LA Venture

Venture capital is a team sport masquerading as an individual sport.  Rayfe Gaspar-Asaoka, partner at Canaan Partners, tells us why he thinks VC partnerships resemble a swim team.  

We also talk about space and defense tech, the evolution of venture capital, how generational transition can work well and why a thoughtful reserve strategy has outsized leverage, especially in early stage venture firms.

More growth rounds in 2024!  Avery Rosin is writing $50-300M checks for Lead Edge Capital. He thinks PE firms are going to continue being acquisitive, companies are going to reorient around the Rule of 40 and more reasons for his optimism.

Have VCs overreacted against investing in consumer?  Shamin Walsh has a 10x fund and numerous case studies to show that consumer can provide huge returns when done right. 

Shamin shares how to win when investing in consumer (eg: invest in a cat litter company that raises $1.5M and exits for $500M!!)

Michael Tubbs gained national prominence when he became the youngest mayor of any major American city at age 26. He was a hero of the universal basic income movement until he suddenly lost reelection. Listen to his lessons learned and think about what you're willing to stick your neck out and lose for.

Tubbs is now investing out of Tubbs Ventures, where he focuses on government technology and solving fundamental societal problems.

Josh Resnick is the co-founder of candy brand Sugarfina, where he sold very expensive gummy bears that made people happy. Before Sugarfina, he sold his video game developer Pandemic Studios for $860M. 

He is now a General Partner at OpenSky Ventures where he invests in the future of commerce and helps founders avoid pitfalls of growing too fast--adding SKUs too quickly, not having a handle on business data, overspending on legal and other lessons he's learned from his founder and angel investing journey.

Kunal Tandon was running a family business importing paper and metal before cold calling his way into venture capital. Previously at Collaborative Fund, Kunal is now investing out of El Cap Fund II with his partner and former NFL player Stewart Bradley.

Scott Nolan tells us what he thinks about the Elon-haters and how Founders Fund is unique in their investing approach. Scott, a partner at Founders Fund, has been there 12 years and was one of the first hires at SpaceX.

From fleeing revolution at 14 to shaping the future of B2B SaaS investments, Ivan's journey is nothing short of inspirational. Uncover secrets to startup success and the art of building a vibrant venture community.

FirstLook Partners is a hybrid fund of funds actively investing in funds under $50M. Josh Porter, co-founder of FirstLook, explains why he thinks smaller funds make the best investment opportunities. 

Josh has seen hundreds of decks and digs in on how to evaluate funds and his unique approach to co-investments.