Steve Blank Podcast

In November 2025 the Department of War (DoW) unveiled the biggest changes in 60 years of how they will buy weapons and services. This month Congress, with bipartisan support, rapidly made them into law in the National Defense Authorization Act (the NDAA) – 3,096 pages of legislative text and 636-page Joint Explanatory Statement.

The Department of War Just Shot the Accountants and Opted for Speed by Steve Blank

I’ve always thought of myself as a practitioner. In the startups I was part of, the only “strategy” were my marketing tactics on how to make the VP of Sales the richest person in the company. After I retired, I created Customer Development and co-created the Lean Startup as a simple methodology which codified founders best practices – in a language and process that was easy to understand and implement. All from a practitioner’s point of view.

The October 2025 PEO Directory – Update 2. The Department of War (DoW) is one of the world’s largest organizations. If you’re a startup trying to figure out who to call on and how to navigate the system, it can be – to put it politely – challenging.

The podcast dives into the complex relationship between science and society. It questions what science truly is and why it matters beyond academia. Steve Blank explores the connection between national power and scientific investment, highlighting how both basic and applied sciences fuel innovation. He contrasts theorists and experimentalists, examines the importance of university research, and warns against cutting science funding. The role of AI in enhancing, rather than replacing, scientific inquiry is also discussed, underscoring the necessity of curiosity in research.

Great founders shine in a crisis.

How To Sell to the Dept of War – The 2025 PEO Directory by Steve Blank

How did you go bankrupt?” Two ways. Gradually, then suddenly.” Ernest Hemingway, The Sun Also Rises Every disruptive technology since the fire and the wheel have forced leaders to adapt or die. This post tells the story of what happened when 4,000 companies faced a disruptive technology and why only one survived.

I’ve been having coffee with lots of frustrated founders (my students and others) bemoaning most VCs won’t even meet with them unless they have AI in their fundraising pitch. And the AI startups they see are getting valuations that appear nonsensical. These conversations brought back a sense of Déjà vu from the Dot Com bubble (at the turn of this century), when if you didn’t have internet as part of your pitch you weren’t getting funded.

The podcast dives into the evolution of entrepreneurial education at Stanford, showcasing the shift from traditional business planning to the discovery of scalable business models. It highlights how AI has enhanced student projects, making them more impactful. The significant time commitment of students is explored, revealing their dedication to customer discovery, having spoken to 935 potential stakeholders in one quarter. Mentorship's crucial role and the curriculum's evolution over the past decade are also discussed, reflecting the growing importance of innovative teaching methods.