Craig Shapiro ⚽️

One interpretation of @collabfund's investment thesis:

Tyler and I just published a list of the recipients of the New Aesthetics grants: newaesthetics.art/grants. Thank you very much to all who applied. There were far more applications than we expected. We funded 28 grantees and are excited to see what they create. My reflections on the whole thing: • Though there are clearly selection dynamics afoot, figuring out some route beyond the current aesthetic moment seems to be of wider interest in the art community than I would have guessed. Many applicants described their dissatisfaction with the status quo, some in strong terms. We had to close applications after a few weeks because there were so many. • It's too early to call it, but it seems that both beauty as an unapologetic goal (contra much that is in modernist and contemporary approaches), and ways to channel pre-modern styles into something new for the present era, are of growing interest. • The awards made me reflect on the perhaps obvious issue of how hard it must be for an artist to persistently do something new: schools, galleries, buyers, etc., all have structurally embedded preferences as well. These individual awards made me wonder what form supporting new clusters could take. • Architecture seems to me like the discipline most ripe for new ideas. One correspondent observed: "American architects are somewhat constrained by the association with the academy, in addition to the well known regulation issues. There is a tendency to overthink things so that the designs are formally interesting to someone deep in the conversation, but lacking poetry and magic. There are more firms in Europe, South America and beyond that “just do things” (especially in places where it is easier to build)." This was evident in the submissions. • AI seems to be making people rethink things in a quite fundamental way, just as urbanization/industrialization/popularization of photography did at the end of the 19th century. For some that will mean interesting new forms of AI-augmented art, but the effects of the rethinking will likely be wider. • Arts funding is clearly as precarious and scarce as ever. That's unfortunate, but it probably also means that individual actors can have meaningful impact, and I encourage others to get involved if interested. • There's a lot to know that is not written down, and I'm very grateful to those who have helped and advised me along the way.

Welcoming Parker Hayden to Collaborative Fund A quick note on what we're building. Collaborative Fund has long been known as a venture firm. Collab Holdings is our newer effort, a home for enduring consumer companies held for the long term, more in the spirit of private equity than venture. To lead it, we're thrilled to welcome Parker as a Partner. Parker brings a rare combination: the rigor of a seasoned PE investor and a real feel for what makes a brand matter to people. Over two decades, he has deployed more than $3 billion across dozens of transactions, including investments in Supreme, Beats by Dre, CAVA, OGX, and 66° North. He has served on 15+ boards and has seen every stage of the journey, from sourcing through IPOs and strategic sales. Before Collaborative, Parker oversaw the portfolio at Redesign Health, led direct investing at Mousse Partners, and spent over a decade at The Carlyle Group on the Consumer and Retail US Buyout team. He began his career at Morgan Stanley. The best businesses are built for the long term. Parker understands that as well as anyone we've met. Glad to have him on board.

Congrats to our team, users, and supporters on the 150,000 GitHub star milestone!

100 million degrees Celsius. That’s the temperature our plasma will reach and even surpass after SPARC, our demonstration fusion machine, begins operations in 2027. With both halves of our vacuum vessel now inside tokamak hall, we’ve begun to ready them for hosting the most intense conditions in the solar system. In this video we take you inside the vacuum vessel, the airless heart of SPARC, where we’ll confine and sustain our fusion plasma. Watch the video to learn more about how we learned from — and improved upon — the other 150 tokamaks that have been built around the world, what our team is doing right now to prepare the vacuum vessel for assembly, and much more. This work paves the way for us to generate net fusion energy with SPARC, a threshold called Q>1 that’s an essential step on the way to commercial fusion energy. #FusionEnergy #Energy #Physics #Science

Spotted in the NYC subway. “Zero screen time.” An iPod Shuffle ad in 2026. When we built the iPod, the goal was the technology disappeared and you could have your music wherever you were. 1,000 songs in your pocket. Now we’re living through a moment where people are actively looking for ways to disconnect from the infinite feed, algos, and constant notifications. That doesn’t mean technology is bad. It means the best technology understands when to step back. Not every problem needs another screen, another menu, or another layer of complexity. Constraints create freedom (read: @DavidEpstein new book Inside the Box). And often removing features creates a better product than adding them. The future of technology shouldn’t just be more engagement. It should help us be more human.

engraved on every circuit board

It’s incredible! Banksy is a genius.

The team basking in @thesundaylight at the Collab office. Sunday Light is the closest thing to sunlight indoors, supporting better circadian health. Beautifully built by @natmartin and team.

When you make mistakes, I think the best part about bouncing back is recognizing your flaws - @asvpxrocky @collabfund eepurl.com/bvz25L

“Kiss” by Prince was recorded on this day in 1985.

Way to go Ineffable team! 👏 Excited to be a supporter @collabfund

Today marks 10 years without Prince…🙏💜

Nomio, a Swedish purveyor of functional wellness shots for elite athletes, closed a $4M funding round led by Collaborative Fund. Launched in early 2025, Nomio identified a natural compound called isothiocyanates (ITCs) that has measurable effects on athletic performance. Derived from broccoli sprouts, ITCs have been shown to reduce lactate, lower oxidative stress, and improve recovery time. Nomio has assembled a cult following since receiving organic praise from renowned endurance athletes like Cole Hocker, Andreas Almgren, and others. The functional wellness shot category has been on a roll: - Suja Life filed for an IPO - Bansk Group bought So Good So You - Magic Mind raised $12M+ - Ketone-IQ closed a 7 figure round

@kevinleeme 🙌 thanks KLee

Much needed approach to the consumer brands industry. Collab Fund making moves!

@gerstenzang @Inc @collabfund 🤎

@cshapiro @Inc @collabfund congrats!

Today we’re announcing Collab Holdings, a different approach to private equity for extraordinary consumer brands. As the world gets faster, more synthetic, more algorithmically optimized, people reach for things that feel slow, crafted, and real. The companies that serve this instinct represent one of the most interesting opportunities in consumer investing.

@eliweisss @Inc @collabfund Appreciate you always

@cshapiro @Inc @collabfund Legendary. Proud of ya 💙

@bryce No victory laps anytime soon!

@cshapiro Collab is on a generational run

@Nrcoope @Inc @collabfund Thanks Nate 🙌

@cshapiro @Inc @collabfund LOVE THIS congrats