Dynamo Discussions

Santosh shares his perspective on: the Uber firings (including the infamous Levandowski), the future of meal delivery, the failure of shipping companies and the Walmart/Amazon saga.

This week, Santosh discusses Mark Fields leaving Ford, the Waymo + Lyft + GM triad, and how the digitization of freight forwarding and shipping is interacting with the more human-centric customer service aspects of the industry.

Santosh talks about the huge opportunities available in emerging markets, warehousing technologies, and a new way of doing accelerators/ incubators.

Minivans are apparently cool now, roads are made of plastic, Uber is Satan + more! Katlyn and Santosh keep you up to speed on all logistics tech happenings from the week. Katlyn does a written weekly wrap as well. Find that and other great content at www.hitthebutton.co.m Learn more about Dynamo at www.dynamo.vc

Hunter and his team are taking on the notoriously difficult last-mile logistics. They provide heavy lifting, delivery, receiving and short-term warehousing for businesses + their customers. But it's more than just providing those services. They provide a next-level customer experience that makes all the difference. From small gestures, like delivering coffee with all morning deliveries, to developing a people-centric team through consistent reinforcement of values and mottos like "a lot a bit of culture and a little bit of competition," Schlep understands that people drive the logistics tech industry. Important links from this sweet epi: www.schlep.it www.dynamo.vc www.hitthebutton.com www.twitter.com/thisisdynamo

Katlyn does her quick weekly wrap up on major news in logistics, transportation and supply chain technologies, and then Santosh discusses venture news from the past two weeks. This week in the update: We have new ways of delivering food, glasses made out of paper, and Walmart trying to convince you to pick up your online purchases in the store + more. Also, Santosh reflects on Q1, the opportunities in the movement of funds across the supply chain, and the burgeoning industry of telematics. Get the written wrap up with a list of major funding that happened in logistics tech this week: www.hitthebutton.com As mentioned in the episode, read here to have a clearer idea of what constitutes an independent contractor vs an employee: https://hitthebutton.com/founders-are-you-hiring-independent-contractors-or-employees-af6dcc2cf78a And say hi on twitter! www.twitter.com/thisisdynamo

Robots become our buddies, lots of logistics tech funding happened, and more. Katlyn and Santosh keep you up to speed on all logistics tech happenings from the week. Katlyn does a written weekly wrap as well. Find this week's at: https://medium.com/p/6cb0f69a3d3d/ Get more great content at www.hitthebutton.com Learn more about Dynamo at www.dynamo.vc

Matt Patterson and Matt Harb are cofounders at the brand new startup, The House. They discuss the first months of turning their idea into an app- the unexpected difficulties and the company values they are working to instill from day one. A great team and a great conversation. Get The House app: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/the-house-vip-offers-happy-hours-in-chattanooga/id1186319638?mt=8 Read great logistics tech content at www.hitthebutton.com. Learn more about Dynamo at www.dynamo.vc

Quick weekly update: Jeff Bezos moves his arms, drunk dialing with Amazon's Alexa, Airports meet technology, better data for better crops, and more! More content at: www.hitthebutton.com Say hello: www.twitter.com/thisisdynamo Learn more about Dynamo: www.dynamo.vc

This week: Katlyn covers driverless tech advances in India, new delivery tech, more efficient airport security + more. Then, Santosh discusses the MobilEye acquisition, thematic investing + more.

In less than 5 minutes, we update you on some big funding news in the on demand space, tech solving some first world probs, Amazon Prime going to Mexico, and robots reading our minds. A quick listen to keep you up to speed on the amazing innovations happening in logistics, transportation and the supply chain. Get more great content at www.hitthebutton.com Learn more about what we do at Dynamo at www.dynamo.vc

Stefan Seltz-Axmacher has never considered himself "cool enough" to be a startup founder. Others would likely disagree, though. Even as a kid, he wanted to be an inventor and has always shown an interest in entrepreneurship. He joins us today to talk about his latest invention: the driverless truck startup, Starsky Robotics. Hear how Stefan came up with this unique idea for a driverless truck startup and the difficulty he experienced trying to bring it to life. A great story with insightful perspectives on tenacity, salesmanship and authenticity in a startup community too often plagued by BS. Go to www.starsky.io to learn more about this incredible driverless tech. Go to www.dynamo.vc to learn more about Dynamo. Follow us on twitter @thisisdynamo Get more great logistics tech content at www.hitthebutton.com Check out our new weekly update later this week!

Each week we bring you logistics tech updates and news from the VC world. This week Katlyn gets you up to speed on big happenings in the ridesharing and automotive world, autonomous delivery, and much more. Santosh gives you an overview of the Warren Buffet's Annual Letter, the Snapchat IPO and the WeWork Secondary.

This week we speak with the founder and CEO of ClearMetal, Adam Compain, and get the inside scoop on what it takes to run a predictive logistics company.

3D printing has become quite the buzzword, but there are truly innovative things happening behind the scenes because of this technology. Collider is combining 3D printing with traditional manufacturing to solve a problem that has, up until this point, gone unsolved. Hear Graham's story and how he and his team of impressive additive manufacturing experts, have figured out to get the most out of 3D printing tech. Learn more about Collider at www.collidertech.com Learn more about Dynamo Accelerator and Fund at www.dynamo.vc Read more great content at our logistics tech publication, www.hitthebutton.com

Marc Held is on his third company as a founder. He uses his computer engineering background to solve problems big and small. Starting small with building a tracking device so bikes don't get stolen to now transforming a $40 billion industry by enabling a truly transparent supply chain with predictive technology. Hear his story on this week's episode. Learn more about Armada at armada.ai. Learn more about Dynamo Accelerator and Fund and dynamo.vc. Read more great logistics tech content from experts at hitthebutton.com.

The inaugural Dynamo Accelerator program is complete and apps are open for our second batch! Michael Felix, CTO of Slope.io, completed the first program and is here to share what Dynamo is really like and where Slope is now. Big stuff happening. Apply to Dynamo Accelerator and learn more at www.dynamo.vc

3 MIT grads and 1 Harvard Law School grad are using their passion for city development to transform last mile logistics. Hear how and they are tackling this difficult logistics problem on this week's episode! Learn more about Wise Systems: www.wisesystems.com Learn more about Dynamo: www.hellodynamo.com Go to www.hitthebutton.com to stay in the know of all things #LogisticsTech

Meet Tavo Zambrano- founder at Skydrop and retired rockstar. He and his team are taking on on-demand delivery in Latin America. Listen to him discuss his previous successful exit and the Skydrop approach to growing the best team. www.skydrop.com www.hellodynamo.com

The workforce is changing. It's time for technology to help manage the new ways people work. That's what Sirenum is all about. Sirenum was built for companies that rely on staff to drive their operations. The software makes possible large staff operations, scheduling and training. Learn more about Sirenum: www.sirenum.com Learn more about Dynamo: www.hellodynamo.com Say hello! www.twitter.com/thisisdynamo

What were you doing at age 18 and 19? Actually, don't answer that. Jacob Boudreau and Sean Henry are 18 and 19 and are running a company. Not only that, they are in the midst of pivoting to a new business model. That's a lot for anyone, especially founders that young. But that youth may just prove an advantage.

The unseen world of aircraft maintenance is in need of a tech overhaul to keep flights safe and in the air. And that's what this week's founder in focus is all about. His extensive industry experience and tech background make him just the person to solve the issues within this highly regulated industry. Enjoy! Learn more about Dynamo: www.hellodynamo.com Learn more about SynapseMX: www.synapsemx.com Say hello to us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/thisisdynamo

"The trucking industry is the unseen engine of the American economy, and right now it's running poorly." The founders of WorkHound are determined to fix the debilitating problems of the trucking industry- namely driver retention. Why did these two non-truck drivers decide to tackle this huge problem in the trucking industry? You'll have to listen to find out. A hint: It started with hip hop. Sorta... At the end of the episode, you'll hear Max's track, "A Step Away (Ratatat Remix)" Learn more about WorkHound at workhoundapp.com Learn more about Dynamo at hellodynamo.com Follow us on twitter @thisisdynamo. Say hello!

"Today's the day we're going to call somebody, and they'll say, 'You're idiots. There are seven people doing this right now." But that never happened to the founders at Skupos. So they kept at it, and are continuing to keep at it. What is "it"? They are making convenience and liquor stores actually convenient for the retailers and distributors who maintain them. Find out how. Learn more at www.skupos.com And say hi to them on Twitter: @skupos

Brothers as founders? Could be a recipe for disaster, but with Michael Felix (CTO) and Rust Felix (CEO), it probably isn't. These cofounders could not be more opposite, but the trust and bond they share makes that work to their advantage. They are taking the convoluted clinical trial process and streamlining it with software and laser focus. Slope.io approaches the logistics of clinical trials with a design-first mentality- separating it from its competitors by providing the most efficient and seamless user experience. In this episode Michael and Rust give you an inside look at how they approach running a logistics company in the tech age. They also make us laugh and share their creative passions- passions that they believe make them more well-rounded and happy as they deal with the stresses of founder life. You can see one of Rust's amazing paintings on our Instagram: www.instagram.com/thisisdynamo Also, at the end of the episode you will also hear Michael's brilliant electronic music titled, "vessel." Find more of his music here: http://parallelogram.cc/owneroperator/

The founders at Locatible have used a million year old technology to transform the antiquated logistics industry. Using the magnetic forces of the earth to pinpoint the location of people and objects within 5 cm accuracy, they make you re-think what innovation is. Some pretty crazy stuff coming out of Dublin. Follow them on twitter @locatible and learn more at locatible.com

Meet our teams! The Dynamo accelerator has officially begun! On this podcast, we have Jenna Brown and Fabian Blaicher, cofounders of Shipamax.

For such a busy guy, Mike Robinson is unusually chill. He explains how he keeps it all together and shares some of the key ingredients for his success as a restaurant founder and now COO of TN Stillhouse (note the amazing cooking pun we just included there.)Enjoy! And share if it feels right.

Southtree is an eCommerce company that digitizes home videos and cassettes. They have experienced massive success and are based in Dynamo's home sweet home, Chattanooga, TN. The two young cofounders,Nick Macco and Adam Boeselager, pack this episode with tons of great advice, particularly on how digital marketing has made all the difference since day 1- to the point where they consider themselves as much of a digital marketing company as a company that digitizes home videos. They also discuss how growth has led infrastructure and their emphasis on incremental accomplishments over perfection. Great stuff. We hope you enjoy!

We love GE Ventures, and this week we finally get to have a member of their team on our podcast. Ty Findley, Senior Associate at GE Ventures, talks the importance of emotional intelligence and other key attributes of successful founders. He gives insights into how GE Ventures helps teams and how they will help founders in the Dynamo Accelerator. Woo!

Santosh and Katlyn talk Uber drama and the role regulation is playing in innovation.

"Within a startup, everyone should be a sales person." Sales is a critical part of a successful startup. Jason Provonsha, CSO at Steam Logistics, shares lessons from his career in sales and startups. A must-listen as your startup gets ready to hit the market.

Santosh and Katlyn talk over a few of the big points made on the Internet Trends Report 2016 and touch on Jeff Bezos' comments on Amazon brick and mortar bookstores. Fun stuff.

Bellhops, a fast-growing startup that is changing the way people move, started with a few guys and some clipboards helping students move on college campuses. Now, it is a full-blown tech company. We talk with two of its founders- both admittedly non-technical, who reveal how they have grown so quickly and the inherent challenges in that growth.

We debuted a brand new weekly segment! Every Friday we discuss current topics in the industry and offer our predictions on what it all means. This week: strategic partnerships between automakers and ride-share platforms and a trend we foresee happening in investing.

On this week's podcast, you get to hear Brian Trautschold, cofounder at Ambition, share his team's story and experience with the Y Combinator accelerator. He offers startups advice on learning from mistakes and building relationships. Santosh and Katlyn also announce a new mini-Dynamo Discussion we have in the works!

If you aren't making money, you aren't a business. That's why understanding product-market fit is a crucial component for success. Andrew Goldner, Co-Founder at GrowthX, shares his insights into this formulaic process and talks about the importance of supporting businesses in founders' hometowns outside of Silicon Valley.

Ted Alling, MD at Dynamo and Founder at Lamp Post Group shares his experience and advice as an entrepreneur and investor. He talks mentorship, hiring for success and how to always stay sharp.

Allan Davis is not your typical VC. In this candid interview, he talks his transition from entrepreneur to investor and the difficulties in mentoring teams. He offers valuable insights into the process of building a great team. A big takeaway: It's hard as hell.

This week we talk with Shelley Prevost, CEO and Cofounder of Torch- a hardware tech company that is making parenting easier. She talks life as a first time founder and gives insights into working with Ted Alling, Barry Large and Allan Davis- MD's at Dynamo.

We talk with one of our MD's- Barry Large. He shares valuable advice on founding and funding a business and discusses how he approaches mentorship.

Jon Bradford- Entrepreneur in Residence at Dynamo- talks how he became the "Godfather of European Startups", what makes an accelerator worthwhile, and what he's doing with Dynamo.

Katlyn Whittenburg, Social Media Manager at Dynamo, discusses the Dynamo accelerator program with Santosh Sankar, Director at Dynamo. Get an overview of what Dynamo is all about and get to know our Director.