Debate: Has Elon’s Twitter Takeover Worked? — With Ryan Mac, Kate Conger, Zach Coelius
Ryan Mac and Kate Conger are reporters at The New York Times and the authors of a new book, Character Limit: How Elon Musk Destroyed Twitter. Zach Coelius is managing partner at Coelius Capital — and a VC who thinks Elon is doing a pretty good job with the social media company. In this episode, our guests debate whether Musk’s Twitter takeover is going to plan, with respectful back and forth about one of the most controversial projects from one of the world’s most controversial business leaders.
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Venture Fund Size Growth, the Rise of Unicorns, and more with Elizabeth Yin and Zach Coelius | E1886
This Week in Startups is brought to you by…
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Today’s show:
David Weisburd hosts Elizabeth Yin, Zach Coelius, and Jason Calacanis to discuss trends in venture capital, including the growth of fund sizes (2:32), the resurgence of the Bay Area (33:42), the decrease in capital efficiency (51:12), the rise in unicorn companies but lack of liquidity (45:11), and top recent investments (57:27)!
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Timestamps:
(0:00) David Weisburd hosts Elizabeth Yin, Zach Coelius, and Jason Calacanis to dive into the state of venture funds
(2:32) Venture funds are growing in size despite the slow market
(10:37) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://Squarespace.com/twist
(11:43) Exploring the performance: smaller funds vs. larger funds
(28:56) Northwest Registered Agent - Get a 60% discount on your next LLC at - https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist
(29:49) Hustle Fund’s quantitative approach to evaluating startups
(33:42) Is the Bay Area officially back?
(43:51) LinkedIn Jobs - Post your first job for free at https://linkedin.com/twist
(45:11) Number of unicorns has increased but liquidity has decreased
(51:12) The decline in capital efficiency over the past decade
(57:27) Rapid-fire segment on top recent investments
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LINKS:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/pro-take-why-venture-fund-sizes-rose-despite-the-slow-market-fd4c4677
https://www.cowboy.vc/news/welcome-back-to-the-unicorn-club-10-years-later
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Thanks to our partners:
(10:37) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://Squarespace.com/twist
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(43:51) LinkedIn Jobs - Post your first job for free at https://linkedin.com/twist
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Follow Elizabeth
X: https://twitter.com/dunkhippo33
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabethyin/
Check out: https://hustlefund.vc
Check out: https://letsgo.hustlefund.vc/raise-millions
Check out: Bruinhealth.com
Check out: Goafterwork.com
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Follow Zach
X: https://twitter.com/zachcoelius
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zachcoelius/
Check out: https://coelius.vc/
Check out: Echomark.com
Check out: Findbugzero.com
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Follow David
X: https://twitter.com/DWeisburd
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dweisburd/
Check out: https://10xcapital.com/
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Follow Jason:
X: https://twitter.com/jason
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jason
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis
Check out: Podcast.ai
Check out: Zestapp.co
Check out: getriver.io
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Great 2023 interviews: Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland
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Check out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis
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Follow TWiST:
Substack: https://twistartups.substack.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartups
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups
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Subscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.founder.university/podcast
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Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp
State of early-stage VC, finding PMF, Caroline Ellison testifies & more with Zach Coelius | E1826
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Today’s show:
Zach Coelius joins Jason to discuss the phases of early-stage startups (2:01), break down the state of VC (13:17), answer live questions from the audience (22:36), and much more!
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Time stamps:
(0:00) Zach Coelius joins Jason
(2:01) The three phases of early-stage startups
(10:00) Fount - Get $500 off an executive health coach at https://fount.bio/twist
(11:31) Advantages that Builder/Founder startups possess
(13:17) The state of VC: The LP and GP relationship, post-ZIRP, and startup soft landings
(21:10) Coda - Get a $1,000 startup credit at https://coda.io/twist
(22:36) Question: How do you describe PMF in the simplest terms possible
(29:20) Question: How hard is it for first-time founders to raise pre-seed?
(39:46) Miro - Sign up for a free account at https://miro.com/startups
(41:11) Question: I will be in the Bay Area for two weeks… any advice on how to efficiently meet VCs to pitch my startup?
(45:56) Question: What are attributes of companies that are getting funded today? More stable and breakeven? Different industries? What is working today?
(54:49) Breaking news: Caroline Ellison, CEO of Alameda Research testifies for first time today in SBF’s trial
(1:01:49) Cruise robotaxi fleet deployed in San Francisco
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Follow Zach: https://twitter.com/zachcoelius
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Read LAUNCH Fund 4 Deal Memo: https://www.launch.co/four
Apply for Funding: https://www.launch.co/apply
Buy ANGEL: https://www.angelthebook.com
Great recent interviews: Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland, PrayingForExits, Jenny Lefcourt
Check out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis
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Follow Jason:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jason
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jason
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis
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Follow TWiST:
Substack: https://twistartups.substack.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartups
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin
*
Subscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.founder.university/podcast
Is Threads The Next Twitter Or Clubhouse 2.0? — With Zach Coelius
Zach Coelius is the managing partner at Coelius Capital. He joins Big Technology Podcast for a conversation about Threads' real potential, asking whether it's a redux of Clubhouse — destined to fizzle — or a real threat to replace Twitter. In this conversation, we cover Threads' potential, Elon's effort at Twitter, and whether we can really make assessments from the outside. Stay tuned for the second half where we discuss the venture capital environment and how Coelius' investments are performing. We also look at the demise of MediaMath, a once-leading ad-tech company that just went bankrupt.
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Ask an Angel! Startup funding overview, investor red flags, negotiating early-stage terms | E1694
Zach Coelius is BACK with Jason to take questions from founders and investors! They cover investing on Zoom post-COVID (6:07), diligence red flags (13:13), investor red flags (27:32), building relationships prior to fundraising (48:59), and more!
(0:00) Jason Kicks off the show
(1:21) Managing time as an angel
(6:07) Moving to zoom instead of the room
(9:50) Vanta - Get $1000 off your SOC 2 at https://vanta.com/twist
(10:54) Servicing new deals vs. existing ones
(13:13) Red flags to look for in a syndicate startup deal
(20:18) Coda - The All-in-one doc for teams, sign up for free at https://coda.io/twist
(21:47) Your options when there is no path to profitability
(27:32) Red flags when courting angel investors
(41:10) Contra - Get $500 off your first hire at https://contra.com/twist
(42:35) Assumptions that have evolved
(45:23) Recent learnings in the past few years
(48:59) Building genuine relationships with investors
(53:40) Difficulties in startups
(57:37) Negotiating terms on deals
FOLLOW Zach: https://twitter.com/zachcoelius
FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis
FOLLOW Molly: https://twitter.com/mollywood
SaaStr 589: The Secrets to Working with VC Associates, Scouts, Syndicates....and the True Gate Keepers to Venture Capital with Coelius Capital Managing Partner Zach Coelius and GGV Capital Investor Tiffany Luck
Fundraising with a successful VC firm is a huge goal for entrepreneurs, especially in the early stages of the business. But the path to a deal isn't always as straightforward as it may seem. During an enlightening session at SaaStr Europa 2022, Zach Coelius (Managing Partner at Coelius Capital) and Tiffany Luck (Investor at GGV Capital) share the secrets and lesser-known players in the world of venture capital. As Luck says, "There are many players in the VC ecosystem, and so your entry point to fundraising might be with any one of these players."
Full video: https://youtu.be/xKb4ORuFDSc
Want to join the SaaStr community? We're the 🌎largest community for B2B software.
Subscribe for weekly updates: https://www.saastr.com/subscribeform
Twitter: https://twitter.com/saastr
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/2724976
Quora Group: https://www.quora.com/q/cloud
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SaaStr/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/saastr/
Our North American Event: https://bit.ly/2OXeAYh
Our European Event: https://bit.ly/2OZTad8
Ask an Angel with Zach Coelius: practical advice for founders and investors in a downturn | E1512
Molly had a big board meeting today, so we had our guy Zach Coelius join for another version of Ask an Angel (1:32). Zach and Jason share their thoughts on remote work (4:40), the downturn (22:10), and then they answer audience questions (41:22). It’s a solid episode for founders and investors!
(0:00) Jason intro’s today’s Ask an Angel episode with Zach Coelius
(1:32) Ask an Angel with Zach Coelius
(4:40) Zach’s thoughts on remote work
(13:19) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://Squarespace.com/TWIST
(14:37) Managing a company post-COVID
(17:00) Who shines in the remote work era?
(20:51) Notion - Get $250 off by using code TWIST at https://notion.so
(22:10) The downturn: will people cancel or review their SaaS bills?
(26:09) How many of Zach’s founders have prepped for the downturn?
(30:50) Odoo - Get your first app free and a $1000 credit at https://odoo.com/twist
(32:02) Don’t try to invest in pre-product market fit companies when you’re first starting out (unless you know the founder’s awesome)
(41:22) Q&A: How do you think about competition in the same market in the early stages?
(46:43) What are the top buzzwords you’re staying away from as investors right now?
(59:00) Would you invest in SF?
(1:04:00) How much dilution after seed rounds turns into a red flag?
(1:06:14) Should the equity grant occur during financings or the board meeting?
(1:09:15) What does Zach focus on in terms of diligence?
(1:19:30) As a founder, when should you provide pro rata to angels and when not?
(1:25:10) Have you ever advised a founder to leave the CEO role?
(1:32:29) How long do you think the down market is going to be and what’s your strategy?
FB vs. Apple on AR and Ads, Twitter's Future, Conflict, Crypto Regulation with Antonio Garcia Martinez & Zach Coelius | E1427
Antonio Garcia Martinez (Chaos Monkeys, The Pull Request) and Zach Coelius (Investor, Coelius Capital) join to discuss a wide range of news topics including Antonio's trip to Ukraine, the one-click company Fast closing down, Elon Musk joining Twitter's board, Apple taking on Facebook in ads (and how it will impact the battle for Ar/VR), crypto regulation and more!
(00:00) Intro
(01:08) Jason catches up with AGM & Zach Coelius
(11:03) Vanta - Get $1,000 off automating your SOC 2 at https://vanta.com/twist
(12:18) AGM on going to Ukraine
(23:10) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://Squarespace.com/TWIST
(24:37) Zach and AGM on if the US would go to war
(30:43) Microsoft for Startups Hub - Apply in 5 minutes, no funding required, sign up at http://aka.ms/thisweekinstartups
(32:00) More on Ukraine and America’s feelings towards Putin and Russia
(48:38) Fast (one-click checkout startup) closes down
(52:24) Thoughts on Elon Musk joining Twitter board
(1:02:50) Talking about FB hurt by Apple App tracking transparency update
FOLLOW Zach: https://twitter.com/zachcoelius
FOLLOW Antonio: https://twitter.com/antoniogm
Read the Pull Request: https://thepullrequest.com
FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis
FOLLOW Molly: https://twitter.com/mollywood
1M fewer college students: is it a problem? + Ask an Angel with Zach Coelius | E1360
First Jason covers the recent college enrollment decline (1:23) and lay out his alternative (9:56). Then Zach Coelius joins for an Ask an Angel session, where they answer 12 audience questions about investing and startups (20:37).
(00:00) Jason intros the show
(01:23) There are 1 million fewer college students in the U.S. compared to pre-pandemic levels
(08:57) Dataiku - Create transparent, repeatable, and scalable AI and analytics programs. Visit https://dataiku.com to learn more.
(09:56) Jason's college alternative
(17:51) Lemon.io - Get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://Lemon.io/twist
(19:03) Ask an Angel welcoming Zach Coelius to the show
(20:37) What is the definition of an outlier success in VC?
(29:56) Are investors okay with founders that use no-code software like Bubble as an MVP?
(32:43) Fiverr - Sign up for https://Fiverr.com/Business free for the first year and save 10% on your purchase with promo code JASON
(34:16) How does a seasoned investor deal with a founder who is headed in the wrong direction?
(39:49) Common pitch failures?
(43:23) When should you go for top line versus bottom line?
(49:14) Would VC funds do better with individuals instead of institutions?
(53:31) What industries Zach and Jason would like to see disrupted
(1:03:03) How much of an impact does bad reputation have on investing?
(1:04:22) What makes a good Board Meeting?
(1:08:02) As a VC, is it better to stay off the board from a liability standpoint?
(1:10:55) What is too expensive at the seed stage?
Check out Coelius Capital: https://coelius.vc/
FOLLOW Zach: https://twitter.com/zachcoelius
FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis
FOLLOW Molly: https://twitter.com/mollywood
The Venture Capitalist Who Can't Lose — With Zach Coelius
Zach Coelius is the managing partner of Coelius Capital. He's participating in an unprecedented moment where venture capitalists like him simply can't lose. There's so much money flooding the private markets that, as he put it, "any idiot with a checkbook looks like a genius right now." Coelius joins Big Technology Podcast to discuss why this is happening, where it will lead, and who gets hurt when the party ends. Stay tuned for the third segment where we read his tweets and mostly talk about San Francisco's many challenges.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Google’s game-changing ad policy + Michael Dell on “Play Nice But Win,” stories from building a computing giant | E1293
First, Jason brings on investor, former ad tech exec, and frequent guest Zach Coelius to discuss the strategic implications of Google's new ad attribution policy (01:43). Then Michael Dell joins for for a full interview (21:54) sharing stories from the early days of building Dell, scrappy supply-chain arbitrage, global expansion, negotiations with Steve Jobs and Bill Gates, the $67B EMC VMware acquisition (57:40) and more!
How to secure follow-on investment for your startup (FounderU) + Ask an Angel with Zach Coelius | E1264
Jason discusses how founders can secure follow on funding (1:57), then is joined by investor Zach Coelius to answer listener questions on technical co-founders (38:21), successful founder traits (40:41), founder red flags (46:07), why startups fail diligence (56:17) and more.
How to come up with a startup idea (FounderU) + Ask an Angel with Zach Coelius | E1263
Jason does a Founder University segment on how to generate startup ideas (1:55), then Zach Coelius joins to take some "Ask an Angel" questions: what data points are most valuable when iterating on product (29:03), what skills are most important to be a success in VC (36:410), what skills are most important to be a success in VC (42:51).
Bootstrapping vs. taking Venture Capital (FounderU) + Ask An Angel with Zach Coelius | E1260
In a Founder University segment, Jason compares running a bootstrapped vs. venture-backed company (1:17), discusses 'pegasus' companies (11:09), advises what types of businesses should take VC (23:59), and explains what motivates VCs (33:27). Then Zach Coelius joins to take some listener questions (38:48).
Ask an Angel PLUS Antonio Garcia Martinez vs. Apple with Zach Coelius | E1215
Zach Coelius joins Jason to answer live listener questions (1:09), and then the pair discuss Apple's recent debacle in firing Antonio Garcia Martinez after being pressured by employees (42:43). Check out the pod notes here: https://bitly.com/e1215notes
Ask an Angel with Zach Coelius: Starting your angel career, building marketplaces & more | E1189
Check out Zach on AngelList: https://angel.co/p/zach-coelius
FOLLOW Zach: https://twitter.com/zachcoelius
FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis
Ask an Angel with Zach Coelius: changing VC landscape, pitch deck punch-ups, Tesla’s future & more | E1186
Check out Zach on AngelList: https://angel.co/p/zach-coelius
FOLLOW Zach: https://twitter.com/zachcoelius
FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis
Ask an Angel with Zach Coelius: early-stage valuations, product roadmaps, startup killers, Twitter gets its groove back & more | E1179
FOLLOW Zach: https://twitter.com/zachcoelius
FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis
Ask an Angel with Zach Coelius: is moving to SF still worth it, bubble/recession potential, post-COVID funding & more | E1172
FOLLOW Zach: https://twitter.com/zachcoelius
FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis
E1064: News Roundtable! Sam Parr & Zach Coelius on Barstool Sports vs. Call Her Daddy, SoftBank’s $17B loss, TikTok poaches former Disney exec as CEO, Facebook launches Shops & more!
0:51 Jason intros Zach Coelius & Sam Parr
2:28 Barstool Sports vs. Call Her Daddy
6:49 Penn National Gaming stock soaring, Dave Portnoy winning this controversy
13:17 SoftBank reports $17.7B annual loss, worst figures in 39-year history
17:19 Does SoftBank's involvement typically include a loss of focus for the founder?
21:43 TikTok’s parent co. Bytedance trades at a $140B valuation, poaches Disney’s former Head of Streaming as new CEO of TikTok
25:08 Was Kevin Mayer wrong to take this role? Are TikTok's recommendation algorithms the best in the world?
28:52 How do Chinese companies grow so rapidly?
32:06 Facebook launches Shops, is Zuck trying to kill e-commerce giants? Zach on his experience with Facebook slowly killing his business
40:06 How does Facebook's product organization work?
47:13 Jason on the future of social networks
49:56 Amazon potentially acquiring AMC Theatres, could this be an Amazon Prime upsell?
53:52 Everyone gives their best idea for Amazon's first move after buying AMC
59:59 Zach on his quarantine deal flow
E1043: News Roundtable! Bloomberg Beta’s Roy Bahat & Coelius Capital’s Zach Coelius on how tech is helping during the crisis, how startups should approach SMB loans, when VC funding will bounce back, Notion’s $50M raise, Zoom’s security issues, Luckin coffee & more!
0:54 Jason intros Roy Bahat & Zach Coelius, and they discuss their current quarantine situations
6:04 What is the timeline looking like for going back to work? What needs to happen before we can get back to normal?
14:51 Has government & media failed the public? How is tech (both big tech & startups) helping during the crisis?
28:33 How should startups approach taking PPP, EIDL & other SMB loans? Should startups begin working more closely with the government?
37:14 When should companies plan on being able to raise capital again?
41:37 Why Jason believes the VC market will bounce back strong & how he is planning on deploying capital?
46:12 Are we going through a generational change & witnessing the creation of "Generation V"?
55:06 Jason's thoughts on what the crisis will actually change
1:04:36 What should permanently change after the crisis: government reliance, UBI, listening to experts
1:11:45 Notion's $50M raise & $2B valuation
1:15:29 Is Zoom trustworthy? Is any software trustworthy?
1:19:13 Luckin Coffee fabricates sales and loses $5B of value in 5 minutes
E1013: Decade Wrap-Up Roundtable! Garry Tan, Initialized Capital & Zach Coelius, Coelius Capital on the biggest hits & misses of the past decade: Trump, Theranos, Streaming, Mindfulness, Crypto, Tesla, WeWork, Amazon Prime, Vaping & more!
LINKS to brackets: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1zqc-2vDRl7e86USf4okiX8DRcXPzX1HW
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https://www.canva.com/design/DADuVKZjuc4/9Qt3B4m4DU-Z_HxbuDTb6w/view?utm_content=DADuVKZjuc4&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link&utm_source=sharebutton
0:29 Jason intros Garry & Zach
3:02 Jason goes over the bracket-style breakdown
3:15 Best of the decade: Ride-Sharing vs. AI/ML
8:32 Best: Amazon Prime vs. 4G LTE
10:07 Best: Tesla M3 vs. Disney buying Marvel + Star Wars IP
14:15 Best: Streaming vs. Mindfulness
17:01 Garry's Best: AI/ML vs. 4G LTE
20:20 Jason's Best: Model 3 vs. Mindfulness
24:05 Zach's Best: Ride-Sharing vs. Streaming
25:12 Jason & Guests pick their biggest win from the last decade
29:20 Jason tees up worst of the decade bracket
29:45 Worst of the decade: 2016 Election Fiasco vs. City San Francisco/Amazon Eating the World/Snowflake Culture
38:01 Worst: ICO Madness vs. Zuckerberg
40:34 Worst: WeWork vs. Vaping
44:13 Worst: Juicero vs. Theranos
44:48 Zach's Worst: 2016 Election vs. ICO Madness
45:09 Garry's Worst: Amazon Eating the World vs. ICO Madness
45:56 Jason's Worst: 2016 Election vs. Zuckerberg
49:52 Jason's Worst: WeWork vs. Theranos
51:56 Garry's Worst: Amazon Eating the World vs. Theranos
53:47 At what stage does Garry & Zach like to invest in companies?
55:52 Championship round
Jason: Mindfulness vs. Zuckerberg
Garry: Mindfulness vs. Theranos
Zach: Streaming vs. 2016 Election Fiasco
59:52 What topics will define the 2020's?
20VC: Why Portfolio Construction Is Inefficient, Why The Only Thing That Matters In Venture Is Pricing & The Future of Venture; Bundled or Unbundled with Zach Coelius
Zach Coelius is Managing Partner @ Coelius Capital and in his own words, "a pretty eclectic investor who loves to see just about any deal". To date, Zach has made investments in the likes of mParticle, Cruise Automation, Branch Metrics, SkySafe, ProsperWorks and more. In addition, Zach is or has been an advisor to LiveRamp, Hellosign, Art19, Loom.ai, Survata and StartGrid just to name a few. Prior to his investing career, Zach was CEO @ Triggit, an online adtech company which he raised over $18m for and was ultimately acquired in 2015. If that was not enough, Zach is also a Senior Advisor to McKinsey & Co.
In Today's Episode You Will Learn:
1.) How Zach made his way from the world of operating and adtech to investing and advising startups today? When does Zach feel the ecosystem really started to take him seriously as an investor? What did Zach learn from being in the adtech space that he has applied to his investing today?
2.) The Future of Venture: Naval has previously said we will see "the unbundling of VC", does Zach agree with this view? Why does Zach feel we are seeing both the bundling and the unbundling of venture platforms? What unique challenges does this pose for both sides of the equation? How should entrepreneurs evaluate the different options, bundled vs unbundled?
3.) Portfolio Construction: Why does Zach believe that portfolio construction is fundamentally inefficient? What 2 core areas of venture does portfolio construction cause issues for? When does Zach view to be the ideal insertion point if optimising for absolute returns and not following portfolio construction?
4.) Reserve Allocation and Pricing: Why does Zach think that the current mechanism for reserve allocation is broken? Why is it a fundamentally bias process? What does the optimal investment decision-making process look like to Zach? How does Zach think about the asymmetric information that is gained from being early into a company? How can investors really use it to their advantage? Why do they not?
5.) Why does Zach compare being an entrepreneur to being a gladiator and a rocketship? Why does Alex believe the transition from space articulation to product articulation is the most important thing an entrepreneur can do? What is the true sign of this transition in customer interactions? Where do many entrepreneurs make mistakes here?
Items Mentioned In Today's Show:
Zach's Fave Book: The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life
Zach's Most Recent Investment: Mud\Wtr
As always you can follow Harry, The Twenty Minute VC and Zach on Twitter here!
Likewise, you can follow Harry on Instagram here for mojito madness and all things 20VC.