The space industry is one of the most fascinating areas of technology in 2024. The reduction in launch costs and proliferation of satellites make all kinds of new businesses possible. Today we are joined by Austin Link, the co-founder and CEO of Starfish Space (where Ben and PSL Ventures are investors!). Austin lays out the state of the space indus…

If you’ve been waiting for us to venture back to the land of semiconductors, you’re in luck! On our NVIDIA and TSMC episodes, we explored two components of the silicon value chain: the fabless chip companies that design chips and the foundries that manufacture them. Today, we dive into the software that powers it all, the field electronic design au…

On this latest episode of Nutrition Business Today, host Tom Aarts and his guests pick apart this surge of weight loss supplements, that followed the recent 'Ozempic craze'. Coming all the way from New Zealand, six-time CEO Sarah Kennedy and scientist lecturer at the University of Aukland, Dr. Ed Walker cut through the noise on natural products in …

On our Novo Nordisk episode, we covered the business of Ozempic, the GLP-1 taking the world by storm. On this episode, we dive into the science of the molecule semaglutide (and its predecessor liraglutide) with the world expert on the topic, Lotte Bjerre Knudsen. Lotte is Novo Nordisk’s Chief Scientific Advisor, and led the research group back in t…

We’re joined by Imprint cofounder and Thrive General Partner Gaurav Ahuja to dive deeper into the modern payments ecosystem and Visa’s current place within it. Gaurav was one of our research sources for the Visa episode, and we wanted to bring his insights to you all too. We discuss whether Visa really should be worried about eroding interchange fe…

Dive into the world of nutrition and eye health with Andreas Wolf, President of EyePromise, and Dr. Pinakin Davey, Chief Medical & Science Officer. In this episode, explore the dynamic growth of EyePromise and the groundbreaking Zx Pro device, a niche but crucial addition to the supplement industry. Join the conversation as our guests share insight…

We sit down with Morgan Housel, who is one of our very favorite authors and has also become a good friend of the show over the past few years. Morgan’s last book The Psychology of Money had a huge impact on both of our personal financial philosophies (and by extension Acquired’s!), and Morgan was kind enough to give us an advance copy of his new bo…

In this episode, we engage in a transformative conversation with two exceptional visionaries, Loree Sutton, MD, and Najla Guthrie. Dr. Sutton, a retired Brigadier General, shares insights on the synergy between psychedelics and traditional mental health treatment methods, as well as their potential role in trauma healing and prevention. She also de…

Dive into the transformative conversation with Katerina Schneider, the visionary Founder and CEO of Ritual, as she shares her incredible journey from a Ukrainian refugee to a pioneering entrepreneur. In this podcast episode, Katerina unveils the genesis of Ritual during her first pregnancy, highlighting the intersection of her personal story, commi…

While preparing for our Porsche episode with Doug DeMuro, we had a lot more than Porsche to discuss… but the episode was already over 3 hours! We decided to save the rest for its own episode, released here on ACQ2. Doug helped us understand what’s going on with the car industry supply chain in 2023, the transition to electric vehicles, the car deal…

We sit down with RunwayML’s CEO Cristobal Valenzuela to discuss the incredible tools they’re bringing to film and video creators (including last year’s Best Picture “Everything Everywhere All at Once” from A24), and the history + current state of the “visual” branch of generative AI. We cover how they’ve gone to market with both creators and enterp…

We sit down with Crusoe Energy CEO Chase Lochmiller to talk about the two “hard to imagine” tasks they’ve undertaken: 1) building a new AI cloud infrastructure provider from scratch, and 2) colocating and powering it with stranded energy from some of the harshest and most remote locations on earth. Crusoe’s cloud of course has to compete with (and …

On today's episode...Join us for a captivating as we dive into the fascinating world of AI with two distinguished guests. Dr. Nora Khaldi, Founder & CEO of Nuritas, and Alex Evans, Managing Director and Head of the Los Angeles Office for L.E.K. Consulting. Nora takes us on a journey through her groundbreaking work in utilizing AI technology to unlo…

On today's episode...Join us for a power-packed conversation into the realm of brain health, biohacking, and business with the Neurohacker Collective's CEO James, and Senior VP of Product Development Nick. Discover the secrets behind unlocking peak performance for the mind and optimizing success in both personal and professional pursuits! James and…

Every now and then, we come across super interesting and under-the-radar (at least to us!) public markets folks like NZS Capital who make us think differently about the art of investing. TDM is another one of those groups — founded 18 years ago in Australia, they’ve compounded a single, private pool of capital at 26% per annum over nearly two decad…

How do you build defensible business value in an era when, as AngelList CEO Avlok Kohli said on our last ACQ2 episode, the “cost of intelligence is going to zero”? Longtime friend of the show Jake Saper and his partners at Emergence Capital have been refining their thesis for this brave new world of Generative AI in B2B, and we sit down with him to…

In this episode, we explore the latest breakthroughs in nutrition and their impact on the market. Today, we are joined by Dr. Christopher Shade, a renowned expert in the field of environmental and analytical chemistry. With a PhD in chemistry, Dr. Shade is an expert in mercury and other detoxification pathways, with a particular emphasis on glutath…

Since joining AngelList as CEO in 2019, Avlok Kohli has presided over perhaps the most unexpected and astounding transformation in the venture ecosystem: taking AngelList from an SPV provider to a company that is quickly becoming the software platform for the entire industry. Today, AngelList provides investors and founders with the infrastructure …

David Hsu has one of the most interesting founders journeys in tech today. After growing up in Silicon Valley, he left to study both philosophy and computer science at Oxford in the UK, then returned immediately afterward to found an internal enterprise tools company. Fast forward to today, and Retool is a multi-billion dollar valuation juggernaut …

Ben and David joined Sam and Shaan of "My First Million" to talk about scaling to a large podcast, the company they would like to own, the CEO's you don't want to compete against, and the 100+ year history of Nintendo. If you liked this and want more of Sam and Shawn, subscribe to the MFM YouTube channel here. Sponsors: Quartr Links: * Hampton * Wa…

On our AWS episode, we talked briefly about the next chapter of cloud: data warehouses. But what makes them so powerful? Why do enterprises rely on them? And how will cloud customers collaborate on data stored in multiple clouds? We sit down with Kamakshi Sivaramakrishnan, the co-founder and CEO of Samooha, a new company backed by Altimeter and Sno…

In this episode, we are pleased to have Dr. Jeff Chen and Pelin Thorogood from Radicle Science. Radicle Science is a company revolutionizing the way clinical trials are conducted. They aim to bridge the "Proof Gap" in the natural products and supplement industry by offering easy and affordable access to clinical trials by using an AI-driven, virtua…

On today's episode... I sit down with Dr. Gina Nick and Dr. Nayan Patel, two leading experts in integrative medicine, to explore the fascinating topic of glutathione. Glutathione is a powerful antioxidant that plays a critical role in maintaining our overall health and wellness, yet many people are unaware of its importance. Dr. Nick and Dr. Patel …

Statsig CEO and former Facebook VP Vijaye Raji joins us to discuss democratizing the tools of big tech. Before starting Statsig, Vijaye spent 10 years at Facebook where he led the development of their mobile ad product (yes — THAT mobile ad product that’s the core of FB today). We talk all about about Facebook’s early days in mobile, and the intern…

On today's episode... I am joined by two experts in the field of mushrooms, Nirmal Nair and Dennis Desjardin. We delve into the captivating world of brand mushrooms and discover the magic of Sempera's high-quality, sustainably grown options, and uncover the secrets behind Sempera's success. Get ready for an exciting journey as we explore the latest…

Get ready to learn about the health benefits hiding in plain sight in your grocery store! Our next episode of Nutrition Business Today explores the functional foods in mushrooms and how they can improve your health and well-being. Join us next week as we speak with Nirmal Nair and Dennis Desjardin and discover the latest research on the power of mu…

On today's episode, I am joined by David Neundorfer as we dive into the world of CBD. From its benefits to its legal status, we cover it all! David Neundorfer is the CEO and founder of Open Book Extracts, a unique and important company in the CBD and cannabinoid space. Learn more about Open Book Extracts at: www.openbookextracts.com Check out Nutri…

We sit down with Altimeter Capital’s head of Capital Formation Meghan Reynolds (who previously was TPG’s global co-head of Capital Formation for 10 years) to talk about everything that goes into the LP - GP relationship at venture funds. We cover how (and why) to think strategically about Capital Formation, why it should be about so much more the j…

On today's episode, I am joined by Sandra Carter and Steve Farrar in exploring the wonderful world of mushrooms - from business to health to psychedelics and more! Sandra Carter is the founder of Om Mushroom and M2 Ingredients, which both companies play in the fast-growing functional mushroom ingredient space and mushroom branded space. Joined besi…

On today's episode, Dan Goldberger and Peter Staats speak on behalf of electroCore about nutritional wellness, the Vagus nerve, and more! electroCore is a company that created a very unique device called gammaCore. gammaCore is a hand-held non-invasive device that stimulates the Vagus nerve to health in many areas of the body. Today, we take a deep…

The Acquired community's own Austin Federa joins us for a 101 primer on how to self-custody your crypto assets, and why it’s the only truly safe way to hold them. Given all the current turmoil (and fraud) in crypto-land, we were thinking “how could we do something to help the Acquired community right now”, and Austin gave us the perfect idea. In ad…

We had the rare opportunity to interview Jay Hoag, cofounder of the first tech crossover investing firm, TCV, at TCV’s Engage Summit in Half Moon Bay earlier this fall. Jay and Rick Kimball started TCV back in 1995 and have been part of the private-to-public journeys of storied companies like Netflix (which Jay shares some great war stories about o…

We sit down with Brian O’Malley of Forerunner Ventures to talk about where in the cycle we are right now for consumer investing. We touch on the macro environment (obviously!), but also how to navigate between and around the current generation of platform incumbents, and where the next breakthrough consumer technology companies might come from. And…

The CEO of Mutiny, Jaleh Rezaei, joins us to talk about the playbook to profitably grow a B2B company — something particularly useful for founders in 2022! Jaleh was Gusto’s first head of marketing (and before that worked at VMware and Sequoia), and has since gone on to build Mutiny, which helps B2B companies dynamically optimize their websites for…

Kindergarten Ventures LP (and fellow podcast host over at Unlimited Partners) Thomas McGannon interviews David about Kindergarten’s investment thesis for their recent large investment in Vanta. Along the way they discuss KV’s overall strategy, how it fits into Acquired, and why it’s “accidentally” become the best answer David has ever had to “why s…

We sit down with Kettle cofounder — and David’s Kindergarten Ventures partner — Nat Manning to discuss the fascinating world of reinsurance, risk and climate. We couldn’t think of a better and more appropriate conversation to have on the LP Show, and this was an absolute blast. Tune in and enjoy! Links: Kettle Kindergarten Ventures on AngelList Spo…

We sit down with long (long!) time-acquired community member Austin Federa to discuss the current state of crypto and Web3. By day Austin is the head of marketing & communications at the Solana Foundation, where he was one of the earliest employees. But many of you also know Austin from his "night job" as the founder and lead of the #digital-assets…

What does a $200 million+ acquisition look like up close? How much time, focus, and communication happens between the first conversation and closing the deal? And when do the CEOs of each company just need to use the "red phone" and have a direct conversation without the 86(!) lawyers in the room? We sit down with ProfitWell founder and CEO Patrick…

References: Dr. Passwater Whole Foods GG article: https://wholefoodsmagazine.com/columns/vitamin-connection/a-new-supplement-brings-many-health-benefits/ Check out the annatto plant! https://tinyurl.com/43m36tpz On today's episode, Dr. Barrie Tan speaks on behalf of American River Nutrition about Vitamin E and more. There is also a tribute to Dr. R…

David is the first guest on a new podcast, Unlimited Partners! This is a wide-ranging interview where upon listening, even Ben learned some new things about David :) Unlimited Partners is hosted by long-time friend of the Acquired community, Thomas McGannon. UP is his journey to learn - what makes great partnerships? They explore stories of people …

In this episode, Dr. Andrew Brandeis of OK Capsule shares his origin story and the journey of founding OK Capsule - a business to business manufacturing services for personalized vitamins. Dr. Brandeis is a serial entrepreneur in the health and wellness space, as well as a practicing physician. His most recent venture, OK capsule, raised $9.5 milli…

We sit down with TrovaTrip co-founders Nick Poggi and Lauren Schneider to talk about travel for the creator economy. This one is very close to home since Ben is on their board! TrovaTrip is a marketplace that enables creators to easily plan trips to places around the world with their audiences. It's a whole new way for people to travel, with other …

We dropped by Vanta's all-hands in SF a few weeks ago for Christina to interview us for a change! We decided to turn the mics on and record it as an ACQ2 episode. We discussed lessons learned from building Acquired, the shape of the show's growth trajectory, how we think about the business, and dive into our own origin story. Sponsors: Quartr…

We sit down with Composer CEO Benjamin Rollert to talk about bringing serious financial firepower to the people, wallstreetbets-style. Composer opens up to anyone the same level (or better) of tools that top quantitative hedge funds hire armies of PhDs and computer scientists to build internally. We have a blast discussing how he came at this space…

We sit down with Bain Capital Ventures' newest fintech Partner Christina Melas-Kyriazi to talk about everything happening right now in fintech, and the experience of helping build Affirm and the BNPL space from crazy idea to massive consumer finance category. Anyone interested in the history and future of fintech will love this one. Tune in! ‍ Spon…

On today's episode, you'll learn from the founder of Functional Medicine, Dr Jeffrey Bland: What is functional medicine? What body system is responsible for all other symptoms of aging? What is the mission behind Big Bold Health? What is Himalayan tartary buckwheat used for? And so much more. Tune in as Tom interviews world renowned scientists and …

In late 2021, Ben and David were guests on Ted Seides' podcast, "Capital Allocators". The episode kicked off Ted's "Venture is Eating the Investment World" mini-series. From Ted: David Rosenthal and Ben Gilbert are venture capitalists and hosts of the Acquired podcast. Acquired is one of my favorite shows. In it, David and Ben tell stories of great…

Get a cup of coffee. We sit down with the voice of one of our favorite Twitter accounts, 10-K Diver, to talk about his journey building one of the most widely followed (and respected!) fintwit accounts out there. We had a blast and — of course — learned a ton from one of the greats!! You can get this episode in your favorite podcast player here! Sp…

Back by popular “Acquired demand” (plus we really wanted to have this conversation for our own edification!!), friends of the pod NZS Capital return to talk about what’s going with the current market gyrations, and for a much-needed refresher on how to invest when — surprise — knowing the future is still an impossible task. As always we left this c…

It has been dubbed "one of the best venture investments of all time" by Packy McCormick, generating over a 4000X return in 3-and-a-half years. Today, we are talking with Chris McCann and Edith Yeung, the earliest investors in Solana, and partners at Race Capital. They also unbelievably were the earliest investors in FTX and started Race Capital in …