Welcome to the inaugural episode of Unlimited Partners. My guest today is a good friend and one of the people who encouraged me to start this podcast, David Rosenthal, the host of the wildly popular podcast “Acquired.”
Acquired tells the stories of great companies. David and his partner Ben Gilbert began the show in 2015 to explore what made great acquisitions successful. It quickly outgrew its name, expanding beyond corporate transactions to chronicle and analyze the entire journey of enduring institutions. Each episode of Acquired is now downloaded by over 100,000 unique listeners in the first 90 days, and has an estimated 250,000+ subscribers across all podcast players. It has been ranked the #1 Technology show on Apple Podcasts and has built a passionate audience with a 5-star rating across thousands of reviews. Episodes occasionally feature guests, such as the founders/CEOs of Twitter, Atari, Electronic Arts, Sequoia Capital, Eventbrite, Venmo, Recode, Superhuman, Mozilla, Digg, Solana, FTX, and CAA.
Join me for a discussion with David about his family life and fatherhood, his thoughts on how Acquired became the juggernaut that it is today, and his ideas on how and why some of the greatest partnerships he has observed through his career and through the podcast are so successful.
I am your host, Thomas McGannon.
Discussion Points:
David and Tom discuss parenthood, their wives, kids, and all they did and did not expect
Were there any foundational partnerships you observed growing up, that inspired you?
David and Ben are eternal optimists
The “arena show” that Acquired is preparing to put on
What is Acquired all about?
What does an ideal LP (Limited Partnership) look like to you?
Angel investments, internet business, venture capital, and the reward of helping others
David describes some of the most amazing partnerships he’s seen
The strong foundation that partners need to share to be successful
Nvidia and TSMC’s partnership
David’s venture capital startup Kindergarten Ventures
Nat Manning and Kettle
Would you ever have predicted this path for yourself?
David’s surprising past as a dance troupe member in college
Stanford Business School, Zuckerberg, Jack Dorsey, Lex Fridman, Rick Rubin, Luke Burgis, Dave Chappelle, and more
Resources:
David Rosenthal LinkedIn
Ben Gilbert LinkedIn
Acquired Podcast
Thomas McGannon LinkedIn
Luke Burgis Book, Wanting
Lex Fridman Interview w Rick Rubin
