Venky Ganesan is a Partner at Menlo Ventures, whose portfolio includes Anthropic, Lovable, Legora and Higgsfield, alongside earlier hits Uber and Roku. Venky’s own investment track record includes Palo Alto Networks, Upwork, Poshmark and Rover. He is a three-time Forbes Midas List investor and former Chair of the National Venture Capital Association.
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Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
1:15 – Venky’s 90% Loss That Changed His Investing
4:21 – Venky On Whether Venture Capital Is Broken
5:28 – Should You Keep Playing When The Market Is Crazy?
6:59 – The New Rules Of Venture Investing
7:55 – Is Seed Investing Still Possible?
9:19 – Can AI Revenue Metrics Be Trusted?
11:20 – Does “King Making” Really Work?
12:47 – What Could Finally Crack The Market?
14:11 – Innovators, Imitators And Idiots
19:17 – Venky On When It’s Worth Paying Up
20:24 – Venky’s Most Expensive Missed Investment
23:13 – What Makes A Great Founding Team?
25:09 – Venky On Whether Ownership Still Matters
28:25 – When Should You Size Up An Investment?
29:57 – The Problem With Only Betting On Home Runs
33:21 – Is “Downside Protection” A Dangerous Mindset?
35:41 – Are Investors Facing A New Era Of Dilution?
38:39 – Why IRR Matters More Than Ever
41:58 – Are Faster Investment Cycles A Warning Sign?
48:24 – Venky On When To Take Chips Off The Table
51:41 – Are We About To See A Wave Of M&A?
54:11 – The Most Important Skill For Founders At Scale
55:24 – Does Money Change People?
56:34 – Why Are Bay Area Housing Costs So High?
59:40 – Does Being Rich Make You A Better Investor?
1:02:43 – Is Private Equity Facing An AI Reckoning?
1:06:44 – Venky’s Advice To Venture LPs
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Subscribe on Spotify:
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