Angel Season 6 is all about first-time fund managers. Fahd Ananta of Roach Capital joined to discuss his path from founder to PM to VC (04:07). You will learn: 1. How Fahd got Angel investing at Shopify 2. How Fahd made the transition from Angel investing to raising a fund 3. How geography can be used as a differentiator 4. The way he used his product skill to get on competitive cap tables Then in our OK Boomer segment, Producer Rachel talks to John Herrick, the CTO of Dive Chat, a new messaging and event app (34:09).

This Week in Startups - Audio

From PM to GP: Roach Capital’s Fahd Ananta | Angel S6 E6 + OK Boomer: Dive Chat | E1390

Ashley Carman joins Jason & Molly to discuss Spotify's acquisition of podcast ad-tech companies Chartable and Podsights (1:55). Ashley is a senior reporter at The Verge and the lead writer at HotPod. We dig into why she thinks Spotify's main competition is YouTube and how the Big Tech and Big Media podcasting efforts are playing out. After that, 10 companies pitch Jason and the team in rapid-fire (46:16). These startups went through Founder University, a 12-week course run by the team at Launch. Companies: Giphting, Chojuu, TaCo, Term Payments, Fix6, Remotespace, SavvyTeam, Gaan, Timewell, Innocuous AI

Spotify’s ad-tech acquisitions to take on YouTube with The Verge’s Ashley Carman + Founder University Pitches | E1389

World-class investor-operator Keith Rabois is back for his eighth time! But first, Jason breaks down Airbnb’s great Q4 and full-year earnings report (2:42) and how its customer segment is evolving. Then, he briefly covers the SF Board of Education recall (22:58). When Keith joins (31:27), he and Jason discuss: 1. How he called the top of the tech market in November 2021 2. Keith's 2019 prediction that came true 2. Venture Capital's decaying price discipline 3. Facebook's challenge ahead 4. Six predictions for the market

Keith Rabois of Founders Fund + AirBnB’s earnings & evolving customer base, SF BOE recall | E1388

Catalyzed by a Ryan Breslow viral tweetstorm, we break down the arguments for if companies should loan money to employees to allow them to exercise their stock options early (1:42). Then, we briefly cover Nvidia’s attempted Arm acquisition falling through and what it might mean for the SoftBank-backed chip designer (30:21). Finally, Molly interviews Craig Zingerline from Growth University, a LAUNCH Accelerator founder (38:00)!

Do startup employee stock options need an overhaul? Softbank’s failed Arm sale + Growth University’s Craig Zingerline | E1387

First, we break down the Crypto companies that ran super bowl ads and see how they stack up against the dot-com era ads (1:53). Then, we do an update on Joby aviation now that they are trying to roll out an air taxi service in South Korea (28:03). To wrap, Molly covers the BNPL (Buy Now, Pay Later) space and the challenges these companies are having as they scale, specifically Affirm's recent earnings (36:49).

Crypto’s Super Bowl blitz, Joby’s asian air-taxi partnerships, Affirm’s earnings & BNPL growing pains | E1386

Jason and Molly begin this double-header Sunday show with a VC Sunday School segment on top-tier VC behavior (01:38). You will learn: 1. How first-tier VCs compare to second-tier VCs 2. When VCs should intervene in a portfolio company 3. The difference between micromanaging and good governance 4. Jason's framework for ensuring alignment: Mission, Plan, Strategy, Tactics 5. Why good Board Members remain calm and positive Then, Molly is joined by Mike Lin from Dangerous Ventures for a This Week in Climate Startups segment (22:00). You will learn: 1. What Mike learned from working at Makani Power (acquired by Google X) 2. The potential of "muscle-powered" energy and its limits 3. Lessons from the failed Potenco generator & One Laptop Per Child project 4. How Mike got himself fired from Apple for insubordination 5. Why Dangerous Ventures is backing "Dunkirk" climate solutions

VC Sunday School: first-tier investor behavior + Climate: Dangerous Ventures’ Mike Lin | E1385

Jason and Molly open the shown discussing Disney’s Q1 Earnings and the 37% increase in Disney+ subscribers (01:51). Then, Qloo CEO Alex Elias joins to discuss his AI prediction company (21:12). You will learn: 1. How Qloo uses machine learning to understand taste and draw cultural correlations 2. Why Qloo adopted an API business model and is focused on developers 3. Ways businesses and brands are using Qloo to improve customer experience and drive revenue To wrap, we have an “OK Boomer” segment where Producer Rachel speaks with Zehra Naqvi from Republic (45:21). They disucss Zehra's work at Republic as an investment associate (48:00) and how Zehra developed the Z-list to facilitate intros between startups & VCs (55:21).

Rapid Disney+ growth, Predicting preference with Qloo’s Alex Elias, OK Boomer: Zehra Naqvi’s Z-list | E1384

In the opening news segment, Molly and Jason break down the news around Peloton's new CEO, Barry McCarthy, including the open letter he sent to the company, his background and principles for success (2:05). Then, Monique Woodard of Cake Ventures joins for Episode 5 of Season 6 of Angel (32:50). Monique was a founder, startup community leader, VC scout, and VC partner before raising her first fund. In this episode you will learn: 1. Her thesis on investing in demographic change 2. What fundraising is like as a founder vs. fundraising as an aspiring fund manager 3. Why she chose to have multiple closes for her fund 4. Why Monique focused her efforts on institutional LPs, even though they take longer to close than individual LPs 5. What it takes to operate as a solo GP

Peloton’s new CEO + Cake Ventures’ Monique Woodard Angel S6 E5 | E1383

We have a great interview today! But first, Molly and Jason cover one of the craziest stories of the year. A couple has been charged with conspiring to launder ~$3.6B worth of crypto from the 2016 Bitfinex hack (2:14). Today’s Guest is Peter Reinhardt, the co-founder of Segment, a customer data platform that sold to Twillio for $3.2B. Peter discusses his new company, Charm Industrial, which is focused on carbon capture and removal. In addition to his takeaways from selling Segment (42:00), you will learn: 1. How they turn agricultural waste and biomass into a high-carbon fuel 2. The carbon-removal benefits of injecting the bio-fuel into old oil wells 3. Why carbon capture is an important piece of getting to Net Zero 4. The potential impact of Charm Industrial if it succeeds (total CO2 tonnage) 5. Why this process differs from more passive ways of carbon offsets 6. How he landed customers like Shopify & Stripe (and why he thinks companies will continue to do this, even without government regulation)

$3.6B crypto hack recovered + Segment co-founder Peter Reinhardt’s next bet: Charm Industrial | E1382

Molly and Jason cover Peter Thiel stepping down from FB’s board and look back at the board's evolution over time (2:07). Next, we cover Joe Lonsdale’s op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, where he argues AWS should be split off from Amazon (27:41). We debate if valuations would increase if separated. Then, Peloton Founder & CEO John Foley is stepping down as the firm lays off 2800 people (40:30). We debate if they angling for an acquisition or making a turnaround attempt. To wrap, we discuss our startup of the day, Island, which is a browser for enterprise with a big valuation for a pre-product company (50:11).

Peter Thiel departs FB board, John Foley steps down at Peloton, Should Amazon spin off AWS? + Startup of the Day: Island | E1381

Molly and Jason catch up on the big news stories from the weekend. First, we talk about the Joe Rogan & Spotify saga (1:51) and size up the odds of Rogan finishing out his contract with Spotify (15:41). Then, we cover Facebook warning about pulling Instagram and Facebook out of Europe due to privacy regulations (29:54). Next, we cover GoFundMe’s decision to pull funding for the “Freedom Convoy” protesters in Canada. We wrap with a discussion of the WSJ's reporting that Amazon is considering acquiring Peloton (57:26).

Spotify’s saga continues, $FB warns of EU exit, GoFundMe’s protest refund, Peloton’s suitors | E1380

John Doerr of Kleiner Perkins joins to discuss his lessons from a career of investing and his new book "Speed & Scale: An Action Plan for Solving Our Climate Crisis Now," alongside his co-author Ryan Panchadsaram. But first, Jason gives a 10-minute crash course on how to navigate messy cap tables in our latest VC Sunday School segment (1:54). Then John and Ryan join Molly and Jason for a conversation (15:11). In this episode, you will learn: 1. The six objectives and four accelerants to reach zero emissions by 2050 2. Why Nuclear power is an important part of the plan, but cannot be the only solution 3. The biggest blockers to rapid climate progress and why "the climate crisis is under-hyped" 4. Hard-won lessons from funding solar companies 5. How John assesses founders and develops conviction to invest 6. Indications John saw that Jeff Bezos was an exceptional entrepreneur 7. Where investors should focus to drive the biggest output

John Doerr of Kleiner Perkins with Ryan Panchadsaram + VC Sunday School: cap table management | E1379

First Jason and Molly discuss reports from "The Information" that Jokr is looking to sell its NYC delivery business due to heightened competition (1:51). Next, they cover how Cruise is opening up its driverless vehicles to give rides in San Francisco (11:09). Then, Gopuff Co-founder and Co-CEO Rafael Ilishayev joins to discuss his rapid delivery business (19:12). Almost a decade ago, Raf and his co-founder Yakir Gola started one of the fastest-growing commerce businesses while in college. Most recently they raised $1B at a reported $15B valuation in July 2021. In this episode, you will learn: 1. The rationale behind operating a vertically-integrated model 2. How they operate hundreds of micro-fulfillment centers & manage deliveries in 20 minutes 3. Why they acquired BevMo and Liquor Barn to accelerate their alcohol delivery business instead of building it themselves 4. The challenges he sees going forward to operate the business well 5. Why Gopuff launched their own private label called “Basically” and hot food offering called "Gopuff Kitchens" 6. How influencers like Mr. Beast are choosing Gopuff as a key platform to distribute products

NYC delivery wars, Cruise gives driverless rides in SF + Gopuff Co-CEO Rafael Ilishayev | E1378

In the opening news segment, Molly and Jason break down the numbers behind Facebook's colossal drop in market cap (2:42). Then, they cover a company that seems to be violating music copyrights to sell NFTS (38:14). Then, Paige Finn of Behind Genius joins for Episode 4 of Season 6 of Angel (49:45). Paige became interested in venture capital during college, but within a year and a half of graduating in 2020 she already has a fund! In this episode you will learn: 1. How she secured her first allocation before having a fund 2. The steps she took to set up an SPV while being a non-accredited investor 3. How she raised a $1.6m fund 4. Behind Genius' investing thesis and strategy 5. The books that have most influenced her work and writing style 6. Why she wrote a picture book (for adults) called "Seed to Harvest: A Simple Explanation of Venture Capital"

Full $FB earnings breakdown, NFT company violates music IP + Behind Genius’ Paige Finn: Angel S6 E4 | E1377

First, Jason explains how someone copied the All-In podcast, put in ads, and then redirected Google’s podcast player to display it as the real All-In feed (1:44). Then, we break down Google's Q4 and full year earnings for 2021 (18:25). Is Google the best business ever? Then, Jason tells the story of “The Great iPad Troll of 2010” (45:10).

All-In’s hijacked feed, Google’s earnings breakdown, Jason’s legendary iPad troll | E1376

Supporting entrepreneurs & inspiring innovation.

hubhopper

This Week in Startups - Audio

hubhopper