Patrick Chung is the Managing General Partner of Xfund.
Xfund is an early-stage venture capital firm built to back entrepreneurs who think laterally and experiment across disciplines.
They are a pioneering partnership between some of the country’s most successful venture capital firms and some of the world’s best research universities in the United States and abroad.
Patrick's bio is fascinating!
- Bachelor, JD and MBA from Harvard
- Masters from Oxford
- McKinsey
- Founder of ZEFER which hit $100M annual revenue and was acquired
- Partner at NEA
Takeaways
- Patrick's journey from Harvard, Oxford, McKinsey and into venture.
- Learnings from being a VC at NEA.
- The genesis story behind Xfund and its focus.
- Why founders are like artists.
- Meeting Sam Altman 20 years ago and investing in his first company Loopt.
- Cultural shifts are encouraging more graduates to pursue entrepreneurship.
- University bias often leads to safe career choices and how to change that.
- Providing term sheets upon graduation provides real choices for potential founders.
- Talent over industry.
- The importance of co-founders.
- Navigating university policies on IP.
Chapters
00:00 Patrick Chung's Journey: From Harvard to Venture Capital
03:06 The Empathy of Founders: Insights from the Investor Side
06:04 Identifying Great Founders: The Xfund Approach
08:53 Cultural Shifts in Entrepreneurship: A New Generation of Founders
12:06 Navigating University Bias: The Challenge of Safe Choices
15:11 Creating Real Choices: The Experiment Stake Initiative
18:07 Finding Talent: Where to Discover Future Founders
21:09 Sector Focus: Talent Over Industry
23:56 The Power of Co-Founders: Trust and Collaboration
27:07 Selecting Schools: The Power Law of Startup Success
30:05 Unlocking Entrepreneurial Potential: Tools and Strategies
32:47 Commercialization and IP: Navigating University Policies
36:07 Personal Insights: Dealing with Hard Times
Keywords
Patrick Chung, Xfund, venture capital, entrepreneurship, founders, university startups, empathy, investment, startup culture, commercialization
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