Episode description

Shaun Maguire is a Partner at Sequoia Capital. At Sequoia he led their investment into SpaceX, The Boring Co and X among many others. Before Sequoia he co-founded a cybersecurity company called Expanse which Palo Alto Networks acquired for $1B. Before Expanse, Shaun worked at DARPA and was deployed to Afghanistan.

1. Why Iran is the Greatest Evil in the World:

• What specifically makes Iran the greatest danger to the world today?
• How should the US respond to the threat posed by Iran?
• Does the US have to go to war with Iran knowing that they now have nuclear weapons?
• How did the Biden-Harris administration worsen relations both with Iran and Saudi?
• Is Trump the best chance we have of bringing peace and stability to the Middle East?

2. Russia, Ukraine, Gaza and Israel: What is the Right Next Step:

• Does Shaun believe that the US should remove funding from Ukraine?
• How would Trump change the US' relationship with Putin?
• What does Shaun believe is the right next step for the US in Gaza and Israel?
• What does Shaun mean when he says the public have no idea how much crazy s**** happens?

3. Freedom of Speech and DEI: Remnants of the Past:

• Does Shaun believe we live in a society with freedom of speech? How does it differ between the US and Europe?
• Is Shaun negative on the future of Europe? Does he agree with Larry Summers that "it is a museum"?
• How does Shaun evaluate the state of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI)?
• Why does Shaun believe that wokeness and cancel culture is one of the greatest dangers to society?
• When does Shaun believe that transgender becomes a problem in children? Where is the line?

4. The Election: Who Wins and What Happens:

• Does Shaun agree that Kamala is pulling ahead and Trump is now chasing her?
• How does Shaun analyse the chances of Trump winning?
• To what extent is it a real threat that there will be civil unrest if Trump does not win?
• Why does Shaun argue that too much blame is placed on Trump for Jan 6th and he did nothing that Hilary Clinton had not done in disputing prior elections?
• How does Shaun evaluate the appointment of JD Vance? Does Shaun agree with the echoes from the crowd for Trump to remove him?

5. Elon Musk, US Selling All BTC & Inside Sequoia:

• What does Shaun believe are the three qualities that make Elon Musk one of the greatest entrepreneurs of all time?
• Why does Shaun believe that it is a massive mistake for the US to sell all BTC holdings?
• Who is the best picker in Sequoia? Who is the best at sourcing?
• Does Shaun get told off internally for his opinions being shared so freely externally?
• What have been Shaun's biggest lessons from working alongside Doug Leone?

20VC: Sequoia's Shaun Maguire on Will We See WW3 Shortly | Why DEI is a Cancer for Society | Why Iran is the World's Greatest Evil | Why Trump is the Only Hope for Peace in the Middle East | Trump vs Harris: Who Wins & What Happens