In this episode of Other People’s Money, Matt Ober, General Partner at Social Leverage, discusses how the data economy is evolving for providers, vendors, and investors. He explains how AI is reshaping data business models, highlights emerging data sources in what he calls the “degenerate economy,” and argues that many alternative data sets once considered sources of alpha are rapidly becoming commoditized beta.
Matt also shares how Social Leverage uses data to make seed stage venture investments, how its approach differs from that of mega VC firms, and where the firm is currently focused. He reflects on his career path from quantitative hedge funds to venture capital and how the expanding role of data shaped his trajectory in the investment business.
Before joining Social Leverage, Matt was Chief Data Scientist at Third Point, where he built the firm’s data analytics and technology platform supporting investments across equities, structured credit, venture capital, and cryptocurrency. Earlier, he was Head of Data Strategy at WorldQuant and a founding member of WorldQuant Ventures, focused on private investments in fintech, data, and technology.
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Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
01:21 The Business of Data
03:28 Data Pricing and AI Impact
04:36 Challenges for Data Companies
07:31 Emerging Data Sets and Buyers
14:25 Social Leverage's Investment Strategy
17:07 Venture Capital Market Dynamics
21:22 Fund of Funds and Network Value
22:40 Insights on Software and AI
25:54 Beehive vs. Substack
29:46 Hedge Fund Journey and Data Evolution
31:41 The Data-Driven Investment Strategy
32:05 Scaling Up: From Millions to Billions
32:24 Global Data Acquisition
32:49 Building a Data-Driven Ecosystem
33:06 Transition to Third Point
33:43 Integrating Data with Investment Processes
34:34 Challenges and Politics in Hedge Funds
35:49 Evaluating Data Sets and Their Impact
37:43 The Evolution of Data in Investment
38:49 The Role of Data in Hedge Fund Success
43:10 From Hedge Funds to Venture Capital
52:08 The Future of Wealth Management
55:00 The Rise of Prediction Markets
59:35 Conclusion and Final Thoughts
