With $10B+ in AUM, Altimeter has made their largest bet in its history on OpenAI. Known for disciplined bets in generational companies like Snowflake, SpaceX, Anduril — and now OpenAI, the firm is now fully committed to the AI supercycle.
In this episode, Apoorv Agrawal, Partner at Altimeter focused on AI and software, joins Molly O’Shea to break down how the firm evaluates opportunities in the AI supercycle. Apoorv explains why power laws govern venture returns, how Altimeter evaluated the $500B+ OpenAI opportunity, and why speed is the only defensible moat in AI.
We also explore the AI talent wars reshaping Silicon Valley, the rise of XBOW (where AI agents are already outperforming humans), and lessons from Apoorv’s formative years as a forward deployed engineer at Palantir — a culture that has produced billions in founder-led value creation.
For institutional investors, allocators, and operators, this conversation offers a rare inside look at how one of the sharpest minds in venture is positioning around AI — from infrastructure and chips to applications and talent.
Connect with us:
1. Apoorv Agrawal: https://x.com/apoorv03
2. Molly O’Shea: https://x.com/MollySOShea
3. Sourcery: https://x.com/sourceryvc
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Chapters:
(00:00) Welcome & Altimeter’s $10B+ AUM strategy
(01:57) Why Altimeter concentrated its largest investment ever in OpenAI
(04:45) The power law in venture capital: why 0.3% of companies drive 99% of returns
(09:25) Consumer adoption of ChatGPT & enterprise spillover
(12:08) Velocity: Why speed is the ultimate moat in AI
(14:18) Parasocial relationships with ChatGPT
(19:29) Adoption curves: raising the ceiling vs. raising the floor
(23:30) Defining AGI & DOOM
(25:40) GPT-5 release: volatility, iteration, & anti-fragility
(32:00) XBOW AI: When AI becomes the world’s top hacker
(38:22) Where AI value accrues — chips, infrastructure, or applications
(42:50) The billion-dollar talent wars & Meta’s AI strategy
(44:12) Palantir’s billion-dollar FDE culture
(50:10) Lessons from Shyam Sankar & Alex Karp
(53:52) Evaluating founder performance & IPO readiness in today’s market
(55:36) IPO Predictions: Klarna, Discord, Databricks, Cerebras, Anduril
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