Lex Fridman Podcast

#161 – Jason Calacanis: Startups, Angel Investing, Capitalism, and Friendship

Feb 15, 2021

Jason Calacanis, a prominent angel investor and entrepreneur, shares his insights on startups and the nuances of angel investing. He discusses the impact of individual investors on Wall Street, particularly during the GameStop phenomenon. The conversation touches on the importance of risk-taking in both public health and entrepreneurship, emphasizing leadership qualities in tech. Personal connections in business are explored, highlighting how gratitude and loyalty fuel success in challenging times. Calacanis also shares reflections on friendship and the transformative power of overcoming adversity.

02:16:30

Creator website

Episode guests

Jason Calacanis

Highlights

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Episode notes

Amazon Prime Is a Great Way to Start a Business

02:33

I Don't Think he's a Great Leader

00:30

Intro

2min

Startups, Friendships, and Coffee

5min

Empowering Change in Financial Markets

23min

The Intersection of Learning, Competition, and Capitalism

5min

Rethinking Risk in Vaccine Distribution

4min

Crisis Communication and the Evolving Tech Landscape

13min

The Essence of Leadership in Tech

26min

Navigating Startup Success and Social Dynamics

19min

Navigating Startup Funding Dynamics

7min

10.

The Drive to Overcome: Embracing Hardship and Transformation

2min

11.

Navigating Friendship and Loyalty in Entrepreneurship

27min

12.

The Power of Connection and Gratitude in Startups

4min

Jason Calacanis is an angel investor, entrepreneur, and co-host of All-In Podcast and This Week in Startups. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors:
– Brave: https://brave.com/lex
– Linode: https://linode.com/lex to get $100 free credit
– Four Sigmatic: https://foursigmatic.com/lex and use code LexPod to get up to 60% off
– Rev: https://rev.ai/lex to get 7-day free trial

EPISODE LINKS:
Jason’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/Jason
Jason’s Website: https://calacanis.com/
Jason’s YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/ThisWeekIn
Jason’s Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/calacanis
All-In Podcast: https://linktr.ee/allinpodcast
This Week in Startups Podcast: https://thisweekinstartups.com/about/

PODCAST INFO:
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RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/
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YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips

SUPPORT & CONNECT:
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– Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman

OUTLINE:
Here’s the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time.
(00:00) – Introduction
(06:52) – WallStreetBets and Robinhood
(17:58) – How does the WallStreetBets saga end?
(21:09) – Capitalism
(26:30) – Ideas vs Execution
(27:38) – Learning to learn
(33:06) – Risk-aversion
(39:07) – Robinhood
(47:33) – Parler and AWS
(49:59) – Social networks
(56:33) – Leadership
(1:01:21) – Work-life balance
(1:09:44) – Great leaders lead by example
(1:17:30) – Advice for startup founders
(1:21:57) – Clubhouse
(1:22:42) – When will we fully re-open the economy
(1:33:20) – Augmented reality
(1:36:48) – When should a startup raise money?
(1:43:44) – David Goggins
(1:45:40) – Disagreement with Chamath Palihapitiya
(1:58:52) – Story about Elon Musk’s darkest moments
(2:07:08) – Friendship

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