20VC: Sequoia's Leadership Transition | Michael Burry Shorts NVIDIA and Palantir | Gamma Raises $100M at $2BN | Has Defensibility Died in a World of AI | Datadog Surges as Duolingo Plummets: What is Happening

Rudina Seseri is Founder and Managing Partner of Glasswing Ventures, Boston's own AI focussed fund. Prior to Glasswing, Rudina was a Partner at Fairhaven Capital, sering as lead investor and Director on the Boards of Celtra, CrowdTwist, Jibo, SocialFlow and Statisfy. Before Fairhaven, she was a Senior Manager in the Corporate Development Group at Microsoft where she was responsible for sourcing, structuring, and negotiating Microsoft's acquisitions and strategic investments. Rudina has served as Entrepreneur-In-Residence for Harvard Business School for 4 consecutive years and is an advisor for L'Oréal USA Women in Digital. In Today's Episode You Will Learn: 1.) How Rudina made her way from Microsoft into VC with Fairhaven and then Glasswing? 2.) Why is now the time for an AI fund? What technological advances have happened to allow narrow artificial intelligence to come to the foreground in such a prominent way? 3.) Does the potential incumbency advantage in AI concern Rudina? How can founders look to mitigate this and gain access to substantial data sets? 4.) In terms of disruption cycles, where does Rudina believe we are in current cycles? How does this affect adoption cycles of technology? Why will this be the fastest ever? 5.) Predictions: How long till artificial super intelligence comes to the forefront? How long until mass adoption of driverless cars? Will this be a winner take all market? Items Mentioned In Today's Episode: Rudina's Fave Blog: Paris 1919 Rudina's Fave Book: Wait But Why As always you can follow The Twenty Minute VC, Harry and Rudina on Twitter here! Likewise, you can follow Harry on Snapchat here for mojito madness and all things 20VC. The Twenty Minute VC is proudly sponsored by Luma, Luma is the world's first ever Surround WiFi system that brings speed, security and control to the home network. And Unlike traditional routers, Luma comes in a pack of two or three sleek devices to place in different rooms in your home. Luma then creates a mesh network that work together to create an outrageously-fast, ultra-secure Surround WiFi network. Lastly, Luma's app lets you easily see and control which devices, users and content are on your network. To buy your Luma, simply dead to getluma.com or amazon.com. So many problems start with your head: stress, depression, anxiety, fear of the future. What if there was some kind of exercise you could do, that would help you get your head in shape. That's where the Headspace app comes in. Headspace is meditation made simple. The Headspace app provides guided meditations you can use whenever you want, wherever you want, on your phone, computer or tablet. They have sessions focused on everything from dealing with stress and depression, to helping you eat more mindfully. So download the Headspace app and start your journey towards a happier, healthier life. Learn more at headspace.com/20vc. That's headspace.com/20vc.

9 Nov 201629min

Justin Caldbeck is a Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Binary Capital, one of Silicon Valley's leading early stage funds focussed on the consumer space with $300m AUM. Prior to founding Binary, Ryan was a Managing Director @ Lightspeed Venture Partners where he made investments in the likes of GrubHub, TaskRabbit, SocialCam and many more incredible companies. Before joining Lightspeed, Justin was a Partner at Bain Capital Ventures and was responsible for launching the firm's West Coast office. In Today's Episode You Will Learn: 1.) How Justin made his way into venture and came to found Binary Capital? 2.) Question from Binary LP, Judith Elsea: Has it been harder to win deals at Binary without the big and established fund names behind you? How has the conversation with founders changed? 3.) Why is Justin so excited by what he calls, 'vibrant moneyless commerce platforms? What has done previously in the space? Why is it different now? 4.) Why is Justin so bullish on the often over-hyped 'on-demand' economy? Which verticals provide the best opportunities to provide an on-demand experience without the need for local infrastructure? 5.) Friends and Family Round: Ryan Caldbeck @ CirleUp: What VCs does Ryan most admire and respect? 2.) What makes 1 VC a great board member and another not? Tiffany Zhong: What are your biggest misses? 2.) What are the biggest issues in VC? Items Mentioned In Today's Episode: Justin's Fave Book: Grit by Angela Duckworth Justin's Most Recent Investment: Recharge As always you can follow The Twenty Minute VC, Harry and Justin on Twitter here! Likewise, you can follow Harry on Snapchat here for mojito madness and all things 20VC. The Twenty Minute VC is proudly sponsored by Luma, Luma is the world's first ever Surround WiFi system that brings speed, security and control to the home network. And Unlike traditional routers, Luma comes in a pack of two or three sleek devices to place in different rooms in your home. Luma then creates a mesh network that work together to create an outrageously-fast, ultra-secure Surround WiFi network. Lastly, Luma's app lets you easily see and control which devices, users and content are on your network. To buy your Luma, simply dead to getluma.com or amazon.com. So many problems start with your head: stress, depression, anxiety, fear of the future. What if there was some kind of exercise you could do, that would help you get your head in shape. That's where the Headspace app comes in. Headspace is meditation made simple. The Headspace app provides guided meditations you can use whenever you want, wherever you want, on your phone, computer or tablet. They have sessions focused on everything from dealing with stress and depression, to helping you eat more mindfully. So download the Headspace app and start your journey towards a happier, healthier life. Learn more at headspace.com/20vc. That's headspace.com/20vc.

7 Nov 201629min

Jerry Colonna is a Founder @ Reboot, the coaching company that helps some of the world's greatest entrepreneurs and investors with the internal ups and downs in their life and support the growth they need to improve their performance. Prior to Reboot, Jerry was a Partner @ JP Morgan. Before that Jerry was a VC, having launched Flatiron partners in 1996 with his partner, Fred Wilson. Flatiron became on the of the most successful early stage investment firms in New York with investments in the likes of Geocities, Gamesville and The New York Times Digital. In Today's Episode You Will Learn: 1.) How did Jerry enter the world of VC and then make the transition to be the ultimate CEO/VC coach, aka, 'The CEO Whisperer'? 2.) What is Jerry's first step for anyone looking to self-evaluate in what Jerry calls, 'radical self-inquiry'? 3.) Once self-evaluated, how can one look to be their true self in a world that is not necessarily accepting of such vulnerability, compassion and emotion, for example, VC and startups? 4.) How does Jerry evaluate the current crop of VCs in terms of them being their inner self to the external world? Why is Jerry so optimistic? 5.) Questions from Brad Feld: 1.) What should VCs be spending more time on? 2.) If Jerry could give one piece of advice to VCs what would it be? Items Mentioned In Today's Episode: Jerry's Fave Blog: Fred Wilson: AVC, Brad Feld: Feld Thoughts, The School of Life Jerry's Fave Book: When Things Fall Apart As always you can follow The Twenty Minute VC, Harry and Jerry on Twitter here! Likewise, you can follow Harry on Snapchat here for mojito madness and all things 20VC. The Twenty Minute VC is proudly sponsored by Luma, Luma is the world's first ever Surround WiFi system that brings speed, security and control to the home network. And Unlike traditional routers, Luma comes in a pack of two or three sleek devices to place in different rooms in your home. Luma then creates a mesh network that work together to create an outrageously-fast, ultra-secure Surround WiFi network. Lastly, Luma's app lets you easily see and control which devices, users and content are on your network. To buy your Luma, simply dead to getluma.com or amazon.com.

4 Nov 201625min

Clinton Foy is General Partner @ Crosscut Ventures, one of LA's leading VC funds. Prior to Crosscut, Clinton was COO, @ Square Enix, a $2 billion video game publisher, he recruited a top-tier team and built the mobile, social, and online business in North and South America. He managed licensing and strategic partnerships for SPACE INVADERS, FINAL FANTASY, and TOMB RAIDER franchises. In seven years he oversaw more than 100 product launches across a dozen platforms and grew annual revenues to more than $300 million. Before Square Enix, Clinton practiced law representing clients including Microsoft, Sony, and Yahoo. In Today's Episode You Will Learn: 1.) How did Clinton make the transition from COO at $Bn games company to being a VC in LA? 2.) Question from Crosscut LP: Judith Elsea: What were the biggest takeaways from operating that make Clinton a better VC? What are the biggest surprises about being a VC? What are the biggest adjustments Clinton have had to make to be a VC? 3.) How important does Clinton feel network building and relationships are to being a good investor? Is this a market of predators? Can the 'nice guys' sometimes win? How does Clinton look to relationship build in a natural and organic way? 4.) On the operations side, Clinton helped Esports company, The Immortals raise a seed round. How was that experience for Clinton? What were the challenges? Is investing in an e-sports team a venture investment with potential $Bn outcome? 5.) What is the reason for the mass rise in Esports and Esports investing? How does the rise of mobile affect this? What is the future of Esports vs traditional sports? Items Mentioned In Today's Episode: Clinton's Fave Blog: Dean Takahashi: Venture Beat Clinton's Most Recent Investment: The Immortals As always you can follow The Twenty Minute VC, Harry and Clinton on Twitter here! Likewise, you can follow Harry on Snapchat here for mojito madness and all things 20VC. The Twenty Minute VC is proudly sponsored by Luma, Luma is the world's first ever Surround WiFi system that brings speed, security and control to the home network. And Unlike traditional routers, Luma comes in a pack of two or three sleek devices to place in different rooms in your home. Luma then creates a mesh network that work together to create an outrageously-fast, ultra-secure Surround WiFi network. Lastly, Luma's app lets you easily see and control which devices, users and content are on your network. To buy your Luma, simply dead to getluma.com or amazon.com.

2 Nov 201628min

Mamoon Hamid is a Co-Founder and General Partner at Social Capital, a firm he co-founded in 2011 with the mission to transform society by using technology to solve the world's hardest problems. Mamoon leads the firm's private investing activities which focuses on building breakthrough healthcare, education, financial services, consumer and enterprise software companies. He currently sits on the board of companies that includes Slack, Intercom, Netskope and Greenhouse. Prior to starting Social Capital, Mamoon was a Partner at U.S. Venture Partners (USVP), where he led early stage investments in companies like Box and Yammer. Mamoon started his Silicon Valley career in 1997 at Xilinx where he spent six years in various engineering and marketing roles. In Today's Episode You Will Learn: 1.) How Mamoon made his way into VC and came to found Social with Chamath and Ted? 2.) How did Mamoon approach the team building aspect of Social? What did he look for in his partners and additional team members? 3.) According to Mamoon, what have been the inflection points in the incredible rising story of Social Capital? When has Mamoon's and the team's learnings really increased? 4.) What does Mamoon think of 'The Top 5 US Companies by Market Cap Being Tech Companies'? Why does he believe that there will be more from this cohort than any other cohort? 5.) What are Mamoon's expectations of growth, goals achieved at different stages of the company lifecycle etc? How does this differ according to the market he invests in? Items Mentioned In Today's Episode: Mamoon's Fave Book: Blue Ocean Strategy Mamoon's Most Recent Investment: Front: The Invoice For Teams As always you can follow The Twenty Minute VC, Harry and Mamoon on Twitter here! Likewise, you can follow Harry on Snapchat here for mojito madness and all things 20VC. The Twenty Minute VC is proudly sponsored by Luma, Luma is the world's first ever Surround WiFi system that brings speed, security and control to the home network. And Unlike traditional routers, Luma comes in a pack of two or three sleek devices to place in different rooms in your home. Luma then creates a mesh network that work together to create an outrageously-fast, ultra-secure Surround WiFi network. Lastly, Luma's app lets you easily see and control which devices, users and content are on your network. To buy your Luma, simply dead to getluma.com or amazon.com.

31 Okt 201627min

Ryan Holmes is the founder and CEO of Hootsuite. He started the company in 2008 and has helped grow it into the world's most widely used social relationship platform, with 15-million-plus users, including more than 800 of the Fortune 1000 companies. As of 2014, HootSuite has raised over $250m in venture funding from some of the best in the world including Accel, Insight Venture Partners and Fidelity. Prior to Hootsuite, Ryan started a string of ventures from a pizza restaurant to a digital media agency. Ryan is also a prolific angel investor with investments in the likes of Gusto, Bench and previous guest Immediately, just to name a few. In Today's Episode You Will Learn: 1.) How did Ryan transition from being a restauranteur to founding Hootsuite? 2.) What were the big lessons Ryan took from his hard journey as a restauranteur? How has he applied those lessons to his role with Hootsuite today? 3.) How does Ryan look to create an environment of employee ownership and internal entrepreneurs? What has been successful? What has not? 4.) Meetings suck. What does Ryan do to optimise the meeting for simple enjoyment and productivity? 5.) How was the fundraising process for Ryan? What does he think he did well and what would he like to improve on for the next rounds? How was fundraising in 200*? Is now a good time to be raising? Items Mentioned In Today's Episode: Ryan's Fave Blog: Media Redefined Ryan's Fave Book: The Long Walk As always you can follow The Twenty Minute VC, Harry and Ryan on Twitter here! Likewise, you can follow Harry on Snapchat here for mojito madness and all things 20VC. Angelloop is the leading post funding management platform for private market investors and their portfolio companies. They help investors manage and track their portfolio companies on the cloud while providing them with access to their investments performance data. Angelloop helps founders of startups track their performance, manage their cap table and keep their investors in the loop. Investors get free access while their portfolio companies pay only $49/Month. Use or share the promo-code 20MinVC to get your portfolio companies online with a two month trial. This episode was supported by Wunder Capital, the leading online investment platform that allows individuals to invest in large scale solar projects across the U.S. Wunder's solar investment funds allow you to earn up to 11% annually, while diversifying your portfolio, curbing pollution and combating global climate change. Do well by doing good and sign up for a free account here and join the thousands of people that are already achieving their investment targets.

28 Okt 201624min

Lyon Wong is the Founding General Partner @ Spectrum 28, a $170m Silicon Valley fund that invests in companies who leverage data and computation to create and transform large industries. Prior to Spectrum 28, Lyon was Partner @ Lightspeed Venture Partners, the $3bn VC fund with investments in the likes of Snapchat, Nest and Giphy, just to name a few. Before Lightspeed Lyon spent time with leading Silicon Valley seed fund, SV Angel, where he worked with the likes of Ron Conway and David Lee. In Today's Episode You Will Learn: 1.) How did Lyon come to be GP of Spectrum 28 with their recent $170m fund? 2.) Why does Lyon believe that you do not have to have operational experience to be a good investor? What are the core components to beeing a good investor and value add investor? 3.) Why does Lyon believe that there is no optimal stage to invest? How does he evaluate the efficiency curve and positioning on it? How does this affect his thesis? 4.) Why does Lyon believe that funds must focus on reputation instead of cash on cash? What is the most effective and scalable way to build a reputation in today's venture ecosystem? 5.) How does Lyon evaluate team building at Spectrum 28? What did he look for in potential partners? How does he look to implement generational transition into the fund? Items Mentioned In Today's Episode: Lyon's Fave Blog: Medium, Quora Lyon's Fave Book: Meditations by Marcus Aurelius Lyon's Most Recent Investment: PatientBank As always you can follow The Twenty Minute VC, Harry and Lyon on Twitter here! Likewise, you can follow Harry on Snapchat here for mojito madness and all things 20VC. Angelloop is the leading post funding management platform for private market investors and their portfolio companies. They help investors manage and track their portfolio companies on the cloud while providing them with access to their investments performance data. Angelloop helps founders of startups track their performance, manage their cap table and keep their investors in the loop. Investors get free access while their portfolio companies pay only $49/Month. Use or share the promo-code 20MinVC to get your portfolio companies online with a two month trial. This episode was supported by Wunder Capital, the leading online investment platform that allows individuals to invest in large scale solar projects across the U.S. Wunder's solar investment funds allow you to earn up to 11% annually, while diversifying your portfolio, curbing pollution and combating global climate change. Do well by doing good and sign up for a free account here and join the thousands of people that are already achieving their investment targets.

26 Okt 201625min

Beezer Clarkson is Managing Director @ Sapphire Ventures where she leads Sapphire's investments in venture funds domestically and internationally. Prior to joining Sapphire, Beezer managed day-to-day operations @ DFJ's Global Network, which had $7 billion under management across 16 venture funds worldwide. She has also spent time at Omidyar Network created by Ebay founder, Pierre Omdiyar, Hewlett Packard and Morgan Stanley. Beezer also runs the incredible openlp.com which is really opening up the world of LPs and if you have not checked that out, it really is a must! In Today's Episode You Will Learn: 1.) How did Beezer make her way into the world of limited partners? 2.) $27bn was raised by 137 funds in Q1 + Q2 of 2016, what does this mean for the theory that venture is a game of the have's and have nots? How does this compare to previous years? 3.) How is the constriction in capital affecting first-time funds? How many were raised so far this year? What were the common characteristics in those that were successful? 4.) How is the Series A market performing this year? Does the data agree with the common thesis of the rise of the late stage 'private IPO'? Does this lack of liquidity concern Beezer? 5.) Why is Beezer so bullish on the future ahead for tech? How does Beezer think Brexit will affect the wider market? Items Mentioned In Today's Episode: Beezer's Most Recent Investment: SaaStr Fund As always you can follow The Twenty Minute VC, Harry and Beezer on Twitter here! Likewise, you can follow Harry on Snapchat here for mojito madness and all things 20VC. Angelloop is the leading post funding management platform for private market investors and their portfolio companies. They help investors manage and track their portfolio companies on the cloud while providing them with access to their investments performance data. Angelloop helps founders of startups track their performance, manage their cap table and keep their investors in the loop. Investors get free access while their portfolio companies pay only $49/Month. Use or share the promo-code 20MinVC to get your portfolio companies online with a two month trial. This episode was supported by Wunder Capital, the leading online investment platform that allows individuals to invest in large scale solar projects across the U.S. Wunder's solar investment funds allow you to earn up to 11% annually, while diversifying your portfolio, curbing pollution and combating global climate change. Do well by doing good and sign up for a free account here and join the thousands of people that are already achieving their investment targets.

24 Okt 201628min