

High Bit
Initialized Capital
Welcome to High Bit, a podcast hosted by Initialized Capital managing partner Brett Gibson about the art of technical problem-solving.
A high bit is the most significant part of the binary representation of a number. In programming language, it is commonly referred to as the most important thing you need to understand about a problem.
We spoke with our guests about just that. In each episode, we’ll break down a gnarly engineering problem and hear how the builder’s ingenuity and inventiveness led to a successful outcome.
A high bit is the most significant part of the binary representation of a number. In programming language, it is commonly referred to as the most important thing you need to understand about a problem.
We spoke with our guests about just that. In each episode, we’ll break down a gnarly engineering problem and hear how the builder’s ingenuity and inventiveness led to a successful outcome.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jun 22, 2023 • 31min
Troubleshooting Space Engineering with AstroForge’s Jose Acain
In this episode of High Bit, Jose walks us through the challenges of troubleshooting a complex problem encountered during the pre-launch testing of a space-bound asteroid mining refinery. Using a real-life example, he illustrates the application of a fishbone diagram and the necessity of methodical problem-solving, even under extreme time pressure.
Topics:
1:41 What is AstroForge?
7:13 How Jose Met His Cofounder Matt Gialich
13:18 Using a Fishbone Diagram to Find the Root Cause of a Problem
15:01 The "Holy Shit" Moment When a Launch Does Not Go According to Plan
20:37 Validating All the Points of Failure to Get to a Solution
26:25 Lessons Learned from Working Under Time Pressure
High Bit is a new podcast hosted by Initialized Capital managing partner Brett Gibson about the art of technical problem-solving.
A high bit is the most significant part of the binary representation of a number. In programming language, it is commonly referred to as the most important thing you need to understand about a problem.
We spoke with our first four guests about just that. In each episode, we’ll break down a gnarly engineering problem and hear how the builder’s ingenuity and inventiveness led to a successful outcome.
High Bit is produced by Initialized Capital and hosted by Brett Gibson. Our showrunner is Candy Cheng. Episodes were shot and edited by Jordan Berns. Production support by Kevin Heinz and BTB Video Production.

Jun 22, 2023 • 32min
Unlocking Crypto Trading Efficiency With Talos CTO Ethan Feldman
In this episode of High Bit, Ethan reveals the unique challenges of building a reliable and global crypto trading platform. “There’s no downtime because crypto trades 24/7,” he said. “So in that way, it’s a lot more like Google than the New York Stock Exchanges.”
Ethan also shared the art of balancing safety and speed in product development. “You need to adapt, and you need to change up your workflow as the market changes. We want to wrap that whole messy ecosystem in a layer that allows institutions to interact with crypto just like they would any other asset class.”
Topics:
02:26 From Broadway Technology to Talos
06:23 Crypto Trading is "More Like Google Than NYSE"
11:46 Examining the Various Failure Scenarios of Trading Crypto
15:56 The Importance of Getting Details Correct in Making a Successful Trading System Work
21:35 Client Communication as Part of the Engineering Effort
25:05 Building Safety Features into the Product
29:30 Adaptability Around Messiness
High Bit is a new podcast hosted by Initialized Capital managing partner Brett Gibson about the art of technical problem-solving.
A high bit is the most significant part of the binary representation of a number. In programming language, it is commonly referred to as the most important thing you need to understand about a problem.
We spoke with our first four guests about just that. In each episode, we’ll break down a gnarly engineering problem and hear how the builder’s ingenuity and inventiveness led to a successful outcome.
High Bit is produced by Initialized Capital and hosted by Brett Gibson. Our showrunner is Candy Cheng. Episodes were shot and edited by Jordan Berns. Production support by Kevin Heinz and BTB Video Production.

Jun 22, 2023 • 24min
The Future of Nail Care Using AI & Robotics with Clockwork’s Renuka Apte
In this episode of High Bit, Renuka shares the evolution of Clockwork’s AI-powered nail-painting robot. She shares her insights into safe AI utilization and how she adopted software engineering principles into the hardware process.
Topics:
1:56: Renuka’s Background as a Systems Engineer at Nvidia
5:27: Using an Off-The-Shelf AI Model to Create the First Version of Clockwork
10:06: Discovering Pointillism in Nail Painting
14:46: Using AI in Safe Ways
18:29: A Very Humbling Lesson for a Software Engineer
22:55: Making Nail Painting as Easy as Grabbing a Cup of Coffee
High Bit is a new podcast hosted by Initialized Capital managing partner Brett Gibson about the art of technical problem-solving.
A high bit is the most significant part of the binary representation of a number. In programming language, it is commonly referred to as the most important thing you need to understand about a problem.
We spoke with our first four guests about just that. In each episode, we’ll break down a gnarly engineering problem and hear how the builder’s ingenuity and inventiveness led to a successful outcome.
High Bit is produced by Initialized Capital and hosted by Brett Gibson. Our showrunner is Candy Cheng. Episodes were shot and edited by Jordan Berns. Production support by Kevin Heinz and BTB Video Production.

Jun 15, 2023 • 2min
High Bit - Full Trailer
Join Initialized’s Brett Gibson as he discusses thorny engineering problems with his guests on “High Bit,” a podcast about the art of technical problem-solving.


