Episodes

  • Mark Huang_E24: Rise of BlueTech [2/1/2021]

    Mark Huang_E24: Rise of BlueTech [2/1/2021]
    Feb 1 2021
    EPISODE24: The Rise of BlueTech Mark Huang, CoFounder at SeaAhead in Boston [2/1/2021]Note: References with links are listed at the end of the show notes.INTRO:1:00 Shares background in military, cleantech, and naval architecture. Discusses the cost-curve of Lithium-Ion, LED Lighting, and Sustainable Food sector. Introduces BlueTech, and how they believe it will lead to venture scale transformation. Also highlights passion for economic development and creating good-resilient working-class jobs.SECTION1: Bluetech7:00 We discuss the OECD’s report on the Ocean Economy (see link below), and how it ties into BlueTech (startups focused on ocean technologies). Mark shares the rise of the middle class, creating more demand as wealth grows. Draws an analogy of shipping and silos, which may have limited global innovation tied to startups. Mark makes the same analogy with Bluetech.9:00 Talks about the four legs of the SeaAhead platform. Talks about urban innovation inspiration starting with Boston first. Discusses networking, mentoring, incubation, and how they are leveraging venture for Bluetech – getting technologies out of the lab. SECTION2: Tragedy of the Ocean22:00 Mark shares distinguishing focus on venture based innovation – which can be STEM based. Talks about innovation, as a driver to act as a bridge to ocean sustainability. Mark addresses questions from the posi2ive community. Shares ideas about eco-tourism and reefs, pointing to hotels and economic development driving some market based solutions that capture parts of the true value of an ecosystem.27:00 Mark talks about precedent regarding cleantech, big food, and land based investments, as a case for the investment opportunity of BlueTech. We discuss policies that may benefit the marketplace and ecological systems at the same time. Mark sees true cost (‘Social Cost’) is internalized; we’ll see additional positive impacts. We discuss grants, and partnership approaches for startups, and the public sector and mission-driven foundations.SECTION3: Local Communities36:00 We break into community-based sourcing with the example of SeafoodCollab (see links below). Points to US economic zone as a highly regulated zone. Talks about locally sourced seafood. Gives a shoutout to Neptune and another Akua, sourcing sustainable seafood. Breaks out the certified versus tracible labeling – and how audits may tie into sustainable sources. Points to blockchain and other solutions which may help in this area. Talks about the New England example of buying from regulated fisheries, and how it ties into low carbon protein. Talks about the offshore wind energy dynamics, is often driven by arguments that are not always rational.SOURCES:-Mark Huang [LinkedIn]: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-huang-14519a59/-SeaAhead: https://sea-ahead.com/-BlueSwell [Their first cohort]: https://www.bizjournals.com/boston/inno/stories/news/2020/10/28/blueswell-2020-cohort-startups-bluetech-incubator.html-OECD Ocean Economy: http://www.oecd.org/sti/the-ocean-economy-in-2030-9789264251724-en.htm-Katapult Ocean [Norway Accelerator]: https://katapultocean.com/-Double Bottom Line [Wiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_bottom_line-Leed Certification: https://www.usgbc.org/leed-BCorp Certifcation: https://bcorporation.net/-Poseidon Principles: https://www.poseidonprinciples.org/#principle1-Monterey Bay Certification: https://www.seafoodwatch.org/-Marine Stewardship Council [MSC label]: https://www.msc.org/home-Akua [Startup]: https://akua.co/-Neptune Fish Jerky [Startup]: https://www.oneforneptune.com/-SeafoodCollab: https://www.seafoodcollab.com/-MaritimeBlue [Wa State Fund]: https://maritimeblue.org/-Pier71 [Accelerator Singapore]: https://www.pier71.sg/-PortXL [Accelerator Norway]: https://portxl.org/-BlueHatch [Accelerator in Hawaii/Singapore/Bergen]: https://www.hatch.blue/--------------------------------------------------Song Credit: The Croft – By Joakim Karud[ No Copyright on Music and Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0 ]
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    47 mins
  • Ben Hassler_E23: Levers of Eliciting Change [1/18/2020]

    Ben Hassler_E23: Levers of Eliciting Change [1/18/2020]
    Jan 18 2021

    EPISODE23: Levers of Eliciting Change

    Ben Hassler, GP at Polymath Capital, dialing in From the Cloud [1/18/2020]

    Note: References with links are listed at the end of the show notes.

    INTRO:

    1:00 Shares background of their Remote-First, and Operator-Led fund, along with their thesis in Longevity, Community, and Fintech.

    SECTION1: Intellectual Curiosity

    3:00 Ben introduces his personal journey breaking into venture. Highlights his background in Psychology, Biology, and Finance. His systems thinking started from an early age. Sees the intersection of these three topic areas as useful in venture. Talks about gauging earliest stage Founders, as an approach in psychology.

    5:00 Talks about inspiration for tech, and how he cold emailed VCs to add value. Led him to internship and eventually becoming a VC Analyst. We break out into how to add value to VCs, and alternatives to landing a great role.

    12:00 Talks about the realization of capital as the levers of eliciting change.

    SECTION2: Polymath Capital

    15:00 Talks about inspiration point for launching their $10M fund. Discusses passion and focus for longevity and biotech. Discusses therapeutics, and diagnostics verticals.

    16:00 Draws inspiration from healthspan and lifespan, and increasing both.

    17:00 We talk about Dr. Sinclair’s book LIFESPAN, and Ben’s belief that things like cancer don’t need to be here. The regulation component needs to catch up, according to Ben. Shares a spin off from an EIR who started a biotech company.

    19:00 Talk about spacetech, longevity, climatetech, and sustainability.

    20:00 Ben shares his view on Polymathic Scrappers – and traits they are looking for in Founders. Examples include, natural obsessions for the problem they are trying to solve. Talks about people with intellectual curiosity, and drive, outside of status-quo. Shares Fintech focus, and borderless frictionless experiences as democratizing.

    SECTION3: Community

    22:00 Shares their new Community Club Fund, co-managed with Mac Reddin at Commsor (see link below). Talks about rise of Social Currencies, and creator platforms.

    28:00 We talk about the evolution of physical and digital communities. And discussing Lunchclub and Clubhouse.

    30:00 Ben shares experience with gaming communities and moderation difficulties, especially in gaming. We talk about the tradeoffs of oppressed voices, and enablement of members to dictate moderation. Talks about the tricky topics such as trolling, and sarcasm – and how they don’t necessarily lead to better automated moderations.

    SOURCES:

    -Polymath Capital: https://www.polymathcp.com/

    -Ben Hassler [Twitter]: https://twitter.com/benhasslerr

    -Polymath Capital [Twitter]: https://twitter.com/polymathcp

    -Lifespan [book]: https://www.amazon.com/Lifespan-Why-Age_and-Dont-Have/dp/1501191977

    -Aubrey De Grey [Google talk]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXJzvo0Jekc

    -The Longevity Economy[AARP]: https://www.aarp.org/content/dam/aarp/home-and-family/personal-technology/2013-10/Longevity-Economy-Generating-New-Growth-AARP.pdf

    -Community Club Fund [Rolling Fund on AngelList]: https://www.community.club/fund

    --------------------------------------------------

    Song Credit: The Croft – By Joakim Karud

    [ No Copyright on Music and Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0 ]
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    35 mins
  • Nick Cooney_E22: The Clean Meat Hurdle [01/04/2020]

    Nick Cooney_E22: The Clean Meat Hurdle [01/04/2020]
    Jan 9 2021
    EPISODE22: The Clean Meat HurdleNick Cooney, Managing Partner at LeverVC in NYC [01/04/2020]Note: References with links are listed at the end of the show notes.INTRO:1:00 Talks about interest in ethical foods space for 20 years – starting first with ethical foods, then sustainability. Began working in the space for 15 years in alternative protein space—starting with NGOs, then family office. Starting investing in the space 5 years ago, with being an investor and participating in over 50 deals.4:00 Shares entry into Good Food Institute, along with strategy for authoring three books on the plant based foods, social impact, and persuasion science.SECTION1: Meatless Origin13:58 We break out into various studies about consumer behavior, exploring sustainability and health reasons, along with ethical motivations (see links below for graphics)16:00 We discuss the Twitter poll from host.17:30 We break out into Life Cycle Analysis of cultured meat, and clean meats. Studies point to large savings from land use, Co2, and water use (see studies in show notes)Wiki Clean Meats [30+ samples]:-Cultured meat prices [$15 - $3000/lb]Ecological LCAs [Good Food Institute]-Feedstock of culture 1.3kg feed/kg cultured meat-2-7kg Co2e/kg cultured meat-4-35kg Co2e/kg20:00 Take questions from community listeners, regarding consumer demand, price parity, and large corporate buyers. Nick sees the alternatives presented by cultivated meats, give brand halos, taste parameters, stable supply chain, and partner alignments.SECTION2: Consumer Motivations24:00 We discuss the win-wins from the side of corporations integrating plant and clean meats integrated into the products themselves, for price and health reasons.26:42 We break out into the GMO topic regarding cultivated and fermented meats, and nuances of labelling. The studies below, namely the USDA report give a background on the state of GMOs in animal products, which is also quite informative.SECTION3: Meatless Future29:00 Discuss plant based labeling policy fights being fought in some states in the US—e.g., using “milk”, “almond”. Nick notes that US courts have struck down most of these fights in the US. However, he notes that EU puts more stringent patchwork labeling laws. Internationally, the labeling issue has not been a major movement. On cultivated “higher tech side”, the companies will need to go through a regulatory pathway in the US.33:00 Talks about interest in alternative proteins being 30%-50% in EU, and higher around 70% in Asia. LeverVC is looking at companies globally.40:00 We discuss opportunities surrounding clean meats, carbon credits, and climatetech. We both see opportunities for CVC investors that may want to offset emissions.SOURCES:-Nick Cooney [Twitter]: https://twitter.com/nickcooney2-Nick Cooney [LinkedIn]: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickcooney1/-Nick’s Personal Website: http://www.nickcooney.org/-LeverVC: https://www.levervc.com/-Lever China Food Accelerator: https://leverfund.cn/en/-Good Food Institute: https://www.gfi.org/-Veganomics: The Surprising Science on What Motivates Vegetarians, from the Breakfast Table to the Bedroom Paperback [January 2013]: https://www.amazon.com/Veganomics-Surprising-Motivates-Vegetarians-Breakfast/dp/1590564286-Clean Meats Poll on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Zecca_Lehn/status/1341612307286147073-Clean Meat Questions from @posi2ive Community: https://twitter.com/Zecca_Lehn/status/1341611193681625088-Change of Heart: What Psychology Can Teach Us About Spreading Social Change [Dec 2010]: https://www.amazon.com/Change-Heart-Psychology-Spreading-Social/dp/159056233X-Environmental Impacts of Cultured Meat Production [2011]: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/es200130u-State of the Industry Report Cell-based Meat [Good food institute, 2019]: https://www.gfi.org/non-cms-pages/splash-sites/soi-reports/files/SOI-Report-Cell-Based.pdf-NIH Bringing Cultural Meat to Market [2018]: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6078906/-Life Cycle Cultured Meat [GFI, 2019]: https://www.gfi.org/images/uploads/2020/01/Cultivated-Meat-LCA-Report-2019-0709.pdf-Co2 Impacts of Meat: https://www.ewg.org/meateatersguide/a-meat-eaters-guide-to-climate-change-health-what-you-eat-matters/climate-and-environmental-impacts/-EWG: Climate and Environmental Impacts: https://www.ewg.org/meateatersguide/a-meat-eaters-guide-to-climate-change-health-what-you-eat-matters/climate-and-environmental-impacts/-McDonalds introduces the McPlant [Nov 2020]: https://www.eater.com/2020/11/9/21556647/mcdonalds-plant-based-burger-is-the-mcplant-chicken-sandwich-wars-2021-Taco Bell adds Plant Based Meat [Feb 2020]: https://www.fastcompany.com/90468750/taco-bell-was-always-good-for-vegetarians-now-its-adding-plant-based-meat-Inside the GMO law: What needs to be labeled and why it matters [Fooddive, 2019]: https://www.fooddive.com/news/inside-the-gmo-law-what-needs-to-be-labeled-and-why-it-matters/545120/-GMO Crops, Animal Food, and Beyond [USDA]: https...
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    44 mins
  • Ramez Naam_E21: Our Exponential Future [12/21/2020]

    Ramez Naam_E21: Our Exponential Future [12/21/2020]
    Dec 21 2020
    EPISODE21: Our Exponential Future Ramez Naam, Angel, CleanEnergy Advocate, and Author based in Seattle [12/21/2020] Note: References with links are listed at the end of the show notes. INTRO: 1:00 Shares his background as an early employee at Microsoft in the 90’s, along with shared patents with Bill Gates. Got into Climate Change for personal reasons, and looks at innovation as a great solution to innovate our way out of the problems. Tells us about his books in CleanEnergy and BioTech (both Non-Fiction and Fiction: See links below). 4:00 Highlights technology as a way to positively impact billions of people. And talks about the influence his early days at Microsoft opened his mind to this type of thinking. SECTION1: Exponential Technologies 4:30 We break out into Singularity University’s discussion surrounding Exponential Tech – compounding price performance. He compares Moore’s Law to bandwidth, memory, and storage. Extends Wright’s Law as a special case, and looks at it under the lens of CleanEnergy. 6:00 Talks about Santa Fe Institute’s study of Wright’s Law applied to various technologies. Talks about solar power doubling of solar power deployed, is associated with a 30% decrease in constant dollars. The summary, as you scale the industry, the efficiency and price all improve. 8:00 Discusses modular technological learning, to make new components smaller, faster, and cheaper with less cost and less resource use. We talk about Clayton Christiansen and his book The Innovator’s Dilemma, and how it may relate to Wright’s Law. Discusses the advancement of photography as a prime example of Wright’s Law in action. Host’s note: Prior to his recent passing, I once attended a conference where Mr. Christiansenwas the start guest – circa 2009. I approached him at the end of his talk, and asked “how would you disrupt the oil industry?”. His immediate answer, was to start by build wind farms in Mongolia. 12:00 Talks about the watt output per dollar at $100 in the 1970’s, and today it’s less than $1. SECTION2: Three Drivers of CleanEnergy 13:00 Talks about the long held expectation that CleanEnergy was the more expensive option, but now we’re seeing this paradigm shift. Also points to simplicity of the consumer, in caring about why we choose one versus the other. Projects that EVs will be cheaper than conventional cars in 2-3 years. 15:00 Raam is excited about companies in electric mobility, networks, data, ai in CleanEnergy space. We also briefly go over Perovskite solar cells and the possible superiority of this new technology. We break out into materials science, and why Perovskite may be superior. 17:30 We talk about the tradeoffs of Lithium Ion duration storage. Decoupling the power-output from duration is a problem. Talks about dozens of companies researching alternatives; Raam is an investor in a few. He also mentions ESS, who he’s an investor in – an iron & salt flow battery, without toxic materials. 22:00 Decentralization of power, with decoupling and microgrids discussed. SECTION3: ClimateTech + VC 25:00 Talk about the Renewable Portfolio Standards, and how some surprising states (out of 23 states) have the standards: Oklahoma, Iowa, and Texas. The cost competitive aspect may drive the federal government to adopt similar standards. 27:00 Ramaz sees orchestration as a very important area of investment, with the mass scale adoption of EV, smart homes, and renewable energy. Sees ClimateTech as a huge opportunity space for software – given zero marginal costs. Also sees a need for industrial processes, hardtech, and vital needs of VCs to participate. 29:00 We talk about non-grant opportunies, and how Angel rounds / PreSeed rounds are starting to appear surrounding ClimateTech – gives example of 3rd Derivative, with a Venture Parnter example “Cohort 417” with C02 concentration in air. 32:00 Discusses his excitement for the space, and the few deals he plans to do in ClimateTech per year. SOURCES: -Ramez Naam [Website]: https://rameznaam.com/ -Ramez Naam [Twitter]: https://twitter.com/ramez -Ramez’ Syndicate: https://angel.co/ramez-1/syndicate - The Infinite Resource [Ramez’ 2013 book]: https://smile.amazon.com/Infinite-Resource-Power-Finite-Planet/dp/161168255X -Ramez Naam - Investing in the Energy Transition [ SingularityU ExFin South Africa Summit]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yl0VtxAbt40 -Singularity University: https://su.org/ -Wright’s Law Study [Santa Fe Institute]: https://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/at-work/test-and-measurement/wrights-law-edges-out-moores-law-in-predicting-technology-development -Moore’s Law vs. Wright’s Law: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimhandy/2013/03/25/moores-law-vs-wrights-law/?sh=2c495ec677d2 -The Innovator’s Dilemma [Clayton Christiansen’s Book]: https://www.amazon.com/Innovators-Dilemma-Revolutionary-Change-Business/dp/0062060244 -History of Photography [Britannica]: https://www.britannica.com/technology/...
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    33 mins
  • Jackie Ros Amable_E20: The ABCs of ClimateTech [12/7/2020]

    Jackie Ros Amable_E20: The ABCs of ClimateTech [12/7/2020]
    Dec 7 2020
    EPISODE20: The ABCs of ClimateTech Jackie Ros Amable, Managing Director at NextCorp in Rochester [12/7/2020] Note: References with links are listed at the end of the show notes. INTRO: 1:00 Shares background of moving from Techstars to NextCorp as Managing Director. Highlights climate policy within the state, meeting aggressive GHG emissions reductions. Talks about collaboration with NY state’s goals, and working with startups globally. NY Nation-Leading Climate Targets: *85% Reduction in GHG by 2050 *100% Zero-emission Elec by 2040 *70% Renewables by 2030 *9,000 MW of Offshore Wind by 2035 *3,000 MW of Energy Storage by 2030 *6,000 MW of Solar by 2025 *22M Tons GHG via Energy Efficiency and Electrification SECTION1: Backwards Mapping 4:00 Shares how working with Teach for America, and how it helped her grow into becoming a Founder. Shares the process of Backwards Mapping in the context of skill sets, and matching milestones. 5:00 We chat about learnings as CEO of Revolar – a social impact startup focused on personal safety. Shares the value of humor in behavioral nudging, and leadership. Talks about experience within a flat organization (see Holacracy link below). We talk about the gap between intentions in a flat organization to the structure needed to build a healthy corporate structure. 7:00 Talks about path to closing first $3M, and the need to implement an organizational structure, setting up team for success. Talks about need to hire around each person’s opposite skill sets, and the power of mutual respect. Shares how some deep expertise teams can’t understand why they don’t gain traction with VCs – highlighting need to balance skill set. 10:00 Vision for product discussed, and how important that was. However, recruiting gaps became apparent. Jackie talks about the faith and trust needed to hire more qualified talent – with the example of CTO, and how their work grew out of honesty. 12:00 Highlights preparation was craved by Revolar team, and weren’t bothered by switching to a hierarchical business structure. We discuss responsibility, and how it confuses a team. There are a few cases, and highlights importance of recruiting structure as possible strategic advantage to creating a flat org. Uses team sport analogy, with certain players who are ready play different role. 14:00 Talks about importance of team and timing. Discusses ego, and the idea of appreciation for each different person as a skill in building teams. SECTION2: Robust Teams 16:00 Talks about most valuable lesson, that everybody is awkward, and purely human. Shares idea that all ‘adults are just tough kids’. Communicates how cross-cultural experience of ‘third culture kid’ experience and code switching. 18:00 Talks about language and culture shifts needed in working cross industries. We discuss the biases we all have in ‘the human condition.’ Jackie talks about need to understand as the core reason to speak. We talk about animal communication and her cats’ code-switching. 22:00 Mentions her work at Techstars and supporting LatAm startup ecosystem. Mentions how incorporation costs, and bankruptcy laws create massive barriers to progress there. SECTION3: Climate at NextCorp 23:50 Overview of Age of Consequences film (see link in sources). Discussion of Climate Refugees, National Security, and other consequent events. UN SDG Goal 11: *Half of humanity – 3.5 billion people – lives in cities today and 5 billion people are projected to live in cities by 2030 *Cities account for between 60 and 80 per cent of energy consumption and generate as much as 70per cent of human-induced greenhouse gas emissions *By 2050 70 per cent of the world population is predicted to live in urban settlements 28:00 Talks about integrity needs in all industries. Looks at equity, sustainability, and fairness in mind at scale – using LatAm clean energy projects displacing natives with hydro dams. 35:00 Talks about returns profile of more heavy capital climate-tech investments. Points to need for patient capital in community overhaul scenarios. Talks about building a community of investors to help bridge the funding gap. We also discuss SPACs and CartaX as possible avenues for earlier exits for climatetech. 38:00 Talks about alignments with patient capital. Also uses example of Tesla breaking down barriers and making radical leaps for society. We discuss the limitations of late stage VC, and how hardware presents a learning opportunity. Shares example of Foundry Group’s experience with FitBit – from a prior timing failure. 42:00 Talks about grants at early stage, and helping these companies build talent pipeline. They also help startups hit milestones, and fill a gap from public / private critical technologies off the ground. SOURCES: -Jackie Ros Amable [LinkedIn]: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacqueline-ros/ -Jackie Ros Amable [Twitter]: https://twitter.com/jackie_ros’ -NextCorps: https://nextcorps.org/ -The Startup ...
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    45 mins
  • Rayyan Islam_E19: An Avenger of Industry [11/23/2020]

    Rayyan Islam_E19: An Avenger of Industry [11/23/2020]
    Nov 23 2020
    EPISODE19: An Avenger of Industry Rayyan Islam, a Founder and Impact Investor at Emergence Industries, and VC at Romulus Capital, called in from Dallas [11/23/2020] Note: References with links are listed at the end of the show notes. INTRO: 1:00 Shares professional backstory, growing up in Dallas TX. And spent a lot of time in Bangladesh. Talks about power, water, and recycling juxtaposition from upbringings in Texas, and difference when visiting abroad. 3:00 Shares inspiration from Muhammad Yunus, who won a Nobel Prize for microloans to women in rural areas starting businesses – launched from Bangladesh. Rayyan discusses his first startup, an electronic hukkah. Talks about dropping out of university to scale up the business. Realized he’s a true entrepreneur. 5:00 Talks about experience with Spotify in NY as a Product Manager. Then transition to Romulus Capital since 2014. SECTION1: Originate 7:30 Shares story of growing up ‘different’, in a predominantly white neighborhood. Talks about the hustling bustling Bangladeshi experience he had. Talks about the extreme poverty, and the disparity between the two worlds he grew up in. Realized how lucky he was, and what this luck meant—how his father’s choice to move to the US completely changed his life. Ties in the example of climate change, and the example of Southern Bangladesh – and the impact of an overlapping refugee crisis. 14:22 Talks about social impact of approaching lending on a village by village basis, used in Yunus’ work. We discuss some of the broader problems of micro-finance tying into economic sustainability, and economic infrastructure. Rayyan sees the real way for economic mobility made by infrastructure that can democratize creation of opportunity. SECTION2: Emerge 15:00 Abstracts conversation into the importance of infrastructure. Highlights the importance of asking how things interconnect, and work. Finding innovation, is led by thinking like this. Talks about how he gravitated away from software. 19:00 Talks about the historic centralization of infrastructure. And how electricity, waste, and waste removal is being decentralized. Uses analogy of software being decentralized. Shares knowledge about Community Solar, and the maturing of the industry. Highlights how solar wasn’t mature enough to develop projects a couple decades back. Now utility scale projects are attainable. Industrial and Commercial Solar then got adopted, and now Residential Solar is scalable. 30:00 Shares what is being reimagined with synthetic biology, including emissions, and waste. Also points to synthetic bio as a cheaper option. We discuss ammonia and green hydrogen opportunities. Talks about the power-mix and decarbonization. Shares how pipelines in the US can acta as a bridge to a low carbon economy. 36:00 Talks about time with Ross Perot Family Office. Also shares how family offices think proactively about impact in their businesses. Emergence works with 12 family offices, and bridges interests in industrial investments. SECTION3: Romulus 41:00 Talks about the Romulus Team. Talks about the high concentration high conviction strategy, and the hybrid venture studio approach they take. Spun out of MIT lab. 43:00 Fund’s focus: Circles of Innovation, Crispr, Electric Aviation, Industrial. They work backwards, by speaking to people in industry, in finding what they should be looking for. 45:00 Have had excitement at Seed stage with some CVCs, who start as customers, and later may invest. SOURCES: -Rayyan Islam [Twitter]: https://twitter.com/RayyanIslam1 -Emergence Industries: https://www.emergenceindustries.com/ -Rayyan Islam [LinkedIn]: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rayyanislam/ -Romulus Capital: https://romuluscap.com/ -The Emergence Initiative [Newsletter]: https://emergenceinitiative.substack.com/ -Cox’s Bazar Beach, in Bangladesh: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cox%27s_Bazar_Beach -Climate Refugees in Bangladesh [Doc]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=co5uywe-1Z8 -An Inconvenient Truth, with Al Gore [Full Movie]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZUoYGAI5i0 -UN Clean Development Mechanism (CDM): https://cdm.unfccc.int/about/index.html -Carbon Rights/Credits and Kyoto Protocol history: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=npS3fRXQu0c&feature=emb_title -SEIA Community Solar: https://www.seia.org/initiatives/community-solar#:~:text=Community%20solar%20refers%20to%20local,is%20being%20rapidly%20adopted%20nationwide. -America’s Electric Cooperatives: https://www.electric.coop/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/NCS-2815_Co-op-Facts-and-Figures-Packet_Individual-Letter-Sheets.pdf -Synthetic Bio [w/Slack]: http://synbio.info/ -Synthetic Bio [Genome.gov]: https://www.genome.gov/about-genomics/policy-issues/Synthetic-Biology#:~:text=Synthetic%20biology%20is%20a%20field,in%20medicine%2C%20manufacturing%20and%20agriculture -Cargill Bio Industrial Products: https://www.cargill.com/bioindustrial -------------------------------------------------- Song Credit: The Croft ...
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    48 mins
  • Tom Ferguson_E18: The Nexus of Water Impact [11/9/2020]

    Tom Ferguson_E18: The Nexus of Water Impact [11/9/2020]
    Nov 9 2020
    EPISODE18: The Nexus of Water Impact Tom Ferguson, GP at Burnt Island Ventures in San Francisco [11/9/2020] Note: References with links are listed at the end of the show notes. INTRO: 2:00 Discusses entry into Water Impact with Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP). Talks about water sustainability and entry from business school to the Imagine H20 early stage accelerator. 3:00 Shares transition on building a fund around VC investments. Also shares the origin of his investment firm. SECTION1: Fundamental Molecule 5:20 Talks about early mistakes investors make, in assuming that advice is correct. For the first few years in the accelerator, he and the team were cognizant of this. Taking care of assumptions methodically is critical in water startups. Working with Founders to look closely into reality – what sets generalized venture apart. 11:00 Talks about the importance of water, and the residual impacts that are downstream. We discuss the interlinked reliance components. Opens the discussion for water impact as a startup focus. 14:00 Talks about the rating of water infrastructure and wastewater as a D/D+ respectively. He discusses the fragmented markets in different countries to add to the complexity of opportunities. SECTION2: Complex Markets 17:00 Shares excitement for startup Stormsensor, and needs for stormwater innovations. We also discuss the policy frictions that are creating sustaining business opportunities for companies like this. Gives example of $1M per mile for pipe replacement. And shares insights about value within the water infrastructure network. 21:43 Talking about the notion of customer pain in the Burnt Island checklist. Frames the discussion in water as something not driven by the profit motive, in utilities. Breaks into regulatory driven opportunity, in the water infrastructure framework. 27:30 Talks about finding the right Founders that understand an element of a niche, and understand all of the technical dynamics. And looking for people who have to solve the problem. 31:00 Travel through the underbelly of cities and Fats Oils and Grease (FOG). 32:00 Discusses crossover opportunities and how he’s becoming less surprised by complex opportunities. Talks about things like seed treatment (genetic engineering). Talks about a dye company, and the surface water issues. SECTION3: Fluid Founders 40:00 Talks about innovation in US / Singapore / India / UK, looking to support Founders in these water markets. Shares what his firm is looking for, are Founders with a bias for reality, before they’ve written a line of code, or a soldering iron. 42:00 Talks about the ability to focus needed for Founders working with all of the additional complexities of this market. And Tom encourages time allocation, and marginal use of time to improve process. Looking for people to close the doors – boiling down to the simplicity and narrowing down the process. 45:00 Shares vision of water market in a decade, and ‘opens up the floodgate of opportunity’. Thanks for all of the fun, Tom! SOURCES: -Burnt Island Ventures: https://www.burntislandventures.com/ -Tom Ferguson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-ferguson-44a62254/ -Tom’s Email: tom@imagineh2o.org -Imagine H20 Accelerator: https://www.imagineh2o.org/ -ImagineH20 Water Innovation Week: https://www.imagineh2o.org/wiw2020 -World Water Week 2020 Los Angeles: https://worldwatertechnorthamerica.com/ -SoCap Virtual 20 (Impact Conference): https://socapglobal.com/events/34214-2/ - Is Venture Capital Really Failing in Water? Or is it Just Getting Started?: https://tomfergusonbiv.medium.com/is-venture-capital-really-failing-in-water-or-did-it-just-get-started-eac751de0def -2010 CDP water report [Tom CoAuthored]: https://www.circleofblue.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/CDP-2010-Water-Disclosure-Global-Report.pdf -Ketos Startup: https://ketos.co/ -Stormsensor Startup: https://www.stormsensor.io/ -Zilper Trenchless Startup: https://www.zilpertrenchless.com/ -Tom Swifty: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Swifty -RegTech Unicorns in VC: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forrester/2019/11/21/predictions-2020-regtech-funding-will-explode-as-vc-investments-in-other-markets-cool/?sh=cd42dec2e561 -RegTech VC Funds Listed: https://medium.com/@VentureScanner/regulatory-technology-investors-with-the-most-activity-41d436563ada - California’s Complex Water Market Faces New Challenges [Institutional Investor]: https://www.institutionalinvestor.com/article/b1nxmbpj34yxy2/californias-complex-water-market-faces-new-challenges - Brave Blue World [Netflix]: https://www.netflix.com/title/81326710 -Blackrock’s Troubled Waters: https://www.blackrock.com/us/individual/insights/blackrock-investment-institute/troubled-waters# - Is Venture Capital Really Failing in Water? Or is it Just Getting Started? [Medium]: https://medium.com/@tom_93541/is-venture-capital-really-failing-in-water-or-did-it-just-get-started-eac751de0def -SwiftComply Startup: https://www.swiftcomply.com/ -----------------...
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    48 mins
  • Elizabeth Yin_E17: An Ecosystem for Entrepreneurs [10/26/2020]

    Elizabeth Yin_E17: An Ecosystem for Entrepreneurs [10/26/2020]
    Oct 26 2020

    EPISODE17: An Ecosystem for Entrepreneurs

    Elizabeth Yin, GP at Hustle Fund in The Bay Area [10/26/2020]

    Note: References with links are listed at the end of the show notes.

    INTRO:

    1:00 We chat about The Pitch, and what goes on behind the scenes. Has written a handful of checks from the show.

    2:50 Talks about live session with Hunter Walk, helping Founders in real time.

    SECTION1: Emerging Managers

    3:39 Talks about what a fund is, and her origin story in discovering Venture Capital as an early Entrepreneur. Talks about the deployment of assets, and the pools of money being raised by Emerging Fund managers.

    4:50 Breaks out the structure and language surrounding the learnings of raising capital as a Fund Manager. Shows how the fiduciary responsibility if fulfilled by mandates of a fund. Talks about the importance of thesis in founding a fund.

    6:30 Draws the distinction between an Angel and a Fund Manager.

    7:20 Shares love of new manager culture in Silicon Valley. Talks about access to capital, and diversity of coverage for more Founders getting access who are unrepresented.

    8:30 Humbly discusses learnings as the ‘Matriarch of Venture’. Shares how rudeness and ghosting managers may not be able to compete with more capital in the space.

    11:00 Shares the importance of streamlining processes to make sure Founders get a fair shake. Autofiltering can be a good filter for deals which are outside of thesis or focus. We later discuss the aspect of interacting on social media in an environment where everything moves fast. Shares how social media can lead to escalations, and importance of hopping on a call if needed.

    15:00 Discusses game theory of waiting in VC, where waiting can create a hedge. First time Founders may have difficulty with the game of VCs. And highlights how FOMO is used to get investors on board – to jumpstart them. Shares idea of packing calendar with lots of investors, and communicating the five second meetings, to light a fire. Talks about coaching Founders not to discuss names of VCs; because of both collusion of VCs.

    19:00 Talks about two sides of coin to advice giving, by caveat with the ‘just my two cents’ situational discussion. Shares feedback about some bad advice given, but points back to Founder needing to process all the signals and make best decisions.

    22:00 We discuss the need for perspectives, and the decision with conviction. She shares the need for deciding on a direction, even if the Founder is getting negative feedback. CEOs are the jockey on the horse.

    SECTION2: Fund Changes

    25:55 Discussing funding models in the new landscape – e.g., AngelList’s Rolling Funds, indie.vc, and Earnest Capital. She thinks these models are great for the ecosystem, as they provide more access to the ecosystem. Shares ideas around 506c raises.

    27:00 Run through a rapid fire round of pros/cons funding types – Accelerators, Debt, Revenue Share, Venture Studios, Incubators, Crowdfunding Reg CF, Family Office Directs, and Syndicates.

    SECTION3: The Mission

    34:00 Talks about becoming a VC, and some of the doubts that she had initially, because of how she wanted to change the structural and cultural components. Entrepreneurs who hustle should be able to get access to good info and capital.

    36:00 Shares feedback about Redwood School program that Hustlefund uses – a tactical program that brings in mentors. Talks about genuineness of care from the individuals they engage with, and how the tough times are reinforced by the motivations. Talks about the 100x target multiples, and what can prevent those returns. Discusses importance of relationships and backing Entrepreneurs over multiple at bats. Doing right by people is the truest personal importance for her.

    40:55 Discusses retention of mission through the scaling process, and how mission deviation happens.

    SOURCES:

    -Elizabeth Yin: https://twitter.com/dunkhippo33

    -Hustle Fund: https://twitter.com/HustleFundVC

    -The Pitch [Podcast]: https://twitter.com/thepitchshow

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    Song Credit: The Croft – By Joakim Karud

    [ No Copyright on Music and Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0 ]
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    44 mins