We filmed this episode back in May, before Bree welcomed a new life into the world and before Vik lost his mother. A lot has changed since then. As we release it now, it feels more relevant than ever. Drinks With a VC has always been about more than startups and term sheets. It’s about the humans behind the headlines, the resilience it takes to build, the humility to grow, the clarity to catch the next wave, and the wisdom to know when to let one go.

There’s no better guest to rejoin the conversation with than Tae Hea Nahm. He is the founding managing director of Storm Ventures, co-author of Survival to Thrival, and a deeply thoughtful investor, operator, and teacher. From St. Louis to Seoul to Sand Hill Road, Tae Hea has seen it all, and he continues to anticipate the next wave before most founders even paddle out.

In this episode, we dive into his Path to Surfing Unicorn framework and why founders need to anticipate the wave before they try to surf it if they want to build category-defining companies.

We also get into:

🌊 How to ride, and switch, the right market wave
🤖 Where AI startups should play in the stack (and what layers are getting crushed)
🚨 Real talk on platform risk and why Google’s bundling may change the game
📈 A founder-friendly definition of product-market fit, plus three signs your customers are truly happy
🧠 Why empathy isn’t optional, and how customer discovery really works
🧑‍💼 How founder-CEOs evolve, and how to know when they can’t
📊 How to use advisors the right way, including what equity to grant them
💸 The fundraising two-step: win a champion, then arm them with a killer one-pager

Also: green juice, soju, seaweed soup, Civilization V, and one of our biggest unboxing gifts ever (yes, it’s a surfboard).

👇 Must-have links and founder resources:
🧭 Survival to Thrival (free downloads): https://www.survivaltothrival.com/
📖 The Entrepreneur’s Odyssey by Andrew Ackerman: http://bit.ly/4kfrtKu
📊 Cap table management done right: www.fidelityprivateshares.com
🚀 The Irresistible Startup fundraising guide: https://www.taylorstreetco.com/irresistible-startup
🤖 Meet Ira, the Irresistible Startup Bot: https://www.taylorstreetco.com/meet-ira
🗞 Sign up for our monthly newsletter: www.dwavc.com
🎧 Like, subscribe, and share if this one resonates.
🏄 Keep your eyes on the wave.

📺 Episode chapters:
00:22 Introduction and Welcome
00:44 Sponsor Message: Fidelity Private Chairs
01:06 Catch-Up with Brie
01:51 Introducing Today's Guest: Te
04:08 Te's Early Life and Education
07:51 Choosing a Career Path
11:20 Immigration Experience in St. Louis
20:38 Founding Venture Law Group
23:11 Investing and Founding Storm Ventures
27:26 The Surfing Analogy for Startups
28:26 VC Unboxing Segment
33:59 AI and the Future of Investment
38:59 The Importance of Platform Choice
42:01 Customer Discovery and Empathy
44:24 Closing Thoughts and Reflections
45:28 Empathy for the Customer
46:06 The Decline of Customer Empathy
46:37 Exercising the Empathy Muscle
47:14 Teaching Customer Empathy
50:16 Defining Product-Market Fit
50:53 Identifying Happy Customers
54:17 The Founder to Manager Transition
55:06 The Role of Founder CEOs
57:30 Learning from Failures
01:02:47 The Importance of Mentors
01:08:07 Advice on Fundraising
01:13:18 Qualifying Your Inner Circle
01:17:15 The Fidelity Fiv

📊 Cap table management needs? Check out Fidelity Private Shares
🚀 Fundraising help: Download The Irresistible Startup
🤖 …or meet Ira, the Irresistible Startup Bot
🗞 Stay in the loop: Sign up for our monthly newsletter