The Long Game w/ Elijah Murray

Pete McCarthy is an experienced tech entrepreneur with a wealth of knowledge in various industries. In this conversation we explored the evolution of the internet, his experiences during the dot-com bubble, and his insights into agile and waterfall methodologies, crypto, bitcoin, and Earthships. EPISODE LINKS: Pete's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pedromccarthy/ Fucked Company: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fucked_Company TIMESTAMPS: (00:00:59) Intro and Background (00:03:31) The internet in 1995 (00:04:30) Seeing the internet for the first time (00:05:56) Making a huge shift from entrepreneurship (00:08:42) The decision behind shifting to different industries (00:10:01) Going different paths and learning (00:10:19) Enjoying travel, then deciding to settle down (00:12:03) Why move to San Francisco? (00:13:27) Learning the business while working with OpenTable (00:14:05) The learning process as a beginner (00:15:31) Silicon Valley in 1999/2000 (00:16:37) The dot-com bubble (00:17:08) The beginning of the dot-com crash (00:18:04) OpenTable surviving the crash (00:18:25) Beginning a career as a tech (00:19:19) Dot-com bubble burst aftermath (00:19:44) Fucked Company, the pastime for most startup company employees (00:20:39) The silver lining and resurgence of startup companies (00:22:15) The beginning of solving problems - product building (00:24:16) Opening up bigger opportunities (00:25:59) Gaining experience: Working for companies before launching his own tech venture (00:28:14) Opportunities and innovation with the release of the iPhone (00:28:57) Experiencing big shifts in technology: Cloud and mobile (00:30:19) Foreseeing Google and Apple taking over (00:30:49) Agile iterative approach, ship fast: Ruby Rails, 37 signals (00:32:20) Being comfortable with the uncomfortable: The Contrarian way of thinking (00:34:20) Fundamentals of product management, Factors builds a great process: Great product people and design (00:35:21) Enterprise software (00:36:06) Waterfall project (00:36:54) Agile methodology as the better approach (00:38:23) A big aspect of product management: Identifying and reducing irrelevant data effectively (00:40:16) Don't be committed to one answer (00:40:28) Direct user feedback for making changes (00:40:44) The difficulty of getting into true agile methodology (00:41:29) Sprint planning (00:42:22) Intentionally saying "no" to achieve better outcome (00:43:02) Shipping makes it easier to figure out what to do next (00:43:42) Living the corporate America life, working remotely (00:45:50) Resilience: Rising better after a fall (00:47:29) Starting CheckWise (00:48:51) Offering a solution (00:49:34) Learning how to code (00:50:24) The transition from product management to the technical side of things (00:52:49) Trying to pursue a coding career, going back to product (00:53:52) Working with a development team in Italy, festivals (00:54:26) Letting go of the coding dream, and enjoying building operational software (00:56:26) Electric forest and the Blissfest (00:58:40) Van trip (00:59:10) Earthships (01:02:53) Emergence of Bitcoin (01:07:13) Crypto, Blockchain (01:09:52) Part 2: Xero knowledge proofs, DAOs, AI and where this goes from a long-term perspective (01:10:15) Closing CONNECT: Website: https://hoo.be/elijahmurray YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@elijahmurray Twitter: https://twitter.com/elijahmurray Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elijahmurray LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elijahmurray/ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-long-game-w-elijahmurray/ Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/elijahmurray RSS: https://anchor.fm/s/3e31c0c/podcast/rss

Courtney Caldwell is a successful entrepreneur and trailblazer in the tech industry. In this conversation we explored transitioning from the corporate world to entrepreneurship, the journey of a non-tech founder, the power of optimism, and the importance of multidimensional living, focusing on key topics like personal growth, founder mental health, and the role of user feedback in improving products. EPISODE LINKS: Courtney's Twitter: https://twitter.com/ShearShareCEO Courtney's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cdcaldwell/ ShearShare Website: https://shearshare.com/ Courtney's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamcourtneycaldwell/ What Happy People Know (Book): https://www.amazon.com/What-Happy-People-Know-Happiness/dp/0312321597 Joe Gebbia - Co-founder of Airbnb: https://news.airbnb.com/about-us/leadership/joe-gebbia/ TIMESTAMPS: (00:00:41) Intro and background (00:02:01) From corporate america to entrepreneur (00:04:16) Consultant to entrepreneur transition steps (00:05:32) Entering into tech entrepreneurship (00:07:00) The Champion within and growing wings (00:09:38) Entrepreneurship: born that way or learnable? (00:11:05) Lean into your strengths, wellroundness is overrated (00:14:10) Advice to female and minority founders (00:15:31) Success from taking care of yourself (00:16:11) 1. Diet: plant-based (00:17:01) 2. Hydration, 3. sleep (00:17:52) 4. Socialize (00:18:34) 5. Move (00:19:25) How to get yourself to change and prioritize the right things (00:21:50) Stack incremental changes (00:22:50) Let the data be the change-driver (00:24:26) Don't wait for true burnout to force you to change (00:28:14) What is multidimensional living? (00:30:03) Doing things that you love and adapting them to life (00:30:38) Expanding beyond a monolithic identity (00:32:37) Entrepreneurship: perceptions vs reality (00:36:34) ShearShare (00:38:40) Expanding beyond the original platform (00:40:18) User feedback led product roadmap (00:44:14) Finding and getting value from investors (00:49:33) How get into entrepreneurship and VCs (00:52:45) Climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro (00:56:52) Being intentionally slow (00:58:03) Considered care: beyond blind passion (00:59:04) Simple, not easy (01:00:22) Self care (01:01:30) Systems thinking, routines, and decision fatigue (01:03:07) Closing CONNECT: Website: https://hoo.be/elijahmurray YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@elijahmurray Twitter: https://twitter.com/elijahmurray Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elijahmurray LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elijahmurray/ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-long-game-w-elijah-murray/

Shane Brennan is a thought leader in the realm of AI and startup landscapes. In this conversation we explored the threshold for behavioral change as a framework for startups, the impact of AI on the current market, and the potential of AI as an equalizer in the marketplace. We also delved into startup opportunities in AI-adjacent sectors, such as compliance and data accuracy, and the nature of AI being intrinsically lazy. EPISODE LINKS: Shane's Twitter Shane's LinkedIn The Privacy Co. Kerckhoffs's Principle TIMESTAMPS: (00:00:00) Intro and background (00:01:14) How people change behavior (00:04:00) The different roles of a transaction (00:09:05) Roles vs Personas (00:15:25) Entrepreneurship and the threshold for behavioral change (00:18:26) Applying the TBC framework to new startups (00:23:18) Summing up the threshold for behavioral change framework (00:25:02) How to make decisions in 2023's startup market (00:27:42) AI market opportunities (00:30:13) Explainable Artificial Intelligence (AI) (00:34:52) AI data quality, accuracy, and compliance (00:37:19) How LLMs actually work (00:43:00) Is AI essential or a new shiny tool for entrepreneurs? (00:48:24) AI dangers, less talked about (00:49:56) AI is lazy, it's just after carrots (00:52:52) AI changes our need for architects (00:58:32) AI is the great equalizer (01:01:08) Microniche experiences and businesses (01:03:07) Kerckhoff's Principle (01:05:09) How do you build in a moatless world? (01:07:27) Federated services; bluesky and Threads (01:10:51) Federated services non-technically explained (01:13:23) Curation is key (01:17:41) Most important AI tool to be built (01:20:54) Closing CONNECT: Website: https://hoo.be/elijahmurray YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@elijahmurray Twitter: https://twitter.com/elijahmurray Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elijahmurray LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elijahmurray/ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-long-game-w-elijah-murray/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/41cmMiImWDxs88s71v96qk RSS: https://anchor.fm/s/3e31c0c/podcast/rss

Chris Serron is an influential figure in the tech industry with a special focus on building second brain systems. In this conversation, we explored ego and identity, the role of adversity in personal growth, the transition from being a builder to a leader, the future of AR/VR and spatial computing, and the philosophy of stoicism, focusing on key topics like adversity, leadership transition, and the future of mixed reality. EPISODE LINKS: Chris's Twitter Chris's LinkedIn Chris's Instagram Chris's Website Obsidian Apple Vision Pro Google Glass TIMESTAMPS: (00:01:03) Ego and identity (00:05:45) Is ego necessary or should it be destroyed? (00:07:27) Ego as a motivator when growing up (00:09:42) Parenting, discomfort, and adversity (00:15:30) Being an entrepreneur based in South America, working in the US (00:17:40) Big fish small pond or small fish big pond? (00:22:45) Choosing your industry and market (00:24:29) From builder to leader (00:29:39) Autonomy, creativity, and building from scratch (00:33:11) AI (00:36:04) Second brain systems (00:47:06) Second brain systems and notetaking (00:50:59) Vision Pro (00:54:29) Technology pricing (00:59:00) What does the Mixed Reality future look like? (01:02:43) What's the most exciting VR/AR experience? (01:05:14) Progress, hard work, helping others (01:08:58) Stoicism and continual improvement (01:13:22) Sucking and giving up (01:16:14) Closing CONNECT: Website: https://hoo.be/elijahmurray YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@elijahmurray Twitter: https://twitter.com/elijahmurray Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elijahmurray LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elijahmurray/ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-long-game-w-elijah-murray/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/41cmMiImWDxs88s71v96qk RSS: https://anchor.fm/s/3e31c0c/podcast/rss

Chip Leigh is a seasoned engineer with experience at both Tesla and Rivian. In this conversation, we delved into the intricacies of building electric vehicles, energy management, creating resilient microgrids, and the science behind constructing sustainable housing. With key insights like "What we all want is a 400 mile range toaster oven on wheels," and "Not only can you charge your car from your home, you can now charge your home from your car," this conversation is a deep dive into the intersection of technology and sustainability. EPISODE LINKS: Chip Leigh's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chip-leigh/ Chip Leigh's YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LeighLabs Chip Leigh's Website: https://www.leighrenewables.com/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=92367620 Xeal Energy: https://xealenergy.com/ Nuvve: https://nuvve.com/ Redwood Materials: https://www.redwoodmaterials.com/ TIMESTAMPS: (00:00:00) Rivian: The good, the bad, the ugly (00:04:30) Why don't they make bigger EV batteries? (00:06:29) Tesla vs Rivian Market Strategy & Culture (00:08:47) What about those Rivian bucket seats (00:10:19) Chip's background and building self reliant homes (00:13:31) Making building homes and own ownership accessible (00:16:23) Thinking about the money side of building DIY homes (00:18:13) Scientific approach to building the process (00:21:18) Superadobe (00:22:49) Free solar panels (00:24:17) Chip's background (00:25:23) Chip at Tesla (00:30:12) Building with shipping containers in fire country (00:32:07) Building underground (00:32:56) Embodied energy building costs (00:33:33) But how comfortable will it actually be? (00:38:06) What does the end blueprint look like and who is it for? (00:44:54) How much will it cost me? (00:46:31) California, our survival, and energy dependency (00:49:05) Energy infrastructure (00:52:21) Blackouts in California (00:54:30) Energy resiliency (01:01:53) Optimal energy and EV charging tactics (01:06:39) Electric isn't always the best (01:09:47) Types of energy and nuclear (01:12:58) Micro nuclear plants (01:17:34) Energy startups and opportunities (01:19:18) Vehicle to grid energy (01:23:21) EV technology interoperability (01:25:29) Portable EV chargers (01:27:16) How do we get denser energy? (01:28:19) $5.5B EV infrastructure bill, and why it's going to the wrong place (01:33:38) Flatten the energy consumption curve (01:36:42) Electronic waste (01:40:22) JB Straubel's Redwood Materials (01:41:27) Closing CONNECT: Website: https://hoo.be/elijahmurray YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@elijahmurray Twitter: https://twitter.com/elijahmurray Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elijahmurray LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elijahmurray/ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-long-game-w-elijah-murray/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/41cmMiImWDxs88s71v96qk RSS: https://anchor.fm/s/3e31c0c/podcast/rss

Avinash Mandava is an exited entrepreneur who previously built Vorstella, an A.I. agent that stabilizes and optimizes your data platforms. In this conversation we explored the impact of AI and the future of work, focusing on key topics such as the effect of AI on startups and small teams, the unbundling of cloud computing, and the role of unique knowledge and self-learning. TIMESTAMPS: (00:00:00) Intro (00:00:26) What's the next idea? (00:05:08) LLMs and language (00:06:24) How AI affects small teams (00:09:52) AI art and artists (00:15:01) Workforce displacement (00:19:25) Unbundling (00:20:04) Cloud infrastructure (00:23:48) Marketing spin (00:29:08) Cloud or on-prem? (00:35:39) Respect for money and 0 interest rate (00:39:24) Bootstrapping, VC, and startups (00:42:59) Motivation (00:46:25) Choosing the next project (00:47:16) Internet of Things (00:48:15) Do what you know (00:50:11) Small teams, big revenue (00:53:16) Venture capital: a history (00:57:35) Wealth gap and UBI (00:59:51) Core beliefs, success, and skills (01:03:53) Belief systems (01:06:27) The 15 year old you (01:07:41) Therapy (01:10:39) Control and your responses (01:13:19) Can you learn from mentors? (01:16:48) Successful without adversity? (01:18:34) Regulation and politics (01:23:15) AGI (01:26:00) Closing EPISODE LINKS: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/avinash-mandava/ Vorstella: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vorstella/ Vercel: https://vercel.com/ LINKS: Podcast website: https://hoo.be/elijahmurray Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-long-game-w-elijah-murray/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/41cmMiImWDxs88s71v96qk RSS: https://anchor.fm/s/3e31c0c/podcast/rss CONNECT: Twitter: https://twitter.com/elijahmurray Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elijahmurray LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elijahmurray/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@elijahmurray

Matt Berman is a self-taught engineer, VC backed, exited founder of Sonar, and a rising star on YouTube. In this conversation, we explored the need for a shift away from the traditional Silicon Valley and VC model of hyper growth and hyper death, and what more sustainable startups could look like. We delved into key topics such as starting in the middle in startups, AI and AI ethics, and the reality of mental health in startups. EPISODE LINKS: Sonar: https://investors.marchex.com/news-releases/news-release-details/marchex-acquires-sonar-technologies-inc Matt's YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@matthew_berman LINKS: Podcast website: https://hoo.be/elijahmurray Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-long-game-w-elijah-murray/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/41cmMiImWDxs88s71v96qk RSS: https://anchor.fm/s/3e31c0c/podcast/rss CONNECT: Twitter: https://twitter.com/elijahmurray Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elijahmurray LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elijahmurray/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@elijahmurray

Rich Zazo is the CEO of Matter Product Studio, a consultancy that works with early stage startups to build software products. In this conversation Rich and I talk about the future of the service industry with the advent of AI, the nature of team building in startups, and how to cultivate a strong remote culture, as well as numerous other topics relating to technology, entrepreneurship, and life philosophy.