How Many Startups Will Survive OpenAI? | E2288
This Week In Startups is made possible by:Pilot - https://Pilot.com/TWISTGrasshopper Bank - https://Grasshopper.bank/TWISTQuo - https://Quo.com/TWiSTPlaud - https://Plaud.ai/twistAnthropic just declared every unauthorized secondary sale of its stock "void" — naming Hiive, Forge, Sydecar, Upmarket, and others in a public hit list. Jason and Alex sit down with Jenny Fielding (Everywhere Ventures), Dave McClure (Practical VC), and Sam Lessin (Slow Ventures) to unpack what the AI lab’s move to limit secondary trades means for SPV operators, brokers, and the founders trying to keep control of their cap tables. Plus: a real story of a founder who returned a $15M Series A six months after closing because Claude was going to eat his startup, SaaS moats, and just what does it mean to be rich?Timestamps:0:00 Guest introductions0:48 Anthropic voids unauthorized SPV trades8:41 Accredited investor reform & the SEC sophisticated investor test8:58 Quo (formerly OpenPhone) - Quo gives you a clean, modern way to handle every customer call, text, and thread all in one place. Try it free at https://quo.com/TWiST11:43 Naval's USVC closed-end fund as a workaround16:41 Plaud: If your work depends on conversations — interviews, meetings, calls — you need a Plaud NotePin. You can check it out at https://Plaud.ai/twist and use code TWIST for 10% off!17:48 Pro-rata rights battles: when Series A investors push seed investors out19:36 Grasshopper Bank: Time is money. Don't waste either. Go to https://grasshopper.bank/twist and get an exclusive $500 cash bonus just for opening an account.29:13 Pilot: Focus on your product, let Pilot handle your bookkeeping. Pilot provides the most reliable accounting, CFO, and tax services for startups and small businesses. Head to https://pilot.com/twist and get $1,200 off your first year.30:23 Storing wealth in stories vs. cash flows34:19 Cerebras and Fervo Energy IPOs — meaningful liquidity?37:54 Will SpaceX, Anthropic, OpenAI IPOs redistribute capital or compound it?45:58 The $15M Series A founder who returned the money because of Claude50:01 Should founders pivot or return capital when the world changes?56:43 OpenAI's $6.6B tender and Shruti Gandhi's viral SF cost-of-living tweet1:00:25 Intercom rebrands to Fin: the AI-first late-stage pivotSubscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcpFollow Lon:X: https://x.com/lonsFollow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelmFollow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanisCheck out all our partner offers: https://partners.launch.co/Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarlandCheck out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanisFollow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.com
How the OpenClaw foundation bullet-proofed its future (w/Dave Morin) | E2257
This Week In Startups is made possible by:Circle — http://circle.so/twistHubspot Creators — http://clickhubspot.com/twist2Uber AI Solutions — http://uber.com/ai-solutionsToday’s show: *Dave Morin joined the show today to explain how the OpenClaw Foundation came into existence, and what its goals are. Fear not, Peter Steinberger retains directional control of the project. But if you want to sustain an open-source project over time, you need a corporate entity, well-heeled sponsors, maintainers and more. Morin is helping make sure that OpenClaw can stay true to itself well into the future.TWIST also put the day’s most critical AI stories to Morin for his insight: What’s his take on the Anthropic-DoW fracas? Does Morin think that OpenAI and Anthropic are catching up to OpenClaw in agentic terms? And will OpenAI cede the consumer crown to Anthropic? Next came two amazing demos: Runtools’ CTO Greg Kara showed off a 3D interface for OpenClaw that his team built, allowing ‘Claw users to watch their agents work in real time, and even read over their shoulder. Then PickelWatch founder George Yameen showed off an agnetic workflow using OpenClaw and Claude’s Chrome plugin side-by-side. The gist? Make sure that the agentic service you select is cost-effective. **GUESTS:**Dave Morin: https://x.com/davemorin?lang=enGreg Kara: https://x.com/GregKara6George Yameen: https://x.com/GeorgeYameen**Timestamps:** 00:00 Dave Morin Joins the Show
02:31 How Dave Morin got Claw-Pilled
05:01 Jason’s critical OpenClaw moments
08:38 How Dave showcases his OpenClaw skills
10:47 Uber AI Solutions - Your trusted partner to get AI to work in the real world. Book a demo with them TODAY at http://uber.com/ai-solutions
14:40 How long has the OpenClaw Foundation existed?
17:21 How much authority does Peter Steinberger retain?
00:20:21 Hubspot - Check out the guide “Advanced ChatGPT Prompt Engineering: From Basic to Expert in 7 Days.” Download it for free at http://clickhubspot.com/twist2
19:20 How ‘air traffic control’ works for a project like OpenClaw
23:15 The economics of open-source maintainers
25:13 Dave’s physical OpenClaw setup
27:45 How Jason uses OpenClaw to curate his reading, fashion, and travel
30:23 Circle - Circle gives you everything you need to build and scale your community-led business. TWIST listeners get $1,000 off the Circle Plus Plan at http://circle.so/twist
32:18 Why the second wave of ideas is where things get the most interesting
34:06 Apple’s slow movement and hesitance to depricate products
39:51 How Jason uses OpenClaw to coach the next generation of executives
44:52 Are Anthropic and OpenAI catching up to OpenClaw?
49:40 Introduction to Runtools.AI
53:49 Runtools.AI demo of 3D OpenClaw environment
57:06 Introduction to PickleWatch
57:27 PickelWatch demo of Claude Chrome vs. OpenClaw
01:03:38 How PickleWatch ups your pickleball swing
32:56 Jason’s advice for founders on stumbling onto new ideas
42:16 Jason on the DoW’s handling of the Anthropic mess
01:11:08 Would Jason fund the tech that Anthropic won’t supply?Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com/Check out the TWIST500: https://twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp*Follow Lon:X: https://x.com/lons*Follow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm/*Follow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis/*Check out all our partner offers: https://partners.launch.co/*Follow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: [https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups](https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups/)TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: [https://twistartups.substack.com](https://twistartups.substack.com/)
How to show up in any room with a low heart rate: Silicon Valley’s missing etiquette playbook | Sam Lessin
Sam Lessin is a partner at Slow Ventures, a former VP of Product at Facebook, and a two-time founder who’s now teaching etiquette to Silicon Valley’s founders. In this unconventional episode, Sam explains why proper etiquette has become a vital skill for founders in 2026—especially as technology becomes more central to society and trust becomes harder to build. His etiquette book and courses have become surprisingly popular, teaching founders how to “show up in a room with a low heart rate” and quickly build trust.
We discuss:
1. Why etiquette matters
2. Sam’s framework for showing up confidently, with a low heart rate, in any room
3. How to navigate introductions, small talk, meetings, and meals like a pro
4. Simple hacks for remembering names and handling awkward social situations
5. 30+ specific etiquette tips
—
Brought to you by:
10Web—Vibe-coding platform as an API
DX—The developer intelligence platform designed by leading researchers
WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs
—
Episode transcript: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/silicon-valleys-missing-etiquette-playbook
—
Archive of all Lenny's Podcast transcripts:
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/yxi4s2w998p1gvtpu4193/AMdNPR8AOw0lMklwtnC0TrQ?rlkey=j06x0nipoti519e0xgm23zsn9&st=ahz0fj11&dl=0
—
Where to find Sam Lessin:
• X: https://x.com/lessin
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wlessin
• Website: https://www.wlessin.com
• Podcast: https://moreorlesspod.com
• Lettermeme: https://lettermeme.com/lessin
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Sam’s background
(04:18) The role of etiquette in business success
(09:30) Introductions and entering a room
(16:20) Engaging conversations and building relationships
(23:55) Hygiene and dress code essentials
(33:42) Dining etiquette
(37:15) Tipping etiquette
(41:36) The “B&D trick”
(43:05) Humor in social settings
(45:18) Self-deprecating humor
(47:42) Winding down conversations
(49:20) Scheduling etiquette
(55:23) Communication and email etiquette
(01:02:28) Meeting etiquette tips
(01:04:03) Virtual meeting best practices
(01:05:15) The importance of cleaning up after yourself
(01:05:58) Exiting and follow-up etiquette
(01:07:24) Final thoughts
(01:09:20) AI corner
(01:11:13) Contrarian corner
(01:16:25) Lightning round
—
Referenced:
• Y Combinator: https://www.ycombinator.com
• Kleiner Perkins: https://www.kleinerperkins.com
• “Lose Yourself” by Eminem on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/7MJQ9Nfxzh8LPZ9e9u68Fq
• Alison Gopnik on Childhood Learning, AI as a Cultural Technology, and Rethinking Nature vs. Nurture: https://conversationswithtyler.com/episodes/alison-gopnik
• Garry Tan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garrytan
• Bain & Company: https://www.bain.com
• Evernote: https://evernote.com
• Calendly: https://calendly.com
• Morning Brew: https://www.morningbrew.com
• Cursor: https://cursor.com
• The rise of Cursor: The $300M ARR AI tool that engineers can’t stop using | Michael Truell (co-founder and CEO): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-rise-of-cursor-michael-truell
• DigitalOcean: https://www.digitalocean.com
• Cloudflare: https://www.cloudflare.com
• SpaceX: https://www.spacex.com
• Marc Andreessen on X: https://x.com/pmarca
• Landman on Prime Video: https://www.amazon.com/Landman-Season-1/dp/B0D4D8RTMD
• Dave Morin on X: https://x.com/davemorin
—
Recommended books:
• Modern Etiquette in Technology, Finance, Society, and at Home: A Slow Ventures Handbook: https://www.amazon.com/Modern-Etiquette-Technology-Finance-Society-ebook/dp/B0G4HSKSY5
• Life, the Universe and Everything: https://www.amazon.com/Universe-Everything-Hitchhikers-Guide-Galaxy-ebook/dp/B001ODEQ7A
• The Ancient City: A Study on the Religion, Laws, and Institutions of Greece and Rome: https://www.amazon.com/Ancient-City-Religion-Institutions-Greece/dp/0801823048
• Man’s Search for Meaning: https://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl-ebook/dp/B009U9S6FI
• Area 51: An Uncensored History of America’s Top Secret Military Base: https://www.amazon.com/Area-51-Uncensored-Americas-Military-ebook/dp/B004THU68Q
• The Lessons of History: https://www.amazon.com/Lessons-History-Will-Durant/dp/143914995X
• The Fish That Ate the Whale: The Life and Times of America’s Banana King: https://www.amazon.com/Fish-That-Ate-Whale-Americas/dp/1250033314
• The Last Kings of Shanghai: The Rival Jewish Dynasties That Helped Create Modern China: https://www.amazon.com/Last-Kings-Shanghai-Jewish-Dynasties/dp/0735224439
—
Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.
—
Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.
To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com
The State of Crypto, 2026 Predictions & Espresso's Token Launch | Jill Gunter
This week, Jill Gunter from Espresso joins the show to discuss the state of crypto today. We deep dive into how has crypto evolved, why privacy matters, predictions for 2026, will Espresso launch a token & more. Enjoy!
--
Follow Jill: https://x.com/jillgun
Follow Jason: https://x.com/JasonYanowitz
Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod
Join the Empire Telegram: https://t.me/+CaCYvTOB4Eg1OWJh
--
This Empire episode is brought to you by VanEck.
Learn more about the VanEck Onchain Economy ETF (NODE): http://vaneck.com/EmpireNODE
An investment in the Fund involves a substantial risk and is not suitable for all investors. It is possible to lose your entire principal investment. The Fund may invest nearly all of its net assets in either Digital Transformation Companies and/or Digital Asset Instruments. The Fund does not invest in digital assets or commodities directly.
Digital asset instruments may be subject to risks associated with investing in digital asset exchange-traded products (“ETPs”), which include the historical extreme volatility of the digital asset and cryptocurrency market, as well as less regulation and thus fewer investor protections, as these ETPs are not investment companies registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (“1940 Act”) or commodity pools for the purposes of
the Commodity Exchange Act (“CEA”).
Investing involves substantial risk and high volatility, including possible loss of principal. Visit vaneck.com to read and consider the prospectus, containing the investment objective, risks, and fees of the fund, carefully before investing.
© Van Eck Securities Corporation, Distributor, a wholly owned subsidiary of Van Eck Associates Corporation.
--
GEODNET is the world’s largest RTK network, delivering real-time, centimeter-level precision for drones, robots, farmers, and first responders. Recognized by the U.S. Congress, this blockchain-powered network supports mission-critical applications across a wide range of industries.
Discover how GEODNET is changing the world: [https://geodnet.com]
--
Uniswap’s Trading API offers plug-and-play access to deep onchain and off-chain liquidity, delivering enterprise-grade crypto trading without the complexity - from one of the most trusted teams in DeFi.
Click to get started with seamless, scalable access to Uniswap’s powerful onchain trading infrastructure. https://hub.uniswap.org/?utm_source=blockworks&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ww_web_bw_awa_trading-api_20251117_podcast_clicks
--
Timestamps
(00:00) Introduction
(02:44) The State of Crypto Today
(10:21) How Has Crypto Evolved?
(19:18) Ads (VanEck, Geodnet, Uniswap)
(21:40) Why Privacy Matters
(35:55) Who Wins In Crypto Infra?
(45:56) Crypto's Identity Crisis
(52:52) Predictions For 2026
(55:49) When Will Espresso Launch A Token?
--
Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
DEX in the City: How Privacy in Crypto Makes Everyone's Finances More Secure - Ep. 982
The SEC this week held a roundtable on financial surveillance and privacy in another sign of the major shift in the regulator's approach to crypto.
In this DEX in the City episode, Espresso co-founder Jill Gunter joins hosts Jessi Brooks and Katherine Kirkpatrick Bos to unpack the major talking points and takeaways from the roundtable. And more importantly, what it signals about the SEC’s approach to crypto and privacy.
With legacy financial institutions coming onchain, like JPMorgan and DTTC, they discuss how crypto can actually help prevent data breaches and have a better product for users and companies alike.
Interestingly, Jill recounts how she lost $30,000 in an exploit involving crypto mixer Railgun and why she didn’t even try to hide it from regulators at the roundtable.
Plus, was Do Kwon's sentence excessive? Well, according to Jessi, it’s a complicated question, but she unpacks what people misunderstood about the judge’s decision.
Hosts:
Jessi Brooks, General Counsel at Ribbit Capital
Katherine Kirkpatrick Bos, General Counsel at StarkWare
Guest:
Jill Gunter, Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Espresso Systems
Links:
Unchained:
Why the Privacy Coins Mania Is Much More Than Price Action
Do Kwon Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison
Jessi's and Katherine's paper on programmable risk management
Timestamps:
🚀 00:00 Introduction
⚡️ 3:23 How SEC privacy roundtable marks a sea change in the regulatory approach to crypto
💡 12:39 Why privacy is also important for legacy institutions moving onchain
📍 17:31 How projects and institutions can be compliant while collecting less data
🤧 24:57 Jill recounts being the victim of a hack and seeing the hackers use a privacy protocol
❕️ 30:36 Why Jill says the hack did not change her perspective on crypto privacy
😎 33:30 How far the crypto industry has come since Tornado Cash
⚔️ 35:54 The debate over proof of innocence
⚖️ 42:09 What everyone misunderstood about Do Kwon's sentence
💫 52:24 Shoutout to Save the Children for their innovative Bitcoin initiative
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7 People Making $5M-$10M From Weird Hobbies
Want to start your own million dollar business with less than $1k? Get the guide: https://clickhubspot.com/wbk
Episode 742: Sam Parr ( https://x.com/theSamParr ) talks to Billy Parks ( https://x.com/billyfilm ) about 7 creators making $5M to $10M from niche content with small audiences. Billy is a partner at Slow Ventures where he invests in creator-built businesses.
—
Show Notes:
(0:00) The creator middle class
(6:53) Jonathan Katz-Moses
(15:24) Mary Heffernan
(23:03) Jocko Willink
(29:01) Detail Geek
(35:10) Tony Seno
(46:15) Niches to go after
(58:17) Under the radar creators
—
Links:
• Jonathan Katz-Moses - https://www.youtube.com/@katzmosestools/videos
• Mary Heffernan - https://fivemarys.com/marys-story
• Jocko Willink - https://www.youtube.com/@JockoPodcastOfficial
• Tonester - https://www.youtube.com/@tonesterpaints
• T.Rex Arms - https://www.trex-arms.com/
—
Check Out Shaan's Stuff:
• Shaan's weekly email - https://www.shaanpuri.com
• Visit https://www.somewhere.com/mfm to hire worldwide talent like Shaan and get $500 off for being an MFM listener. Hire developers, assistants, marketing pros, sales teams and more for 80% less than US equivalents.
• Mercury - Need a bank for your company? Go check out Mercury (mercury.com). Shaan uses it for all of his companies!
Mercury is a financial technology company, not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services provided by Choice Financial Group, Column, N.A., and Evolve Bank & Trust, Members FDIC
—
Check Out Sam's Stuff:
• Hampton - https://www.joinhampton.com/
• Ideation Bootcamp - https://www.ideationbootcamp.co/
• Copy That - https://copythat.com
• Hampton Wealth Survey - https://joinhampton.com/wealth
• Sam’s List - http://samslist.co/
My First Million is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by HubSpot Media // Production by Arie Desormeaux // Editing by Ezra Bakker Trupiano
How Slow Ventures is giving the creator economy a rebrand
Last week, the team at early-stage VC firm Slow Ventures launched its new $60 million fund entirely focused on investing in content creators.Today on Equity, Rebecca Bellan sits down with Lightcap to dive into YouTube remains the dominant platform for serious creators,how niche community trust translates into scalable businesses, and what this new fund means for the creator economy.
Listen to the full episode to hear more about:
How this new asset class has the potential to scale.
The firm’s success stories so far, including Marina Mogilko’s baby snack company and other ventures.
The parallels between backing creators and traditional seed-stage founders.
The “key man risk” and how investors navigate the challenge.
Equity is TechCrunch’s flagship podcast, produced by Theresa Loconsolo, and posts every Wednesday and Friday.
Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod. For the full episode transcript, for those who prefer reading over listening, check out our full archive of episodes here.
Credits: Equity is produced by Theresa Loconsolo with editing by Kell. We’d also like to thank TechCrunch’s audience development team. Thank you so much for listening, and we'll talk to you next time.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Slow Ventures' Creators Fund and Helion Energy's Fusion Reactors | 2084
This Week in Startups is brought to you by…
Vanta. Get $1000 off your SOC 2 athttps://www.vanta.com/twist
Northwest Registered Agent. Form your entire business identity in just 10 clicks and 10 minutes. Get more privacy, more options, and more done—visitnorthwestregisteredagent.com/twist today!
LinkedIn Ads. Get a $100 LinkedIn ad credit athttp://www.linkedin.com/thisweekinstartups
Today’s show: Jason and Alex cover…TBD
Timestamps:
(0:00) Episode Teaser(1:16) Welcome Alex Wilhelm & Sam Lessin; Slow Ventures Creator Fund(3:49) Significance of the $60M creator-focused fund(5:47) Community-building and product development strategy(7:02) Mr. Beast's success as a case study(9:41) Vanta. Get $1000 off your SOC 2 athttps://www.vanta.com/twist(11:17) Financial structures and strategies in creator investments(14:14) Addressing challenges in creator-focused investing(19:46) Northwest Registered Agent. Form your entire business identity in just 10 clicks and 10 minutes. Get more privacy, more options, and more done—visitnorthwestregisteredagent.com/twist today!(22:24) Startups optimizing operations in challenging climates(24:50) Transition to fusion energy and Helion's technology(27:46) Helion's fusion technology and CEO David Kirtley(29:16) Commercial fusion power timeline(29:43) LinkedIn Ads. Get a $100 LinkedIn ad credit athttp://www.linkedin.com/thisweekinstartups(32:12) Fusion energy's market potential and agreements(33:39) Comparing fusion to other energy sources(36:10) Safety and environmental considerations for fusion(43:00) Helion's upcoming milestones and team expansion(44:00) Lon Harris on AI, copyright, and fair use(47:00) Exploring fair use and IP infringement in AI(53:00) Market impact and licensing for AI technologies(56:00) Financial implications for AI and copyright(58:00) Distinguishing personal vs. commercial use of copyrighted material
Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter:https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com
Check out the TWIST500:https://www.twist500.com
Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple:https://rb.gy/v19fcp
Follow Sam Lessin:
X:https://x.com/lessin
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/wlessin/
Follow Helion:
X:https://x.com/Helion_Energy
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/company/helion-energy/
Follow David Kirtley:
X:https://x.com/dekirtley
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-kirtley-490b8230/
Follow Alex:
X:https://x.com/alex
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm
Follow Lon:
X:https://x.com/Lons
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/lonharris/
Follow Jason:
X:https://twitter.com/Jason
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis
Thank you to our partners:
(9:41) Vanta. Get $1000 off your SOC 2 athttps://www.vanta.com/twist(19:46) Northwest Registered Agent. Form your entire business identity in just 10 clicks and 10 minutes. Get more privacy, more options, and more done—visitnorthwestregisteredagent.com/twist today!(29:43) LinkedIn Ads. Get a $100 LinkedIn ad credit athttp://www.linkedin.com/thisweekinstartups
Great TWIST interviews:Will Guidara,Eoghan McCabe,Steve Huffman,Brian Chesky,Bob Moesta,Aaron Levie,Sophia Amoruso,Reid Hoffman,Frank Slootman,Billy McFarland
Check out Jason’s suite of newsletters:https://substack.com/@calacanis
Follow TWiST:
Twitter:https://twitter.com/TWiStartups
YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin
Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups
TikTok:https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartups
Substack:https://twistartups.substack.com
Subscribe to the Founder University Podcast:https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916
Are L2s Extensions of Ethereum? | Kyle Samani & Max Resnick vs. David Hoffman & Jill Gunter
Bankless Nation, we’ve got the hottest debate in crypto right now: Are L2s extensions of Ethereum?
On one side, we’ve got Kyle Samani and Max Resnick proposing that the current Ethereum Rollup-Centric Roadmap is off-track. On the other side we’ve got David Hoffman and Jill Gunter defending L2s as successful extensions of Ethereum.
------
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https://bankless.cc/podshownotes
------ BANKLESS SPONSOR TOOLS:
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------ ✨ Mint the episode on Zora ✨ https://zora.co/collect/zora:0x0c294913a7596b427add7dcbd6d7bbfc7338d53f/85?referrer=0x077Fe9e96Aa9b20Bd36F1C6290f54F8717C5674E
------ TIMESTAMPS
0:00 Intro 8:54 Defending “Extensions of Ethereum” 16:33 Interoperability Standards 25:36 Are L2s Parasitic to Ethereum? 32:37 ETH Economics & Value Accrual 41:30 Solana vs Ethereum L2s 49:09 Closing Thoughts
------ RESOURCES
Kyle Samani https://x.com/KyleSamani
Max Resnick https://x.com/MaxResnick1
Jill Gunter https://x.com/jillrgunter
------ Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures
20VC Roundtable: NEW FORMAT: Why the Seed Investing Model is Broken, How to Make Money at Seed Moving Forward; Who Wins and Who Loses, Why Venture Value Add Platforms are BS and Failed and Why There Will be an IPO per Week in H2 2024
Sam Lessin is a Co-Founder and Partner @ Slow Ventures with a portfolio including the likes of Airtable, Robinhood, Slack, Solana, PillPack and many more unicorn companies. Prior to Slow, Sam was a VP Product at Facebook having sold his company to Meta.
Frank Rotman is a founding partner of QED Investors, one of the leading fintech-focused venture firms investing today with a portfolio including the likes of Klarna, Kavak, Quinto Andar, Credit Karma and more. As for Frank, prior to QED, Frank was one of the earliest analysts hired into Capital One and spent almost 13 years there helping build many of the company's business units and operational areas.
Jason Lemkin is the Founder @ SaaStr one of the best-performing early-stage venture funds focused on SaaS. In the past, Jason has led investments in Algolia, Pipedrive, Salesloft, TalkDesk, and RevenueCat to name a few. Prior to SaaStr, Jason was an entrepreneur, selling EchoSign to Adobe for $100M where it is now a $250M ARR product.
In Today's Discussion on Why Seed is Broken We Discuss:
1. The Seed Model Was Broken and What Comes Now:
Why does Sam Lessin believe the model for seed of a "factory line" was broken?
What does he believe will replace it?
Why does Jason Lemkin argue that this might not be the case for SaaS and enterprise?
2. Round Construction: YC, Multi-Stage Funds and Party Rounds:
Why does Sam Lessin believe we have seen the end of party rounds? Why does Jason Lemkin disagree and we will see more than ever?
Why does Sam Lessin believe the factory model of YC churning out companies is over? Where does Jason Lemkin believe the value lies in the YC model?
Will the multi-stage funds remain in seed? How has their entrance and deployment changed the seed market?
3. VC Value Add at Seed: Is it BS?
Why does Jason believe all talent arms in venture firms have failed?
Why does Sam believe that no VCs provide value?
Do the best founders really need help? Why do Jason and Sam disagree?
4. What Happens Now:
Why does Jason believe that every manager can write off their fund from 2021?
Who will be the winners in seed in the next 10 years?
Why does Sam believe if you want to bet on AI, just bet on Meta or Microsoft?
What will happen to the many companies with no PMF but 10 years of runway?
E35: Stability AI’s Emad Mostaque and Slow Ventures’ Sam Lessin Discuss Investing in AI
In this episode, Nathan Labenz and Erik Torenberg host a discussion between Emad Mostaque, founder of Stability AI, and Sam Lessin, GP of Slow Ventures and former VP Product at Facebook. These influential technology thinkers tackle topics pertinent to evaluating whether AI is a good investment for venture capital. They talk about the attention and information economy, SaaS markets, how AI-created entertainment will impact society and our relationships, and AI disruption of highly-regulated industries.
We're hiring across the board at Turpentine and for Erik's personal team on other projects he's incubating. He's hiring a Chief of Staff, EA, Head of Special Projects, Investment Associate, and more. For a list of JDs, check out: eriktorenberg.com.
LINK FOR NATHAN'S LIVE EVENT IN SAN FRANCISCO:
Friday June 16th: Why AI with Athena: https://v4p9mjmurpv.typeform.com/to/llRcJSF9
TIMESTAMP:
(00:00) Episode Preview
(01:17) Nathan explains why we hosted a conversation with Emad and Sam
(08:25) Discussion kicks off: AI as an extender rather than a deck shuffler
(12:01) Is AI a disruptive or sustaining innovation?
(14:22) What is intelligence?
(16:00) The attention and information economy
(21:56) Storytelling, the stock market, and the economy
(23:23) Sponsor: Omneky
(23:50) AI in the media industry, Hollywood, and distribution
(29:10) Startups vs incumbents
(30:30) Disrupting highly-regulated industries
(32:30) AI in education: an AI tutor for every child
(35:15) AI as StackOverflow 2.0 for engineers
(37:23) Regulatory Arbitrage
(40:06) The oracle problem in AI
(42:00) Apple as the weakest BigTech player in AI
(44:30) AI in communities and the future of social media
(46:55) Replika on Valentine’s Day and AI-generated porn
(53:50) How does the market for inference shape up? Inference vs. cloud
(55:08) Price of primary care in US in the next decade
(55:38) What are the most likely incumbents to be disrupted?
(56:55) Will BigTech continue to opensource?
(58:56) Marriage rate in US in the future given AI
(01:00:24) Can any AI leader sustain high gross margins in the future?
(01:02:04) Stability’s business model
TWITTER:
@EMostaque (Emad)
@Lessin (Sam)
@CogRev_Podcast
@labenz (Nathan)
@eriktorenberg (Erik)
SPONSORS:
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This show is produced by Turpentine: a network of podcasts, newsletters, and more, covering technology, business, and culture — all from the perspective of industry insiders and experts. We’re launching new shows every week, and we’re looking for industry-leading sponsors — if you think that might be you and your company, email us at erik@turpentine.co.
Download this episode as an mp3: https://chrt.fm/track/993DGA/traffic.megaphone.fm/RINTP2126380296.mp3?updated=1686676812
Music Credit: MusicLM
20VC: Why 95% of Venture Capital is Not Really "Venture Capital" | The Five Core Levers Needed To Assess Risk and Price a Startup | The Future of Venture; Who Wins, Who Loses, What Happens to the Crossover Funds with Will Quist, Partner @ Slow Ventures
Will Quist is a Partner @ Slow Ventures. Over the last decade, the team at Slow Ventures have invested in the earliest rounds of over 500 companies including Robinhood, NextDoor, Airtable, Solana and many more. As for Will, prior to Slow he spent over 8 years at Industry Ventures and before industry, cut his teeth in the world of finance at Banc of America.
In Todays Episode with Will Quist We Discuss:
1.) Entry into Venture:
How Will made his way from 6th generation San Francisco to Partner @ Slow?
What are 1-2 of the biggest takeaways from his early 1-1s with Don Valentine?
What does Will know now that he wishes he had known when he started in venture with Industry?
2.) WTF Really is Venture Capital?
Why does Will believe that 95% of venture capital today is not really venture capital?
What is true venture capital in Will's mind?
How does Will divide the world of VC into two with; venture classic and new venture?
How are they different? How are their return profiles different?
3.) The Questions: Discovering Greatness:
Why does Will believe "for the most part, investors across asset classes are just asking the same questions"?
What are those questions? What different answers are each looking for?
What are the 5 core questions that will needs to understand to determine conviction and accurately price an asset?
How does Will think through and analyze the question when meeting founders of; "what needs to come true for this business to become a great business"?
4.) The Future of Venture Capital:
How does Will predict the venture capital ecosystem will look in 5 and then 10 years?
What are the most concerning traits of the venture ecosystem for Will today?
Who will be the winners of the next decade? Who will be the losers?
What happens to the crossover funds? What will happen to Tiger?
The Chopping Block: Why DeFi May Be Over-Complying With Tornado Cash Sanctions - Ep. 392
Welcome to The Chopping Block! Crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi and Tom Schmidt chop it up about the latest news in the digital asset industry. In this episode, Jill Gunter, the empress of Espresso, also joined the conversation.
Show topics:
Whether product management is the new consulting
What is going to happen with macroeconomics and whether monetary policy is data-driven
Why Jill’s faith is getting renewed, especially after listening to Fed authorities
The TL;DR on the Ava Labs conspiracy story
Why the industry needs a decentralized RPC
The role of Flashbots and Ethermine in censoring transactions
Potential over-compliance from the biggest crypto projects on how to deal with sanctioned addresses
Whether social slashing allows Ethereum to stay uncensored
The importance of educating regulators on crypto
What Haseeb thinks lawyers would recommend to Coinbase about validating transactions from sanctioned addresses
The significance of both transactional and application-layer privacy
How stablecoin providers need to implement some basic levels of privacy
Why corporations do not run Ethereum and whether users are pro-OFAC restrictions
Hosts
Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly Capital
https://twitter.com/hosseeb
Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly Capital
https://twitter.com/tomhschmidt
Guest
Jill Gunter
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jillrgunter
Episode Links
Tornado Cash
Treasury Press release
Tornado Cash developer arrested
Circle freezes USDC in sanctioned wallets
Crypto exchange dYdX blocked accounts that received funds from Tornado Cash
What the sanctions mean for privacy coins
Celebrities get dusted
Previous coverage of the Tornado Cash Sanctions on Unchained:
Is TRM Labs Blocking Addresses From DeFi Protocols? Ari Redbord Says No
Tornado Cash Sanctioned. Did the Government Overstep Its Bounds?
The Chopping Block: Did OFAC Overstep by Sanctioning Tornado Cash?
Ava Labs Accusations:
CoinDesk article
Crypto Leaks article
Social Slashing and Censorship on ETH
Axios summary of the situation
BitMex research on how the sanctions affect Ethereum
Ethermine banning transactions
Nic Carter’s article
Eric Wall’s article on social slashing
Hetzner banning Ethereum users
Previous Coverage on Unchained
Given the Sanctions on Tornado Cash, Is Ethereum Censorship Resistant?
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Your Privacy, Risks, and Rights Following Tornado Cash Sanctions | Jill Gunter & Michael Mosier
The US Treasury's sanctions on Tornado Cash could go down as one of the most significant events in crypto's history. The implications and nuances are vast, so we've decided to do something a little different for today's episode.
On August 12th, Jill Gunter and Michael Mosier from Espresso Systems hosted a Twitter Space on Tornado's sanctions, financial privacy and regulation. We've teamed up with Jill and Michael to share this epic conversation with a wider audience.
This is a massive episode, almost 3 hours, but it's full of profound insights and has an all-star lineup of speakers. I highly recommend listening if you want to learn more about the recent sanctions and where regulation is heading!
Shoutout to @f1v3am and @nedbgq, who provided a recording of the conversation and made this episode possible.
--
Follow Jill: https://twitter.com/jillrgunter
Follow Michael: https://twitter.com/M_Mosier_
Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod
--
Resources
Link to the original Twitter Space
https://twitter.com/jillrgunter/status/1558150917387534336
EP 27: Convo with Lux’s Josh Wolfe and Our Best/Worst Crypto Debate with Slow Venture’s Sam Lessin
Lux Capital’s Josh Wolfe joins to discuss startups in the current market, and the long-awaited release of the crypto debate between Zach Weinberg and Slow Venture’s Sam Lessin that got so heated we weren’t sure we could publish it.
(0:00) - Intro
(1:27) – Welcome Josh Wolfe
(3:10) – Market updates
(13:21) – Anti-bubble
(16:28) – Consolidation
(19:57) – Everything times pi
(22:35) – Welcome Sam Lessin
(25:43) – NY tech founders in ‘07
(30:44) – Slow Ventures
(33:12) – The crypto debate begins
(41:57) – On chain real estate
(49:19) – Legal protections
(1:03:10) – Does it hold up in court?
(1:09:52) – Final walk through
(1:14:42) – Bearer bonds
(1:19:58) – Zach’s reasons against crypto
(1:31:37) – Zach’s point
(1:33:51) – Carta for your DAU
(1:37:11) – Back to liquidity
(1:41:24) – Why is it not awesome?
(1:45:17) – Users
(1:52:40) – Unsettled case law
(2:00:29) – Final arguments
(2:04:10) – The boiling point
(2:06:59) – Maybe we can publish this part
(2:12:15) – Zach ending
(2:22:08) - Outro
Mixed and edited: Justin Hrabovsky
Produced: Andrew Nadeau and Rashad Assir
Executive Producer: Josh Machiz
Music: Griff Lawson
🎙 Listen to the show
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About the Show
A Saturday morning podcast hosted by Logan Bartlett (Partner and Managing Director at Redpoint Ventures) covering the tech news with his friends and other people with industry expertise.
Executive Producer: Rashad Assir
Producer: Leah Clapper
Mixing and editing: Justin Hrabovsky
Check out Unsupervised Learning, Redpoint's AI Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@UCUl-s_Vp-Kkk_XVyDylNwLA
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About the Show
Logan Bartlett is a Software Investor at Redpoint Ventures - a Silicon Valley-based VC with $6B AUM and investments in Snowflake, DraftKings, Twilio, and Netflix. In each episode of The Logan Bartlett Show, we sit down with the people behind today’s most important startups and extract the tactics, lessons, and frameworks they’ve learned the hard way. Conversations span hiring to GTM, product, growth, fundraising and everything in between - collectively forming the ultimate playbook to make you a better CEO, investor or board member.
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Jill Gunter Talks Crypto's Role in Emerging Markets and Building Scaling Solution Espresso Systems
Jill Gunter is the co-founder and chief strategy officer at scaling solution Espresso Systems and a venture partner at Slow Ventures. She became interested in Bitcoin via her experience with Latin American markets — which is somewhat of a pattern in the space. She was a debt trader at Goldman Sachs, focusing on Argentina and Venezuelan bonds, and saw crypto’s potential to help those in corrupt or repressive regimes. She continued exploring how crypto can help skirt currency controls and enable more global and efficient markets, and we discuss how those themes are playing out right now in the war in Ukraine. We talk about how Jill went from Wall Street to crypto, and from VC to founder. Her latest venture is Espresso Systems, which aims to bring scalability and privacy to web3.
Thanking our podcast sponsors:
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Why Sam Lessin is using the VC model to invest in individuals + Jason funds a startup on air | E1328
First, Sam Lessin of Slow Ventures joins to discuss how he is applying the venture model to invest in individuals, he just placed a $1.7M bet on a YouTube creator (4:10). Then, Jason brings on Chris Niblett, who is going through Founder University (41:40). They discuss Chris's company Bizzly, which is a "Patreon for small businesses," what can be improved, and Jason invests live on the show!
Is The GameStop Trade Really A Political Rebellion?
The GameStop short squeeze is one of the most extraordinary events to ever happen in markets. But does it have political significance? Some are saying that it represents the manifestation of Occupy Wall Street, that it is some kind of class warfare against hedge fund elites. Or is it just an interesting trade. We discussed what this moment really means, and what its impact going forward will be, with George Pearkes of Bespoke Investment and Jill Carlson of Slow Ventures.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
E1046: News Roundtable! TechCrunch’s Alex Wilhelm & Slow Ventures’ Sam Lessin on COVID’s potential privacy risk, private/public investor outlooks, remote work challenges & at-risk early-stage investors
0:37 Jason intro Alex Wilhelm & Sam Lessin & checks in on how their quarantines are going
5:59 Are they all working more during quarantine then they were beforehand?
9:58 Will we see a birthrate drop due to the crisis?
15:45 Having & raising children in the digital age/COVID crisis
18:24 How are Apple & Google helping with tracking COVID-19, and when do their efforts become a privacy risk?
27:29 For how long would big-tech need personal health data?
31:54 Differences between Facebook & Twitter, Twitter usage for Jason, Alex & Sam
37:41 What is Sam working on with Fin? How has he transitioned his team to remote?
39:47 Who will be impacted by the move away from luxurious big-tech campuses? Will it lead to a competitive disadvantage for companies that are hesitant?
56:19 Disconnect between optimistic public investors & pessimistic private investors
1:00:38 Why early-stage investors are most at-risk in the private market?
1:05:33 Misaligned metrics in VC, understanding massive unemployment numbers
1:11:26 Is government-backed healthcare good for capitalism & entrepreneurship?
Here's How People Are Using Cryptocurrency in Venezuela
Last month, Facebook announced it was launching its own cryptocurrency called Libra. Facebook says Libra is going to have all sorts of benefits, including helping people without traditional bank accounts and acting as an alternative form of money in countries that don't have stable currencies. At the same time, Facebook's Libra has already been criticized for potentially allowing people to skirt existing government rules. On this episode of Odd Lots, we speak with Jill Carlson, co-founder of the Open Money Initiative, about the actual use cases of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. She's been studying exactly how people have been using cryptocurrency in one of the world's most unstable monetary systems: Venezuela.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
20VC: Slow Ventures' Sam Lessin on How VC Forces Certain Companies To Exist and Makes It Difficult To Finance Others, Why Cities Won't Let Scooter Companies Be Profitable and Why Dapps Are A Concern and Where Emphasis Should Be Placed In Crypto
Sam Lessin is a Founding Partner @ Slow Ventures, one of the leading early-stage funds on the West Coast with a portfolio including the likes of Robinhood, Gusto, Pinterest, Casper, Postmates and many more incredible companies. Sam is also the Co-Founder & Co-CEO @ Fin Analytics, the startup that provides precision measurement and coaching for high-performance operations teams. Before founding Fin and Slow, Sam spent 4 years at Facebook as a VP of Product Management following their acquisition of his prior company, Drop.io.
In Today's Episode You Will Learn:
1.) How Sam made his way into the world of venture with the founding of Slow following the acquisition of his company and 4 years in product at Facebook?
2.) How does Sam think about the difference between investing small personal checks vs managing institutional funds? What is the subsequent effect on mindset when investing? How does one prevent an increased conservatism? What does Sam mean when he says "VC forces some businesses into existence and makes others hard to fund?
3.) Why does Sam believe that man + machine must have a symbiotic relationship in the future? What does this look like in reality? When comparing today to the industrial revolution, is Sam concerned by the increased rate of adoption today? What does this mean for different categories of work? Why does Sam believe we will need more philosophers?
4.) Why does Sam believe that too much emphasis in the world of crypto is placed on Dapps? Why is he concerned by Dapps? What are of crypto does Sam believe is most exciting and investable today? Does Sam agree with Elad Gil that we will see the re-centralisation of talent back to the valley with the scaling of crypto co's?
5.) On governments, why does Sam not believe that both local and national governments will allow scooter companies to become meaningfully profitable in the future? How does Sam think about the balance and trade-off between privacy and security that faces many governments today?
Items Mentioned In Today's Show:
Sam's Fave Book: Lessons of History
Sam's Most Recent Investment: Fetcher.ai
As always you can follow Harry, The Twenty Minute VC and Sam on Twitter here!
Likewise, you can follow Harry on Instagram here for mojito madness and all things 20VC.
Meltem Demirors and Jill Carlson on the Sh*tcoin Waterfall - Ep.74
In this hilarious skeptics' episode, Meltem Demirors, chief strategy officer of CoinShares, and Jill Carlson, an independent consultant, explain why they think crypto needs fewer moral arguments and more empirical evidence, and how there's too much focus on financial engineering, but not enough focus on winning hearts and minds. They also explain why people are not machines where "you put in a token and get out an action," what the "sh*tcoin waterfall" is, and why cryptoeconomics isn't anything new. Plus, they give their tips for working in the space.
Thank you to our sponsors!
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Episode links:
Meltem on Twitter: https://twitter.com/melt_dem
On Medium: https://medium.com/@Melt_Dem
Jill on Twitter: https://twitter.com/_jillruth
AirTM: https://www.airtm.io
Fat protocols thesis: http://www.usv.com/blog/fat-protocols
Amber Baldet's tweet about the finger guns guy: https://twitter.com/amberbaldet/status/1006286345122275331
Meltem's tips on working in crypto: https://medium.com/@Melt_Dem/so-you-want-to-work-in-crypto-57961ca074c4
Jill's tips on working for yourself: https://medium.com/@jillcarlson/working-alone-165ababeafc2
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20VC: Dave Morin on Why Building A Fund Is Like A Company, Why Venture Is A Craft & The Journey To Establish Slow Ventures
Dave Morin is Founder & Partner at Slow Ventures, the leading valley venture fund with investments in the likes of Slack, Pinterest, Evernote, NextDoor, Postmates just to name a few. Prior to Slow, Dave was the Co-Founder and CEO of Path, the social network that serves tens of millions of people every day. Path was acquired by Kakao in 2015. If that was not enough, he also spent several years at Facebook where he led Facebook Platform and Connect during periods of rapid innovation and growth. Today, he serves on the Board of Directors of Eventbrite, Dwell, and Hinge.
In Today's Episode You Will Learn:
1.) How Dave made the transition from Facebook and Path to founding Slow Ventures?
2.) As a new entrant to VC, how does Dave look to develop pattern recognition with founders and ideas? What is the most challenging element?
3.) Why did Dave, Sam and Kevin decide to institutionalise Slow for the 'club' to the structured fund that it is today? How did that change their investment decision making process?
4.) What role does network play in the value and operations of Slow? How do they look to increase the network effect to further provide value to their companies?
5.) What role does valuation and ownership play for Dave when investing? How does that change with the larger cheques?
Items Mentioned In Today's Show:
Dave's Fave Book: The Alchemist
Dave's Fave Blog: The Information
Dave's Most Recent Investment: Perlstein Lab
As always you can follow Harry, The Twenty Minute VC and Dave on Twitter here!
Likewise, you can follow Harry on Snapchat here for mojito madness and all things 20VC.
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Cooley are the global law firm built around startups and venture capital. Since forming the first venture fund in Silicon Valley, Cooley has formed more venture capital funds than any other law firm in the world, with 50+ years working with VCs. They help VCs form and manage funds, make investments and handle the myriad issues that arise through a fund's lifetime. So to learn more about the #1 most active law firm representing VC-backed companies going public. Head over to cooley.com and also atcooleygo.com.
20VC: Sam Lessin on Why Bots Will Change Business & The Internet Has Mostly Failed
Sam Lessin is a Partner at Slow Ventures who have made investments in the likes of Facebook, Twitter, Mattermark, AngelList,Dropbox and many more. On top of this, Sam is also the Founder and Co-CEO at Fin, which is basically like Siri Echo or Google now except it actually works, truly a phenomenal product. Prior to Fin and Slow, Sam was VP of Product Management at Facebook following the acquisition of his company, Drop.io by Facebook in 2010. Sam is also an intern at The Information where he reports directly to the boss Jessica Lessin!
In Today's Episode You Will Learn: 1.) How did Sam come to found Fin and what was his route into VC with Slow?
2.) What are the fundamental shifts that have occurred in the world of tech? How has this affected the wider tech and investing ecosystem?
3.) Will the transition to bots and conversational interfaces represent a major point of disruption or more of an evolution in the interface paradigm?
4.) How can bots establish the same relationship and stickiness with the user as apps? In a world of bot domination where strong data sets is the ultimate weapon, are we not at a fundamental incumbency disadvantage? How can the platforms react to this?
5.) What will the effect of self driving cars be on society? How long before this was be possible? How does the sharing economy and capitalism survive in unison?
Items Mentioned In Today's Episode:
Sam's Fave Book: The Three-Body Problem
Sam's Fave Blog: The Information
Sam's Most Recent Investment: Common
As always you can follow The Twenty Minute VC, Harry and Sam on Twitter here! If you would like to see a more colourful side to Harry with many a mojito session, you can follow him on Instagram here! The Twenty Minute VC is brought to you by Leesa, the Warby Parker or TOMS shoes of the mattress industry. Lees have done away with the terrible mattress showroom buying experience by creating a luxury premium foam mattress that is order completely online and ships for free to your doorstep. The 10 inch mattress comes in all sizes and is engineered with 3 unique foam layers for a universal, adaptive feel, including 2 inches of memory foam and 2 inches of a really cool latex foam called Avena, design to keep you cool. All Leesa mattresses are 100% US or UK made and for every 10 mattresses they sell, they donate one to a shelter. Go to Leesa.com/VC and enter the promo code VC75 to get $75 off!
Episode 66: Sam Lessin
This week’s episode is with Sam Lessin. Sam is partner at slow ventures and founder of Fin, which aims to eclipse Siri by building something like the technology from the movie "Her". Sam has made a name for himself both as an operator and investor, having started and sold Drop to Facebook and invested in companies such as Venmo, Birchbox, and Makerbot. In this episode we discuss his philosophy behind angel investing, product management, his college friendship and connection with Mark Zuckerberg, and why, if he was to give a controversial TED Talk right now, it would be about the end of capitalism. Edited by @alexkontis Lavish Praise to @lessin Constructive Criticism to @eriktorenberg
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