Generative Now | AI Builders on Creating the Future

Latest Episodes:

Bill Dally: NVIDIA’s Evolution and Revolution of AI and Computing (Encore) Jan 16, 2025

Show notes

Inspired by NVIDIA’s announcements at CES, we are looking back at one of our favorite episodes. The explosion of generative AI-powered technologies has forever changed the tech landscape. But the path to the current AI revolution was paved by many breakthroughs. Bill Dally had a hand in quite a few of them.

In this week’s episode of Generative Now, we are revisiting a conversation Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano had with Bill Dally, NVIDIA's Chief Scientist and Senior Vice President for Research, whose nearly four-decade long career spans from experiments with neural networks in the 1980s to leading NVIDIA's groundbreaking research. He discusses the work at NVIDIA in advancing GPU technology, as well as the shift towards generative AI. Michael and Bill also explore the challenges of keeping up with rapid advancements in AI, the future implications for the industry, and advice for aspiring engineers.

Bill Dally joined NVIDIA in January 2009 as chief scientist, after spending 12 years at Stanford University, where he was chairman of the computer science department. He has published over 250 papers, holds over 120 issued patents, and is an author of four textbooks. Bill received a bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering from Virginia Tech, a master’s in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University and a Ph.D. in Computer Science from CalTech.

Episode Chapters (00:00) Introduction (00:22) Bill Dally's Journey from Neural Networks to NVIDIA (01:39) The Evolution of AI and Computing: A Personal Account (05:48) The AI Revolution: Expectations vs. Reality (08:58) Inside NVIDIA: The Role of Chief Scientist and the Power of Research (11:30) Exploring the Frontiers of Generative AI and Research (15:24) AI’s Role in the Future of Autonomous Vehicles (21:54) The Impact of AI on Chip Design and Efficiency (26:56) Building NVIDIA's Elite Research Team (37:01) Anticipating the Future: Advice for the Next Generation (40:59) Closing Thoughts Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

Nir Zicherman: Looking Back at Anchor and the Future of Oboe Jan 09, 2025

Show notes

Nearly a decade after launching Anchor, cofounders Michael Mignano and Nir Zicherman have a new venture: Oboe. Oboe’s mission is to make humanity smarter through AI-powered tutors. The duo delves deep into their entrepreneurial journey, starting from the early days of Anchor to their latest venture, Oboe, where Nir is the CEO. They discuss the trials and errors of building Anchor, their vision for Oboe, and why AI-driven learning could revolutionize education. Additionally, they touch upon the evolution of social audio, challenges in growth marketing today, and answer questions from X.

Episode Chapters

(00:00) Introduction (00:36) Reflecting on Anchor's Early Days (02:08) Podcasting Challenges and Insights (03:11) Introducing Oboe: The New Venture (05:03) The Limitations of LLMs in Education (09:40) Lessons from Being a Second-Time Founder (13:04) The Evolution of Product Development (17:36) Are MVPs relevant anymore? (24:56) Reflecting on Social Audio and Anchor (28:32) The Early Days of Anchor (29:33) The Bet on Podcasting (30:27) Distribution Challenges (31:29) What if Anchor Had Pivoted to Video? (34:14) The Future of Audio and Video (37:30) Hybrid Work Model (43:26) Acquisition by Spotify (52:27) The Future of Learning with AI (57:26) Closing Thoughts Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

Generative Quarterly with Semil Shah: AI Expectations vs Reality, Tech Trends, and 2025 Predictions Dec 26, 2024

Show notes

Did 2024 live up to the AI hype? Investor Semil Shah joins Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano for another installment of Generative Quarterly. They cover key tech trends from 2024, including Jensen Huang’s Rockstar CEO status and AI consumer devices. Looking ahead to 2025, the duo delves into venture capital dynamics, IPO and M&A prospects, and the influence of tech in Washington D.C. Plus, Michael spins Juan Soto's signing into a lesson for Tech.

Episode Chapters

00:00 Introduction

01:09 Reflecting on 2024: AI Expectations and Reality

02:31 The Cost and Progress of AI

09:53 Funding and Valuation in AI

11:42 Private vs Public Markets

18:21 AI Devices: Hits and Misses

28:59 Jensen Huang: The Rockstar CEO

32:58 The Rise and Risks of AI Giants

35:29 Tech's Influence in Washington

38:45 M&A Predictions and IPO Outlook

43:32 Emerging GPs and Venture Capital Trends

57:41 Juan Soto and the Tech-Baseball Connection

01:02:54 Closing Thoughts

Stay in touch:

www.lsvp.com
X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/
Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co
Email: generativenow@lsvp.com

The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

Dr. Olga Russakovsky: Shaping the Next Generation of AI Leaders Dec 19, 2024

Show notes

Dr. Olga Russakovsky, Computer Science at Princeton University, joins Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano to discuss what the next generation of AI talent is learning and where she expects to find the next big innovation in artificial intelligence.

From her research in computer vision and human-computer interaction to her work in fairness, accountability, and transparency in AI, Dr. Russakovsky has earned many awards, including the MIT Technology Review’s 35-under-35 Innovator award and the Foreign Policy Magazine’s 100 Leading Global Thinkers award. Dr. Russakovsky is also the co-founder and Board Chair of AI4ALL, a nonprofit that aims to increase the diversity of thought in Artificial Intelligence.

Episode Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Guest Overview

01:17 Olga's Career Journey

02:30 Understanding Computer Vision

04:43 Generative AI and Computer Vision

06:36 Interdisciplinary AI Research

15:00 AI4All: Diversity of Thought

17:44 Challenges and Bias in AI

30:01 Future of AI and Data

40:08 ImageNET

43:38 Closing Thoughts

Stay in touch:

www.lsvp.com

X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/

Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co

Email: generativenow@lsvp.com

Marissa Mayer: AI to Make the Mundane Magical Dec 12, 2024

Show notes

What is the future of AI in consumer technology? Marissa Mayer believes this future includes AI that makes the mundane magical. Marissa has been leading consumer technology that affects billions of lives since the dawn of the modern Internet. She was one of the first 20 employees at Google and worked on Google Maps, Gmail, and Google Search. She served as the CEO at Yahoo! where she reinvented the website for the mobile era. Now she is the co-founder and CEO of Sunshine Products, a technology startup focused on making everyday tasks, like contact management or scheduling, magical.

Episode Chapters

(00:00) Introduction
(01:23) The Evolution of AI: Learning, Reasoning, and Expressiveness
(05:22) Scaling Laws and the Future of AI
(09:00) AI's Impact on Business and Team Dynamics
(14:47) The Future of Search and Advertising
(19:52) Sunshine: Making Mundane Tasks Magical
(24:04) The Future of Advertising in an AI World
(35:39) Looking Forward: The Future of AI and Sunshine
(37:55) Closing Thoughts

Stay in touch:

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.lsvp.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
X: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠generativenow.co⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Email: generativenow@lsvp.com

Logan Kilpatrick: Building Google Gemini Dec 05, 2024

Show notes

This week, Logan Kilpatrick joins Michael Mignano on the Generative NYC Stage to discuss leading the product for Google AI Studio. He and his team built the Google Gemini API into one of the best platforms in the world for developers to build with AI. Logan worked at OpenAI before Google, and he has had a front row seat to the meteoric rise to AI over the past few years. Michael and Logan discuss how Google feels like a startup, why consumers care about product over anything else, and what’s the future landscape of artificial intelligence.

Episode Chapters

(00:00) Introduction to Logan Kilpatrick

(01:15) Logan's Journey in AI

(02:38) Life at Google AI Studio

(03:28) Understanding AI at Google

(09:15) The Future of AI Applications

(14:29) Scaling Limits and Compute Power

(18:37) The Role of Talent in AI

(20:35) Thoughts on AGI

(29:24) Audience Q&A

Stay in touch:

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.lsvp.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
X: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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Email: generativenow@lsvp.com

M.G. Siegler: VC’s Crisis, Defensible Startups, and Hack-quisitions Nov 27, 2024

Show notes

Writer and investor M.G. Siegler joins Host and Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano from London to discuss the European tech scene and his experiences stepping back from venture capital after a decade with GV. The discussion covers the current 'VC Crisis', including CRV Ventures' decision to return funds, and the complex M&A and IPO landscape. Siegler offers his perspective on investing in people vs ideas, the defensibility of startups, and the anticipated evolution towards AGI.

Episode Chapters

(00:00) Introduction

(00:32) M.G. Siegler's Background and Move to London

(01:07) Investing in London vs. San Francisco

(03:56) Exploring the London Tech Scene

(10:32) Venture Capital’s Crisis

(13:26) AI and the Future of Startups

(18:03) The Role of Acquisitions in Tech

(22:15) Challenges and Opportunities in Venture Capital

(36:06) Current M&A Environment

(39:17) VC Funds and the AI Market

(42:01) Scaling AI and Future Breakthroughs

(54:00) Is the Consumer Market Dead?

(59:39) Apple's Position in the AI Race

(01:11:26) Closing Thoughts

Stay in touch:

www.lsvp.com
X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/
Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co
Email: generativenow@lsvp.com

PART 2: Matthew Hartman | The Value of Premium Content and the Shifting Economics of the Internet Nov 21, 2024

Show notes

We are back with PART 2 of our conversation with Matthew Hartman, a managing partner at the venture firm, Factorial Capital. Factorial partners with angel operators, with a focus on startups in the AI space. Host and Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano talks with Matt about the value of premium content, software on demand, and the shifting economics of the Internet. Plus, is this actually the moment for product managers?

(00:00) Introduction
(00:38) AI in B2B SaaS Products
(02:58) www.nysignal.com
(07:05) The Future of Advertising and AI
(09:07) Attention Is All You Need
(11:23) Entertainment and Productivity
(19:02) Zero Coding Apps and Products
(21:39) www.myrequestroom.com
(24:28) Is it an AI wrapper or does it lack defensibility?

Stay in touch:

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.lsvp.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
X: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠generativenow.co⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Email: generativenow@lsvp.com

PART 1: Matthew Hartman | How Factorial Invests in the Future Nov 14, 2024

Show notes

This week, we are sharing PART ONE with Matthew Hartman, a managing partner at the venture firm Factorial Capital. Factorial partners with angel operators, with a focus on startups in the AI space. Host and Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano sits down with Matt to discuss how Factorial partners with technical founders to explore opportunities. They discuss OpenAI, Apple Intelligence, WebGPU, Suno, and much more. Join us next week for PART TWO of this conversation.

Episode Chapters

(00:00) Introduction
(01:42) Factorial and Technical Founders
(06:24) WebGPU
(10:47) Future of AI and LLMs
(15:47) AI and Calendars
(18:16) Understanding Scout Funds
(23:07) The Role of Angels in Investment
(24:12) Focus on AI and New Tech Products
(25:42) Transformers and Predictive Models
(27:26) Making Music with Suno
(33:27) The Future of Creative Tools
(42:30) The Economics of Content Creation

Stay in touch:

⁠⁠⁠⁠www.lsvp.com⁠⁠⁠⁠
X: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠⁠⁠⁠
LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠⁠⁠⁠
Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠⁠⁠⁠
Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠⁠⁠⁠generativenow.co⁠⁠⁠⁠
Email: generativenow@lsvp.com

Lulu Cheng Meservey: Go Direct Oct 31, 2024

Show notes

Lulu Cheng Meservey puts founders in control of their narrative using one simple principle: Go Direct. Lulu is the Founder and CEO of Rostra, the go-to communications expert for Silicon Valley founders of places like Ramp, SSI, Scale, Andruil, Suno, and The Free Press.

Lulu joins Lightspeed Partner and Host Michael Mignano on the podcast to talk about her modern communications playbook for founders and why a comms strategy is just as important as a product strategy. Plus, Lulu shares her after action reports on Based Zuck, SpaceX, Tesla, and Waymo.

Episode Chapters:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:29) Why Founder Led Communication Works

(03:47) Challenges and Strategies for Founders

(06:49) Lulu's Career Experience

(08:34) Substack

(12:11) Have a Clear Company Mission

(18:01) The ‘Go Direct’ Manifesto

(23:59) Traditional Media in Communication Strategy

(24:40) Targeted Communication: Persuading Key Decision Makers

(25:54) Effective Use of Press and Media Outlets

(28:30) Lulu’s After Action Report: Tesla's Recent Event