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Billion Dollar Moves™ with Sarah Chen-Spellings | Global Venture Capital

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Jul 17, 2025 • 47min

Why Australia’s Leading Family Offices Are Backing ALIVIA Ventures’ Cross-Border VC Strategy w/ Marisa Warren

How do you build a cross-border VC fund that backs female founders before the world sees their value? In this #MeritIn Motion series, we sit down with Marisa Warren, Co-Founder & Managing Partner of ALIAVIA Ventures and Founder of the ELEVACAO. A former Microsoft and SAP exec turned entrepreneur and investor, Marisa shares how she’s rewriting the rules of venture, by backing high-growth female founders across the U.S. and Australia before they're on anyone else’s radar. Backed by Carol Schwartz, the Forrest Family Office, the Denholm family and more, Marisa and co-founder Kate Vale (ex-Google, Spotify) are proving that investing in diverse teams isn’t charity—it’s smart capital. Tune in now to learn more about generating cross-border alpha, and why Aussie startups may just be VC’s best-kept secret. Timestamps / Key Takeaways 0:00 - Intro 02:21 - From teenage hustles to Microsoft, SAP, and Workday; built SAP’s SME channel and scaled Microsoft cloud partner revenue 07:35 - The gender gap in VC; founded ELEVACAO to support women in tech 14:24 - Building ALIAVIA: a cross-border VC fund amid the pandemic; creative loan structure to beat the “no track record” barrier 18:38 - Fund strategy & the edge of cross-border dynamics: Australian startups are often undervalued, capital-efficient, growth-ready 24:48 - LP co-investment as a value driver; founder red flags & must-haves 31:14 - Portfolio focus & the influence of AI on Future of Work and HealthTech 35:10 - The maturity of Australian startup scene; LP alignment and stakeholder management 39:52 - Looking ahead: Fund II at $25M; Fund III to follow with potential growth fund 42:41 - Billion Dollar Questions ABOUT MARISA WARREN Marisa Warren is the Founder and Managing Partner of ALIAVIA Ventures, investing in female-founded tech startups across the U.S. and Australia. Established in 2021, ALIAVIA has delivered it's first exit, Loupe Art to Stingray, and invested in 12 early stage companies. She’s also the founder of ELEVACAO, a not-for-profit that helped 175 women raise over $120 million in funding, leading to 5 exits. FOLLOW MARISA: https://www.aliavia.vc/ https://www.elevacao.org https://www.linkedin.com/in/marisawarren - PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://billiondollarmoves.com Watch on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/sarahchenglobal Join the community: https://sarah-chen.ck.page/billiondollarmoves FOLLOW SARAH: LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/sarahchenglobal Instagram: https://instagram.com/sarahchenglobal X/Twitter: https://x.com/sarahchenglobal
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Jul 10, 2025 • 42min

From Crisis to Command: Scaling Workforce Impact for 70K Employees and Beyond w/ Bijal Shah, Guild

When Guild Education’s co-founder Rachel Romer suffered a life-threatening stroke, the company’s future rested in the hands of Bijal Shah — then on maternity leave, recovering from a traumatic birth. In this intimate and deeply strategic conversation, Guild’s now-CEO shares what it took to step up, scale a mission-driven business, and guide 70,000+ employees toward career mobility. From building slum workforce programs in India to powering skills transformation for giants like Walmart, Chipotle, and Disney—Bijal unpacks what it means to lead through adversity, design with empathy, and operate for long-term resilience. This episode is for anyone thinking about the future of workforce development, durable marketplaces, or leadership when it matters most. Timestamps / Key Takeaways 0:00 - Intro 02:11 - From Visa to slum development in India to scaling Guild 03:58 - Joining Guild: The founding vision, team conviction, and social enterprise thesis 07:51 - Evolution of the business model from content creation to a scalable marketplace 09:11 - Customer-led transformation: Meeting both employer and employee skill demands 12:41 - Workforce shifts: Aging population, AI disruption, and the half-life of skills 14:58 - Measuring impact: 70,000 learners, 2.6x retention boost, customized talent solutions 18:03 - Building long-term partnerships over short-term revenue: Walmart, Chipotle, Disney and more major clients 27:40 - Stepping into the CEO role: Permission to lead, guidance from the board, Rachel’s trust 39:45 - Billion Dollar Questions ABOUT BIJAL SHAH Bijal Shah is the CEO of Guild, a talent development company partnering with leading employers to help them build the talent needed for today and the resilient workforce of tomorrow. Guild works with organizations like Chipotle, Discover, Target, and Providence Health to provide seamless pathways for talent mobility that enhance the employee experience and activate internal talent to achieve business goals. Bijal has been named a CNBC Changemaker, and Guild has been recognized as one of TIME’s Most Influential Companies, CNBC’s Disruptor 50, LinkedIn’s Top Startups, and received Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas award. Prior to Guild, Shah held leadership roles across data analytics at Ibotta and corporate strategy at Visa. She served on the Board of Directors of Girls Inc. and was named one of Denver Business Journal’s 40 Under 40. Shah graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and the MIT Sloan School of Management. She lives in Denver with her husband and children. FOLLOW BIJAL LinkedIn  | Instagram  - PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://billiondollarmoves.com Watch on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/sarahchenglobal Join the community: https://sarah-chen.ck.page/billiondollarmoves FOLLOW SARAH: LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/sarahchenglobal Instagram: https://instagram.com/sarahchenglobal X/Twitter: https://x.com/sarahchenglobal
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Jul 3, 2025 • 47min

Reframing Growth: How to Win in A Minority-Majority World w/ Jeffrey Bowman, Reframe AI

This week we sit down with Jeffrey L. Bowman — former Ogilvy senior partner turned founder of Reframe Consulting and Reframe AI Technologies — for a bold, unfiltered look at what it really means to future-proof your business.  Jeffrey doesn’t just talk about diversity as a moral imperative; he reframes it as a growth strategy rooted in data, market opportunity, and long-overdue correction. From revealing how legacy data sets exclude entire populations to unpacking the $100 billion blind spots companies ignore when they leave women and people of color out of their TAM, he challenges conventional thinking on every front. He pulls no punches—calling out performative DEI, synthetic AI datasets, and the emerging “woe is me” narrative among young men.  Whether you’re a founder, investor, or operator, this is a provocative, insight-rich conversation on how to build boldly for the world that is, not the one that was. Timestamps / Key Takeaways 0:00 - Intro 01:53 - Why Reframe? Widening the lens on TAM (Total Addressable Market) and reevaluating go-to-market strategies that exclude women and minorities 06:08 - This is a business risk, not a moral issue - exclusion is leaving billions on the table 08:01 - MetLife case study: refocusing segmentation led to 2x growth in digital product lines 11:04 - Historical data sets, current AI and most TAMs are inherently biased 18:14 - Future-proofing for brands; ELF Beauty case study 23:23 - Global lens on consumers today; How exclusive is your TAM? 27:53 - Monocultural vs. cross/polycultural strategy; Amazon case study in addressability 33:38 - Responsible AI & women in tech 37:06 - Power and capitalism: “To build the America we love, we must accept the new America: diverse, cross-cultural, and polycultural.” 39:49 - Masculinity and the “Lost Boy Syndrome” 43:24 - Billion Dollar Questions About Jeffrey L. Bowman Jeffrey L. Bowman is the CEO and founder of Reframe AI Technologies and Reframe Consulting Services. He is an inventor, pioneer of a change operating system and inclusive experience design approach that helps leaders accelerate and operationalize inclusive change and growth at scale. Bowman is a two-time award-winning Wiley published author and Campaign US 40 Over 40. A former senior partner and managing director at Ogilvy & Mather in New York City, one of the world’s largest advertising and communications agencies. It was there Bowman pioneered the industry’s first cultural practice that modernized the marketing and communications industry. His work has been featured in The New York Times, Campaign, The Economist, Fast Company, NBC (Today Show), Fortune to name a few and he speaks frequently at industry and trade events across the United States, Europe, and South America. FOLLOW JEFFREY: https://jeffreylbowman.com LinkedIn | Instagram - PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://billiondollarmoves.com Watch on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/sarahchenglobal Join the community: https://sarah-chen.ck.page/billiondollarmoves FOLLOW SARAH: https://linkedin.com/in/sarahchenglobal https://instagram.com/sarahchenglobal https://x.com/sarahchenglobal
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Jun 26, 2025 • 41min

[REPLAY] Melinda French Gates $1Bn for Women | Erin Harkless Moore, Pivotal Ventures

Named one of Forbes’ Most Powerful Women, Melinda French Gates needs no introduction. Over the last twenty years through her work at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, one thing has become clear to her: If you want to lift a society up, you must invest in women. This week's replay featured Erin Harkless Moore, Senior Director of Investment for Pivotal Ventures, a Melinda French Gates company created to do exactly that. To accelerate social progress in the U.S by investing in women’s power and influence. As a member of Pivotal’s Executive Leadership Team, Erin leads the organization’s fund, and direct investment decisions, overseeing a diverse portfolio of investments that drive breakthrough innovations and drive impact for people in the US. With nearly 20 years of investment experience, building customized portfolios for endowed institutions and family offices, serving most recently as Managing Director at Cambridge Associates, we talk about everything from challenging the status quo to her investment strategy. You don’t want to miss this! TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 - Intro 02:04 - Erin's career, passion, profit, purpose 05:53 - The premium of 'track record' 07:58 - Investment in diversity initiatives under attack 10:53 - Where does the resistance come from? 12:30 - The role of consultants 16:01 - Melinda French Gates' point of impact 18:20 - Investing in women is not charity 24:24 - Getting to a 'yes' as an LP 30:22 - Cracking the patterns of history Pivotal Ventures | A Melinda French Gates Company Investing | Pivotal Ventures Breaking With Tradition | Pitchbook - PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://billiondollarmoves.com Watch on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/sarahchenglobal Join the community: https://sarah-chen.ck.page/billiondollarmoves FOLLOW SARAH: LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/sarahchenglobal Instagram: https://instagram.com/sarahchenglobal X/Twitter: https://x.com/sarahchenglobal
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Jun 19, 2025 • 52min

Scaling with Purpose: Antler’s Global Thesis on Intentionality & Outlier Returns w/ Rosalind Bazany

In this episode of our mini series #MeritInMotion, we’re joined by Rosalind Bazany, Head of ESG and Impact at Antler, one of the world’s most active and selective early-stage VCs. As a pledge partner of Beyond The Billion, Antler has helped deploy capital into nearly 3,000 women through its founder residencies—without any diversity quotas. From her childhood to managing hedge funds through the global financial crisis, Ros brings systems-level thinking to investing in outliers. We explore how Antler is rewriting the rules of venture by backing overlooked markets and underestimated founders across 27 offices and six continents—with a third of its capital going to women-led startups. Timestamps / Key Takeaways 0:00 - Intro 02:11 - Ros’ global roots that shaped her adaptability & curiosity; joining Antler 06:21 - Inside Antler’s highly selective global model: 160,000+ applications annually, 27 offices on 6 continents, 1500+ investments made 08:03 - Antler VS Y Combinator; backing PEOPLE before ideas: commercial viability and adaptability as key early traits 12:55 - Female founders with real returns under Antler’s portfolio; driving returns with intentionality, not hard quotas nor mandates 24:22 - Impact ≠ Concessionary Returns 27:46 - Exits and long-term view with liquidity on horizon 30:19 -  Sustainability as strategy: backing the outliers; leveraging Antler’s global programs to source the best of the best 39:35 - Looking ahead for Antler 42:26 - Gender lens is not a filter but a strategic aperture 46:07 - Billion Dollar Questions Read Beyond The Billion's Our Next Billion Momentum Report 2025 here. About Rosalind Bazany Ros Bazany is Head of ESG and impact at Antler and currently based in Singapore. Ros is responsible for leading the overall strategy design and implementation of Antler’s ESG and impact proposition to deliver long-term value for Antler’s stakeholders. This includes oversight of firm level practices, founder engagement and investment decision making processes.  Prior to this, she worked at the global asset manager Schroders for over 10 years, working with institutional and retail clients, including on a number of strategic ESG initiatives, across Europe and Asia. She started her career at the hedge fund BlueCrest and holds an MSc in Chemistry.  She is passionate about making ESG and impact a tool to create value for our founders, Antler and the industry more broadly. Read more about Antler’s 2024 ESG and Impact Report: https://www.antler.co/sustainability Follow Ros & Antler: https://www.antler.co/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/rosalind-bazany-a225275/ - PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://billiondollarmoves.com Watch on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/sarahchenglobal Join the community: https://sarah-chen.ck.page/billiondollarmoves FOLLOW SARAH: LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/sarahchenglobal Instagram: https://instagram.com/sarahchenglobal X/Twitter: https://x.com/sarahchenglobal
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Jun 12, 2025 • 38min

From Viral Videos to Brain Chips: The Future of Human-AI Evolution w/ Taryn Southern

What happens when a viral creator becomes a deep tech investor—and then starts working on brain chips? In this episode, we go beyond the hype with Taryn Southern—early YouTube pioneer, Emmy-nominated filmmaker, and now a leading voice in neurotechnology and AI.  From releasing the world’s first AI-generated music album to working at the frontier of brain-computer interfaces with Blackrock Neurotech, Taryn opens up about redefining creativity and investing in future-defining tech.  You’ll walk away with a practical AI prompt framework, hard truths about what it takes to bet smart on deep tech—and a powerful reminder of what it really means to be human in an age of machines. Timestamps / Key Takeaways 0:00 - Intro 01:43 - From Anthropology to youtube stardom—then diving into AI & Neurotech 07:04 - The first artist to release a full AI-generated music album: why AI enhances creativity, not threatens it 12:45 - Upskilling for the AI era; The G.R.I.P.E. framework: How to prompt ChatGPT like a pro 16:18 - The science and reality behind BCI; Blackrock Neurotech’s critical technologies for ALS patients, funding and capital 26:47 - The future of AI for women; AI investment advice & the questions you should be asking 32:24 - Billion Dollar Questions with Taryn Southern About Taryn Southern "Deeply thoughtful yet boundlessly optimistic." Taryn Southern is an award-winning storyteller and creative technologist exploring the intersection of emerging tech and human potential. Her groundbreaking creative experiments offer unique insights into how technology can help us unleash creativity, joy, wellbeing and productivity. Originally from Kansas, Taryn’s first foray into entertainment began at 17 when she competed in the semi-finals of American Idol. In 2007, after obtaining degrees in journalism and anthropology, Taryn uploaded her first video onto YouTube. Ten years and 750 million views later, this early YouTuber produced more than 1500 internet videos, at the forefront of the online content revolution. In 2007, she hosted and produced a TV series documenting her travels to meet her MySpace friends and uploaded her first viral video to YouTube. Over the next decade, she created over 1500 videos garnering more than 1 billion views, served as an early advisor to YouTube, Google VR and Snapchat product teams, and consulted for companies like Conde Nast and Marriott on digital content strategy and narrative design. FOLLOW TARYN https://tarynsouthern.com/ https://www.instagram.com/tarynsouthern/ https://www.youtube.com/TarynSouthern - PODCAST INFO: ⁠Podcast website⁠ | Watch on Youtube⁠ | ⁠Join the community⁠ FOLLOW SARAH: LinkedIn | Instagram | X/Twitter
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Jun 5, 2025 • 27min

Why 8 in 10 LPs Still Don’t Back Women—And What Ankita’s Doing About It

Venture capital is changing—and so is India. In this episode, we dive deep with Ankita Vashistha, the trailblazing investor behind Saha Fund and Arise Ventures. From building Singapore’s first government-backed fund to leading a ₹500 Crore gender-lens powerhouse, Ankita’s story is one of grit, foresight, and redefining alpha. With 5 unicorns, 50+ investments, and a global accelerator reaching 5,000+ founders a year—this is more than investing. It’s revolution. Timestamps / Key Takeaways 0:00 - Intro 01:50 - #1 From Copycat to Category Creator – The Rise of India as a Global Builder 08:32 - #2 Gender Lens ≠ Charity. It’s Alpha. 17:53 - #3 The Venture Capital Playbook Needs a Reboot—For India 19:42 - #4 From Capital Allocator to Company Builder 21:47 - #5 Be Loud. Be Clear. Be Your Own Champion. 22:47 - Closing Remark:Legacy in Motion ABOUT ANKITA With over 16 years of experience in private equity, venture capital, innovation, diversity and impact investing, Ankita is a passionate and visionary venture capital investor and entrepreneur.  Ankita founded and led two pioneering funds, StrongHer Ventures and Saha Fund, that invest in and promote women engagement, empowerment and entrepreneurship through digital technology and now leading her third fund - Arise Ventures.  Ankita also co-authored of the book "Innovation at Scale", which covers how digital is transforming industries and creating opportunities for women.  FOLLOW ANKITA: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ankitavashistha/ https://www.instagram.com/ankitasvashistha/ - PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://billiondollarmoves.com Watch on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/sarahchenglobal Join the community: https://sarah-chen.ck.page/billiondollarmoves FOLLOW SARAH: LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/sarahchenglobal Instagram: https://instagram.com/sarahchenglobal X/Twitter: https://x.com/sarahchenglobal
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May 29, 2025 • 48min

The Rise of the Solo Capitalist: How One-Person Funds Are Winning Big w/ Itamar Novick, Recursive Ventures

With 25 years across engineering, operating, and venture capital, Itamar Novick knows what it takes to build billion-dollar companies—because he’s done it. From betting his life savings on Life360 (now $4.5B public) to helping 60+ startups raise Series A, Itamar shares the unfiltered playbook on solo capital, Pre-Seed power moves, and why he’s staying small in a mega-fund world.  Tune in for tactical insights on fundraising, AI investing, and VC truths founders should know! TIMESTAMPS / KEY TAKEAWAYS 0:00 - Intro 02:10 - From Sandhill Road to solo GP: Itamar’s founder-focused philosophy 06:14 - Itamar’s bet on Life360: investing life savings and the $4.5B IPO journey 10:00 - Pivoting framework: ‘Time is money and money is time’ 13:42 - The birth of Recursive Ventures 15:14 - Rise of solo GPs: How Tech, AI, & LPs making it more feasible 18:02 - AI’s role in venture — replacing VCs? 21:18 - Pre-Seed investing strategy: Staying small, focused, and lean. 24:44 - Trend of Mega Funds as financial services firms 27:35 - Returning capital before IPOs: Liquidity and Secondaries 33:54 - AI investing deep dive: Infra vs. application layer; importance of Moat 40:14 - Founders’ pitfalls: dilution, anti-patterns, and mispriced valuations 44:03 - Billion Dollar Questions About Itamar Novick Itamar is a solo capitalist and the founder of Recursive Ventures, a pre-seed fund focused on fintech, AI and emerging tech startups. Itamar has been on all sides of the startup table: as a founder and executive, an institutional VC, and an angel investor.  He has supported over 50 successful startups, including Deel, Honeybook, Placer, Credible (IPO), MileIQ (acquired by Microsoft), Automatic Labs (acquired by SiriusXM), Tile (acquired by Life360), SafeGraph, and Armory. He’s been recognized by Business Insider as a Top 100 global seed investor. As an operator, he helped take Life360 from Seed to IPO, scaling the business to over $250m in revenue.  Before that, Itamar was a founding team member and head of Product at Gigya (acquired by SAP). He holds an MBA from Berkeley Haas and an undergraduate degree in computer science from the Tel-Aviv Jaffa College. FOLLOW ITAMAR: https://www.itamarnovick.com https://x.com/Itamar_Novick https://www.linkedin.com/in/itamarnovick/ About Recursive Ventures Recursive Ventures is a San Francisco based VC fund investing in US Pre-seed and Seed Tech Startups disrupting industries through use of Data and Artificial Intelligence. Recursive is managed by Itamar Novick with support from a seasoned group of Founders, Operators, and go-to-market experts. - PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://billiondollarmoves.com Watch on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/sarahchenglobal Join the community: https://sarah-chen.ck.page/billiondollarmoves FOLLOW SARAH: LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/sarahchenglobal Instagram: https://instagram.com/sarahchenglobal X/Twitter: https://x.com/sarahchenglobal
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May 22, 2025 • 17min

[BITE] The Big Bet Mindset: Building Bold, Lasting Change w/ Dr. Raj Shah, The Rockefeller Foundation

Summer’s almost here—and with it, a moment to reflect on what it really takes to spark lasting, meaningful change. In a world where progress often feels slow and the stakes impossibly high, Dr. Rajiv Shah has spent his career proving that bold, system-shifting bets can work. From leading global vaccine efforts at the Gates Foundation, to reshaping food security policy at USAID, to now powering innovation at The Rockefeller Foundation—Raj’s story is one of grit, vision, and conviction. This conversation is a masterclass on making big bets: how to build unlikely alliances, act with urgency, and stay grounded in optimism—even when the odds feel stacked. If you’re a leader wondering “Where do we go from here?”—this one’s for you. Let’s dive in. Timestamps / Key Takeaways 0:00 - Intro 01:32 - Key Takeaway #1: The 3 key elements of big bets: 04:38 - Key Takeaway #2: It is realistic to be optimistic about grand-scale changes. 09:22 - Key Takeaway #3: Keep taking the risks, keep reinventing. 12:05 - Key Takeaway #4: Crossing boundaries IS part of the process 15:08 - A powerful reminder: every billion-dollar move starts with conviction, clarity, and courage. About Dr Rajiv Shah Dr. Rajiv J. "Raj" Shah was born to Indian immigrant parents who settled in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the late 1960s. He joined the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 2001, serving in a range of leadership roles including Director of Agricultural Development, Director of Strategic Opportunities, Deputy Director of Policy and Finance and Chief Economist. During his time in Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, he was also responsible for developing the International Finance Facility for Immunization, which raised more than $5 billion for the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI). Throughout Obama administration, Raj was nominated to serve United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and United States Agency for International Development (USAID). As Administrator of USAID, he restructured $2.9 billion of global health investments to focus on cost-effective ways to save lives of children under the age of five in priority countries. On January 5, 2017, Raj Shah was sworn to serve as the 13th president of the Rockefeller Foundation, continuing the mission of the foundation to improve the lives of humanity around the world. In 2023, he authored the book "Big Bets: How Large-Scale Change Really Occurs,”, offers insights into some of his experiences in philanthropic and public service work, as well as the lessons he has learned throughout his career on how to drive transformational change through a big-goal mindset. FOLLOW DR. RAJ Instagram | LinkedIn | X/Twitter Rockefeller Foundation - Big Bets https://www.rockefellerfoundation.org/bigbets - PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://billiondollarmoves.com Watch on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/sarahchenglobal Join the community: https://sarah-chen.ck.page/billiondollarmoves FOLLOW SARAH: LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/sarahchenglobal Instagram: https://instagram.com/sarahchenglobal X/Twitter: https://x.com/sarahchenglobal
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May 15, 2025 • 52min

Breaking VC Stereotypes: Power, Privilege, and Purpose w/ Jesse Draper, Halogen Ventures

Her great-grandfather helped birth the VC industry. Her father, Tim Draper, made game-changing bets on Tesla, Hotmail, and Skype.  But Jesse Draper? She’s carved her own path—first as a Nickelodeon actress, then as the creator of The Valley Girl Show, and now as the founding partner of Halogen Ventures. With over 75 female-founded companies under her belt, Jesse is proving that investing in women isn't charity—it's just good business.  From battling biases in the boardroom to rewriting what venture capital looks like through the lens of the modern family, this episode is Jesse Draper like you've never heard her before. Let’s dive in! Timestamps / Key Takeaways 0:00 - Intro 01:52 - Jesse Draper’s early aspirations; family legacy & "Nepo Baby" pushback 05:21 - Starting a Tech talk show — The Valley Girl Show from her parents’ garage 10:16 - Pivoting to venture; early angel investments led to major returns: Laurel & Wolf with 26X return 13:17 - From Valley Girl persona to founding Halogen Ventures 21:28 - Thesis and conviction: Fund 1 raised $10.4M 27:27 - Childcare economy; Halogen doubling down on future of family 34:43 - Challenges with fundraising & biases; advice to women navigating wealth and power 47:50 - Billion Dollar Questions About Jesse Jesse Draper is a mother of 3 boys and founding partner of Halogen Ventures. Halogen Ventures is a Los Angeles based Venture Capital firm focused on early stage investing in consumer technology and strategic B2B software companies with a female in the founding team. Draper, the first solo female GP in Los Angeles, is also a 4th generation venture capitalist, the creator and host of Emmy nominated television series, The Valley Girl Show, and host of the MOMumental Podcast. She is a fierce advocate for investing in women and the opportunity for using technology and innovation to solve some of the biggest issues facing women and families today. Among her 70+ portfolio companies, are theSkimm, Babylist, ThirdLove, HopSkipDrive, The Flex Company, Squad (acquired by Twitter), Eloquii (sold to Walmart) and This is L (sold to P&G). Selected as one of the top 10 early stage female investors by Business Insider, Draper was also listed by Marie Claire magazine as one of the ‘50 Most Connected Women in America’, nominated by the NRF as a DealMakeHers, Variety’s Holly’s New Leaders, and Refinery29 30 Rising Stars.” Draper has been a contributor to Marie Claire, Forbes, and is a regular investor and tech personality showcased on Cheddar, CNBC, CNN. Following Jesse’s viral Medium piece, Investing in Women Isn’t a F*cking Charity, she’s become a leading voice of women in technology. Draper is also a Kauffman Fellow. FOLLOW JESSE: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessedraper/ https://www.instagram.com/jessecdraper/ - PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://billiondollarmoves.com Watch on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/sarahchenglobal Join the community: https://sarah-chen.ck.page/billiondollarmoves FOLLOW SARAH: LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/sarahchenglobal Instagram: https://instagram.com/sarahchenglobal X/Twitter: https://x.com/sarahchenglobal

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