Village Global Podcast

Ali Hamed (@AliBHamed) and Brian Harwitt (@bharwitt) of CoVenture join Erik on this episode to discuss:- Their new fund, Crossbeam Venture Partners, and what they’re investing in.- The types of new asset classes they’re looking at and why these are often “a better version of something old school.”- Their thoughts on investing in creators.- The merits of equity vs. other forms of capital from a founder’s perspective.- Why they’re excited about roll-ups.- How venture is evolving and their thoughts on valuations.- The future of ISAs.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at www.villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Want to get updates from us? Subscribe to get a peek inside the Village. We’ll send you reading recommendations, exclusive event invites, and commentary on the latest happenings in Silicon Valley. www.villageglobal.vc/signup

Nabeel Hyatt (@nabeel), investor at Spark Capital, joins Erik on this episode. It was recorded as part of an On Deck Angels event. They discuss:- His path to becoming an investor.- Why he likens being a VC to being a middle manager at a large conglomerate company.- How he thinks about frameworks for investing.- How to quickly get up to speed on spaces that are new to you as an investor.- Why there are so few hardware companies at scale and why he’s investing in the space.- Why he’s long on online communities.- Why gaming pioneers so many new business models.- Thoughts on his anti-portfolio.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at www.villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Want to get updates from us? Subscribe to get a peek inside the Village. We’ll send you reading recommendations, exclusive event invites, and commentary on the latest happenings in Silicon Valley. www.villageglobal.vc/signup

Robbie Crabtree (@robbiecrab), founder of On Deck Performative Speaking, joins Erik on this episode to discuss: - The importance of conveying emotion to an audience.- Communicating in a Zoom world. - How he uses pop culture as inspiration.- Common misconceptions people have about being a great speaker.- The ingredients of a great story.- What people can expect to learn during the On Deck Performative Speaking Fellowship.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at www.villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Want to get updates from us? Subscribe to get a peek inside the Village. We’ll send you reading recommendations, exclusive event invites, and commentary on the latest happenings in Silicon Valley. www.villageglobal.vc/signup

Cloudflare co-founder Michelle Zatlyn shares insights on fundraising, talent acquisition, turning weaknesses into strengths, extreme frugality in the early days, and finding product-market fit. She discusses how emotional responses from customers helped validate their business model.

Morgan Housel (@morganhousel), partner at Collaborative Fund, and author of the book The Psychology of Money, joins Erik on this episode to discuss:- Why it’s not realistic to be rational and an investor should aim to be merely reasonable instead.- What people don’t understand about compounding.- The difference between getting wealthy and staying wealthy.- Bets on what is going to change vs. what is not going to change.- Why people overestimate the benefit that money brings to them.- The value of owning your time.- What we can learn from the partnership of Buffett and Munger.- His advice on resisting the allure of pessimism.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at www.villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Want to get updates from us? Subscribe to get a peek inside the Village. We’ll send you reading recommendations, exclusive event invites, and commentary on the latest happenings in Silicon Valley. www.villageglobal.vc/signup

Join Erik Torenberg, General Partner at Village Global and founder of On Deck, as he chats with Marc Andreessen, co-founder of a16z. They tackle the shortcomings of traditional college education, highlighting its high costs and inefficiencies. They discuss innovative alternatives like On Deck's cohort model, which fosters lifelong learning and networking. The conversation dives into the cultural differences between education systems in India and the U.S., blending humor with insightful reflections on their academic journeys.

Michael Acton Smith, co-founder and co-CEO of Calm, joined Ben Casnocha, co-founder and partner of Village Global, at a special virtual masterclass for Village Global founders, Network Leaders, and friends of the firm. They discussed:- How Michael got into meditation, his personal practice, and meditating together as a company.- The story of the early days of Calm, including their fundraising journey and how they acquired their first users.- How to maintain confidence when everyone thinks what you’re doing is crazy, and how a great co-founder can help you.- Why business is like surfing and how to balance the tension of pursuing a huge market with remaining focused on a specific use case.- How to build a mentally healthy team.- What he would have done differently if he was doing everything over again.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at www.villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Want to get updates from us? Subscribe to get a peek inside the Village. We’ll send you reading recommendations, exclusive event invites, and commentary on the latest happenings in Silicon Valley. www.villageglobal.vc/signup

Mindaugas Petrutis, head of the On Deck Design Fellowship, and Jeff Anders (Hilnbrand) (@jeffand_), Co-Founder of Ambrook, join Erik on this episode. They discuss:- The On Deck Design Fellowship.- The five I’s of design.- How to think about the forks in the road you’ll face as a designer.- Whether to move into management or continue as an individual contributor.- What you will get out of the ODD Fellowship.- How to think about transitioning to a specific vertical as a designer.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at www.villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Want to get updates from us? Subscribe to get a peek inside the Village. We’ll send you reading recommendations, exclusive event invites, and commentary on the latest happenings in Silicon Valley. www.villageglobal.vc/signup

Hikari Senju (@hisenju), founder of Omneky, joins Erik on this episode.They discuss:- The state of online advertising today.- Why Hikari started Omneky, how it works, and how it’s helping small businesses.- Advances in AI and computer vision and how they’re impacting advertising.- What it means when he says the cost of attention is getting to be higher than the cost of content.- How antitrust is changing the marketplace for online ads.- Opportunities for investors in the space.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at www.villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Want to get updates from us? Subscribe to get a peek inside the Village. We’ll send you reading recommendations, exclusive event invites, and commentary on the latest happenings in Silicon Valley. www.villageglobal.vc/signup

Peer Richelsen (@peer_rich), founder of Lean Hire and Head of Product at On Deck, and Andreas Klinger (@andreasklinger), CTO at On Deck, join Erik on this episode.They discuss:- Why global hiring is broken.- How companies should get started with contract-to-hire and common challenges they may face.- The background of Lean Hire.- What needs to happen for this to become a norm for companies.- The problems with the existing hiring process.- Why you need to remember that the “people you hire will hire the next people” at your company.- Where On Deck is going in the future.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at www.villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Want to get updates from us? Subscribe to get a peek inside the Village. We’ll send you reading recommendations, exclusive event invites, and commentary on the latest happenings in Silicon Valley. www.villageglobal.vc/signup