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On Turpentine VC, host and venture capitalist Erik Torenberg delves deep into the art and science of building successful venture firms through conversations with the world’s best investors and operators. Hear about insider strategies on decision-making, investment theses, and building firms for the long term—from the ground-level, VC to VC. Guests in season 1 include Ben Horowitz of a16z, Mamood Hamid and Ilya Fushman of Kleiner Perkins, and Alfred Lin of Sequoia. Turpentine VC is part of the Turpentine podcast network. Learn more: turpentine.co

Erik Torenberg


    • Apr 22, 2025 LATEST EPISODE
    • weekly NEW EPISODES
    • 1h 1m AVG DURATION
    • 87 EPISODES


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    E86: Inside Mischief VC's Evolution with Zach Perret and Lauren Farleigh

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 22, 2025 49:53


    In this episode of Turpentine VC, Erik Torenberg interviews Lauren Farleigh and Zach Perret from Mischief VC, discussing their experiences as founders and how they leveraged those to build their venture firm. — 

    E85: Inside a16z's Voice AI Investment Strategy

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 15, 2025 63:25


    This week on Turpentine VC, we are releasing an episode from The Cognitive Revolution, hosted by Nathan Labenz. Nathan sits down with Olivia Moore and Anish Acharya from Andreesen Horowitz to discuss the trends, investment strategies, and future potential of AI voice technology in both B2B and consumer sectors, exploring its implications for various industries including call centers, SMBs, and personalized AI companions. — 

    E84: How Accel Captures Companies Outside Traditional VC Reach with Andrew Braccia

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 8, 2025 48:52


    Andrew Braccia, partner at Accel for nearly two decades, sits down with Erik Torenberg to discuss the firm's evolution from Silicon Valley early-stage investor to global, multi-stage powerhouse. Braccia explains Accel's two major strategic shifts: global expansion with local teams in Europe, India, and beyond; and the launch of their growth fund in 2008 targeting bootstrapped companies like Atlassian, Qualtrics, and Squarespace. Braccia reflects on lessons from his journey from Yahoo to venture capital, emphasizing the importance of "wiping your mind clear" of past experiences that might cloud judgment of new opportunities. The conversation provides rare insight into how Accel maintains operational excellence at global scale while preserving their early-stage venture DNA in an increasingly competitive landscape. — 

    E83: Chad Byers on Why Susa is a Purpose-Built Seed Specialist [Classic Interview]

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 25, 2025 58:20


    This week on Turpentine VC, we're sharing Erik Torenberg's interview with Susa Venture's Chad Byers, which originally aired in September 2023. Chad discusses the firm's journey, their fund structures, and their vision for specialized seed investing, emphasizing the importance of focus, discipline, and adapting to market dynamics. — 

    E82: Fundraising in Bear Markets: How Nichole Wischoff Closed $50M [How I Invest]

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 19, 2025 34:06


    This week on Turpentine VC, we're dropping an episode from David Weisburd's “How I Invest Podcast” with Nichole Wischoff of Wischoff Ventures. Nichole discusses her impressive $50 million fundraise, closed in a bear  market, sharing her strategy, brand-building efforts, and tips on leveraging social media to attract investors. — 

    E81: Inside Seven Seven Six with Alexis Ohanian [Classic Interview]

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 11, 2025 58:33


    This week, we're re-releasing Erik Torenberg's interview with Alexis Ohanian. Alexis discusses his journey from co-founding Reddit to creating the venture firm Seven Seven Six, detailing its unique approach of using software to enhance venture capital operations and founder support, transparency, and accountability — 

    E80: Logan Bartlett on How Great VC Firms Truly Operate

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 4, 2025 66:40


    This week on Turpentine VC, we're re-releasing Erik Torenberg's interview with Logan Bartlett, partner at Redpoint and host of The Logan Bartlett Show. They discuss Redpoint's approach to venture, patterns in the VC ecosystem, and the strategies of venture's most consequential firms. — 

    E79: Now at $2B Valuation: Mercor CEO On How They Started

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 25, 2025 56:42


    This week on Turpentine VC, we are releasing an episode from 1 to 100 hosted by Usman Hanif. Usman interviews Brendan Foody, founder and CEO of Marcor, an AI-powered recruitment platform that automates the process of hiring, vetting, and paying employees. Brendan discusses Mercor's rapid growth, technology behind their operations, and the company's focus on reducing hiring costs while improving efficiency for both employers and candidates. — 

    E78: Why Benchmark is Different Than Other Firms with Sarah Tavel & Eric Vishria

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 18, 2025 92:09


    In this episode of Turpentine VC, we're sharing Erik Torenberg's 2023 interview with Sarah Tavel and Eric Vishria from Benchmark, exploring the firm's unique minimalistic approach, commitment to deep founder partnerships, and their deliberate avoidance of platform teams. — 

    E77: IVP's Somesh Dash on Growth Stage Investing and Strategic Discipline

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 11, 2025 61:06


    This week on Turpentine VC, we're re-releasing one of our most popular episode: Erik Torenberg's interview with Somesh Dash. Somesh is a General Partner at IVP, shares insights on IVP's unique positioning in the venture capital ecosystem, the importance of team construction, the future of venture capital, and how IVP supports founders through scaling and strategic growth. — 

    E76: Thrive Capital's Bold Bets on Category-Defining Companies with Kareem Zaki

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 4, 2025 70:19


    Kareem Zaki shares the founding and development of Thrive Capital, emphasizing their strategy of opportunism combined with a focus on category-defining companies, their unique approach to talent cultivation and company-building in various sectors, especially healthcare, and their intentional media minimalism. — 

    E75: Greg Castle (Anorak VC) on the Biggest AR/VR and Spatial Computing Opportunities

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 28, 2025 50:31


    Greg Castle, founder of Anorak Ventures, discusses the evolution and future of spatial computing, particularly in AR, VR, and technology's impact on human interaction and learning. This conversation took place in February 2023. — 

    E74: General Catalyst CEO on Running VC Like an Enduring Company

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 21, 2025 47:44


    Hemant Taneja, CEO of General Catalyst discusses the firm's evolution from an artisanal business to an enduring venture platform, focusing on operational rigor, fund size, talent strategy, and investments in companies like Stripe and Snap, while emphasizing the importance of responsible innovation and long-term industry transformations. — 

    E73: Aydin Senkut on Building Felicis Ventures

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 14, 2025 62:22


    Today on Turpentine VC, we're releasing one of our most popular episodes: Erik's interview with Aydin Senkut, founder and managing partner of Felicis Ventures. Aydin discusses the evolution and distinct strategies of Felicis Ventures, their focus on mental health, and insights on successful generalist investing in venture capital. — 

    E72: Keith Rabois: On Identifying Talent [Classic Interview]

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 7, 2025 65:03


    This episode of Turpentine VC was recorded in front of a live audience in San Francisco in October 2018.Keith Rabois discusses his frameworks for identifying talent, sharing anecdotes about notable operators and companies like PayPal, LinkedIn, and Square. He emphasizes the importance of talent assessment, strategic thinking, and offers career advice while reflecting on his own experiences and observations. — 

    E71: How to Scale Talent | Andy Price, Artisanal Ventures

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 31, 2024 58:26


    This week on Turpentine VC, Andy Price, a veteran executive recruiter and venture capitalist, joins Nolan Church and Kelli Dragovich from HR Heretics, a Turpentine podcast, for a deep dive into the crucial aspects of hiring, retaining, and developing top talent. Andy has built leadership teams for renowned companies like Snowflake and DocuSign. Check out HR Heretics for more conversations like this one (links below) — 

    E70: Martin Casado of a16z on AI Innovation and AGI

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 24, 2024 108:03


    Today we're sharing a conversation between Martin Casado, general partner at Andreessen Horowitz and Nathan Labenz, AI scout, which originally aired on The Cognitive Revolution podcast from Turpentine. Their discussion explores AI systems complexity and debates whether AI development will lead to AGI. The conversation covers model scaling, biological AI, driverless cars, and AI safety concerns. — 

    E69: Lost Tapes: Elad Gil on the Eve of the AI Boom

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 18, 2024 50:17


    This ‘lost episode' of Turpentine VC with investor Elad Gil was recorded at a unique moment in time (September 2022) — before ChatGPT, Claude and Perplexity launched. Drawing from his experiences at Google, Elad discusses early ML systems, the open source debate, NVIDIA, labor markets, and AI alignment and shares some behind the scenes anecdotes. — 

    E68: How Theory Ventures Differentiates in a Crowded VC Market

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 11, 2024 57:41


    This week on Turpentine VC, we feature a compilation episode of our popular interviews with Tom Tunguz, General Partner at Theory Ventures who just announced a $450M second fund less than two years after launching. Over the course of the episode Tomasz explains their concentrated portfolio approach, and expands on their key theses in AI, decentralized infrastructure, and the future for data businesses (like Databricks and Snowflake). —

    E67: Defense Tech's Rise with 8VC's Alex Kolicich

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 3, 2024 58:51


    This week on Turpentine VC, we're releasing Sourcery's Molly O'Shea's interview with Alex Kolicich, founding partner at 8VC to discuss Alex's H1 2024 report on the venture landscape, covering AI investment challenges, the resurgence of defense technology, and broader economic trends impacting markets. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/3f9d98f9-c3d6-42c9-b2cc-e6ba32c668e4  —

    E66: Why Inception Investing Beats Traditional Seed with Ed Sim of Boldstart

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 26, 2024 56:12


    This week on Turpentine VC, Erik Torenberg interviews Ed Sim, founder of boldstart, on growing the firm from a $1 million fund to $800 million in assets, with a focus on early-stage enterprise and AI investments. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/d0139578-d85f-4171-b879-059dd2813450  —

    From The a16z Podcast: “Marc Andreessen on Building Netscape & the Birth of the Browser”

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 19, 2024 110:08


    Today, we're sharing a special episode from our friends at the chart-topping a16z Podcast. In this conversation, a16z co-founders Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz dive deep into the REAL story behind the creation of Netscape—the web browser co-created by Marc that revolutionized the internet and changed the world. As Ben notes at the top, until today, this story has never been fully told either in its entirety or accurately. The two discuss Marc's early life and how it shaped his journey into technology, the pivotal moments at the University of Illinois that led to the development of Mosaic (a renegade browser that Marc developed as an undergrad), and the fierce competition and legal battles that ensued as Netscape rose to prominence. Ben and Marc also reflect on the lessons learned that still resonate in today's tech landscape (especially with AI). Listen to more episodes of The a16z Podcast here: https://link.chtbl.com/blpusvv- —

    E64: Chris Paik on the End of Software and the Future of AI Infrastructure

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 12, 2024 52:57


    Chris Paik, general partner at Pace Capital, discusses the evolution of the venture capital industry, his frameworks for understanding AI's impact on software, and the future of consumer companies in light of changing infrastructure requirements. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/5eeb1531-f0b6-437f-95f6-3949c0ce780c  — RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Unpack Pricing Dive into the dark arts of SaaS pricing with Metronome CEO Scott Woody and tech leaders. Learn how strategic pricing drives explosive revenue growth in today's biggest companies like Snowflake, Cockroach Labs, Dropbox and more. Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1765716600 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/38DK3W1Fq1xxQalhDSueFg — SPONSORS:

    E63: How Mamoon Hamid and Ilya Fushman Continued Kleiner Perkins' Legacy

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 4, 2024 62:51


    This week on Turpentine VC, we're re-releasing Erik Torenberg's 2023 interview with Mamoon Hamid and Ilya Fushman of Kleiner Perkins to talk about how they have taken over the firm's iconic history and helped drive the next chapter. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/bc08c5ad-9680-4c40-8764-cba7fdf68d16  —

    E62: Wing's Chris Zeoli on AI Infrastructure Opportunities

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 30, 2024 52:55


    Wing Capital's Chris Zeoli discusses AI infrastructure trends, foundation models, data center challenges, cloud security, and Wing's strategic investments. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/6e5d9973-6c77-4ed2-aab7-355be82b9133  —

    E61: Rabois, Bartlett, Ryan, and Weinberg on AI, Gambling, and Healthcare

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 22, 2024 79:05


    Keith Rabois, Logan Bartlett, Kevin Ryan, and Zach Weinberg share a rare anecdote about the first venture investment into OpenAI, lay out the bull and bear case for the leading AI companies and discuss regulatory chess games at play in American politics. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/8a2ea800-ab8a-4115-80c7-04c059d3fb10  —

    E60: How Lightspeed Invests in AI and Beyond with Arif Janmohamed

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 15, 2024 36:08


    This week on Turpentine VC, Erik Torenberg is joined by Arif Janmohamed, partner at Lightspeed Ventures to dive into the world of AI investment. They explore Lightspeed's evolution from a strong focus on enterprise early-stage investing to becoming a global multi-stage firm with a $7 billion capital reach. Arif shares insights on identifying market opportunities, their frameworks for investing in AI, and the future of cybersecurity.  —

    E59: Mike Maples Jr. on Disruptive Investing

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 10, 2024 57:49


    Mike Maples Jr., Founding Partner at Floodgate, sits down with David Weisburd to discuss Mike's new book “Pattern Breakers: Why Some Start-Ups Change the Future”. This is a masterclass on early-stage venture investing. Mike shares his views on identifying ideas and founders that led to his early investments in Lyft, Twitter, and Okta. They also cover how Mike thinks about fundraising from LPs, his learnings from legendary LP David Swensen, and the power and importance of pursuing non-consensus ideas. —

    E58: Roger Ehrenberg on Mastering Seed Investing

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 1, 2024 46:19


    In this episode of Turpentine VC, we're releasing one of our most popular interviews with Roger Ehrenberg, owner of IA Capital Partners and the Managing Partner of Eberg Capital. Roger discusses his contrarian strategy to seed investing that has allowed him to generate 10x fund returns, and emphasizes the importance of focusing on concentrated portfolios to achieve outsized success. They talk about the impact of interest rates, macroeconomic factors, and the potential of sports investments. —

    E57: a16z's Anish Acharya on Consumer AI

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 26, 2024 46:53


    Anish Acharya, General Partner at Andreessen Horowitz, dives deep into the transformative potential of AI in the consumer technology sector. Anish discusses a16z's "Abundance Agenda," detailing how AI is set to revolutionize personal finance, education, wellness, and social interactions. From the concept of "self-driving money" to AI-powered companions and personalized learning, Anish paints a vivid picture of the future while shedding light on the firms decision making and focus areas. He also discusses the challenges and opportunities for startups, offering valuable insights for entrepreneurs and investors alike. —

    E56: Upfront Ventures' Mark Suster on Fund Management and the Exit Landscape

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 17, 2024 63:44


    This week on Turpentine VC, we're releasing Molly O'Shea's interview with Mark Suster, Managing Partner of Upfront Ventures. In this episode, Mark discusses the value of disciplined investments and Upfront Ventures' focused investment strategy. He emphasizes the importance of founder-market fit and market timing in investment decisions. Mark shares his perspectives on promising sectors such as healthcare, national defense, and space, while also reflecting on the lessons from his time as a CEO and the significance of understanding historical context in relation to current trends. —

    E55: Keith Rabois, Logan Bartlett, Kevin Ryan, and Zach Weinberg Dissect the Current Funding Climate

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 10, 2024 88:18


    This week we're dropping the first episode of Logan Bartlett, Keith Rabois, Kevin Ryan, and Zach Weinberg's newest podcast This Won't Last. The show is an unfiltered backchannel where they unpack the hype cycles in venture, startup culture, and business. In this episode they discuss Paul Graham's Founder Mode, AI valuations, the state of the venture market, and free speech concerns with Telegram and TikTok. -- Apply to join over 400 founders and Execs in the Turpentine Network: https://www.turpentinenetwork.co/ -- RECOMMENDED PODCASTS: This Won't Last Eavesdrop on Keith Rabois, Kevin Ryan, Logan Bartlett, and Zach Weinberg's monthly backchannel. They unpack their hottest takes on the future of tech, business, venture, investing, and politics. Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/id1765665937 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2HwSNeVLL1MXy0RjFPyOSz YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ThisWontLastpodcast  -- SPONSORS Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) is a single platform for your infrastructure, database, application development, and AI needs. OCI has four to eight times the bandwidth of other clouds and offers one consistent price. If you want to do more and spend less, take a free test drive of OCI at https://oracle.com/cognitive Building an enterprise-ready SaaS app? WorkOS has got you covered with easy-to-integrate APIs for SAML, SCIM, and more. Join top startups like Vercel, Perplexity, Jasper & Webflow in powering your app with WorkOS. Enjoy a free tier for up to 1M users! Start now at https://bit.ly/WorkOS-Turpentine-Network Head to Squad to access global engineering without the headache and at a fraction of the cost: head to https://choosesquad.com/ and mention “Turpentine” to skip the waitlist. -- LINKS High Output Management by Andy Grove https://www.amazon.com/High-Output-Management-Andrew-Grove/dp/0679762884/  Keith Rabois' lecture notes from 2013: How to Operate https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fQHLK1aIBs  Tesla vs Edison: The Last Days of Night: A Novel by Graham Moore https://www.amazon.com/Last-Days-Night-Novel/dp/0812988922  Disruptive Innovation by Clayton M. Christensen https://hbr.org/2015/12/what-is-disruptive-innovation  The Success Equation: Untangling Skill and Luck in Business, Sports, and Investing by Michael J. Mauboussin https://www.amazon.com/Success-Equation-Untangling-Business-Investing/dp/1422184234  Dark Wire by Joseph Cox https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Wire-Incredible-Largest-Operation/dp/1541702697  On railroads: Engines That Move Markets by Alistair Nairn https://www.amazon.com/Engines-That-Markets-Alisdair-Nairn/dp/0857195999/  The Kremlin has entered your chat https://www.wired.com/story/the-kremlin-has-entered-the-chat/ The Logan Bartlett Show https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCugS0jD5IAdoqzjaNYzns7w -- TIMESTAMPS (00:00) Intro (01:01) Show origins (01:52) Kevin comes back from Burning Man (03:33) Paul Graham's Founder Mode, founder mode intuitive Keith, Pierre Lamond anecdote (06:11) Keith's response to kernel of Founder Mode, Andy Grove High Output Management (07:40) Zach asks what's unique about Founder Mode and Keith clarifies (08:25) Manager vs. Founder (12:09) Founder moral authority (14:12) Investing in founder driven CEOs (17:55) OCI | WorkOS Ads (19:56) State of venture markets (22:25) Driverless car future (28:35) Revenue quality in Al valuations (32:54) Squad Ad (36:33) New technology being disruptive or helpful for incumbents (39:12) Al in Biotech (42:14) Al impacting fund AUM (45:56) Al as the transistor (46:50) Hurdle to return Al CapEx (48:00) Unrealized Capital Gains Tax (50:56) Sweden's tax vs Norway and corporation tax rates (58:23) Medicare and Social Security, beneficial tax policies and misleading life expectancy stats (1:05:44) Lina Khan, Antitrust effect on tech industry (1:13:46) Perplexity shocking Google (1:15:59) Pavel Durov and Russia's Influence in Telegram (1:20:15) Not using TikTok & Telegram, risk in capital in Chinese companies (1:25:55) Closing

    E54: Trae Stephens on Founders Fund

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 3, 2024 55:53


    In this episode of Turpentine VC, we revisit one of our most referenced interviews with Trae Stephens, General Partner at Founders Fund and co-founder of Anduril. Trae discusses the unique DNA of Founders Fund, emphasizing the firm's culture of open debate and high conviction in investments. He highlights the importance of concentrated portfolios, and how Founders Fund's no-process approach differentiates them from other VC firms. They also discuss Founders Fund decision-making, governance, and incubation practices.

    E53: Tomasz Tunguz on the Evolution of the Data Ecosystem

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 27, 2024 47:21


    In this episode of Turpentine VC, Erik Torenberg welcomes back Tomasz Tunguz, GP of Theory Ventures. They dissect the investment landscape of data businesses through the lens of Databricks. They analyze the company's growth trajectory, competition with Snowflake, and its potential in the AI era. Tom presents bull and bear investment cases, discusses valuation metrics, and explores the strategic importance of data catalogs. They also cover the emerging trends in the modern data stack, potential market consolidation, and the impact of AI on investment opportunities.

    E52: Charting the Course of Biotech with Laura Deming, GP of Longevity Fund, and Will Eden of Sylvan Consulting

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 20, 2024 87:02


    This week on Turpentine VC, we're releasing a conversation between Erik Torenberg, Laura Deming of The Longevity Fund and Will Eden of Sylvan Consulting (prior to that, with Thiel capital) focused on the past, present and future of biotech. Recorded in 2019, they discuss platform companies and the evolving biotech investment landscape, examining segments like therapeutics, cell and gene therapies. Will and Laura share insights on the historical waves of biotech, the FDA's role, and the intersections of biotech and tech investment strategies. They address challenges in evaluating biotech startups, the growth in longevity research since 2011, and the potential for extending life spans through various scientific advancements.

    E51: Seth Bannon on Deep Tech, Biotech, and VC Strategies

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 13, 2024 57:01


    Erik Torenberg sat down with Seth Bannon, co-founder and general partner at Fifty Years, a pre-seed and seed focused VC firm. They discuss the challenges of commercializing academic research, the differences between biotech and tech bio companies, exploring recent advancements in bioengineering, genetic engineering, synthetic biology, and the significance of the "bio moment." They also cover the impact of AI and machine learning on biological research and examine alternative funding models transforming the scientific startup landscape. Control your company's spending and close your books 3x faster: visit rippling.com/spend for a free demo and one month free trial.

    E50: The Future of Crypto with Diogo Mónica of Haun Ventures

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 6, 2024 53:51


    In this episode of Turpentine VC, Erik is joined by Diogo Mónica, General Partner at Haun Ventures. They discuss the intersection of AI and crypto, the impact of blockchain technology on fintech, and the advancements in crypto infrastructure. Diogo shares potential use cases of crypto and highlights how fundamental cryptographic research can benefit broader applications beyond just crypto. They also discuss how traditional VCs are integrating into the crypto space and the importance of crypto-native firms in the evolving landscape of venture capital.

    E49: Long Journey's Strategy for Chasing "Magically Weird" Companies

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 30, 2024 50:38


    In this episode of Turpentine VC, Erik interviews Lee Jacobs, Founder & Managing Partner of Long Journey. Lee shares his journey from early investments and his experience with AngelList to co-founding Long Journey with Cyan Banister and Arielle Zuckerberg. He discusses the firm's unique focus on investing in "magically weird" companies and emphasizes the importance of values, mission orientation, and building trust in LP relationships. Lee also opens up about the challenges and rewards of early-stage fundraising, Long Journey's operational strategies, and their vision for building a lasting, meaningful VC firm. -- This show is produced by Turpentine: a network of podcasts, newsletters, and more, covering technology, business, and culture — all from the perspective of industry insiders and experts. We're launching new shows every week, and we're looking for industry-leading sponsors — if you think that might be you and your company, email us at erik@turpentine.co. -- RECOMMENDED PODCAST:

    E48: Building Notable Capital (fka GGV Capital): Insights from Glenn Solomon

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 24, 2024 44:38


    In this episode of Turpentine VC, Erik interviews Glenn Solomon, managing partner at Notable Capital (formerly GGV Capital). They discuss the firm's evolution over 20 years, highlighting its strategic shift towards long-term investments and sector focus. They talk about the rebranding process, Notable Capital's global perspective, and their approach to fund sizing and building a strong internal team. Glenn offers valuable insights on navigating the changing venture capital landscape, including the impact of AI as a major paradigm shift. He emphasizes the importance of staying founder-focused and how Notable Capital differentiates itself through exceptional support.

    E47: Index Ventures' Mike Volpi on AI, Open Source, and Evolution of VC

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 16, 2024 66:01


    In this episode of Turpentine VC, Erik sits down with Mike Volpi, partner at Index Ventures. They discuss the evolution of venture capital–the transformative changes in the VC landscape since 2008, the rise of seed capital, multi-stage asset aggregators, and the professionalization of venture firms. Mike also shares Index Ventures' unique approach to building relationships with founders and fostering a strong company culture. The conversation also dives into challenges of building an open source business model in AI and the potential for smaller models and alternative architectures. 

    E46: Vinny Pujji on Leveraging 3rd Order Analysis to Pick Winners for Left Lane Capital

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 11, 2024 58:20


    In this episode, Managing Partner Vinny Pujji discusses the strategic positioning and innovative approaches of Left Lane Capital. The conversation digs into the specialized data analysis that sets them apart from other investment firms. Vinny also charts out the future of Left Lane and breaks down how he approached several of their investments including ChargeBee, Astrotalk, Takai Tree, and more.

    E45: Sequoia Capital's Roelof Botha and Jacob Helberg on AI and National Security

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 25, 2024 56:36


    In this episode, Erik Torenberg sits down with Sequoia Capital Managing Partner Roelof Botha and Jacob Helberg, author, Palantir advisor, and founder of the Hill and Valley Conference. They delve into the challenges and opportunities around AI against the backdrop of US-China tensions, the role the government has in fostering tech innovation, and the debate between open and closed source models.

    E44: How Benchmark Invests in AI with Eric Vishria and Quilter Founder Sergiy Nesterenko

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 18, 2024 58:11


    In today's episode, we discuss Benchmark's investment philosophy in the AI era with general partner Eric Vishria, and Sergiy Nesterenko, the Founder and CEO of Quilter. Sitting in for Erik Torenberg as host is AI Scout and Cognitive Revolution host Nathan Labenz. They cover the questions that Benchmark asks to determine whether a new company is solving an enduring or temporary problem, and the reasons why Benchmark hasn't invested in a foundational model to date. They also discuss the innovation behind Quilter's groundbreaking use of reinforcement learning to automate integrated circuit board designs. They delve into the importance of thinking beyond 'co-pilots' to fully automated AI solutions, and explore the balance of research and engineering in the AI space.

    E43: Benedict Evans on Automation Crypto, VR, and Predicting the Future of Tech

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 11, 2024 80:38


    Today's episode features a discussion from 2023 with reknowned independent analyst Benedict Evans (formerly a16z and Mosaic Ventures) about his predictions and frameworks for AI, VR/AR, Crypto and blockchain, the cloud, automation, and more. AI scout and podcast host Nathan Labenz (The Cognitive Revolution's host) joined for the last 20 minutes to deepen the discussion on AI. Crush your 2024 goals and learn a new language with Babbel - get 60% off at Babbel.com/torenburg -- SPONSORS:

    E42: Naval Ravikant and Balaji Srinivasan on Why History Points to Crypto

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 4, 2024 69:41


    This episode was initially recorded before a live audience in 2018. Erik Torenberg talks with Naval Ravikant and Balaji Srinivasan about the history of money and centralization and why crypto has the potential to fulfill the promise of the internet. Access global engineering without the headache and at a fraction of the cost: head to https://choosesquad.com and mention “Turpentine” to skip the waitlist. Balaji Srinivasan is a founder, investor, and author of The Network State. Naval Ravikant is an entrepreneur, investor, and former CEO of Angellist. -- This show is produced by Turpentine: a network of podcasts, newsletters, and more, covering technology, business, and culture — all from the perspective of industry insiders and experts. We're launching new shows every week, and we're looking for industry-leading sponsors — if you think that might be you and your company, email us at erik@turpentine.co. -- SPONSORS:

    E41: Do VCs Add Value? With Parker Conrad and Parker Thompson

    Play Episode Listen Later May 28, 2024 72:29


    Today's episode of Turpentine VC is a throwback to a conversation Erik Torenberg recorded with Parker Conrad and Parker Thompson that debates how much "value-add" investors can offer founders, issues around the misalignment between investors and founders, and the underdiscussed factors that influence VC deals. Parker Conrad is the co-founder and CEO of Rippling (and co-founder/CEO of Zenefits) and Parker Thompson is a current partner at SAX Capital (formerly Partner at Angellist). The conversation was recorded in 2018. Access global engineering without the headache and at a fraction of the cost: head to https://choosesquad.com and mention “Turpentine” to skip the waitlist. -- SPONSORS:

    E40: Venture, AI, and the Defense Industry with Joe Lonsdale of 8VC, Josh Wolfe of Lux Capital, and Matt Steckman of Anduril

    Play Episode Listen Later May 21, 2024 32:23


    This episode of Turpentine VC is a live panel from the Hill and Valley Forum held in May 2024 on the pivotal role of novel technologies and AI in modern warfare and defense strategies, and how venture is helping rebuild the capital formation of the industrial base. Senator Mike Rounds moderates Joe Lonsdale, Managing Partner at 8VC, Josh Wolfe of Lux Capital, and Matthew Steckman, CRO at Anduril to discuss the novel military applications of the technologies they are working on and the shift in culture at the DoD that could usher in a new future of warfare. Source better deals with the most complete startup database: https://bit.ly/harmonicturpentine RELATED PODCAST: Subscribe to The Hill & Valley Podcast This season brings together Silicon Valley innovators and lawmakers to address the most pressing problems: the techno-economic war with China, AI regulations, and the next space race. Hear new episodes with Alex Karp, Jacob Helberg, Alexandr Wang, Jack Clark, Roelof Botha, Delian Asparouhov, and Vinod Khosla. Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-hill-valley/id1692653857 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/39s4MCyt1pOTQ8FjOAS4mi -- SPONSORS:

    E39: Navigating the AI Supercycle with Will Summerlin of Autopilot

    Play Episode Listen Later May 14, 2024 48:17


    In this episode of Turpentine VC, Erik Torenberg interviews Will Summerlin, managing partner at Autopilot, a VC firm investing in companies that use AI to automate industries. Prior to co-founding Autopilot, Will was an investor at ARK. Erik and WIll discuss where to find alpha when investing in AI, the competitive edge of incumbents versus startups, and investment strategies tailored to AI's potential. -- SPONSORS:

    E38: Turpentine Fund Brainstorm with Alex Edelson of Slipstream

    Play Episode Listen Later May 7, 2024 47:29


    In this episode of Turpentine VC, Erik Torenberg sits down with Alex Edelson from Slipstream Investors, and explores the potential for a new fund built on top of Turpentine, Erik's media company. This live pitch jam session covers the key questions and mental models for building and validating a new fund. They also cover portfolio construction, fund size and stage, and the delicate balance between sticking to proven strategies and evolving with the market's needs. Source better deals with the most complete startup database: https://bit.ly/harmonicturpentine -- SPONSORS:

    E37: The Vinod Khosla Interview

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 30, 2024 59:45


    Erik Torenberg talks to Vinod Khosla about his contrarian bets at Khosla Ventures, the firm's strategic thinking about the future, and why his “venture assistance” is different than other funds. They also discuss his investment thesis in AI (including OpenAI), robotics, biotech, crypto, education, transportation, and more. Source better deals with the most complete startup database: https://bit.ly/harmonicturpentine -- SPONSORS:

    E36: Joe Lonsdale on His Plan to Revitalize America's Declining Sectors

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 23, 2024 57:21


    This episode features a discussion recorded in 2023 between Erik Torenberg and Joe Lonsdale, founder of 8VC, Palantir and the Cicero Institute. They cover Joe's proposed solutions to challenges in U.S. education, prison reform, homelessness, healthcare, defense, and more. This conversation offers a riveting overview for anyone in venture to better understand the interplay of policy and market-driven solutions to systemic problems. Source better deals with the most complete startup database: https://bit.ly/harmonicturpentine -- SPONSORS:

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