Sam Lessin of SlowVC: The End of Factory-Farmed Unicorns

"World of DaaS"

Sam Lessin is a GP at Slow Ventures, a former Facebook product manager, and the founder of Drop.io and Fin. He’s also the co-host of an excellent podcast on tech called More or Less.

On this episode of World of DaaS, Sam gives a comprehensive breakdown of the state of venture capital. Auren and Sam discuss the “unicorn factory” for building public companies, the influence of megafunds like Tiger Global and Softbank, and the fundamental changes that VC went through in 2018-2022.

Sam also shares his outlook on the best areas for investment in 2024 and beyond, including which founders are set up to thrive and which businesses are likely to struggle. They also go deep on the dynamics of investing in AI– Sam is confident he knows who the winners will be in artificial intelligence.

To close out, Auren and Sam dive into some of the “weird” investment ideas they’re exploring, like income share agreements and backing creators. They also reflect on the changing global landscape of tech and discuss whether the era of the “open internet” is over.

World of DaaS is brought to you by SafeGraph & Flex Capital. For more episodes, visit safegraph.com/podcasts.

You can find Auren Hoffman on X at @auren and Sam Lessin on X at @lessin.