Guest: Aydin Senkut, VC professional discussing the generalist approach to VC. Topics: Felicis' evolution, generating more hits in VC, investing in AI, staying away from crypto, importance of strategy and decision-making, role of data analysis, learning from top investors, future of VC.

Mamoon Hamid and Ilya Fushman from Kleiner Perkins venture capitalist firm discuss decision-making, fund size, and recruiting talent. They highlight the craftsman approach to venture, their strategy for identifying and evaluating talent, and investing in emerging technologies. The chapter also touches on building a partner team and the importance of discipline in the industry.

Ben Horowitz, co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and one of the most influential venture capitalists of the last decade, joins Erik for the inaugural episode of Turpentine VC. If you’re looking to make fund administration easy and intuitive, check out: http://carta.com/turpentine  We're hiring across the board at Turpentine and for Erik's personal team on other projects he's incubating. He's hiring a Chief of Staff, EA, Head of Special Projects, Investment Associate, and more. For a list of JDs, check out: eriktorenberg.com.--SPONSORS:🧲 Learn why Craft, Bedrock, NEA and 100s more trust Harmonic’s data to source deals. Harmonic is the most complete startup database, finding new companies as soon as they incorporate and tracking them through IPO. Head to https://bit.ly/harmonicturpentine and make sure to mention Turpentine VC during your demo.Carta is the world’s largest venture fund administrator. Carta’s software-based approach takes fund administration out of the spreadsheet and into 2023 and beyond with powerful solutions and intuitive interfaces, all on one platform. Their suite of products and expert services help funds at any stage with up-to-date insights and automated workflows to get them to that next level. Learn more at: http://carta.com/turpentineSynaptic unifies over one hundred real-time company performance metrics across alternative datasets like user traffic, employee data, app downloads, product reviews, and more. It’s your all-in-one source for alternative data that helps you make better investment decisions. To learn how Synaptic can improve your sourcing, tracking, and due diligence, visit http://synaptic.com/turpentinePesto Tech is a hiring marketplace that makes finding great remote developers fast and easy. They use large language models to evaluate developers along dozens of parameters, including code quality, performance, and security. If you need to start hiring developers fast, all you have to do is answer 5 simple questions on their website: http://pesto.tech---RECOMMENDED PODCAST: LIVE PLAYERSJoin host Samo Burja and Erik Torenberg as they analyze the mindsets of today’s most intriguing business leaders, investors, and innovators through the lens of their bold actions and contrarian worldviews. You’ll come away with a deeper understanding of the development of technology, business, political power, culture and more. LIsten and subscribe everywhere you get your podcasts: https://link.chtbl.com/liveplayers.---Join our free newsletter to get Erik's top 3 insights from each episode every week: https://turpentinevc.substack.com/---TIMESTAMPS:(00:00) Episode Preview(02:25) Ben on what allows the legendary VC firms to be great for multi-decades(03:37) a16z’s unique product-first, investor-second approach(04:34) YC as a16z’s closest spiritual analog(06:20) The strategy behind how Ben and Marc set up their firm structure(08:12) Ben on why venture firms should stay private(09:32) How a16z scaled their fund sizes to market opportunities(10:54) Why a16z chose to go bigger than Benchmark or USV on fund size(12:47) “Spreadsheet” VCs vs. people-first VCs(14:34) a16z’s customer-focused strategy(16:22) Sponsor: Carta(16:57) Shared economics and centralized control(18:29) Ben’s view on the future of venture(21:44) How Ben thinks about riding trends like AI, crypto, etc.(24:04) a16z’s AI strategy(32:38) Sponsors: Synaptic and Pesto Tech(34:06) Ben on how macro informs a16z’s strategy(40:11) What Ben wants to see next in tech media(44:04) Sponsor: Carta---LINKS:Why Software Is Eating the World: https://a16z.com/2011/08/20/why-software-is-eating-the-world/

On Turpentine VC, host and venture capitalist Erik Torenberg delves deep into the art and science of building successful venture firms through conversations with the world’s best investors and operators. Hear about insider strategies on decision-making, investment theses, and building firms for the long term—from the ground-level, VC to VC. Guests in season 1 include Ben Horowitz of a16z, Mamood Hamid and Ilya Fushman of Kleiner Perkins, and Alfred Lin of Sequoia.We're hiring across the board at Turpentine and for Erik's personal team on other projects he's incubating. He's hiring a Chief of Staff, EA, Head of Special Projects, Investment Associate, and more. For a list of JDs, check out: eriktorenberg.com.RECOMMENDED PODCAST:The HR industry is at a crossroads. What will it take to construct the next generation of incredible businesses – and where can people leaders have the most business impact? Hosts Nolan Church and Kelli Dragovich have been through it all, the highs and the lows – IPOs, layoffs, executive turnover, board meetings, culture changes, and more. With a lineup of industry vets and experts, Nolan and Kelli break down the nitty-gritty details, trade offs, and dynamics of constructing high performing companies. Through unfiltered conversations that can only happen between seasoned practitioners, Kelli and Nolan dive deep into the kind of leadership-level strategy that often happens behind closed doors. Check out the first episode with the architect of Netflix’s culture deck Patty McCord: https://link.chtbl.com/hrhereticsRECOMMENDED PODCAST: Every week investor and writer of the popular newsletter The Diff, Byrne Hobart, and co-host Erik Torenberg discuss today’s major inflection points in technology, business, and markets – and help listeners build a diversified portfolio of trends and ideas for the future. Subscribe to “The Riff” with Byrne Hobart and Erik Torenberg: https://link.chtbl.com/theriffSubscribe to Turpentine VC wherever you listen to podcasts!Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3Yb8ErLRnyoAqn4Y6NegTxApple: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1701006772YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TurpentineVCTurpentine VC is a part of the Turpentine podcast network. Learn more: Turpentine.co