Enjoyable listen this, as Harry Stebbings interviews Cem Sertoglu, an elite European seed investor, who led, very likely the single best seed deal on the continent, the UiPath investment, where he has turned $16.5m invested (the last $10m written as part of the Series B round “with our hands shaking at the time”) into $2.1b. Whoa! Cem (pronounced as Gem) shares a behind the scenes look at the UiPath investment …
Podcast Notes
All posts containing reviews, highlights and notes about podcasts will appear here.
Podcast Notes: Chris Paik, Pace Capital, on Turpentine VC, w Erik Torenburg
12 November 2024 | Link to podcast episode
Surprisingly good podcast episode. I encountered Chris Paik first on a Invest Like the Best podcast episode which was interesting as well, and then again recently when his post ‘The End of Software’ went viral. He is an interesting thinker as you will see from the highlights of this episode.
A few points which stood out:
- On Thrive Capital, his previous employer,
Podcast Notes: Matt Cynamon, USV, on ‘AI & I’ with Dan Shipper
30 October ’24 | Link to podcast and transcript
One of the more interesting podcast interviews I have consumed in the past months / yr. Matt Cynamon the ‘Head of Library Sciences’ at Union Square Ventures comes on the AI + I podcast with Dan Shipper to talk about all the cool AI stuff they are cooking up at Union Square Ventures (USV).
You may have seen the OH (overheard) …
Podcast Notes: Eli Schwartz, SEO guru, on the Lenny Rachitsky Podcast
19 September 2024 | Link to podcast + transcript.
Loong episode at nearly 2 hours, but worth a watch for any founder / operator wrestling with SEO or content. Eli is one of the foremost thinkers in the SEO space today, author of the book ‘Product-Led SEO’ and advisor to Zapier, Tinder, LinkedIn etc.
In the podcast, he covers how AI / LLMs will impact search / SEO. Effectively …
Podcast Notes & Thoughts: Lulu Meservey on Colossus’ Invest Like The Best
Lulu Cheng Meservey is the founder of Rostra, the ‘PR’ firm du jour, and the high priestess of the ‘go direct’ movement, where founders are encouraged to front the message about their co to the world, instead of relying on internal or external PR teams to front their point of view. I first came across Lulu on Twitter when Dwarkesh Patel thanked her for connecting him to Daniel Yergin…
Podcast Notes: Ben Braverman, Thomson Nguyen, and Max Altman of Saga Ventures on Venture Unlocked
Link to podcast and transcript, organised by Venture Unlocked. The podcast was published 26 September 2024.
Saga Ventures raised $125m for their first fund. In this episode, the three cofounders and Partners, Ben Braverman (ex Flexport), Thomson Nguyen (Square), and Max Altman (Alt Capital) talk to host Samir Kaji on their fundraise, and the experience of raising in a tight fundraising market.
What I found interesting –
- Fundraising
- Samir
Podcast Notes & Highlights: Daniel Yergin on the Dwarkesh Podcast
Link to podcast + transcript. The episode was published on 18 September 2024.
Daniel Yergin is an oil / energy expert and author of ‘The Prize’, which is an acclaimed history of oil (and as Dwarkesh says, a parallel history of the 20th century too). I havent read the book. It is there in the bookshelf somewhere waiting to be read. For now this podcast will do. …
Interview Notes & Thoughts: Eugene Wei w Ben Thompson on Stratechery
Link to interview (paywalled). 3rd November 2022.
Sajith: Really interesting conversation covering Netflix, Twitter and their challenges, and working off that to cover a bunch of topics. Eugene Wei is a deep product thinker, especially on social networks (see this and this) and Ben Thompson is a sharp observer. Their conversation, and this is more of a conversation and less of an interview, is consistently interesting and insightful. A …
Podcast Notes: Nick Kokonas, Tock + Alinea Restaurant Group, on Colossus w Patrick O’Shaugnessy
Link to podcast. 19th November 2020.
Sajith: One of the best podcast episodes I ‘read’ this year. It is not new, but after it was referred in a Colossus annual wrap as one of their best episodes, i decided to give it a go. Any one who is a restaurateur (esp offering mid to high priced food) or in strategy will enjoy and learn from this podcast. One of …
Podcast Notes + Transcript: Mamoon Hamid, Kleiner Perkins, on Venture Unlocked, w Samir Kaji
Link to podcast. Link to transcript (organised by me). 1st November 2023.
Sajith: Mamoon Hamid covers the turnaround at Kleiner Perkins which drifted off course from the mid-2000s to the latter part of last decade, as it bloated into a multi-geography, multistage firm. He came in early 2018, and along with Ilya Fushman, reworked the firm into a smaller, focused firm, recalling its roots and origins, and its past …