Lightspeed's view on multiple LLM investments

Michael explains investing across Anthropic, xAI, Mistral, and how each targets different missions and markets.

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Michael Mignano, Partner at $30B VC firm Lightspeed, and the co-founder of Anchor, a podcast creation, hosting, and monetization platform acquired by Spotify in 2019, joins Sourcery to discuss the next era of creation & technology investing.

In this episode, Michael shares how his background building consumer media products informs the way he invests today, with a focus on AI and creativity-driven companies. We discuss his portfolio, including investments in xAI, Neuralink, Suno, Pika, Granola, and Macroscope, and how he evaluates AI businesses when incumbents can move quickly.

The conversation digs into what makes AI companies defensible today, from retention-driven moats to why ARR metrics can be misleading. Michael shares his reaction to the Sora launch and avatars, and what these changes could mean for creators.

We also touch on evolving early-stage check sizes, lessons from Spotify’s Daniel Ek, his work on Obo, and thoughts on potential IPO candidates.

Michael Mignano: https://x.com/mignano

Molly O’Shea: ⁠https://x.com/MollySOShea⁠

Sourcery: ⁠https://x.com/sourceryvc

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Disclosure

Paid Endorsement. Brokerage services by Open to the Public Investing Inc, member FINRA & SIPC. Advisory services by Public Advisors LLC, SEC-registered adviser. Crypto trading provided by Zero Hash LLC, licensed by the NYSDFS. Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool by Public Advisors. Output is for informational purposes only and is not an investment recommendation or advice. See disclosures at public.com/disclosures/ga. Matched funds must remain in your account for at least 5 years. Match rate and other terms are subject to change at any time.

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(00:00) Michael Mignano

(01:06) Anchor’s pivot & podcasting’s breakout moment

(02:32) Spotify’s Talk org: podcasts, video, and live audio

(02:55) Why synchronous (live) formats fail online

(03:27) Joining Lightspeed & portfolio overview

(03:47) Investment thesis: creativity, product taste, founders

(05:24) How xAI & Neuralink fit Lightspeed’s strategy

(06:56) Is OpenAI “Sherlocking” ?

(08:37) Granola & retention as the real AI moat

(09:52) Why ARR can be FAKE in AI startups

(11:20) Seed vs Series A check sizes & AI valuation premiums