One topic at the center of the AI universe this week is a potential breakthrough called Q*. Little has been revealed about this OpenAI project, other than its likely relationship to solving certain grade-school mathematical problems. Amid much speculation, we decided to bring in our new general partner, Anjney Midha – focused on all things AI – to sift through the sea of noise. Today, we discuss the key frontier research areas that AI labs are exploring on their path toward generalizable intelli...
Dec 04, 2023•27 min•Ep 753•Transcript available on Metacast with @davidmarcus @smc90 This wide-ranging conversation covers company building, big to small -- including what cadence and when is the right "time" to ship; the relationship between centralization, decentralization, platforms, and financial freedom; moving from web2 to web3 in both crypto AND payments... as well as why bitcoin, views on remote work, and much much more. Our guest is David Marcus , CEO and co-founder of Lightspark; Marcus was also a co-creator of Diem (aka Libra and Novi, the cry...
Nov 28, 2023•49 min•Ep 752•Transcript available on Metacast Taking a company from idea to household name is always difficult. But the past few years presented challenges that caught even the most-seasoned CEOs off guard. In this episode, you’ll hear from two CEOs that navigated these waters and somehow, came out on the other side. These recordings come straight from our exclusive Connect/Enterprise event, bringing together top executives across the a16z network. Resources: Additional content from Connect/Enteprise: Enterprise Startups: Advice on Hiring, ...
Nov 23, 2023•51 min•Ep 751•Transcript available on Metacast Fei-Fei Li, PhD, Professor in the Computer Science Department at Stanford University, and Co-Director of Stanford’s Human-Centered AI Institute, joins Bio + Health founding partner Vijay Pande. In this candid conversation, Li unfolds her transformation from a young immigrant to an influential figure in AI. The conversation explores the birth of ImageNet, a pivotal step that bridged the gap between visual intelligence and accessible AI technology. They delve into the notion of a 'Dignity Economy,...
Nov 13, 2023•28 min•Ep 750•Transcript available on Metacast Is it possible to construct a virtual society that authentically replicates human behavior? AI Town, a virtual town experiment where AI residents live, interact, and engage, provides valuable insights into the future of AI's believability and its interaction with humanity. In this panel discussion, Joon Park, the author of 'Generative Agents: Interactive Simulacra of Human Behavior,' and Martin Casado from a16z, discuss the influence and potential of Generative Agents, exploring their practical ...
Nov 06, 2023•39 min•Ep 749•Transcript available on Metacast Software crosses borders effortlessly. The globalization of money, however, is considerably more challenging. This is especially true for multinational businesses, which grapple with managing multiple accounts in diverse currencies, navigating costly foreign exchange rates, and unpredictable money transfers. As businesses increasingly embrace a global default, top fintech entrepreneurs are rising to the challenge, addressing cross-border infrastructure issues and offering comprehensive solutions...
Oct 30, 2023•40 min•Ep 748•Transcript available on Metacast Subscribe to The Ben & Marc Show on Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/3SdsfNt Subscribe to The Ben & Marc Show on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3SclPOr Read the full manifesto: https://a16z.com/the-techno-optimist-manifesto/ This past week, Marc released his new vision for the future – “The Techno-Optimist Manifesto”. In an article that has sparked widespread conversation across traditional and social media, Marc challenges the pessimistic narrative surrounding technology today, and instead celebrates ...
Oct 25, 2023•1 hr 7 min•Ep 747•Transcript available on Metacast As VR technology inches forward, completely new experiences loom on the horizon. In today’s episode, we expose listeners to the very real-world use cases already present on these devices, from fitness to education. First up is Gym Class VR, one of the top-rated apps on the Quest. Cofounder, Paul Katsen, shows us how to dribble and dunk in the metaverse, but more importantly, discusses the social impact of VR, the technological prerequisites to get there, and the role of AI as we progress. Follow...
Oct 13, 2023•34 min•Ep 746•Transcript available on Metacast Today’s episode continues our coverage from a16z’s recent AI Revolution event. You’ll hear directly from a16z cofounder Ben Horowitz and Databricks cofounder and CEO, Ali Ghodsi as they answer questions around AI and the enterprise, plus their perspectives on open source, whether benchmarks are BS, and the scramble of universities to take part in the very wave they kicked off decades ago. If you’d like to access all the talks from AI Revolution in full, visit a16z.com/airevolution. Resources: Fi...
Oct 06, 2023•26 min•Ep 745•Transcript available on Metacast Today’s episode continues our coverage from a16z’s recent AI Revolution event. You’ll hear a16z Bio & Health GP Vijay Pande speak with Daphne Koller about the fascinating convergence of machine learning and genomics – two industries that have benefitted decades of investment and progress – which are now colliding head on. Daphne is a prominent innovator at this intersection, as a long-time professor in computer science at Stanford and co-founder of Coursera, who has decided to step back into the...
Oct 03, 2023•24 min•Ep 744•Transcript available on Metacast The AI Revolution is here. In this episode, you’ll learn what the most important themes that some of the world’s most prominent AI builders – from OpenAI, Anthropic, CharacterAI, Roblox, and more – are paying attention to. You’ll hear discussion around the real-world impact of this revolution, on industries ranging from gaming to design, and the considerations around alignment along the way. This footage is from an exclusive event, AI Revolution, that a16z ran in San Francisco recently. If you’d...
Sep 28, 2023•32 min•Ep 743•Transcript available on Metacast The AI Revolution is here. In this episode, you’ll learn what the most important themes that some of the world’s most prominent AI builders – from OpenAI, Anthropic, CharacterAI, Roblox, and more – are paying attention to. You’ll hear about the economics of AI, broad vs specialized models, the importance of UX, and whether we can expect scaling laws to continue. This footage is from an exclusive event, AI Revolution, that a16z ran in San Francisco recently. If you’d like to access all the talks ...
Sep 25, 2023•38 min•Ep 742•Transcript available on Metacast The space industry is evolving rapidly, with the cost of launching payloads to orbit dropping significantly. But who's investing in this sector, and how will it evolve? In this episode, we delve into the transformative journey of the satellite industry with Andy Lapsa, co-founder of Stoke Space. With over a decade of experience at Blue Origin, Andy is now at the forefront of sustainable space travel, pioneering fully reusable rockets. Don’t forget to check out Part 1 in this mini series, where w...
Sep 22, 2023•57 min•Ep 741•Transcript available on Metacast The cost of launching payloads to orbit has dramatically dropped, igniting a space renaissance. In 2022, a record 186 rocket launches (41 more than the previous year!) underscores this shift. In Part 1 of our satellite economy mini-series, we sit down with John Gedmark, co-founder of Astranis, to reflect on today's innovations, who’s on the other side of the satellite market, the capabilities they’re looking for, competition, and their mission to provide internet access to 4 billion underserved ...
Sep 19, 2023•42 min•Ep 740•Transcript available on Metacast with @alive_eth @danboneh @smc90 This week's all-new episode covers the convergence of two important, very top-of-mind trends: AI (artificial intelligence) & blockchains/ crypto. These domains together have major implications for how we all live our lives everyday; so this episode is for anyone just curious about, or already building in the space. The conversation covers topics ranging from deep fakes, bots, and the need for proof-of-humanity in a world of AI; to big data, large language models ...
Sep 13, 2023•1 hr 5 min•Ep 737•Transcript available on Metacast With recent landmark legislation being passed around salary transparency, many companies are playing catch up as they interpret and implement changes. In this episode, members of the a16z People Operations team, Shannon Schiltz and Brandon Cherry explore how companies can best prepare themselves to not just survive, but thrive in this new environment. Topics Covered: 00:00 - Salary transparency legislation 01:52 - The culture around pay transparency 03:39 - What is the legislation? 07:01 - How a...
Sep 05, 2023•40 min•Ep 738•Transcript available on Metacast How many people spend more time organizing their “second brains”, instead of leveraging the information within them? With consumer AI now capable of processing simple language prompts and interfacing with unstructured data, is the landscape of information management on the brink of a transformative evolution? Founders of Mem, Kevin Moody and Dennis Xu, plus writer Nat Eliason, explore what’s gotten in the way of a true second brain, and how AI may finally unlock what “knowledge management” tools...
Aug 31, 2023•48 min•Ep 736•Transcript available on Metacast In this exclusive conversation from a16z’s Bio and Health BUILD Summit, founding partner Ben Horowitz sits down with general partner Jorge Conde. They discuss everything from the inspiration behind Ben’s book The Hard Thing About Hard Things, how the open Internet was secured, the difference between wartime and peacetime CEOs, scaling culture, and understanding how bio & healthcare differs from other forms of technology. Topics Covered: 00:00 - Introduction 02:09 - What are the most important le...
Aug 24, 2023•35 min•Ep 735•Transcript available on Metacast From artificial limbs to memory foam, many inventions have emerged from our quest to understand the cosmos. In this episode we explore cosmic history, space's impact on technology, and the enduring human fascination with space exploration. To take us on this journey is astrophysicist John Mather, a Nobel Prize winner for his work on the COBE satellite and a key figure in the James Webb Space Telescope project. Prepare to be intrigued and left with a sense of wonder about the universe's influence...
Aug 18, 2023•43 min•Ep 734•Transcript available on Metacast With students learning in more places and different ways than we have ever seen, the pace of change in education is dizzying. Can this progress narrow learning gaps exacerbated by COVID-19 or will it fuel divides? How can we make the most of this once-in-a-generation opportunity? Join our panelists from Khan Academy, PrismsVR, and Minecraft Education as we discuss the classroom of the future, and how important technologies including AI, XR, and gaming should play a role in it. Topics Covered: 00...
Aug 14, 2023•40 min•Ep 731•Transcript available on Metacast With software becoming more important than ever, hardware is following suit. As the world generates more data, unlocking the full potential of AI means a constant need for faster and more resilient hardware. But how much does this all really cost? In this final segment of our AI hardware series, we tackle that question head on. Be sure to check part 1 and 2, where we explore the emerging architectures and the momentous competition for AI hardware. Topics Covered: 00:00 – The cost of compute 02:2...
Aug 07, 2023•14 min•Ep 733•Transcript available on Metacast With the world constantly generating more data, unlocking the full potential of AI means a constant need for faster and more resilient hardware. In this episode – the second in our three-part series – we explore the challenges for founders trying to build AI companies. We dive into the delta between supply and demand, whether to own or rent, where moats can be found, and even where open source comes into play. Look out for the rest of our series, where we dive into terminology and technology tha...
Aug 02, 2023•22 min•Ep 732•Transcript available on Metacast In 2011, Marc Andreessen said, “software is eating the world.” And in the last year, we’ve seen a new wave of generative AI, with some apps becoming some of the most swiftly adopted software products of all time. So if software is becoming more important than ever, hardware is following suit. In this episode – the first in our three-part series – we explore the terminology and technology that is now the backbone of the AI models taking the world by storm. We’ll explore what GPUs are, how they wo...
Jul 27, 2023•16 min•Ep 730•Transcript available on Metacast Despite the ease of product building, sustainable growth has become increasingly challenging as many traditional channels no longer deliver the same results. In these challenging times, we explore the remaining growth opportunities. How can we achieve a balance between efficiency, profitability, and growth? Which channels are still relevant and how can they be effectively mastered in 2023? Join us as we discuss these questions with three seasoned experts who have successfully navigated similar c...
Jul 21, 2023•46 min•Ep 729•Transcript available on Metacast Today’s episode is with Mark Cuban, founder of multiple businesses, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, one of the sharks on Shark Tank, and cofounder of the Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company. He is joined by Vijay Pande, founding partner of a16z Bio + Health. Together, they talk market forces in healthcare, the importance of trust to patients, and Mark’s ideas to tackle the Gordian knot that is American healthcare. Listen to our last two episodes on Healthcare x Fintech: When Two Giants Intersect: H...
Jul 12, 2023•41 min•Ep 728•Transcript available on Metacast Remote work is a big, divisive topic right now. Some think it’s the future, while others think it was an experiment gone wrong. But it’s also not the only way to attract top talent. And the equation for doing so has only gotten more confusion as a myriad of trends intersect, from layoffs to emerging technologies like AI. So how can companies navigate this storm and truly attract the talent that matters? Listen in to find out. Topics Covered: 00:00 – Introduction 03:26 – What it takes to attract ...
Jul 06, 2023•43 min•Ep 727•Transcript available on Metacast Self-driving cars have been on the horizon for quite some time. But, they might actually be here. We got to ride around in one all over San Francisco with Waymo’s Chief Product Officer, Saswat Panigrahi. We discussed so much, including the five levels of autonomy, the infamous LIDAR vs video debate, regulation, UX, and the role of AI in fine-tuning these models. But most importantly, if autonomy is here… now what?! Topics Covered: 00:00 - Introduction 03:20 - A first look at Waymo 05:21 - 5 leve...
Jun 26, 2023•56 min•Ep 726•Transcript available on Metacast with @skominers @smc90 In this deep dive and tour through key business concepts, from theory to practice, we cover the topics of strategy, competitive advantage, network effects, moats, and more -- covering both both basic foundations, as well as the tricky nuances in a new world of open source, including web3. In the first half of this discussion, we cover foundational business concepts and questions -- such as the nature of competition, and how it *really* changes in web3; as well as how netwo...
Jun 23, 2023•1 hr 18 min•Ep 725•Transcript available on Metacast This week, a16z’s own cofounder Marc Andreessen published a nearly 7,000-word article that aimed to dispel fears over AI's risks to our humanity – both real and imagined. Instead, Marc elaborates on how AI can "make everything we care about better." In this timely one-on-one conversation with a16z General Partner Martin Casado, Marc discusses how this technology will maximize human potential, why the future of AI should be decided by the free market, and most importantly, why AI won’t destroy th...
Jun 16, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Ep 724•Transcript available on Metacast The holy grail of company building is finding product-market fit. But what most people don’t tell you is that once you’ve found it, product-market fit brings its own set of challenges, particularly when it comes to scaling rapidly and hiring the right executives at the right time. Drawing from their extensive experiences, a16z cofounder Ben Horowitz and Databricks cofounder and CEO Ali Ghodsi sit down to talk about the hardest things about executive hiring and firing, and what is at stake. They ...
Jun 14, 2023•40 min•Ep 723•Transcript available on Metacast 
