Shaping Founders: Focus on Process Not Exits

This week’s episode features Nick Washburn, Senior Managing Director at Intel Capital. If you're an investor—or aspire to be—this conversation is a masterclass you won't want to miss.

For those who might not be familiar, Intel Capital is the venture capital arm of Intel Corporation, and it's long been considered the gold standard in the industry. They've backed legendary companies like Red Hat, VMware, and DocuSign, among others. Over the past three decades, they've seen more than 250 of their portfolio companies go public and have had another 500 successful exits. And since 2018 alone, Intel Capital has seen approximately $12 billion in market cap companies hit the public markets.

From the intricacies of reserve strategies to the common pitfalls that even seasoned VCs can stumble into, we’ve covered it all.

This insider look at the art and science of venture investing, especially from someone with Nick's experience, is packed with valuable insights. So, trust me, this is one conversation you don't want to miss!

TIMESTAMPS / KEY TAKEAWAYS

0:00 - Intro

01:32 - Lessons from ice hockey: “Go to where the puck was going”

02:39 - Shaping founders to be less output-focused; “All of the biggest outcomes are extreme outliers and there is no path.”

04:26 - Pattern matching; “Try to not focus necessarily on the background, but more of their understanding of the problem statement and why they feel best position to solve it.”

06:45 - The two sins in venture: sins of omission and commission

10:06 - The hyped AI field and what matters more to the devs and customers?

13:43 - Cybersecurity; singular platform versus best tools

16:10 - Core competency of Intel Capital in investment; “I invest both in developer tools and infrastructure software; if I don't look at them in the right aperture, I get it wildly wrong.”

19:49 - Inside Intel Capital: north of 250 IPOs and 500 exits in the past 30 years

24:19 - What has Intel Capital done right in structuring?; “You should lead with the goal and then reverse it in the process.”

27:48 - Nick’s personal journey from law school to investments; the imposter syndrome

31:44 - The anti-portfolio; FreshPaint: “They have not pivoted. They just reposition because that's where the market demand was coming.”

35:06 - On guiding founders; Charles Hudson’s “When to Intervene”

38:43 - The dynamics of Intel’s investment committee and strategy framework

42:17 - Takes on current market conditions

43:38 - Billion Dollar Questions

About Nick Washburn

Nick Washburn is a Senior Managing Director of Intel Capital located in Denver, CO. He joined Intel Capital in 2014.

Nick is a voting member of Intel Capital’s investment committee and co-manages Intel Capital’s cloud investment domain. He focuses on early-stage investments in cloud-native infrastructure, developer tools, artificial intelligence/machine learning, and data platforms.

Nick currently serves as a director or observer on the boards of Augtera Networks, Fly.io, Freshpaint, Moderne, OtterTune, and Tetrate. He also works closely on Intel Capital’s investments in Anyscale and Upbound.

In addition, Nick currently serves as a director on the board of the National Venture Capital Association, and he is a member of the Kauffman Fellows, Class 25. He is a proud father to amazing twin boys, he loves playing ice hockey, and he is an avid lover of all things outdoors, including skiing, mountain biking and rock climbing.

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