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Todays show:

David Weisburd hosts Dave McClure, Jordan Stein, and Jason Calacanis to discuss the evolution of fund spaces. The discuss investing in the YC ecosystem (00:28), the role of secondary funds today (40:26), and the importance of betting on outliers (1:00:49).

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Timestamps:

(0:00) David Weisburd intros Dave McClure, Jordan Stein, and Jason Calacanis

(00:28) Reddit's IPO adds to YC's track record of successful public listings

(10:21) Mantle - Get your first 12 months free at https://withmantle.com/TWIST

(11:39) Strategy of investing in YC ecosystem and the importance of entry point evaluation

(18:40) YC's demo day and opportunities for other accelerators

(26:12) Hubspot - Marketing Against the Grain https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMNgyVFsk4g https://lnk.to/h3vKHnTW

(27:18) YC's demo day and opportunities for other accelerators cont.

(32:24) Carta’s report on the rise of capital call requests

(39:15) Curotec - Check out http://www.curotec.com/twist and get $5000 off

(40:26) The role of secondary funds in the current macroeconomic conditions and the potential for more company shutdowns

(1:00:49) Betting on outliers and the decision-making process for doubling down

(1:14:16) Lightning round: Top 3 investments from each guest

(1:25:20) Discussing the upcoming https://www.liquiditypod.com/summit

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Follow David:

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LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis

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Great 2023 interviews: Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland

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Jason breaks down the valuation tension surrounding YC demo days (2:36), how to get better prices on YC-equivalent startups (8:59), Garry Tan's response to complaints (15:18), and more! Then, Jason reacts to a law firm's leaked expectations list that went viral (29:29) before wrapping with some thoughts about Substack (41:59).

(0:00) Jason tees up Friday's topics!

(2:36) Understanding the valuation tension of YC's demo day; why some investors resent YC

(8:59) Jason's three ways to avoid overpaying for YC startups

(13:56) Embroker - Use code TWIST to get an extra 10% off insurance at https://Embroker.com/twist

(15:18) Garry Tan's response to demo day valuation complaints; Harry Stebbings and Garry Tan's back and forth on valuations/expectations

(24:07) Linode - Apply to Linode's Rise program for a $500 credit and up to six figures in discounts at https://linode.com/twist

(25:34) How startups that got accepted into YC can cold email top VCs to raise pre-demo day

(29:29) Jason reacts to a law firm's leaked expectations list that went viral

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(37:25) Reactions to the viral expectations list

(41:59) Substack publishes 2021 gross revenue, net loss, and cash on hand and Jason breaks down the company's position

Email your pitch deck to yc@launch.co if you were rejected by YC and want to meet with the LAUNCH team!

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Monday news! Jason and Molly have some big stories to discuss: Sequoia's new "catalyst" program, called Arc (2:37), SEC considering mandating climate disclosures from public companies (19:21), another Startup of the Day (33:28), and they wrap by covering some interesting ongoings at Disney regarding its new CEO and Bob Iger (41:13).

0:00 Jason and Molly intro today’s news: Sequoia debuts Arc, SEC to vote on disclosures of emissions/climate risks, Startup of the day: Heirloom, Disney's CEO fallout
2:37 Sequoia announces Arc, startup “catalyst”
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12:37 Arc accepting Russian founder applications
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19:21 SEC to vote on disclosures of emissions/climate risks
32:11 OpenPhone - Get an extra 20% off any plan for your first 6 months at https://openphone.com/twist
33:28 Startup of the day: Heirloom (climate-tech co. using heated limestone to remove CO₂ from atmosphere)
41:13 CNBC reports former Disney CEO Bob Iger and his replacement Bob Chapek have had a falling out since Iger stepped down

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0:20 Jason intros Alchemist's Ravi Belani
3:41 Why is Alchemist named after Paulo Coelho book? What is the biggest benefit of Accelerators?
5:47 Ravi's background at DFJ, sourcing the Justin.tv investment
15:02 Why Ravi left DFJ to start Alchemist
21:52 How many companies have gone through Alchemist and what is their standard deal?
28:21 Why accelerators take more risk than VC firms
35:07 The best entrepreneurs love the process
38:35 How are Alchemist's programs structured? Did they have trouble transitioning to remote?
44:38 Have virtual meetings been resulting in checks from investors? Dealing with investing in competitive companies
49:59 What is Alchemist's diligence process like?
55:01 What does venture capital funding look like in the medium-term

0:43 Jason intros TechStars CEO David Brown
4:47 TechStars leading the virtual accelerator trend
10:21 Will TechStars go with a hybrid model going forward and what key points should remote accelerators focus on?
15:27 How did TechStars settle on the number of 10 companies per cohort?
17:28 What has TechStars seen across their portfolio since COVID started?
21:21 Sustained changes vs. temporary changes due to COVID, will COVID lead to more entrepreneurs?
31:58 How to explain edge-case funding scenarios to founders who have real businesses that are having troubling raising capital, taking a long-term view on accelerator engagement, why B2B is easier than B2C
36:22 Why angels invest in one company over the other? Do metrics matter as much as personal relationships? What are ideal founder characteristics that David looks for?
40:25 How TechStars selects mentors by surveying their mentees, comparison against Y Combinator
51:45 Opportunity for going global, David's relationship with Co-Founder David Cohen
1:00:30 Would TechStars ever go public?

0:42 Jason intros SOSV's Sean O'Sullivan
4:19 How is operating in China during COVID?
5:22 Origin of SOSV, thoughts on in-person accelerators over remote accelerators, why hardware/life-science accelerators need in-person cohorts
9:02 Sean describes SOSV's typical deal terms, unique follow-on strategy & cohort size
14:27 What stage company are SOSV accelerators looking for? Does it vary by industry?
17:58 Sean describes SOSV portfolio company Memphis Meats & how they utilize bioreactors to create cell-based meats
23:06 When will we see plant/cell-based meat being cheaper than the real thing?
29:25 Will the issue of food-availability will be solved in our lifetime?
33:16 Will modern food science revolutionize taste & what is the holy-grail food that will be produced?
42:15 What is being done in the ingredients space?
48:58 How is running an accelerator in China different than running one in the US?
53:39 Embracing hardware, thoughts on Hardware-as-a-Service
1:00:44 Micro-terraforming

0:42 Jason intros MassChallenge CEO Siobhan Dullea
3:09 What is MassChallenge & how is it different from a typical accelerator?
5:48 How many startups do they accept across their different programs?
11:33 How does their prize money situation work? How are the winners selected?
19:05 How is MassChallenge sustainable as a non-profit
22:55 How is MassChallenge funded & how do they track portfolio success, what government & corporate sponsors looking for out of MC?
29:22 MC's top accelerator companies
32:24 What makes for a great application?
39:00 Why are East Coast investors obsessed with intellectual property? Why are they more conservative?
44:10 Thoughts on virtual accelerators?
47:20 Red flags when accepting companies?
50:08 What will change post-COVID-19?

1:00 Jason intros Power of Accelerators Episode 2!
3:07 Jason intros StartX Founder Cameron Teitelman: What is StartX, how do they invest, when and how was it started?
6:54 How does StartX exist? Are they profitable?
8:43 Why would a growth stage founder join StartX?
13:28 What is the process for selecting founders/companies for StartX? What is unique about Stanford students?
16:28 Difference between arrogance and confidence, StartX's "No A**hole" rule, Cohort size
20:47 What does StartX look for in founders, what questions are asked in interviews & what preferences do they have regarding co-founders
27:04 How do VCs look at StartX? What are their demo days like?
31:54 Thoughts on YC's demo day & how to run a demo day process
41:16 Cameron on hacking his way into VC, new StartX funds, thesis on successful founders & peer-support groups
45:58 Stories about getting cut out of a deal
48:09 What StartX's portfolio signaling tells them about successful founders, importance of time management
51:59 Steve Blank's theory of customer development, top portfolio companies

0:38 Jason explains the LAUNCH Accelerator
5:39 BasicBlock CEO Taylor Monks details his journey through the LAUNCH Accelerator
14:58 BasicBlock CEO Taylor Monks' biggest takeaways from the Accelerator
27:35 DaoCloud CEO Max Coleman describes his journey into the LAUNCH Accelerator
37:34 How did Max grow throughout the Accelerator?
48:36 Lately CEO Kate Bradley-Chernis describes her experience at the l LAUNCH Accelerator
55:08 What were Kate's biggest takeaways from the Accelerator?

1:10 Jason intros Hong Quan from Karmic Bikes
2:55 What is the OSLO bike?
4:10 Why are there separate classifications for e-bike laws?
9:15 What does OSLO cost?
12:35 How Karmic bikes are different
14:55 Why e-bikes haven't taken off in the US?
16:52 Is Palo Alto the most bike-friendly city in America?
17:28 Hong shows the OSLO Kickstarter Video
21:45 Why not go the scooter route?
27:34 Hong raps for Jason (yes, really)
33:06 Open Office Hours with Jason
33:18 Jason intros Mark from ZenSports, a P2P sports betting startup
40:22 Mark asks Jason how to attract investors as a "Vice tech" company