All about the money

gm legends! Welcome back to the Leaderboard. In today's edition we're breaking down three more Golden Kitty categories: Finance, AI Model, and Data. Let's dive in.

Finance: The products that are making it easier generate wealth.

Finance tech is moving beyond the basics, giving us tools that feel personal and powerful. Mercury Personal brings its business-level features—like automation and seamless management—to personal banking, while Gilion is rethinking how we approach wealth with insights that feel tailored and actionable. Together, they’re part of a bigger trend: finance products that aren’t just about managing money but empowering you to make smarter decisions, whether you’re running a business or just your day-to-day life.

AI Model: The tools that are powering the future of tech 

AI models are powering more of our daily lives than ever, and this year’s contenders are raising the bar. GPT 4o is all about speed and sharper context, Claude 3 focuses on making AI feel more approachable, Llama 3.1-405B shows how powerful open-source can be, and Sora is redefining how AI and creativity intersect with video synthesis. But with all these advancements, it feels like we’re still figuring out where this all leads. Is it about refining what we’ve already built, or are we gearing up for something we haven’t even imagined yet? cough AGI cough.

Data & Data Security: The tools that make your data work for you. 

For years, data security felt like a locked box—important, sure, but not the most exciting. This year’s tools are kinda changing that. Supabase AI Assistant doesn’t just secure your database; it turns it into a smart, responsive teammate. Loops makes analytics collaborative, ditching the old “one person runs the numbers” vibe. And Equals is proof that spreadsheets can be powerful without being painful. The trend here is clear: it’s not enough to protect data anymore. The new goal is to make it work for us—smarter, faster, and maybe even with a little personality.