Home Podcasts The Full Ratchet (TFR): Venture Capital and Startup Investing Demystified
The Full Ratchet (TFR): Venture Capital and Startup Investing Demystified

The Full Ratchet (TFR): Venture Capital and Startup Investing Demystified

Nick Moran 1010 Episodes Aug 20, 2026

The Full Ratchet (TFR) is a podcast that demystifies venture capital and startup investing. Hosts Nick Moran and Nate Pierotti interview venture capitalists and startup founders to explore how they build successful technology startups. The show provides insights into the world of VC funding and entrepreneurship.

Episodes

Investor Stories 489: Missing Airbnb, Zocdoc, and Prediction Markets — Lessons from the Deals Investors Passed On (Demaree, Peter Davis, Solomon)
Investor Stories 489: Missing Airbnb, Zocdoc, and Prediction Markets — Lessons from the Deals Investors Passed On (Demaree, Peter Davis, Solomon) Aug 20, 2026 05:08 On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Grant Demaree of Onebrief Mark Peter Davis of Interplay Glenn Solomon of Notable Capital Each investor highlights a situation where they decided not to invest, why they passed, and how it played out. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to invest
515. 3 Multi-Billion-Dollar Exits in 1 Year, Lessons from Airbnb, HashiCorp, Slack, and Square, The VC Case for Staying Small, and the Battle Between Open-Weight vs. Closed Models (Glenn Solomon)
515. 3 Multi-Billion-Dollar Exits in 1 Year, Lessons from Airbnb, HashiCorp, Slack, and Square, The VC Case for Staying Small, and the Battle Between Open-Weight vs. Closed Models (Glenn Solomon) Aug 17, 2026 01:01:50 Glenn Solomon of Notable Capital joins Nick to discuss 3 Multi-Billion-Dollar Exits in 1 Year, Lessons from Airbnb, HashiCorp, Slack, and Square, The VC Case for Staying Small, and the Battle Between Open-Weight vs. Closed Models. In this episode we cover: Identifying Unique Investment Opportunities  The Impact of Fund Size on Investment Strategy  Challenges of Overfunding and Market Dynamics
Investor Stories 488: Losing Conviction, Overpaying for Discounts, and Selling Too Early — Lessons from Volition, Acadian, and Interplay (Cheng, Black, Peter Davis)
Investor Stories 488: Losing Conviction, Overpaying for Discounts, and Selling Too Early — Lessons from Volition, Acadian, and Interplay (Cheng, Black, Peter Davis) Aug 13, 2026 06:57 On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Larry Cheng of Volition Capital Ben Black of Akkadian Ventures and Powerlaw Corp Mark Peter Davis of Interplay We asked guests to tell the most important lesson they've learned in their career. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in
Investor Stories 487: Legal Battles, Founder Fraud, and High-Stakes Conflict — Lessons from Investors at Acadian Ventures, Interplay Ventures, and OneBrief (Demaree, Black, Peter Davis)
Investor Stories 487: Legal Battles, Founder Fraud, and High-Stakes Conflict — Lessons from Investors at Acadian Ventures, Interplay Ventures, and OneBrief (Demaree, Black, Peter Davis) Aug 6, 2026 08:36 On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Grant Demaree of Onebrief Ben Black of Akkadian Ventures Powerlaw Corp Mark Peter Davis of Interplay We discuss major conflicts that guests have faced and how they resolved them. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders out
514. AI's Effect on the Demand Curve, Investing in Durable Barriers, Large Cap vs. Small Cap Seed Deals, and Building an Internal AI Machine (Mark Peter Davis)
514. AI's Effect on the Demand Curve, Investing in Durable Barriers, Large Cap vs. Small Cap Seed Deals, and Building an Internal AI Machine (Mark Peter Davis) Aug 3, 2026 48:23 Mark Peter Davis of Interplay joins Nick to discuss AI's Effect on the Demand Curve, Investing in Durable Barriers, Large Cap vs. Small Cap Seed Deals, and Building an Internal AI Machine. In this episode we cover: AI's Role in Interplay's Operations Investment Strategy and Early Signals Impact of AI on Software and Venture Capital Job Displacement and New Opportunities Barriers and Durabil
Investor Stories 486: The Traits of Visionary Founders: Ecosystem-Scale Thinking, Data-Driven Truth-Seeking, and Relentless Customer Experience Design (Blank, Demaree, Cheng)
Investor Stories 486: The Traits of Visionary Founders: Ecosystem-Scale Thinking, Data-Driven Truth-Seeking, and Relentless Customer Experience Design (Blank, Demaree, Cheng) Jul 30, 2026 08:44 On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Steve Blank of the Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation Grant Demaree of Onebrief Larry Cheng of Volition Capital We asked guests to discuss the most visionary founder that they've worked with and what makes them so special. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a
Investor Stories 485: Inside VC Anti-Portfolios: Missing Whatnot, Facebook & MongoDB (Dillon, Cheng, Black)
Investor Stories 485: Inside VC Anti-Portfolios: Missing Whatnot, Facebook & MongoDB (Dillon, Cheng, Black) Jul 23, 2026 06:57 On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Natalie Dillon of Maveron Larry Cheng of Volition Capital Ben Black of Akkadian Ventures and Powerlaw Corp Each investor highlights a situation where they decided not to invest, why they passed, and how it played out. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm c
513. Opening Late-Stage Venture to Everyone, Beating 10-Year Lockups, Why Logos Don't Equal Alpha, and Building Power Law as a Public VC Fund (Ben Black)
513. Opening Late-Stage Venture to Everyone, Beating 10-Year Lockups, Why Logos Don't Equal Alpha, and Building Power Law as a Public VC Fund (Ben Black) Jul 20, 2026 44:26 Ben Black of Co-founder & MD of Akkadian Ventures and CIO of Powerlaw Corp joins Nick to discuss Opening Late-Stage Venture to Everyone, Beating 10-Year Lockups, Why Logos Don't Equal Alpha, and Building Power Law as a Public VC Fund. In this episode we cover: Details of Power Law's Portfolio and Investment Strategy Challenges and Benefits of Power Law Innovation and Evolution in Venture Capi
Investor Stories 484: Why Selling Too Early Hurts Returns, The Leadership Power of Sleep, and The Costliest Investment Mistakes (Tananbaum, Ries, Demaree)
Investor Stories 484: Why Selling Too Early Hurts Returns, The Leadership Power of Sleep, and The Costliest Investment Mistakes (Tananbaum, Ries, Demaree) Jul 16, 2026 06:35 On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Jim Tananbaum of Foresite Capital Eric Ries Author of The Lean Startup Grant Demaree of Onebrief We asked guests to tell the most important lesson they've learned in their career. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outs
Investor Stories 483: Best LP Questions from David Ulevich, Eric Ries, and Larry Cheng: Mission, Partnership Culture, and Enduring Institutions (Ulevitch, Ries, Cheng)
Investor Stories 483: Best LP Questions from David Ulevich, Eric Ries, and Larry Cheng: Mission, Partnership Culture, and Enduring Institutions (Ulevitch, Ries, Cheng) Jul 9, 2026 06:58 On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: David Ulevitch of Andreessen Horowitz Eric Ries author of "The Lean Startup" Larry Cheng of Volition Capital We asked guests to share the best question they've ever been asked by an allocator. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in
512. Is SpaceX Over or Undervalued, Why Consensus Kills, How Chewy Beat Amazon, and the GameStop Saga from a Board Member (Larry Cheng)
512. Is SpaceX Over or Undervalued, Why Consensus Kills, How Chewy Beat Amazon, and the GameStop Saga from a Board Member (Larry Cheng) Jul 6, 2026 42:10 Larry Cheng of Volition Capital joins Nick to discuss Is SpaceX Over or Undervalued, Why Consensus Kills, How Chewy Beat Amazon, and the GameStop Saga from a Board Member. In this episode we cover: E-commerce and AI-Driven Era GameStop's Transformative Moves SpaceX's Market Cap and Future Value AI and Software Industry Impact of AI on Jobs and Companies Volition Capital's Investment Thesis
Investor Stories 482: Key Advice from a Top Investor and Two Unicorn Founders: Why Companies Pick Investors, Authentic Leadership, and Loving the Game (Austin, Schlacks, Demaree)
Investor Stories 482: Key Advice from a Top Investor and Two Unicorn Founders: Why Companies Pick Investors, Authentic Leadership, and Loving the Game (Austin, Schlacks, Demaree) Jul 2, 2026 06:43 On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Ethan Austin of Outside VC Willy Schlacks of EquipmentShare Grant Demaree of Onebrief We asked guests for the most important piece of advice that they'd share with folks early in their venture career. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to inves

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