Investing in Startups

Gaurav Jain is the Cofounder and Managing Partner of Afore Capital. Afore is one of the OGs of institutional pre-seed investing and runs the largest dedicated pre-seed venture fund in the world. We talked about momentum as a moat, how vibe-coding effects pre-seed investing, and the importance of great product and distribution. Here's a longer breakdown…   Gaurav explains why momentum has become more durable than traditional moats, especially in a world where AI is making it easier to build products quickly. Instead of relying on old ideas of defensibility, he argues that the best startups create constant forward motion through product improvement, user pull, and rapid execution.   We talk about what Afore Capital looks for at the pre-seed stage, when there may be very little company built and not much data to evaluate. Gaurav shares how he thinks about backing founders early, what signals matter most before traction exists, and why team quality often matters more than a polished market narrative.   Gaurav also breaks down how AI is changing startup formation, from reducing the amount of capital needed to build a company to speeding up the path from idea to product and customer feedback. The conversation explores what this means for founders, investors, and the pace of competition in the earliest stages.   A big theme in the episode is distribution and founder-led selling. Gaurav talks about why distribution can’t be treated as an afterthought, why technical founders still need to learn how to get in front of customers, and how the best early companies pair strong product instincts with a clear path to demand.   Finally, we discuss how pre-seed investing has evolved over the last decade and what Gaurav has learned from helping define the category. He shares lessons on market size, founder selection, and why early-stage investing is often less about predicting categories and more about recognizing the people most capable of creating momentum from nothing.   Investing in Startups is produced by Seaplane Ventures and hosted by Joe Magyer. 

We're celebrating our recent 50th episode with a special conversation between host Joe Magyer and guest host Chris Hill of Money Unplugged. Chris interviews Joe about his lessons learned from the first 50 episodes, how AI is impacting startups and venture capital, what Joe has changed his mind about, and investing in startups, both the craft and the show. Joe and Chris also unpack how AI has reshaped venture in just two years—changing what it costs to start a company, how many people startups need to hire, how quickly they can build product, and why investors are again leaning into the category after a brutal post-2021 reset.   They revisit one of venture’s oldest debates: concentrated vs. diversified portfolios. Joe explains why some investors want as many shots on goal as possible, while others prefer to place fewer, higher-conviction bets so they can spend more time with founders and have a better chance of meaningful ownership in the winners. Another core tension in the episode is consensus vs. non-consensus investing. Joe talks through why the hottest deals often get hot for good reasons—great founders, fast growth, strong co-investors—but also why crowded rounds can compress returns and leave investors paying up for certainty that may already be priced in.   Finally, Joe also shares how hosting the podcast has changed his own investing style. Hearing other managers explain their frameworks pushed him to rethink rigid reserve strategies, become more flexible about follow-on investing, and focus more on doubling down when real conviction builds through direct founder relationships.   Investing in Startups is produced by Seaplane Ventures and (usually) hosted by Joe Magyer. 

We're excited to share this interview with Zal Bilimoria, founding partner at Refactor Capital, recorded live at the recent Future Titans emerging manager summit. Zal is a high-conviction, hard-tech investor and solo capitalist who manages more than $225 million. He has a fascinating career, from building products at Netflix and LinkedIn to being an early employee at a16z to later forming Refactor. We talked about why Zal is solo, what he learned from a16z, why he invests with conviction, how he built a robust firm without any employees supporting him, and how he managed to lead a Series D round despite his firm being a Seed expert. We also discussed:   Why Zal chose the solo GP path (on purpose): after seeing large-firm partnership dynamics at Andreessen Horowitz, he optimized for speed, autonomy, and founder time—especially important at seed where decision velocity matters. Refactor started as a two-GP fund with David Lee (ex–SV Angel), then David retired earlier than expected—forcing Zal to rebuild the LP base and prove the strategy could work with a single decision-maker.   A “right-sized” fund strategy as an operating system: Zal explains why he’s stayed around ~$50M per fund, targets ~20 companies per fund, and focuses on ~8–10% ownership at entry to keep the model manageable and return-capable. He actively tracks how many portfolio companies “graduate” (to Series A and beyond) each year so his board/support load stays sustainable without adding headcount.   Robustness for LPs (the “hit-by-a-bus” plan): Zal shares a concrete solo-GP risk mitigation tactic—he carries a life insurance policy payable to the management company so LPs have resources to recruit a successor or wind down assets without crushing fund performance.   Hard tech example that feels sci-fi (with real traction): Solugen. Zal recounts leading Solugen’s seed ~9 years ago and watching it scale into a large revenue business—then pivoting into a high-demand defense chemistry product with major government pull.   How a seed lead ends up leading a Series D: during the 2022 market reset, Zal had an SPV ready (~$20M) to secure pro rata; when no one wanted to “stick their neck out” as lead, he wrote the first term sheet—unlocking the round and attracting co-leads/followers.   Reserve strategy shift: he describes moving from ~50% reserves to ~20% reserves—preferring more “shots on goal” at pre-seed/seed, and noting how hard it is to consistently pick Series A winners even when top firms lead the round.   Investing in Startups is hosted by Joe Magyer, founder and managing partner of Seaplane Ventures.

Seth Levine is a Partner at Foundry Group, a longtime early-stage firm investing in both startups and emerging fund managers. We talked about the art of working with founders, short-term-ism, knowing your own competitive advantage, why AI will create more jobs than it disrupts, and the myth of overnight success. Here's the longer of what we covered:   Doing the real work with founders and GPs – Seth explains why his favorite part of Foundry is deep, collaborative problem-solving with CEOs and emerging managers, not formal board meetings, and why he sees himself as “in the influence game,” working for founders rather than controlling them.   Fund size is fund strategy – He walks through why Foundry chose not to become a perpetual, multi-generational platform, and how everything from check size to reserves, board work, and follow-on strategy has to flow from the true size and intent of the fund—not from chasing a bigger AUM number.   What LPs miss about emerging managers – Drawing on Foundry’s long history backing funds, Seth argues most LPs behave like asset allocators who over-weight pedigree, underwrite theses too superficially, and don’t dig hard enough into a GP’s real edge, philosophy, and personal “why” for running a firm.   Under-explored fund models he loves – Seth highlights niche yet powerful strategies: Arthur Ventures’ “under-the-radar” B2B SaaS approach, roll-ups of orphaned 2019–2020 vintage funds, and hybrid revenue-based vehicles that blend debt-style payback with equity upside for founders.   If he were starting fresh today – From a pure performance standpoint, he’d run a much more diversified early-stage book with lots of initial positions and minimal follow-ons—Taleb-inspired barbell thinking—and, in a wilder alternate life, maybe build a Series A or growth platform in Saudi Arabia to ride frontier-market upside.   Capital Evolution & fixing capitalism, not ditching it – Seth shares the origin story of his new book, his evolving view on when companies should (and shouldn’t) wade into politics, the shift from shareholder primacy toward broader stakeholders, and why medium- to long-term thinking and greater economic dynamism are essential.   AI, entrepreneurship, and why venture’s glamor is BS – He’s long-term bullish and short-term cautious on AI, seeing it as a huge unlock for productivity and entrepreneurship far beyond tech—but also a source of disruption that needs thoughtful retraining and policy.    Investing in Startups is hosted by Joe Magyer and produced by Seaplane Ventures.

Conor Brennan-Burke and Manu Ebert are the co-founders of Hyperspell. Hyperspell provides a memory and context layer to AI agents is one of our portfolio companies at Seaplane Ventures. I (Joe here) was trying to explain to some friends at a BBQ recently Hyperspell what did and learned pretty quickly that most people aren’t familiar yet with AI agents. Given that and the sudden explosion in interest in AI agents, I thought it would be great for listeners to have Conor and Manu to come on to talk about AI agents, the evolution of AI, context, Y Combinator, and how Manu once bought a .AI domain name via fax machine.    From chatbots to true agents – Conor breaks down where tools like ChatGPT stop and AI agents begin, and why the key shift is agents taking actions autonomously across your tools, not just answering questions.   Why context is the real bottleneck – Manu and Conor share how building their own “chief of staff” agent led them to Hyperspell, a memory and context layer that plugs into tools like Slack, Gmail, and Notion so agents can actually understand your customers, org chart, and tech stack.   The three bottlenecks to agent adoption – Manu explains why verification, capability, and context each limit what agents can do today, and why decoupling these layers (rather than relying on a single big lab) gives companies more flexibility and avoids platform lock-in.   Why workers aren’t using AI (yet) – Conor reacts to studies showing most desk workers rarely touch AI, and argues that fear, bad framing (“AI will replace you”), and lack of personalized context are holding back adoption despite models already outperforming humans on many benchmarks.   AI as global leapfrog, not just US office automation – Manu highlights under-discussed upside: primary care in Africa, McKinsey-grade advice for small businesses, tailored guidance for farmers, and always-on tutors that could reshape opportunity in developing markets.   Let machines be the cogs, not people – The pair paint a future where AI agents handle status updates, follow-ups, and information shuffling inside big orgs, freeing humans to do creative, high-leverage work instead of feeling like dehumanized “TPS report” machines.   Building SuperMe and all-star AI teams – Conor shares a favorite customer use case: cloning experts (or even yourself) as agents using your own docs, email, and notes, so a solo founder can effectively “hire” an AI team of world-class operators and advisors.   YC, rejection, and founder stubbornness – Conor and Manu talk about finally getting into Y Combinator after nine applications between them, why persistence is a superpower for founders, and how YC has shaped Hyperspell’s trajectory.   Investing in Startups is hosted by Joe Magyer and produced by Seaplane Ventures.

Courtney McCrea is the Cofounder and Managing Partner of Recast Capital. Courtney and I dove into the intricacies of investing in emerging managers and building those firms. We talked about why Courtney is so enthusiastic about emerging managers, the challenges emerging managers face and how to overcome them, how LPs can better evaluate emerging managers, and why LPs aren’t racing to adopt AI as fast as their VCs.   We also discussed:   How LPs really evaluate first-time fund managers: beyond pedigree, what creates conviction in sourcing, selection, and portfolio construction.   Fund I fundraising strategy: why “spray-and-pray” outreach fails—and how to identify the right-fit LPs instead of chasing every allocator.   Where to start if you’re raising your first venture fund: go “off the beaten path” rather than leading with mega-institutions and public pensions.   LP diligence that actually matters: Courtney’s framework for reference calls, risk lists, and finding the “fatal flaw” early.   Solo GP vs partnership risk: why “GP divorce” can be a bigger underwriting risk than the classic “hit-by-a-bus” concern.   AI in the LP workflow: what Courtney is seeing (and experimenting with) in diligence and decision-making as venture processes modernize.   Joe Magyer is the host of Investing in Startups, which is a Seaplane Ventures production.

Dan Teran is a Cofounder and Managing Partner of Gutter Capital. Gutter is an early-stage firm based out of New York focused on founders tackling the world’s toughest problems. We talked about why Gutter invests with conviction, why they seek out founders with unique insights rather than Gutter trying to dream up their own, and how AI can solve problems in the real world, not just online. We also dug into:   + Gutter’s core focus on vertical AI, vertical SaaS, and marketplaces tackling messy, real-world problems + Why Dan gravitates toward underestimated, “lived-experience” founders over polished, pedigreed profiles + Inside Elbow Grease, Gutter’s AI accelerator: structure, check size, and how they plan to keep backing winners + How Gutter turns talent into a product: embedded head of talent and heavy support on early hiring + The firm’s discipline on valuations, small fund sizes, and staying aligned with founders in a top-heavy market + Why Gutter insists on taking a board seat at seed and how that sets companies up for stronger Series As + Dan’s lessons from selling Managed by Q to WeWork and why founders should build acquirer relationships early + Two contrarian views: second-time founders are overrated, and the best founders do want real help from their investors   Investing in Startups is produced by Seaplane Ventures and hosted by Joe Magyer.  

Our guest this week is David Gardner, Cofounder of The Motley Fool. David is one of the best stock pickers of his generation. While for many investors a single 100X investment would be a career-defining win, David has earned a 100X return on 6 companies including Nvidia, Tesla, Amazon, and Netflix. We talked about breaking the rules of investing, optionality, valuation, letting winners run, and much more. David is one of the investors I’ve learned the most from over the years, so I really hope you enjoy this one.   Investing in Startups is produced by Seaplane Ventures and hosted by Seaplane Managing Partner Joe Magyer.

David Zhou is an investor in emerging managers, an angel investor, a blogger, and the host of the Superclusters podcast. We talked about how LPs can size up emerging managers, how VCs can stand out, portfolio construction, and which of sourcing, picking, and winning is the most important. We also explored:   + Why David thinks that “access beats picking (then winning)” for most emerging managers—and how check size changes that calculus.   + Follow-ons: when “all or none” makes sense, how signaling risk compounds past Series B, and why selling by Series C can be clean for seed managers.   + LP incentives in the wild: marks scrutiny for new managers vs. “ignorance is bliss” for existing ones—plus how TVPI vs. IRR targets shape decisions.   + The tough-love playbook behind “Dear Emerging Manager” and “Dear LP,” and why sloppy valuation methods and survivorship bias mislead GPs.   + Differentiation framework: sell the market → the strategy → then you; use “flaws, limitations, restrictions” to confront the elephants in the room.   + Fund design realities: reserve strategy, fund size vs. dilution (esp. in hard tech), and why some LP minimums are a built-in constraint.   + Context from fresh market data: median seed at ~$20M and AI capturing a huge share of early deals—what those trends mean for formation and pricing.   + Plus: Abe Othman’s follow-on finding (funds that never follow on beat always-follow funds 63% of the time) as a jumping-off point for David’s take.   Investing in Startups is a Seaplane Ventures production hosted by Joe Magyer.

We're trying something new with our first roundtable! Our guests are Sonia Nagar from SNAK Venture Partners and Colin Gardiner from Yonder Ventures. Sonia and Colin are both early-stage investors, friends of mine, and experts on marketplaces and network effects. We talked about AI’s role in marketplaces, why network effects aren’t more popular (even though they should be), how to make your own luck, what it’s really like to raise your first venture fund, and more. I hope you enjoy and thanks for listening.   Investing in Startups is produced by Seaplane Ventures. 

Our guest this week is Hunter Walk, Co-Founder of Homebrew and Screendoor. Hunter has a deep background in product, including from his time at Google and YouTube, but is best known for his investing. Homebrew’s big wins over the years include Chime, Plaid, Gusto, Cruise, and more. We talked about trust and context, product, funnel math, investing life after LPs, and why Hunter isn’t as fussy these days about valuation.   Here's a longer rundown of the episode:   Homebrew → “Forever.” Why Hunter and Satya moved from an LP-backed seed fund to a self-funded evergreen model—and why they accelerated the shift in 2022.   Ditching ownership targets. Early-stage “must-own X%” rules create artificial scarcity for founders; Homebrew now fits their check into whatever round construction serves the company best. Prioritizing alignment with founders and co-investors over leading every round.   Valuation: what it really signals. Price matters less as a target and more for what it reveals about the founder’s decision-making, who’s on the cap table, and the path to the next round—especially when you don’t hold reserves.   Trust + context > generic advice. Hunter’s operating model with founders: build trust to have honest conversations, and keep real context so advice is specific—not just a blog post link.   Meeting math & magnets. You can’t jump into every haystack—so create magnets (writing, references, approachability) to pull the right needles; historically ~1 investment per ~100 inbound companies.   Your company is a product. Hiring, comp, and cadence must cohere like a product system; inconsistency is the cultural anti-pattern.   Focus areas now. Still heavy B2B dev tools (increasingly AI/ML) and FinTech; comfortable as #2–10 on the cap table alongside specialists, which expands where they can help.   Against multi-gen for most firms. Hunter argues many venture franchises lose “fidelity” as AUM and headcount grow—like copies of a mixtape over time.   Investing in Startups is produced by Seaplane Ventures. The show is hosted by Joe Magyer.

Joe Magyer is the host of Investing in Startups, but his real job is running his early-stage boutique, Seaplane Ventures. In this episode, Joe is interviewed by his friend Owen Raszkiewicz, Founder and CIO of Rask Group and host of the Australian Investors Podcast. Joe talked why he made the move from public to private markets, how small firms can compete with big firms, the current venture landscape, putting AI to work as an investor, and why studying up on unit economics is a core part of early-stage investing. Please enjoy.  

Jackie DiMonte is the Cofounder and General Partner of Grid Capital. We talked about power laws, investing with conviction, how to help founders in their earliest stages, small funds vs. big funds, and whether pre-seed valuations really are mental. We spoke in depth about:    - Why Pre/Seed (not just “pre-seed”). Jackie sees pre/seed as a continuum and optimizes for investing “before it’s obvious”—pre-PMF and before scale playbooks kick in.    - Concentrated by conviction. Grid leads rounds so every check matters; “party rounds” left no owner, unclear milestones, and shaky odds—so she backs fewer, deeper and sets explicit experiment plans.    - The pre-PMF playbook. Start with a market hypothesis, define the signals that prove or disprove it, and don’t hide from feedback—iterate fast on product, pricing, and business model.    - Control points > features. In crowded industrial/logistics AI, she looks for wedge use cases with fast time-to-value and durable leverage; otherwise it devolves into a customer-acquisition bloodbath.    - “Frenemies” in supply chains. Competitors often integrate and overlap; Grid underwrites only when the entry point creates credibility to crowd out others—important for a small, high-ownership fund.    - Founder archetype. Best fit: builders with industry roots and high-growth tech chops who show real customer empathy; solo vs. teams can both be superpowers.    - Marketplaces & vertical AI (reality check). Network effects are unmatched, but in industrials behavior change and trust make embedding hard; Jackie favors either core systems of record or AI-enabled services that deliver outcomes, not middling bolt-ons.    - Valuation dispersion & speed. The “power law” now shows up in fundraising: a few rounds price mental and close overnight on relationships, while most processes remain slow and illiquid.    - Geo lens. Grid’s industrial thesis maps to Chicago/Austin and the Atlanta-to-NY corridor; LA is emerging in manufacturing—where domain roots meet tech talent.   Investing in Startups is a Seaplane Ventures production and hosted by Joe Magyer.

Morgan Flager is the Managing Partner of Silverton Partners. Silverton is an early-stage firm that has had more than 30 companies IPO or get acquired. We talked about the art and science of portfolio construction, when to bend on price, and which of team, product, or market is most important. We also dove into:   Silverton’s “early PMF” lane. Sweet spot is writing ~$3–7M checks into companies with a handful of customers and early revenue; ~70–80% fit this stage, with occasional earlier/later outliers. About 60% of deals in Central Texas, ~10% elsewhere in TX, balance nationwide—leveraging two decades of local reputation while staying opportunistic.   Follow-on edge = objectivity. They’re data-driven on reserves, but the real unlock is knowing when not to keep doubling down; partners anonymously rank each other’s companies to curb politics and fumes.   Secondary rules of the road. If a breakout round implies 5–10x+ on a small sell (10–20%), they’ll often take it—bank DPI, let the rest ride; in 2021 they even mandated trims in that range. Fund-life alignment matters. As vehicles near years 10–12, selling a majority (or all) via secondary is often the right call.   Owner mindset inside the firm. Silverton lends to team members so they can co-invest—shifts psychology toward prudent partial sales vs. “let it ride” with other people’s money.   Team > market > product (at maturity). Early it’s founder-led, later it’s team-led; great teams self-correct on market/product, and Silverton will back a stellar team in a merely “B” market over the reverse.   Why origin stories matter. He listens for authentic passion and connection to the problem—grit to push through the “dark, lonely days” shows up in the journey, not the pitch deck.   Valuation realism > unicorn fantasies. Morgan calls BS on “pay any price” at seed; most outcomes aren’t $10B, and mispriced seeds can trap founders and misalign with later-stage mega-fund incentives.   Austin culture advantage. Smaller, reputation-sensitive network rewards doing right by founders; openness and pay-it-forward energy were a positive “culture shock” vs. the Valley.   Investing in Startups is a Seaplane Ventures production hosted by Joe Magyer. 

Rex Salisbury is the Founder and General Partner of fintech-focused Cambrian Ventures. We talked about how Rex built a big community and following in the fintech world, why fintech startups are on a roll, disruption versus partnership, and how the venture world is evolving.   Other topics include:   The Bay Area fosters a unique culture of openness and innovation. Building a community is essential for networking and support in FinTech. Fundraising for venture capital can be challenging, especially for emerging managers. Talent in FinTech has significantly improved over the past decade. FinTech companies are increasingly taking market share from traditional banks. Vertical SaaS is a growing trend that could disrupt traditional banking. Mortgages may become a viable second product for FinTech companies. Early-stage investors can leverage their networks to help founders succeed. The series A market is evolving, with changing metrics for success. The LP ecosystem is slow to adapt, impacting venture capital dynamics.   Investing in Startups is hosted by Joe Magyer and produced by Seaplane Ventures.

Charles Hudson is the Managing Partner and Founder of Precursor Ventures. Precursor is a generalist pre-seed firm based in San Francisco that invests in startups from all over. We talked about the importance of founder-centric investing, portfolio construction, and the balancing act of taking money off the table with winners. Charles has made over 400 investments at Precursor and has a lot of insights to draw upon as a result.    We also covered:   How fewer than one-in-five firms make it to fund five. Why building a firm with staying power is crucial. How fundraising can be stressful for various reasons at various stages. Liquidity in early-stage investments is becoming normalized. LPs have varying expectations regarding returns and liquidity. Why market size forecasting is challenging; focus on founders instead. Early employees may not always be the best hires. Entrepreneurial talent comes in various forms and backgrounds. Venture capital is maturing as an asset class. Founders can reach out directly to Charles for opportunities.   Investing in Startups is hosted by Joe Magyer and produced by Seaplane Ventures.

David Cohen is the CEO and Cofounder of Techstars. Techstars is one of the OGs of startup accelerators, investing in almost 5,000 startups since Techstars was founded in 2006. David himself is a serial entrepreneur who was the founding CEO at Techstars, later stepped back from that role, and then returned as CEO in 2024. We talked about the problems that Techstars solves for founders, how vibe-coding affects accelerators, why Techstars finally opened up in SF, and why bigger isn’t better – better is better. Please enjoy.    A few longer highlights:   Techstars was founded to create a supportive community for entrepreneurs. The accelerator model has evolved, with many new players in the market. Quality of support is more important than the number of companies funded. Techstars is focused on improving the offer for founders to attract high-quality startups. The network of mentors and alumni is a key asset for Techstars. Founders often come in with hubris but learn to embrace feedback. The experience of founders in the program can lead to significant transformations. Market selection is based on capital availability and community strength. Techstars aims to maintain quality while allowing MDs autonomy in decision-making. AI is changing the landscape of startup development, emphasizing storytelling and long-term vision.   Investing in Startups is hosted by Joe Magyer and produced by Seaplane Ventures.

Gigi Levy-Weiss is a serial founder and a Founding Partner at NFX. NFX is an early-stage firm that has established itself as one of leading experts in network effects. We talked about network effects, AI agents, the importance of speed of exectuion, why first-mover advantages are overrated, and how NFX has built its own brand, systems, and network effects.    We also covered:   Going global without going local — Despite a 10-hour time gap between Israel and Silicon Valley, NFX partners rejected the easier path of separate regional funds, instead building a fully integrated, unified investment process based on trust, asynchronous communication, and individual founder meetings. Content as a competitive weapon — Early, sustained investment in short-form, actionable founder content gave NFX outsized market presence. Articles like the “Network Effects Bible” turned content into a persistent competitive advantage, positioning NFX as the definitive voice on network effects. AI's future is agent-to-agent, not agent-to-human — Gigi sees current AI implementations as merely transitional (agent-to-human workflows), predicting the true revolution lies in agent-to-agent interactions, cutting entire human-dependent processes from months down to minutes. B2C is AI’s biggest opening — Contrary to many investors betting big on AI-driven enterprise SaaS, Gigi argues consumer and SMB markets offer more attractive opportunities. Large enterprises will adapt quickly, limiting disruption, while SMBs and consumer verticals are ripe for agent-first innovation. First-mover advantage is overrated — Gigi challenges the widely-held VC belief in the inherent value of being first. Pointing to past failures, he argues that "being great is more important than being first," and successful fast-followers often become category leaders. Great products rarely sell themselves — Founders mistakenly obsess over perfecting product details (“product delusion”), yet distribution and defensibility usually matter more. NFX advocates for “product-market-network-distribution fit,” highlighting cases like Craigslist where distribution outshone product polish. VC needs its own disruption — NFX built internal VC tooling (“The Force”) and founder-focused products like Signal and BriefLink, seeing tech-driven innovation as essential for winning deal flow. They reject the outdated assumption that every industry except VC itself can be disrupted by technology.   Investing in Startups is hosted by Joe Magyer and produced by Seaplane Ventures.

Josh Muccio is the Founder of The Pitch and The Pitch Fund. The Pitch is a show that features startup founders pitching a panel of VCs and getting live-fire feedback. The Pitch Fund invests in Josh’s favorite startups that appear on The Pitch. We talked about the behind-the-scenes of how the show works, pitching, whether the market matters more than the founder, and the dangers of consensus investing.   We also dove into:   – Josh shares how selling an iPhone-repair startup and falling in love with Gimlet’s Startup podcast led him to create The Pitch to “democratize access” to startup investing and storytelling.    – Why The Pitch is “like Shark Tank for tech” but with real, check-writing VCs. Less ego, more thoughtful questions, and founders who actually get funded.    – Inside the funnel: ~1,000 companies apply each season; venture partner Peter Liu screens hundreds before Lisa Muccio and Josh decide who records—only after all three have met the founder to curb bias.    – The backstory of The Pitch Fund and Josh’s investing rubric: market > founder > product—he weights market roughly 60 % and warns that even great founders struggle in weak markets.    – Railing against “consensus chasing,” he argues that investing purely for quick mark-ups hurts returns and founders; instead, he hunts non-consensus deals—like a snack-chip startup he backed at a $4 million valuation.    Investing in Startups is hosted by Joe Magyer and produced by Seaplane Ventures.

Shawn Merani is the Founder and Managing Partner of Parade Ventures. Parade is a seed stage venture firm with an affinity for enterprise software. We talked about the state of seed investing, relationships, observing vs. predicting, cheating, AI and a huge win Shawn had recently with the acquisition of Moveworks. Shawn is a sharp guy and this was a really fun conversation. Please enjoy.   We also covered:   The story behind Shawn’s early bet on Moveworks — and what made the founders stand out Why Shawn isn't big on predicting market trends How Shawn thinks about building high-conviction, concentrated portfolios The rise of secondary sales and what they mean for early-stage investors Why Shawn still believes in the power of enterprise software despite the hype cycles How he balances being relationship-driven with moving fast in today’s competitive seed market Shawn’s candid take on AI: opportunity, overuse, and what actually matters Why he tells his Berkeley MBA students that cheating only hurts themselves (and how he really feels about grades)   Investing in Startups is hosted by Joe Magyer and produced by Seaplane Ventures.