Alternative Investing Report - December 10, 2024

*as of 12/9; Sources: S&P, BTC, FTSE, DJRE, CL50

Last year, the top five counties in net migration were all Florida and Texas exurbs (areas beyond the suburbs), led by Polk County, FL (outside of Tampa and Orlando) and Collin County, TX (outside of Dallas). Meanwhile, Madison, WI was ranked as the #1 up-and-coming city by Clever Real Estate, followed by Fargo, ND, Lincoln, NE, and Provo, UT. The rankings were based on factors such as housing prices, population age, educational attainment and unemployment rate.

➨ TAKEAWAY: Major cities have become less affordable, and people are starting to look elsewhere to buy a home, whether that is in the exurbs or in smaller cities. The rise of remote and hybrid work has also led to people moving away from traditional urban centers. This migration has also brought new businesses and entertainment options to smaller and mid-size cities, making them more attractive options. Both homebuyers and investors should be looking beyond big cities for opportunities.

OpenAI’s long-awaited video tool Sora was released to the public, and will be included for free in existing paid ChatGPT accounts. Sora allows users to generate high definition video from a text prompt, still images, or existing video. This comes only days after the AI startup announced a new $200/month “Pro” plan that provides unlimited access to all of its models, including its new o1 model.

➨ TAKEAWAY: This is OpenAI’s first foray into video, as it looks to compete with other AI video tools already on the market, such as Stability AI’s Stable Video Diffusion. The company is looking to grow its user base and its revenue, as it projects to lose approximately $5 billion this year. Initial results appear to be promising - according to CEO Sam Altman, user demand was so high that they had to disable signups periodically today.

In case you missed it, Vincent CEO Eric Cantor and Sacra co-founder Jan-Erik Asplund analyzed OpenAI, the American AI giant. They talked about the company’s growth, strengths, challenges, IPO prospects, and answered investor questions.

👛 Brutus coin: One of only 17 known coins from 43-42 BC featuring the assassin of Julius Caesar sold for $2.09 million after a bidding war - it last sold in 2006 for around $450,000.

🏡 EasyKnock folds: The controversial real estate startup that bought homes from struggling homeowners to rent back to them unexpectedly shut down last week. Their “sale-leaseback” deals had led to dozens of lawsuits around the country and a number of investigations by state attorneys general.

🚀 Women-led VC funds: While the broader VC industry has seen a slowdown in fundraising, funds led by women have seen a steeper, 25% year-over-year funding decline.

🎨 White canvas: Robert Ryman’s controversial 1970 “General 52" x 52"” sold for $1.38 million at auction, despite resembling a blank canvas, as the minimalist, thought-provoking work beat the pre-sale estimate of $1.1 million.

🪙 Altcoin surge: While Bitcoin grabbed headlines for its march past $100,000, its crypto market dominance actually fell in November from 59% to 56.7%, as the market cap of the top-100 altcoins grew 47%.

⚾ Babe Ruth card: A newly discovered first-of-its-kind 1916 rookie card of the baseball legend sold for more than $800,000, above the pre-sale estimate of $500,000.

Located in Ambler, PA, just outside Philadelphia, the Lindenwold Castle at Mattison Estate has hit the auction block with a reserve price of $1.5 million. Originally built in 1890, and remodeled in 1912 as a replica of Windsor Castle, it has undergone $3 million worth of renovations since 2019. The building has over 24,000 square feet of space and sits on an acre of land surrounded by a retirement community and townhouse development. It could be used as an enormous single family home, but there are plans to convert it into a mixed-use building with 11 residences and ground-level commercial. The auction ends on December 19 at 4 PM ET, so get those bids ready.

Advertiser’s Disclosures

This is a paid advertisement for Mode Mobile Reg A offering. Please read the offering statement at https://invest.modemobile.com

¹ Mode Mobile currently has no formal plans for an IPO. 

² A minimum investment of $1,950 is required to receive bonus shares. 100% bonus shares are offered on investments of $9,950+.

³ Please read the offering circular and related risks at invest.modemobile.com. This is a paid advertisement for Mode Mobile’s Regulation A+ Offering.

Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Start-up investments are speculative and involve a high degree of risk. Those investors who cannot afford to lose their entire investment should not invest in start-ups. Companies seeking startup investment tend to be in earlier stages of development and their business model, products and services may not yet be fully developed, operational or tested in the public marketplace. There is no guarantee that the stated valuation and other terms are accurate or in agreement with the market or industry valuations. Further, investors may receive illiquid and/or restricted stock that may be subject to holding period requirements and/or liquidity concerns.

DealMaker Securities LLC, a registered broker-dealer, and member of FINRA | SIPC, located at 105 Maxess Road, Suite 124, Melville, NY 11747, is the Intermediary for this offering and is not an affiliate of or connected with the Issuer. Please check our background on FINRA's BrokerCheck.