The Challenge of Replicating Reality
The a16z Show22 Feb 2023

The Challenge of Replicating Reality

What would you do if you believed in an idea but everyone said it would fail, nobody would fund you, and the industry was experiencing a nuclear winter?

Despite experiencing exactly that, Sandbox VR founder Steve Zhao doubled down and invested all of his personal savings into the unproven business. 7 years and 1 bankruptcy later, Steve has built the world’s leading full-body VR experience with over 30 locations across the globe.

In this interview, we get to chat with Steve about the many challenges he faced, how Sandbox made it through the pandemic, the future of VR, and the difficult task of tackling hardware, software, a new computing platform, and real estate.

Resources:

Check out Sandbox VR: https://sandboxvr.com

Find Steve Zhao on Twitter: https://twitter.com/zhaosaurus

Learn more about the Squid Game partnership: https://venturebeat.com/games/squid-game-is-coming-to-sandbox-vr-immersive-experience-locations/

Watch Steph’s highlight video: https://sandboxvr.com/event/b0b22aad-7c73-475d-ab43-281a456ff590

Stay Updated:

Find us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/a16z

Find us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/a16z

Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: https://a16z.simplecast.com/

Follow our host: https://twitter.com/stephsmithio

Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.

Stay Updated:

Find a16z on YouTube: YouTube

Find a16z on X

Find a16z on LinkedIn

Listen to the a16z Show on Spotify

Listen to the a16z Show on Apple Podcasts

Follow our host: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg

Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Avsnitt(1000)

Culture as Code

Culture as Code

While building and shaping culture is as relevant as ever for startups and companies today, leaders have sought the answers to these questions for hundreds of years – and there is practical advice to ...

6 Okt 202259min

On Mentorship and Leadership

On Mentorship and Leadership

Behind many great leaders, you’ll usually find a great mentor. The mentor-mentee relationship is often one of the most important and most fulfilling relationships people have, in both their careers an...

28 Sep 202233min

Cloud Wars, Company Wars, and Innovating Through Change

Cloud Wars, Company Wars, and Innovating Through Change

In this episode from October 2021, Michael Dell, founder and CEO of Dell Technologies and one of the longest serving founder-CEOs in the technology industry, joins a16z general partner Martin Casado, ...

7 Sep 202253min

How to Find Product-Market-Sales Fit

How to Find Product-Market-Sales Fit

In this episode from February 2019, Jyoti Bansal, founding CEO of AppDynamics and co-founder of Unusual Ventures, joins a16z general partner Peter Levine, a16z partner Sateesh Talluri, and host Sonal ...

3 Sep 202251min

The Fintech Opportunity for Students and Gen Z

The Fintech Opportunity for Students and Gen Z

This week, student loans are back in the news, with the administration's announcement of a plan to forgive student loan debt for certain kinds of borrowers. Outside of the specific policies, though, s...

26 Aug 202230min

How to Make Better Decisions

How to Make Better Decisions

Can you get better at decision-making with practice? Many founders, investors, and builders must make many critical decisions, big and small, every day, and improving the quality of your decision-maki...

19 Aug 202245min

Learning from Open Source Communities

Learning from Open Source Communities

What can we learn from the evolution of open source communities and how might they be applied to online communities and the creator economy today? Author Nadia Asparouhova joins host Sonal Choksi to t...

11 Aug 202247min

The Art and Science of Moderating Discussions

The Art and Science of Moderating Discussions

Whether it’s moderating a live panel discussion, managing your (virtual) All Hands meeting, or even guiding a cross-functional team to a decision in an important meeting, mastering the art of helping ...

4 Aug 20221h 3min

Populärt inom Business & ekonomi

badfluence
framgangspodden
varvet
rss-jossan-nina
rss-svart-marknad
rss-borsens-finest
uppgang-och-fall
avanzapodden
fill-or-kill
lastbilspodden
svd-tech-brief
rss-inga-dumma-fragor-om-pengar
bathina-en-podcast
dynastin
borsmorgon
rss-veckans-trade
rss-dagen-med-di
24fragor
rss-kort-lang-analyspodden-fran-di
rss-borslunch