Summation with Auren Hoffman
Summation with Auren Hoffman is a podcast that explores non-obvious ideas shaping the world. Host Auren Hoffman, a seasoned entrepreneur and investor, interviews leaders from tech, business, markets, and government. The show is designed for the relentlessly curious, offering deep insights and thought-provoking discussions. Auren is CEO of NQB8, GP at Flex Capital, and former CEO of SafeGraph and LiveRamp.
Episodes
Fmr. Senator Cory Gardner: why the AI race is won on boring infrastructure and how China wins by making America hate AI
Cory Gardner is a former U.S. Senator and Congressman from Colorado and was one of the Senate's leading Taiwan and China experts, chairing the Foreign Relations subcommittee on East Asia and authoring the Taipei Act. He is now president and CEO of NCTA, the Internet & Television Association, whose members built the nation's largest broadband platform.In this episode of Summation, Cor
CodeRabbit CEO Harjot Gill on software's new bottleneck and zero to $50m ARR in 2 years
Harjot Gill is the co-founder and CEO of CodeRabbit, the AI code review company that became the most installed AI app on GitHub and GitLab. Over about two years, CodeRabbit went from zero to over $50M in ARR and a $1B+ valuation. It is his third startup.In this episode of Summation, Harjot and Auren discuss:Why the bottleneck in software just moved from writing code to reviewing itWhy mature compa
Moritz Baier-Lentz on why the future of AI runs on video games
Moritz Baier-Lentz is one of the foremost investors in gaming, AI, and frontier technologies—including companies like OpenAI, SpaceX, Palantir, Etched, Decart, and Recursive. He founded Goldman Sachs's global gaming practice and was previously a partner, IC member, and head of gaming at Lightspeed. Moritz is part of the founding team of General Intuition, an AI research lab training agents on
OpenAI Chief Economist Ronnie Chatterji: measuring the greatest technology of our time
Ronnie Chatterji is the Chief Economist at OpenAI, where he leads research on how AI reshapes growth, jobs, and the economy. He is also an economics professor at Duke. He was previously the White House CHIPS coordinator implementing the $52B CHIPS Act, and before that the chief economist at the US Department of Commerce.In this episode of Summation, Ronnie and Auren discuss:The three things people
Anthropic’s Felix Rieseberg: why AI wins a Nobel before a Pulitzer
Felix Rieseberg leads engineering for Claude Cowork and Claude Code Desktop at Anthropic. Before that he led desktop and web infrastructure at Notion and built software at Stripe, Slack, and Microsoft. In this episode of Summation, Felix and Auren discuss:The next AI step function: going from solving a problem to owning a responsibilityWhy AI will win many Nobel prizes before it wins a single Puli
Fifth Wall CEO Brendan Wallace: the data center land grab and the most stable asset on earth you still can't buy
Brendan Wallace is the Founder, CEO & CIO of Fifth Wall, the largest investment firm focused on technology for the built environment, with ~$3B in capital, the firm is driving the growth of nearly 170 companies, backing category-defining PropTech leaders such as Opendoor, Procore, Blend, Hippo, and Bilt Rewards. It's supported by ~115 of the world's largest real estate owner-operator
Striveworks CEO Jim Rebesco on drone swarms, AI for warfighters, and the end of air superiority
Jim Rebesco is the co-founder and CEO of Striveworks, an AI ops company deployed across the US Army, Navy, and combatant commands. In April, Striveworks announced a $70M enterprise agreement with the Pentagon, giving nearly a million defense personnel access to its platform. Jim was previously a partner at Virtu Financial, a pioneering high-frequency trading firm.In this episode of Summation, Jim
Short-seller Carson Block: a fugitive CEO, Libyan spies, and $50B fraud
Carson Block is the founder of Muddy Waters Research, one of the defining activist short-selling firms of the last decade and a half. Since 2010, Muddy Waters has published forensic research exposing accounting fraud at publicly traded companies across China, Europe, and the US and has been right enough times that 11 companies have been delisted as a result.In this episode of Summation, Carson and
Facet CEO Anders Jones on the biggest heist in finance, how advisors really sell permission, and the great boomer wealth transfer
Anders Jones is the CEO and co-founder of Facet, a fintech company built to bring high-quality, flat-fee financial advice to an underserved market: the mass affluent. Facet has raised over $250M and manages more than $7B. Anders has seen the real finances of tens of thousands of households.In this episode of Summation, Anders and Auren discuss:why the percentage-of-assets fee is the greatest heist
Charles Duhigg on the writing AI can't touch, what GLP-1s really do to your brain, and the serendipity tax
Charles Duhigg is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and staff writer at The New Yorker. He is the author of The Power of Habit, Smarter Faster Better, and Supercommunicators. His work focuses on the science of habits, productivity, decision-making, and human connection.In this episode of Summation, Charles and Auren discuss:why producing the words is only 10% of an author's job, and the 90%
SignalFire CEO Chris Farmer on why venture funds now last 20 years and the hiring boom behind the layoffs
Chris Farmer is the founder and CEO of SignalFire, an early stage venture firm managing over $3 billion. In this episode of Summation, Chris and Auren discuss:why the time to return 1x has stretched to 9+ years and funds are lasting 20 yearsthe engineering hiring boom hiding behind the layoff headlinesthe five functions of a VC firm and the one place data helps the leastwhy almost all conventional
GTMnow Podcast | Your First VC Meeting Will Be Agent-to-Agent
This episode is a rebroadcast of Auren's appearance on the GTMnow podcast ---------------------------------------------------Auren Hoffman (Flex Capital) joins the GTMnow podcast to share some of the most contrarian takes in tech today, from why AI moats are gone, to why your next VC meeting will be with a bot, to why AI is secretly going to trigger a baby boom.In this episode:Why Auren runs
Serval CEO Jake Stauch: talent is the only moat left, hiring founders as FDEs, and building a $1B company with your wife and a newborn
Jake Stauch is the co-founder and CEO of Serval, the AI-native enterprise service management platform. Serval was founded in 2024 and has already raised over $125M across rounds led by Redpoint and Sequoia at a $1B+ valuation. Before Serval, Jake spent five years on the product team at Verkada and earlier founded NeuroPlus, a brain-sensing hardware company that made video games for kids with ADHD.
Perplexity Chief Business Officer Dmitry Shevelenko on why curiosity is AI’s scarcest resource
Dmitry Shevelenko is Chief Business Officer at Perplexity. He previously co-founded Tortoise, a robotics and commerce automation startup and held business development roles at Uber, LinkedIn, and Meta. He also serves on the board of Lazard. In this episode of Summation, Dmitry and Auren discuss:Why CEOs and executives are Perplexity Computer’s biggest power users and what that says about who wins
Fundrise CEO Ben Miller: VCX, Roaring Kitty's revenge, and AI killing the office
Ben Miller is the co-founder and CEO of Fundrise, an alternative asset management platform that gives individual investors access to private real estate, private credit, and venture capital. In March 2026, he listed the Fundrise Innovation Fund on the NYSE under the ticker VCX, one of the first publicly traded venture capital funds. VCX gives retail investors direct exposure to private companies l
Six-time CIA Station Chief Ralph Goff on the new doctrine of war
Ralph Goff is a 35-year veteran of the CIA, having served as a six-time Chief of Station across Europe, the Middle East, and Central and South Asia. During his career, he also held the roles of Chief of Operations for Europe and Eurasia and Chief of the CIA's National Resources Division. Since leaving government, he advises on national security issues and speaks publicly on intelligence, geop
Glenn Youngkin on governing like a CEO, the AI power crisis, and why every operator should run for office
Glenn Youngkin was the 74th Governor of Virginia. Before politics, he spent nearly 25 years at The Carlyle Group, one of the largest private equity firms in the world, where he rose to co-CEO. During his four-year term, Virginia generated $10B in surplus revenue, delivered $9B in tax relief, attracted $156B in capital investment, and became one of the first states in the country to mandate cell-ph
Thumbtack CEO Marco Zappacosta on why trades are AI-proof, the trillion-dollar home services market, and why software stopped being a capital asset
Marco Zappacosta is the co-founder and CEO of Thumbtack, the home services marketplace he started in 2008. Thumbtack connects homeowners to 300,000+ local service professionals, with nearly 100M projects started on the platform. In this episode of Summation, Marco and Auren discuss:Why home services is bigger than groceries but barely any is booked onlineHow AI collapsed Thumbtack's product p
Eric Ries on why "bad governance" outperforms, the case against shareholder primacy, and AI's Chernobyl moment
Eric Ries created the Lean Startup methodology and authored the bestselling book of the same name, which has sold over a million copies. He's also the founder and executive chairman of the Long-Term Stock Exchange, the co-founder of Answer AI (an AI R&D lab), and the author of the upcoming book Incorruptible, releasing May 26th.In this episode of Summation, Eric and Auren discuss:why &quo
Fmr. German Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg on NATO, nuclear energy, and how to disagree without blood
Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg became Germany's youngest Minister of Defense in history, and previously served as Minister of Economics and Technology. He is the chairman and founder of Spitzberg Partners, an investment and advisory firm, a bestselling author, and co-founder of Open Minds Media, where he produces films and podcasts. He co-hosts one of Germany's most popular podcasts.In this
Fmr Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger on chips, China, and lessons from Andy Grove
Pat Gelsinger is the former CEO of Intel and longtime Silicon Valley leader. He joins Auren to unpack the forces reshaping technology, geopolitics and leadership.After more than 30 years at Intel (including serving as its first CTO) and nearly a decade as CEO of VMware, Pat now sits at the intersection of deep tech and purpose-driven innovation as executive chair and head of technology at Gloo an
Vlad Tenev and Tudor Achim on mathematical superintelligence, why math is harder than code for LLMs, and the end of buggy software
Vlad Tenev (Robinhood co-founder/CEO) and Tudor Achim (former helm.ai CTO) are the founders of Harmonic, an AI lab pioneering the path toward mathematical superintelligence. Together, they developed Aristotle, a model that eliminates hallucinations by reasoning in Lean code rather than natural language. By shifting from probabilistic guesses to formal logic, Aristotle produces 100% verified mathem
Retired 4-star General John Allen on Iran, AI hyperwar, and Taiwan’s future
John Allen is a retired four-star Marine Corps general who commanded 150,000 US and NATO troops in Afghanistan and built a 65-nation coalition as Special Presidential Envoy to the Global Coalition Against ISIS. After retiring from the military, he led the Brookings Institution as its president. He co-invented the term "hyperwar," holds five AI patents, and co-authored Turning Point: Poli
Adrian Aoun on healthcare as a product, Apple's AI problem, and why you should have kids now
Adrian Aoun helped found Torch, a health data platform that was acquired by OpenAI earlier this year. He's also the co-founder of Seneca, which raised $60 million to build autonomous drones for wildfire suppression. Adrian previously founded Forward Health. He previously led special projects for Larry Page at Google, where he founded Sidewalk Labs and helped build Google's AI division.In
Tod Sacerdoti (Flex GP and Pipedream CEO) on seed at scale and SaaS mispricing
Tod Sacerdoti is the CEO and co-founder of Pipedream, which recently sold to Workday. Tod is also a general partner at Flex Capital, where he's invested in over 400 companies including Chime, Vercel, Replit, CodeRabbit, Mercury, and many others. He previously founded BrightRoll, a programmatic video advertising platform that sold to Yahoo for $640 million in 2014. In this episode of Summation
Nextdoor CEO Nirav Tolia on bowling alone, AI bots, and why the heartland is happier than the coasts
Nirav Tolia is the co-founder and CEO of Nextdoor (NYSE: NXDR), the neighborhood social network with over 105 million users across 350,000 communities worldwide. After stepping down as CEO in 2018, he returned to lead the company in 2024.In this episode of Summation, Nirav and Auren discuss:Why success kills innovationThe death of physical communityWhy Nextdoor had to change their stock tickerInsi
Lt. General Mike Fenzel (Ret.) on bad data, bad experts, and why we can’t exit wars
Lieutenant General Mike Fenzel recently retired as a three-star Army General. He most recently served as the United States Security Coordinator for Israel and the Palestinian Authority, navigating one of the world’s most complex geopolitical landscapes. His career is defined by high-stakes leadership, ranging from the immediate aftermath of the September 11th attacks, where he was stationed in the
Martin Shkreli on prison, beating Bloomberg, and being hated
Martin Shkreli is the co-founder of DL Software, the parent company of Godel Terminal, a Bloomberg competitor for financial data. He previously founded the biotech companies Retrophin and Turing Pharmaceuticals and the hedge fund MSMB Capital Management. In this episode of Summation, Martin and Auren discuss:The structural reasons fintech is less competitive than other industriesHow drug discovery
World of DaaS is now Summation
World of DaaS is now Summation with Auren Hoffman. While we’re proud of our roots in the data world, our conversations have evolved. Summation better reflects our obsession with finding the non-obvious ideas that shape our world.What’s changing? Just the name. You’ll still get the same insights from the world’s most influential founders, investors, and thinkers. If you’re already a subscriber, you
Turing CEO Jonathan Siddharth - The $30 Trillion Knowledge Work Market, Training Frontier AI Models and Building Stage Five Culture
Jonathan Siddharth is the founder and CEO of Turing, a $2.2 billion AI company that provides coding and reasoning data to train frontier models for OpenAI, Google, Meta, Anthropic and more. Turing’s mission is to accelerate superintelligence to drive economic growth.In this episode of World of DaaS, Jonathan and Auren discuss:How Turing creates expert data for frontier modelsWhy SaaS is dying in t
Chapter CEO Cobi Blumenfeld-Gantz - medicare complexity, $100B fraud and how tech can fix it
Cobi Blumenfeld-Gantz is the co-founder and CEO of Chapter, an AI-powered Medicare navigation platform valued at $1.5 billion that helps seniors navigate coverage and enrollment.In this episode of World of DaaS, Cobi and Auren discuss:Why medicare fraud costs over $100 billion annuallyHow 24,000 medicare plans create impossible choices for seniorsWhy government tech keeps failing with Accenture co
Industry Ventures Founder Hans Swildens - how secondaries became the dominant path for VC exits
Hans Swildens is a partner and Head of Industry Ventures at Goldman Sachs. Industry Ventures is one of the pioneers in the secondary market for venture capital, managing several billion in assets across LP stakes, direct secondaries, and primary fund investments. In October of 2025, Goldman Sachs announced they were acquiring Industry Ventures in a deal worth over $900 million dollars. In this epi
Economist Glenn Hubbard - The Fed’s dilemma, AI productivity, and why experts lost trust
Glenn Hubbard is Dean Emeritus and Russell L. Carson Professor of Finance and Economics at Columbia Business School. He served as Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2003 and was Deputy Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy at the U.S. Treasury. He has served on the boards of BlackRock, ADP, MetLife, and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.In this
Rembrand CEO Omar Tawakol - why product placement works better than traditional ads
Omar Tawakol is the CEO and founder of Rembrand, an AI-powered virtual product placement company. He founded BlueKai, a data management platform acquired by Oracle for $400M+ in 2014, and Voicera, an AI meeting assistant acquired by Cisco in 2019. He currently serves on the board of The Trade Desk and as a General Partner at super{set}.In this episode of World of DaaS, Omar and Auren discuss:Why v
We the Builders Podcast l From LiveRamp ($RAMP) to NQB8: Auren Hoffman’s Founder Journey
This episode is a rebroadcast of Auren's appearance on the We the Builders podcast. We The Builders: https://twitter.com/WeThe_BuildersHost Suffiyan Malik: https://twitter.com/suffiyanmalikkSubstack: https://wethebuilders.us---------------------------------------------------This week I sat down with Auren Hoffman founder, builder, prolific investor, and one of the most connected people in Sil
FreightWaves CEO Craig Fuller - why pricing data businesses trade at 30x EBIT despite 4% growth
Craig Fuller is the founder and CEO of FreightWaves, a freight media company, and SONAR, a supply chain data platform. He’s also the founder of Firecrown, which owns more than 50 publications across aviation, marine, and supply chain sectors, and he recently released his first book, Moving the World: How the Supply Chain’s Evolution Affects Us All. In this episode of World of DaaS, Craig and Auren
Wispr Flow CEO Tanay Kothari - voice AI deep dive
Tanay Kothari is the co-founder and CEO of Wispr Flow, a voice-first AI assistant that recently raised $56 million in Series A funding.In this episode of World of DaaS, Tanay and Auren discuss:Why Apple and Google's dictation tools failWhat AI-first devices will actually look likePivoting from hardware to softwareVoice replacing nearly three-quarters of keyboard usageLooking for more tech, da
The LM Brief: India as the Next Epicenter of AI?
Microsoft is investing $17.5 billion to turn India into a global AI powerhouse — from training 20 million workers to building new data infrastructure. We break down what this means for the future of AI talent, innovation, and digital sovereignty. Listen to this short podcast summary, powered by NotebookLM.
YipitData CEO Vin Vacanti - why hedge funds dominate data usage (and corporations don't)
Vinicius Vacanti is the co-founder and CEO of YipitData, an alternative data intelligence platform that analyzes billions of consumer data points daily for institutional investors and corporations. The company reached unicorn status with a $475 million Series E from Carlyle Group in 2021.In this episode of World of DaaS, Vin and Auren discuss:Why hedge funds dominate data usage versus corporations
The LM Brief: The Syntax Illusion
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief: MIT’s new research reveals how large language models can be fooled by their own grammar. By prioritizing sentence structure over sense, these systems risk producing confident but misleading outputs—and even ignoring built-in safety rules. Listen to this short podcast summary, powered by NotebookLM.
Patrick McGee - author of Apple in China – how Apple and China built each other
Patrick McGee is the author of Apple in China, which was named one of the most notable books of the year by the New York Times and the Washington Post. The book is a deeply reported investigation into how Apple and China built each other over 25 years—and what that means for technology, supply chains, and geopolitics. Patrick has been a reporter with the Financial Times since 2013.In this episode
Dave Morin, Offline Ventures - how venture studios work
Dave Morin is co-founder and managing partner of Offline Ventures, a venture fund and studio backed by Apple as anchor investor. He was an early employee at Facebook, then founded the mobile social network Path.In this episode of World of DaaS, Dave and Auren discuss:Why Meta's AI ads work while Netflix, Amazon, and Spotify fail at recommendationsHow Offline runs its venture fund/studio hybri
The LM Brief: Why Many AI Projects Fail
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief highlights a Forbes piece on enterprise AI infrastructure, where the author examines why data pipelines, not the models themselves, are becoming the real bottleneck. Listen to this short podcast summary, powered by NotebookLM.
Azeem Azhar of Exponential View - AI, hyperscalers, reshaping US GDP
Azeem Azhar is the founder of Exponential View, a newsletter and research platform on emerging technology read by over 130,000 executives and policymakers globally, and author of the bestselling book The Exponential Age.In this episode of World of DaaS, Azeem and Auren discuss:Diagnosing an AI bubbleData centers driving 33% of US GDP growthWhether energy will constrain AI before capital doesCircul
The LM Brief: Love Beats Hate
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief highlights Auren Hoffman’s latest piece, where he explores how emotion—not information—drives behavior across platforms, politics, and AI systems. The piece examines why algorithms amplify strong emotional signals, how “love” consistently outperforms “hate” in outcomes, and what this means for builders designing the next generation of data-driven products.Listen
Bolt.new CEO Eric Simons — one of the fastest growing AI companies in the world
Eric Simons is the CEO and co-founder of StackBlitz, the company behind Bolt.new, which reached $40 million ARR in five months after launching in October 2024. Bolt.new is an AI-powered platform that allows anyone to build, edit, and deploy full-stack web applications directly in the browser.In this episode of World of DaaS, Eric and Auren discuss:The explosive growth from $0 to $40M ARRPioneering
The LM Brief: The DaaS Renewal Landscape
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief explores our latest roundtable, where data leaders discussed the evolving challenges of retaining and expanding enterprise customers in an increasingly competitive data economy. The conversation explored how companies are mitigating churn, proving ROI, and deepening customer value in the era of AI.Listen to this short podcast summary, powered by NotebookLM.
Flock Safety CEO Garrett Langley - Law Enforcement's Data Problem: Why 50% of Murders Go Unsolved
Garrett Langley is the co-founder and CEO of Flock Safety, an Atlanta-based public safety technology company recently valued at $7.5 billion. Flock manufactures hardware like license plate recognition cameras, drones, and gunshot detection systems, as well as software used by thousands of communities and law enforcement agencies across the U.S.In this episode of World of DaaS, Garrett and Auren di
The LM Brief: 46ers, 55ers, 81ers, and today
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief explores Auren Hoffman’s latest Substack post, 46ers, 55ers, 81ers, and today - a fascinating look at how generational ambition and the rise of AI are shaping the next wave of builders. Auren draws parallels between past innovation eras and the new generation driving today’s tech transformation.Listen to this short podcast summary, powered by NotebookLM.
Venturehouse Group CEO Mark Ein - moneyball for CEOs, real estate data & buying sports teams
Mark Ein is the founder, chairman and CEO of Venturehouse Group and has been involved in the founding or early stages of six companies worth over $1 billion. He also served as Chairman of the President's Export Council, is Executive Chairman of Kastle Systems, owns the DC Open, and was a key partner in the $6.05 billion acquisition of the Washington Commanders.In this episode of World of DaaS
The LM Brief: The Ethics of Agentic AI - Balancing Autonomy and Trust
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief explores The New Stack’s article on the ethical challenges of agentic AI systems that can act autonomously. As organizations hand off more decisions to machines, questions around accountability, transparency, and data governance are becoming central to building and maintaining trust.Listen to this short podcast summary, powered by NotebookLM.
Astroten Founder Richard Shotton - why your A/B tests fail and how behavioral science can fix them
Richard Shotton is the founder of Astroten and author of several bestselling books on marketing, including The Choice Factory, The Illusion of Choice, and most recently Hacking the Human Mind, co-authored with MichaelAaron Flicker. He specializes in applying behavioral science to marketing and has worked with brands like Google, Meta, BrewDog, and Barclays.In this episode of World of DaaS, Richard
The LM Brief: The Energy Bottleneck Behind AI’s Growth
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief explores Big Data Wire's article on how electricity, not data or compute, is emerging as the ultimate constraint on AI progress. As global data center demand surges, performance per watt efficiency and access to reliable power are becoming the new competitive edge. Some nations and companies are pursuing nuclear-powered computation hubs to secure a strategic
Clay COO Varun Anand - why cutting-edge GTM teams are moving away from traditional CRMs
Varun Anand is the co-founder and Head of Operations at Clay, a GTM platform that helps over 10,000 companies with data enrichment and sales outreach. Clay recently raised a $100M Series C funding at a $3.1B valuation.In this episode of World of DaaS, Varun and Auren discuss:The shift from seat-based to usage-based pricingWhy LinkedIn's data remains underutilizedHow AI agents are replacing tr
The LM Brief: How Leaders Can Close the AI Intelligence Gap
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief covers a World Economic Forum insight that scaling AI is an organizational challenge, not a technological one, requiring data maturity, strong governance, and an integrated approach tied to core business outcomes. Culture and workforce transformation are also essential for real ROI.Listen to this short podcast summary, powered by NotebookLM.
Beniamin Mincu CEO, MultiversX - building the trust layer for AI
Beniamin Mincu is the CEO and co-founder of MultiversX, a next-generation blockchain protocol used by governments, enterprises, and developers. He previously co-founded Metachain Capital, which was an early investor in projects like Polkadot and Binance. He’s also the host of the Full Shard Podcast and one of the most followed voices in Web3.In this episode of World of DaaS, Beniamin and Auren dis
The LM Brief: How to Actually Look for a Job (Without Wasting Everyone’s Time)
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief covers Auren Hoffman’s guide to running a job search like a full-time commitment. Instead of vague networking, he lays out a five-step process that stresses clarity, specificity, and creating value before asking for help. From defining target roles to demonstrating impact with real work, the approach reframes job hunting as a strategic, disciplined pursuit.Listen
OpenGov CEO Zac Bookman - GovTech, data access, and AI transformation
Zac Bookman is the co-founder and CEO of OpenGov, which provides cloud software and AI solutions to over 2,000 government agencies across the United States. In February 2024, OpenGov was acquired by Cox Enterprises for $1.8 billion.In this episode of World of DaaS, Zac and Auren discuss:Making public data truly accessibleGrowth vs sustainability in GovTechHow COVID transformed government digitizat
The LM Brief: AI Overviews and the Future of Publishing
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief covers the lawsuit filed by Penske Media Corporation, parent of Rolling Stone, against Google over its AI Overviews feature. PMC argues that these AI-generated summaries siphon traffic and revenue from publishers by removing the need for users to click through to original articles. The case raises major questions around copyright, fair use, and the long-term sust
OpenAI CSO Jason Kwon - power, policy and the race to scale
Jason Kwon is the Chief Strategy Officer at OpenAI.In this episode of World of DaaS, Jason and Auren discuss:Compute bottlenecks and power infrastructure challengesUser expectations vs AI capabilitiesGeopolitical competition in AI developmentBringing top AI talent to the United StatesLooking for more tech, data and venture capital intel? Head to worldofdaas.com for our podcast, newsletter and even
The LM Brief: The Only Right Way to Ask for an Intro (Everything Else Is Wrong)
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief covers The Only Right Way to Ask for an Intro (Everything Else Is Wrong) by Auren Hoffman. He explains why clarity of purpose, proper framing, and respect for people’s time are essential when seeking intros for jobs, partnerships, or mentorship. Getting this right makes the difference between a strong connection and a missed opportunity.Listen to this short podca
beehiiv CEO Tyler Denk - why email beats social media
Tyler Denk is the co-founder and CEO of beehiiv, a newsletter platform that has grown to over $20 million in annual revenue in under four years. He was the second employee at Morning Brew, where he built the growth infrastructure that helped scale the company to 3.5 million subscribers before its $75 million acquisition by Business Insider in 2020. He’s also the creator of big desk energy, a newsl
The LM Brief: Navigating GDPR Compliance Outside the EU and UK
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief looks at GDPR compliance for non-EU and non-UK companies. Firms handling resident data in these regions are required to appoint local representatives who serve as points of contact for regulators and individuals exercising their data rights. This step is critical for ensuring compliance with both GDPR and UK GDPR.Listen to this short podcast summary, powered by N
Gokul Rajaram of Marathon - How AI Will Reinvent Ad Platforms
Gokul Rajaram is a founding partner at Marathon Management Partners and former product leader who helped build Google AdSense and Facebook's advertising platform. He serves on the boards of Pinterest, Coinbase, and The Trade Desk, and previously led product teams at Square and DoorDash.In this episode of World of DaaS, Gokul and Auren discuss:Building massive advertising platforms at Google a
The LM Brief: Synthetic Data in AI
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief explores the evolving role of synthetic data in AI. Synthetic datasets are increasingly used to safeguard privacy, cut costs, and speed up model training, particularly in testing rare scenarios. But challenges remain, including risks of carrying over biases from real-world data and the need for careful validation to ensure reliable outcomes.Listen to this short p
Patrick Lencioni - the six types of working genius
Patrick Lencioni is one of the founders of The Table Group and is the pioneer of the organizational health movement. He is the author of 13 books, which have sold over 9 million copies and been translated into more than 30 languages.As President of the Table Group, Pat spends his time speaking and writing about leadership, teamwork, and organizational health and consulting with executives and thei
The LM Brief: AI Meets Copyright Law
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief covers Anthropic’s settlement with a group of authors over copyright claims. The case centered on the use of copyrighted works in training AI systems and reflects the mounting legal and IP challenges shaping generative AI.Listen to this short podcast summary, powered by NotebookLM.
CMO Confidential: Auren Hoffman l Why Vendor Management Is A Skill You Need to Master Now
This episode is a rebroadcast of host Auren Hoffman's appearance on the CMO Confidential Podcast.Auren shares why he believes vendor management is the #1 skill for future executives—and why most companies should rent world-class capabilities rather than hire executives they can’t fully utilize. From “scaffolding” young talent to his provocative views on procurement’s negative value, Booz Alle
The LM Brief: Integration gaps and budget missteps stall enterprise AI
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief looks at new research from MIT, which finds that 95% of generative AI pilot programs inside companies are failing to deliver meaningful financial impact.The issue is not model quality but enterprise integration and a steep organizational learning gap. The report shows ROI is strongest in back-office automation even as most budgets flow to sales and marketing, and
Zip CEO Rujul Zaparde - procurement, AI agents and YC insights
Rujul Zaparde is the co-founder and CEO of Zip, the $2.2 billion AI platform for procurement trusted by OpenAI, Anthropic, Snowflake, and hundreds of leading enterprises. He previously co-founded FlightCar, which raised over $40 million and was acquired by Mercedes-Benz. A former Airbnb product manager and Y Combinator visiting partner, Rujul has built Zip into the category-defining leader in proc
The LM Brief: Conditional Voting Rights in VC Term Sheets
This week’s World of DaaS LM Brief looks at a recent piece by Auren Hoffman, co-authored with Sushant Bhardwaj and Lily Petherick from Flex Capital, on a little-known but impactful clause in VC term sheets that can strip founders of their voting rights when they leave their company.We cover how this “employment-tied voting rights” provision, often overlooked until it is too late, can leave founder
Construction Physics' Brian Potter - why America excels at fracking but struggles with construction
Brian Potter is a structural engineer and author of Construction Physics, a weekly Substack about the economics, technology, and productivity of building and infrastructure. He's also a Senior Fellow at the Institute for Progress. In this episode of World of DaaS, Brian and Auren discuss:Why construction productivity has flatlined for decadesThe failure of modular construction and automation
Airtable CEO Howie Liu - Excel vs Access, Founder Mode, and the Future of SaaS
Howie Liu is the co-founder and CEO of Airtable, the AI-native app platform which has raised over $1.3 billion in funding and is valued at more than $11 billion. Howie sold his first startup, Etacts, to Salesforce when he was just 21 years old.In this episode of World of DaaS, Howie and Auren discuss:The evolution of the no-code/low-code movementHow AI is transforming software developmentPricing s
Dwarkesh Patel - AI Timelines, Productivity & Global Stagnation
Dwarkesh Patel is the host of the Dwarkesh Podcast, where he interviews leading scientists, founders, and economists about AI, science, and progress.In this episode of World of DaaS, Dwarkesh and Auren discuss: Why experts overestimate AI capabilities The continual learning bottleneck in current models Japan's economic crash and global productivity stagnation Spaced repetition and effective
Morning Consult CEO Michael Ramlet - AI, consumer sentiment and reinventing survey research
Michael Ramlet is the co-founder and CEO of Morning Consult, a global decision intelligence company with more than $100 million in annual revenue. Morning Consult conducts 30,000 daily interviews across 40+ countries and serves more than half of the Fortune 500.In this episode of World of DaaS, Michael and Auren discuss:The evolution from telephone to online polling Building representative polling
Atlan CEO Prukalpa Sankar - AI agent workflows and hiring AI native talent
Prukalpa Sankar is the co-founder and CEO of Atlan, a data platform used by organizations like Plaid, NASDAQ and the UN to manage data collaboration at scale. Atlan has raised over $200 million and grown revenue 7x in the last two years.In this episode of World of DaaS, Prukalpa and Auren discuss:AI native company transformationsContext as the foundation for enterprise AIBuilding remote-first cult
Cardlytics CEO Amit Gupta - transaction data and commerce media
Amit Gupta is the CEO of Cardlytics (NASDAQ: CDLX), a global commerce media platform that powers rewards programs with card-linked offers and enables brands to strengthen customer loyalty.In this episode of World of DaaS, Amit and Auren discuss:How card-linked offers strengthen customer loyalty Identity resolution and retail mediaCardlytics' view into $5.8 trillion of annual consumer spending
Fabrice Grinda of FJ Labs - diversified portfolios, secondary sales and dinner parties
Fabrice Grinda is the co-founder and managing partner of FJ Labs, a venture capital firm that has invested in over 1,200 startups with more than 350 exits, including early investments in Alibaba, Flexport, and Delivery Hero. He previously built and sold three companies as CEO: Aucland (one of Europe's largest auction sites), Zingy (mobile media startup sold for $80M), and OLX (global classifi
Rabbi David Wolpe - AI, faith, and the future of human connection
Rabbi David Wolpe is the emeritus rabbi of Sinai Temple in Los Angeles, one of the largest synagogues in the United States. He is a bestselling author of eight books on faith and spirituality and has been named one of the most influential rabbis in America.In this episode of World of DaaS, David and Auren discuss:AI rabbis and digital therapyLab grown meat and kosher lawsConsciousness uploading an
Superpower Founder Max Marchione - billionaire health protocols and the future of medicine
Max Marchione is the founder and President of Superpower, a digital healthcare platform that recently raised a $30 million Series A to make preventative and personalized medicine accessible to consumers.In this episode of World of DaaS, Max and Auren discuss:Billionaire-level health protocols and testingWhy AI will replace expensive doctorsPeptides, toxins, and human enhancementThe future of perso
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