes, please. Listen in for the secrets to zero-action investing.
NEWSWORTHY NUMBER
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Cost of Skims’ 2026 advent calendar, which, according to disappointed customers, contains 12 days' worth of “junk” — things like loose hair ties, scrunchies, and bra straps — not exactly the kind of stuff that inspires little moments of joy.
Following internet backlash, the company is now offering refunds for the holiday item, which is no longer available online, though you could probably DIY one yourself if you bothered to clean out your couch cushions.
AROUND THE WEB
📅 On this day: In 1789, Benjamin Franklin pens a letter to Jean-Baptiste Le Roy, in which he writes: “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes” — a famous sentiment he is often credited with inventing, though earlier iterations trace back to 1716.
🧠 That’s interesting: Need some perspective? This interactive visual of our solar system should do the trick.
🎨 Chill out: with a community paint-by-numbers.
🧑💻 Game: A Silicon Valley simulator game.
🐶 Aww: Eat your veggies.
SHOWER THOUGHT
They say it takes 10,000 hours to master a skill. Doomscrolling might be the only thing most of us will ever put that much time into. SOURCE
Today's email was brought to you by Singdhi Sokpo, Danny Jensen, and Bill Meincke.
Editing by: Sara "Knot today" Friedman.
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