Jason Lemkin is one of the leading SaaS investors of the last decade with a portfolio including the likes of Algolia, Talkdesk, Owner, RevenueCat, Saleloft and more.
Rory O’Driscoll is a General Partner @ Scale where he has led investments in category leaders such as Bill.com (BILL), Box (BOX), DocuSign (DOCU), and WalkMe (WKME), among others.
-----------------------------------------------
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
00:49 Anthropic Files S1
02:18 Why Anthropic May Still Be Underestimated
04:49 The Scariest Metric in Anthropic’s S1
07:14 Is AI Debt Financing Starting to Break?
08:04 Why Equity Markets Could Keep the AI Spending Boom Alive
09:54 Will Anthropic Have a Monster IPO?
11:17 What OpenAI Should Learn From Anthropic’s S1
13:03 Microsoft Offers Buyouts to 27% of Employees
16:33 Why AI CapEx Could Drive Even More Layoffs in 2027
17:43 Cloudflare’s 20% Layoff: The New Playbook for CEOs?
19:27 Meta Taps Equity Markets for a $95BN CapEx Spending Spree
21:59 Are Chinese Open-Weight Models Finished in the US?
24:48 What Happens to Modal, Fireworks and OpenRouter if Chinese Models Decline?
33:14 Could OpenRouter’s Boom Be Just a Moment in Time?
35:03 “Black October”: Why AI Could Expose Every Software Vulnerability
37:32 Instinct at $30BN
40:07 Could Instinct Become the Super App of the West?
45:10 Why Investors Are Throwing Money at Proven AI Executives
46:55 Put 20% of the Fund Into OpenAI at $1.25TRN?
51:21 WarHounds at $1.5BN
55:10 Why Mega-Funds Are Raising Bigger and Coming Back Faster
57:20 Zuckerberg vs California: How Much Does a Billionaire Tax Really Matter?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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-----------------------------------------------
Legal Disclaimer:
The content of this podcast is for informational and entertainment purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Any discussion of stocks, public markets, or investment strategies reflects the personal opinions of the speakers and should not be relied upon when making investment decisions. Figures, valuations, and financial data referenced may be estimates or subject to error. Always consult a qualified financial adviser before making any investment decision. The views expressed are those of the individual speakers and do not represent the views of 20VC or its affiliates.
-----------------------------------------------
#20vc #harrystebbings #roryodriscoll #jasonlemkin #anthropic #instinct #microsoft #ai #ipo
1:00:17
Jason Lemkin is one of the leading SaaS investors of the last decade with a portfolio including the likes of Algolia, Talkdesk, Owner, RevenueCat, Saleloft and more.
Rory O’Driscoll is a General Partner @ Scale where he has led investments in category leaders such as Bill.com (BILL), Box (BOX), DocuSign (DOCU), and WalkMe (WKME), among others.
-----------------------------------------------
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
00:49 Anthropic Files S1
02:18 Why Anthropic May Still Be Underestimated
04:49 The Scariest Metric in Anthropic’s S1
07:14 Is AI Debt Financing Starting to Break?
08:04 Why Equity Markets Could Keep the AI Spending Boom Alive
09:54 Will Anthropic Have a Monster IPO?
11:17 What OpenAI Should Learn From Anthropic’s S1
13:03 Microsoft Offers Buyouts to 27% of Employees
16:33 Why AI CapEx Could Drive Even More Layoffs in 2027
17:43 Cloudflare’s 20% Layoff: The New Playbook for CEOs?
19:27 Meta Taps Equity Markets for a $95BN CapEx Spending Spree
21:59 Are Chinese Open-Weight Models Finished in the US?
24:48 What Happens to Modal, Fireworks and OpenRouter if Chinese Models Decline?
33:14 Could OpenRouter’s Boom Be Just a Moment in Time?
35:03 “Black October”: Why AI Could Expose Every Software Vulnerability
37:32 Instinct at $30BN
40:07 Could Instinct Become the Super App of the West?
45:10 Why Investors Are Throwing Money at Proven AI Executives
46:55 Put 20% of the Fund Into OpenAI at $1.25TRN?
51:21 WarHounds at $1.5BN
55:10 Why Mega-Funds Are Raising Bigger and Coming Back Faster
57:20 Zuckerberg vs California: How Much Does a Billionaire Tax Really Matter?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subscribe on Spotify:
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-----------------------------------------------
Legal Disclaimer:
The content of this podcast is for informational and entertainment purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Any discussion of stocks, public markets, or investment strategies reflects the personal opinions of the speakers and should not be relied upon when making investment decisions. Figures, valuations, and financial data referenced may be estimates or subject to error. Always consult a qualified financial adviser before making any investment decision. The views expressed are those of the individual speakers and do not represent the views of 20VC or its affiliates.
-----------------------------------------------
#20vc #harrystebbings #roryodriscoll #jasonlemkin #anthropic #instinct #microsoft #ai #ipo
AI could run out of power within years.
Naveen Rao, co-founder and CEO of Unconventional AI, warns that AI’s growth could soon exhaust spare energy capacity and building more won’t be quick or cheap.
His estimate? Even adding 10 GW could cost half a trillion dollars.
Can the energy supply keep up with AI’s ambitions?
0:40
AI could run out of power within years.
Naveen Rao, co-founder and CEO of Unconventional AI, warns that AI’s growth could soon exhaust spare energy capacity and building more won’t be quick or cheap.
His estimate? Even adding 10 GW could cost half a trillion dollars.
Can the energy supply keep up with AI’s ambitions?
AI’s impact should show up beyond the tech industry.
Satya Nadella explains why improving NHS patient outcomes and reducing healthcare costs would be a meaningful gain for the UK economy.
0:47
AI’s impact should show up beyond the tech industry.
Satya Nadella explains why improving NHS patient outcomes and reducing healthcare costs would be a meaningful gain for the UK economy.
1 Investors Said No to Anthropic
Early investor Anjney Midha reveals how 21 out of 22 investors he approached turned down the opportunity
Some didn't even know what GPT-3 was...
1:07
1 Investors Said No to Anthropic
Early investor Anjney Midha reveals how 21 out of 22 investors he approached turned down the opportunity
Some didn't even know what GPT-3 was...
“If you’re a pure software investor, you’re kind of f**ked.”
Naveen Rao, Founder and CEO of Unconventional AI, argues that SaaS’s easy margins are disappearing as value shifts to the intelligence layer and questions how big the software market will be in 20 years.
0:38
“If you’re a pure software investor, you’re kind of f**ked.”
Naveen Rao, Founder and CEO of Unconventional AI, argues that SaaS’s easy margins are disappearing as value shifts to the intelligence layer and questions how big the software market will be in 20 years.
Smarter AI doesn’t mean safer AI.
@microsoft CEO Satya Nadella explains why he no longer expects alignment to follow automatically from scaling and why AI agents need a zero-trust system to contain them if they malfunction.
0:51
Smarter AI doesn’t mean safer AI.
@microsoft CEO Satya Nadella explains why he no longer expects alignment to follow automatically from scaling and why AI agents need a zero-trust system to contain them if they malfunction.
Satya Nadella is the CEO of Microsoft and one of the greatest CEOs of our time. Satya has been at the company for an astonishing 34 years. When he joined, Microsoft had a market cap of $23.5BN. 22 years later, the company was worth $300BN. At this point, Satya took the reins as CEO. Under his leadership, he has taken it from $300BN to $3.9TRN.
-----------------------------------------------
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:23 Why Satya Says We Should Assume AI Models Are Compromised
02:01 Why AI Needs a “Zero Trust” Architecture
04:45 Why Chain of Thought Is Not Reliable
05:41 Will Open-Weight Models Win Because They’re More Transparent?
07:04 Open vs Closed Models: Where Will AI Traffic Go?
09:06 Why Every Company Needs to Own Its Own Intelligence
10:43 Why Private Evals Could Become a Company’s Most Valuable IP
12:16 Why AI Will Create a New Implementation Economy
14:11 Does AI Require Full-Stack Vertical Integration?
15:52 Why Inference Demand Is Bigger Than Anyone Expected
16:00 Can the World Support $100BN AI Training Runs?
17:54 Can AI Meaningfully Accelerate Global GDP Growth?
19:09 Which Industries Will See the Biggest AI Productivity Gains?
21:34 Why Satya No Longer Believes Alignment Will “Just Fall Out” of Scaling
22:10 Why Every Company Could Become an AI Benchmark
22:36 What Satya Is Most Excited About for the Next Decade
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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#20vc #harrystebbings #satyanadella #ceo #microsoft #ai #opensource #frontiermodels
23:49
Satya Nadella is the CEO of Microsoft and one of the greatest CEOs of our time. Satya has been at the company for an astonishing 34 years. When he joined, Microsoft had a market cap of $23.5BN. 22 years later, the company was worth $300BN. At this point, Satya took the reins as CEO. Under his leadership, he has taken it from $300BN to $3.9TRN.
-----------------------------------------------
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:23 Why Satya Says We Should Assume AI Models Are Compromised
02:01 Why AI Needs a “Zero Trust” Architecture
04:45 Why Chain of Thought Is Not Reliable
05:41 Will Open-Weight Models Win Because They’re More Transparent?
07:04 Open vs Closed Models: Where Will AI Traffic Go?
09:06 Why Every Company Needs to Own Its Own Intelligence
10:43 Why Private Evals Could Become a Company’s Most Valuable IP
12:16 Why AI Will Create a New Implementation Economy
14:11 Does AI Require Full-Stack Vertical Integration?
15:52 Why Inference Demand Is Bigger Than Anyone Expected
16:00 Can the World Support $100BN AI Training Runs?
17:54 Can AI Meaningfully Accelerate Global GDP Growth?
19:09 Which Industries Will See the Biggest AI Productivity Gains?
21:34 Why Satya No Longer Believes Alignment Will “Just Fall Out” of Scaling
22:10 Why Every Company Could Become an AI Benchmark
22:36 What Satya Is Most Excited About for the Next Decade
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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-----------------------------------------------
#20vc #harrystebbings #satyanadella #ceo #microsoft #ai #opensource #frontiermodels
Being “AI native” won’t be special in five years.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella explains why AI will follow the same path as PCs and cloud computing from a competitive advantage to an everyday part of doing business.
0:42
Being “AI native” won’t be special in five years.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella explains why AI will follow the same path as PCs and cloud computing from a competitive advantage to an everyday part of doing business.
Naveen Rao is the Founder and CEO of Unconventional AI, an AI hardware startup focused on rethinking how AI systems are built and powered. A serial entrepreneur, Naveen previously founded Nervana Systems, acquired by Intel, and co-founded MosaicML, acquired by Databricks for $1.3 billion. He later served as VP of AI at Databricks before launching Unconventional AI.
-----------------------------------------------
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:15 Why Energy Will Be the Biggest Bottleneck for AI
04:58 Why the US Could Run Out of Excess Power Capacity
09:00 What Compute Investors Still Get Wrong About Efficiency
14:55 Why AI Hardware Needs to Be Co-Designed With the Model
18:13 Does Chip Specialization Threaten Nvidia?
20:03 Why AI Chips Will Not Become Commoditized
24:30 Why AI Has Shifted the Bottleneck From Creation to Verification
30:16 Will We Trust AI Agents More Than Humans?
32:51 Why Data Companies Will Become More Specialized, Not Commoditized
35:01 Why Reinforcement Learning Is So Important
39:03 Why We Will Move Beyond Transformers
41:39 Which Parts of the AI Stack Actually Get Commoditized?
42:57 Will Inference Become a Commodity?
45:03 Why Pure Software Investors Are “F***ed”
46:10 Why SaaS Will Matter Far Less in 20 Years
51:25 Why AI Will Not Necessarily Destroy Developer Jobs
55:29 When Will Robotics Actually Become a Real Market?
56:47 Why Inference Will Be a $10TRN Market
57:42 Why Robotics Will Be 100x Bigger Than Coding Agents
59:14 Where Naveen Is Investing in Robotics Today
1:02:40 Why Traditional VC Metrics No Longer Work for Deep Tech
1:05:13 The Most Overrated AI Markets Today
1:06:20 Why 80% of AI Tokens Could Flow Through Open Models
1:09:40 Why Europe Produces Fewer Ambitious Startups
1:11:12 Why AI Could Unlock Entirely New Frontiers of Science
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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-----------------------------------------------
#20vc #harrystebbings #founder #ceo #ai
1:13:26
Naveen Rao is the Founder and CEO of Unconventional AI, an AI hardware startup focused on rethinking how AI systems are built and powered. A serial entrepreneur, Naveen previously founded Nervana Systems, acquired by Intel, and co-founded MosaicML, acquired by Databricks for $1.3 billion. He later served as VP of AI at Databricks before launching Unconventional AI.
-----------------------------------------------
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:15 Why Energy Will Be the Biggest Bottleneck for AI
04:58 Why the US Could Run Out of Excess Power Capacity
09:00 What Compute Investors Still Get Wrong About Efficiency
14:55 Why AI Hardware Needs to Be Co-Designed With the Model
18:13 Does Chip Specialization Threaten Nvidia?
20:03 Why AI Chips Will Not Become Commoditized
24:30 Why AI Has Shifted the Bottleneck From Creation to Verification
30:16 Will We Trust AI Agents More Than Humans?
32:51 Why Data Companies Will Become More Specialized, Not Commoditized
35:01 Why Reinforcement Learning Is So Important
39:03 Why We Will Move Beyond Transformers
41:39 Which Parts of the AI Stack Actually Get Commoditized?
42:57 Will Inference Become a Commodity?
45:03 Why Pure Software Investors Are “F***ed”
46:10 Why SaaS Will Matter Far Less in 20 Years
51:25 Why AI Will Not Necessarily Destroy Developer Jobs
55:29 When Will Robotics Actually Become a Real Market?
56:47 Why Inference Will Be a $10TRN Market
57:42 Why Robotics Will Be 100x Bigger Than Coding Agents
59:14 Where Naveen Is Investing in Robotics Today
1:02:40 Why Traditional VC Metrics No Longer Work for Deep Tech
1:05:13 The Most Overrated AI Markets Today
1:06:20 Why 80% of AI Tokens Could Flow Through Open Models
1:09:40 Why Europe Produces Fewer Ambitious Startups
1:11:12 Why AI Could Unlock Entirely New Frontiers of Science
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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-----------------------------------------------
#20vc #harrystebbings #founder #ceo #ai
AI is making code generation faster than ever. But getting that code production-ready remains the biggest challenge.
Jason Lemkin explains why code review could be the most important category in software.
1:00
AI is making code generation faster than ever. But getting that code production-ready remains the biggest challenge.
Jason Lemkin explains why code review could be the most important category in software.
Jason Lemkin is one of the leading SaaS investors of the last decade with a portfolio including the likes of Algolia, Talkdesk, Owner, RevenueCat, Saleloft and more.
Rory O’Driscoll is a General Partner @ Scale where he has led investments in category leaders such as Bill.com (BILL), Box (BOX), DocuSign (DOCU), and WalkMe (WKME), among others.
-----------------------------------------------
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:01 Is Venture Broken for Great Companies Outside the AI Hype Cycle?
03:41 Why VCs Only Want Trillion-Dollar Outcomes
05:45 Why Mega-Funds Need Billion-Dollar Positions
08:07 Is Seed Investing Now Harder Than Growth Investing?
10:46 Is CoreWeave the First Crack in the AI Trade?
16:55 Anthropic’s Growth Slows: Is a $1.5TN IPO Still Cheap?
18:39 Why Anthropic’s Revenue Could Be Less Predictable Than SaaS
21:49 Why Replit Switched Its Default Model From Claude to OpenAI
25:29 Does Claude Code Review Threaten Coding Startups?
28:47 Why Code Review Could Be Bigger Than Code Generation
31:34 Modal Hits a $15.75BN Valuation as Inference Explodes
35:31 Investment Committee: Town at a $1BN Valuation
38:45 Are Private AI Valuations Completely Disconnected From Public Markets?
42:41 Is Bending Spoons Becoming the Berkshire Hathaway of Software?
46:03 37signals and the Case for Never Raising Venture Capital
50:23 Will More Venture Firms Go Public?
53:39 Harvard’s 27% Return and the Coming Venture Capital Boom
55:59 Is Tesla’s New Roadster the Swan Song Before an Elon Mega-Merger?
56:54 How Elon Musk Creates the “Elon Premium”
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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-----------------------------------------------
Legal Disclaimer:
The content of this podcast is for informational and entertainment purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Any discussion of stocks, public markets, or investment strategies reflects the personal opinions of the speakers and should not be relied upon when making investment decisions. Figures, valuations, and financial data referenced may be estimates or subject to error. Always consult a qualified financial adviser before making any investment decision. The views expressed are those of the individual speakers and do not represent the views of 20VC or its affiliates.
-----------------------------------------------
#20vc #harrystebbings #roryodriscoll #jasonlemkin #coreweave #ai #venturecapital #modal #anduril #elonmusk
59:41
Jason Lemkin is one of the leading SaaS investors of the last decade with a portfolio including the likes of Algolia, Talkdesk, Owner, RevenueCat, Saleloft and more.
Rory O’Driscoll is a General Partner @ Scale where he has led investments in category leaders such as Bill.com (BILL), Box (BOX), DocuSign (DOCU), and WalkMe (WKME), among others.
-----------------------------------------------
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:01 Is Venture Broken for Great Companies Outside the AI Hype Cycle?
03:41 Why VCs Only Want Trillion-Dollar Outcomes
05:45 Why Mega-Funds Need Billion-Dollar Positions
08:07 Is Seed Investing Now Harder Than Growth Investing?
10:46 Is CoreWeave the First Crack in the AI Trade?
16:55 Anthropic’s Growth Slows: Is a $1.5TN IPO Still Cheap?
18:39 Why Anthropic’s Revenue Could Be Less Predictable Than SaaS
21:49 Why Replit Switched Its Default Model From Claude to OpenAI
25:29 Does Claude Code Review Threaten Coding Startups?
28:47 Why Code Review Could Be Bigger Than Code Generation
31:34 Modal Hits a $15.75BN Valuation as Inference Explodes
35:31 Investment Committee: Town at a $1BN Valuation
38:45 Are Private AI Valuations Completely Disconnected From Public Markets?
42:41 Is Bending Spoons Becoming the Berkshire Hathaway of Software?
46:03 37signals and the Case for Never Raising Venture Capital
50:23 Will More Venture Firms Go Public?
53:39 Harvard’s 27% Return and the Coming Venture Capital Boom
55:59 Is Tesla’s New Roadster the Swan Song Before an Elon Mega-Merger?
56:54 How Elon Musk Creates the “Elon Premium”
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subscribe on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/show/3j2KMcZ...
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https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...
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-----------------------------------------------
Legal Disclaimer:
The content of this podcast is for informational and entertainment purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Any discussion of stocks, public markets, or investment strategies reflects the personal opinions of the speakers and should not be relied upon when making investment decisions. Figures, valuations, and financial data referenced may be estimates or subject to error. Always consult a qualified financial adviser before making any investment decision. The views expressed are those of the individual speakers and do not represent the views of 20VC or its affiliates.
-----------------------------------------------
#20vc #harrystebbings #roryodriscoll #jasonlemkin #coreweave #ai #venturecapital #modal #anduril #elonmusk
Today’s AI valuations can look insane if you’re only looking backwards.
Sameer Dholakia of Bessemer Venture Partners explains why paying 100x current ARR can still make sense and why the metric that really matters is where the company could be in the next 12 months.
From Abridge and Anthropic to Legora, it’s about betting on what comes next, not what exists today.
0:42
Today’s AI valuations can look insane if you’re only looking backwards.
Sameer Dholakia of Bessemer Venture Partners explains why paying 100x current ARR can still make sense and why the metric that really matters is where the company could be in the next 12 months.
From Abridge and Anthropic to Legora, it’s about betting on what comes next, not what exists today.
LangChain spends roughly 30% of its engineering salary costs on AI coding tools. But despite using more tokens, that percentage is actually falling.
Co-founder and CEO Harrison Chase explains how LangChain is cutting costs through better visibility, spending controls, and its own in-house cloud coding agent.
0:55
LangChain spends roughly 30% of its engineering salary costs on AI coding tools. But despite using more tokens, that percentage is actually falling.
Co-founder and CEO Harrison Chase explains how LangChain is cutting costs through better visibility, spending controls, and its own in-house cloud coding agent.
Sameer Dholakia, Partner at Bessemer Venture Partners, explains why intelligence could become a bigger market than oil.
Oil powers machines. Intelligence powers every person, business and government. And with a market of that scale, AI is only going to get bigger.
0:29
Sameer Dholakia, Partner at Bessemer Venture Partners, explains why intelligence could become a bigger market than oil.
Oil powers machines. Intelligence powers every person, business and government. And with a market of that scale, AI is only going to get bigger.
Waymo could be a $1 trillion business, says Sameer Dholakia, Partner at Bessemer Venture Partners.
His argument: ride-hailing is just the start. If Waymo’s technology reaches personal cars, trucking and logistics, the opportunity gets much bigger.
0:50
Waymo could be a $1 trillion business, says Sameer Dholakia, Partner at Bessemer Venture Partners.
His argument: ride-hailing is just the start. If Waymo’s technology reaches personal cars, trucking and logistics, the opportunity gets much bigger.
Sameer Dholakia is a Partner @ Bessemer, the first that has just raised $5.75BN across a $1.75BN seed fund and $4BN growth fund. Sameer has led investments into the likes of Anthropic, Fireworks and Legora to name a few. Prior to venture, Sameer was the CEO of SendGrid, taking it from $30M in ARR to over $200M.
-----------------------------------------------
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
00:59 Why AI Is a Bigger Supercycle Than Cloud and the Internet
04:41 How Bessemer Underwrote Anthropic at a $15BN Valuation
07:37 Why Anthropic Was Bessemer’s Lowest-Voted Deal
08:44 Do Open Models Threaten Frontier Labs?
10:35 Will Enterprises Use Chinese Open-Source Models?
12:23 Is There Actually a Bear Case for Frontier Models?
14:11 The OpenAI Investment Sameer Passed On
15:33 Does Entry Price Still Matter in a World of $2TN AI Companies?
18:48 How Sameer Underwrites Revenue Quality and Margins
20:54 The Bull Case for Legora at a $1.8BN Valuation
23:22 Why Capital Has Become a Moat in AI
26:04 Is Triple-Triple-Double-Double No Longer Enough?
28:22 Does It Now Take a $1BN Fund to Win at Seed?
30:32 Why Venture Is Splitting Into Mega-Platforms and Specialists
33:05 Are Early-Stage Investments Really Just Options?
36:32 How Bessemer Builds a $4BN Growth Portfolio
42:42 Why Culture Is a Competitive Advantage
52:31 When Should VCs Take Money Off the Table?
56:08 Why Companies Will Stay Private Longer
1:02:16 The Bull Case for Fireworks Becoming a $250BN Company
1:05:10 Why Sameer Believes in Sovereign AI Models
1:08:28 Can $5.75BN Venture Funds Still Return 5x?
1:14:40 Why the Open-Model Economy Is Bigger Than Sameer Expected
1:15:17 Why Robotics Could Be at Its “2021 GenAI” Moment
1:16:59 Why Waymo Could Become a $1TN Company
1:18:29 Why AI Drug Discovery Could Compress 50 Years Into 10
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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#20vc #harrystebbings #bessemer #vc #ai #venture #seed #sameerdholakia
1:19:51
Sameer Dholakia is a Partner @ Bessemer, the first that has just raised $5.75BN across a $1.75BN seed fund and $4BN growth fund. Sameer has led investments into the likes of Anthropic, Fireworks and Legora to name a few. Prior to venture, Sameer was the CEO of SendGrid, taking it from $30M in ARR to over $200M.
-----------------------------------------------
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
00:59 Why AI Is a Bigger Supercycle Than Cloud and the Internet
04:41 How Bessemer Underwrote Anthropic at a $15BN Valuation
07:37 Why Anthropic Was Bessemer’s Lowest-Voted Deal
08:44 Do Open Models Threaten Frontier Labs?
10:35 Will Enterprises Use Chinese Open-Source Models?
12:23 Is There Actually a Bear Case for Frontier Models?
14:11 The OpenAI Investment Sameer Passed On
15:33 Does Entry Price Still Matter in a World of $2TN AI Companies?
18:48 How Sameer Underwrites Revenue Quality and Margins
20:54 The Bull Case for Legora at a $1.8BN Valuation
23:22 Why Capital Has Become a Moat in AI
26:04 Is Triple-Triple-Double-Double No Longer Enough?
28:22 Does It Now Take a $1BN Fund to Win at Seed?
30:32 Why Venture Is Splitting Into Mega-Platforms and Specialists
33:05 Are Early-Stage Investments Really Just Options?
36:32 How Bessemer Builds a $4BN Growth Portfolio
42:42 Why Culture Is a Competitive Advantage
52:31 When Should VCs Take Money Off the Table?
56:08 Why Companies Will Stay Private Longer
1:02:16 The Bull Case for Fireworks Becoming a $250BN Company
1:05:10 Why Sameer Believes in Sovereign AI Models
1:08:28 Can $5.75BN Venture Funds Still Return 5x?
1:14:40 Why the Open-Model Economy Is Bigger Than Sameer Expected
1:15:17 Why Robotics Could Be at Its “2021 GenAI” Moment
1:16:59 Why Waymo Could Become a $1TN Company
1:18:29 Why AI Drug Discovery Could Compress 50 Years Into 10
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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#20vc #harrystebbings #bessemer #vc #ai #venture #seed #sameerdholakia
Harrison Chase is the co-founder and CEO of LangChain, which helps developers build, test and deploy AI agents. Backed by Sequoia Capital, Benchmark and IVP, LangChain has announced approximately $160 million in funding with the last round at a $1.25BN valuation. The company works with 35% of the Fortune 500, has surpassed one billion open-source downloads and processes over one billion events daily through LangSmith.
-----------------------------------------------
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:05 What Is LangChain and Why Are Agents Still So Hard to Build?
03:17 Why Better Models Force LangChain to Delete Parts of Its Product
05:52 Why Neutral Agent Harnesses Still Matter
08:59 Why Harrison Is Massively Bullish on Vertical Agents
10:42 Are Companies Really Building Their Own AI Models?
12:14 Do Specialized Models Actually Beat Frontier Models?
14:15 Where Does the Value in Model Routing Really Sit?
20:05 Can You Trust AI Evals?
21:15 Where Does the Value Actually Accrue in the Agent Stack?
23:13 How Continual Learning Changes Agents
24:36 Why the Agent Memory Layer Is Still Wide Open
29:05 What About Agents Today Will Be Obvious in 3 Years?
32:06 Will Every Consumer App Have Its Own Vertical Agent?
33:37 What Happens When Agents Generate 1,000x More Requests Than Humans?
35:49 Why Agent Costs Could Become a Huge Problem
38:44 LangChain Spends ~30% of Engineering Salary on Coding Agents
41:41 Will AI Agents Make Engineering Teams Dramatically Smaller?
43:41 What Anthropic’s Valuation Depends On
44:53 Are Enterprises Afraid of Chinese Open-Source Models?
46:46 What Most People Get Wrong About Open Models
48:05 Why Harrison Thinks the Inference Market Is Massive
49:31 Where Would Harrison Invest in AI Today?
54:31 Is Being First More Important Than Ever in AI?
55:32 The Bull Case for Jev at a $9BN Valuation
56:18 How Benchmark and Sequoia Actually Help Founders
58:15 Is It Worth Taking a Valuation Discount for a Top-Tier VC?
1:00:45 The Most Important Thing People Get Wrong About Agents
1:01:47 OpenAI at $1.5TN vs Anthropic at $2TN
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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#20vc #harrystebbings #founder #ceo
1:03:06
Harrison Chase is the co-founder and CEO of LangChain, which helps developers build, test and deploy AI agents. Backed by Sequoia Capital, Benchmark and IVP, LangChain has announced approximately $160 million in funding with the last round at a $1.25BN valuation. The company works with 35% of the Fortune 500, has surpassed one billion open-source downloads and processes over one billion events daily through LangSmith.
-----------------------------------------------
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:05 What Is LangChain and Why Are Agents Still So Hard to Build?
03:17 Why Better Models Force LangChain to Delete Parts of Its Product
05:52 Why Neutral Agent Harnesses Still Matter
08:59 Why Harrison Is Massively Bullish on Vertical Agents
10:42 Are Companies Really Building Their Own AI Models?
12:14 Do Specialized Models Actually Beat Frontier Models?
14:15 Where Does the Value in Model Routing Really Sit?
20:05 Can You Trust AI Evals?
21:15 Where Does the Value Actually Accrue in the Agent Stack?
23:13 How Continual Learning Changes Agents
24:36 Why the Agent Memory Layer Is Still Wide Open
29:05 What About Agents Today Will Be Obvious in 3 Years?
32:06 Will Every Consumer App Have Its Own Vertical Agent?
33:37 What Happens When Agents Generate 1,000x More Requests Than Humans?
35:49 Why Agent Costs Could Become a Huge Problem
38:44 LangChain Spends ~30% of Engineering Salary on Coding Agents
41:41 Will AI Agents Make Engineering Teams Dramatically Smaller?
43:41 What Anthropic’s Valuation Depends On
44:53 Are Enterprises Afraid of Chinese Open-Source Models?
46:46 What Most People Get Wrong About Open Models
48:05 Why Harrison Thinks the Inference Market Is Massive
49:31 Where Would Harrison Invest in AI Today?
54:31 Is Being First More Important Than Ever in AI?
55:32 The Bull Case for Jev at a $9BN Valuation
56:18 How Benchmark and Sequoia Actually Help Founders
58:15 Is It Worth Taking a Valuation Discount for a Top-Tier VC?
1:00:45 The Most Important Thing People Get Wrong About Agents
1:01:47 OpenAI at $1.5TN vs Anthropic at $2TN
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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-----------------------------------------------
#20vc #harrystebbings #founder #ceo
Jason Lemkin is one of the leading SaaS investors of the last decade with a portfolio including the likes of Algolia, Talkdesk, Owner, RevenueCat, Saleloft and more.
Rory O’Driscoll is a General Partner @ Scale where he has led investments in category leaders such as Bill.com (BILL), Box (BOX), DocuSign (DOCU), and WalkMe (WKME), among others.
-----------------------------------------------
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:07 Valar Atomics vs Day One Ventures: Is Pro Rata Broken?
07:07 Should Seed Investors Give Up Their Pro Rata Rights?
15:14 Meta Returns to the AI Frontier With Muse Wonder
18:53 Could Meta Have a Monster AI Product on Its Hands?
20:31 NVIDIA Eyes a $30BN Deal for Reflection
24:35 Does NVIDIA’s AI Push Make Thinking Machines Less Attractive?
26:45 Investment Committee: Jev Raises $870M at a $7.5BN Valuation
29:03 How Jev Could Become a $50BN+ Company
33:38 42 New Decacorns in 2026: Are We in an AI Bubble?
39:01 Isomorphic Labs Eyes a $40–50BN Valuation
42:27 Why AI Drug Discovery Could Be Bigger Than Inference
43:50 The Explosion in Robotics Training Data
49:37 Anthropic Cuts Haiku Pricing by 90%
55:12 Does Cheaper Frontier AI Kill Open-Source Models in the Enterprise?
56:39 Should Founders Sell If the Acquirer Will Fire 80% of the Team?
1:01:05 Cloudflare Cuts 20% Despite Strong Growth
1:02:27 Bumble Goes Private: Can AI Reinvent Online Dating?
1:06:01 Why the SaaS “Apocalypse” Is Worse Than It Looks
1:12:16 Is Flock Safety in Real Trouble?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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-----------------------------------------------
Legal Disclaimer:
The content of this podcast is for informational and entertainment purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Any discussion of stocks, public markets, or investment strategies reflects the personal opinions of the speakers and should not be relied upon when making investment decisions. Figures, valuations, and financial data referenced may be estimates or subject to error. Always consult a qualified financial adviser before making any investment decision. The views expressed are those of the individual speakers and do not represent the views of 20VC or its affiliates.
-----------------------------------------------
#20vc #harrystebbings #roryodriscoll #jasonlemkin #nvidia #meta #muse #ai
1:17:10
Jason Lemkin is one of the leading SaaS investors of the last decade with a portfolio including the likes of Algolia, Talkdesk, Owner, RevenueCat, Saleloft and more.
Rory O’Driscoll is a General Partner @ Scale where he has led investments in category leaders such as Bill.com (BILL), Box (BOX), DocuSign (DOCU), and WalkMe (WKME), among others.
-----------------------------------------------
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:07 Valar Atomics vs Day One Ventures: Is Pro Rata Broken?
07:07 Should Seed Investors Give Up Their Pro Rata Rights?
15:14 Meta Returns to the AI Frontier With Muse Wonder
18:53 Could Meta Have a Monster AI Product on Its Hands?
20:31 NVIDIA Eyes a $30BN Deal for Reflection
24:35 Does NVIDIA’s AI Push Make Thinking Machines Less Attractive?
26:45 Investment Committee: Jev Raises $870M at a $7.5BN Valuation
29:03 How Jev Could Become a $50BN+ Company
33:38 42 New Decacorns in 2026: Are We in an AI Bubble?
39:01 Isomorphic Labs Eyes a $40–50BN Valuation
42:27 Why AI Drug Discovery Could Be Bigger Than Inference
43:50 The Explosion in Robotics Training Data
49:37 Anthropic Cuts Haiku Pricing by 90%
55:12 Does Cheaper Frontier AI Kill Open-Source Models in the Enterprise?
56:39 Should Founders Sell If the Acquirer Will Fire 80% of the Team?
1:01:05 Cloudflare Cuts 20% Despite Strong Growth
1:02:27 Bumble Goes Private: Can AI Reinvent Online Dating?
1:06:01 Why the SaaS “Apocalypse” Is Worse Than It Looks
1:12:16 Is Flock Safety in Real Trouble?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subscribe on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/show/3j2KMcZ...
Subscribe on Apple Podcasts:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...
Follow Harry Stebbings on X:
https://x.com/harrystebbings
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https://x.com/jasonlk
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-----------------------------------------------
Legal Disclaimer:
The content of this podcast is for informational and entertainment purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Any discussion of stocks, public markets, or investment strategies reflects the personal opinions of the speakers and should not be relied upon when making investment decisions. Figures, valuations, and financial data referenced may be estimates or subject to error. Always consult a qualified financial adviser before making any investment decision. The views expressed are those of the individual speakers and do not represent the views of 20VC or its affiliates.
-----------------------------------------------
#20vc #harrystebbings #roryodriscoll #jasonlemkin #nvidia #meta #muse #ai
Why could AI become dramatically cheaper to run?
Atlassian’s CEO argues that the sheer amount of money and talent going into chips, data centres and model efficiency could drive inference costs down sharply over time.
0:45
Why could AI become dramatically cheaper to run?
Atlassian’s CEO argues that the sheer amount of money and talent going into chips, data centres and model efficiency could drive inference costs down sharply over time.
Does it matter if AI helped make it, as long as it’s good?
Atlassian’s CEO compares AI in content to colour grading and CGI in film. The audience cares about the story. But as synthetic content becomes more common, human judgement and craftsmanship could matter even more.
0:59
Does it matter if AI helped make it, as long as it’s good?
Atlassian’s CEO compares AI in content to colour grading and CGI in film. The audience cares about the story. But as synthetic content becomes more common, human judgement and craftsmanship could matter even more.