The Alternative Data Podcast

Abraham Thomas, co-founder of Quandl and a seasoned angel investor, returns to discuss the seismic shifts AI and large language models bring to alternative data and hedge funds. He dives into how these technologies could reshape investment strategies, pinpointing potential winners and losers in the process. Abraham shares his journey as an angel investor, emphasizing data proliferation's impact on business models and the nuances of leadership in an AI-enhanced finance world. He also explores the future of alternative data sourcing and its implications for market players.

In this episode I speak to Tim Baker, a familiar face in the community with a long and storied history in various data and markets roles.In our conversation of two halves, Tim and I start by discussing a court case in which Tim is taking a deep interest, around the fate of the CUSIP identifier. We then discuss Tim’s recent coup in which he swooped to buy the assets of the IEX Cloud platform from his former employer, we discuss what he now plans to do with it. DISCLAIMERThis podcast is an edited recording of an interview with Tim Baker recorded in September 2024. The views and opinions expressed in this interview are those of Tim Baker and Mark Fleming-Williams and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of either CFM or any of its affiliates. The information provided herein is general information only and does not constitute investment or other advice. Any statements regarding market events, future events or other similar statements constitute only subjective views, are based upon expectations or beliefs, involve inherent risks and uncertainties and should therefore not be relied on. Future evidence and actual results could differ materially from those set forth, contemplated by or underlying these statements. In light of these risks and uncertainties, there can be no assurance that these statements are or will prove to be accurate or complete in any way. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode I speak to Brian Peltonen, longtime Director of Data Analytics at Fidelity and recent co-founder of his new startup, Parcosm.In our conversation, Brian and I talk about his development from computer game programmer to alternative data guru, and how the types of data that is available have changed over the years, as pricing trends and achievable alpha have also shifted.We also discuss the vision for Parcosm.DISCLAIMERThis podcast is an edited recording of an interview with Brian Peltonen recorded in August 2024. The views and opinions expressed in this interview are those of Brian Peltonen and Mark Fleming-Williams and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of either CFM or any of its affiliates. The information provided herein is general information only and does not constitute investment or other advice. Any statements regarding market events, future events or other similar statements constitute only subjective views, are based upon expectations or beliefs, involve inherent risks and uncertainties and should therefore not be relied on. Future evidence and actual results could differ materially from those set forth, contemplated by or underlying these statements. In light of these risks and uncertainties, there can be no assurance that these statements are or will prove to be accurate or complete in any way. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the Alternative Data Podcast, powered by CFM. I’m Mark Fleming-Williams.In this episode I speak to Mathias Dail, Co-founder and CEO at Exorde a data provider that ‘tells you what the world thinks in real time’.In our conversation, we talk about the benefits of starting a company in Lyon, and Mathias’s achievements in building out his vision for a crowd-sourced exhaustive social media dataset that is perfectly point in time thanks to blockchain technology.One mistake correction – in the episode when I talk about pigeons, I actually mean sparrows.DISCLAIMERThis podcast is an edited recording of an interview with Mathias Dail recorded in July 2024. The views and opinions expressed in this interview are those of Mathias Dail and Mark Fleming-Williams and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of either CFM or any of its affiliates. The information provided herein is general information only and does not constitute investment or other advice. Any statements regarding market events, future events or other similar statements constitute only subjective views, are based upon expectations or beliefs, involve inherent risks and uncertainties and should therefore not be relied on. Future evidence and actual results could differ materially from those set forth, contemplated by or underlying these statements. In light of these risks and uncertainties, there can be no assurance that these statements are or will prove to be accurate or complete in any way. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Greg Neufeld from ValueStream Ventures discusses their investments in data-rich companies and 'data flywheel' companies. They talk about leveraging data for startup success in fintech, Ocrolus' evolution to AI integration, software vs. data as a service companies, adapting investment strategies post Chat GPT, and the current climate around AI and startup liquidity in VC.

Darren Voges, a pioneer in alternative data, discusses the launch of the Yodlee credit card dataset, evolution of data pricing, navigating data reselling dynamics, and transitioning to innovative data analysis in this engaging podcast episode.

Qaisar Hasan, founder of Maiden Century, discusses the evolution of alternative data, predictive modeling using unique data sets like Netflix's subscriber growth, and the creation of a platform to streamline data integration in the financial markets ecosystem. The podcast explores how hedge funds leverage data sets for investment decisions, the importance of data quality in model building, and maximizing insights through combining diverse data sets.

In this episode I speak to Don D’Amico, formerly of Neudata and now the CEO and Founder of Glacier Network, a new company that helps data buyers manage the legal considerations in their data chain.In our conversation we track the evolving alternative data regulation conversation, and talk about the kinds of pitfalls that can blow up a data provider or hurt a buyer that has not written their contracts with enough care.Separately, I am in Singapore for Battlefin next week so if you are in that direction and want to talk about an interesting dataset, do get in touch.DISCLAIMERThis podcast is an edited recording of an interview with Don D’Amico recorded in March 2024. The views and opinions expressed in this interview are those of Don D’Amico and Mark Fleming-Williams and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of either CFM or any of its affiliates. The information provided herein is general information only and does not constitute investment or other advice. Any statements regarding market events, future events or other similar statements constitute only subjective views, are based upon expectations or beliefs, involve inherent risks and uncertainties and should therefore not be relied on. Future evidence and actual results could differ materially from those set forth, contemplated by or underlying these statements. In light of these risks and uncertainties, there can be no assurance that these statements are or will prove to be accurate or complete in any way. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ken Book, CEO and Founder of Fluid Markets, discusses his journey from Goldman Sachs to creating a company that makes KPIs tradable. Topics include working at Goldman Sachs during COVID, fractional ownership and crowdfunding investments, importance of capital and legal paperwork, challenges of retail investor attraction, and discovering the alternative data market.

Matt Ober, a data sourcing expert, discusses his journey in finding data, collaboration with data vendors, and the evolution of data strategies in finance. They explore AI technology's impact on investing, social leverage investments, and the appeal of angel investing. The podcast also delves into alternative data space investments and introduces a new venture, initialdataoffering.com.