
Village Global Podcast
The Village Global podcast takes you inside the world of venture capital and technology, featuring enlightening interviews with entrepreneurs, investors and tech industry leaders. Learn more at www.villageglobal.vc.
Latest episodes

Dec 1, 2019 • 1h 16min
Building Communities in 2019 with Bailey Richardson and Rei Wang
Bailey Richardson (@baileyelaine), partner at People & Company, and co-author of Get Together, and Rei Wang (@heyreiwang), founder of The Grand and former CEO of the Dorm Room Fund Investment Team, join Erik on this episode.They discuss: - The companies they’re creating and the unique insight about communities that lies behind each company. - How they define community, and what makes a community different from other things like networks. - How communities change over their lifetimes. - The differences between the big companies in the social media space and how they’ve evolved over time. - Whether community startups can be venture-backable.- The future of countries and religions as communities.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Venture Stories is brought to you by Village Global, is hosted by co-founder and partner, Erik Torenberg and is produced by Brett Bolkowy.

Nov 28, 2019 • 49min
Investing in the Future of Food with Rob Rhinehart and Brian Frank
Brian Frank (@bfrank) of FTW Ventures, and Rob Rhinehart (@robrhinehart) of Soylent, join Erik on this episode. They discuss:- Some of the most exciting developments in bioscience these days.- The possibilities for biohacking and whether there is an “AWS for bioscience” emerging.- The interplay of startups and incumbents in the space and how incumbents can be more helpful to the startup community.- What is under- or over-hyped in the space.- The existing big companies in food and bioscience and what will change in the next 5-10 years.- The future of retail and how data can transform supply chains.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Venture Stories is brought to you by Village Global, is hosted by co-founder and partner, Erik Torenberg and is produced by Brett Bolkowy.

Nov 26, 2019 • 1h 50min
Joel Monegro on Crypto Networks and Investing in Crypto
Joel Monegro (@jmonegro), partner at Placeholder, joins Erik on this episode.They talk about:- The waves of centralization and decentralization in finance, government, and culture over time.- How value accruing to incumbents has resulted in completely new fields opening up for innovation.- Why crypto networks are analogous to countries.- Joel’s thesis that "ultimately capital is control."- Why crypto is not a new technology revolution.- How crypto can change the problem of mis-distribution of capital in societies.- How Joel’s thinking on these topics has influenced his investment thesis.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Venture Stories is brought to you by Village Global, is hosted by co-founder and partner, Erik Torenberg and is produced by Brett Bolkowy.

Nov 24, 2019 • 1h 24min
Keith Rabois on How He Invests, Forming a Founding Team, and Funding “Ridiculous” Ideas
Keith Rabois (@rabois), partner at Founders Fund, joins Erik on this episode. It was recorded live at an On Deck Fellowship event in San Francisco. They discuss:- The kinds of companies and founders he looks to fund, including why he wants half of his VC friends to laugh at how ambitious and ridiculous the companies he’s funding are.- Why going from zero to one involves roughly the same amount of pain no matter whether the “one” the company gets to is tiny or a billion-dollar-plus enterprise.- Some of the different spaces he’s invested in recently and how he’s navigated the idea maze in different sectors.- Stories from the early days of PayPal.- Why he likes regulated markets, and why he says “the more legal risk, the better.”- How to think about creating a founding team, and why you need to absolutely make sure you and your co-founders agree on first principles.And of course, they also discuss basketball and politics.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Venture Stories is brought to you by Village Global, is hosted by co-founder and partner, Erik Torenberg and is produced by Brett Bolkowy.

Nov 21, 2019 • 1h 5min
Investing in Deep Tech with Katherine Boyle and Bilal Zuberi
Katherine Boyle (@KTmBoyle), investor at General Catalyst, and Bilal Zuberi (@bznotes), partner at Lux Capital, join Erik on this episode.They discuss:- Their requests for startups in the space.- The current landscape and the types of companies they are looking to invest in.- What implications geopolitics has for the deep tech space.- Their predictions for the next ten years.- Katherine’s thesis about the privatization of government.- What to know about how the defense sector works.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Venture Stories is brought to you by Village Global, is hosted by co-founder and partner, Erik Torenberg and is produced by Brett Bolkowy.

Nov 19, 2019 • 49min
Investing in Education, ISAs, and Bootcamps with Ruben Harris and David Phillips
Ruben Harris (@rubenharris), founder of Career Karma (www.careerkarma.com), and David Phillips (@davj), founder of Hackbright Academy and BloomJoy, join Erik on this episode.They discuss:- The history and evolution of bootcamps, including how and where they got their start.- Why Ruben thinks that in the long term the cost of education goes to zero.- Whether bootcamps for non-technical skills can become as big as those for technical skills.- Why there haven’t been bigger exits in the space.- Their requests for startups.- Why big companies like Microsoft or Google haven’t yet created their own bootcamps.- Their predictions for how the landscape will have changed in the next ten years.For more on ISAs, check out this report from Career Karma: https://careerkarma.com/blog/income-share-agreements-market-report-summary-2019/Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Venture Stories is brought to you by Village Global, is hosted by co-founder and partner, Erik Torenberg and is produced by Brett Bolkowy.

Nov 18, 2019 • 1h 12min
The Future of Credentialing with Isaac Morehouse
Isaac Morehouse (@isaacmorehouse), CEO of Crash, joins Erik on this episode. They discuss:- His background and why he started Crash.- What he would change about the incentive structure of the world if he could wave a magic wand.- What kinds of big companies will possibly emerge in the education space.- What self-credentialing and peer-to-peer credentialing would look like.- Why he would like to see markets in everything.- Why the burden of proof for going to college has reached a tipping point, where students are now mostly skeptics while parents remain believers.Remember to apply for the winter vintage of our Network Catalyst accelerator! It is a personalized program that features masterclasses from some of the best in Silicon Valley and a dedicated network leader focused on making the introductions you need to turbocharge your company. You can participate in-person in San Francisco or virtually from anywhere around the world. Find out more and apply at villageglobal.vc/networkcatalyst.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Venture Stories is brought to you by Village Global and is hosted by co-founder and partner, Erik Torenberg.

Nov 16, 2019 • 59min
Investing in AR/VR with Greg Castle
Greg Castle (@gpcastle12) joins Erik on this episode. He is managing partner at Anorak Ventures. They discuss:- What the future of computing beyond laptops and phones will look like, the obstacles companies will face, and the cultural challenges ahead.- Why audio will represent the first wave of AR.- Some of the coolest applications he’s seen in the space, including the work some of his portfolio companies are doing.- Which of the big incumbents are best poised to take advantage of the transition to AR/VR.Remember to apply for the winter vintage of our Network Catalyst accelerator! It is a personalized program that features masterclasses from some of the best in Silicon Valley and a dedicated network leader focused on making the introductions you need to turbocharge your company. You can participate in-person in San Francisco or virtually from anywhere around the world. Find out more and apply at villageglobal.vc/networkcatalyst.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Venture Stories is brought to you by Village Global, is hosted by co-founder and partner, Erik Torenberg and is produced by Brett Bolkowy.

Nov 15, 2019 • 42min
Investing in Science Fiction with Adam Draper
Adam Draper (@AdamDraper), founder and managing director of Boost VC, joins Erik on this episode. They discuss:- Adam’s early involvement in crypto and how the space has evolved over time.- What he finds unique about the people working in crypto and what he loves about their outlook.- The science fiction technologies that he’s excited about and looking to invest in.- AR and VR and the opportunities and challenges for each.- Why he says the next ten years will be about big tech versus big government.Remember to apply for the winter vintage of our Network Catalyst accelerator! It is a personalized program that features masterclasses from some of the best in Silicon Valley and a dedicated network leader focused on making the introductions you need to turbocharge your company. You can participate in-person in San Francisco or virtually from anywhere around the world. Find out more and apply at villageglobal.vc/networkcatalyst.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Venture Stories is brought to you by Village Global, is hosted by co-founder and partner, Erik Torenberg and is produced by Brett Bolkowy.

Nov 14, 2019 • 33min
Investing in Industrial Automation with Kelly Chen and Kane Hsieh
Kelly Chen (@kaychen22), partner at DCVC, and Kane Hsieh (@kane), partner at Root Ventures, join Erik on this episode.They talk about:- What exactly industrial automation is and why it’s such an exciting space.- The market map for industrial automation.- Some of the coolest companies and applications of technology in the space.- Advice for companies pitching their industrial automation products.- Their requests for startups (and their anti-requests for startups).- How jobs will change with the advent of automation.Remember to apply for the winter vintage of our Network Catalyst accelerator! It is a personalized program that features masterclasses from some of the best in Silicon Valley and a dedicated network leader focused on making the introductions you need to turbocharge your company. You can participate in-person in San Francisco or virtually from anywhere around the world. Find out more and apply at villageglobal.vc/networkcatalyst.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Venture Stories is brought to you by Village Global, is hosted by co-founder and partner, Erik Torenberg and is produced by Brett Bolkowy.