Crucible Moments
Sequoia Capital
A podcast about the inflection points that shaped some of the most significant companies of our time. Crucible moments are pivotal decisions that determine your trajectory. In Season 2, hear from founders and leaders like Steve Chen of YouTube, Drew Houston of Dropbox, Frank Slootman of ServiceNow and Tony Xu of DoorDash, Steve Huffman of Reddit and more about how they navigated the challenges and opportunities that defined their stories. Hosted by Roelof Botha of Sequoia Capital.The content of this podcast does not constitute investment advice, an offer to provide investment advisory services or an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy an interest in any investment fund.
Episodes
Mentioned books
51 snips
Oct 19, 2023 • 33min
HubSpot ft. Brian Halligan & Dharmesh Shah - How an underdog helped invent modern marketing, and then took on Goliath
Founders of HubSpot, Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah, discuss how they revolutionized marketing with the concept of inbound marketing and turned their blog into a $20+ billion success. They share the story of founding HubSpot, focusing on small businesses, defying conventional wisdom, and their crucible moments in making key decisions for the company's growth and success.
24 snips
Oct 5, 2023 • 45min
Eventbrite ft. Julia Hartz - A thriving events company took 14 years to build and nearly disappeared in 14 days
Julia Hartz, CEO of Eventbrite, discusses the challenges of building and reinventing the events company during a global shutdown. Topics include transitioning to sustainable profitability, learning from a crisis and evaluating acquisitions, challenges faced after acquiring Ticketfly, adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic, reflections on leadership and rebuilding, and the future of events in the evolving landscape.
32 snips
Sep 21, 2023 • 38min
Block ft. Jack Dorsey - A controversial hack week project becomes the #1 financial services app
Jack Dorsey, founder of Square, reflects on the origins and defining moments of Block. He discusses the evolution of Square, their partnership with Starbucks, and the birth of Cash App. Dorsey explains how Block succeeded by weaving new products around a core vision and taking risks. The podcast also explores the development and launch of Cash App and the importance of connecting ecosystems through acquisitions.
80 snips
Sep 7, 2023 • 40min
Airbnb ft. Brian Chesky - Battling a copycat clone and rebuilding user trust to revolutionize travel
Brian Chesky, CEO of Airbnb, discusses how a crisis shaped his thinking and led to rebuilding trust. The podcast explores moments of battling a copycat clone, navigating a global shutdown, and overcoming challenges. It also highlights the journey of localization and global expansion, strategies used to navigate a crisis, and the surprising IPO performance of Airbnb.
41 snips
Sep 7, 2023 • 47min
PayPal ft. Max Levchin - A merger of enemies that reshaped Silicon Valley
Max Levchin, Co-founder of PayPal, discusses the challenges of navigating early inflection points and battling fraud in the fledgling business. Topics include the rivalry with X.com, intense competition and paranoia, leadership changes, fighting fraud with CAPTCHA, and the long-lasting impact of PayPal's fraud-fighting tools.
Aug 30, 2023 • 4min
Introducing "Crucible Moments"
Hear from founders like Jack Dorsey, Jensen Huang, and Anne Wojcicki as they discuss how they navigated the challenges and made crucial decisions that shaped their companies. Learn about the mindset shift needed to overcome setbacks and the importance of perseverance in building successful companies.
