Kyle Harrison is a General Partner @ Contrary and one of my favorite writers on the venture space with his blog, Investing 101 2.0. Before joining Contrary, Kyle worked in the ranks of some of the biggest and best names in venture, starting with a spell at TCV before moving to Coatue and making his final stop at Index. Across firms, Kyle has led or participated in investments including Ramp, Pave, Anduril, Gitlab, Databricks and Snowflake to name a few.
In Today's Episode with Kyle Harrison:
1.) From Film Lover to Technology Investor:
- How Kyle went from creating a professional services marketplace around film to joining the ranks of TCV and investing in breakout technology companies?
- What was Kyle's biggest takeaway from TCV? How did it impact his mindset?
- What was Kyle's biggest lesson from working with the Laffont's at Coatue? How did it change the way he thinks about price and market sizing?
- Why was Index such a transformational school of venture for Kyle? How did that experience change how he thinks about what it takes to be a great investor?
2.) The Death of So So Venture Firms:
- Why does Kyle believe many of the "so so" venture firms will die?
- What does Kyle believe makes a venture firm "so so"? Who is vulnerable then?
- How does Kyle think the lifespan and "death" of venture firms will change in the next decade?
3.) The Rise of "The Blackstone of Venture Firms":
- How does Kyle define "the Blackstone of VCs"? Who are they?
- With increasing fund sizes will we see VC returns denigrate to PE returns?
- How is the world of family offices changing the venture environment? Will we see more or less money flood into venture over the coming years?
- Of the incumbents, who has done "The Blackstone" model well? Why? Who has failed? Why?
4.) The Rise of Community in Venture:
- What does "community" really mean to Kyle? Why does he believe it will play such a prominent role in the way the best invest in the future?
- How have existing players failed to build, sustain and productize communities?
- What are the best opportunities for new entrants to create and utilise communities to invest?
Items Mentioned in Today's Episode:
Kyle's Favourite Book: Reinventing Knowledge: From Alexandria to the Internet
