Guest: Jake Kupperman (@jbkupperman) Company: Level Ventures Location: New York, NY Background: Level is a leading data-driven investment manager focused on technology innovation. Their team thinks about venture investing differently than most, and they apply deep levels of data science to inform their decision-making process. Talking points (five-…

Talking points (five-second version): The old state of venture investing The new state of venture investing Why the market is ripe for new workflows

Guest: Nico Cerdeira (@nicocerdeira) Company: Failory Location: Buenos Aires, Argentina Background: Failory is a content side for founders, and Nico has led their team for the past five years. Their team has mastered their marketing, and their site brings in hundreds of thousands of unique visitors per month. They use programmatic SEO to make this …

Guest: Matt Knight (@JustMattKnight) Company: Proptech Angel Group Location: Atlanta, GA Background: Proptech Angel Group is an angel group out of Atlanta that, as the name suggests, invests in companies shaping the future of real estate. The group has grown to ~200 members, and Matt is the founder and leader of the group. If you invest in proptech…

Guest: Mack Kolarich (@MackKolarich) Company: Assure Background: Assure is the OG and most-used special purpose vehicle platform. They help anybody running SPVs by handling all of the administrative work that you don't have time for. Mack is a VP, and he also leads up their analytics team to leverage data to better understand trends. Talking points…

Guest: Drew Glover (@DrewBailer) Company: Fiat Growth Background: Fiat Growth is an emerging VC focused on supporting and growing the next generation of fintech companies. Talking points (five-second version): Differences in evaluating and investing companies at different stages of the lifecycle Overcoming the hurdles of selling into financial serv…

Guest: Anubhav Srivastava (@anubhav0313) Company: Tactyc Background: Anubhav is the founder and CEO of Tactyc, a venture portfolio construction, performance forecasting, and scenario planning software for data-driven funds. Get started with a 30% discount on their Construction and Solo plans by using the code CONFLUENCE30 at checkout. Talking point…

Guest: Jacob Peters (@J__Cub) Company: House Capital Role: Co-Founder & General Partner Background: House Capital is the venture arm of Launch House. They invest ~$100k checks to support builders of the next Silicon Valley, and all of their portfolio companies get lifetime access into Launch House. Talking points (five-second version): How the youn…

Guest: Mike Suprovici (@msuprovici) Company: VC Lab Role: Head of Acceleration Background: VC Lab is the leading venture capital accelerator for fund managers. The program is 16 weeks, it's free for participants (once accepted), and the goal is to help participants reach their first close. Talking points (five-second version): The types of people t…

Guest: David Kobrosky (@thebrunchguy) Company: Intros AI Role: CEO Background: Intros AI helps automate introductions to help communities build stronger connections. We use their software to help our community make more meaningful relationships, and Confluence premium members can sign up for that service here. Talking points (five-second version): …

Guest summary (10-second version): Guest: Melissa Widner (@melissawidner) Company: Lighter Capital Role: CEO Background: Lighter Capital is a revenue-based financing fund that helps SaaS companies raise capital without giving up ownership. Talking points (five-second version): Revenue-based financing dynamics Ownership preferences of founders How d…

This week we had on Zain Jaffer (@zainjaffer) from Zain Ventures. Zain is a former operator with multiple exits under his belt, the most notable being Vungle's $780 million acquisition by Blackstone in 2019. Zain now primarily focuses on his family office, Zain Ventures, and he invests primarily in real estate and proptech companies. In this talk, …

This week we had on Alexa Grabell (@alexa_grabell) from Pocus. Pocus is a product-led sales platform that helps GTM teams use data to improve customer acquisition, conversion, and expansion. Alexa is the co-founder & CEO, and she just raised $23mm to fuel their next phase of growth. In this talk, we cover: Branding as a product-led growth company C…

This week we had on Nick Moran (@TheFullRatchet) with New Stack Ventures. New Stack is a Chicago-based funds that invests in outsiders. They aim to back pre-seed and seed founders working on problems within software, fintech, protech, healthcare, supply chain, and e-commerce. Nick is the managing partner of the fund, and he is also the founder and …

This week we had on Kirby Porter (@KirbyPorter_) with New Game Labs. Kirby started her career in venture, and switched over the operating side recently to launch New Game Labs to help athletes learn, connect, and create in web3. In this talk, we cover: Figuring out your "why" NIL deals and their impact on college athletics Layering on community to …

This week we had on Corey Walters with Here. Here let's anybody invest into vacation rentals like stocks. They handle all the administrative work; investors earn passive income. We love this company, and we're currently syndicating a small allocation into their upcoming round (to view our memo and participate, you'll have to back us syndicate first…

This week we had on Jared Fuller (@fullerfreedom) with BuiltFirst. BuiltFirst helps communities spin up vendor marketplaces to help community members make better software decisions. We're one of the 200+ communities they have onboarded (we use them for our perk board), and they have already created $30mm in software savings. Jared runs partnerships…

This week we had on Nik Talreja (@niktalreja) from Sydecar. Sydecar is a frictionless deal execution platform for venture investors. Their platform handles back-office operations, automating banking, compliance, contracts, and reporting so that customers can focus on making deals and building relationships. In this talk, we cover: Why more junior i…

This week we had on Fed (@foliofed) with Hive Index. Hive Index is an aggregation tool that let's anybody find the right online communities to join. Fed is a nomad, a bootstrapped founder, and he also runs another software company when he's not busy with Hive Index. In this talk, we cover: Things that great communities do well Community-focused bus…

This week we had on Dustin McCaffree (@terribledustin) with Marvel. Marvel helps businesses outsource their content creation, and it specializes in blogs and other forms of written content. We use them for a lot of our content, and we would recommend them to anybody reading this. In this talk, we cover: Winning the SEO game Why every company is bec…

This week we had on Tyler Denk (@denk_tweets) of beehiiv. Beehiiv is an all-in-one newsletter solution that helps writers create better content is keep more of their revenue. In this talk, we cover: Creating an "us vs. them" mentality Processes to ship product faster Why free is not always better

This week we had on Michael Quigley at SpinCar. SpinCar is an automative merchandising platform for automative dealers, wholesalers, and OEMs. The company has grown to millions in recurring revenue, and Michael acts as the president while also serving as a managing partner at StartFast. In this talk, we cover: Investing with an operator mindset Par…

This week we had on Kenny Rose with FranShares. FranShares makes it possible for anybody to build passive income through franchise investing. Their team is planning to open up access soon, and you can sign up for the waitlist for free using this link. In this talk, we cover: The appeal of cash flow compared to speculative bets Creating hype before …

This week we had on Jake (@jjbarry17) and Kai (@hankai1998) from Pallet. Pallet is building hiring infrastructure for communities and creators. We use it for our job board, we love the product, and we wanted to bring on their team to show them some love for helping us add value to this community. In this talk, we cover: The past, current, and futur…

This week we had on Amir Kabir (@AmirKabir99) at AV8. AV8 is an early-stage fund that focuses on healthcare, enterprise, financial services and deep-tech. Within his role, Amir primarily covers fintech and insurtech. In this talk, we cover: The four things that matter as a VC Finding product-market fit as an insurtech business Looking for honesty w…

This week we had on Kristofer Martin (@K_Swizzy20) from Will Ventures. Will is an early-stage fund that invests in consumer, health, and media companies. Their entire team is former college athletes, and they look to back founders with the same type of background. In this talk, we discuss: successful traits of athletes-turned-founders applying skil…

This week we had on Phil Nadel (@NadelPhil) from Forefront Venture Partners. Forefront is one of the largest and most successful syndicates on AngelList. Phil is the host of a popular podcast called The Pitch, and his partner is also an investor on Shark Tank. Their syndicate focuses on backing revenue-generating companies that they have deep convi…

This week we had on Kai Cash (@kuaicash) at Primary Venture Partners. Primary is one of the best seed funds in the world. They focus on backing the best founders in New York, and this approach has resulted in their companies raising follow-on capital nearly 90% of the time. Kai is on the investment team, and he spends his time focusing on climate a…

This week we had on Helene Servillon (@HServillon) from JourneyOne Ventures. JourneyOne is a first-time fund focusing on backing cannabis companies poised for high-velocity growth. Helene is the founding partner of the fund, and she does everything within her role. In this talk, we discuss: Problems that alcohol, pharma, and CPG don’t address What …

This week we had on Justine Humenansky (@j_humenansky) with RabbitHole. Justine has worked as an investor at Dorm Room Fund, First Round Capital, Playground Global, and she recently switched over to RabbitHole to help the next era of people gain skills for participating in the new digital economy. In this talk, we discuss: Networks based on ownersh…

This week we had on Abigail Tisch at RRE Ventures. RRE is one of the top funds in the world investing in early-stage, category-defining startups across all sectors and across the country. Abigail works on their investment team, and she focuses on opportunities within mobility, climate, supply chain, and women’s health. In this talk, we discuss: Lea…

This week we had on Victor Pascucci (@victorpascucci3) at Energy Capital Ventures. ECV is a first-time fund focusing on the ESG imperatives and the transformation of the natural gas industry. As a firm, they leverage strong relationships with strategic limited partners in the utilities industry to provide a competitive advantage to their portfolio …

This week we had on Andrew Gazdecki (@agazdecki) at MicroAcquire. MicroAcquire has become the marketplace for startup M&A, and since launching a year ago, it has already helped facilitate 500+ exits. Andrew has built up a brand as one of the most-liked people within tech, and we had a ton of fun picking his brain on a number of different topics. In…

This week we had on Nicole (Williams) Ruiz (@nwilliams030) at Compound. Compound is a thesis-driven seed stage venture firm investing in bleeding edge technology on the brink of commercialization. Within her role, Nicole focuses on finding and supporting frontier tech companies at the seed. In this talk, we discuss: Narrative-driven investing Ingre…

This week we had on Hanel Baveja (@HanelBaveja) at Union Square Ventures. USV is one of the best venture capital funds in the world, and since 2003, they have invested in over 100 companies that use the power of the internet to re-shape markets. Within her role, Hanel focuses primarily on opportunities within fintech and digital wellness, and she a…

This week we had on Justin Smith at Recharge Ventures. Recharge is a first-time fund that is betting on consumer technology within emerging markets. Justin is a friend of ours, an advisor to our syndicate, and he’s one of the smartest and most genuine guys we’ve met since starting Confluence. In this talk, we discuss: Starting a fund from scratch T…

This week we had on Mel Strong (@girlstrong) at NEXT Ventures. NEXT is a first-time fund designed to invest in sports, fitness, nutrition, and wellness. Mel is one of three managing partners at NEXT, and before joining the team, she spent the bulk of her career building and designing products at Nike. In this talk, we discuss: Transitioning from a …

This week we had on Lolita Taub (@lolitataub) at The Community Fund. Lolita is a force of nature, and she is universally loved by everyone in the startup world. In her role at The Community Fund, she focuses on backing community-led businesses that create outsized returns. In this talk, we discuss: Productizing yourself and streamlining requests th…

This week we had on Vinay Iyengar (@VinIyengar) of Two Sigma Ventures. Two Sigma is a multi-strategy fund that invests from seed to Series B across a number of industries. Vinay helps lead up the San Francisco office, and he focuses on early-stage investments in enterprise software, machine learning, marketplaces, and infrastructure. In this talk, …

This week we had on Aashay Sanghvi (@aashaysanghvi_) of Haystack. Haystack is an early-stage fund that backs outlier founders at the earliest stages. Some of their portfolio companies include DoorDash, Instacart, Figma, Carta, and OpenDoor to name a few. Aashay is one of the three members of the team, and he focuses primarily on dev tools, fintech,…

This week we had on Ali Jamal (@MrAliJamal) of First Check Ventures. First Check is one of the largest and most active syndicates on AngelList, and Ali is the founder and sole member of the team. Since launching in July of 2020, the group has already invested in 25+ companies from around the world. In this talk, we discuss: Developing a product min…

This week we had on David Teten (@dteten, teten.com) of Versatile VC. Versatile is a different type of VC that focuses on capital-efficient startups. Of the Inc. 5000 companies, only 6.5% raised money from VCs and 7.7% raised from angels. Versatile is VC for the other 93%. Versatile provides free an exclusive database tracking providers of free mon…

This week we had on Yohei Nakajima (@yoheinakajima) of Untapped Capital. Untapped is an early-stage fund that bets on overlooked founders. Yohei has built up a massive network through previous experiences at Disney, Techstars, and Scrum Ventures, and part of Untapped’s strategy involves leveraging that network to help his portfolio companies succee…

This week we had on Ariana Thacker of Conscience VC. Conscience is an early-stage fund investing at the intersection of consumer and science. The fund backs pre-seed and seed companies within this thesis, and it tries to be the first check written when it has the chance. Ariana is the founding partner of the fund, and she wears many hats in her rol…

This week we had on John Smothers (@smothers_john) from Acrew Capital. Acrew is a multi-strategy fund focused on modernizing security and infrastructure, rebuilding financial services, reimagining the future of work, better connecting datasets, and activated communities. Within his role, John focuses on sourcing pre-seed companies that match the fu…

This week we had on Tali Vogelstein (@talivog) from Avid Ventures. Avid just closed on one of the largest first-time funds ever raised, and the firm is looking to win allocation into the best deals by taking a more collaborative approach. Within her role, Tali focuses on investing across consumer internet, fintech, and software businesses across th…

This week we had on Mikal Khoso (@mikalkhoso) from Wavemaker Partners. Wavemaker is a multi-strategy fund based in LA and Singapore that invests globally across enterprise, consumer, and digital media opportunities. Within his role, Mikal focuses on emerging markets, and he documents a lot of his findings through writing at Emergent. In this talk, …

This week we had on Josh Schlisserman (@jslishi) of Behind Genius Ventures. Behind Genius is generalist fund that focuses on product-led growth companies. Josh is the founding partner of the fund, and he handles LPs and fundraising along with sourcing, evaluating, and supporting the companies they work with. In this talk, we discuss: the rise of op…

This week we had on Halle Kaplan-Allen (@____hka) of AngelList. AngelList is the OG platform for startups, angel investors, and job-seekers looking to work in tech. Halle has built a unique skillset as an operator, no-code wizard, and Twitter personality, and we wanted to have her on to pick her brain on a wide range of topics. In this talk, we dis…

This week we had on Katie Shea (@katiesheasays) of Divergent Capital. Divergent is a generalist fund that prefers to invest at the pre-seed. Katie is one of the founding partners of the fund, and within her role, she uses her previous experiences within marketing to help her portfolio commercialize and scale. In this talk, we discuss: Emerging mana…