Y in the Valley

Few Y in the Valley guests have been as insightful, candid, and vulnerable as Jeetu Patel, Cisco's EVP and GM of Security and Collaboration. This episode spans the gamut — from how to build products with ‘intrinsic pull' to the disruption of AI, improving remote collaboration, and on a more serious note — how Jeetu is building a relationship with grief and loss. Jeetu's candor is refreshing, and as a leader at a company with more than 70,000 people globally, it's clear how and why he's earned such an influential role. This isn't an episode you want to miss.Show Notes1:15: The Con-Man7:39: Navigating the grief journey15:51: ChatGPT's secret power21:48: Disruption + the need for AI regulation32:09: What sets WebEx apart42:53: Building strong, deep teams…remotely45:50: The Sprint

Dan Bjerke knows a thing or two about driving growth. As the Head of Clover, he's driven explosive revenue growth, expected to surpass $1.8 billion by the time 2022 winds down. He's steered Clover's business to become one of the most formidable players building POS platforms today, managing more payment volume than Square. Clover's also helped more than 700K small and mid-sized businesses thrive, thanks in part to the POS solutions they offer. So when it comes to growth—Dan knows what it takes. It's part of the reason Ashish sat down with him: over the course of their conversation, Dan shares what the three primary drivers of Clover's growth are, his insights for aspiring leaders looking to scale a business the right way, and why it's crucial to be obsessed about talent as any organization expands. So sit down, strap in and see how the Head of Clover gets it done. Show Notes1:37: All in the family5:11: Understanding Clover today8:20: What powers Clover's explosive growth16:21: Attracting leading talent 25:40: Helping businesses thrive33:27: The importance of failure37:40: The Sprint

It's September. And like every previous year in recent memory, California is on fire. Again. Evolving problems, though, call for evolved solutions. Enter FIREWATCH— a first-of-its-kind NFT project designed to fund fire prevention in California. Buying one of the pop-art NFTs in this collection of California landscapes delivers 100% of proceeds to forest conservation efforts through the project's official non-profit partner, One Tree Planted. YML created this NFT experience by building on Solana, an eco-friendly blockchain, ensuring every transaction is carbon-offset. Ashish focuses this episode on FIREWATCH, alongside a pair of guests — Anatoly Yakovenko, Co-Founder of Solana, as well as Matt Hill, Chief Environmental Evangelist at One Tree Planted. Together they unpack the FIREWATCH origin story, the promise of Web3, what the future holds for crypto, and how crucial it is blockchains dramatically decrease their environmental footprint. But they don't stop there. Matt shares the secrets to One Tree Planted's massive growth, what it takes to limit the severity of wildfires, and his best tips on building a nonprofit from the ground up. Show Notes 2:25: Welcome to One Tree Planted and Solana 5:15: One Tree Planted's explosive growth 6:52: Proof of stake and an energy-efficient blockchain  9:10: The future of crypto  18:20: The promise of Web3 19:44: Tackling wildfire today 24:28: Launching a nonprofit 26:22 The wrap-out

Adrian Aoun, Forward Heath's CEO and Founder, is anything but one-dimensional. He wants Forward Health to change how the world does health care; to increase both access and improve quality all at once. On this episode of Y in the Valley, Ashish chats with Adrian about his 30-year plan to get Forward's offering — focused affordable services centered on prevention and protecting long-term health — to not just millions of people in the US, but billions around the globe. They discuss the role bleeding-edge technology plays in Forward's patient experience, and why thinking about healthcare as a product rather than a service can help the health industry level up to meet tomorrow's challenges head on. (Note: episode includes explicit language.) Show Notes:  2:21: Immigration, assimilation + the insight that followed 7:00: Launching his first company  12:45: Working as an advisor to the Obama Administration 16:27: Fast forward to…Forward Health 25:40: Why healthcare should be a product, not a service  36:46: Landing Forward's first 1k customers 46:08: The Sprint

Mental health is health. Perhaps that seems obvious today, but the fight for awareness and empathy within mental health is decades old, and ongoing. Headspace brings mindfulness and meditation to over 30M users globally and positions mental wellness as a true north for their brand. On this episode of Y in the Valley, Ashish interviews Leslie Witt, Headspace's Chief Product and Design Officer, who shows how the right combination of technology and design can amplify the importance of mental health and  wellness. Leslie walks us through how Headspace's mindfulness app evolved to connect users to clinical treatment, why habits often ebb and flow, and the powerful role experimentation plays in driving lasting, enduring product outcomes.  Show Notes:  1:41: Letters to the President  9:02: Coming to Headspace during a Pandemic 13:25: Why Headspace Needed to Step Up 20:35: The Secret About Habit Formation 26:31: Establishing an Enduring Brand 30:32: Evolving into Headspace Health 34:39: Building in Teams in Today's Environment 40:09: The Sprint

Talent is everywhere. It's something Gabe Dalporto, CEO of Udacity, understands well. Udacity is an edtech platform working to provide societal-level change by leveling up the workforce through nanodegrees in specialized fields. For some, their fields are being threatened by tech advancements that could render their career obsolete. For others, folks are working in low-skill jobs with no way out. But Gabe has the solution. In this episode, Gabe unpacks how he went from studying nuclear engineering at MIT to leading a company that's had more than fourteen million users to date. He takes us through the detours, the risks and the wins. But Udacity is just getting started—hit play to learn more. Show Notes 2:30 - 7:40: Cultivating a passion for education through nuclear engineering 7:41 - 14:32: Revitalizing Lending Tree with explosive growth  14:33 - 18:17: What motivated the switch to Udacity  18:18: - 25:59: How Udacity is upskilling and transforming lives   26:00 - 32:15: The challenges Udacity is rising to meet  32:16 - 36:56: How Udacity is embracing diversity, equity and inclusion 37:57 - 44:13: Enduring the challenges the pandemic brought  44:14 - 48:22: The Sprint

“Get used to the grind.” Despite saying those words with a smile, Sasha Siddhartha, Co-founder and CTO of Thrive Market, doesn't sugarcoat it. The path to building a company is arduous, and Sasha unpacks how he's built his company, Thrive Market, the online grocer dedicated to organic and natural foods, from an idea with friends to a national grocery with 1M subscribers across the US. Sasha recalls the uncertainty his co-founding team felt at launch and the hypergrowth that followed, highlighted by a serious spike over the last 18 months as Covid forced countless people to online grocery shopping. Thrive is proving to be more than just a ‘digital Whole Foods': it's a challenger brand and the next generation of grocery in a remote, distributed world. Show Notes: 1:40: Embarking on the startup journey  6:48: How the initial idea behind Thrive evolved  15:02: Unearthing the gap in the market 20:12: Keeping hypergrowth under control 23:58: Learning from those early experiments that failed 31:07: Designing Thrive for today's consumer 36:15: Sasha's advice to tomorrow's founders  37:25: The Sprint 

The future is electric — just ask Gregor Hembrough, President of Polestar USA, a Swedish, electric vehicle company rapidly growing across the US. Initially launched as a high-performance unit within Volvo, Polestar's vehicles are as thoughtful as they are beautiful; not just the design of the surface details, but the sustainable technology that lives under the hood. Gregor explores Polestar's origin story, detailing how a company dependent on gasoline pivoted to electric and identified a gap in the marketplace it was designed to fill. Along the way, he exposes the biggest challenges the EV business faces, and how Polestar is uniquely positioned to fuel the future with their commitment to sustainability, technology and design. So hop in, buckle your seatbelt and listen as Ashish and Gregor dish on all things EV. Show Notes 4:45: Cultivating his love for cars, Gregor spent 20+ years at Volvo before joining Polestar  9:29: Why the future is changing the EV adoption rate  13:15: How battery anxiety is going to be a thing of the past  17:01: Why someone would buy a Polestar over a Tesla  23:40: How the car buying experience is doing a 180° 27:22: The key challenges facing the EV industry today 37:31: Why Polestar is evolving what a car salesman can be  40:24: The Sprint

Figma has transformed the silo'd world of design into a collaborative, multiplayer game. Dylan Field, CEO and Co-Founder of Figma, shares his journey building the product and how he dropped out of college and ultimately scaled Figma to a $2B valuation. At YML, we use Figma across all disciplines for the end to end experience — not just design. It's become a vital tool in building world-class digital products for both our team and our clients. Lastly, we're excited to welcome YML's Chief Creative Officer, Stephen Clements, as a co-host for this episode. Show Notes:  1:59: The impact Figma has on YML 9:18: The early experiments before Figma was born 14:27: Building a multiplayer design tool when people insisted it wouldn't work 19:26: Crafting a culture that stays the same through massive growth 25:11: How FigJam is inviting even more collaboration between teams 32:19: Why Figma waited years to start charging customers 33:20: Framework for building culture when the team is remote  49:49: The Sprint

Assaf Wand knew how broken the home insurance market was: an industry more interested in covering antiquated items like gold bullion and mausoleums rather than the electronics and home office equipment you need to get through your day. So Wand went to work, unafraid of the insurance world's red tape, rules and regulations, and launched Hippo. Designed to be a proactive, customer-centric experience, Hippo has made a swift impact with more than $400M premiums in force, now available in 34 states. After announcing its plans to go public, Hippo, an InsuraTech unicorn, is now valued at $5B. Discover how Wand navigates the complex world of insurance to build a home insurance alternative that serves real people's real needs. Show Notes2:09: What the Israeli Air Force taught him about entrepreneurship 6:40: Seeing Silicon Valley for the first time 9:15: Where did the idea for Hippo Insurance come from?  14:07: Overcoming the challenges a heavily regulated market brings 16:30: Realizing this was a business and not just an experiment  18:51: Obtaining the first 100 customers  22:13: Early pushback from investors and employees  25:37: Breaking Hippo Insurance down into two chapters 28:55: Building the culture 36:51: Showing up for customers during the 2020 California wildfires  41:54: The Sprint 

How do you build an investment community of 1M members, valued at $1.2B, in just 18 months during a pandemic? Leif Abraham, Co-CEO of Public.com, has an answer — and a vision. Launched in 2019, Public.com is both a social media platform and an investing app designed to make the stock market accessible for a new generation of investors. In this episode, Ashish and Leif explore how Public.com is changing the way people engage with the stock market, and why building financial literacy is ultimately a long term investment in public good. Show Notes: 1:34 - Getting involved with Public.com  6:37 - Sharing what the first version of Public.com looked like  8:16 - The power of combining a social networking app with an investing app 9:40 - The challenge of building community on the Public.com platform 12:26 - Acquiring the first 10k users 15:58 - How does financial literacy lead to wealth creation?  20:10 - Getting new users accustomed to stock market volatility  22:29 - Designing the team over the course of the pandemic  31:07 - Building out Public.com during the pandemic 32:32 - The Sprint 

Why do you end up where you're at? That question fascinates Rene Lacerte, the CEO and founder of Bill.com, the fintech platform currently valued at $10 billion. As a fourth generation entrepreneur, building is literally in his blood. But the journey is his own—his trek through various failures and triumphs has shaped his point of view on the world. In this episode, we dispel the myth of overnight success, unearth the secrets of building rich company culture, and discuss how to build a company at speed and scale. SHOW NOTES 2:37 - Unpacking how Bill.com puts the back office in the back pocket  5:55 - Setting up shop in the West Coast 9:10 - Starting PayCycle during the dot com bubble burst 14:42 - The myth of overnight success 19:13 - Launching Bill.com + acquiring the first hundred customers  21: 50 - The moment Bill.com was no longer just an experiment  27:11 - Key chapters of Bill.com 31:30 - Building + growing culture at Bill.com 37:20 - Navigating burnout during accelerated growth  40:26 - The Sprint 

Pete Flint was the CEO and co-founder of Trulia, a service that prioritizes homebuyers and sellers and not real estate agents. He grew Trulia to over 50 million users, culminating in an IPO and merger with Zillow for $3.5 billion. Today, Flint is a general partner at NFX, an entrepreneur-driven seed fun that's supported some of the most notable names in Silicon Valley: Lyft, DoorDash, Patreon, as well as Flint's own Trulia. In total, NfX has founded 10 companies with exits of $10B dollars. In this episode, Pete and Ashish discuss Pete's journey building and scaling Trulia, the one trait successful entrepreneurs share, and Pete's prediction about the future of remote work. Pete also shares how he builds teams, company culture, and his tips for cultivating working relationships through consistent feedback. SHOW NOTES 5:50: The original idea behind Trulia  8:01: How Pete built the first version of Trulia 10:10: The transition from experiment to full-fledged business  11:20: Pete outlines the major three chapters of Trulia 13:38: How Trulia survived The Recession  18:13: How to give feedback when team morale is low 19:46: Building the right company culture  23:20: The path from CEO to investor 26:50: Breaking down NFX 28:55: What remote work could look like in 2021 34:41: The magic of product/market fit 42:50: The Sprint

Tim Chen is the CEO and founder of NerdWallet, a service that un-clutters the world of money and helps people make smart financial decisions. He's also one of the most humble and prudent founders in Silicon Valley. In this opening episode, Tim and Ashish discuss Tim's evolution from unhappily working at a hedge fund to launching and scaling NerdWallet to a team of 600 and over $200M in revenue. Tim also shares the often overlooked gift of being a child of immigrants, how to avoid burnout, and building a brand and culture that is future proof. Show Notes 3:10 - Why consumer trust is the cornerstone of business. 4:55 - How being the child of immigrants is a gift. 8:01 - The moment NerdWallet transitioned from an experiment to a real business. 11:25 - Building and scaling the NerdWallet business 15:35 - Why you need both hubris and humility to launch a business. 17:50 - How you prevent burnout? 22:22 - Building the culture at NerdWallet 24:34 - The hurdles NerdWallet faced that shaped the brand today 26:35 - Tim's prediction on the future of work 33:01 - The Sprint: Apple vs Google? Strategy or speed? People or process? And more…

Silicon Valley isn't a zip code. It's a mindset.