Shows
The Investor With Joel PalathinkalGeorge Bandarian: Untapped VenturesIn this episode, George Bandarian from Untapped Ventures discusses his journey from early life influences to selling a business and founding UNTAP Ventures. He shares insights on the venture studio model and hybrid studio accelerators, focusing on growth marketing strategies for B2B SaaS and Web3. The conversation covers early-stage validation, community building, and synergies with venture capital. George explores marketing trends, future technologies, and the evolving nature of work, along with evaluating founders. He provides advice for emerging fund managers and the significance of hosting events, highlighting content marketing and creating Web3 events. The episode concludes with information on...2025-07-191h 00
AgenticRequest for Startups: 10 AI Ideas We’re Ready to FundWe're at the halfway point of 2025, and AI is evolving faster than ever.In this solo episode, I share Untapped Ventures’ first Request for Startups. It’s a detailed breakdown of the core areas where we’re actively looking to invest. If you're a founder building in AI or exploring ideas, this is the roadmap for what we want to fund next.I walk through the key themes that reflect our thesis across both Agentic AI and Convergence AI. These are the ideas we believe will drive the next genera...2025-07-1623 min
AgenticLive Vibe Coaching with the LLM Pioneer Who Scaled Before ChatGPT | Will ManidisIs your AI startup built to survive the next wave?In this episode of Agentic, Will Manidis, the co-founder of ScienceIO, shares how he built for resilience from day one developing LLMs for healthcare and the frameworks that helped him scale before the world caught up.He shares how local model training on office gaming PCs laid the unlikely foundation for ScienceIO’s reach across millions in digital health.We also discuss:• why OpenAI’s API continues to dominate Gemini• the hidd...2025-06-1251 min
AgenticThe AI Platform That Could Launch 10,000 Startups | WozMost no-code tools give you an MVP. Woz wants to give you a business.On this episode of Agentic, I was joined by Ben Collins and Brad Eckert, co-founders of Woz, an AI platform that lets anyone build real, scalable web and mobile products with zero coding. Think Shopify, but for launching operational SaaS startups.If you’re in the early innings of building something in AI, especially if you’re figuring things out from first principles—let’s chat. Connect with us here:1...2025-05-1059 min
AgenticInside You.com’s Plan to Outthink Google and OpenAIWhat happens when the former Chief Scientist at Salesforce builds a search engine for enterprises?In this episode, Richard Socher (CEO) and Bryan McCann (CTO) of You.com reveal how they’re reinventing enterprise search and agentic workflows with their latest product, Ari—a deep research assistant that goes far beyond fast facts.We explore:How You.com is going deeper than Google and faster than PerplexityWhy consumer LLMs aren’t enough for serious enterprise workHow a Stanford summer project led to one of the most important AI resear...2025-05-0357 min
AgenticCarta’s 2025 AI Funding & Equity Insights | Peter WalkerEveryone has opinions about founder equity, funding timelines, and valuations—but Peter Walker holds the data. In this special live Agentic session, I sat down with Peter, Head of Insights at Carta, to unpack what’s actually happening beneath the surface in early-stage AI startups. Peter’s team has a privileged vantage point—cap tables, valuations, and hiring data across 45,000 startups and 83% of U.S. unicorns. We explore:a common equity mistake that’s quietly killing fundraising chanceswhy AI founders are raising bigger rounds… and k...2025-04-0855 min
AgenticHow Agentic AI is Rewiring Software, Brokers, and the FutureI brought Ben Collins of Woz and Dakotah Rice and Tushar Nair of Harper for a special episode of Agentic–our AGM!Ben’s Woz lets non-technical founders build scalable apps with no engineering team—think Shopify for software while Dakotah and Tushar’s Harper quotes 476 complex insurance deals with voice AI, turning family brokerage chaos into a data goldmine. On the docket:Harper’s logged-call advantage for scalable precisioncompute’s brewing storm (NVIDIA’s got rivals rising)how reasoning models cut months off build timesConnect wit...2025-03-2533 min
AgenticIs Big Tech Shaping The Future Of AI? | Wendell WallachAs AI races forward, one question looms large—who decides what’s right and wrong?Behind the breakthroughs and multi billion-dollar valuations, a power struggle is unfolding. Big Tech is quietly shaping AI policy in the shadows, and governments are stuck playing catch-up. In this episode, I speak with Wendell Wallach, a foremost expert on AI ethics and governance, to break down the challenges and power dynamics steering the course of AI.Co-author of Moral Machines and a key figure at Yale and Carnegie Coun...2025-02-2749 min
AgenticEx-OpenAI Insider on AGI, DeepMind & AI | Logan KilpatrickHe built AI-powered lunar rovers at NASA.He was in the room when GPT launched. Now, Logan Kilpatrick is helping developers push the boundaries of AI at Google DeepMind.In this episode, Logan shares his front-row view of AI’s most pivotal moments—and how they hint at the next paradigm shifts.We also get into:• inside Open AI on Launch day• how Google DeepMind’s Gemini 2.0 Flash is flipping the script on AI economics• the...2025-02-2148 min
AgenticMove Aside DeepSeek, Here’s Liquid AI, a $2B LLM Startup from MIT, Inspired by Worms | Agentic EP 10Bigger AI models dominate the headlines—but what if the real breakthrough lies in making AI smaller?In this episode, I sit down with Ramin Hasani, Alexander Amini, and Daniela Rus—who are at the helm of Liquid AI—to discuss how their approach challenges conventional architectures and unlocks new frontiers for AI deployment.Also on the docket:• Ramin explains how insights from a microscopic worm led to a novel AI model.• Alexander breaks down why Liquid AI operates efficiently on local devices—wi...2025-02-1556 min
Agentic4x Neurotech AI Founder w/ $650M+ Exits Shares PMF & Fundraising | Agentic EP 09For years, $7.2B in U.S. government-backed neuroperformance research sat untouched—proven cognitive enhancements with no commercial application.David Bach saw the gap. Optios is bridging classified IP with market demand, transforming military-grade neuroscience into real-world performance gains.The upside? Monumental. The imbalance? Even bigger.We dive into:• how declassified DOD research is unlocking a new frontier in neurotech• the hidden psychology behind winning investor buy-in• what $600M+ in exits taught him about product-market fitCon...2025-02-0838 min
AgenticThe Secret Sauce to Scalable AI Agents | Agentic EP 08AI agents will drive the next wave of automation—but only if they stop breaking.
In this episode, I’m joined by Alex Reibman, Adam Silverman, and Braelyn Boynton, the powerhouse team behind Agency.
Together, they’re tackling the toughest challenges in AI agent development, from failure recovery to debugging and slashing operational costs.
In this episode:
• Alex reveals why today’s AI agents break in unpredictable ways—and how Agency is solving it.
• Adam unpacks O...2025-01-311h 03
AgenticHow to Raise + Scale an AI Startup in 2025 | Agentic EP 07AI is a platform shift unlike any other, with far-reaching implications for every startup.
In my recent webinar with the Founder’s Bay community in Silicon Valley, hosted by Mariane Bekker, I explored why AI should be the core focus for founders aiming to build scalable, high-impact companies.
Key takeaways:
• there’s hardly an application that AI can’t improve
• AI startups are exiting faster—7 years on average vs. 13 for others
• building in AI is your best shot at hitting $100M ARR
• it’s not a...2025-01-2455 min
AgenticHow AI Agents Cut Insurance Costs By 90% | Agentic EP 06The insurance industry has a 400,000 agent shortage.
I sat down with Harper's founders, who use agentic AI to deliver enterprise-grade service at 1/10th the cost.
Dakotah Rice and Tushar Nair revealed how they're leveraging the $85B E&S market:
• voice AI running quotes to claims
• why selling AI tools failed, but becoming a broker worked
• how they're hitting software margins in a services business
As insurance carriers exit Florida and California, Harper couldn’t have come at a better t...2025-01-1653 min
AgenticYour AI Architecture Is Wrong | Agentic EP 05Only 8 companies have shipped AI Agents from production. In this episode of Agentic, I brought together 3 of them, to reveal how they crossed this chasm:
1. Aria Attar (TensorStax) shows how they're tackling the 1:250 data scientist shortage with agents that drop into existing cloud environments.
2. Joe Stolte (Daily.ai), fresh off multiple exits including a $62.5 M acquisition, reveals how they turned 1B newsletter interactions into $1.2M in ARR in just 14 months.
3. Jacky Wong (Nullify) explains how they're helping enterprises where security teams are outnumbered 4:1 by...2025-01-1050 min
AgenticWhere Top VCs Are Placing Their AI Bets In 2025 | Agentic EP 04With $90B poured into AI over the past year, where is the focus going to be in 2025? I spoke to four top investors to find out.
1. Yipeng Zhao (Embark Ventures) believes AI offers a one-year head start. Fast GTM wins. Slow movers risk irrelevance.
2. Hari Arul (Khosla Ventures) has stopped backing co-pilots altogether. His take? Human-in-loop models won’t survive past 2026.
3. James Shecter (Fika Ventures) says enterprises need the illusion of control over their AI workflows.
4. Nicole Toussaint (TenOneTen Ve...2025-01-0354 min
AgenticWhy AI Agents Are Eating Enterprise Software | EP 03 Founders PanelWhile 92% of Fortune 500s realize the surplus alpha that can be created from leveraging AI, only 25% of SMBs realize the same.
I sat with 6 founders who are building Agentic AI solutions: Jacky Wong (Nullify), Aria Attar (TensorStax), Max Ahrens (Maihem), Saurabh Sharma (You.com), Jonas Diezun (Beam AI), and Ashar Rizqi (Bounti.ai).
The key highlights from our conversation were:
- OpenAI’s function calling breaks down when scaling requires consistent outputs and error handling—just ask Jacky or anyone building enterprise agents.
2024-12-2749 min
AgenticTop SF VCs Discuss Agentic & Vertical AI | EP 02As we transition into agentic models, it’s evident there’s a blend of optimism and caution.
In this panel discussion, I was joined by Jon Chu (Khosla Ventures), Pranav Reddy (Conviction), Andrew Brackin (Gradient), Arash Afrakhteh (Pear VC), Alejandra Vergara (Bee Partners), and Nahim Nasser (Georgian) as we explored:
• why agentic AI will drive systemic shifts across various industries
• the need to define scalable, high-impact use cases for agent-driven solutions
• shifting dynamics of human-machine interaction
• how agentic AI is advancing in parallel with LLMs2024-12-191h 01
AgenticHow Maven AGI is Creating Delightful CX with Agentic AI | EP 01To me, agentic is intent meeting capability—systems that act autonomously, adapt intelligently, and drive purposeful outcomes.
Our guests on this episode—Jonathan Corbin, Sami Shalabi, and Eugene Mann—embody that. They're pushing AI agents forward for real-world enterprise use cases with Maven AGI.
We discuss:
• solving complex challenges with AI agents
• empowering enterprises with cutting-edge tools, and
• why agentic AI will create new roles for humankind
Let’s get into it.
Connect...2024-12-121h 14
The Business of Meetings201: A.I. Revolution: What Does it Mean for You? with George Bandarian We are thrilled to engage in a conversation with George Bandarian today. George is an AI expert, a well-informed and seasoned Venture Capitalist, and a member of various communities focused on the future of entrepreneurship. He has owned several companies and now assists people in implementing AI. Get ready to be amazed as we explore the remarkable possibilities AI holds! Connect with Eric Rozenberg LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Website 2024-01-1639 min
Office Hours with David MeltzerShannah Kennedy, George Bandarian II, Milaena FerrareseShannah KennedyShe is one of Australia’s foremost strategic executive life & health coaches. She works to transform her clients’ careers, well-being, & lives. She specializes in executive strategy, transition, values, vision, overcoming burnout, and life planning for individuals. Her proven expertise enables clients to gain control of their lives in order to achieve their visions and goals and find happiness and fulfillment.George Bandarian IIHe can also discuss: their recent investments (Finnt, Arro, Metaintro), their raising of Fund 1 (closing this month), & the planning of Fund II (they are in the early stages of p...2023-09-1748 min
WeAreLATech Los Angeles Startups Podcast, hosted by Espree DevoraRemix: Haley Hamer, Sabena Suri, and George Bandarian: WeAreLATech Startup SpotlightDon't miss out on the next WeAreLATech podcast episode, get notified by signing up here http://wearelatech.com/podcastWelcome to WeAreLATech's Los Angeles Tech Community Spotlight! “Remix: Haley Hamer, Sabena Suri, and George Bandarian”WeAreLATech Podcast is a WeAreTech.fm production.To support our podcast go to http://wearelatech.com/believe To be featured on the podcast go to http://wearelatech.com/feature-your-la-startup/Want to be featured in the WeAreLATech Community? Create your profile here http://wearelatech.com/communityHost,Espree Devorahtt...2023-01-1111 min
WeAreLATech Los Angeles Startups Podcast, hosted by Espree DevoraRemix: Lex Oiler, Tricia Hoke, and George Bandarian: WeAreLATech Startup SpotlightDon't miss out on the next WeAreLATech podcast episode, get notified by signing up here http://wearelatech.com/podcastWelcome to WeAreLATech's Los Angeles Tech Community Spotlight! “Remix: Lex Oiler, Tricia Hoke, and George Bandarian” WeAreLATech Podcast is a WeAreTech.fm production.To support our podcast go to http://wearelatech.com/believe To be featured on the podcast go to http://wearelatech.com/feature-your-la-startup/Want to be featured in the WeAreLATech Community? Create your profile here http://wearelatech.com/communityHost,Espree Devorahttps://t...2022-11-3011 min
WeAreLATech Los Angeles Startups Podcast, hosted by Espree DevoraRemix: Rachael McCrary, George Bandarian, and Brian Femminella: WeAreLATech Startup SpotlightDon't miss out on the next WeAreLATech podcast episode, get notified by signing up here http://wearelatech.com/podcastWelcome to WeAreLATech's Los Angeles Tech Community Spotlight! “Remix: Rachael McCrary, George Bandarian, and Brian Femminella” WeAreLATech Podcast is a WeAreTech.fm production.To support our podcast go to http://wearelatech.com/believe To be featured on the podcast go to http://wearelatech.com/feature-your-la-startup/Want to be featured in the WeAreLATech Community? Create your profile here http://wearelatech.com/communityHost,Espree Devorahttps://twitter.co...2022-09-0712 min
WeAreLATech Los Angeles Startups Podcast, hosted by Espree DevoraRemix: George Bandarian, Brian Femminella, and Mark McDermott: WeAreLATech Startup SpotlightDon't miss out on the next WeAreLATech podcast episode, get notified by signing up here http://wearelatech.com/podcastWelcome to WeAreLATech's Los Angeles Tech Community Spotlight! “Remix: George Bandarian, Brian Femminella, and Mark McDermott”WeAreLATech Podcast is a WeAreTech.fm production.To support our podcast go to http://wearelatech.com/believe To be featured on the podcast go to http://wearelatech.com/feature-your-la-startup/Want to be featured in the WeAreLATech Community? Create your profile here http://wearelatech.com/communityHost,Espree Devorahtt...2022-07-0611 min
WeAreLATech Los Angeles Startups Podcast, hosted by Espree DevoraRemix: Tatiana Mulry, Tricia Hoke, and George Bandarian: WeAreLATech Startup SpotlightDon't miss out on the next WeAreLATech podcast episode, get notified by signing up here http://wearelatech.com/podcastWelcome to WeAreLATech's Los Angeles Tech Community Spotlight! “Remix: Tatiana Mulry, Tricia Hoke, and George Bandarian”WeAreLATech Podcast is a WeAreTech.fm production.To support our podcast go to http://wearelatech.com/believe To be featured on the podcast go to http://wearelatech.com/feature-your-la-startup/Want to be featured in the WeAreLATech Community? Create your profile here http://wearelatech.com/communityHost,Espree Devorahtt...2021-12-0113 min
How'd it Happen?George Bandarian II, Don’t Swim in Bloody Red Oceans (#216)George Bandarian II is the Founder, General Partner & CEO of Untapped Ventures, a $10 million venture studio fund based in LA.
The post George Bandarian II, Don’t Swim in Bloody Red Oceans (#216) first appeared on Mike Malatesta.2021-11-291h 02How'd it Happen?George Bandarian II, Don't Swim in Bloody Red Oceans (#216)I am very excited to share today’s episode with you because it will be interesting, especially if you’re currently thinking about investing, advising, and more. We have George Bandarian II with us, and we join him as he journeys back from where everything started. We also talk about him taking over their family business, what Untapped Ventures does, and where best to find George and all his services.George Bandarian II is the Founding Partner of Untapped Ventures, a $10MM early-stage studio fund based in LA that builds and invests in startups re-imagining the New Future of W...2021-11-291h 02
WeAreLATech Los Angeles Startups Podcast, hosted by Espree DevoraRemix: Rita Mounir, Tricia Hoke, and George Bandarian: WeAreLATech Startup SpotlightDon't miss out on the next WeAreLATech podcast episode, get notified by signing up here http://wearelatech.com/podcastWelcome to WeAreLATech's Los Angeles Tech Community Spotlight! “Remix: Rita Mounir, Tricia Hoke, and George Bandarian” WeAreLATech Podcast is a WeAreTech.fm production.To support our podcast go to http://wearelatech.com/believe To be featured on the podcast go to http://wearelatech.com/feature-your-la-startup/Want to be featured in the WeAreLATech Community? Create your profile here http://wearelatech.com/communityHost,Espree Devorahttps...2021-11-2412 min
WeAreLATech Los Angeles Startups Podcast, hosted by Espree DevoraGeorge Bandarian of Untapped Ventures: WeAreLATech Startup SpotlightDon't miss out on the next WeAreLATech podcast episode, get notified by signing up here http://wearelatech.com/podcastWelcome to WeAreLATech's Los Angeles Tech Community Spotlight! “George Bandarian of Untapped Ventures”WeAreLATech Podcast is a WeAreTech.fm production.To support our podcast go to http://wearelatech.com/believe To be featured on the podcast go to http://wearelatech.com/feature-your-la-startup/Want to be featured in the WeAreLATech Community? Create your profile here http://wearelatech.com/communityHost,Espree Devorahttps://twitter...2021-11-2242 min
The Presidential Lifestyle Podcast108. A conversation on becoming a CEO that makes the world a better place with George Bandarian. The world, the markets, and business overall change and fluctuate. So why do some people and companies choose to stay the same? If you are an entrepreneur feeling stuck in a business you’ve lost passion for, you’re not alone. Listen to how George Bandarian navigated his search for meaning by growing & selling his company so he could pursue his best life. He's shifted to mentoring & investing in founders looking to grow and scale, so now he has more meaning to his life. Get unstuck, listen now. Want more details on anything you heard in today's show. http://Presidentiallifestyle.com/b...2020-09-021h 19
Business Owner FreedomAre you an Exponential Entrepreneur? with George Bandarian - Episode 52 Disruption, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Thinking Exponentially are some of the key identifiers of an Exponential Entrepreneur. Are you and exponential entrepreneur. Listen and find out. For more information go to www.BusinessOwnerFreedom.com/blog Our discussion today included these points and more: 1. Exponential Entrepreneur Definition. 2. How to start up with less stress and maximizing valuation. 3. The 5 Rings of Importance - starting with purpose. 4. The convergence of exponential technologies. 2019-06-2650 min
Exit Coach RadioGeorge Bandarian - How I grew my company 10x prior to sale
When George took over the family business, he started on a journey to 10x the value of the business and sell it. Here, he discusses how he did it.https://www.georgebandarian.com/exitcoach
2019-05-2022 min