Aryeh Bourkoff on Empathy, Digital Communities, Relationships vs. Transactions, Being Self-Aware, Dreaming about Being Shy and Lazy

On this inaugural episode of Invested, Michael hosts Aryeh Bourkoff, the Founder, Chairman and CEO of LionTree, an independent investment and merchant bank, advising and investing in transformational CEOs and the companies they lead. Aryeh founded LionTree in 2012, during a time of unprecedented disruption across media and technology. Dubbed “media’s hottest dealmaker” by Hollywood Reporter, Aryeh is known for advising on some of the largest transactions in the space, including the recent spin-off of Warner Media from AT&T to create Warner Brothers Discovery, and the sale of MGM to Amazon. You can find LionTree at liontree.com, and @liontree_llc and @kindredpodcast. Aryeh is on Instagram @aryehbourkoff. Please enjoy and rate this episode 5 stars wherever you stream your podcasts! Key Topics: [0:00] Introduction [1:55] Naming LionTree based on Aryeh and his wife’s names [4:53] Building trust, community, and LionTree’s annual conference [10:09] Aryeh’s core values on a personal level [12:52] Bored Apes Yacht Club, digital communities [15:31] Justin Beiber, digital identity [17:55] Do we lose our humanity in digital spaces? [20:36] Zoom, its uses and misuses, and the telephone [22:17] Masters of relationships vs. transactions [25:03] Building a firm for relationships vs. transactions [29:21] Scarcity brings out creativity [31:30] Staying humble doing multi-billion deals [34:25] Abraham Accords, the economic future of the Middle East [38:17] Companies vs. countries [42:38] Aryeh’s big idea to transform the Middle East [45:31] The values Aryeh seeks in others [47:08] Aryeh’s motivation [48:50] The problem Aryeh would most like to fix [52:12] ESG and climate change metrics for businesses [56:06] How Aryeh built his career; deciding to be a specialist [57:12] Why Aryeh is on Instagram and not Twitter [1:00:18] What makes Aryeh cry [1:01:43] How Aryeh wants to be remembered at the end of his life [1:01:45] What the title of Aryeh’s biography would be [1:02:57] Aryeh’s birthday resolution [1:04:34] Aryeh’s birthday advice for others Resources: For show notes and past guests on Invested, please visit www.content.aleph.vc Learn more about Aleph: aleph.vc Sign up for Aleph’s monthly email newsletter: aleph.vc For the transcript of this episode, go to www.content.aleph.vc/invested-episode-01 Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@aleph-vc/ Follow Michael on Twitter: twitter.com/mikeeisenberg Follow Michael on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mieisenberg/ Follow Aleph on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mikeeisenberg Follow Aleph on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aleph-vc/ Follow Aleph on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aleph.vc/ Credits: Executive Producer: Erica Marom Producer: Andrew Jacobson Video and Editing: Ron Baranov Music and Art: Uri Ar Design: Rony Karadi