

StrictlyVC Download
Connie Loizos & Alex Gove
Each week TechCrunch Editor-in-Chief Connie Loizos, and Alex Gove, a former journalist, VC and operating exec who today runs StrictlyVC, interview a mover and shaker in the world of tech
Episodes
Mentioned books

13 snips
Sep 24, 2026 • 32min
Al Gore on the $4.5 Trillion Clean Energy Opportunity
Former U.S. Vice President and climate advocate Al Gore joins Lila Preston, Generation Investment Management’s growth equity leader, to explore AI’s energy demands and the race to decarbonize. They discuss strained grids, renewable power, batteries, nuclear’s uncertain future, and AI’s climate potential. The conversation spotlights investment opportunities in agriculture, buildings, industrial decarbonization, energy infrastructure, and systems software.

23 snips
Sep 15, 2026 • 27min
Keith Rabois on Why the AI Bubble Fears Are Overblown
Keith Rabois, Khosla Ventures managing director and veteran PayPal, LinkedIn, and Square entrepreneur, makes the case for AI optimism. He tackles fears of catastrophe, AI’s impact on jobs and medicine, and the security arms race. He also discusses New York’s recruiting challenge, Ramp’s ambitions, trillion-dollar venture bets, and the rare qualities he seeks in founders.

Sep 2, 2026 • 42min
Grindr CEO is betting on AI to solve online dating's biggest problem
George Arison, the technology entrepreneur and Grindr CEO, discusses rescuing and reinventing the dating platform. He explores AI-written code, smarter matchmaking, and the Edge premium tier. The conversation covers Wall Street’s “Grindr discount,” spam defense, and expansion into travel, local discovery, and healthcare. Arison also shares how Grindr aims to connect digital communities with real-world life.

24 snips
Aug 26, 2026 • 35min
The Anti-a16z? Vijay Pande’s Bet on a Tiny, AI-Native VC Firm
Vijay Pande, biophysicist and creator of Folding@Home who previously led biotech at a16z and co-founded VZ, discusses AI’s role in making biology engineerable. He talks about AI-driven drug discovery, better human data for clinical trials, precision and consumer health, and why he built a tiny, AI-native firm that makes very concentrated, hands-on investments.

15 snips
Aug 4, 2026 • 32min
Equity Replay: Menlo Ventures’ Matt Murphy says the lesson for founders now is that a great model isn't enough
Matt Murphy, Partner at Menlo Ventures and leading AI investor, recounts backing Anthropic early and watching its unheard-of growth. He discusses how model features like Claude Code and Skills turned research into a platform. He talks fast-scaling startups, why safety-minded rollouts matter, and how founders face new pressure and opportunity in today’s rapid AI landscape.

8 snips
Jul 28, 2026 • 23min
Why Founders Fund Backed a Fish Robotics Startup
Delian Asparouhov, a contrarian Founders Fund partner focused on hard-tech investments. Saif Khawaja, founder and CEO of Shinkei, building robotics and supply-chain systems for American-caught fish. They discuss a Japanese humane-fish technique turned startup thesis. They cover onboard robotic Poseidon machines, computer-vision surgical cuts, reshoring processing from overseas, and vertical branding and logistics innovations.

38 snips
Jul 21, 2026 • 49min
Reed Jobs Is Betting Cancer Doesn’t Have to Be Fatal
Reed Jobs, founder and managing partner of Yosemite who builds biotech companies to make cancer nonlethal. He discusses Yosemite’s company-creation model pairing venture capital with philanthropic grants. Reed talks about AI speeding drug discovery and clinical trials. He covers pioneering modalities like epigenetic editing, strategies to target hard oncogenes, and the case for a national mission in life sciences.

Jul 14, 2026 • 40min
Uber’s Chief Product Officer on Travel, AI Agents, and Playing Both Sides of the Robotaxi Race
Sachin Kansal, Uber Chief Product Officer overseeing rides, Eats, travel and autonomy, joins to discuss Uber’s travel expansion and hotel partnerships. He covers integrating local shopping into Eats, AI features like agentic travel planning, and the hybrid human/robotaxi approach with multiple AV partners. Short, forward-looking conversation about product strategy and operational scale.

Jul 7, 2026 • 37min
The Race to Build the First Real Humanoid Robot Business with Peggy Johnson from Agility
Peggy Johnson, veteran tech executive and CEO of Agility Robotics, leads the team behind the humanoid robot Digit. She discusses taking the company public, turning flashy demos into real commercial deployments, and building a $300M pipeline. Topics include robots-as-a-service economics, training robots with AI and simulation, safety for robots working near people, and the race to scale humanoid production.

14 snips
Jun 30, 2026 • 34min
Is Your AI Actually Worth What You're Spending? with Parker Conrad
Parker Conrad, founder and CEO of Rippling, a CEO who built an all-in-one HR and IT platform. He discusses Rippling Data Cloud, how the company routes AI workloads across models, and using joined people and systems data for analytics. He also covers measuring AI spend and ROI, Rippling’s banking products and growth, plus the legal battle with Deel and its broader implications.


