"Turpentine VC" | Venture Capital and Investing

Mar 04 2025 81 ep. 61 mins 46

On Turpentine VC, host and venture capitalist Erik Torenberg delves deep into the art and science of building successful venture firms through conversations with the world’s best investors and operators. Hear about insider strategies on decision-making, investment theses, and building firms for the long term—from the ground-level, VC to VC. Guests in season 1 include Ben Horowitz of a16z, Mamood Hamid and Ilya Fushman of Kleiner Perkins, and Alfred Lin of Sequoia. Turpentine VC is part of the Turpentine podcast network. Learn more: turpentine.co

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E80: Logan Bartlett on How Great VC Firms Truly Operate

Mar 04 2025 66 mins  
This week on Turpentine VC, we’re re-releasing Erik Torenberg’s interview with Logan Bartlett, partner at Redpoint and host of The Logan Bartlett Show. They discuss Redpoint's approach to venture, patterns in the VC ecosystem, and the strategies of venture's most consequential firms. — 📰 Be notified early when Turpentine drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/

E79: Now at $2B Valuation: Mercor CEO On How They Started

Feb 25 2025 56 mins  
This week on Turpentine VC, we are releasing an episode from 1 to 100 hosted by Usman Hanif. Usman interviews Brendan Foody, founder and CEO of Marcor, an AI-powered recruitment platform that automates the process of hiring, vetting, and paying employees. Brendan discusses Mercor's rapid growth, technology behind their operations, and the company's focus on reducing hiring costs wh

E78: Why Benchmark is Different Than Other Firms with Sarah Tavel & Eric Vishria

Feb 18 2025 92 mins  
In this episode of Turpentine VC, we're sharing Erik Torenberg's 2023 interview with Sarah Tavel and Eric Vishria from Benchmark, exploring the firm's unique minimalistic approach, commitment to deep founder partnerships, and their deliberate avoidance of platform teams. — 📰 Be notified early when Turpentine drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccess

E77: IVP's Somesh Dash on Growth Stage Investing and Strategic Discipline

Feb 11 2025 61 mins  
This week on Turpentine VC, we're re-releasing one of our most popular episode: Erik Torenberg’s interview with Somesh Dash. Somesh is a General Partner at IVP, shares insights on IVP's unique positioning in the venture capital ecosystem, the importance of team construction, the future of venture capital, and how IVP supports founders through scaling and strategic growth. —

E76: Thrive Capital's Bold Bets on Category-Defining Companies with Kareem Zaki

Feb 04 2025 70 mins  
Kareem Zaki shares the founding and development of Thrive Capital, emphasizing their strategy of opportunism combined with a focus on category-defining companies, their unique approach to talent cultivation and company-building in various sectors, especially healthcare, and their intentional media minimalism. — 📰 Be notified early when Turpentine drops new publication: http

E75: Greg Castle (Anorak VC) on the Biggest AR/VR and Spatial Computing Opportunities

Jan 28 2025 50 mins  
Greg Castle, founder of Anorak Ventures, discusses the evolution and future of spatial computing, particularly in AR, VR, and technology's impact on human interaction and learning. This conversation took place in February 2023. — 📰Be notified early when Turpentine drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccess 🙏Help shape our show by taking our quick l

E74: General Catalyst CEO on Running VC Like an Enduring Company

Jan 21 2025 47 mins  
Hemant Taneja, CEO of General Catalyst discusses the firm's evolution from an artisanal business to an enduring venture platform, focusing on operational rigor, fund size, talent strategy, and investments in companies like Stripe and Snap, while emphasizing the importance of responsible innovation and long-term industry transformations. — 📰 Be notified early when Turpentine

E73: Aydin Senkut on Building Felicis Ventures

Jan 14 2025 62 mins  
Today on Turpentine VC, we’re releasing one of our most popular episodes: Erik’s interview with Aydin Senkut, founder and managing partner of Felicis Ventures. Aydin discusses the evolution and distinct strategies of Felicis Ventures, their focus on mental health, and insights on successful generalist investing in venture capital. — 📰 Be notified early when Turpentine d

E72: Keith Rabois: On Identifying Talent [Classic Interview]

Jan 07 2025 65 mins  
This episode of Turpentine VC was recorded in front of a live audience in San Francisco in October 2018.Keith Rabois discusses his frameworks for identifying talent, sharing anecdotes about notable operators and companies like PayPal, LinkedIn, and Square. He emphasizes the importance of talent assessment, strategic thinking, and offers career advice while reflecting on his own exp

E71: How to Scale Talent | Andy Price, Artisanal Ventures [Cross Post]

Dec 31 2024 58 mins  
This week on Turpentine VC, Andy Price, a veteran executive recruiter and venture capitalist, joins Nolan Church and Kelli Dragovich from HR Heretics, a Turpentine podcast, for a deep dive into the crucial aspects of hiring, retaining, and developing top talent. Andy has built leadership teams for renowned companies like Snowflake and DocuSign. Check out HR Heretics for more conver