This Week in Startups
933 episodes - English - Latest episode: almost 2 years ago - ★★★★★ - 762 ratingsEvery day, Jason Calacanis and Molly Wood cover startups, technology, markets, media, crypto, and the all the hottest topics in business and tech. They also interview the world’s greatest founders, operators, investors and innovators.
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Episodes
Tether: Crypto’s Black Swan? Plus Alternative Asset Roundtable featuring the founders of Masterworks, Fundrise & Rally Rd | E1232
June 15, 2021 21:22 - 1 hour - 80 MBJason kicks off the episode with research into the claims against Tether Limited, the company behind USDT, the world's largest "stablecoin" and 3rd largest cryptocurrency (1:30). Then Jason is joined by 3 founders of Alternative Asset investing platforms (25:49), Chris Bruno of Rally, Scott Lynn of Masterworks, and Ben Miller of Fundrise. They discuss inflation, supply & demand, expanding company roadmaps (59:56) and more!
Zymergen CEO Josh Hoffman on Biofacturing PLUS Founder U Startup Math | E1231
June 11, 2021 23:25 - 1 hour - 65.7 MBJason opens with a Founder University segment on "Startup Math" (1:48), then interviews Zymergen CEO Josh Hoffman on Biofacturing (16:45), how DNA sequencing & machine learning are enabling materials science advancements (26:35), what human capital is needed for the industry (42:53) & more. Pod Notes: http://bit.ly/1231notes
News! The cult of Bitcoin maximalists, Bezos is going to space, & Facebook’s smartwatch | E1230
June 11, 2021 07:21 - 47 minutes - 43.8 MBFirst up, Jason covers "Bitcoin Toxicity." Are Bitcoin maximalists exhibiting cult-like behavior? (1:19) Then, he assesses the risks of Bezos going to space: is the potential upside worth the risk of ruin? (36:16) Finally, he wraps with news of Facebook's rumored smartwatch. Have Apple's recent privacy measures forced Facebook's hand into the wearables space? (40:59)
Customer Success | Scaling Your Startup S2E9 with Statusphere’s Kristen Wiley & Techmate’s Nicole Beals | E1229
June 09, 2021 21:09 - 52 minutes - 47.6 MBCustomer success is key to startup success. First, Statusphere CEO Kristen Wiley shares strategies from managing two customer success teams in B2B and B2C. (1:00) Then, find out why customers churn from Techmate COO Nicole Beals, who also shares how Techmate increased their customer retention rate from 70% to 98%. (27:07) To wrap, Jason leads a Q&A covering compensation, productizing customer moments, and more. (40:41)
Aurora CEO Chris Urmson on building the roadmap to fully autonomous vehicles | E1228
June 08, 2021 20:16 - 58 minutes - 54 MBChris Urmson the CEO of Aurora, a leading self-driving company, joins Jason to recount the history of autonomous vehicles (1:06), the roadmap for removing human drivers (16:47), what technology problems are left to solve (38:25) and more!
Apple’s WFH blowback, navigating current startup valuations PLUS Sugar’s Fatima Dicko | 1227
June 08, 2021 00:12 - 1 hour - 61.5 MBJason gives his take on the letter from a group of employees to Tim Cook about Apple's return to work (1:00), then Fatima Dicko the CEO and Founder of Sugar discusses pivoting in the pandemic (25:54), what amenities apartments will offer in the future (45:39), and more. Then Jason wraps with a "button" on investing when valuations are high, where there is value to be found, and more (58:44). http://bit.ly/e1227tnotes
Katerra’s collapse, Bill Ackman’s SPAC merger plus Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi | E1226
June 04, 2021 22:20 - 1 hour - 79.1 MBJason covers the bankruptcy of the Softbank-backed construction startup Katerra, Bill Ackman's Universal Music SPAC, then interviews Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi about portable benefits for independent contractors, the expanding UberEats business, local commerce and more!
Launching Twitter Blue with Twitter’s Head of Product Kayvon Beykpour | E1225
June 03, 2021 19:14 - 53 minutes - 48.7 MBKayvon Beykpour, Twitter's Head of Product shares the strategy behind Twitter's recent feature releases, what structural changes enabled Twitter to increase product velocity, how they segment composers & consumers, the Twitter blue launch & more!
Low-Burn | Scaling Your Startup S2 E8 with Neyborly’s Ben Seidl & Xendoo’s Lil Roberts | E1224
June 03, 2021 03:42 - 57 minutes - 52.5 MBA low-burn rate gives startups the agility they need to succeed and weather unforeseen challenges. Two CEOs join Jason to discuss how founders can make the most of their limited capital. Ben Seidl of Neyborly covers managing burn rate (2:58), Lil Roberts of Xendoo shares the steps needed to maintain financial health, then Jason joins for a Q&A on how to create a slingshot business(48:48), the appropriate level of runway (55:02) & more.
Citizen App’s bounty blunder, “digital bodyguard” service + Coinbase launches “Fact Check” | E1223
May 28, 2021 21:55 - 43 minutes - 39.8 MBJason breaks down the Citizen App's recent mistake of putting a $30,000 bounty on an incorrect arson suspect (01:39), assesses the merits of an "Uber for private security" (17:15), and covers Coinbase's launch of their self-titled "Fact Check" media arm (37:32).
Acquired.FM’s Ben Gilbert & David Rosenthal on Berkshire vs. Bitcoin, Amazon acquires James Bond IP, and more! | E1222
May 26, 2021 23:48 - 1 hour - 56.3 MBBen Gilbert & David Rosenthal of Acquired join Jason to talk about Bitcoin's recent price action (5:55), the cognitive dissonance of liking both Bitcoin and Berkshire (14:27), Amazon's acquisition of MGM (39:34), and more!
Culture | Scaling Your Startup S2 E7: 15five’s David Hassell & Balloon’s Amanda Greenberg | E1221
May 25, 2021 20:31 - 1 hour - 79.5 MBTwo CEOs join to talk about intentionally creating and maintaining a workplace culture that delivers high performance. First, 15five's David Hassel shares how to build culture at scale (1:49), then Balloon's Amanda Greenberg shares a process to help leaders navigate hybrid work (26:00). To wrap, Jason joins for a Q&A session covering workplace political speech, compensation, remote work, and negotiations (42:00).
US initiates crypto regulation, Robinhood IPO access, Slack as a Trojan Horse PLUS Magic Spoon CEO Gabi Lewis | E1220
May 21, 2021 19:31 - 1 hour - 58.3 MBJason hits the recent restrictions on crypto from the U.S. and China, Robinhood allowing users to get in at IPO prices, and Antonio García Martínez's chat with Kara Swisher (1:15). Then in the main segment, Magic Soon Cereal Co-Founder Gabi Lewis discusses the difference between a good product and product-market fit (25:47), how Magic Spoon does influencer marketing (45:25), classic cereal flavors & more!
Emergency Pod! Huge Bitcoin correction, Robinhood IPO rumors, Squarespace direct listing | E1219
May 20, 2021 00:13 - 33 minutes - 31 MBEmergency pod! Bitcoin sees a major correction due to China's crack down (1:46). What are the chances it could it go to zero, and could China banning crypto be a blessing in disguise? Robinhood is rumored to be going public next month (14:14), what will their market cap be at IPO? Plus Squarespace goes public via direct listing (26:10)!
Marketing SEO & Conversion Funnels | Scaling Your Startup S2 E6: Gravitr’s Doriane Mouret & Outlaw’s Danielle Vincent | E1218
May 19, 2021 23:10 - 1 hour - 59.3 MBThis episode is full of tactical advice for improving your marketing operations. Gravitr's Doriane Mouret explains how to improve your conversion funnels (3:28), Outlaw's Danielle Vincent shares how to improve your SEO (33:45), then Jason joins for a Q&A covering the right cadence, location, and quality of content to publish (47:21).
Amazon in talks to acquire MGM, AT&T offloading Warner Media, Dapper Labs lawsuit plus NYT’s Taylor Lorenz on creator economy, Clubhouse & Jake Paul’s venture fund | E1217
May 18, 2021 23:03 - 1 hour - 81.9 MBJason covers Amazon's talks to acquire MGM, AT&T's spin-off of WarnerMedia to Discovery, and Dapper Labs lawsuit about the nature of NFTs (1:00). Then, NYT journalist Taylor Lorenz joins to discuss the implications of social media & its more reckless influencers (15:21), why she prefers to write for the New York Times instead of a lucrative Substack offer (48:50), and more!
Emergency Pod! Twitter is reportedly building a paid subscription called “Twitter Blue” | E1216
May 18, 2021 06:13 - 33 minutes - 30.5 MBJason shares insights on the Twitter Blue leak (1:40) then breaks down recent product innovations, Twitter's 2021 acquisition spree, and what it all means (15:05). Check out the pod notes: https://bitly.com/e1216notes
Ask an Angel PLUS Antonio Garcia Martinez vs. Apple with Zach Coelius | E1215
May 15, 2021 08:41 - 1 hour - 61.9 MBZach Coelius joins Jason to answer live listener questions (1:09), and then the pair discuss Apple's recent debacle in firing Antonio Garcia Martinez after being pressured by employees (42:43). Check out the pod notes here: https://bitly.com/e1215notes
Product | Scaling Your Startup S2 E5 with Superhuman’s Rahul Vohra & Fitbod’s Jesse Venticique | E1214
May 15, 2021 02:57 - 52 minutes - 48.2 MBThis episode reveals the product strategies of two of Jason's high-performing portfolio companies, Superhuman & Fitbod. First, Superhuman's Founder & CEO Rahul Vohra shares his 7 principles for improving products with game design (01:40), then Fitbod's CO-founder and Product Head Jesse Venticique describes how to optimize your product hook (20:08), and to wrap up, Jason brings the two together for a Q&A session (36:44). Pod Notes: http://bit.ly/e1214tnotes
Oura CEO Harpreet Rai on improving sleep, NBA partnerships, hardware & more PLUS the Instagram Kids debacle | E1213
May 13, 2021 21:10 - 1 hour - 72.2 MBJason gives his take on Facebook's Instagram Kids initiative (0:53), then, Ōura's CEO Harpreet Rai discusses how sleep & recovery scores are calculated (25:09), how Oura works with the NBA & enterprise to keep organizations healthy (50:49), and more! Pod Notes: http://bit.ly/e1213tnotes
Precursor Ventures’ Charles Hudson & Jason give candid feedback on startup pitches at Founder University | E1212
May 11, 2021 20:59 - 51 minutes - 47.1 MBJason & Charles Hudson from Precursor Ventures take 8 pitches from founders and give feedback on how the pitches were structured (13:10) and their business models (38:48). Pod Notes: http://bit.ly/twist1212
Facebook’s Oversight Board rules on Trump ban plus how to reverse engineer TAM & more | E1211
May 07, 2021 21:19 - 1 hour - 61 MBJason covers the Facebook Oversight Board's decision on Trump (15:49), gives a potential solution for bad actors on social media that are of public consequence (39:25), provides a concrete way to reverse engineer TAM (55:00), and more!
Fundraising | Scaling Your Startup S2 E4 with Density’s Andrew Farah and SoleSavy’s Dejan Pralica | E1210
May 06, 2021 21:38 - 1 hour - 65.2 MBTwo startup CEOs share their approach to fundraising, Andrew Farah explains the strategy he used to raise $100M for Density (03:58), Dejan simplifies his community-forming principles for SoleSavy (38:27), and both give tactical lessons from the mistakes they made along the way (46:23)! Deck: https://bit.ly/3b8gz8g
Fundraising | Scaling Your Startup S2 E4 with SoleSavy’s Dejan Pralica and Density’s Andrew Farah | E1210
May 06, 2021 21:38 - 65.2 MBTwo startup CEOs share their approach to fundraising, Andrew Farah explains the strategy he used to raise $100M for Density (03:58), Dejan simplifies his community-forming principles for SoleSavy (38:27), and both give tactical lessons from the mistakes they made along the way (46:23)! Deck: https://bit.ly/3b8gz8g
Crafter’s Morgan Spenla on delighting makers with memberships, materials, and a marketplace | E1209
May 05, 2021 22:44 - 57 minutes - 52.3 MBMorgan Spenla shares why her company Crafter delivers a wonderful experience to makers (01:06), how they monetize (15:04), why she hires customer support from Starbucks (48:07), and more!
Breaking down Basecamp’s tumultuous week, politics at work & more | E1208
May 05, 2021 03:32 - 47 minutes - 43.7 MBJason weighs in on Basecamp's ban of political discussion at work (10:57), the ensuing employee exodus (22:40), shares his policy for his companies (26:32), answers a listener's question about how to surround yourself with great people (40:09), and more! Pod Notes: http://bit.ly/e1208Tnotes
How Tiger Global is outpacing VC with better, faster, cheaper, capital ft. Founders Fund’s Everett Randle | E1207
April 30, 2021 20:35 - 52 minutes - 48.3 MBTiger Global, a crossover hedge fund, is moving at an unprecedented speed and scale in venture capital. Everett Randle of Founder's Fund joins Jason to break down Tiger Global's strategy, discuss the implications for the investing ecosystem (13:14), explain his "Walmart of VC firms" mental model (24:42), and more! Pod Notes: http://bit.ly/E1207Tnotes
Sales | Scaling Your Startup S2 E3 with GRIN’s Brandon Brown and LeadIQ’s Mei Siauw | E1206
April 29, 2021 20:13 - 54 minutes - 49.6 MBA high-functioning sales machine is a way to predictably scale revenue quickly. Two 8-figure B2B SaaS CEOs share the lessons they've learned from building effective sales teams including how to create an effective sales motion (2:49), structure a sales pod (12:00), hire a great VP of sales (15:10), train SDRs into AEs (28:55), deal with average performers (47:54), and more! Slide Deck Slide Deck: http://bit.ly/SYS-S2E3-Deck
Arlan Hamilton on raising $5M in crowdfunding, empowering & educating underestimated founders | E1205
April 27, 2021 20:32 - 1 hour - 55.2 MBArlan Hamilton of Backstage Capital discusses her $5M crowdfunding raise on Republic (04:16), what's "popping" in her current portfolio (20:06), her founder education course (49:46), and more! Check out the pod notes here: http://bit.ly/1205podnotes
Emergency Pod! Tim Cook vs. Mark Zuckerberg: Apple and Facebook go to war over privacy updates | E1204
April 27, 2021 05:39 - 17 minutes - 16.1 MBJason dives deep on Apple vs. Facebook: the numbers, the philosophical differences, the potential outcomes & more! (5:05) Check out the full pod notes here: http://bit.ly/e1204podnotes
Altimeter’s Brad Gerstner on taking Grab public in largest SPAC ever, fixing broken IPOs | E1203
April 23, 2021 20:41 - 59 minutes - 54.4 MBCrossover technology investor Brad Gerstner discussed Altimeter Capital taking Grab public in the largest SPAC ever (38:55), why the IPO process is broken and how to fix it (12:55), and the responsibility of people with platforms to encourage responsible retail investing (22:12). As well as, how $2000 for every American invested in the public markets at birth would display the power of capitalism to improve lives (50:50) and more!
Social Marketing | Scaling Your Startup S2 E2 with Mehak Vohra and Kate Bradley-Chernis | E1202
April 21, 2021 21:58 - 1 hour - 66.7 MBJason is joined by two outstanding CEOs running marketing companies, Mehak Vohra (Skillbank) & Kate Bradley-Chernis (Lately). Mehak shared the strategies she used to drive signups for Skillbank on TikTok(2:57). Kate shared her top business writing techniques (18:48), how to create engagement for B2B sales on LinkedIn (24:15), and more! To see the deck discussed in this episode go to https://bit.ly/3tA7sVb
Emergency Pod! Jason reacts to the Apple event: M1 iMac & iPad Pro, AirTags, Podcasts & more | E1201
April 21, 2021 08:50 - 33 minutes - 30.7 MBJason reacts to all of Apple's most notable product releases from their Spring Loaded event: Apple Podcasts redesign (2:43), AirTags (13:09), M1 iMac (20:08), M1 iPad Pro (25:15) & more!
MetaKovan on financing digital art & buying Beeple’s $69M NFT, plus Clubhouse facing new competition in social audio | E1200
April 20, 2021 20:26 - 55 minutes - 51.1 MBFirst Jason discusses Clubhouse's facing new competition in social audio from Reddit and others (2:44). Then, he asks Crypto investor & entrepreneur MetaKovan why he bought Beeple’s "Everydays" NFT at a Christie's auction for $69M (23:30), what crypto assets he is invested in (28:29), and more!
Jason’s EOW (End of Week) | 4/16/20
April 17, 2021 15:58 - 47 minutes - 43.2 MBNew format! Jason's EOW (End of Week): Jason wraps up the week covering some current events he's interested in, explaining things he's been working on (0:00), and answering fan questions live (14:56).
Republic CEO Ken Nguyen on making early-stage investing for everyone | E1199
April 16, 2021 20:09 - 1 hour - 65.6 MBKendrick Nguyen of Republic, an early-stage investing platform, talks about the power of the retail investor crowd, how startups can convert their followers into investors (13:05), Republic's diligence process for deals on their platform (47:46), and more!
Throwback! Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong from November 2017
April 15, 2021 05:55 - 20 minutes - 18.6 MBJason reflects on Coinbase's monumental direct listing (0:00), then tosses to a November 2017 interview featuring Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong (6:21). Check out the pod notes here: https://rb.gy/1vlx74
Growth | Scaling Your Startup S2 E1 with Growth University’s Craig Zingerline and Fitbod’s Allen Chen | E1198
April 14, 2021 21:50 - 1 hour - 67.9 MBGrowth experts Craig Zingerline (Growth University) and Allen Chen (Fitbod) cover how startups can grow their user base, including tactical tips and best practices on building a growth model, acquiring and activating customers, retaining users, measuring performance and more. Check out the deck here: https://rb.gy/fb94ib
Dapper Labs CEO Roham Gharegozlou on powering NFTs, NBA Top Shot, & CryptoKitties | E1197
April 13, 2021 20:12 - 1 hour - 57.3 MBDapper Labs CEO Roham Gharegozlou discusses his vision for NFTs and why he created Flow blockchain, how he used CryptoKitties' success to secure the NBA Top Shot partnership (12:26), how building platforms on the blockchain can potentially erode Facebook's power (43:25) and more!
Building a production location marketplace with Hank Leber, Co-Founder of Giggster | E1196
April 09, 2021 20:15 - 52 minutes - 47.6 MBHank Leber, co-founder of Giggster, talks about growing their production location marketplace, onboarding 10,000 locations from a totally offline process and building "Airbnb for professional locations" (0:00). He shares Giggster's fundraising history and the impact of raising at Remote Demo Day (17:35), and also dives into common use cases and more (30:05)! Check out the advanced pod notes here: https://bit.ly/twist-notes-giggster FOUNDERS! Apply to pitch 7000+ angel investors at Remote Dem...
Building a production location marketplace with Hank Leber, co-founder of Giggster | E1196
April 09, 2021 20:15 - 47.6 MBHank Leber, co-founder of Giggster, talks about growing their production location marketplace, onboarding 10,000 locations from a totally offline process and building "Airbnb for professional locations" (0:00). He shares Giggster's fundraising history and the impact of raising at Remote Demo Day (17:35), and also dives into common use cases and more (30:05)! Check out the advanced pod notes here: https://bit.ly/twist-notes-giggster FOUNDERS! Apply to pitch 7000+ angel investors at Remote Dem...
Snack App’s Kim Kaplan PLUS 3 key metrics that matter for consumer, enterprise SaaS & marketplace startups
April 06, 2021 20:06 - 51.9 MBFirst, Jason answers fan questions on attracting VCs and the 3 key metrics for consumer, enterprise SaaS and marketplace startups (1:32), then Snack App CEO Kim Kaplan joins to talk about her new Tinder-meets-TikTok dating app (15:21). For in-depth podcast notes, click here: https://bit.ly/E1195-TwistNotes
Snack App’s Kim Kaplan PLUS 3 key metrics that matter for consumer, enterprise SaaS & marketplace startups | E1195
April 06, 2021 20:06 - 55 minutes - 51.9 MBFirst, Jason answers fan questions on attracting VCs and the 3 key metrics for consumer, enterprise SaaS and marketplace startups (1:32), then Snack App CEO Kim Kaplan joins to talk about her new Tinder-meets-TikTok dating app (15:21). For in-depth podcast notes, click here: https://bit.ly/E1195-TwistNotes
This Week in Startups Australia hosted by Mark Pesce | Season 9 Episode 1 with Jason Calacanis
April 06, 2021 03:15 - 48 minutes - 44.9 MBSeason 9 Episode 1: TWISTA Patron Saint Jason Calacanis joins us to kick off series 9 with a deep dive into the post-pandemic startup world – and the virtuous cycle of successful startups.
Early angel investing blind spots, thoughts on the creator economy PLUS Canny.io’s Sarah Hum | E1194
April 02, 2021 20:43 - 50 minutes - 34.7 MBToday's show features a throwback format, where Jason answers a fan question about his early blind spots in angel investing (1:54), is joined by Canny.io Founder Sarah Hum (9:08), and then shares his thoughts on the growing "creator economy" (34:22). Check out the advanced pod notes here: https://rb.gy/mqxls8
Common First-Time Founder Mistakes Part 2! with Becki DeGraw | Wilson Sonsini Startup Legal Basics
April 02, 2021 05:33 - 22 minutes - 20.8 MBWilson Sonsini Partner Becki DeGraw joins Jason for another discussion around common first-time founder mistakes. Topics include avoiding founder legal disputes, no vesting on shares, IP protection, super-voting shares and more! Check out the full Startup Basics series at https://thisweekinstartups.com/basics
Emergency Pod! SPAC Overload: Understanding 2021’s unprecedented SPAC market | E1193
April 01, 2021 19:37 - 31 minutes - 28.7 MBCheck out Jason's SPAC Deck: https://rb.gy/9txa6c FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis Show notes: 0:00 Jason intros today's Epod: SPAC Overload! 1:29 OurCrowd - Sign up for a free account at https://www.ourcrowd.com/twist 2:55 Current state of SPACs - how did we get here & how do SPACs work? 9:12 Comparing SPACs, IPOs & Direct Listings 13:19 SPAC renaissance starting in 2020, comparison vs. S&P 500, understanding the recent pullback 16:59 Top SPACS by market cap, revenue, specul...
SPAC Overload! Understanding 2021’s unprecedented SPAC market | E1193
April 01, 2021 19:37 - 28.7 MBCheck out Jason's SPAC Deck: https://rb.gy/9txa6c FOLLOW Jason: https://linktr.ee/calacanis Show notes: 0:00 Jason intros today's Epod: SPAC Overload! 1:29 OurCrowd - Sign up for a free account at https://www.ourcrowd.com/twist 2:55 Current state of SPACs - how did we get here & how do SPACs work? 9:12 Comparing SPACs, IPOs & Direct Listings 13:19 SPAC renaissance starting in 2020, comparison vs. S&P 500, understanding the recent pullback 16:59 Top SPACS by market cap, revenue, speculation &...
Emergency Pod! uBiome: Anatomy of an Alleged Fraud with Wall Street Journal reporter Amy Dockser Marcus | E1192
March 31, 2021 06:29 - 50 minutes - 46.3 MBJason and WSJ Reporter Amy Dockser Marcus break down the alleged uBiome fraud! Check out the Pod Notes here: https://rb.gy/tjw046
Startup Bracketology: selecting the world’s most valuable private company with Acquired FM PLUS future of VC | E1191
March 26, 2021 23:41 - 79.7 MBThe post Startup Bracketology: selecting the world’s most valuable private company with Acquired FM PLUS future of VC | E1191 appeared first on This Week In Startups.