Top stories today:

1. Trump, Elon conversation on X sees delay, 1M concurrent listeners
2. Apple threatens to remove Patreon from App Store over in-app billing
3. Made by Google event starting at 1 PM ET: what to expect
4. a16z led VC investments in July in U.S. with 11 deals
5. U.S. funds adapting strategies to attract Middle East investments
6. Global EV sales +21% YoY in July to 1.35M, led by China

0. Data and calendar

1. Trump, Elon conversation on X sees delay, 1M concurrent listeners, Trump returning to X

• 19M total listens.

• Commission to ensure that taxpayer money is spent effectively was proposed by Elon, pitching himself to be a part of it. Trump liked the idea.

• Trump returns to X after 1 year of not posting. If he will continue posting is uncertain.

• 89M followers on X, vs. 8M on Truth Social.

Elon blamed the 40-minute delay on a DDoS attack, without providing evidence

• 8M concurrent listeners: test that Elon says was conducted previously.

• 2-hour interview ended up starting at 8:40 PM ET.

• Relatedly, EU threatened Elon with more fines if X doesn’t remove hateful speech on X.

• Elon’s America PAC is seeking to turn out 800K voters in battleground stakes, with a potential budget of $160M.

2. Apple threatens to remove Patreon from App Store over in-app billing

Creators using monetization platform may soon raise memberships on iOS:

• “Apple is requiring us to switch over to their in-app purchase system for all iOS transactions or else risk being kicked out of the App Store altogether.”

• Nov. 2024: Opt-in option for creators.

• Nov. 2025: All creators must use Apple’s in-app billing.

• 30% tax: how much Apple charges for in-app billing.

Separately, Epic has submitted its marketplace app to Apple for EU launch

• Fortnite and Rocket League Sideswipe were also submitted for Apple approvals.

• July: Apple accepted Epic’s marketplace app in the EU after public callout.

4. Made by Google event starting at 1 PM ET: what to expect