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From Germany to the US – Meet Celebrity Talent Agent Siavash Aghaiepour

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Who are you and Where are you from? Have your surroundings shaped you in a creative sense, and in what way(s)?

I am Siavash Aghaiepour, my background is Persian, I grew up in Germany. Definitely my surroundings shaped my creative or music sense, I grew up in Heidelberg/Germany which is influenced by the first HipHop movement/scene in Germany. Also the presence of the US Military in Germany brought a lot of HipHop Culture to the area. Myself playing basketball with the kids from the US and listening to their music influenced me a lot. 

Did you go to school for Music Management or Business?

No I didn’t went to a Music or Business Management school, in fact i went to medical school.

You have worked with some of the music industry’s hottest live acts throughout your career. Do you ever work with Independent artists or artists outside of Hip Hop?

To be honest a lot of the artists that we already worked with, the first time we done business with them, they were not superstars. We started the company in Germany and we worked with a lot of US Clubs there because of the US Military presence in Germany. So the artists we brought there were considered underground and not really mainstream. Starting from lil Jon, Bonecrusher, Mike Jones, Ying Yang Twins, David Banner. They were not mainstream artists at that time. Even Pitbull, we started working with him in 07/08. We were basically bringing artists who had a buzz or the DJs where playing the songs in the clubs. There was no airplay on MTV or Radio for these artists at that time. So we managed to bring them before they hit the mainstream and became superstars. Throughout the years we worked with Kylie Minoque, Bebi Rexha, Jamie Foxx, Nicole Scherzinger and of course a lot of DJs from the electronic scene. Once hip hop became mainstream there was a fusion between house and hip hop, so we worked with house DJs through our relationship with hip hop artists. For example collaborations between Afrojack and Pitbull, or Bob Sinclar and Pitbull. Plenty cross over productions.

Can you tell us about the challenges you faced while building your vision?

A. There are many challenges and obstacles. Not everything goes always the way it should be. You can always do your best, there is always stuff that can and will go wrong. It’s your job to find new ways and to manage those challenges in order to deliver the goals and results. Even when you do your job, it’s never over until the results are there. So you must be patient and open for challenges. One big challenge is that you are not in charge, you are just a representative, you don’t control the artist. There are many factors that come together, travel, flights, etc. You always have to be on standby and open to come up with solutions.

When and where did you launch HR Booking?

The launch of my company started not long ago after my first event in Heidelberg. I went back to Berlin and searched for a similar sized club as the one in my hometown. I chose Globus in Tresor Berlin, which was a Techno location and started doing Hip Hop parties there. I was a big mixtape tape fan, so my idea was to contact the DJs from New York who did the tapes and bring them to Berlin on a frequent basis to deliver something completely new to the scene and stand out from other parties. I had heavy names every other week, so that was Heavy Rotation.

Shortly after I launched the event word got around in the German club scene and I was contacted by other clubs if they can have the DJ before we have them in Berlin or the night after. That’s how I got from promoting to booking.

You have three locations of HR Booking, which one was first and which one is your Headquarters?

The first office was located in Stuttgart/Germany which was together with 0711 Hip Hop back then, which is a big name in the German Hip Hop Scene. Then the office moved from Stuttgart to Mannheim where my brother Roozbeh Aghaie pour joined me.

What did you start doing first, touring with artists or booking them?

I used to be a party promoter, I started to bring big mixtape and hot97 DJs for my parties to stand out from everyone else and was the first one to do so. Being in a relationship with DJs in an early stage helped me a lot because a lot of these DJs started to DJ for major artists. For example DJ Green Lantern who DJd for Emined or DJ Whoo Kid who DJd for 50 Cent. So back in 2000 when the Anger Mgmt Tour came to Europe I got a call from WhooKid and Green Lantern asking me to book the afterparties for Eminem and 50 Cent. So that’s how I got into the business with artists and to establish my relationship with artist managements. Everything started with DJs.

What do you enjoy most about being an agent? What do you hate most?

To be able to meet different people and connect different people, open doors and accomplish something which is making the artist and client happy. I really enjoy taking artists to places which they never been before and introduce them to new fan bases. Sometime they don’t even speak english but still enjoy and celebrate the music, this is always a great experience.

What I hate the most is working with clients or artist who don’t appreciate this and take everything for granted, or feel like they deserve to be treated and respected in this way. They don’t understand they gift that they´re given by their audience and fans.

Who or what has been the driving force to become who you are and accomplish what you have done?

My driving force was always that I was an independent agent and was always fighting against the corporate world. They always count you out, they always look down on you because you are independent and try to do what you are capable of doing in your reach. I was always a step ahead and brought new acts and new markets together. Finding a way to maintain and expand was my driving force. People want to see you disappear, my driving force was to prove them wrong.

Is there anything else you want your audience to know about yourself or your business?

Never give up, always believe in your dreams and be persistent. No matter what you do and of course be realistic. That’s the most important thing.

For more info Check out www.hrbooking.com and follow www.instagram.com/overseasia to stay updated.

Mark David is a writer best known for his science fiction, but over the course of his life he published more than sixty books of fiction and non-fiction, including children's books, poetry, short stories, essays, and young-adult fiction. He publishes news on apstersmedia.com related to the science.

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Austal, a startup, has Raised $43 Million to Build a Massive sailing cargo trimaran

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Austal will use the €40 million ($43 million) fundraising round that VELA, a French firm that was founded in November 2022, has completed to construct the largest sailing cargo trimaran in the world. The company’s goal is to offer a sustainable cargo service for goods including pharmaceuticals, industrial parts, medical equipment, and cosmetics that are transported across the Atlantic.

11th Hour Racing, Crédit Mutuel Impact, and BPI—the French Public Investment Bank—led the funding round. The corporation claims that the Franco-American partners are as committed to promoting more sustainable transportation as it is. They think the Trimaran design will also provide a quick fix, particularly for businesses who don’t want to keep their inventory “on the water” for transit.

With the help of Austal’s distinctive design and technology from offshore racing, VELA anticipates being able to operate entirely under sail and give a transit time of fewer than 15 days from loading to crossing the ocean and unloading. They argue that the same service takes at least 20 days for huge containerships. In addition, the trimaran’s cargo holds will be kept at a regulated temperature to guarantee “the safety and integrity of high-value-added transported goods.”

A vessel with dimensions of 220 feet (67 meters), an air draft of 200 feet (61 meters), and a width of 82 feet (25 meters) is required by the design. The aluminum hull will be constructed with Austal’s industry expertise. Carbon will be used for the masts.

In addition to two hydro-generators, the ship will include more than 3,230 square feet of solar panels. 51 shipping containers’ worth of cargo will fit inside it.

Austal, which is renowned for its proficiency in multihull and aluminum constructions, was chosen by VELA following an international tender in which over thirty shipyards took part, according to VELA, with assistance from BRS Shipbrokers. Austal’s experience will be advantageous to the first VELA Trimaran, which will also use the sailing systems of the offshore racing team MerConcept.

Austal Philippines will build the ship in Balamban, Cebu, and it is expected to be delivered in the second half of 2026. Furthermore, according to VELA, 30 percent of the construction will be completed by French firms, including rigging, sails, and hydro-generators, thereby enhancing the quality and expertise of the country’s sailing sector. The ship will have a French registration.

“Austal is excited to partner with VELA on this groundbreaking project. Our expertise in multihull design and aluminum shipbuilding, combined with VELA’s innovative vision, will create a revolutionary sailing cargo trimaran,” stated Paddy Gregg, CEO of Austal. “This vessel will set new speed, reliability, and sustainability standards for transatlantic shipping.”

The company claims that the funds from the latest round will enable VELA to formally begin construction of its first vessel. Additionally, they intend to use the funding to bolster their operations and sales teams in the US and France.

VELA intends to run between the east coast of the United States and the Atlantic coast of France. They anticipate starting operations in the second half of 2026, joining the increasing number of cargo ships powered by sail that French companies are launching for the Atlantic. At least four more ships are expected to be in operation by 2027 or 2028, according to VELA. Reaching one departure each week and increasing departure frequency are the objectives.

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Startup Talks of a $9 billion valuation are confusing AI search

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Perplexity AI Inc., an artificial intelligence startup developing a search engine to take on Google, is in early talks with investors to raise capital at a $9 billion valuation, according to a source familiar with the situation.

The insider, who wished to remain anonymous while discussing personal matters, stated that the corporation is looking to raise over $500 million in the investment round.

The company may increase its prior valuation of $3 billion from a capital round earlier this year, which includes the money the company would raise. It’s very early in the talks, so things might change or the conversation could break down. The business refused to comment.

The recent surge in Perplexity’s valuation is indicative of the keen interest of venture capitalists in supporting AI startups. As late as April of this year, the business had a $1 billion valuation. Large sums have also been raised by its competitors and colleagues, such as OpenAI, which earlier this month closed a $6.6 billion financing round at a valuation of $157 billion.

The source claimed that Perplexity’s most recent finance discussions happened as a result of investors reaching out to the business, not because the startup was looking to acquire further funds.

Apart from the commercial and free versions of its search tool, Perplexity provides various other services. It recently unveiled additional tools for searches connected to finance, such as stock prices and firm earnings data, and released a platform that enables businesses to search internal information in addition to the internet.

In addition, the business has started a number of revenue-sharing agreements with large publishers, while being accused of plagiarism by certain news organizations.

Among the company’s investors are Nvidia Corp. and Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon.com Inc. and a partner of SoftBank Group Corp.

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Microsoft and OpenAI are at odds about the tech behemoth’s ownership of the business

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Even while Microsoft and OpenAI are developing a distinctly novel technology, they are arguing about a well-known economic issue: how much stock should I receive in return for my investment?

According to the Wall Street Journal, the two businesses engaged investment banks to assist in determining how Microsoft’s about $13.75 billion in investments in OpenAI since 2019 will be interpreted after the firm transforms from a nonprofit to a for-profit business.

Microsoft called in Morgan Stanley, and OpenAI recruited Goldman Sachs to counsel it throughout the process, according to the Journal. The two prestigious banks will now need to guide their closely connected clients through a complex financial decision regarding Microsoft’s ownership stake in OpenAI.

Microsoft’s ownership interest is being negotiated at a time when OpenAI’s value has skyrocketed.

The ChatGPT developer finished a funding round earlier this month, valuing the company at $157 billion. The chipmaker Nvidia, the venture capital firm Thrive Capital, and Masayoshi Son’s SoftBank were among the investors in that round. A few months after ChatGPT-3 was released in November 2022, in January 2023, Microsoft made a huge $10 billion investment in OpenAI, valuing the business at $86 billion.

Despite $3.7 billion in income, OpenAI is still losing money and expects to lose $5 billion this year. However, based on internal business forecasts obtained by the New York Times, OpenAI anticipates phenomenal growth, with its top line expected to soar to $11.6 billion next year.

Because of OpenAI’s nonprofit status, Microsoft’s investment entitles it to a share of the revenues made by the company’s board-managed for-profit subsidiary. The original structure of the for-profit subsidiary placed a cap on the amount of earnings it could make. There was a cap on Microsoft’s share of the cap as well.

It was reported in September that OpenAI plans to reorganize as a for-profit public benefit business. This special status would enable it to dedicate itself to objectives aimed at improving society in addition to providing a profit to shareholders.

Though it won’t be the organization that runs the new for-profit OpenAI version, the charity will still be around. The new for-profit corporation will nonetheless have a minority ownership held by the nonprofit. The action was taken in an attempt to increase the company’s appeal to potential investors, who are probably already lining up to offer money for a share in the business that is synonymous with the AI revolution.

OpenAI is reorganizing and will grant CEO Sam Altman shares in the business. In an earlier statement, Altman alluded to his “tiny bit of exposure via the YC investment,” which was the renowned startup incubator Y Combinator, of which he served as president. As is customary for executives, Altman and other leaders in this freshly established company would probably receive a far higher portion.

After earlier reports suggested that he would acquire as much as 7% of OpenAI, Altman stated during a company-wide meeting in September that there were no plans for him to receive a “giant equity stake” in the company. During the same meeting, investors expressed worries about Altman’s lack of ownership in the firm he was heading, according to Altman and OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar.

It is probable that Microsoft will endeavor to bargain for the scope of its governance privileges in OpenAI. Despite Microsoft’s significant investments in OpenAI, CEO Satya Nadella was taken aback when Altman was momentarily dismissed by the OpenAI board in November 2023. After Altman was reinstated, Nadella made a number of public appearances where he reaffirmed Microsoft’s support for OpenAI while making hints that he would like more control over the company’s corporate governance.

“At this point, I think it’s very clear that something has to change around the governance,”Nadella told  in November 2023, as Altman’s ouster was unfolding..

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