Shows
SourceryElad Gil, Jared Kushner & Eric Wu on AI in Business | Brain CoElad Gil joins Sourcery to unpack the story behind Brain Co, his new AI incubation venture with Jared Kushner (Affinity Partners) and Eric Wu (Opendoor).Brain Co was founded to solve a glaring problem: Fortune 100s and government institutions desperately want AI adoption but lack the engineering depth and infrastructure to make it real. Backed by a $30M Series A led by Gil Capital and Affinity Partners, Brain Co is already pulling in some of the sharpest AI minds and heavyweight backers across tech and finance.We dive deep...
2025-10-2036 min
SourceryElad Gil Explains Why 90% of Startups Fail in Every Tech CycleElad Gil, of Gil Capital and Gil & Co, aka one of Silicon Valley’s most influential investors, sits down with Molly O’Shea to unpack it all.. from the 1999 IPO boom to the AI bubble, and what it really takes to build durable companies across cycles.Elad has backed more than 200 companies, from Stripe, Airbnb, and Coinbase to next-gen AI leaders like Perplexity, Harvey, and Decagon. Today, he runs Gil Capital, a multi-stage investment firm potentially managing “billions,” and continues to be one of the most insightful voices on technology, capital, and company-building.
2025-10-1737 min
SourceryInside The $2.2B AI Research Accelerator | TuringAI has eaten the internet, data labeling is so over, and $30 trillion of human work is on the verge of automation. Jonathan Siddharth, Founder & CEO of Turing, joins Sourcery to break down the power shift in AI training — from commodity data labeling to expert research — positioning Turing apart from AI data providers like Scale AI, Mercor, & Surge.Turing has become a hidden force in the AI race, hitting $300M in ARR in 2024 (~3x YoY), achieving profitability, and raising $111M at a $2.2B valuation in March. That growth cements its position as one of the fast...
2025-10-1049 min
SourceryBase Power Raises $1B led by Addition, with Trust Ventures, Valor Equity, Thrive, Lightspeed, a16z, Altimeter, Stepstone, Elad GilAt just 2 years old, Base Power has become one of the fastest-growing distributed energy companies in the U.S. Founded by Zach Dell and Justin Lopas, the company just announced a $1 billion Series C led by Addition. All other major investors are re-investing, including Trust Ventures, Valor Equity Partners, Thrive, Lightspeed, a16z, Altimeter, Stepstone, Elad Gil, 137Ventures, Terrain, and Waybury. New major investors include Ribbit, CapitalG, Spark, BOND, Lowercarbon, Avenir, Glade Brook, Positive Sum, and 1789.Zach breaks down:• How Base Power is reinventing America’s energy grid with distributed batteries.•...
2025-10-0837 min
SourceryEpirus & Galvanick CEOs on the Future of Defense & CyberattacksAndy Lowery, CEO of Epirus, & Joshua Steinman, CEO of Galvanick, join Molly O’Shea to break down the next frontier of defense, from drone swarms to industrial cyber threats.Epirus has raised over $550M from StepStone, General Dynamics, T. Rowe Price, Gaingels, and 8VC, building its Leonidas™ solid-state, high-power microwave weapon to counter drones and drone swarms. Lowery explains how Epirus is pioneering the “sixth domain of warfare”—physical cyber attacks—and how their “one-to-many” defense approach gives the U.S. a strategic edge against mass drone threats.Galvanick, meanwhile, is ta...
2025-10-0553 minSourceryWhat Gets You Funded in AI: Insights from Felicis, 500 Global & MayfieldAstasia Myers (Felicis), Tony Wang (500 Global), & Patrick Salyer (Mayfield) joined Sourcery’s Molly O’Shea at the Startup Grind AI Summit, presented with Mayfield & Snowflake, for a conversation on what it really takes to raise from Seed to Series A in AI.Together they unpack the realities of fundraising in AI today—from what traction truly looks like, to defensibility and integration moats, to shifting stage definitions and round compression. The panel digs into:Why AI voice and agents are opening massive new TAMsHow founders should navigate inflated growth expectations & conversion rates below 20%...
2025-10-0444 min
Sourcery17x Midas List VC Navin Chaddha on The 100x AI OpportunityNavin Chaddha, Managing Partner of Mayfield, has guided more than 80 companies to positive outcomes. During his venture capital career, Navin has invested in over 60 companies, of which 18 have gone public and 27 have been acquired. Creating $120B+ in equity value and over 40,000 jobs. Navin has been named to the Forbes Midas List 17 times (Top 5 in 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024), becoming one of the most respected voices in venture capital.Mayfield has $3B+ in AUM, 120 IPOs, and 225+ acquisitions.In this episode of Sourcery, we cover:Why AI is a 100x opportunity vs. past...
2025-10-0149 min
SourceryJoby, Dirac & Allen Control: The Future of Air, AI & Defense TechAmerica’s industrial base is being rebuilt by a new generation of founders at the intersection of aerospace, AI, and defense. In this Sourcery episode, host Molly O’Shea sits down with three leaders driving the reindustrialization movement, Eric Allison (Chief Product Officer, Joby Aviation), Filip Aronshtein (CEO, Dirac), and Steve Simoni (President, Allen Control Systems)Together, their stories highlight how capital-intensive, frontier-defining companies are raising billions from elite venture funds and strategics like Toyota, Founders Fund, Coatue, Craft Ventures, 8VC, Baillie Gifford, and Uber. The conversation captures the urgency, conviction, and vision behind Amer...
2025-09-3051 minSourceryFactory Raises $50M from NEA, Sequoia Capital, NVIDIA, & JPMorganFactory just raised a $50M Series B from NEA, Sequoia Capital, NVIDIA, and JPMorgan, alongside angels like Frank Slootman, Nikesh Arora, and Aaron Levie. The company is pioneering agent-native development with its flagship “Droids” — autonomous software engineering agents that can handle everything from migrations and refactors to testing, documentation, and incident response.In this Sourcery interview, Factory CEO & Co-Founder Matan Grinberg shares the journey from studying string theory at Berkeley to building one of the fastest-growing AI infrastructure companies in Silicon Valley. He explains why the shift from autocomplete to delegation is the most fundamental change in sof...
2025-09-2558 min
SourceryKeith Rabois: Lessons from PayPal Mafia, $OPEN, & InvestingKeith Rabois, Opendoor ($OPEN) co-founder & newly appointed Board Chair, Managing Director at Khosla Ventures, & a core member of the PayPal Mafia, joins Sourcery for a masterclass on talent, culture, and contrarian thinking. “You don't want to be the best in the world at what you do. You want to be the only one who does what you do.” Paraphrasing Jerry Garcia, The Grateful DeadHe shares how he scouts extraordinary individuals, why every successful startup begins as a cult, and the frameworks he’s developed to simplify complex problems into a...
2025-09-1938 min
SourceryKeith Rabois on Opendoor ($OPEN) Activist TurnaroundKeith Rabois, Opendoor ($OPEN) co-founder & newly appointed Board Chair, Managing Director at Khosla Ventures, and a core member of the PayPal Mafia, joins Sourcery to discuss the activist turnaround being led at Opendoor.Opendoor just named former Shopify executive Kaz Nejatian as CEO, with Rabois returning to reshape the company’s cost structure and culture. In his words to CNBC: “There’s 1,400 employees at Opendoor. I don’t know what most of them do. We don’t need more than 200 of them.” He says the business must slash its workforce by as much as 85% to achieve l...
2025-09-1524 min
SourceryKlarna's IPO CEO Sebastian SiemiatkowskiKlarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski joins Sourcery on the eve of their IPO to share the ultimate comeback story — from billion-dollar losses to profit, the hard layoffs, the AI rebuild, and why he let employees lead the charge with new tools. Recorded at the NYSE, this might be the best Sourcery interview to date.We cover how Klarna balances playful branding — pink logos, surreal fish ads, and Snoop Dogg collaborations — with serious technology that powers 111M users and global expansion. Sebastian also addresses misconceptions: Klarna isn’t just “buy now, pay later,” but a full challenger t...
2025-09-121h 00
SourceryEXCLUSIVE: Quantum’s SpaceX Moment? Ashlee Vance on PsiQuantum’s MoonshotEXCLUSIVE: Quantum’s SpaceX Moment? Ashlee Vance on PsiQuantum’s MoonshotCore Memory creator, Silicon Valley’s Science Expert, & once–quantum skeptic Ashlee Vance sits down with PsiQuantum’s Co-Founder & CSO Pete Shadbolt for a candid, wide-ranging conversation.After touring PsiQuantum’s secretive labs—more than five years after first covering the company—Ashlee found his skepticism shaken, likening PsiQuantum’s ongoing uphill climb to SpaceX’s decade-long, near-death march toward liftoff. Pete reveals why mission, mindset, and his mantra “always be impressive” are non-negotiables for a team attempting a moonshot that may take...
2025-09-1125 min
SourceryPsiQuantum’s $1B Series E, Nvidia, & the Race to 1 Million QubitsPete Shadbolt, Chief Scientific Officer & Co-Founder of PsiQuantum, unpacks the company’s landmark $1 billion Series E, bringing total funding to nearly $2 billion & valuing the company at $7 billion. Backed by BlackRock, Temasek, Baillie Gifford, and Nvidia’s venture arm, PsiQuantum is doubling down on its radical bet: you need 1 million qubits to unlock useful quantum computing.Shadbolt explains why PsiQuantum rejected incrementalism, how the partnership with Nvidia and Jensen Huang strengthens the roadmap, and why quantum is positioned as the next wave of compute alongside AI and semiconductors. From photonic chip breakthroughs to government partnerships in A...
2025-09-101h 57
SourceryAshlee Vance: Stories from Elon, Palmer Luckey, Bryan Johnson & Priscilla ChanAshlee Vance, best known as Elon Musk’s biographer, and now the creator of Core Memory, a frontier podcast and video series exploring space, science, and technology, joins Sourcery for a fun behind-the-scenes (BTS) on his most high profile guests.We talk about why Ashlee shifted from journalist to founder, his vision for Core Memory, and the guests who have defined the show — including Palmer Luckey, Bryan Johnson, and Priscilla Chan. Ashlee also reflects on his relationship with Elon Musk and the lessons he’s learned from him on persistence, prioritization, and relentless focus.
2025-09-0830 minSourceryThe CEOs Behind America’s Next Frontier in Air & Sea TravelAdam Goldstein (CEO of Archer), Billy Thalheimer (CEO of REGENT), and Mitch Lee (CEO of Arc) join Molly O’Shea to talk flying cars, flying boats, and the electrification of air & sea travel. Archer is scaling its Midnight aircraft for urban air taxis and defense applications; REGENT is launching high-speed seagliders that combine boats and planes; and Arc is bringing electrification to boats. From winning FAA support and building factories in Georgia and Rhode Island to preparing for the LA 2028 Olympics and contested logistics in the Indo-Pacific, these founders share how they’re creating entirely new transportation categories.
2025-09-071h 12
SourceryFired by Elon, Meta & Wendy’s, Now Raising Millions for Hello Patient*WARNING* Alex Cohen has one of the wildest founder journeys in tech. Fired by over 11 companies—including Elon Musk’s X, Meta, CrowdStrike, and even Wendy’s—he’s now the founder and CEO of Hello Patient, an AI platform transforming how healthcare practices engage with patients.In this conversation, Alex and Molly O’Shea dive into his underdog story, the viral parody videos that turned heads across the Valley, his 220k+ X following, why storytelling is the ultimate founder superpower, and yes, shares his latest experiments with peptides... Which all leads to Alex announcing H...
2025-09-0455 min
SourceryApple in China: The Capture of the World's Greatest Company | Patrick McGeePatrick McGee, author of Apple in China: The Capture of the World’s Greatest Company, joins Molly O’Shea to unpack his latest bestseller. McGee explains how Apple, once days away from bankruptcy, was saved by Tim Cook’s decision to move manufacturing to China. Tim Cook’s nearly trillion-dollar bet created the most advanced supply chain in history — and left Apple geopolitically captured. From Foxconn’s factory floors to Beijing’s political leverage, McGee shares how Apple’s growth empowered China’s rise as a global tech superpower.Putting numbers behind it, Tim Cook, had pledged...
2025-09-0125 min
SourceryHow The Thiel Fellowship Created $750B+ In Value | Ethereum, Figma, OYOIn just over a decade, The Thiel Fellowship has produced more than $750B* in value creation, with a 13.79% unicorn hit rate. Fellows launched some of the most important companies of the 21st century — Vitalik Buterin’s Ethereum, Dylan Field’s Figma, Lucy Guo’s Scale AI, Ritesh Agarwal’s OYO, Laura Deming’s Longevity Fund, and more. In this episode, Danielle Strachman, a Founding architect of the Thiel Fellowship, shares the inside story behind the radical program born out of Peter Thiel’s Thiel Foundation that gave $100K to teenagers willing to drop out of school and bu...
2025-08-291h 05
SourceryInside OpenAI’s $500B Valuation | Altimeter’s Largest BetWith $10B+ in AUM, Altimeter has made their largest bet in its history on OpenAI. Known for disciplined bets in generational companies like Snowflake, SpaceX, Anduril — and now OpenAI, the firm is now fully committed to the AI supercycle.In this episode, Apoorv Agrawal, Partner at Altimeter focused on AI and software, joins Molly O’Shea to break down how the firm evaluates opportunities in the AI supercycle. Apoorv explains why power laws govern venture returns, how Altimeter evaluated the $500B+ OpenAI opportunity, and why speed is the only defensible moat in AI.
2025-08-2759 min
SourceryHow 8VC Builds Billion-Dollar Companies | Palantir, Addepar, SaronicWith $6B+ in AUM, 8VC has taken a different approach to venture capital: instead of just funding startups, they also build them.Founding Partner Drew Oetting joins Sourcery to unpack 8VC’s infamous “Build” Program, where nearly 30% of the fund’s capital goes into companies they co-found. With a track record of creating 28 companies—including Affinity, Saronic, Epirus, and Resilience—alongside massive outcomes like Palantir ($370B), Addepar (Managing $7T+), and OpenGov ($1.8B acquisition), 8VC’s DNA is centered around building (*ehem Joe Lonsdale*).In this episode, we dive into:• How 8VC...
2025-08-2257 min
SourceryHow to Build a $100M+ Cult Brand: Sophia Amoruso on Nasty Gal, Girlboss & Trust FundSophia Amoruso is more than a founder, she’s a cultural icon. She built Nasty Gal from an eBay store into a $350M fashion powerhouse, bootstrapping to $28M in revenue, owning 80% at peak valuation, & crossing $100M in sales before VC funding led to bankruptcy.At the same time, she created GirlBoss—one of the first major movements for women in business & culture. It became a bestselling book, a Netflix series, & a global brand, cementing Sophia as a media and branding legend, with nearly 1M+ followers across platforms.But Sophia didn...
2025-08-1852 min
SourceryRainmaker’s Secret AI Plan for Superintelligent WeatherIn this episode of Sourcery, Augustus Doricko (Rainmaker) & Alex Levy (Atmo) break down how they’re reengineering the weather to solve one of humanity’s biggest challenges: freshwater scarcity.Rainmaker delivers water to farms, ecosystems, and watersheds through a modern precipitation enhancement system—combining radar validation, AI modeling, weather-resistant drones, and sustainable cloud seeding. It’s the only immediate, scalable solution for creating abundant freshwater.Atmo powers the system with next-gen AI meteorology, offering forecasts 100x more precise and 45,000x faster than legacy models—used by the U.S. Air Force...
2025-08-1547 min
SourceryHow The Rarest Company On Earth Raised $75MVulcan Elements CEO John Maslin joins Sourcery to announce their $65M Series A led by Altimeter (Brad Gerstner, Erik Kriessmann) with participation from One Investment Management (Rajeev Misra) to build the most advanced rare earth magnet factory in America—fully decoupled from China. Bringing their total funding to $75M.We cover why rare earth magnets are the “essential invisible building blocks of the economy,” powering everything from everyday consumer electronics, AI data centers, EVs, and robotics to satellites, drones, and every major U.S. defense platform. Maslin explains why China’s 90%+ dominance in magnet manufact...
2025-08-1138 min
SourceryNuclear Race to Power AI: Valar Atomics, Fuse, Not BoringIsaiah Taylor (Valar Atomics), JC Btaiche (Fuse), & Packy McCormick (Not Boring) join Molly O’Shea to explore how nuclear energy—fission and fusion—is at the heart of America's industrial resurgence and the race for AI dominance.Isaiah unpacks Valar Atomic’s plan to scale modular fission reactors across the U.S., breaking decades of regulatory stagnation and reimagining how America powers its factories and data centers. JC shares Fuse’s rapid-fire progress in fusion technology, from breakthroughs in pulse neutron generation to vertical integration strategies that echo SpaceX. Packy ties it all together with insig...
2025-08-0849 min
SourceryCarta’s Path to $500M ARR, Raising $1B, & Why PE is The Future | Henry Ward, CEOHenry Ward, CEO of Carta, joins Sourcery to share how the company scaled to nearly $500M in ARR, raised $1B across seven rounds, and evolved from a startup serving cap tables to a platform targeting massive markets like private equity and private credit. Ward discusses the Peter Thiel-inspired strategy of dominating small markets before expanding, the importance of focusing on inputs over outputs, the challenges of selling to both hoodie-wearing founders and Midtown CFOs, and Carta’s AI-driven future. This wide-ranging conversation dives into scaling lessons, product innovation, network effects, and why private equity is the future.
2025-08-0636 min
SourceryPeter Thiel’s $50M Bet on American Nuclear Fuel, General MatterScott Nolan, Founder & CEO of General Matter and Partner at Founders Fund, joins Sourcery to break down America’s urgent need to rebuild its nuclear fuel supply chain. With $50 million in funding led by Founders Fund, General Matter is developing U.S.-based production of HALEU (high-assay low-enriched uranium), the nuclear fuel critical for powering next-generation reactors. As part of the recent investment, Peter Thiel, Founders Fund Partner & billionaire investor, is joining the board–a notable move for Thiel, who stepped down from Facebook’s board in 2022 and rarely takes on new board roles beyond his lo...
2025-07-3032 minSourceryWinning the AI Race & Reindustrialization | Christian Garrett, 137 VenturesChristian Garrett, Partner at 137 Ventures and Co-Founder of the Hill & Valley Forum, returns to Sourcery for a deep dive into Winning the AI Race—a high-stakes summit bringing together Trump, J.D. Vance, top tech CEOs, and government leaders to chart America’s AI future. In this fast-moving conversation, Christian breaks down how AI is driving reindustrialization across mining, energy, and manufacturing, why pricing—not capital—is the real bottleneck in U.S. mining, and how the Pentagon's landmark deal with MP Materials could start to reshape the global rare earths market. He also unpacks Applied Intuition’s $600M Series F a...
2025-07-2724 min
SourceryHow Vise Hit $22B in Platform Assets, Reshaping The $83T Wealth IndustrySamir Vasavada joins Molly O'Shea on Sourcery to share how he and his co-founder Runik Mehrotra launched Vise as teenagers and scaled it to over $22 billion in platform assets with their leanest team ever: just about 40 people. After a record-breaking Q2 and 1275% YoY growth, Vise is leading the shift to Wealth 3.0 with personalized, automated portfolios that go beyond mutual funds and ETFs.Backed with $130 million in funding at a $1B valuation from Sequoia Capital, Founders Fund, and Allen & Co, Vise uses AI to help advisors build, manage, and explain portfolios across nearly every asset...
2025-07-2558 min
SourceryNat Friedman Leads $15M in Superintelligence Insurance Company | AIUCRune Kvist, CEO & Founder of the Artificial Intelligence Underwriting Company (AIUC), joins Sourcery to break down how his team is building the confidence infrastructure for AI adoption — and why every AI agent will soon need to be certified and insured.AIUC just came out of stealth with a $15M seed round led by Nat Friedman (NFDG), with participation from Emergence, Terrain, Ben Mann (Anthropic co-founder), former CISOs of Google Cloud & MongoDB, and other top AI operators.Rune was the first product & GTM hire at Anthropic, and now he’s buil...
2025-07-2353 minSourceryHow Palantir Is Modernizing the Military With AIGreg Little, Senior Counselor at Palantir, joins Sourcery to discuss how AI is reshaping national defense, why America must rebuild its manufacturing base, and the urgent need to weaponize capitalism. He shares a Game of Thrones-inspired breakdown of the defense ecosystem—from Lockheed to startups—and how Palantir’s tools are driving outcomes across the U.S. Navy, industrial supply chains, and even hospital systems. We unpack how the Pentagon needs to evolve, why AI isn’t just hype, and why Palantir’s First Breakfast initiative could be the key to winning the next great power competition.This conversation is part of...
2025-07-2236 minSourceryHadrian Raises $260M Series C Led by Founders Fund & Lux Capital; A Turning Point for U.S. ManufacturingChris Power, CEO of Hadrian, returns to Sourcery to break down the company’s newly announced $260M Series C.. bringing Hadrian’s total investment to ~$500M since founding the company in 2020. This round was closed in 3 weeks, with equity led by Delian Asparouhov of Founders Fund and Lux Capital, alongside a factory expansion loan facility from Morgan Stanley. The funding supports Hadrian’s rapid U.S. expansion, including Factory 3 in Mesa, Arizona, and the build-out of new divisions like Hadrian Maritime.Chris explains how Hadrian is evolving from precision part production to full product manufacturing, covering everyt...
2025-07-1832 min
SourceryHow Brex Hit $100B+ in TPV | M&A & Road to IPOArt Levy, Chief Business Officer at Brex, the $12.3 billion modern finance behemoth, breaks down why we’re seeing a Golden Age of M&A, with mega-acquisitions, reverse acqui-hires, and aggressive consolidation across the AI landscape. From Meta’s $14B 49% stake in Scale AI, to Google’s $32B Wiz deal, & Stripe’s aggressive crypto rail strategy, Art offers a sharp view into the strategies behind the biggest moves in tech & finance.We go deep on:• The rise of “tuck-in” M&A (Scale AI) + strategic AI consolidation• Best & worst practices for M&A• Brex’s...
2025-07-101h 35
SourceryInside a16z’s $15M Bet on Cluely: Lead Investor Bryan Kim Reveals AllBryan Kim, Partner at Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), focuses on early-stage investments in consumer and application-layer AI. He has invested in some of the most prolific consumer companies like: Captions, ElevenLabs, BeReal, Function Health, and more.One of his recent investments is viral phenomenon, Cluely, a controversial San Francisco-based AI startup founded by Roy Lee. Cluely has raised over $20M to date, with their most recent $15M investment from Bryan at a16z. Cluely is building an invisible desktop assistant to help you “cheat on everything.”We talk about:
2025-07-031h 12
SourceryHow Jack Altman Hit 100x Growth With Uncapped: AI, VC, FoundersJack Altman built Lattice into a multi-billion-dollar category leader, raising hundreds of millions along the way.Now he runs Alt Capital, backing 25 bold AI startups out of the $150M AUM fund III. This includes existing portfolio companies like Antares, Owner.com, David AI, Retell AI and more. In addition to that, we breakdown Jack’s new podcast Uncapped, which recently reached escape velocity in just 14 episodes after interviews. Uncapped is a podcast where Jack interviews founders and investors he genuinely admires, using those conversations to publicly explore the inner wo...
2025-06-2751 minSourceryCluely Raises $15 Million From a16z | Roy Lee, Founder & CEORoy Lee, Founder & CEO of Cluely, announces their $15M from Andreessen Horowitz to build what they call the most viral AI startup in the world. In this deep dive, we break down their product, business model, fundraising strategy, controversial stunt marketing playbook, and what it means to scale with creator-led growth. With over $20M in total funding, Cluely is building real-time, undetectable screen overlays, Cluely is rethinking how AI should show up in your workflow, and they’re doing it profitably. Cluely last announced their $5.3M Seed round in April 2025, co-led by Abstract Ventures and Su...
2025-06-2054 minSourceryHow Browserbase Raised $67.5M to Power AI Agents & Vibe CodersPaul Klein IV, founder & CEO of Browserbase, announces their $40M Series B at a $300M valuation led by Notable Capital. Browserbase has raised $67.5M in total funding in just 15 months (!!) since founding the company. Existing investors include big Silicon Valley funds like Kleiner Perkins, CRV, Basecase, and more. Paul shares how Browserbase is powering the next generation of AI agents and “vibe coders” by providing programmable, cloud-hosted browser infrastructure—what he calls “Twilio for headless browsers.”Special thank you to John at Strike Capital for the introduction, as well as Bucky Mo...
2025-06-1754 minSourcerySequoia Leads $75M Series B Into Nominal | Alfred Lin Joins BoardCameron McCord, CEO & Founder of Nominal, discuss their recent $75 million Series B round led by Sequoia, bringing their total funding to over $100 million. With this funding, #1 on the Midas list investor, Alfred Lin of Sequoia is joining their board. Alongside Stephen Slattery, Growth & Product at Nominal, they delve into Nominal’s rapid 10-day funding process, driven by thorough due diligence and their impressive customer testimonials. We go deeper into their innovative core products, Core and Connect, for hardware testing, software management, and their impressive traction in aerospace, defense, energy, and maritime industries. Closing large early customers like Sh...
2025-06-121h 27SourceryNucleus Launches First Genetically Optimized EmbryoWith $32M in total funding, Nucleus CEO Kian Sadeghi joins Molly to discuss the groundbreaking launch of Nucleus Embryo, a genetic optimization software designed to give children the best possible start in life. Kian explains how the software analyzes comprehensive genetic profiles of embryos, helping parents make informed decisions about traits such as disease risks and physical characteristics. The conversation delves into partnerships with companies like Genomic Prediction, the significance of this innovation in the broader context of the fertility crisis, and the ethical considerations and future implications of genetic optimization. Nucleus also touches...
2025-06-0435 minSourceryHow Wander Raised $50M to Reinvent Luxury TravelIn this episode, John Andrew Entwistle, founder & CEO, breaks down Wander’s explosive growth and recent $50M Series B round led by QED Investors and Fifth Wall, with support from Redpoint, Uncork, Starwood Capital, and Breyer Capital.Wander is building the first vertically integrated platform in vacation rentals, targeting the $35B luxury short-term rental segment with over 1,000 homes, a best-in-class 85 NPS, and 35,000+ nights booked to date.Earn Sourcery Content Rewards: https://whop.com/sourcery/?a=sourceryMolly on X: https://x.com/MollySOShea...
2025-05-281h 08SourceryHow Whop Hit $1.2B GMV Run Rate with Just 20 EngineersWhop CTO Jack Sharkey reveals how they built a $1.2 billion GMV run rate platform with just 20 engineers, processing $108 million monthly & 5+ billion views for 28,000 creators worldwide. Whop has raised $80 million, valued at $800 million. He shares controversial takes on why junior engineers should skip big tech to build their own projects, how AI is making developers 5-10x more productive, and Whop's radical culture of requiring employees to have personal side projects with real users. Earn Sourcery Content Rewards: https://whop.com/sourcery/?a=sourceryMolly on X: https://x.com/MollySOSheaJack on X: https://x.com/jacksharkey11
2025-05-2353 minSourceryHow Altimeter Is Investing $100M+ Checks | Anduril, SpaceX, K2 SpaceErik Kriessmann, Partner at Altimeter, joins Molly O'Shea to share his journey from leading human capital at Khosla & Index to writing $100+ million checks into Aerospace & Defense at Altimeter's $10 Billion AUM Fund. We go deep into his investment strategies, and his thoughts on key industry trends. Learn about his work with prominent companies like SpaceX, Anduril, and K2 Space, as well as the unique approach Altimeter takes in supporting founders and investing in transformative technologies. Erik also discusses the evolving exit environment, the impact of AI, and future opportunities in aerospace, defense, and hard tech. Don't...
2025-05-1655 minSourceryBucky Moore Joins $30 Billion AUM Mega Fund LightspeedBucky Moore joins Molly O'Shea to announce his new role as Partner at $30B AUM Lightspeed Venture Partners. Bucky opens up about his transition from Kleiner Perkins, the decision to join an established platform versus launching his own fund, the structural and economic elements of changing funds, and what it means to invest at the earliest stages during a generational market cycle.We dive deep into the evolution of megafunds, the heat they’re receiving, the shifting LP landscape, and how venture capital is being reshaped by the rise of targeting trillion-dollar outcomes in companies like OpenAI an...
2025-05-0544 minSourceryWindsurf: The Making of a Billion-Dollar AI CompanyLeigh Marie Braswell, Partner at Kleiner Perkins, speaks with Molly O'Shea on the rise of AI and its impact on venture capital. We discuss KP's 21st venture fund, KP21, an $825M fund to back early stage companies, and their third select fund, KP Select III, a $1.2 billion fund to back high inflection investments. We also go deeper into key AI infrastructure trends and machine learning applications, investments in companies like Windsurf, Glean, and Ambience, and the evolution of Kleiner Perkins over its 50+ years. Learn about the firm's investment strategy, the significance of maintaining a small team, and the process...
2025-05-021h 04
Sourcery$1.2 billion fund, Windsurf, AI, and more with Kleiner Perkins’ Leigh BraswellLeigh Marie Clark joins the podcast to dive into Kleiner Perkins latest funds; KP21 and Select III, totalling over $2B. Leigh also shares what it takes to build and back top-tier startups today, as well as comments on Windsurf, the evolving AI landscape, and the metrics that really matter when evaluating early-stage companies.We discuss:- Fund size & investment thesis- Inside Kleiner Perkins: team insights & decision-making- The Windsurf story & user growth- Company success metrics & revenue red flags- How competitive markets are won- Key trends in AI infra & machine learning- “Talent vortex” theory & bootstrapped startups- AI implementation across KP’s portfo...
2025-05-021h 04SourcerySuperpower Raises $30M Series A Led by ForerunnerJacob Peters, CEO & Co-Founder of Superpower, shares their recent $30 million Series A funding led by Forerunner Ventures. We go deeper into their ambitious vision of having an AI doctor in everyone's pocket and his own personal health journey that inspired the creation of Superpower.Superpower aims to provide a holistic and data-driven alternative to traditional medicine, offering personalized insights and actions to improve overall health. He also shares the meticulous steps taken to build the Superpower brand, including the creation of 'the world's healthiest hoodie' and securing the superpower.com domain. Get a glimpse...
2025-04-2248 minSourceryHow Autopilot REVEALS Political Insider Trading | Chris JosephsChris Josephs, Co-Founder of Autopilot, dives into the intricacies of political insider trading, the venture-backed journey of Autopilot, and their innovative growth strategies. Chris discusses the evolution from their social investing app, Iris, to launching Autopilot, which allows retail investors to follow top investors' portfolios. We explore high-profile topics including Nancy Pelosi's trading patterns, the history and nuances of insider trading laws, and the potential impact of banning politicians from stock trading. Discover the secret sauce behind Autopilot's viral growth, their creative marketing tactics, and what lies ahead for the company as they partner w...
2025-04-181h 07SourceryBase Power's $200M Series B Co-Led by Lee Fixel of Addition, A16Z, Lightspeed, & Valor Equity PartnersZach Dell and Justin Lopas, co-founders of Base, discuss their recent $200 million Series B funding and their ambitious vision for revolutionizing the energy industry. Co-led by Addition, Andreessen Horowitz, Lightspeed Venture Partners and Valor Equity Partners with participation from existing investors Thrive Capital, Altimeter, Terrain, Trust and others. As part of the fundraise, Addition founder Lee Fixel will join Base Power’s board alongside Antonio Gracias of Valor Equity Partners. The new capital aims to unlock the next phase of growth for Base, including team expansion, market entry, and new product development. The episode del...
2025-04-0958 minSourceryDelian Asparouhov: Varda’s Space Factories & Founders FundDelian Asparouhov, Co-Founder of Varda & Partner at Founders Fund | We discuss Varda's recent space missions, regulatory challenges, and the broader impact of venture capital in the aerospace industry. Delian shares insights on the complexities of defense and space regulations, the relationship between Silicon Valley and Washington DC, and in particular, the context of the Hill and Valley Forum, which aims to bridge the gap between tech leaders and defense officials. He also shares his thoughts on the future of space exploration—from adapting to other gravitational environments like Jupiter's, to the rise of the “Space Club,” including Eric Schmidt’s new ro...
2025-03-2855 minSourcerySpaceX, Stripe, X, Ramp, Anduril: Navigating Liquidity in Private MarketsMolly O'Shea speaks with Christian Garrett, Partner at 137 Ventures. Christian shares his insights on the current state of private markets, the mechanics of high profile secondaries, and the growing liquidity squeeze faced by VCs.We also take a closer look at SpaceX's financing history, how 137 Ventures got involved, and why SpaceX runs tenders every six months. Christian discusses the potential reopening of the IPO window, the rise of generational talent from companies like Anduril, SpaceX, and Palantir, and why he thinks defense tech might be overrated right now.Other...
2025-03-211h 11SourceryArielle Zuckerberg, Winning Founder Recipe: The Rizz & TizBehind the Magically Weird: Arielle Zuckerberg on Long Journey Ventures, Unique founders, and Purpose-Driven InvestingMolly O'Shea speaks with Arielle Zuckerberg, diving into her journey at Long Journey Ventures, discussing her unique investment philosophy and the importance of purpose-driven investing. From her hobbies like skiing and DJing to the critical lessons learned from legendary mentor John Doerr, Arielle shares how she evaluates founders using the 'Rizz and Tiz' theory. We uncover Long Journey's creative diligence adventures, the value of unusual startup ideas, and how Long Journey Ventures fosters a unique community for 'magically weird...
2025-03-1446 minSourceryKalshi CEO Tarek Mansour - The Future of Free MarketsTarek Mansour, is the Co-Founder & CEO of Kalshi, a regulated exchange & prediction market where you can trade on the outcome of real-world events (buy and sell event contracts). Kalshi has had a huge start to the year post-election from unlocking significant new markets, launching new products, integrating with top brokers like Robinhood and Webull, and welcoming Donald Trump Jr. as an advisor. Mansour delves into the process of navigating regulatory hurdles, including the surprising decision to sue the government. as well as the maddening journey, challenges, and bold actions needed to be made in order to create an entirely n...
2025-02-2853 minSourceryTaking on an $80 Billion Dollar Market with Gen Z | Dylan DiamondDylan Diamond is the Co-Founder & CEO of Saturn, a viral Gen Z calendar app that's raised $68M after starting as a high school project. In this conversation, Dylan shares his journey of attracting major investors like Jeff Bezos and Mark Benioff, scaling the app to millions of users, and maintaining high retention rates across 18,000 schools.We also get insights into Gen Z behavior, the role of AI in app development, and building a sustainable product. This episode also explores the unique ad model Saturn has created, its long-term vision, and the challenges of maintaining...
2025-02-2139 min
The Jason Levin Show#80: Molly O'Shea — The Venture ArtistMolly O'Shea is a venture capitalist and founder of Sourcery, a newsletter about top VC deals and startup trends02:51) Why every VC has a podcast(07:10) Why podcasting is a good excuse to meet cracked people(13:30) Internet friendship = best friendship(14:40) Molly's artist-to-VC pipeline(18:50) Learning about what VC does for the first time(22:00) Our high school side hustle stories(24:40) Why good artists shouldn't starve(26:09) The VC trash-talking culture(28:27) Fuck Kanye West(31:30) How to get viral by offending people (correctly)(35:10) "Memes aren't gonna save you if your product sucks"(37:12) "There's $16B value in LinkedIn influencers"(44:12) Molly explains to me wtf a "...
2025-02-2058 minSourceryPacky McCormick, Not Boring | How writing led to investing in Ramp, Scale AI, Replit, VardaPacky McCormickI've teamed up with Passes to grant us access to a pro podcast studio in LA, exclusive early releases, audience Q&A, & BTS content. Sign up for Passes for more Sourcery content! https://www.passes.com/Follow Sourcery for the latest updates! https://www.sourcery.vc/Molly on X: https://x.com/MollySOSheaPacky on X: https://x.com/packyMTIMESTAMPS:1:30 - Growing to 239k+ Subscribers5:00...
2025-02-141h 01SourceryZoom to Salesforce: How Emergence Capital Picks Billion-Dollar WinnersToday Molly O’Shea speaks with Founding GP Gordon Ritter & new Partner Yaz El-Baba of $2.3B AUM VC fund Emergence Capital. We cover everything from the IPO window, Stargate, the macro environment, the state of AI, the app layer to infrastructure, preventing the AI plateau, to Emergence’s history & evolution.
Emergence Capital is a venture capital firm known for its specialization in early-stage investments in enterprise cloud software companies. The firm's focus is on businesses that leverage technology to improve workplace productivity, business outcomes, and the customer experience. Emergence is widely regarded as a pion...
2025-01-311h 21Sourcery$688 Million AUM in 2 Years Investing in Data, AI, Web3 & Blockchain | Tomasz TunguzTomasz Tunguz is a prominent venture capitalist and the founder & GP of Theory Ventures, a $688M AUM fund. Theory focuses on investing $1-25m in early-stage companies that leverage technology discontinuities into go-to-market advantages. Before Theory, he was a managing director at Redpoint Ventures, where he led investments into companies such as Looker, Expensify, Monte Carlo, Dune Analytics, and Kustomer. Throughout his career, Tunguz has been recognized for his data-driven approach to investing and his very popular, personal blog, TomTunguz.com.
Tomasz recently raised $450 million in November of 2024 for Theory Ventures' second fund, which...
2025-01-2438 min
Sourcery$688B AUM in 2 Years Investing in Data, AI, Web3 & Blockchain Technologies | Tomasz Tunguz
Tomasz Tunguz is a prominent venture capitalist and the founder & GP of Theory Ventures, a $688M AUM fund. Theory focuses on investing $1-25m in early-stage companies that leverage technology discontinuities into go-to-market advantages. Before Theory, he was a managing director at Redpoint Ventures, where he led investments into companies such as Looker, Expensify, Monte Carlo, Dune Analytics, and Kustomer. Throughout his career, Tunguz has been recognized for his data-driven approach to investing and his very popular, personal blog, TomTunguz.com.
Tomasz recently raised $450 million in November of 2024 for Theory Ventures...
2025-01-2438 minSourceryUnlocking Mental Resilience: How Spartan Race Builds Unstoppable Minds | CEO Joe De SenaJoe De Sena is the founder and CEO of Spartan Race, Inc. In this conversation, we discuss Joe’s 20+ years of Spartan Race, surviving covid, acquiring competition and investing in fitness companies. We also get into fitness tips, what to avoid, and how you can train for a Spartan Race.
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2025-01-1634 minSourceryCyan Banister & Lee Jacobs Investing in the Magically Weird | SpaceX, Uber, Anduril, CrusoeIn this episode, Molly O'Shea speaks with Cyan Banister and Lee Jacobs to discuss the unique investment strategy of Long Journey Ventures, focusing on their ethos of 'Magically Weird.' Their investments include breakout companies like SpaceX, Uber, Anduril, Crusoe, Notion, DeepMind, Loom, Postmates, and more. We explore how they build a community of independent thinkers, create memorable events, and foster authentic connections among founders.
"We're looking for misfits, free thinking people." - Cyan
The conversation also goes deep on the rise of spirituality, the importance of aligning profit...
2024-12-2056 minSourceryHow Lucy Guo Is Building A Creator Empire with Shaq, Kygo & Olivia Dunne | PassesLucy Guo is a prominent entrepreneur and investor, known for her role as a co-founder of various technology startups. She gained recognition as one of the early employees at the artificial intelligence startup, Scale AI.
We recorded this episode live from Lucy's new studio in Los Angeles! In this conversation, we discuss building in the creator economy, signing huge names, building a creator HQ in LA, biggest misconceptions, raising $50M in 2 yrs, ditching web3, and competitive fintech & data strategy.
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2024-12-1434 min
"Turpentine VC" | Venture Capital and InvestingE67: Defense Tech’s Rise with 8VC’s Alex KolicichThis 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 —📰 Be notified early when Turpentine drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccess 🙏 Help shape our show by taking our quick listener survey...
2024-12-0354 minSourceryDan Wright, CEO Armada | Trae Stephens Next Big BetToday Molly O'Shea speaks with Dan Wright, CEO of Armada, backed with $100M to date from notable investors like Trae Stephens from Founders Fund, 137 Ventures, Lux, Dragon Global, Microsoft’s M12, 8VC, Shield Capital, among others. Armada is a leading edge computing company deploying servers for advanced AI applications in remote locations.
More impressively, this company barely started 2 years ago and has been out of stealth for less than a year, while achieving critical milestones like partnerships with Starlink, Skydio, Hallibutron, and more, we’ll discuss shortly.
Dan is a rema...
2024-11-2234 minSourceryJoshua Browder, DoNotPay | Saving Consumers $100M+ & Investing in Thiel FellowsMolly O'Shea talks with Joshua Browder, Founder & CEO of DoNotPay, a $200M AI champion designed to help people fight against big corporations and beat bureaucracy. Joshua shares his journey from dropping out of Stanford for a Thiel Fellowship to founding DoNotPay. To date, DoNotPay has saved consumers $100M+ on over 1.6M cases and attracted significant venture capital interest.
We go deeper into the innovative features of DoNotPay, its ‘spicy’ media strategy, and the importance of building a subscription-based business model.
Browder also reflects on his experiences as a Thiel Fell...
2024-11-1539 minSourceryAmerica's New Consumer: CPG, Sports, Four-Wall | Jason Fiedler, Left Lane CapitalMolly O'Shea interviews Jason Fiedler, Managing Partner at Left Lane Capital, a $2B+ venture fund focused on consumer and internet businesses.
They discuss his unique investment strategies focused on consumer goods, sports, and the evolving retail landscape, diving into specific subcategories and his portfolio companies. Jason shares insights on the importance of NPS Delta, the application of software frameworks to consumer investing, his Sims City vision, pearls & strings system, and the rapid growth of his firm. He emphasizes the significance of sourcing deals through a rigorous process, keeping track of 'crazy' ideas, and the...
2024-11-0837 minSourceryAramco of The Moon: Lunar Ice Mining For Multiplanetary Rockets | StarpathMolly O’Shea interviews Saurav Shroff, Founder & CEO of Starpath, a company developing megascale propellant production systems for lunar and Mars operations. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/65820d0a-9323-4de8-a526-9bb3aca1baeb
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2024-11-0133 minSourceryFormer Chief Scientist at Salesforce, Richard Socher | You.com, LLMs, AI Agents, Complex WorkIn this fascinating episode of Sourcery, host Molly O'Shea sits down with Richard Socher, founder and CEO of You.com and co-founder of AIX Ventures. Richard shares insights on building an AI-powered productivity engine, the future of AI agents, and his journey from academic researcher to successful entrepreneur and investor.
Special offer for Sourcery listeners: https://www.you.com/business/sourcery
For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/43165ac6-1745-4dbb-bd68-18f13862e8db
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2024-10-2557 minSourceryJeff Morris Jr, Chapter One | Difficult Market for VCsMolly talks to Jeff Morris Jr (JMJ), GP of Chapter One and infamous product leader at Tinder. As emerging funds face an existential crisis, JMJ explores the stark realities of an industry in flux. From the looming specter of industry consolidation & shutdowns, to the relentless pressure to prove relevance, JMJ challenges conventional wisdom about what it takes to succeed in modern VC.
JMJ offers a candid look at the struggles and strategies of today's fund managers, painting a picture of an ecosystem where only the most adaptable will survive. He talks about the delicate...
2024-10-1653 minSourceryAlex Kolicich, 8VC | AI & Defense Tech RenaissanceMolly O’Shea is joined by Alex Kolicich, Founding Partner of 8VC. Before his venture capital career, Alex was an engineer and early product advisor at companies like Clarium, Palantir, and Google.
In this discussion, Alex talks about the current investment landscape citing the "AI capabilities gap," the potential for a "trough of AI disillusionment," and highlights the tension between AI's promise and its current limitations.
Why is Silicon Valley suddenly embracing the Pentagon? Alex explains how defense has transformed from a controversial investment to a sought-after opportunity, citing su...
2024-10-1153 minSourceryImpulse Labs, Trojan Horse for Battery-Powered Homes | Backed by Lux CapitalMolly O'Shea talks to Sam D’Amico, founder of Impulse Labs which has created one of the highest quality battery-powered induction stoves, offering unparalleled power, precision, and energy storage.
Following a strong career in consumer electronics, including work at Google Glass and Oculus, Sam envisions a future where distributed battery storage in appliances could help balance grid load and reduce the need for grid infrastructure upgrades. All the while, delivering a premium performance cooktop fit for Michelin-star chefs to pancake fanatics.
Sam discusses the evolution of battery technology, particularly the...
2024-10-0455 minSourceryMolly Alter, Partner (Northzone), $4B AUM | Software for Hardware, EU vs USA, Vertical AI, VC BiasesMolly O'Shea talks to Molly Alter, Partner at Northzone, a $1.2 billion fund with around $4 billion AUM and discusses her successful investments (Frame.io’s $1.2B exit to Adobe), founder qualities, VC biases and decision-making, as well as the firm's global approach to identifying opportunities.
Alter believes in the potential of Europe's tech ecosystem, citing higher net IRR for European VC funds compared to North American ones over 10-15 year horizons. She shares perspectives on US and European VC landscapes, successful investments, and emerging opportunities in vertical AI and software for hardware.
Fo...
2024-09-2051 minSourceryZamp's Series A: $14M in 15 MonthsMolly O'Shea talks to Zamp's CEO, Rohit Bhadange as he shares his journey from Wall Street to founding the fastest growing sales tax compliance platform.
Zamp, an innovative platform is simplifying sales tax compliance for e-commerce and SaaS companies, recently raised a $10M Series A funding round led by Valor Equity Partners, bringing their total funding to $14 million.
Learn about their rapid growth and vision for the future in helping e-commerce and SaaS companies automate complex tax processes and avoid costly mistakes.
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2024-09-1345 minSourceryAstasia Myers, GP at Felicis, $3B AUM, AI Agents & Autopilots, New Infra Opportunities, & RoadblocksMolly O'Shea is joined by Astasia Myers, GP at Felicis, to discuss their new $825M fund, totaling Felicis’s AUM to $3B. Astasia goes deep on her focus on AI infrastructure, AI-enabled SaaS, and AI-enabled services and breaks down how AI is changing the face of enterprise software exploring the evolution of enterprise software and how AI is transforming data stacks.
She explains how the AI landscape has evolved, highlighting the rise of alternative foundation models and AI agents, and emphasizes the importance of founder market fit and unique insights when evaluating startups. The co...
2024-09-0652 minSourceryCrunchbase Macro Update | Surprising VC Narrative Violations & AI's Big BreakMolly O'Shea is joined by Gené Teare, senior data editor at Crunchbase News, and brings her wealth of experience and insight to the world of venture capital and startup ecosystems.
Gené Teare provides a comprehensive overview of the current venture capital landscape, highlighting the ongoing two-year slowdown in the VC market, and points out a trend towards concentration in late-stage funding. She also touches on the topic of diversity, reporting that female-founded companies received only 3% of total funding in 2023, despite representing 8% of deals.
Lastly, Gené touched on the growing conc...
2024-08-2940 minSourceryComputer Science is So Hot Right Now | Grace Isford, Lux CapitalMolly O'Shea talks to Grace Isford of Lux Capital, the firm’s youngest Partner, on computational sciences, the current AI Landscape, her investment thesis on New York City's AI sector, and implementing AI in companies.
Grace discusses the potential and challenges of AI agents, the current state of the technology as well as the companies making progress in this space. She also provides practical advice on how companies can implement AI, emphasizing the importance of defining your goals, finding the right tools, and proving value.
Is it time to in...
2024-08-2348 minSourceryThe Quiet Revolution in DNA Sequencing | Nucleus GenomicsMolly O'Shea is joined by Nucleus Genomics CEO Kian Sadeghi discussing the integration of DNA into daily life, from predicting health risks to unlocking personal insights.
Nucleus Genomics launches Nucleus IQ, a report that analyzes your genetic contribution to intelligence. Throughout the discussion, Sadeghi emphasizes the potential of genetic information to transform healthcare and personal wellness, while also touching on some of the ethical and practical challenges in the field.
Discover how Nucleus Genomics is using whole genome sequencing to provide personalized insights into your health and intelligence. Learn about the company's mission to democratize...
2024-08-1638 minSourceryMasha Bucher, Day One Ventures: Investing in The Biggest Ideas PossibleIn this episode, Molly O'Shea talks with Day One Ventures founder Masha Bucher on the firm's investment strategy, highlighting their focus on AI, "Future of Human" technologies, and their approach to identifying exceptional founders.
Masha discusses her firm's $150 million Fund 3, their focus on El Segundo's burgeoning tech scene, and their unique investment strategy targeting pre-seed and seed companies with "exceptional founders."
Masha shares her insights on building a successful VC firm, emphasizing the importance of intuition, strong teams, and her impressive track record of successful investments.
...
2024-08-0156 minSourceryText-to-CAD: AI Revolutionizing Hardware Design with Jordan Noone of ZooIn this episode, Molly O'Shea is joined by Jordan Noone, an aerospace engineer, former Founding CTO of Relativity Space, Co-Founder and General Partner at Embedded Ventures, and Executive Chairman at Zoo.
Zoo is automating hardware development, and their Text2CAD technology - an AI-powered CAD engine that turns text prompts into real-world designs- enables engineers to focus on innovation.
Zoo is building the world's first computational geometry engine based in the cloud that's GPU-optimized, API-accessible, and cloud-based.
Join Molly and Jordan in discussing Zoo's impactful AI tools...
2024-07-2650 minSourceryJohn Coogan, EIR at Founders Fund, Founder of Soylent & LucyIn this episode, Molly O'Shea talks to John Coogan, EIR at Founders Fund and co-founder of Lucy and Soylent. They cover topics such as his role as an EIR at Founders Fund, his journey from starting Soylent & going through YC, becoming a successful YouTuber (over 430K subscribers & over 8M views), as well as his insights into the history of nicotine & tobacco with his company Lucy.
John dives into all of the complexities of startup entrepreneurship, the importance of really good storytelling in marketing, working in a regulated industry, as well as shares some hot takes in the...
2024-07-241h 08SourceryAre LLMs Hitting a Wall? VC Shifts FocusIn this episode, Molly O'Shea is joined by Eric Newcomer, founder of "Newcomer”. Eric shares insights from the New York Cerebral Valley Summit, where VCs and founders explored the move beyond foundation models to applications, the rise of AI in established businesses, and the future of creativity in a generative AI world.
Eric Newcomer, founder of the newsletter “Newcomer” on the startup and venture capital industry, discusses the evolution of the AI market and his experiences hosting the Cerebral Valley Summit in this interview. He notes a shift in focus from building foundational AI models to developing applications leveraging existi...
2024-07-2047 minSourcerySoot's $7.2M Seed Round: CEO, CTO, & Investor, Kobie FullerIn this episode, Molly O'Shea sits down with Jake Harper and Amol Kapoor of Soot, a spatial, self-organizing file system that revolutionizes how they interact with their data. Joining the group is Soot investor Kobie Fuller, GP at Upfront Ventures.
Jake talks about Soot as a consumer-grade vector database with a user-friendly GUI, simplifying data navigation and making AI tooling accessible. He emphasizes the importance of beauty and user experience, aiming to empower and inspire users.
Amol also highlights how the company prioritizes seamless user experience with advanced AI capabilities hidden behind the scenes. They aim to empower users...
2024-07-1244 minSourceryMark Suster, Upfront Ventures: Investing in Space, Defense, & Exit OpportunitiesIn this episode, Molly O'Shea interviews Mark Suster, Managing Partner of Upfront Ventures, about venture capital investing strategies and market insights.
Mark discusses the value of disciplined investments at lower valuations, diverse buyer outcomes, the exit landscape, and Upfront Ventures' focused investment in seed stage, early growth, and secondary funds. He emphasizes the importance of founder-market fit, market timing, and the influence of macroeconomic trends on investment decisions.
Mark explores the challenges of traditional IPOs and highlights alternative exit paths for startups in today's market, while also reflecting on the lessons from his time as a...
2024-06-2859 minSourceryHunter Walk, Homebrew & ScreendoorHunter Walk discusses the evolution of his venture capital firm, Homebrew, and their contrarian decision to become a self-funded fund in a world of increasingly large megafunds.
Homebrew focuses on working with early-stage companies and keeping things simple, without the constraints of a traditional fund structure. He explains the differences between their fund structure and traditional funds, highlighting their commitment to aligning incentives with founders. He also shares some of their successful investments, such as Chime, Plaid, Gusto, and Cruise, and emphasizes the importance of being a true partner to entrepreneurs.
Hunter also talks about the creation of Screendoor...
2024-06-141h 13SourceryRadiant CEO Doug Bernauer on Portable Nuclear Microreactors & the Future of Clean EnergySourcery’s Molly O’Shea sits down with Doug Bernauer, Founder and CEO of Radiant, a company pioneering portable nuclear reactors designed to replace traditional diesel generators. Doug shares insights from his experience working with Elon Musk at SpaceX and delves into Radiant’s mission and key innovations. He discusses their ambitious goal of fuel testing by 2026 and provides a technical deep dive into the technology, history, and safety measures of nuclear power. Discover how Radiant aims to meet clean energy needs in remote locations with their one-megawatt transportable nuclear reactors.
Quick Stats on Radian...
2024-05-3145 minSourcerySilicon Valley's Best Kept Secret for Skilled Immigration | Minn Kim, Founder of LighthouseAccelerating US Skilled Immigration to Power Technological Progress
This episode features Minn Kim, founder of Lighthouse, an early-stage company offering skilled immigration solutions for technology pioneers.
The discussion, led by Molly O'Shea, highlights the problematic nature of the current U.S. employment-based immigration system, which Minn describes as outdated and heavily reliant on a lottery system due to the high demand for a limited number of visas. Lighthouse aims to streamline the complex visa application process for the world's brightest in the startup and tech industries, using software to...
2024-05-0342 minSourceryJared Hecht of USV, 2x Exited Founder of Fundera (Nerdwallet) & GroupMe (Skype/Microsoft)This episode of Sourcery features an in-depth conversation with Jared Hecht, Venture Partner at USV and 2x exited founder of Fundera and GroupMe.
Fundera, Grew to a profitable $100M+ annual revenue business with 1M+ monthly visitors to the marketplace. It was acquired by Nerdwallet in 2020.
GroupMe, with over 100M+ people have used GroupMe, including 25M MAU and virtually every college student in the country. It was acquired by Skype/MSFT in 2011
Jared shares his journey from starting his career at Tumblr to founding successful companies Fundera and Gr...
2024-04-2650 minSourceryEmbracing American Dynamism to Upgrade Manufacturing Production With Oden CEO Willem SundbladIn this episode, Molly O'Shea talks with Willem Sundblad, co-founder and CEO of Oden Technologies which has just announced a $28.5M Series B led by Nordstjernan Growth, a 130-year old Swedish investment institution.
Their conversation covers the massive opportunity in optimizing factory operations and product quality on the ground level, the labor challenge plaguing the industry, why more talent should consider manufacturing operator careers, how Oden found PMF with Process AI, how to sell into manufacturing, and where Oden fits into the paradigm of American Dynamism and US reshoring.
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2024-04-1947 minSourceryKyle Harrison, GP at Contrary on Techno-Optimism, Talent Vortexes, & Writing “Investing 101”In this episode, Molly O'Shea interviews Kyle Harrison, General Partner at Contrary and writer of the popular Investing 101 substack, discusses his career in venture capital and the focus of Contrary. Contrary is a VC fund that backs companies from seed to scale with an emphasis on talent and research. They aim to identify the smartest people early on and support them throughout their careers.
Contrary has a very impressive research arm that produces reports, memos, and conversations to provide insights into private tech companies. Kyle shares his approach to writing and the importance of...
2024-04-1246 minSourceryMorgan Housel: Understanding Elon Musk, Jensen Huang and Other Outliers in TechIn this episode, Molly O'Shea interviews Morgan Housel, a New York Times bestselling author and partner at The Collaborative Fund. They discuss the role of luck and risk in success, the complexities of genius visionaries like Elon Musk, Steve Jobs, Jensen Huang and more outliers, and the VC mindset.
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Resources
* Same as Ever: A Guide to What Never Changes
* The Psychology of Money: Timeless lessons on wealth, greed, and happiness
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Companies Mentioned
NVIDIA: h...
2024-04-0552 minSourceryChris Power, Hadrian: $10B or Zero, Revitalizing American ManufacturingIn this podcast, Molly O'Shea interviews Chris Power, Founder & CEO of Hadrian, a vertically integrated deep tech manufacturing company. Hadrian recently raised a $117M Series B to support its mission of revitalizing American manufacturing. The company experienced strong customer demand, leading to an accelerated fundraise to meet the needs of large customers and expand its factory and operations to multiple states to support its growth. The company's vertical integration, focus on software and robotics, and emphasis on talent and workforce development, create an industry-leading moat. The conversation covers the importance of manufacturing for global competitiveness, America's position in global...
2024-03-2951 minSourceryNick Abouzeid, Rivet: Growth "Hacking" Myths, What Worked at Ramp, & Better Tax ServicesIn this episode, Molly O'Shea is joined by Nick Abouzeid, co-founder of Rivet, a newly launched corporate and personal tax preparation firm. Prior to starting Rivet, Nick was a growth leader at Ramp, Main Street and Product Hunt. Molly and Nick deep dive on how to really drive growth, the misconceptions around growth marketing, and the supposed 'secret sauces’ strategies. They also discuss why venture-backed fintech startups need to focus on revenue generation in 2024 and why Nick took on venture capital to scale Rivet in a traditionally fragmented tax prep industry.
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2024-03-2242 minSourceryVarda's Landing, Peter Thiel, & the Future of El Segundo, Delian Asparouhov, Founders FundIn this podcast episode Molly O'Shea interviews Delian Asparouhov, Partner at Founders Fund and Co-Founder and President of Varda Space Industries, who dives into his experience building and investing in biotech, aerospace, and manufacturing.
Asparouhov also discusses the evolution of his investment strategies, the difference between Khosla Ventures and Founders Fund, the evolution of El Segundo, & creating more inclusive cultures.
Resources
Subscribe to Sourcery: https://www.sourcery.vc/
Companies Mentioned
Varda Space Industries https://www.varda.com/
Starlink https://www.starlink.com/
Elektrofi https://www.elektrofi.com/
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2024-03-1552 min
"Upstream" with Erik TorenbergE50: Alex Blania on Worldcoin, AGI, and Future PredictionsThis week on Upstream, Erik is joined by Alex Blania, who, with Sam Altman, co-founded Tools for Humanity, the organizarion behind Worldcoin. Erik and Alex go deep on Worldcoin, AGI, and other future tech. To get Brave: Head to https://brave.com/brave-ads/ and mention “MoZ” when signing up for a 25% discount on your first campaign.--RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Sourcery by Molly O'SheaSourcery by Molly O’Shea brings the conversations founders and investors have behind closed doors into the light. Subscribe for upcoming episodes with: Delian Asparouhov of Founders Fund and Varda Space...
2024-03-1540 min
"The Riff" with Byrne Hobart and Erik TorenbergHedging against Life, Outage Economics, and Open Source vs Proprietary AIOn today’s episode, Byrne Hobart delves into the intricacies of technology-induced market shifts, hedge fund dynamics, Byrne’s post on outage economics, and the evolving landscape of open source and proprietary AI models.---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.---
2024-03-141h 07
"Econ 102" with Noah Smith and Erik TorenbergAI's Influence on the Economy with Nathan LabenzIn this episode, Noah Smith and Erik Torenberg are joined by Nathan Labenz, co-host of The Cognitive Revolution Podcast, to deep dive into AI's impact on our economy and society. They discuss how AI might affect the job market and society, drawing comparisons to past economic changes. If you’re looking for an ERP platform head to NetSuite http://netsuite.com/102 and download your own customized KPI checklist.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 expe...
2024-03-131h 12
Brick by Brick021 Molly O'Shea: Growing the Sourcery.vc Newsletter to 6k SubscribersMolly O’Shea is an investor & founder of Sourcery.vc. A weekly newsletter on top weekly VC deals & tech signals. After posting top quality content for 4 years, whilst working at a variety of VC firms, Molly has built an audience of 6,000 people from the industry.In this conversation we talked about: 00:59 Sourcery.vc 03:29 Consistency and discipline in content creation05:41 Networking and building connections through content 12:16 Molly's personal background and journey into venture capital 18:18 Taking a multi-disciplinary to life20:06 Whats the difference between those who are ac...
2024-03-121h 03
"Turpentine VC" | Venture Capital and InvestingE30: How Kirsten Green Built Forerunner VenturesThis is a special episode featuring an interview between Forerunner Ventures founder Kirsten Green and Turner Novak of The Peel podcast and Banana Capital. The conversation covers Kirsten's journey from her early days in retail investment banking to the creation of Forerunner Ventures, how she thinks of the state of consumer investing, the story behind Dollar Shave Club, how she makes investment decisions, and maintaining strong relationships with LPs.---RECOMMENDED PODCAST: The Peel Podcast with Turner NovakHead to The Peel for more of Turner's in depth interviews with...
2024-03-121h 16SourceryDavid Weisburd, 10X Capital: Finding Alpha and LP BiasIn this episode, Molly O'Shea talks with David Weisburd, Co-founder and Co-Head of Venture Capital at 10X Capital. They discuss the strategies for achieving alpha in VC, the significance of LP-GP dynamics, VC’s track record on predicting trends versus fads, and delve into David’s AI thesis.
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@MollySOShea
@DWeisburd
Resources
David's Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/2MHgyKMmJgznPI66MLxZfC
David & J-Cal's Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/2T64PheDtaMDmFH9pS3GgK
OpenLP Powered by Sapphire: https://openlp.sapphireventures.com/
Subscribe to Sourcery: https://www.sourcery.vc/
2024-03-0835 minSourceryAlex Kolicich, 8VC: Exodus of Venture Capital, AI PredictionsIn this podcast episode, Molly O'Shea interviews Alex Kolicich, founding partner at 8VC, about 8VC’s portfolio construction, the VC ecosystem, the rate of innovation with AI, and the opportunities ahead. The conversation also covers the importance of understanding the limitations to AI and areas where these technologies will likely have the most impact.
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@MollySOShea
@AlexKolicich
Resources
Alex’s Writing: https://www.alexkolicich.com/
Subscribe to Sourcery: https://www.sourcery.vc/
Companies Mentioned
Ollama https://ollama.com/
PerplexityAI https://www...
2024-03-0348 min
SourceryXander Oltmann, Commodity Capital: Downfall of SaaS & Uprising of Vertically Integrated MonopoliesSummary
In this podcast episode, Molly O'Shea interviews Xander Oltmann about his venture capital fund, Commodity Capital, and his investment thesis on complex, vertically integrated monopolies. They discuss the challenges and opportunities with declining software development costs, if SaaS is really dead, and where AI comes into play. Xander shares his insights on the competition with multi-stage firms and the dislocation in valuations and prices. He also highlights some of the companies in his portfolio, such as Hadrian and Armada, and shares his 2024 predictions.
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Molly O’Shea
Xa...
2024-02-0124 min