Greymatter

"Ship Pricing as Fast as Product" - CEO Alvaro Morales on Orb's Mission to Revolutionize Billing Infrastructure Oct 08, 2024

Orb is on a mission to revolutionize billing infrastructure.

In this episode of Greymatter, Greylock partner Saam Motamedi chats with Alvaro Morales, CEO and co-founder of Orb, a cutting-edge billing infrastructure platform designed for the next wave of SaaS and AI companies. Orb allows businesses to implement dynamic pricing models such as usage-based and hybrid systems, empowering companies like Vercel, Pinecone, and Perplexity to evolve their revenue strategies with ease.

Morales highlights how Orb’s flexibility transforms revenue workflows, especially in industries like AI and cloud infrastructure, by allowing businesses to shift pricing models without extensive re-engineering. He notes, “Pricing is about as customer-centric and product-centric as you get.” – and goes on to explain that it’s about understanding what value you provide to your customers and how to best meet them.

For more great conversations like this one, please follow or subscribe to the show wherever you listen to podcasts. You can also find a link to our YouTube channel in the description. Finally, we'd like to thank the people who helped make this podcast happen, including Elisa Schreiber and Fitz Barth.

This episode was produced and edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod.fm.

Transcript of episode:

Orb: https://www.withorb.com/

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Opal Security's Umaimah Khan on Security-First Identity Jul 23, 2024

Too often, usernames and passwords are the only thing standing between cyber criminals and an organization's data. While it seems obvious, implementing stronger identity controls has historically been a challenge for organizations because the mechanisms that cut off access to threats can also impede employees’ ability to access the systems they need to do their jobs. Opal Security was founded to solve for that tension. Opal Security CEO and co-founder Umaimah Khan spoke with Greylock partner Saam Motamedi about about the company’s mission to deliver scalable least privilege from a security-first standpoint without slowing businesses down.

You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/security-first-identity/

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Product-Led AI: Mustafa Suleyman on Defining Intelligence Jun 20, 2024

Guest episode of Product-Led AI, hosted by Greylock partner Seth Rosenberg. In this episode, he speaks with AI pioneer Mustafa Suleyman, who has been at the forefront of the technology through several major leaps forward. As the co-founder of DeepMind, Google’s VP of AI Policy and Products, the co-founder of Inflection, and now the CEO of Microsoft AI, he’s seen AI’s evolution into the transformative tech it is today. He shares his perspective on AGI, autonomous agents, and opportunities for startups.

You can read a transcript of this interview at https://productledaipod.com/podcasts/defining-intelligence/

You can watch the video of this interview at https://youtu.be/cNzRviY4Ei8?si=0Drr1xNbWkkbhPJf

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Code Smarter, Not Harder May 22, 2024

Greylock partner Corinne Riley reads her essay "Code Smarter, Not Harder: Solving the Unknowns to Developing AI Engineers."

Building AI tools for code generation and engineering workflows is one of the most exciting and worthy undertakings by startups today. But there are still many open questions about the technical unlocks that must be solved to make coding tools that work as well as (or better than) human engineers in a production setting. Riley explores these core questions alongside an analysis of the current ecosystem of startups developing AI coding tools. You can read the essay here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/code-smarter-not-harder/

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Reinventing Distributed Commerce with AI May 16, 2024

App-tracking rules closed the door on user-tracking and targeted ads, but AI opened up new channels of engagement and personalization that previously weren’t possible. Commerce infrastructure company Fermat ushers businesses into this new era of online retail. CEO and co-founder Rishabh Jain talks with Greylock partner Saam Motamedi about the double impact of ATT and AI on commerce, and how Fermat is helping to build the next generation of online businesses. You can read the transcript of this interview here on greylock.com.

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Shifting Power Dynamics in AI-Focused Cloud May 16, 2024

Audio version of the essay "The Big 4 Era: Shifting Power Dynamics in the AI-Focused Cloud" written by Greylock partners Jason Risch and Jerry Chen (read by Greylock head of editorial Heather Mack).

It’s never been harder to compete with the Big 3 cloud providers. As the AI revolution has shifted NVIDIA into the central power broker of the tech ecosystem, AWS, Azure, and GCP have rushed to build their AI edge. In this “Big 4” era, What’s left for startups?

At Greylock, we see ample opportunities in developer tools, infrastructure, agents, apps, security, codegen, and robotics. These observations our based on our daily work, as well as our ongoing data collection and analysis for our Castles in the Cloud project. This essay outlines those areas of opportunity, as well as those that are better suited for incumbents. You can read the essay at greylock.com.

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Product-Led AI: Adept CEO David Luan on Upleveling Human Work May 15, 2024

Guest episode of Product-Led AI, a new podcast series hosted by Greylock partner Seth Rosenberg featuring conversations with leading AI builders.

Adept CEO and co-founder David Luan has been riding the LLM wave since the early days of the modern AI boom: an early OpenAI employee, he led the company’s engineering team before serving as the tech lead for Google Brain’s work on LLMs. He co-founded Adept in 2022 to develop multimodal agents built to work alongside humans in any profession. Believing computers should work more like humans and not the other way around, Adept has stood out for its human-centric approach to AGI.

In this episode, David talks about the moment he realized building a new product (and a startup) was a faster track to AGI; breaks down the frameworks for Adept; and shares his view of a future where AI functions almost invisibly below all software we use.

Check out the whole series at productledaipod.com

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Product-Led AI: Reid Hoffman on AI-Powered Networks May 08, 2024

Guest episode of Product-Led AI, the new series hosted by Greylock partner Seth Rosenberg where he chats with builders who put the power of AI into products that people love.

This week, AI visionary (and fellow Greylock partner) Reid Hoffman talks with Seth about the main opportunities in the application layer of AI, with an extra deep dive on AI-powered networks and marketplaces. Having been instrumental in building and scaling several iconic networks throughout his career, Hoffman has learned the core fundamentals of building these types of businesses don't change much - they just look different, depending on the latest tech platform shift.

About the series: Investor and former product builder Seth Rosenberg talks with founders about their inspiration and process to build, test, and continually reimagine how AI and humans work together. You can find more about the series at productledaipod.com.

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Introducing Product-Led AI May 01, 2024

Special guest episode of Product-Led AI, a new podcast hosted by Greylock partner Seth Rosenberg. In this series, he focuses on the central question: How do you make AI useful?

While plenty of money and attention goes to large language models and GPUs, it takes a different skill set to build AI products that change the way we work, learn, and live. We’re seeing this in AI co-pilots, AI-first networks and marketplaces, and entirely reimagined software categories where AI is solving long-standing challenges in new ways. But how do they actually do it?

Investor and former product builder Seth Rosenberg talks with founders about their inspiration and process to build, test, and continually reimagine how AI and humans work together. You can find more about the series at productledaipod.com.

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Jacob Andreou | From Ports to Transformations Apr 04, 2024

Greylock general partner Jacob Andreou reads his essay on how to build valuable products during moments of technology transitions. Having previously led product and growth for one of the iconic native apps of the mobile era (Snap), Andreou developed a perspective on some of the best (and worst) strategic and tactical decisions companies can make during tech shifts. It starts by asking an important question: Are you building a novel solution to an enduring need, enabled by new technology?

Using lessons learned from his hands-on experience at Snap and observations across other companies, Andreou provides a framework for evaluating your product and company to ensure you are building a transformative product and not a toy.

You can read the full essay, "From Ports to Transformations: Strategies for Building Enduring Consumer Products During Tech Shifts here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/building-enduring-consumer-products-during-tech-shifts/

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Jerry Chen and Instabase CEO Anant Bhardwaj | Building a System of Intelligence Sep 12, 2023

Building a defensible system of intelligence at a time when LLMs are becoming commoditized (and when all the classic moats like economies of scale are more important than ever) isn’t easy. But Instabase, which provides an applied AI platform for enterprise organizations to run various operational processes, has managed to accrue a large customer base and recently hit $2 billion valuation. The company has gained traction largely because they've taken cues directly from customers since day one while incorporating the latest technology advances to continually expand their product, making it useful across hundreds of different use cases for a range of industries.

Greylock general partner and Instabase board member Jerry Chen spoke with Instabase CEO and founder Anant Bhardwaj about the company’s journey amid the fast-changing AI landscape.

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Jerry Chen | The New New Moats Jun 22, 2023

Greylock general partner Jerry Chen discusses key takeaways from his essay "The New New Moats: Why Systems of Intelligence are Still the Next Defensible Business Model." The essay is a fresh take on his "New Moats" blog from 2017, in which he postulated that startups would be able to build defensible moats using AI. With the explosion of AI activity in recent times, Chen revisited this analysis to see what holds true, what he got wrong, and what is still too early to tell.

You can read the 2023 essay here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/the-new-new-moats/

You can read the original 2017 essay here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/the-new-moats/

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Inflection AI | The AI Friend Zone May 10, 2023

As anyone who has experimented with the latest artificial intelligence tools that generate human-like responses to text, every interaction with technology is increasingly becoming a conversation. Beyond pre-programmed responses based on specific key words, interacting with AI trained on large language models is beginning to feel like a natural back and forth dialogue.

"In the future, I think there will be an ever-present relationship that you have with an AI that helps you to make sense of the world around you," says Inflection AI CEO and co-founder Mustafa Suleyman, whose company recently released Pi, or "personal AI", designed to listen, talk, and provide support like a companion.

Listen to Suleyman and his Inflection co-founder Reid Hoffman on the Greymatter podcast discuss how they approached building the "AI sidekick" that is Pi, and share their vision for the future of the technology.

You can read the transcript of this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/inflectionai-the-ai-friend-zone/

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Jerry Chen | The New Wave of Cloud Innovation May 02, 2023

Greylock general partner Jerry Chen analyzes top trends impacting funding, company creation, product launches, and partnerships throughout the cloud ecosystem for 2022 and the first part of 2023. This analysis is based on data compiled for Greylock's Castles in the Cloud project, which maps the activity of VC-backed startups as well as that of the Big 3 cloud providers AWS, Google, and Microsoft Azure. AI, an increased focus on vertical specialization, and the expansion of security needs are all fueling activity in the cloud ecosystem.

The trends in this discussion are also examined in Greylock investor Jason Risch's recent essay, which you can read here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/three-trends-in-vc-backed-cloud/

You can find the entire Castles in the Cloud project here: greylock.com/castles.

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Jason Risch | Three Trends in VC-Backed Cloud Apr 27, 2023

Audio version of Greylock investor Jason Risch's essay "Three Trends in VC-Backed Cloud." As part of our Castles in the Cloud project, which maps the activity in the venture capital-funding startup ecosystem with that of the Big 3 Cloud providers, we compile a database of fundraising at the end of each calendar year and identify trends. Although 2022 and the first part of 2023 has been marked by notable advancements in cloud technology – mostly via AI integrations – there is still considerable restraint in today’s venture capital-backed ecosystem. That figure doesn’t translate to lower activity, however. Many venture capital firms report they are just as busy as prior to the market correction, albeit with a focus on smaller checks for early-stage companies. Technological advancements, partnerships between major powerbrokers, and vertical specialization are all components of the current wave. The top three trends for this period are the rise of AI/ML in cloud, Vertical specialization (or, industry clouds), and security.

You can read this essay here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/three-trends-in-vc-backed-cloud/

You can view the entire Castles in the Cloud project here: https://greylock.com/castles/

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CNBC's Julia Boorstin | When Women Lead Apr 18, 2023

Re-broadcast of Greylock marketing partner Elisa Schreiber's interview with CNBC Senior Media & Tech reporter Julia Boorstin. While there may be plenty of discussion about the disparity between funding for women-led startups and those led by men, women still receive just 2% of all venture capital funding. And yet, many women are still finding success as entrepreneurs. How? Boorstin dug into the stories of women entrepreneurs founding, funding, and running companies, and uncovered a variety of smart tactics and approaches. Those stories and the data are shared in her book, "When Women Lead." Boorstin and Schreiber spoke in front of a live, female-majority audience in late 2022 as part of Greylock's Iconversations speaker series. You can watch a video from the interview here: youtu.be/7moBNBLIVMA

You can read a transcript here: greylock.com/greymatter/julia-b…n-when-women-lead/

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Intelligent Money Apr 11, 2023

Fintech has perhaps the most to gain from artificial intelligence technology. Even slight improvements in forecasting default rates on a loan or cash flows of a business can have a dramatic economic impact. But for the most part, fintech has been left out of the conversation – partly because there is low margin for error in a regulated space. Encouragingly, this is starting to change. Ramp, a fintech startup that is noted for being one of the fastest-growing companies ever to hit $100M in ARR, is among the fintech frontrunners using automation and machine learning to help customers with expense management, payments, reporting, and more. Greylock investor Seth Rosenberg spoke with Ramp CEO Eric Glyman and Greylock's Reid Hoffman for a wide-ranging discussion on how AI is impacting every profession today – and how there is considerable room for it to impact financial services in the future.

You can watch the video of this interview here: https://youtu.be/q5Rhetnw_64

You can read a transcript of the interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/intelligent-money/

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The Post-ATT World Apr 04, 2023

Greylock general partner Mike Duboe talks with Treat CEO Matt Osman, Fermat CEO Rishabh Jain, and independent analyst, consultant and investor Eric Seufert about the changing world of commerce performance marketing following the passage of ATT. For years, targeted ads meant the mechanisms to grow an ecommerce brand were relatively simple, accessible, and fast-acting. But the passage of Apple's App Tracking Transparency policy in 2021 turned that world on its head. Now, companies have gotten creative about the ways they reach their audience, which has given rise to a class of startups like Treat and Fermat that provide the tooling and platform to develop, test, and iterate marketing campaigns.

You can read a transcript of this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/the-post-att-world/

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Sam Altman & Reid Hoffman | AI Field Notes Apr 03, 2023

Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman talks with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman about their mutual learnings from the AI tools released to date, primarily GPT-4 4, OpenAI's language model that co-wrote Hoffman's recent book “Impromptu." Keeping up with all the AI advancements – and questioning both the pros and cons of their immediate impact – is why Hoffman wrote Impromptu. As he describes, the book is intended to act as a travelog of his experience with GPT-4. Above all, he sees AI as a human amplifier, but urges it must be developed safely. Safety is exactly what OpenAI is striving for, Altman says, and Hoffman’s detailed chronicle of his experience with GPT-4 is exactly the kind of data the organization needs to continue developing the technology with safety in mind.

You can read a transcript of this conversation here:

https://greylock.com/greymatter/ai-field-notes/

You can access Impromptu for free here:

https://www.impromptubook.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/impromptu-rh.pdf

And on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BYG9V1RN/

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Reid Hoffman & Saam Motamedi | AI's Transformative Power Mar 30, 2023

Greylock general partners Saam Motamedi and Reid Hoffman talk with Umi Mehta, who is the Global Head of tech Private Equity and Venture Capital Investing at Morgan Stanley. In this conversation, they discuss the current investing environment in the context of artificial intelligence technology – specifically, its impact on pretty much every industry across enterprise and consumer sectors. AI has evolved rapidly in recent years, and that pace of advancement is only getting faster. Saam and Reid explain how AI is becoming an enabling platform technology, much the same as previous waves of tech transitions like mobile and cloud did in earlier eras. This conversation was recorded at Morgan Stanley’s annual TMT Conference, which draws an audience of more than 3,000 investors and members of tech companies. On that note, the audio quality isn’t the highest, but each speaker is clear. And if you have any difficulty hearing some of the parts, rest assured that you can find all of the conversation in the transcript here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/ais-transformative-power/

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Greylock Welcomes Jacob Andreou Mar 27, 2023

Greylock welcomes Jacob Andreou as the firm's newest investor. Andreou joins Greylock following 8 years at Snap, where he most recently served as SVP of Growth. There, he ran teams across growth, data science, analytics, and user research, and helped scale the company to more than 360 million daily active users and $4.5 billion in revenue. At Greylock. Andreou is eager to partner with founders building the next generation of consumer products.

You can read Greylock's blog post and a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/firm-news/welcome-jacob-andreou/

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Rubrik CEO Bipul Sinha | Scaling with Intuition Mar 21, 2023

Greylock general partner Asheem Chandna talks with Rubrik CEO and co-founder Bipul Sinha about a core leadership lesson he's learned: not losing sight of one's own intuition, especially during times of high growth. Today, the data security company works with more than 5,000 customers around the world and across nearly every industry. When Rubrik launched in 2014, its mission to secure the world's data resonated immediately with clients, and the company grew rapidly in the first few years. Then came a rough patch, as the company's relentless push for expansion – and the many more people involved in every decision, from hiring to product pipeline – impacted Sinha's ability to listen first to his own assessment and judgment. Recognizing this, Sinha recalibrated his approach, and Rubrik got back on track. In this discussion, he shares his strategy for collaborative decision-making without losing sight of one's own ideas.

You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/rubrik-scaling-with-intuition/

You can watch the video of this interview here: https://youtu.be/wIjkX2gfzmE

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Impromptu: Amplifying Our Humanity Through AI Mar 16, 2023

Audio version of the introduction to Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman’s latest book, entitled “Impromptu: Amplifying Humanity Through AI."

Impromptu was co-written by Hoffman and ChatGPT-4, OpenAI’s latest and most powerful large language model. The book aims to serve as a sort of “travelog” of Hoffman’s experience with GPT-4, as he explores the tool’s strengths and limitations. Through hundreds of prompts, Hoffman and GPT-4 discuss the potential advantages and drawbacks of AI, argue about human nature, conceive original sci fi plots, and even try to make a few jokes. As AI is quickly advancing, Hoffman hopes his book can serve as a guide to encourage people to learn more about the technology, consider how we might use it, and ponder the complex questions about how our choices might play out in the future. You can read the text of this chapter here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/amplifying-humanity-through-ai/ ‎

Impromptu is now available:

As a free PDF:

https://lnkd.in/eZSsGYgB

On Kindle:

https://lnkd.in/eUE2ukM3

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Introducing Possible: A New Podcast hosted by Reid Hoffman and Aria Finger Mar 15, 2023

A special guest episode of Possible, the new podcast hosted by Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman and Aria Finger. Possible looks at the future through a decidedly optimistic lens - and what it will take to get there. Each episode features a visionary from a different field, such as media, climate science, criminal justice, and more. Also joining for each episode is ChatGPT-4, OpenAI’s latest language model. GPT4 will provide a companion story to serve as a jumping off point for each discussion, which will explore what could possibly go right if we as a society work together to leverage technology effectively.

Comedian, writer, and former Daily Show host Trevor Noah joined Reid and Aria for the inaugural episode of Possible. They discuss what a world would look like if every TV show could be perfectly tailored to each viewer’s interest, knowledge level and needs. Trevor responds to a speculative story, generated by GPT-4, that paints a picture of a futuristic “AI-ly Show.” Plus, he reviews some unexpected AI-generated light bulb jokes. Is GPT-4 actually funny?

Follow the Possible podcast wherever you listen here.

Read the AI-generated story for this episode here.

Read the transcript of this episode here.

Read Reid Hoffman’s essay “A Co-Pilot for Every Profession” here.

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Adept CEO David Luan and Stanford's Percy Liang | Words into Action Mar 14, 2023

A re-broadcast of Greylock general partner Saam Motamedi's interview with Adept CEO and co-founder David Luan and Stanford computer science and statistics professor Percy Liang. In this conversation (recorded in mid-2022), David and Percy discuss how large language models are paving the way for the next wave of AI. Adept is developing an AI "teammate" tool that is trained to use every software tool and API for knowledge workers. The company just raised $350 million in Series B funding to further its mission. Greylock has been partnered with Adept since co-leading the Series A in 2022. You can watch the video from this interview on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/_ydBm3tADvA You can read a transcript of the conversation on our website here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/ai-language-words-into-action/ ‎

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Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi on Decision-Making Mar 07, 2023

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi talks with Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman about his strategy for decision-making. Like most companies, Uber has experienced many ups and downs. Getting through each phase (good or bad), depends on how the leadership team responds, says Khosrowshahi. In difficult moments, which he refers to as "war time," it's critical to prioritize speed and quick decision-making. Conversely, during "peace time", he is more team-oriented and focused on incorporating as many viewpoints as possible. You can watch the video of this interview on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/Dn46NeZrRt0 You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/uber-dara-khosrowshahi-navigation-systems/

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Instacart's Fidji Simo | Building A Tech-Enabled Food System Feb 28, 2023

Instacart CEO Fidji Simo shares the company's vision for building a tech-enabled food system for all. Simo, who previously spent 10 years at Meta, is accustomed to taking bold bets on transformative tech. She spoke with Greylock general partner David Thacker about joining Instacart in 2021 following a period of significant growth; how she identifies moments in time where new technology can find traction; what she learned from leaders and mentors throughout her career; her approach to leadership; and how she separates major disruptive events from secular trends in order to chart a sustainable business course forward. You can watch the video of the interview on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/agAJbOhuNaQ You can read an essay with the highlights of the conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/whats-in-store/

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OpenAI's Sam Altman | AI for the Next Era Feb 21, 2023

A re-broadcast of Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman's interview with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, recorded during Greylock's Intelligent Future summit in August 2022. Founded in 2015, OpenAI has recently released several high-profile products in quick succession: succession: its generative transformer model GPT-3 – which uses deep learning to produce human-like text – its image-creation platform DALL-E – and most recently, ChatGPT. Trained on massive large language models, the highly sophisticated chatbot can mimic human conversation and speak on a wide range of topics. You can watch a video of the interview here: https://youtu.be/WHoWGNQRXb0 You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/sam-altman-ai-for-the-next-era/

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Stripe's Patrick Collison | Micro Pessimism, Macro Optimism Feb 14, 2023

Navigating uncertain economic conditions is part and parcel of running a business. Yet, throughout challenging times, it’s critical that startups stay committed to continually pushing the possibilities of what technology can deliver, says Stripe CEO Patrick Collison. That means leading with the guiding principle “micro pessimism and macro optimism.” Often, Collison says, this means having a relentless ability to be critical about the state of technology (including one’s own products) while still believing in its possibilities.That viewpoint acknowledges the structural tension companies face when trying to innovate in the context of economic reality, and can be the difference between persisting through challenging times or becoming a casualty of yet another tech boom and bust cycle. Collison joined Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman on our Iconversations speaker series to discuss Stripe’s early days and its evolution into the payment and financial services platform giant it is today, and his advice to startups for navigating the predictable unpredictability of business. You can watch the video of the interview here: https://youtu.be/rzic-FivMfc You can read the transcript here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/micro-pessimism-macro-optimism/

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Reid Hoffman and ChatGPT | AI in the Classroom Feb 07, 2023

Of the many transformative possibilities of artificial intelligence, its potential to impact education is among the most exciting. It’s also one of the most contentious. While it could extend the reach of over-worked teachers, offer personalized curriculums, and enhance the learning experience, it could also present many drawbacks: cheating, loss of jobs, and a reliance on technology that impedes the development of critical-thinking skills. In the latest episode of Fireside Chatbots, Reid Hoffman poses questions to OpenAI's ChatGPT on the potential impact of artificial intelligence technology in educational settings. You can read a transcript of this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/ai-in-the-classroom/

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Greylock's Yuliya Mykhaylovska | How to Evaluate and Hire Early Career Candidates Feb 02, 2023

Current economic conditions have put thousands of highly qualified candidates in search of new roles. In just a few months, the population of job-seekers will further expand as a wave of fresh graduates – many of whom will be taking on the first serious role of their career – enter the market. The dearth of open roles can be discouraging to any candidate, and those at the beginning of their careers may feel this even more acutely. A bright spot is early-stage startups in need of talent to build core teams, and for many, the best match may be the newest job seeker. Yuliya Mykhaylovska, who leads university recruiting for Greylock's talent team, shares how to evaluate and recruit candidates at the earliest stages of their career, and outlines how startup founders can best structure the role to allow flexibility and growth along with the company. You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/starting-points/

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Asheem Chandna | Leveraging the Downturn Jan 31, 2023

Audio version of Greylock general partner Asheem Chandna's essay for Forbes "Four Tasks for CEOs in 2023: Leveraging the Downturn." As Chandna puts forth, while economic recessions can mark the end for many otherwise promising companies, they also present opportunities. Businesses that were previously in hyper-growth mode now have time to re-asses and implement tactics they couldn't in busier times. Chandna lays out several strategies to take in this scenario. This essay was read by Greylock's head of editorial Heather Mack. You can read the essay here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/asheemchandna/2023/01/18/four-tasks-for-ceos-in-2023-leveraging-the-downturn/?sh=7494f60f56cc

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Reid Hoffman and ChatGPT | The Human-AI Partnership Jan 23, 2023

The second episode of Fireside Chatbots featuring Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman and ChatGPT, the large language model created by OpenAI. This week, Reid and ChatGPT talk about the ways humans and AI can work together to significantly increase productivity, scientific discovery, analytical capabilities, and creativity. As ChatGPT says, "The jobs of the future will likely be a combination of technical and human skills, requiring individuals to be adaptable and able to work with new technologies. " You can read a transcript of this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/the-human-ai-partnership/

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Figma's Nairi Hourdajian and Greylock's Elisa Schreiber | Startup Storytelling Jan 18, 2023

Figma's VP of Communications Nairi Hourdajian and Greylock marketing partner Elisa Schreiber discuss how startup founders can approach their communications strategy. Whether a startup is looking to recruit talent, acquire customers, establish thought leadership, or just raise general awareness, having a well-structured communications strategy in place is crucial. This conversation is part of Greylock's Brain Trust series. You can find a transcript of the interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/startup-storytelling/

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Reid Hoffman and ChatGPT | Talking AI with AI Jan 12, 2023

Introducing Fireside Chatbots, a miniseries featuring conversations not only about AI, but with AI. Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman talks with ChatGPT, a large language model created by OpenAI. Hoffman, who serves on OpenAI's board, poses questions to ChatGPT about the massive positive impact he believes AI will all facets of society. For this podcast, we used an AI-generated voice for ChatGPT, powered by the text-to-speech platform of Play.ht. The chat transcripts are exact, word for word, which Hoffman says, " show the magic and the current limitations of the technology. " You can read the transcript of this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/reid-hoffman-chatbots-talking-ai-with-ai

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Tome's Henri Liriani | Hiring Startup Design Teams Jan 10, 2023

Tome CPO and co-founder Henri Liriani and Katy Amaya of the Greylock talent team discuss the rising importance of founding designers at startups and share best practices for building strong design teams. While past generations of startups could get away with focusing purely on the technical aspects of their product in the initial stages and bring design teams later, today's startups are living in the age following an explosion of consumer apps (and the subsequent push for consumerization of enterprise software) that has resulted in a heavy focus on the end user experience. Good design is now a critical part of a company's success. You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/designed-with-purpose/

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Okta's Frederic Kerrest | Instructive Experiences Jan 03, 2023

A re-broadcast of our interview with Okta executive vice chairman, COO, and co-founder Frederic Kerrest, who shares stories from his earliest days as an entrepreneur starting a business in the midst of the Great Recession. The challenging experience is why Kerrest wrote Zero to IPO, a collection of some of the best actionable advice from some of the world’s most influential entrepreneurs. The book, which was published earlier this year, details his early days at Okta as well as those of other iconic entrepreneurs. This interview is part Greylock's Iconversations speaker series and was originally recorded in May 2022 with former Greylock general partner Sarah Guo. You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/instructive-experiences/

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Reid Hoffman | Investing in Vices & Virtues Dec 27, 2022

A re-broadcast of our episode featuring the audio version of Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman's essay, "Human Nature in Vices and Virtues: An Adam Smith Approach to Building Internet Ecosystems and Communities," published on the Knight Foundation's website. Hoffman discusses how some of the most popular websites leverage some of humankind's less desirable attributes(e.g. "the 7 deadly sins"), and how entrepreneurs and investors can think about building based on virtuous traits. Essay read by Greylock marketing partner Elisa Schreiber. You can read the essay here: https://knightfoundation.org/human-nature-in-vices-and-virtues-an-adam-smith-approach-to-building-internet-ecosystems-and-communities/

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2022 in Review | The Year's Top Insights and Advice for Entrepreneurs Dec 20, 2022

A compilation of excerpts from 22 of our most popular podcasts of 2022. Greylock's head of editorial Heather Mack walks listeners through through interviews with industry leaders including OpenAI's Sam Altman, Cloudflare's Michelle Zatlyn, Nike's John Donahoe, and more. We're also featuring the top sought-after advice from Greylock's own team of investors such as Reid Hoffman, and tactical guidance from Greylock's talent and marketing specialists. You can read a transcript of this episode (which includes links to all full episodes from which the compilation is made) here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/2022-year-in-review/

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Zoox CEO Aicha Evans | Moving People Forward Dec 13, 2022

Zoox CEO Aicha Evans speaks with Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman to discuss how the "robotaxi" company has made safety permeate into every aspect of the company culture and operations; why they are building for dense urban environments; and her vision for the future of the “people moving business.” Zoox's unique approach to autonomous driving (building all of the hardware and software in-house, from the ground up), means the entire company is oriented around the same mission and priorities. From the people building the door handles to the developers coding the software, keeping riders safe is the paramount focus for every Zoox employee. That means all teams must operate with total transparency and expect a culture of collective learning, patience, and tradeoffs, says Evans. You can read a transcript of this interview here: You can read a transcript here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/zoox-moving-people-forward/

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Reid Hoffman | Bear Market Blitzscaling Dec 06, 2022

During economic downturns, is it possible (or even wise) for startup entrepreneurs to deploy growth tactics? Will companies be able to secure funding? Should founders even consider starting a business during a bear market? "100%," says Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman. However, the specific ways startups approach high-growth strategies during high-risk economic environments is crucial, and it all depends on the leverage points they have over their competition. Hoffman and his Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh discuss how entrepreneurs can assess their position in the market and take action to get them to the next phase of super-charged growth. You can read a transcript from this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/reid-hoffman-bear-market-blitzscaling/

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Pinata | Getting Creative at Scale Dec 02, 2022

While the short-lived hype of NFTs centered on static jpeg files, there are actually far more use cases that can be deployed for the technology. Omaha-based Pinata has developed a platform that enables web3 app builders to store, manage, and build more functionality into NFTs. Pinata CEO and co-founder Kyle Tut sat down with Greylock general partner Mike Duboe to discuss the company's inception, the current web3 ecosystem, and Pinata's ultimate goal of serving content at scale for NFT projects. You can read the transcript from this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/pinata-getting-web3-creative-at-scale/

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Reid Hoffman | Crisis Management Nov 29, 2022

A re-broadcast of our episode featuring Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman in conversation with his Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh. In this episode (originally recorded in May 2022), Hoffman and Yeh discuss strategies for entrepreneurs to navigate crises - whatever that may mean at the given time. Entrepreneurship assumes an innate degree of optimism and perseverance. But even the most determined founders can feel subdued when faced with yet another crisis. That’s why adaptability is a startup’s strongest asset. As recent global events push us into a new era of market volatility and economic uncertainty, companies must be prepared to recalibrate their business to the new reality. Whether that means pausing their hiring plans, tempering their expansion efforts, redirecting resources, or any other number of operational activities, today’s startup leaders should have a set of defensive and offensive tactics they can quickly deploy during times of crisis. You can read a transcript of this episode here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/crisis-management/

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Reid Hoffman | The Importance of Friendship Nov 22, 2022

A re-broadcast of our episode featuring Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman sharing the speech he gave at the 2022 Commencement of Vanderbilt University. Hoffman discusses several key moments in his personal and professional life, including his initial foray into entrepreneurship, and the role his friends have played. As he says, "The most impactful lessons that shaped my perspective, decisions, and ultimately the actions I took came from friends." You can read the transcript of this speech here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/reid-hoffman-the-importance-of-friendship/

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Snorkel AI | Jumpstarting Data-Centric AI Nov 18, 2022

Greylock general partner Saam Motamedi talks with Snorkel AI CEO and co-founder Alex Ratner. As more enterprise organizations have recognized the utility of artificial intelligence technology, there's been a major push to invest in and adopt new AI and ML infrastructure to drive insights and make predictions for businesses. However, many of these solutions lack the mechanism to unlock and operationalize the data needed to train and deploy models for high quality AI projects. That pain point spawned the creation of Snorkel AI, which has developed an end-to-end data-centric machine learning platform for the enterprise.Putting the capabilities to build impactful AI in the hands of more people has been Snorkel's goal since its inception. The company spun out of Stanford's AI Lab in 2019 and has been partnered with Greylock since 2020, and just released a new set of tools that enables enterprise organizations to put foundation models to use. You can read a transcript of this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/jumpstarting-data-centric-ai/

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Inventa | Supplying Connections Nov 17, 2022

There are millions of entrepreneurs running small retail businesses in Latin America. While they may differ in the types of products sold or specific customers they target, the challenges they face in everyday operations are common. From low credit card penetration to poor visibility into shipping logistics and pricing, the various difficulties often boil down to a singular issue: lack of data. Brazil-based Inventa has been working to change that. The company’s digital marketplace steps in to fill the gaps left by the outdated modes of phone calls, paper catalogs, and in-person trade shows where much of LatAm retail commerce takes place. Greylock general partner and Inventa board member Mike Duboe talks with Inventa CEO and co-founder Marcos Salama about the company's strategy, explosive growth, and vision for the future of commerce in Latin America. You can read a transcript of this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/inventa-supplying-commerce-connections/

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Seth Rosenberg | Bringing DeFi Lending Mainstream Nov 15, 2022

Audio version of Greylock investor Seth Rosenberg's essay "Bringing DeFi Lending Mainstream," read by Greylock's head of editorial Heather Mack. Crypto hype and speculation got us into the current chaotic winter. But the core infrastructure remains, and is still ripe for the innovation that will take us into the next crypto summer. There are many real use cases across financial services that can not only usher us into a more secure, inclusive, and efficient financial system, but also return trust and ownership to those for whom crypto was created in the first place – the users. Rosenberg unpacks the use case of defi lending to illustrate how this can be done. You can read the essay here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/bringing-defi-lending-mainstream/

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Rubrik's Bipul Sinha and Steve Stone | Understanding and Preventing Modern Cyber Attacks Nov 08, 2022

Rubrik CEO Bipul Sinha and Steve Stone, the company's newly appointed head of its research department Zero Labs, sat down with MarketWatch reporter (and Greymatter guest host) Jon Swartz to discuss an inescapable fact of business life: Cyber attacks. They happen to pretty much everyone, but whether a company is prepared to recover from it depends on multiple factors, from their level of understanding of the risk to the data protection tools they have at their disposal. Most aren't: A recent survey conducted by Zero Labs found 92% of security and IT leaders don't feel confident they could carry on business if they experience a cyber attack. What's more, about a third of organizations surveyed said a cyber attack led to a leadership change, and many reported a misalignment between IT and security teams. Bipul, Steve, and Jon discuss the more findings from the report and outline how companies can protect their organizations. You can read a transcript of this conversation here: https://greylock.com/firm-news/building-cybersecurity-confidence/

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CNBC's Julia Boorstin | When Women Lead Nov 01, 2022

While there may be plenty of discussion about the disparity between funding for women-led startups and those led by men, women still receive just 2% of all venture capital funding. And yet, many women are still finding success as entrepreneurs. How? CNBC Senior Media & Technology reporter Julia Boorstin dug into the stories of women entrepreneurs founding, funding, and running companies, and uncovered a variety of smart tactics and approaches. Those stories and the data are shared in her new book, "When Women Lead." Julia spoke with Greylock marketing partner Elisa Schreiber in front of a live, female-majority audience as part of Greylock's Iconversations speaker series. You can watch a video from the interview here: https://youtu.be/7moBNBLIVMA You can read a transcript here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/julia-boorstin-when-women-lead/

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Rent the Runway's Jennifer Hyman | Designed by Data Oct 25, 2022

Rent the Runway CEO and co-founder Jennifer Hyman and Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman discuss the strategy behind the company's data-driven, online marketplace where people can rent or buy clothing. Rent the Runway launched in 2009 with the mission to democratize fashion. Over the years, the company has evolved significantly, keeping up with the many major shifts to the retail and e-commerce industries overall. From the rise of mobile and the increasingly outside influence of social media on shopping, to changes in consumer preferences from subscription models or in-person experiences, and, of course the multifaceted impact of the pandemic on shopping, Rent the Runway has continuously adapted. Rent the Runway went public in 2021 and today works with hundreds of designers. You can watch the video of this interview here: https://youtu.be/T06qHdl1sI0 You can read the transcript here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/designed-by-data/

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Microsoft CTO Kevin Scott | The Impact of AI on Cognitive Work Oct 18, 2022

Microsoft CTO Kevin Scott joins Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman for a discussion about the impact of AI on cognitive (or knowledge) work. Scott, whose company developed the programming assistant tool GitHub Copilot, advises people building machine learning systems (or entire companies) around AI to maintain a clear sense of responsibility and awareness of the potential negative impacts. In addition to his experience in the conception, development, and adoption of new technology in enterprise organizations, Scott is known for his dedication to figuring out how AI can level the playing field for society. This is driven by his unique perspective from his upbringing in a rural community in Virginia. His experience from his personal background and career converge in his 2020 book “Reprogramming the American Dream: From Rural America to Silicon Valley, Making AI Work for Us All,” which posits that AI can (and should) be developed to promote economic growth for all industries and individuals. This interview took place during Greylock’s Intelligent Future event, a daylong summit featuring experts and entrepreneurs in artificial intelligence. You can read a transcript of the interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/kevin-scott-ai-programming-possibility/ You can watch the video from this interview on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/LYBcH3JjLxs

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Aurora's Chris Urmson + Nuro's Jiajun Zhu | The Road Ahead for Autonomous Driving Oct 11, 2022

Autonomous driving is among the most exciting applications for artificial intelligence. It is also among the most challenging to actually pull off: from the capital-intensive combination of hardware and software to the complex coordination between multiple stakeholders to ensure safety. What will it take to get it deployed on a large scale? Aurora CEO Chris Urmson and Nuro CEO Jiajun Zhu join Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman for a discussion on the state of autonomous vehicle technology. This interview was part of Greylock's Intelligent Future event, a daylong summit featuring experts and entrepreneurs in artificial intelligence. You can watch the video from the interview here: https://youtu.be/8vjlhregfeg You can read a transcript of the interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/autonomous-vehicles-the-road-ahead/

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Shopify President Harley Finkelstein | Catalyzing Entrepreneurship Oct 04, 2022

Shopify president Harley Finkelstein sat down with Greylock general partner Mike Duboe to discuss the company's evolution along with the overall ecommerce landscape; offer advice to entrepreneurs navigating the current market conditions; and lay out his vision for the future. Shopify launched a time when there were few options for entrepreneurs to set up their online stores, sell and market products, and manage their operations. The company struck a chord both with retail entrepreneurs in need of better solutions and app developers eager to build them. Today, Shopify works with more than a million businesses that collectively represent some 10% of e-commerce in the United States, providing tools for companies to set up, sell, market, and manage their products. You can watch the video of this interview on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/A5Zn-aP8hrI You can read the transcript from this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/shopify-catalyzing-entrepreneurship/

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AI's Human Factor | Stanford's Dr. Fei-Fei Li and OpenAI's Mira Murati on AI Safety Sep 27, 2022

The more human-like artificial intelligence becomes, the more we understand about how our brains actually work. Through that discovery process, researchers are identifying ways to design artificial intelligence in ways that factor in the safety and morality of their potential impact. Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman interviews Dr. Fei-Fei Li, the co-director of Stanford's Institute for Human-Centered AI, and Mira Murati, the CTO of OpenAI. In this interview, they discuss how technology like GPT-3 is being trained with human safety in mind, and how academia, industry, and policymakers are coming together to ensure AI is developed and deployed in ways that benefit all. This interview is part of Greylock's Intelligent Future series. You can watch the video of this interview on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/9B02MzWwkSo You can read the transcript from this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/ais-human-factor/

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Words into Action | Progress from Large Language Models to AGI Sep 20, 2022

Greylock general partner Saam Motamedi interviews David Luan, who is the co-founder of ML research and product lab Adept, and Percy Liang, who is the associate professor of computer science and statistics at Stanford. In this conversation, they discuss the major developments in working with large scale language models. This interview took place during Greylock’s Intelligent Future event, a day-long summit featuring some of the leading voices in artificial intelligence. You can watch the video from this interview on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/_ydBm3tADvA You can read a transcript of the conversation on our website here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/ai-language-words-into-action/ ‎

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OpenAI CEO Sam Altman | AI for the Next Era Sep 13, 2022

Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman interviews OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. The AI research and deployment company's primary mission is to develop and promote AI technology that benefits humanity. Founded in 2015, the company has most recently been noted for its generative transformer model GPT - 3, which uses deep learning to produce human-like text, and its image-creation platform DALL-E. This interview took place during Greylock’s Intelligent Future event, a day-long summit featuring experts and entrepreneurs from some of today’s leading artificial intelligence organizations. You can watch the video of this interview on our YouTune channel here: https://youtu.be/WHoWGNQRXb0 You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/sam-altman-ai-for-the-next-era/

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Reid Hoffman and Saam Motamedi | Introducing the Intelligent Future Sep 07, 2022

Greylock general partners Reid Hoffman and Saam Motamedi discuss the current state of artificial intelligence, including the most recent technological advancements; top areas for investment; and the ethical considerations needed to ensure tools are developed safely. This discussion is the kickoff for Greylock's Intelligent Future series featuring conversations with experts, visionaries, and early-stage innovators across the AI ecosystem. Guests of this series include Microsoft CTO, Kevin Scott, Stanford professor, Dr. Fei-Fei Li, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and the founders of some of the most promising AI startups today. You can read a transcript from this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/the-intelligent-future/

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Greylock Talent Team | Building Your Talent Strategy: When, Why, and How to Bring in a Recruiter Aug 30, 2022

From developing a repeatable, strategic process and continuously working to identify ways to improve it, founders can take a number of steps to build a culture of recruiting. Sometimes, that means hiring a dedicated talent-sourcing and recruiting team. Greylock talent partner Glen Evans and technical talent recruiter Dwane Hamilton discuss strategies for working with recruiters, including when to bring them on, how to screen for the position, and how founders should maintain an active recruiting role alongside a talent professional. You can read a transcript of this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/building-your-talent-strategy/

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Alice Bentinck and Matt Clifford | How To Be A Founder Aug 23, 2022

The “talent investor" Entrepreneur First was created with a mission to connect founders no matter where they are in the world, and recruits and backs them at the very earliest stages. By focusing on connecting individuals rather than defined teams, they've gained a unique perspective into what makes good ideas, and how the right co-founder dynamics can bring it into reality. Now, they've gathered some of their main insights into a book: "How to be a Founder: How Entrepreneurs Identify, Fund, and Launch Their Best Ideas." Bentinck and Clifford join Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman to discuss the book and their vision for the future of entrepreneurship. You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/how-to-be-a-founder/

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Espresso | Privacy and Scalability for Web3 Aug 18, 2022

A re-broadcast of our episode featuring Greylock investor Seth Rosenberg's interview with the co-founders of Espresso Systems, which provides configurable privacy and scalability tools for Web3. The company is operating at a critical time for privacy within Web3. Recently, the U.S. Treasury imposed sanctions on Tornado Cash, a mixer platform that enables cryptocurrency transactions. The regulatory action marks the first time authorities have imposed sanctions on computer protocols (code) rather than individuals or wallets. This represents a key moment for the industry and raises questions on the right approach to regulation and how developers can enable important use cases with privacy. Rosenberg originally spoke with co-founders Charles Lu and Benedikt Bunz in March, when the company came out of stealth with a Series A co-led by Greylock and Electric Capital. In light of the regulatory action on Tornado, Rosenberg caught up with co-founder Jill Gunter to discuss the increased importance for privacy tools within the web3 industry. You can read Seth's original blog post about the investment and the transcript from the podcast here: greylock.com/portfolio-news/pri…lability-for-web3/

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Nike CEO John Donahoe | The Next Play Aug 16, 2022

Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman interviews Nike CEO John Donahoe as part of Greylock's Iconversations speaker series. In the interview, Donahoe discusses the iconic sports retailer's digital transformation in recent years; the lessons learned as a four-time CEO; and his “head coach” mentality to leadership. You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/the-next-play/

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Alchemy | Bringing Web3 to the World Aug 09, 2022

Known as the "AWS of Web3", Alchemy's platform powers most of the top web3 applications around the world. The idea came to founders Nikil Viswanathan and Joe Lau following their own frustration when building a crypto analytics tool. Seeing that developers around the world needed a toolkit to enable the next wave of innovation, they set out to build Alchemy. Launched in 2020, the company's platform quickly became an indispensable tool for developers creating projects with blockchain technology, including the top NFT platforms such as Open Sea and Makerspace. Greylock investor Christine Kim spoke with Viswanathan for Greymatter's new crypto-focused series Mint Condition. You can read a transcript of the conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/bringing-web3-to-the-world/

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Maya Frai | Design-Centered Product Aug 02, 2022

Greylock investor Maya Frai outlines her perspective on design-centered products, which she believes is the now overarching driver of innovation in several industries including commerce, social, saas, web3, and more. Based on her experience on product teams at Google, Facebook, and Rent the Runway, Maya believes technology that puts people at the center are often the most successful. You can read the essay that inspired this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/the-design-first-approach/

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Reid Hoffman | How to Decide Jul 26, 2022

A re-broadcast of our episode focused on one of the most critical (yet often under-analyzed) aspects of entrepreneurship: decision-making. As Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman and his Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh discuss, there are actually many things entrepreneurs can do to improve their decision-making skills. The central skill is learning how to be quick and decisive, and to adjust your course to avoid the worst of the mines.You can read the essay based on this discussion here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/how-to-decide/

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Solv CEO Heather Fernandez | Purpose into Action Jul 19, 2022

Solv CEO and co-founder Heather Fernandez talks with Greylock marketing partner Elisa Schreiber about a unique fundraising strategy Solv undertook to add more women investors to the company's cap table. In late 2021, Solv was wrapping up its Series C round when Fernandez was encouraged by longtime investor and friend Kara Norton (Upfront Ventures) to launch a special purpose vehicle (SPV) aimed solely at women investors. Within 10 days, the SPV raised $3.5M from 75 women investors, 60% of whom were women of color and a majority were first-time investors. Fernandez and Schreiber discuss the process and provide a playbook for other entrepreneurs. You can read a transcript of this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/purpose-into-action/ You can watch a video of the conversation here: https://youtu.be/1KemFU4_vGo

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Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky | People-First Capitalism Jul 12, 2022

A re-broadcast of our episode featuring Airbnb CEO and co-founder Brian Chesky. Chesky joined Greylock partner Reid Hoffman on Greylock's Iconversations speaker series to talk about how he guided Airbnb from an 80% loss within the first two months of the pandemic to a record-breaking IPO by the end of 2020; why Silicon Valley needs to redefine how it measures growth; how Chesky’s design background informs Airbnb’s business strategy; and, ultimately, the importance of putting people first. You can read a transcript of this episode here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/airbnb-brian-chesky-people-first-capitalism/ You can watch the video of this interview here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKz9Aohljvw&list=PLnsTB8Q5VgnUtQ2Yc32sqgCr_pm77YGZr

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Reid Hoffman | Talking Politics Jul 05, 2022

A re-broadcast of our episode with Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman and his Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh discussing when, how, and why CEOs should speak publicly about political or social topics. Once considered strictly off limits to business leaders, speaking out about politics and social issues has become much more common. In fact, it’s now often expected for a CEO to make a statement that communicates their company’s values and position even on the most highly-charged or controversial topics. But getting it right requires careful consideration, as Reid and Chris discuss in detail. This conversation was recorded in 2020. You can read an essay from the conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/talking-politics/

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Asheem Chandna | Where Does AI Go Next? Jun 28, 2022

Audio version of essay written by Greylock general partner Asheem Chandna for Forbes: "Where Does AI Go Next?" Chandna and several AI experts weigh in on the potential value and risks as the technology expands. Essay read by Greylock head of editorial Heather Mack. You can read the essay on Forbes here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/asheemchandna/2022/05/31/where-does-ai-go-next/ You can also read the essay on the Greylock website here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/where-does-ai-go-next/

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Magic Eden | The Community-Centric Marketplace Jun 21, 2022

Greylock general partner Mike Duboe speaks with Zhuoxun Yin (Zedd) and Jack Lu, two of the co-founders of NFT marketplace Magic Eden. The company, which just raised its Series B round, provides a platform for people to discover, collect, and trade NFTs on the Solana ecosystem. You can read a transcript of this episode here: https://greylock.com/portfolio-news/magic-eden/

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HashiCorp CEO David McJannet | Powering the Multi-Cloud Paradigm Jun 14, 2022

Greylock general partner Jerry Chen speaks with HashiCorp CEO David McJannet about the proliferation of cloud services that requires a multi-cloud approach. Founded in 2012, HashiCorp is an provider of products that are foundational to mission-critical cloud applications and infrastructure. As such, the company has become an essential partner to numerous organizations ranging from startups to the Big 3 cloud providers. It is both a competitor and a collaborator, and is perhaps the best representation of the open-source, multi-cloud paradigm in which almost all companies now operate. You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/powering-the-multi-cloudparadigm/ You can find the entire Castles in the Cloud project here: https://greylock.com/castles/

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Convoy | Transporting Innovation Jun 07, 2022

Convoy CEO and co-founder Dan Lewis discusses the current shipping landscape and how his company is upgrading the long-antiquated trucking industry. Convoy, which has developed a platform that puts drivers, shipping companies, and freight brokers on the grid has allowed all parties to operate more efficiently, resulting in saved costs and time as well as reducing pollution. Founded in 2015, Convoy now works with about 80,000 registered trucking companies (which collectively have some 400,000 trucks in their network), and in April raised $260 million in Series E funding. Greylock has been an investor since 2015, and general partner Reid Hoffman sits on the company’s board. You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/firm-news/convoy-transporting-innovation/

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Reid Hoffman | Crisis Management May 31, 2022

Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman and his Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh discuss the current crisis and its impact on startups. Entrepreneurship assumes an innate degree of optimism and perseverance. But even the most determined founders can feel subdued when faced with yet another crisis. That’s why adaptability is a startup’s strongest asset. As recent global events push us into a new era of market volatility and economic uncertainty, companies must be prepared to recalibrate their business to the new reality. Whether that means pausing their hiring plans, tempering their expansion efforts, redirecting resources, or any other number of operational activities, today’s startup leaders should have a set of defensive and offensive tactics they can quickly deploy during times of crisis. You can read a transcript of this episode here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/crisis-management/

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Reid Hoffman | The Importance of Friendship May 29, 2022

In his commencement speech to Vanderbilt University's graduating class of 2022, Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman discusses the impact and importance of friendship. "Not the Hallmark kind – not all sunshine and roses and bunny rabbits," says Hoffman. "I mean real, substantial friendship – that’s sometimes really hard – and that shapes and changes our lives." In this speech, Hoffman shares some of the key decisions and actions that friends helped him figure out to take, and which significantly impacted the course of his professional and personal life. You can read the full text of the speech here: https://greylock.com/firm-news/reid-hoffman-the-importance-of-friendship/

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Jerry Chen & Jason Risch | VC Funding for the Cloud May 25, 2022

Audio version of the latest essay by Greylock investors' Jerry Chen and Jason Risch. As part of our ongoing Castles in the Cloud project, we’ve compiled and analyzed VC funding data into cloud-focused startups in 2021 and Q1 2022. We are mapping the activity in the venture capital-funded startup ecosystem with that of the Big 3 Cloud providers: AWS, Azure, and GCP. You can read the essay here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/vc-funding-for-the-cloud/ You can find the entire Castles in the Cloud project here: https://greylock.com/castles/

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Jason Risch | The Next Cloud Data Platform May 25, 2022

Audio version of Greylock investor Jason Risch's article "The Next Cloud Data Platform." As part of Greylock's interactive data project Castles in the Cloud, we've analyzed new areas of opportunities for startups. Platforms within the modern data stack pose multiple points of entry for startups to innovate. VCs are already looking for “the next Snowflake” – companies that find success in the shadow of Big Cloud by reimagining the modern data stack. To solidify their staying power, the next chapter for Snowflake and other cloud data warehouses is to continue to expand as a platform company and challenge the cloud providers as the dominant cloud platforms for developers. You can read the text of this essay here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/the-next-cloud-data-platform/ You can find the entire Castles in the Cloud project here: https://greylock.com/castles/

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David Wadhwani | Finding Opportunity in Crisis May 19, 2022

As the saying goes, "Never let a good crisis go to waste." While running a business during times of economic and/or societal crisis is difficult, these moments can also pose opportunities for many companies. David Wadhwani, who is the Chief Business Officer of Digital Media at Adobe and a venture partner at Greylock, outlines his top strategies for staying afloat during times of crises. This episode is an audio version of the essay David first published in April 2020, shortly after the Covid-19 pandemic hit. Greylock's Head of Content and Editorial Heather Mack reads the essay. You can read the full version here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/finding-opportunity-in-crisis-what-ceos-should-do-right-now/

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Okta's Frederic Kerrest | Instructive Experiences May 17, 2022

There are a million different ways things can go wrong when running a startup. Most founders learn the hard way. Frederic Kerrest’s experience was no different. The early days of Okta, which he co-founded with Todd McKinnon in 2009, were rife with challenges. From flawed go-to-market strategies and missed sales targets to struggles with hiring, Kerrest and McKinnon dealt with it all. On top of it all, it was in the midst of the Great Recession. That experience is why Kerrest wrote Zero to IPO, a collection of some of the best actionable advice from some of the world’s most influential entrepreneurs. The book, which was published earlier this year, details his early days at Okta as well as those of other iconic entrepreneurs. As part of our Iconversations speaker series, Kerrest joined Greylock board partner Sarah Guo to discuss the key themes of the book and share detailed examples of how they played out at Okta. You can watch a video of this interview on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/reEECmJ4uxU You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/instructive-experiences/

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Kenneth Chenault | Venture for Change May 10, 2022

How do you advance society as a whole while still making sound business decisions? Kenneth Chenault, the celebrated former chairman and CEO of American Express who is now an investor and board director, says, "If you really are thoughtful, you should be able to have a better economic model by doing good.” Chenault is also the co-founder of OneTen, a coalition of leading executives coming together to upskill, hire and advance one million Black Americans over the next 10 years. Kenneth joined Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman as part of our Iconversations speaker series to discuss responsible innovation, what leadership looks like in times of crisis, and the reinventive potential of technology. You can watch the video from this interview here: https://youtu.be/GMPunQtyFkU You can read a transcript from this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/venture-for-change/

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Gretel.ai | Making Data Work May 03, 2022

In today’s largely cloud-native world, having access to real world data is critical in order for organizations to derive meaning that drives innovation. Yet most organizations are still contending with inadequate tools that enable them to safely share, collaborate, and build with data. What’s more, many businesses lack the engineering resources to develop workarounds in the form of anonymized data sets or synthetic datasets that can be used to run powerful tests. Ali Golshan, the CEO and co-founder of Gretel.ai, says that dynamic has put the majority of businesses and organizations at a disadvantage when it comes to innovation, which is exactly where Gretel.ai comes in. The company, which was founded in 2019, aims to be the “GitHub of data,” stepping into to provide tools for data similar to the way the open platform effectively democratized building with code. You can read a transcript from this episode here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/making-data-work/

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Baseten | Self-Serve Apps for ML Teams Apr 26, 2022

It remains very difficult to build end-to-end products that leverage machine learning for business impact. Baseten makes it fast, seamless, and serverless to build scalable, user-facing workflow integrated apps powered by AI. The company just launched with $20 million in seed and series A funding led by Greylock. Sarah Guo, a Greylock board partner and board member of Baseten, spoke with co-founder and CEO Tuhin Srivastava about the ways the company is helping businesses unlock the power and value of machine learning. You can read a transcript of this episode here: https://greylock.com/portfolio-news/baseten-self-serve-apps-for-ml/

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Fungible Times | "Crypto Dad" Chris Giancarlo Apr 25, 2022

This is an episode from Fungible Times, the Web3-focused podcast produced by Greylock crypto investors Christine Kim, and Mike Duboe, and Greylock board partner Sarah Guo. Sarah and Christine spoke with Chris Giancarlo, the former CFTC Chairman who is widely recognized as one of the most influential people in financial regulation. Giancarlo, who is known as "Cryoto Dad" for his father-like advocacy of cryptocurrency, was also a member of the US Financial Stability Oversight Committe as well as the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets. He recently published the book "Crypto Dad: The Fight for the Future of Money”. You can also find this episode and all other Fungible Times episodes on their show website, fungibletimes.xyz, and you can subscribe on SoundCloud, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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Cloudflare's Michelle Zatlyn | Cyber Stewards Apr 19, 2022

The vastness of the internet, as an entity, can be difficult to put into perspective. Cloudflare, however, has a clear sense of its scope, as it handles roughly 20-percent of internet traffic. To frame it with another stat: More than 70 billion cyber attacks are stopped by Cloudflare each day. In this episode of Iconversations, Greylock’s Holly Rose Faith talks with Cloudflare Co-Founder, President, and COO Michelle Zatlyn about what it’s like to run a company that a massive constituent of users touch – often without knowing it. You can watch this interview on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/WW3grzormsg You can read a transcript from this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/cyber-stewards/

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Obsidian Security | Defending Critical SaaS Apr 14, 2022

A re-broadcast of our episode featuring Obsidian Security CEO and co-founder Glenn Chisolm, whose company just raised $90 million in Series C funding. Chisolm spoke with Greylock general partner Sarah Guo and New York Times cybersecurity reporter Nicole Perlroth in early 2021, shortly after the SolarWinds attack. In this conversation, they discuss the ever-evolving cybersecurity risk landscape and how businesses and governments can proactively protect their data.

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Google's James Manyika | Social Intelligence Apr 12, 2022

Google's first-ever SVP of Technology and Society James Manyika joins Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman for a discussion on the various ways technology impacts business, global economies, culture, and humankind. Manyika is a renowned expert in artificial intelligence, robotics, and globalization, and has been a highly-sought out advisor to many of the world's top tech companies. He spent nearly 30 years as an advisor at McKinsey Global and has held numerous board and consulting roles across academia, nonprofits, and government. This interview is part of Greylock's Iconversation speaker series. You can watch the video here: https://youtu.be/NAAT2wO-ZrQ You can read a transcript of the interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/social-intelligence/

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Holly Rose Faith | Executive Reference Checklist Apr 05, 2022

Greylock talent partner Holly Rose Faith, who works with startups to find, recruit, and place executive team members, outlines smart strategies to deploy when checking references. From having a plan of what you are looking to validate at the outset, to the specific questions depending on the role or stage of company, all hiring managers should go into referencing with a reliable, repeatable, formal system in place. This episode is part of Greylock's Brain Trust series. You can read a transcript of the interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/holly-rose-faith-greylock-executive-reference-checklist/

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Common Room | Collective Intelligence Mar 31, 2022

In recent years, there has been a seismic shift in the way software is built, distributed, and adopted. Rather than relying wholly on a traditional sales-led model, companies are empowering their communities of users, and as a result are among the fastest-growing organizations today. That’s why Common Room developed a platform to enable deeper engagement with those users. Launched last year, the company's tech is now available for anyone to try. Common Room CEO and co-founder Linda Lian discusses the company's first year with Greylock general partner and Common Room board member Sarah Guo. You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/collective-intelligence/

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Footwork VC's Mike Smith | Finding Your Fit in ECommerce Mar 29, 2022

Greylock general partner Mike Duboe interviews Mike Smith, the co-founder of FootworkVC. Smith spent the past two decades developing and scaling consumer businesses. He was an early employee at Stitch Fix and helped grow the fledgling startup into a public company. Prior to Stitch Fix, Smith spent nine years at Walmart, where he managed the company's multichannel business and oversaw operations. He also serves on the boards of Ulta Beauty, Herman Miller, and Mayvenn among others. This interview is part of Greylock's Iconversations series. You can watch a video of the conversation here: https://youtu.be/xvngA0R31Fw You can read a transcript from this interview here: https://bit.ly/3Lm5rV9

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Tome | Persuasion Through Stories Mar 23, 2022

Keith Peiris and Henri Liriani join Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman to discuss the launch of Tome - a storytelling platform for work. Anything on the internet can be easily embedded in a Tome, including Figma prototypes, Airtable spreadsheets, YouTube videos, Tweets, and Gifs. Users can play with 3D models and interact with live data tables that update automatically. With dynamic pages and foolproof formatting, Tome adapts to what you want to say – not the other way around – allowing users to skip time-intensive slide design and get straight to the story. Tome was incubated at Greylock, and Reid Hoffman and Seth Rosenberg are on the board. You can read a transcript of this episode here: https://greylock.com/portfolio-news/persuasion-through-stories/

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Fungible Times | Magic Eden Mar 16, 2022

Another special broadcast from the Fungible Times podcast, created and hosted by Greylock crypto investors Sarah Guo, Christine Kim, and Mike Duboe. On this episode, Magic Eden co-founders Jack and Zhuoxun talk about NFTs, gaming, mobile, and Solana. In less than 6 months, Magic Eden has risen to more than $1b USD in secondary trading volume and more than 95% share of the Solana ecosystem. Greylock is proud to be an investor in Magic Eden, which just raised $27M in Series A funding to accelerate their developments in gaming and mobile. You can also find this episode on the Fungible Times website fungibletimes.xyz, or by subscribing on Spotify, SoundCloud, Apple, or YouTube.

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Instawork | Flexibility on Demand Mar 15, 2022

More than half of the American workforce is paid hourly, and often work at jobs that must be performed in-person. Historically, however, this population has been left out of conversations about the future of work, and haven't benefitted from the significant technological improvements many other occupations have. Instawork is trying to change that. The flexible staffing platform connects businesses to local talent, and is generating some valuable data on the changing labor market in the meantime. Instawork CEO and co-founder Sumir Meghani joined Greylock general partner David Thacker to discuss how hourly workers are gaining new levels of flexibility and control over their careers - and changing the employment landscape. You can read a transcript from this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/flexibility-on-demand/

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Espresso | Privacy and Scalability for Web3 Mar 08, 2022

Greylock investor Seth Rosenberg talks with Espresso Systems COO Charles Lu and Chief Scientist Benedikt Bunz. Espresso, which just came out of stealth, is opening a new world of possibilities when it comes to scalability, decentralization, and configurable privacy for Web3. Greylock co-led the Series A with Electric Capital. You can read Seth's blog post about the investment and the transcript from this podcast here: https://greylock.com/portfolio-news/privacy-and-scalability-for-web3/

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YouTube's Neal Mohan | Powering Creators Mar 02, 2022

YouTube chief product officer and Google senior vice president Neal Mohan talks with Greylock general partner David Thacker about the dynamics of building, scaling, and governing one of the world's most popular user-generated content platforms. Mohan began his internet career at DoubleClick in the ‘90s, where he was a pioneer of the now-widespread advertising business model. He arrived at Google via the company’s 2007 acquisition of DoubleClick, and was instrumental in expanding advertising technology as well as laying the foundation for user-generated content platforms to thrive. Today, Mohan oversees every aspect of the Youtube platform and ecosystem for over 2B users and millions of content creators and media partners. This interview is part of Greylock's Iconversations speaker series. You can watch the video of this interview on YouTube here: https://www.economist.com/checks-and-balance-our-weekly-podcast-on-american-politics You can read a transcript of the interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/powering-creators/ You can find all Greylock Iconversations here:https://greylock.com/iconversations/

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Corinne Riley & Sarah Guo | BNPL for Businesses Mar 01, 2022

Greylock investor Corinne Riley reads the essay she co-authored with Greylock general partner Sarah Guo entitled "BNPL for Businesses." In this essay, Riley and Guo describe the current state of B2B commerce, and the ways it lags behind the innovation in consumer commerce financing. The high friction associated with the use of checks and ACH that still dominate B2B payment methods – unstructured communication channels, high operational toil across multiple systems, and manual reconciliation – have left businesses eager for modern tools. Riley and Guo outline opportunities for startups to deliver. You can read the essay here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/bnpl-for-businesses/

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Christine Kim | Innovation and Opportunities in Web3 Feb 22, 2022

Greylock investor Christine Kim discusses the current Web3 landscape. Kim, who focuses on a range of consumer technology and marketplaces, sees a future where blockchain technology is the underlying infrastructure (and driving force of innovation) across nearly every industry. Kim is also the co-creator and co-host of the Web3-specific podcast Fungible Times with fellow Greylock investors Sarah Guo and Mike Duboe. You can read a transcript of this episode here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/the-new-computing-paradigm/

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Asheem Chandna | The Long Game in Cybersecurity Feb 17, 2022

The audio version of Greylock general partner Asheem Chandna's column for Forbes, "The Long Game in Cybersecurity." As the underlying technology of cybersecurity advances, so, too, does the cyber threat. Chandna spoke with four cybersecurity experts about how things might play out in the coming years. While each expert brought a different lens, they are unified on one point: cybersecurity has never been more central and more complex. No one can afford to fall behind. This essay was read by Greylock head of editorial Heather Mack. You can read the essay on Forbes here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/asheemchandna/2022/02/10/the-long-game-in-cybersecurity/?sh=6f80c47b3781&utm_campaign=SocialPost&utm_medium=SocialOrganic&utm_source=Twitter

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Introducing The Enterprise Software Innovators Podcast | Michael Keithley Feb 16, 2022

A special guest broadcast of the new podcast Enterprise Software Innovators, created and co-hosted by Abnormal Security CEO and co-founder Evan Reiser and Greylock investor Saam Motamedi. ESI features exclusive conversations with the world's top technology executives, who share real world stories of the ways they are deploying disruptive software in their companies. The first episode of ESI features Michael Keithley, who is the CIO of United Talent Agency. Michael spoke about his vision for how to best utilize technology in the entertainment industry. You can find the ESI podcast on their website: https://www.enterprisesoftware.blog/ Read Saam Motamedi's blog here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/introducing-the-enterprise-software-innovators-podcast/

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Introducing Fungible Times | Mad Realities: Proof of Love with Devin Lewtan and Alice Ma Feb 14, 2022

A special guest broadcast of the brand new podcast Fungible Times, created and hosted by Greylock investors Sarah Guo, Christine Kim, and Mike Duboe. Fungible Times shares stories from the builders at the forefront of Web 3.0. Tune in to learn about crypto, NFTs, DeFi, and the decentralized web. Not financial advice :) You can find Fungible Times on the following channels: fungibletimes.xyz https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fungible-times https://open.spotify.com/show/6b5z8pncf9sa6v5cMMnFUG https://soundcloud.com/fungibletimes https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6kSMCzQTqc4dNT3gYAga-g https://twitter.com/fungibletimes

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Mystery | The Easy Button for Connection at Work Feb 10, 2022

In today's work world where remote, hybrid, and otherwise distributed teams are the norm, how do businesses ensure their employees are engaged and feel a sense of cohesion with one another? Enter Mystery: is the easy button for team morale. They offer fully-managed virtual team events with essentially infinite variety, hosted by a network of vetted experience partners, from baristas, to rappers, to Dungeons & Dragons masters, to A-list celebrities. Greylock general partner Sarah Guo, who just led the company's Series A funding round, sat down with Mystery CEO and co-founder Shane Kovalsky to discuss how the company is working with organizations to keep employees connected. You can read an essay about the investment here: https://greylock.com/portfolio-news/the-easy-button-for-connection-at-work/

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Twilio's Jeff Lawson | Software with Superpowers Feb 08, 2022

When it comes to innovation, Twilio CEO and co-founder Jeff Lawson has simple advice: "Build or die." Lawson straddles the line of software developer and CEO, giving him a rare perspective on the common ways the two sides misunderstand each other. It also gave him an early, deep understanding of developers’ needs in a software platform — which has been borne out in Twilio’s success. Lawson joined Greylock general partner Sarah Guo for Iconversations to discuss business trajectory, and what he sees happening in the future of software and the internet. You can read a transcript of this episode here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/software-with-superpowers/ You can watch the interview on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/6OEmqCJ2wJk

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Workday's Aneel Bhusri | Engineering Values Feb 01, 2022

Greylock general partner Sarah Guo speaks with Aneel Bhusri, the chairman, co-CEO and co-founder of Workday. This interview is part of Greylock’s “Iconversations" series. Bhusri who is also a former managing partner at Greylock, is known for his laser focus on two things: product vision, and the ability to find and retain great people. He and his Workday day co-founder and co-ceo Dave Duffield actually interviewed the first 500 employees themselves, and they did so with the goal to find the people who embodied the values to guide Workday’s company culture. You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/workday-aneel-bhusri-engineering-values/ You can watch a video from the event on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/bh5MA4Y60h0

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Asheem Chandna | Want to Win? Create the Right Early GTM Strategy Jan 27, 2022

Audio version of Greylock general partner Asheem Chandna's Forbes column, "Want to Win? Create the Right Early GTM Strategy," read by Greylock marketing partner Elisa Schreiber. Chandna provides guidance to early stage founders in the transition phase where many startups fail: the period after their initial success when they must move to a rigorous go-to-market architecture that enables year-over-year growth. You can read the essay here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/asheem-chandna-gtm-taking-it-to-the-next-level/

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Reid Hoffman | Vices and Virtues in Web3 Jan 25, 2022

Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman and his Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh examine the current development of Web3, focusing on how basic human nature is driving some of the innovation. This discussion was sparked in part by an article by Bloomberg reporter Joshua Brustein, who interviewed Hoffman about his recent essay on his experience as a Web 2.0 entrepreneur and investor. In that essay, Hoffman described the ways the “wild idealism” of the era led to major advances that both positively and negatively impacted the world, and how the “seven deadly sins” of humanity form the basis of many technological pursuits. You can read a transcript of this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/vices-and-virtues-in-web3/ You can read Joshua's story here: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-01-12/web3-silicon-valley-s-new-obsession-looks-a-lot-like-last-one?sref=ojgukC4T

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Reid Hoffman | Mustafa Suleyman, A Pioneer in Applied AI Jan 20, 2022

Greylock welcomes Mustafa Suleyman as the firm's newest venture partner. Suleyman is known for his pioneering work in the field of artificial intelligence, and joins the firm from Google, where he was Vice President of AI Product Management and AI Policy. Before that he co-founded DeepMind, the world’s leading artificial intelligence company, which was acquired by Google in 2014 for $650M. Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman and Suleyman discuss the current AI landscape, the pivotal advances that have gotten the field to this point, and where they see opportunities for startups. You can read a transcript of this conversation here: https://greylock.com/firm-news/welcome-mustafa-suleyman/

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Sonder | Hospitality Reimagined Jan 19, 2022

On the day of their public market debut, Sonder CEO and founder Francis Davidson talks with Greylock general partner Josh McFarland about the hospitality company's wild journey from a side gig started during college to a modern, tech-enabled, design-forward accommodation platform serving travelers in 35 countries around the world. Davidson recounts the company's swift traction of the first few years, the dark days of early 2020 when the Covid-19 pandemic struck and upended travel overnight, and how the company pivoted and redirected its focus in order to emerge stronger than ever. You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/portfolio-news/congrats-sonder/

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Eric Yuan | How Zoom Made Video the Pandemic Star Jan 11, 2022

In March 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic forced nearly every aspect of life online. Suddenly, everything was happening on Zoom. To the everyday consumer, Zoom might have seemed like an overnight success story. But Zoom CEO and founder Eric Yuan, who was founded the company in 2011 as an enterprise service, said they were able to meet the sudden surge in demand thanks to the company's longstanding, unwavering focus on making virtual human interaction easy and accessible for anyone regardless of location, device, or technical savviness. That consistent customer-centric approach allowed the company to grow 30-fold without compromising quality, and has made Zoom a lasting everyday part of work, school, entertainment, healthcare, and everything else. This interview by Greylock general partner Sarah Guo is part of Greylock's Iconversations speaker series. You can read a transcript of the conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/zoom-eric-yuan-full-screen-ahead/ ‎ You can watch the video from this event here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLnsTB8Q5VgnUtQ2Yc32sqgCr_pm77YGZr

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Reid Hoffman | Philosopher vs MBA Jan 04, 2022

A re-broadcast of Reid Hoffman's discussion with his Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh on the pros and cons of two different courses of study: the standard business school MBA, or a degree in philosophy. Hoffman, who holds a philosophy degree from Oxford, shares why he generally views pursuing an MBA as an adverse signal for entrepreneurship. This episode is the second in a two-part series on philosophy and entrepreneurship. You can read an essay from this podcast here:https://greylock.com/greymatter/philosopher-versus-mba/

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Reid Hoffman | The Philosopher Entrepreneur Dec 28, 2021

A re-broadcast of Reid Hoffman's discussion with his Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh on the ways a philosophy degree can impact entrepreneurship. This conversation is the first in a two-part series on the subject. You can read an essay based on this podcast here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/the-philosopher-entrepreneur/

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Year in Review | 2021's Impact on Entrepreneurship Dec 20, 2021

Members of Greylock's investing and specialist teams reflect on the past year, and look forward to the year ahead. They weigh in on the main startup trends, discuss sectors they are planning to spend more time on, and share personal stories about lessons learned, and plans for the coming year. You can read a transcript of this episode here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/year-in-review/

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Pragma | Game Changer Dec 14, 2021

Greylock general partner David Thacker talks with Eden Chen, the CEO and co-founder of backend game engine platform Pragma. As live service gaming has become a massive industry, powering that ecosystem has become increasingly complex. Like every other technology sector, there are too few software developers around to keep up with the demands of constant game development and iteration. Pragma was built to relieve that bottleneck. Along the way, the company aims to help developers focus more on the creative aspects of games that can make them a force for good. You can read a transcript of this podcast here:https://greylock.com/greymatter/game-changer/

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Glen Evans and Evan Reiser | Building Your Best Team Dec 07, 2021

After a brief period of hiring freezes and mass layoffs early in the pandemic, business has come roaring back, and competition for talent is now higher than ever. Demand for highly-skilled employees outstrips supply, and most CEOs and hiring managers say that finding, hiring and retaining great team members is among the top concerns that keep them up at night. Greylock Talent Partner Glen Evans and Abnormal Security CEO and co-founder Evan Reiser share strategies and insights from building startup teams at a time when everyone is fighting over the same limited supply of world-class talent. This episode is part of Greymatter's Brain Trust series. You can read a transcript of this episode here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/building-your-best-team/

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Bipul Sinha & Nicole Perlroth | The Zero Trust Strategy Nov 30, 2021

As software and data management systems have evolved, so too have the cybersecurity threats targeting them. How can companies, government agencies, and individuals keep their data secure when risk is at an all-time high? Greylock general partner Asheem Chandna, New York Times cybersecurity reporter Nicole Perlroth, and Rubrik CEO and co-founder Bipul Sinha discuss the current world of cybersecurity, ransomware, and the need for everyone to adopt a "zero-trust" strategy to protect their data. You can read a transcript of this podcast here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/the-zero-trust-strategy/

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Brian Chesky | People-First Capitalism Nov 23, 2021

A re-broadcast of our episode featuring Airbnb CEO and co-founder Brian Chesky. Chesky joined Greylock partner Reid Hoffman on Greylock's Iconversations speaker series to talk about how he guided Airbnb from an 80% loss within the first two months of the pandemic to a record-breaking IPO by the end of 2020; why Silicon Valley needs to redefine how it measures growth; how Chesky’s design background informs Airbnb’s business strategy; and, ultimately, the importance of putting people first. You can read a transcript of this episode here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/airbnb-brian-chesky-people-first-capitalism/

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Daversa Partners | Connecting Tech with the Next Generation of Black Executives Nov 16, 2021

Executive search firm Daversa Partners is working to change the reality of underrepresentation in tech. The firm has focused on increasing overall diverse representation for years, and is now launching a new program called Dreamscape that is dedicated solely to ensuring there is Black leadership on the boards and executive teams of the most important companies and investing firms in technology today. Dreamscape partners with tech companies such as Robinhood, Brex, and AppLovin, and venture capital firms such as Greylock, to connect Black executives with leadership opportunities.

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Reid Hoffman | Vices and Virtues: Investing and Human Nature Nov 10, 2021

Audio version of Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman's essay, "Human Nature in Vices and Virtues: An Adam Smith Approach to Building Internet Ecosystems and Communities," published on the Knight Foundation's website. Hoffman discusses how some of the most popular websites leverage some of humankind's less desirable attributes(e.g. "the 7 deadly sins"), and how entrepreneurs and investors can think about building based on virtuous traits. Read by Greylock marketing partner Elisa Schreiber. You can read the essay here: https://knightfoundation.org/human-nature-in-vices-and-virtues-an-adam-smith-approach-to-building-internet-ecosystems-and-communities/

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David Sze | Nextdoor Reflections Nov 08, 2021

On the day of Nextdoor's public debut, Greylock general partner David Sze looks back on his experience working with the social networking startup. Sze knew Nextdoor co-founders Nirav Tolia, Sarah Leary, and Prakash Janakiraman before the company was formed in 2008. While he did not invest in their original concept called Fanbase, Sze was among the first investors after the company’s pivot in 2011 into what it is today. Greylock first invested in Nextdoor in March 2012, led a $21.6 million investment round in October 2012, and has been an active partner to the company since. You can read a transcript of this podcast on the Greylock web site: https://greylock.com/portfolio-news/congrats-nextdoor/

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Asheem Chandna | How to Win the Startup War for Talent Nov 04, 2021

Greylock marketing partner Elisa Schreiber reads general parter Asheem Chandna's latest column for Forbes. In this column, Chandna discusses the changing dynamics of recruiting, hiring, and retaining talent in one of the most competitive labor markets of our time. You can read this essay at https://www.forbes.com/sites/asheemchandna/2021/10/28/how-to-win-the-startup-war-for-talent/?sh=42ce2ac352b3

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Reid Hoffman | Aurora Reflections Nov 04, 2021

As autonomous driving startup Aurora goes public via SPAC with Reinvent Technology Partners, Greylock general partner and Reinvent investor Reid Hoffman reflects on his experience working with the company as an investor and advisor. Hoffman joined the company's board when he co-led Greylock's Series A investment into Aurora in 2018. You can read the essay here: https://greylock.com/portfolio-news/congrats-aurora/

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Bret Taylor | Curiosity Saves the C-Suite Oct 26, 2021

Salesforce President and COO Bret Taylor talks with Greylock general partner Sarah Guo on Greylock's Iconversations series. During this discussion, Bret talks about lessons learned from his career as a product developer, two-time startup founder, and an operations leader within several large tech companies. He also talks about the high-profile acquisitions he has led at Salesforce, and lays out his vision for the future of the all-digital, work-anywhere world. You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/curiosity-saves-the-c-suite/ You can watch the video of this interview here: https://youtu.be/LviSiSNzhsg You can find content from all past Iconversations events at greylock.com/iconversations.

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Jason Kilar | Moving the World Through Story Oct 19, 2021

WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar has an instinct for disruption. He first cut his teeth at Disney, helped transform Amazon in its early days, and was the founding CEO of Hulu. In aggregate, his experience represents a clear knack for jumping at opportunities to transform media right at the moment when people are receptive to tide-turning change. Kilar spoke with Greylock general partner David Sze as part of Greylock's Iconversations series. They discussed Kilar's 30 years in the media industry; the lessons he’s learned along the way; and what he anticipates for the future — even in a time of immense change — as someone with a track record of trailblazing. You can read the transcript of the interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/moving-the-world-through-story/ You can check out the entire Iconversations series here: https://greylock.com/iconversations/

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Jerry Chen | Open Source vs. Cloud Castles Oct 12, 2021

This episode is the audio version of the essay "Open Source vs Cloud Castles", by Greylock general partner Jerry Chen. In this essay (which is read by Greylock's head of content and editorial Heather Mack), Jerry continues his discussion of strategies startups can explore to compete – and win – against the Big 3 Cloud providers. This essay is part of Greylock's Castles in the Cloud project. You can find the essay here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/open-source-vs-cloud-castles/ The entire Castles in the Cloud project can be found here: https://greylock.com/castles/

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Gem | Searching with Purpose Oct 05, 2021

Steve Bartel and Nick Bushak, co-founders of recruiting platform startup Gem, join Greylock Head of Content & Editorial Heather Mack to discuss how they are solving a crucial pain point in the modern hiring ecosystem: providing a tool to proactively search for and manage relationships with passive talent. Gem, which was launched in 2017, now works with more than 800 customers across multiple industries. The company just raised $100 million in Series C funding, valuing the company at $1.2 billion. You can read a transcript of this episode here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/searching-with-purpose/

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Holly Rose Faith | Executive Recruiting Playbook Sep 28, 2021

Greylock executive talent partner Holly Rose Faith provides her playbook for recruiting and hiring high-level talent. Faith, who has helped land executive hires for startups such as Roblox, Nextdoor, and Databricks, says it all comes down to having a solid system in place for each step of the process. This episode is part of Greylock's Brain Trust podcast series, which provides candid lessons and business advice from the most savvy experts in their spheres of specialization. You can read the transcript of this conversation here: https://bit.ly/2Y0n61K

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$500M for Seeds | Greylock's New Pool of Capital for Day One Investments Sep 21, 2021

Greylock has raised $500 million dollars dedicated to seed investing. This is the industry’s largest pool of venture capital dedicated to backing founders at day one. Greylock Head of Editorial Heather Mack reads the audio version of our post announcing the new capital. You can read the post here:

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Wisetack | Fintech for the Real World Sep 14, 2021

A re-broadcast of our episode featuring fintech startup Wisetack. The company, which was incubated at Greylock and launched in 2019, recently raised a $45 million Series B round. Wisetack provides financing platform for in-person services like home or auto repair businesses, enabling them to offer customers the option to buy now and pay later. Greylock general partner and Wisetack board member Josh McFarland spoke with Wisetack co-founders Bobby Tzekin and Liz O'Donnell in February, when the company announced its Series A. You can read the blog post and transcript to this episode here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/wisetack-fintech-for-the-real-world/

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J.J. Abrams | Future Follows Fiction Sep 07, 2021

Filmmaker J.J. Abrams joins Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman for a discussion on the ways science fiction and real-world technology take inspiration from one another; how to recognize a good idea when you see one; and the gravity of being behind any innovation that affects society on a large scale. This interview was part of Greylock's Iconversations virtual speaker series. You can read the essay and transcript of this episode here. https://greylock.com/greymatter/future-follows-fiction/

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Corinne Riley | Funding the Cloud Challengers Aug 31, 2021

Audio version of the essay by Greylock investors Corinne Riley and Jerry Chen entitled "Funding the Cloud Challengers." This essay, which is part of Greylock's Castles in the Cloud series, analyzes the top venture capital cloud investing trends since 2019. You can read the essay at https://greylock.com/greymatter/funding-the-cloud-challengers/, and find the entire project at greylock.com/castles.

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Jerry Chen | How to Break Up Big Cloud's Dominance Aug 31, 2021

Audio version of Greylock general partner Jerry Chen's essay "How to Break Up Big Cloud's Dominance," read by Greylock Head of Editorial Heather Mack. This essay, which outlines strategies startups can take to compete with the Big 3 cloud providers, is part of our Castles in the Cloud project. You can read the essay at https://greylock.com/greymatter/how-to-break-up-big-clouds-dominance/, and find the entire project at greylock.com/castles.

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Jerry Chen | Castles in the Cloud Aug 31, 2021

The audio version of Greylock general partner Jerry Chen's essay introducing Castles in the Cloud, which is Greylock’s interactive project to map multiple data points of the cloud computing ecosystem — and plots new opportunities for success. Greylock marketing partner Elisa Schreiber reads the essay. You can read the essay at https://greylock.com/greymatter/castles-in-the-cloud/, and find the entire project at greylock.com/castles.

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Mellody Hobson | Security in Knowledge Aug 24, 2021

A re-broadcast of our episode featuring Ariel Investments president and co-CEO Mellody Hobson, who spoke with Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman as part of Greylock's Inconversations speaker series. Hobson is also the chair of the board of Starbucks Corporation as well as a director at JP Morgan Chase, and is an avid philanthropist and educator. Hobson, who is the only Black woman to chair a Fortune 500 company, is an ardent proponent of financial literacy and an outspoken champion for inclusivity. She shared her views on what it will take to significantly diversify the demographics of the business world; her experience as an investor and board member; and her goals for newly launched private asset management firm Ariel Alternatives, which will focus on scaling sustainable minority-owned businesses to serve as the suppliers to Fortune 500 companies. You can read a summary and transcript of the podcast here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/security-in-knowledge/

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Reid Hoffman and Sridhar Ramaswamy | Taking on Tech Giants Aug 17, 2021

Very few startups set out to compete with the biggest leaders in their industry - let alone those who are among the biggest companies in the world. But that doesn't mean it's not possible. In 2020, Greylock investor Sridhar Ramaswamy (who joined the firm following 15 years at Google) launched Neeva, a new kind of search company. The differentiator? Neeva is an ad-free, subscription-based search engine that doesn't track users across the internet. Ramaswamy, his fellow Greylock investor Reid Hoffman, and Chris Yeh discuss how startups have made audacious bets in the most competitive markets, and what makes it possible for them to thrive. You can read the essay version of this podcast here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/taking-on-tech-titans/

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PagerDuty CEO Jennifer Tejada | Leadership Cross-Training Aug 10, 2021

PagerDuty CEO Jennifer Tejada and Greylock general partner Sarah Guo discuss the importance of empathetic leadership, the value of automation in service of people, the effectiveness of trust and transparency as a means of corporate communication — and shares advice on how to build good relationships with your current and former employees, your executive peers, and your board of directors. This discussion was part of Greylock's Iconversations series. You can read a transcript of this podcast here. https://greylock.com/greymatter/jennifer-tejada-pagerduty-leadership-cross-training/

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Christine Kim | Strategy at Scale Aug 03, 2021

Greylock investor Christine Kim shares the top five lessons she learned scaling product while working at Uber. Prior to joining Greylock in 2020, Christine spent five years at the ride-hailing business. where she led the product team that launched and scaled Uber Eats. The app started as a small pilot project that quickly caught on, and Uber Eats now generates $50 billion in revenue annually. Read the essay based on this podcast at https://greylock.com/greymatter/strategy-at-scale/

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Reid Hoffman | Philosopher Versus MBA Jul 27, 2021

Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman and his Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh pick up their conversation from last week on how philosophical study can have a great impact on an entrepreneur's career. This week, they focus on how a philosophy degree compares to a much more conventional business background: the MBA."There are two things that need to be explained away in order for me to invest in your startup," says Hoffman, who holds an advanced degree in philosophy. "An MBA or a background in management consulting." While there are many exceptions, Hoffman believes pursuing an MBA can generally be adverse signal for entrepreneurship. Instead, he encourages prospective entrepreneurs gain real-world experience by working at a startup and pursuing other courses of study that help form fundamental critical thinking skills.

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Reid Hoffman | The Philosopher-Entrepreneur Jul 20, 2021

Greylock general partner and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman talks with his Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh about how a fundamental understanding of philosophy can be a powerful tool for entrepreneurship. Hoffman, who holds a master's degree in philosophy from Oxford University, outlines how studying philosophy helps people develop new frameworks for grappling with truth, humanity and decision-making, and how it has helped him succeed in his career as an entrepreneur and investor. This episode is the first of a two-part series.

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Human-Centered AI | Dr. Fei-Fei Li Jul 13, 2021

If AI is to serve the collective needs of humanity, how should machine intelligence be built and designed so that it can understand human language, feelings, intentions and behaviors, and interact with nuance and in multiple dimensions? Stanford University computer science professor Dr. Fei-Fei Li and Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman discuss the ethical considerations researchers, technologists and policymakers should make when developing and deploying AI. This episode was recorded as part of Greylock's Iconversations virtual speaker series. https://greylock.com/greymatter/fei-fei-li-reid-hoffman-human-centered-ai/

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Coda | Powering the Maker Generation Jul 08, 2021

A rebroadcast of our episode featuring Coda CEO and co-founder Shishir Mehrotra. The company, which saw a surge in usage during the Covid-19 pandemic and the widespread shift to remote work, recently closed $100 million Series D round. In this episode, which was recorded last year as part of Greylock general partner Sarah Guo's Work From Anywhere podcast series, Shishir talks about the way collaboration and productivity tools have created a lasting impact on the workplace, and what the office (virtual, hybrid and physical) might look like in the future. https://greylock.com/greymatter/powering-the-maker-generation/

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Cresta and Abnormal Security | Practical Innovation Jun 29, 2021

From dealing with the notorious cold start problem of insufficient data to train models, to identifying the right business model for the product and the crucial need for early partnerships, applied ML companies grapple with an additional set of challenges from the beginning. Cresta CTO and co-founder Tim Shi and Abnormal Security Head of Machine Learning Jeshua Bratman join Greylock partner Saam Motamedi to discuss strategies for building applied ML companies. You can read a transcript from the interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/practical-innovation/

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Startups and the Media Pt 2 | Alex Konrad and Kaitlin Durkosh Jun 22, 2021

The second part of our two-part conversation on working with the media. Forbes senior editor Alex Konrad joins Greylock marketing partner Elisa Schreiber and Greylock director of communications Kaitlin Durkosh to discuss how startup founders should think about building relationships with journalists; how journalists see their role amid the always evolving media landscape; and what impact founders should expect from sharing their story across different forms of media. You can read a transcript of this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/startups-and-media-part-2/

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Startups and Media Pt 1 | Alex Konrad, Elisa Schreiber, and Kaitlin Durkosh Jun 15, 2021

Forbes senior editor Alex Konrad has been covering venture capital and startups for nearly a decade. While many founders have learned how to work well with media, the learning curve is steep, and Konrad sees persistent miscommunication, misunderstanding, and misinformation between the two. Compounding the issue, today’s startup founders have to navigate the increasingly blurred lines of journalism, marketing, social media, and company-directed content, and then try to figure out where their story fits in. To demystify the world of media, Konrad joined Greylock marketing partner Elisa Schreiber and Greylock communications director Kaitlin Durkosh for a wide-ranging discussion. In the first of the two-part conversation, the three break down media basics and offer tactical advice to founders looking to effectively engage with media and tell their company story. You can read a transcript of this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/startups-and-media-pt-1/

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Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky | People-First Capitalism Jun 08, 2021

While many CEOs choose to stay out of the public eye during times of crisis, Airbnb CEO and co-founder Brian Chesky has always opted for the opposite. It was no different during the Covid-19 pandemic, when travel came to a standstill and the company was forced to restructure. Chesky remained open, candid and transparent throughout the experience, and the company was able to navigate the crisis in stride. Chesky joined Greylock partner Reid Hoffman on Greylock's Iconversations speaker series to talk about how he guided Airbnb from an 80% loss within the first two months of the pandemic to a record-breaking IPO by the end of 2020; why Silicon Valley needs to redefine how it measures growth; how Chesky’s design background informs Airbnb’s business strategy; and, ultimately, the importance of putting people first.

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Wade Chambers, Kevin Wang and Wei Gan | Building Company Culture Jun 01, 2021

Greylock partner Saam Motamedi is joined by engineering team leaders to discuss the wide-reaching topic of company culture. Wade Chambers, CTO and SVP of Engineering at Grand Rounds Health; Kevin Wang, VP of engineering at Abnormal Security; and Wei Gan, the co-founder and CTO of Ribbon Home, talk about the various ways they define and apply culture; how they differentiate between company-level and team-level cultural norms; and more. You can read the transcript from this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/building-company-culture/

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Nick Bloom | What Workers Want May 25, 2021

Stanford University economics professor Nicholas Bloom has been researching remote work and management for decades. The Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on the workplace provided a rare opportunity for a world-wide case study. Bloom joined Greylock general partner Sarah Guo on Greymatter’s Work From Anywhere podcast series to talk about the evolving workplace, what the data shows on both employee and management wellbeing, the allure of the hybrid-work model, and more. You can read a transcript of this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/nicholas-bloom-stanford-what-workers-want/

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Reid Hoffman | Game On May 18, 2021

When people ask Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman how he learned strategy, his answer is not that he studied in business school and earned an MBA, or that he read (and re-read) Machiavelli and Sun Tzu. His answer is this: “I played a lot of games.” The best games, Hoffman says, not only require skill and tactics, but they also incorporate uncertainty and randomness, which teaches you to be strategic in ways that match the way the world works. In conversation with Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh, Hoffman describes how games have been so integral to his development as a business strategist, and to the theories he's developed and deployed.

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Nextdoor CEO Sarah Friar | Tech to Reflect the World May 11, 2021

To keep growth and user engagement up, most social platform avoid any features that could cause friction to the user. But Nextdoor is willing to take some risks. The company, which has taken on a greater role during the pandemic, has deployed tools that CEO Sarah Friar admits may impact growth, but are ultimately, "the right thing to do in order to build communities." These tools include the Kindness Reminder, which prompts users to stop and reconsider potentially offensive posts, as well as a more specific pop-up notification to stop racist statements. Sarah Friar joined Greylock general partner and Nextdoor board member David Sze on Greylock's Iconversations speaker series to discuss how the company strives to reflect the communities of the world.

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Jaime Schmidt and Chris Cantino | Creating Commerce Opportunities May 04, 2021

To understand how some of the strongest brands are thriving with the omnichannel approach, Greylock general partner Mike Duboe hosted a wide-ranging discussion on Greymatter on what it takes to build the next generation of commerce companies with Color Capital co-founders Jaime Schmidt and Chris Cantino. The husband-wife team partner with companies creating the future of CPG, marketplaces, ecommerce, and media, and both bring a wealth of experience to the table. Schmidt is the founder of personal care brand Schmidt’s Naturals (which was acquired by Unilever in 2017), and is the author of Supermaker: Crafting Business on Your Own Terms, which evolved into a media company Schmidt and Cantino run together. In this conversation, Schmidt and Cantino share stories from the early days of Schmidt’s Naturals, which began at local farmer’s markets in Portland, (also known as “the original DTC,” sales channel, says Cantino); their views on bootstrapping versus raising outside capital; how to assess partnerships and potential M&A; and the growing importance of media and content in the ecommerce world. This episode is part of a series of conversations on commerce hosted by Mike Duboe.

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Curated | Guided by Experts Apr 27, 2021

The shift to ecommerce has been a natural progression for companies that sell everyday, approachable items like clothing and beauty products. But brands that sell pricey, technical and often highly variable products like skis, golf clubs and camping gear have historically struggled to make the online transition, as consumers tend to prefer in-person consultation at physical stores. Enter Curated. The company has developed a three-sided marketplace to replicate the valuable in-store experiences people want – and need – when purchasing high-consideration items. Curated works with a team of experts across various specialties who connect directly with consumers, then make recommendations for products from brands on the platform based on the individual’s skill level, goals and budget. Curated CEO and co-founder Eddie Vivas sat down with Greylock general partner and Curated board member David Thacker to discuss the company's formation, its accelerated traction during Covid, and their bold ambition for the future.

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TraceHQ | Finance at the Foundation Apr 20, 2021

When finance teams have a greater influence on everyday operations, companies can more nimbly respond to economic events – both good and bad. That's why TraceHQ developed a platform that functions as a service desk for finance; providing visibility for teams to immediately see how their financial decisions impact their budget. It then gives finance the committed forecast – a real-time financial plan. TraceHQ CEO and co-founder Mike Gonzalez sat down with Greylock general partner and TraceHQ board member Sarah Guo to discuss how TraceHQ was developed, why financial leaders should be more deeply ingrained into day-to-day operations, and what companies should do to be prepared for whatever the future presents.

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Cresta | Amplifying Expertise Apr 13, 2021

Cresta CEO Zayd Enam and Greylock general partner Saam Motamedi discuss how AI can help – not replace – humans at work. Seeing the limitations of AI that simply automated the routine aspects of work performed by many, Cresta developed a platform that effectively scales the skills of the top few employees, whose job functions require heavier cognitive lifting and expertise. Cresta, which has initially focused on sales and customer service, now works with businesses such as Dropbox, Intuit and Porsche. https://greylock.com/greymatter/amplifying-expertise/

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Mellody Hobson | Security in Knowledge Apr 06, 2021

Ariel Investments President and co-CEO Mellody Hobson, who was recently named the chair of the board of Starbucks Corporation, joins Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman. Hobson, who is the first black woman to chair a Fortune 500 board, shares highlights from her career as an investor, board member, financial educator and philanthropist, and discusses the fundamental changes necessary to diversify corporate America. This discussion was recorded during Greylock’s virtual speaker series Iconversations. In our second event in the series, Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman talked with Ariel Investments president and co-ceo. Mellody Hobson.

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Peter High | Getting to Nimble Mar 30, 2021

Greylock specialist Lee Haney talks with Peter High, president of Metis Strategy and author of the new book "Getting to Nimble: How to Transform Your Company into a Digital Leader." While no business is completely future-proof, companies that incorporate nimbleness into their people, practices and digital strategies are able to quickly pivot away from problems – and towards opportunities. Peter and Lee discuss tactics for nimbleness and share stories of companies that embody the concept.

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Reid Hoffman | How to Decide Mar 23, 2021

Entrepreneurs and executives will do all sorts of things to improve themselves, from taking a class on a particular technology, to reading a book about venture deals, to practicing intermittent fasting. Yet very few of them stop to ask the simple yet powerful question, “How can I make my decision making better?” In a discussion with Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh, Greylock general partner and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman describes his approach to decision-making. You can read the essay based on this discussion here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/how-to-decide/

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Reid Hoffman and Michael Tubbs | Spiderman Ethics Mar 16, 2021

Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman and former Stockton, CA mayor Michael Tubbs discuss how can technology be a force for good for all members of society. Hoffman and Tubbs – who was recently named by CA Governor Gavin Newsom to serve as the state's Special Advisor for Economy Mobility and Opportunity – discuss how a pervasive lack of diversity among tech founders, investors, and operators has translated to a disconnect between the industry and the rest of the world. To change the power dynamics and open opportunities for all, building a more inclusive network of founders, investors, and government leaders is a step in the right direction.

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Roblox | Next Generation Gaming Goes Public Mar 10, 2021

As Roblox makes its public market debut, we are re-sharing the Greymatter episode featuring Roblox CEO David Baszucki and Greylock partner David Sze. Baszucki and Sze discuss the future social gaming landscape, share advice for scaling the company vision, and how to build company culture early on.

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Reid Hoffman | Leadership and CEO Succession Mar 09, 2021

Greylock general partner and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman looks back on the career of his friend and fellow entrepreneur Jeff Bezos. Recently, Bezos announced that he would be stepping down as CEO of Amazon, the iconic blitzscaling company that he has led since 1994.

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Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi | Go Anywhere, Get Anything Mar 02, 2021

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi sat down with Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman to discuss the past, present and future of the mobility and delivery business that now operates in 71 countries around the world and employs around 20,000 people globally. He also shared his perspective on M&A (including Uber’s recent acquisitions of Postmates and Drizly), autonomous vehicles, the complexities of working in highly regulated industries, and how his personal and professional background shaped the way he approaches leadership today. This episode was recorded during Iconversations, Greylock's new virtual speaker series event.

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Commerce Logistics | Mike Duboe, Casey Armstrong and Aaron Schwartz Feb 25, 2021

In the second installment of Greylock’s podcast capsule series on commerce, general partner Mike Duboe talks with two experienced operators in the logistics side of the sector: Casey Armstrong, who is the Chief Marketing Officer at ecommerce fulfillment services provider Shipbob, and Aaron Schwartz, the co-founder of cross-border shipping services provider Passport Shipping. In this episode, Mike, Aaron and Casey discuss strategies and tools that ensure brands can deliver a frictionless experience to both consumers and the technology partners that power their platform.

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Wisetack | Fintech for the Real World Feb 23, 2021

Consumers now expect the option to buy now and pay later for countless products they purchase on ecommerce platforms. But paying for in-person services like home and auto repair has remained stuck in the past of credit cards and high-interest loans. Until Wisetack came along. The company developed a suite of APIs for software used by in-person service businesses, allowing them to offer consumer-friendly financings options. Greylock general partner and Wisetack board member Josh McFarland talks with company co-founders Bobby Tzekin and Liz O'Donnell.

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Nicole Perlroth and Glenn Chisholm | Security and the Cyber Arms Race Feb 16, 2021

Obsidian Security co-founder and CTO Glenn Chisolm, whose company protects SaaS and cloud services, and New York Times cybersecurity reporter Nicole Perlroth, whose book “This is How They Tell Me the World Ends:The Cyberweapons Arms Race” published in February 2021, discuss the ever-evolving cybersecurity risk landscape and how businesses and governments can proactively protect their data.

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All Raise | Rewiring for Equality Feb 09, 2021

Are diversity and inclusion efforts making a difference in the male-dominated VC and tech industry? Pam Kostka, CEO of the equality-focused nonprofit All Raise, discusses the current landscape with Greylock marketing partner Elisa Schreiber. All Raise, which was launched in 2018, connects women with resources, mentorship, and a network to help them excel in the VC and tech world. Today, All Raise is a community of more than 20,000 people across four major U.S. tech hubs, and has launched a new program to support women seeking board positions at fast-growing tech companies.

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Jennifer Haroon | Innovation in transportation and mobility Feb 02, 2021

A look at the current state of innovation in transportation and mobility featuring Jennifer Haroon. Jennifer was on the early team at Google's self-driving unit that later became Waymo, and most recently worked as the CFO and COO of Nauto, a Greylock-partnered startup working on AI for driving safety. She is now an EIR at Greylock.

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Reid Hoffman | Building Your Startup Board Pt. 2 Jan 26, 2021

Part 2 of a two-part series. Greylock general partner and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman continues his discussion with Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh on the all-important topic of startup boards. Building off of the previous conversation on how and why boards function, Reid advises entrepreneurs on how they might choose their board members, and provides notable examples of great board members he has worked with in the span of his career. You can read the essay based on this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/building-a-great-startup-board-pt-2/

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Reid Hoffman | Building A Great Startup Board Pt. I Jan 19, 2021

Part one of a two-part series by Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman on strategies to build a successful startup board. Too often, the conventional wisdom imparted to entrepreneurs is to treat board meetings as a necessary evil, part of the price you pay for raising money. True, many boards are dysfunctional, but when you build a great startup board, it will be a powerful tool that can help the CEO make the company successful. You can read the essay based on this podcast here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/reid-hoffman-building-a-great-startup-board-pt-i/

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Reid Hoffman | Conversation with Harry Stebbings of The 20 Minute VC Jan 13, 2021

Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman in conversation with Harry Stebbings, host of the popular podcast The 20 Minute VC. In this episode, Reid and Harry pick back up from their conversation in November 2020 on Harry's show, discussing everything from Reid's earliest lessons as a young entrepreneur; investing in startups such as Airbnb; and up into the current environment of navigating political issues (and a pandemic ) while running a company. You can read the transcript from this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/ama-with-20-min-vc-reid-hoffman/

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Chronosphere | Cloud-Native Monitoring at Scale Jan 05, 2021

Cloud native is the new order of business. But most existing monitoring technology is insufficient to contend with the complex, dynamic, and ephemeral nature of the modern cloud environment. That's why Martin Mao and Rob Skillington formed Chronosphere, a purpose-built platform to monitor cloud-native infrastructure and apps and enable organizations to make precise, data-driven decisions. In this episode of Greymatter, Martin and Rob sit down with Greylock general partner and Chronosphere board member Jerry Chen to discuss the company’s growth, the current state of cloud technology, and the challenges and advantages of starting a company just before the global crisis of 2020.

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The Year in Review Dec 22, 2020

The investing team from Greylock Partners looks back on 2020 and how it has impacted entrepreneurship. While it’s been difficult, the past year has also been a time of great progress in the startup ecosystem. Not only have entrepreneurs made extraordinary efforts to advance technology and experiment with new business models, there have also been many individuals and organizations taking important strides towards building a more sustainable, equitable and inclusive future.

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Reid Hoffman | Entrepreneurship and Loneliness Dec 15, 2020

Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman and Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh, discuss why it’s so lonely to be an entrepreneur. In this podcast, Hoffman shares how he dealt with this challenge through both success (LinkedIn) and failure (SocialNet), and how entrepreneurs can find allies and aid in their struggle against loneliness.

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Reid Hoffman | Airbnb Reflections Dec 10, 2020

As Airbnb makes its public debut, Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman looks back on the past decade of working with the company. Greylock led Airbnb's Series A in 2010. Hoffman initially heard the company described as "renting couches," so he passed at the first opportunity to invest. But later conversations with early investors prompted Hoffman to meet with Airbnb founders Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia and Nathan Blecharczyk. Within two minutes, he decided to partner with the company.

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Steve Sewell and Jordan Gal | The Rise of Headless Commerce Dec 01, 2020

While third-party apps like Shopify have made it possible for a company to get a virtual store up and running quickly, scaling that company requires higher levels of flexibility and control. Enter headless architecture, which allows companies to decouple the front end of the commerce platform (where the virtual storefront and content lives) from the back end, where all the data resides. Greylock general partner Mike Duboe sat down with Builder.io CEO and founder Steve Sewell, whose company provides a headless CMS with full drag and drop editing, and Carthook founder Jordan Gal, whose company offers a checkout optimization tool for stores in the Shopify ecosystem. This episode is the first in a series of Greymatter conversations focused on the evolving ecommerce ecosystem.

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Jerry Chen | The Evolution of Cloud Nov 24, 2020

This is the audio version of "The Evolution of Cloud," written by Greylock general partner Jerry Chen and read by Greylock marketing partner Elisa Schreiber. The essay is available to read at https://greylock.com/jerry-chen-the-evolution-of-cloud/

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apiiro | Secure By Design Nov 17, 2020

Innovation happens fast in the cloud-first era of today. Yet the tools and processes that allow software developers to ensure their products are secure were designed for a different era. apiiro was formed to reinvent the secure software development life cycle, by creating a unified platform that allows developers to embed security at the earliest stages. Idan Plotnik, CEO and co-founder of apiiro, joins Greylock general partner Saam Motamedi and Imperva CISO Samir Sherif to discuss the new challenges of software development and security.

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Reid Hoffman | Choosing Bad Competition Nov 10, 2020

If you can find a valuable market which has been overlooked, or where your competitors are lazy or stuck in their ways, you can beat that competition, no matter how big or rich those other players might be. Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman and his Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh discuss why entrepreneurs are far better off pursuing a high-value opportunity with bad competition over a low-value opportunity with no competition, highlighting case studies of SpaceX, Tesla, Virgin Atlantic and LinkedIn. This podcast is the first in a multi-part installment looking at the fundamental laws of entrepreneurship. You can read the essay based on this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/choosing-bad-competition/

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Reid Hoffman | Talking Politics Nov 02, 2020

Ahead of election day, we're re-broadcasting our episode featuring Blitzscaling co-authors Reid Hoffman and Chris Yeh discussing the changing cultural norms around mixing business and politics. As Greylock partner and LinkedIn co-founder Hoffman says, "In an increasingly politicized world, it’s harder and harder for CEOs to keep business and politics separate. And in an increasingly politicized world, they shouldn’t."

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Rockset | The Data-Driven Future Oct 27, 2020

The ability to derive insights and take action from an ever-increasing volume of data has become a critical success factor for organizations across every industry. But as business operations become increasingly digitized and move to the cloud, first-generation analytics systems struggle to deliver insights at the scale and speed necessary to build modern data applications. That's why Rockset built a distributed SQL database that can return queries in milliseconds, but has a storage architecture more closely related to a search engine like Google or Facebook newsfeed. In this episode of Greymatter, Venkataramani sat down with Greylock general partner and Rockset board member Jerry Chen to discuss how his team is approaching the new era of cloud-only infrastructure.

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Entrepreneur First | Successful Co-Founder Dynamics Oct 20, 2020

Alice Bentinck and Matt Clifford founded Entrepreneur First in 2011 with a mission to expand the global network of entrepreneurs and investors – so that one's geographical location doesn't make or break whether they have the opportunity to participate in the startup ecosystem. The "talent investor" organization recruits and backs individuals at the very earliest stage: before they have a team, or often even an idea. Greylock general partner and Entrepreneur First board member Reid Hoffman sat down with Alice and Matt to discuss how the organization has evolved over the years, the surprisingly positive impacts of the pandemic on company-building, and what they see for 2021 and beyond.

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Remotion | Creating Ambient Awareness Oct 13, 2020

Working remotely often means back-to-back scheduled meetings and a constant barrage of text and email notifications. The result is exhaustion. But that doesn't mean coworkers don't want to talk to one another. Ad-hoc conversations are energizing and foster stronger team connections, which is why Remotion built a video workspace designed to enable colleagues to virtually "glance over" at one another and just start talking. Remotion CEO and co-founder Alexander Embiricos Greylock general partner and Remotion board member Sarah Guo talk about how Remotion is helping companies build a talk-live culture even while remote; how early customers are using the product; and his vision for the future of work. You can read about the company here https://greylock.com/greymatter/remotion-creating-ambient-awareness/ This episode is part of the #WorkFromAnywhere podcast series.

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Reid Hoffman | ABZ Planning Oct 06, 2020

Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman discusses the ABZ planning framework, a key concept from his book The Startup of You. Hoffman revisits the concept for 2020 - which he refers to as "The Age of the Inconceivable" – offering a systematic approach to adaptation that allows for the pursuit of goals while also maintaining the ability to quickly course-correct when external shocks or unexpected discoveries occur.

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MLT | Accelerating Change Sep 30, 2020

The technology industry is home to an unacceptable paradox: the sector is both the epicenter of wealth creation and wealth disparity. This gap begins in the early stages of company-building, among venture capital-backed startups and the people who found, build and invest in them. People of color have largely been left out of this group. Changing that reality is the mission of career advancement nonprofit Management Leadership of Tomorrow (MLT), which works to put people of color in leadership positions. A major part of MLT’s work is dispelling the myth that the lack of diversity in the tech industry comes from a so-called pipeline problem of talented African American, Latinx and Native American science, engineering and computer science grads. In actuality, the problem is a network gap, which is why MLT and Greylock have recently launched a new partnership to accelerate change for POC in the venture and startup ecosystem. Additionally, MLT has established a fund to provide further financial resources, and the organization is also a limited partner in Greylock’s newest fund. MLT CEO and founder John Rice and Greylock general partner David Sze sat down with Greymatter to discuss the new partnership. You can read the essay from this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/accelerating-change/

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Zapier | Automated (Remote)Work Sep 22, 2020

Enabling efficiency has always been at the heart of Zapier’s mission: the automation software startup was founded specifically to serve as the lynchpin platform between myriad web apps, allowing people to focus on their core projects without getting bogged down with mundane tasks. Moreover, the company has been distributed from the get-go, and has found that the requisite digital tools, meeting structure and business strategies that make remote work possible also happen to be the most proactive, pragmatic and productive ways to run a business. Zapier CEO and co-founder Wade Foster sat down with Greylock general partner Sarah Guo to discuss what he’s learned in the nine years since the company was founded, and how he sees the widespread shift to remote work affecting the way companies operate in the future. This episode is part of the #WorkFromAnywhere series hosted by Sarah Guo and David Thacker.

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David Wadhwani | Making Change at Scale Sep 15, 2020

At the SaaStr Annual event (held virtually this year) Greylock general partners David Wadhwani and Sarah Guo discussed the key elements to successfully navigating operational phase shifts, which David has experienced numerous times over the course of his two-decade career as a software executive at companies such as AppDynamics and Adobe. David detailed 5 things every company and founder should do to navigate phase shifts successfully, illustrated by examples of how they played out during his own experience.

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Reid Hoffman | The Startup Pivot Sep 08, 2020

Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman shares his experience during PayPal's numerous pivots, and outlines how pivots have built some of the iconic tech companies in modern history. Hoffman describes how pivots are an integral part of the entrepreneurial process for startups: Whether you're pivoting in the early days because you haven't yet found product-market fit, or you're pivoting by reinventing yourself later on, all companies – if they're going to become and stay successful – are going to have to pivot. You can read the essay based on this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/reid-hoffman-the-startup-pivot/

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Utmost | Mobilizing the Talent Continuum Sep 01, 2020

The nature of work today is increasingly dynamic, distributed, flexible, and digital-first. Relying on the extended workforce is more than a short-term, stop-gap solution: businesses are finding this population to be an efficient, viable source of talent instrumental to their core operations. That's why Utmost developed the first ever extended workforce system (EWS) to help enterprises source, engage, pay, and optimize their entire non-employee workforce, including freelancers, consultants and more. The company, which was founded in 2018 by former Workday and Groupon executives, has been a distributed organization from the start and has a unique vantage into the fast-changing nature of work. Utmost COO and co-founder Dan Beck sat down with Greylock partner Saam Motamedi to discuss. This episode is part of Greymatter's #WorkFromAnywhere series.

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Reid Hoffman | Building Ecosystems of Adaptability Aug 27, 2020

This episode of Greymatter features Reid Hoffman in conversation with Peter High, president of business and IT strategy firm Metis Strategy. In the context of the current pandemic and economic crisis, Reid and Peter discuss strategies and insights for entrepreneurs on building, developing and strengthening their ecosystem (while offering the same level of support and insight back); the importance of co-design in go-to-market strategy; how blitzscaling applies to large companies; and how the pandemic has caused previous market failures to move to market readiness. The conversation took place in front of a live virtual audience during the Metis Strategy Digital Symposium.

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Coda | Powering the Maker Generation Aug 25, 2020

Productivity software startup Coda was founded to empower anyone to make a document as powerful as an app, no engineering required. Now that many businesses have no choice but to be distributed, Coda has seen accelerating adoption as a central collaboration hub within companies. Coda CEO and co-founder Shishir Mehrotra discusses with Greylock general partner Sarah Guo why he believes “the world runs on docs, not apps,” why the core metaphors for productivity systems are stagnant, solving the “tragedy of the commons in enterprise software,” the most commonly pressed three buttons in SaaS, why you want structured participation in your board meetings, lessons learned from the in-office (and not) cultures of Microsoft and Google, and his predictions for the future of productivity. This episode is part of the #WorkFromAnywhere series hosted by Sarah and fellow Greylock partner David Thacker.

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Reid Hoffman | Myths About Failure Aug 20, 2020

Greylock general partner and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and his Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh discuss one the most common outcomes of startups: Failure. But although failure is often the default state for startups, it is neither inevitable nor is it necessarily the end of the story. Even if you are able to bring yourself to look failure in the eye, you can take steps to maximize your chance of success. And even if you fail despite your best efforts, if you behave ethically and demonstrate that you've learned from the mistakes you might have made along the way, failure is definitely not the end. In fact, it may be the beginning. You can read an essay based on this conversation here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/reid-hoffman-myths-about-failure/

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Solv Health | Delivering Same-Day Healthcare Aug 19, 2020

Since Covid-19 first hit, Solv Health has played an instrumental role in helping healthcare organizations connect virtually with patients to provide telemedicine and same or next-day clinic appointments (as well as myriad administrative services such as contactless payments and digital paperwork). CEO and co-founder Heather Fernandez said the sudden, widespread shift to telemedicine meant Solv went from hosting about 9,000 virtual visits in all of 2019 to hosting half a million since March of 2020. The company is also now facilitating Covid-19 testing across its partner organizations. Fernandez sat down with Greymatter to talk about the complexity – and opportunity – in scaling a health tech startup during a public health crisis.

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Reid Hoffman | Talking Politics: When, How and Why CEOs Should Speak Out Aug 13, 2020

In an increasingly politicized world, it’s harder and harder for CEOs to keep business and politics separate. And in an increasingly politicized world, they shouldn’t. When an issue creates risks that are severe, broad in scope, and systemic in impact, business leaders have an obligation to speak up, especially if the issue clashes with the company’s ethics, culture, and vision for the future. Reid Hoffman and Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh outline a set of principles that can help decide when, how, and why CEOs should speak out.

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Figma | Collaborate from Anywhere Aug 11, 2020

Figma was founded in 2012 with a mission to connect designers virtually, enabling collaboration and communication no matter where they were in the world. Fast forward to 2020, and that original operational intent has paved the way for the company to expand significantly in the face of Covid-19’s impact on the working world. Figma CEO and co-founder Dylan Field sat down with Greylock general partner Sarah Guo to discuss how the company has evolved to meet a surge in demand, adapted to going fully remote, and how he is approaching leadership during this time of great upheaval. This episode is part of the #WorkFromAnywhere podcast series hosted by Sarah and Greylock partner David Thacker.

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Reid Hoffman & Sarah Guo | From Seed to Series A: What VCs look for in early stage investments Aug 06, 2020

Greylock general partners Reid Hoffman and Sarah Guo discuss the all-important topic of raising early stage capital (with updated guidelines for the current economic environment). From understanding what metrics matter to team-building and reference-checking potential board members, this Greymatter episode provides entrepreneurs practical advice and unique insight from some of Silicon Valley's most active and experienced investors.

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David Thacker | Retooling for Reality: Product Development in Pivotal Moments Aug 04, 2020

We're more reliant on technology than ever. But there's always room for improvement. How should entrepreneurs approach product development at a time like now, when the Covid-19 pandemic has sparked an acute need for innovation in tools for seamless collaboration, communication and everything else? Greylock partner David Thacker, who previously held product leadership roles at iconic tech companies including Google, LinkedIn and Groupon, sat down with Greymatter to share his thoughts on the current environment, and why now is a challenging yet opportunity-rich moment for technology entrepreneurs. This episode is part of the #WorkFromAnywhere series hosted by David and fellow Greylock partner Sarah Guo. You can read about this episode here:https://greylock.com/greymatter/retooling-for-reality/

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Reid Hoffman | Calculating Risk: Evaluating, Mitigating, and Leveraging Risks During Covid Jul 30, 2020

Today’s entrepreneurs find themselves falling from the cliff and assembling a plane with tools that are on fire while being attacked by a swarm of murder hornets. Yet despite the increased risks, entrepreneurs are still taking those leaps of faith, for which we should all be grateful. Greylock partner Reid Hoffman and his Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh explore how to help and encourage those entrepreneurs by offering some thoughts on how to mitigate – or even leverage – the present set of risks to accelerate their progress.

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Shortcut | Building for the Distributed Future Jul 28, 2020

NOTE: Throughout this episode, the company is referred to as "Clubhouse". In 2021, the company re-branded to Shortcut(https://shortcut.com/) Software startup Shortcut (previously named Clubhouse) built its product specifically for distributed teams, and the company had a high percentage of employees working remotely even prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. But Shortcut CEO and co-founder Kurt Schrader said the shift to 100% remote work has provided fresh insight into the need for more and better tools that effectively recreate the ambient intelligence of working in an office. Kurt sat down with Greylock general partner Sarah Guo to discuss how the company is internally adapting to remote-first, how usage patterns are changing among their customers, and how Shortcut is thinking about the next phase of product development. This episode is part of the Greymatter #WorkFromAnywhere series hosted by Greylock partners Sarah Guo and David Thacker.

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Reid Hoffman | M&A or IPO? Jul 23, 2020

Reid Hoffman shares his perspective on the fundamental choice that all venture-backed entrepreneurs face simple: M&A or IPO? Fortunately, there is one approach that allows you to build to go public AND to sell. You can read the essay based on this interview here: https://greylock.com/greymatter/reid-hoffman-ma-or-ipo/

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Okta CEO Todd MacKinnon | Dynamic Work Jul 21, 2020

On this episode of Greymatter, Okta CEO and co-founder Todd McKinnon talks with Greylock partner Sarah Guo about leadership lessons for times of dramatic change, and how his team is meeting the surge in customer demand for Okta since Covid-19 hit. Todd, who left his job leading engineering at Salesforce in 2009 to start Okta, a Greylock portfolio company, reflects on the platform shifts that convinced him to take the leap, the parallels he sees today, and what's next for Okta. Finally, for over a year predating the pandemic, Todd has been a proponent of the nuanced “dynamic work" (rather than fully remote work). He explains that philosophy and shares Okta’s approach to talent. This episode is part of Greymatter's #WorkFromAnywhere series hosted by Greylock partners Sarah Guo and David Thacker.

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Reid Hoffman and Saam Motamedi | The Virtual VC Jul 16, 2020

Months into the Covid-19 pandemic, one of the top questions on entrepreneurs’ minds is whether venture capital firms are still making investments. The short answer is “Yes,” but the details are important enough that the partners of Greylock thought it was worth exploring in greater depth. On the latest episode of Greymatter, Greylock investors Reid Hoffman and Saam Motamedi sat down with Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh, who guided a discussion of how Covid-19 has – and hasn’t – changed how we invest at Greylock.

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Quora CEO Adam D'Angelo | Becoming a Remote-First Company Jul 14, 2020

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, tech startup Quora had a strong office culture and discouraged employees from working remotely most of the time. But once the company had no choice, Quora CEO and co-founder Adam D'Angelo says they discovered the benefits of working from anywhere far outweigh the drawbacks. In late June, Quora announced it would become a remote first company. Adam discusses the decision with Greylock partner David Thacker. This episode is part of Greymatter's #WorkFromAnywhere series hosted by David and fellow Greylock partners Sarah Guo.

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Reid Hoffman | Entrepreneurship Now Jul 09, 2020

The Covid-19 pandemic has changed the environment for entrepreneurship. In many ways, entrepreneurship has become more challenging; in a few ways, and for a few people, it has become easier. For all of us among the broader society, it has become more important. The pandemic has shown us the harsh reality of the world as it is. That new clarity may allow entrepreneurship to make more rapid progress towards how it should be.

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Box CEO Aaron Levie | Breakthrough Innovation: Evolving into a Digital-First Business Jul 07, 2020

Box CEO and co-founder Aaron Levie sat down with Greylock General Partner Sarah Guo on Greymatter to discuss his company’s journey during the past decade leading up to the Covid-19 pandemic, how it has changed their product roadmap, and where he believes the opportunities for innovation still lie. This episode is part of Greymatter's #WorkFromAnywhere series hosted by Greylock partners Sarah Guo and David Thacker.

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Reid Hoffman | Building Companies in Times of Change Jul 02, 2020

Reid Hoffman offers advice for the Class of startups in 2020. While there is a tendency for pundits to say that everything has changed, and that we’re in a new world, Reid posits that more is actually the same than different. Converting challenge into opportunity is a normal part of the entrepreneurial journey, and right now is precisely when people with entrepreneurial skills are accomplishing amazing things, because generally speaking, it's actually better in the long-run to successfully start a business during a recession than during a bull market.

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Notable Health | Modernizing the Medical Experience Jun 30, 2020

This episode of Greymatter is part of a series of conversations with Greylock-backed health technology startups. This episode features Pranay Kapadia, the CEO and co-founder of Notable Health, which has created software to automate one of the most out-dated, costly and time-consuming parts of healthcare: administration. Notable partners with health systems to replace manual, in-person workflow systems - like billing and clinical note-taking - with automated digital tools. The company has seen an uptick in business and ever since the coronavirus pandemic hit, which shifted most healthcare services to virtual experiences.

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Reid Hoffman | Honoring the Alliance During Covid Jun 25, 2020

In 2014, Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman co-authored The Alliance with Chris Yeh and Ben Casnocha. The book argued that in the modern economy, the key to a stronger, healthier, longer-lasting employee relationship was to be honest about the temporary nature of nearly every job. Much like negotiators of a treaty of alliance, employees can work with their managers and employers to steer their careers on a track that transforms both company and employee. In 2020, the world is suffering through the Covid-19 pandemic and its economic fallout, and those alliances are under more stress than ever before. In this Greymatter episode, Chris and Reid discuss how the current crisis also represents an opportunity to honor and strengthen those alliances, even in cases where employers are furloughing or laying off employees.

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Cleo | Supporting Working (From Home) Parents Jun 23, 2020

Health tech startup Cleo CEO SJ Sacchetti sat down with Greymatter to discuss how the company is quickly iterating products and services to meet the needs of working parents in the time of Covid-19 and beyond. SJ also shared her experience as a working parent and new CEO, and how adapting to a crisis has helped focus the Cleo team. The episode is part of a series of conversations with Greylock-backed startups operating in health technology.

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Reid Hoffman | Blitzscaling During Covid Jun 18, 2020

This episode of Greymatter is part of a series of conversations between Blitzscaling co-authors Reid Hoffman (who is also a general partner at Greylock) and Chris Yeh. While the disruption and turbulence associated with the Covid-19 pandemic is broadly negative and unpredictable, it does open up new opportunities. Even during a pandemic, there will still be blitzscaling opportunities. They’ll just look different from the opportunities that emerged during the long economic expansion. It’s more critical than ever to focus on and enable entrepreneurship.

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Grand Rounds | Covid is Reshaping Employee Care: How Great CEOs are Meeting the Moment Jun 16, 2020

This episode, which features Grand Rounds CEO and co-founder Owen Tripp, is one in a series of Greymatter podcasts with health tech startup executives. While the coronavirus pandemic has caused a significant downturn in business for many companies, health tech startup Grand Rounds has had the opposite experience, and has risen to meet demand with new technology and resources including an online symptom checker, telemedicine appointments, and guidelines for safe return back to the office. The company is also supporting employers as they rethink healthcare spending in uncertain economic times.

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Reid Hoffman | Transformational Moments Jun 11, 2020

In May 2020, Jeff Weiner stepped down as CEO of LinkedIn after 11 amazing years. In this episode of Greymatter, Greylock partner and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman shares his favorite memories and most valuable lessons learned from working with Jeff.

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Reid Hoffman | Planning for Volatility Jun 09, 2020

This episode of Greymatter features a portion of a virtual town hall held in May with Greylock general partner and LinkedIn co-Founder Reid Hoffman, moderated by general partner David Thacker. Portfolio company founders joined the session to hear Reid’s assessment of the current economic, political and public health landscape. He answered questions about how entrepreneurs, investors and new graduates can adapt to the new market and societal conditions.

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Mike Duboe | Growing Consumer Brands That Endure Apr 22, 2020

How do you scale a consumer brand company to profitability without losing the human touch? Moreover, since marketplace platforms like Shopify have made it relatively simple to launch an ecommerce business, how do you stand out among the noise and reach customers in the first place? And how do you measure how well those methods are working? This episode of Greymatter is one in a series of growth discussions featuring Greylock’s Mike Duboe. In this conversation, Mike chatted with Moiz Ali, the founder of personal care company Native Co. (acquired by Procter & Gamble) and Nik Sharma, the CEO of CPG advisory and marketing firm Sharma Brands.

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Lessons Learned Growing Successful Marketplaces w/ Mike Duboe, Lenny Rachitsky, & Dan Hockenmaier Dec 18, 2019

This episode of Greymatter is the third in a series of growth discussions featuring Greylock investor Mike Duboe. Lenny Rachitsky, former growth lead at Airbnb, and Dan Hockenmaier, founder of Basis One and former director of growth marketing at Thumbtack, join Mike to share lessons learned when growing marketplaces from startup to scaleup. They discuss how to design a growth org, processes and frameworks around experiments, building growth models, understanding marketplace liquidity, how to think about disintermediation, and parallels between B2C /B2B marketplaces.

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Chile, Entrepreneurs, Endeavor, and Global Lessons w/ Reid Hoffman Wences Casares Dec 12, 2019

Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman, and Wences Casares, Greylock portfolio company CEO and founder of Xapo, are back for their second conversation. This time to discuss how blitzscaling works when you’re not in Silicon Valley or China. In this episode of Greymatter, Wences and Reid talk about some of the learnings and tools he’s found that help him make remote work at Xapo more effective (Xapo has 275 employees scattered across 62 different countries). Wences explains how he uses always-on Zoom videoconferencing to implement a virtual “open door” policy that generates serendipitous meetings between employees on different continents, and why hiring employees without ever seeing their face or hearing their voice is actually a competitive advantage.

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Argentina Entrepreneurship, Endeavor, and Global Lessons w/ Wences Casares and Reid Hoffman Dec 06, 2019

Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman, and Wences Casares, Greylock portfolio company CEO and founder of Xapo, discuss what diverse entrepreneurial ecosystems like Argentina can teach Silicon Valley. This episode of Greymatter digs into how assumptions about the world that hold true in America don’t in most other places around the globe. It also explores how being outside of Silicon Valley helped Wences realize early on the importance of a global, nation-independent, reliable monetary ecosystem, and the story that led Wences to become a Bitcoin user and investor. It also explores how childhood and family can prepare you for life as a tech entrepreneur.

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The Role of the Founder | Greymatter Podcast Aug 01, 2019

This episode in the Greymatter Blitzscaling capsule series, with Reid Hoffman and Chris Yeh, discusses the role of the founder in a blitzscaling startup. Reid shares practical advice for choosing your co-founders and key characteristics of successful founders.

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Building & Measuring Sustainable Growth Marketing Strategies | Greymatter Jul 30, 2019

Greylock Investor Mike Duboe, Right Side Up CEO Tyler Elliston, and KeepTruckin VP of Data Science Kim Larsen discuss frameworks and tactics for successful growth marketing. This episode of Greymatter is the second in a series of growth discussions featuring Greylock investor Mike Duboe. In this discussion, Right Side Up CEO Tyler Elliston and KeepTrucking VP of Data Science Kim Larsen chat with Mike about the foundational concepts and tactics to build and measure effective growth marketing strategies. Mike, Tyler, and Kim discuss the importance of diversification in marketing channels, best practices for measurement including incrementality testing, how to avoid common pitfalls of budget allocation, and building a growth marketing team in-house versus partnering with an agency. This podcast goes into many more concepts and frameworks, but below are just a few takeaways from the discussion.

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Greymatter Blitzscaling | People with Reid Hoffman & Chris Yeh Jul 25, 2019

This episode in the Greymatter Blitzscaling capsule series, with Reid Hoffman and Chris Yeh, provides an overview of some of the main people issues you might encounter when blitzscaling. Indeed, while many of the articles in the popular press that mention blitzscaling focus on the financial capital involved, in most cases, the greatest constraint on blitzscaling is your ability to find, develop, and retain the human capital needed to manage hypergrowth.

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Frameworks For Driving Sustainable Growth w/ Mike Duboe, Brian Balfour, Shaun Clowes | Greymatter Jul 23, 2019

Greylock Investor Mike Duboe, Reforge CEO Brian Balfour, and Mulesoft SVP of Product Shaun Clowes on developing a healthy and successful growth strategy. Growth is fundamental to a company's survival. To compete in today's crowded business environment, it is vital for founders to implement powerful strategies that drive healthy and sustainable growth. Successful growth strategies start with a methodical framework tailored to your product and target audience that will increase your user base and activation rate. This episode of Greymatter is the first in a mini-series of growth discussions featuring Greylock Investor Mike Duboe. In this discussion Reforge Founder and CEO Brian Balfour, and Metromile Chief Product Officer Shaun Clowes chat with Mike about frameworks and foundational concepts needed to develop a successful growth strategy. The three growth/product leaders discuss the skills and traits to look for in a startup's first growth hire, why growth should be a cross-functional discipline vs a set of channels or tactics, how to assess healthy vs unhealthy growth, conceptualizing loops vs funnels, and the applicability of B2C growth concepts in B2B organizations.

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Greymatter Blitzscaling | Going Global with Reid Hoffman & Chris Yeh Jul 18, 2019

This episode in the Greymatter Blitzscaling capsule series, with Reid Hoffman and Chris Yeh, digs deep into the question of globalization. When should an entrepreneur start to think about globalization? When is globalization a good idea, and when is it a bad idea? And when should a company first hire a head of international?

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Blitzscaling Strategy: Making Key Decisions with Reid Hoffman & Chris Yeh | Greymatter Jul 11, 2019

This episode in the Greymatter Blitzscaling capsule series, with Reid Hoffman and Chris Yeh, takes you deep inside the mind of Reid Hoffman. You’ll learn his frameworks for making key decisions, and hear about how he developed and applied them at PayPal and LinkedIn. The key decisions entrepreneurs face belong to four layers: Capital, Talent, Market, and Product.

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Blitzscaling Strategy: Major Threats with Reid Hoffman & Chris Yeh | Greymatter Jun 27, 2019

This episode in the Greymatter Blitzscaling capsule series, with Reid Hoffman and Chris Yeh, focuses on the major threats that blitzscalers need to watch out for as they scale. Like a whack-a-mole game, new threats are constantly popping up to keep entrepreneurs busy! Fortunately, this episode offers practical tips on how to identify the true threats and address them before they derail your company. You'll learn about the central threat of blitzscaling, and what it has to do with Alec Baldwin movies from the early 1990s. "The central threat that Blitzscaling addresses is the threat that another competitor gets the scale before you. As we say in the book, these are Glengarry Glen Ross markets. First prize, Cadillac, second prize, steak knives, third prize, you're fired." To address this threat, you need to act with urgency, and commit to your strategy hard enough that it'll hurt - often badly - if you're wrong. You'll hear how the story of Uber illustrates this lesson. Uber responded so aggressively to the threat of Lyft's new alternative to black car service that many people erroneously believe that Lyft is the copycat, rather than vice versa. This was despite the new UberX service strongly upsetting Uber's existing network of black car operators, who correctly viewed it as competition. Yet Uber also illustrates just how dangerous internal threats can be to blitzscaling. Blitzscaling companies need a strong, resilient culture to effectively respond to existential threats to the business. "Company culture is one of the things that if you get wrong, you just may never be able to go back and get right." Uber was ultimately able to fix its broken culture, but at great cost, especially in the wasted time that allowed others to establish a stronger foothold in the market. Finally, you'll hear why these lessons continue to be important, no matter what the size and age of your organization. "All companies need to start thinking like startups in the sense that they need to understand that by default, every business will eventually come to an end. And instead of thinking to themselves as by default, we're going to win and let's just proceed majestically on our way, I think it's that by default someone's gonna take our lunch, how do we make sure we're the ones who take the lunch?" Greymatter shares perspectives and stories from some of the world's top technology entrepreneurs and business leaders. Subscribe here and never miss a new episode.

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Building The Next-Gen Entertainment Platform with Roblox | Greymatter Jun 25, 2019

Roblox founder and CEO David Baszucki and Greylock partner David Sze on the power of imagination. The gaming industry has undergone a transformation driven by technological advancements including mobile and cloud, and new gaming tools and platforms. Historically, consoles and PCs dominated the gaming market, but the rise of mobile and online games and live streaming services have ushered in a new generation of players and game creators. This episode of Greymatter features Roblox founder and CEO David Baszucki and Greylock Partner and Roblox investor, David Sze. Baszucki and Sze discuss the future social gaming landscape, share advice for scaling the company vision, and how to build company culture early on. Roblox's Imagination Platform is ushering in the next generation of entertainment, enabling kids of all ages to imagine, create, and play together in immersive 3D worlds. Prior to founding Roblox, Baszucki was an angel investor and previously, he founded and led Knowledge Revolution, the leader in educational physics and mechanical design simulation. Sze invests in entrepreneurs building companies focused on consumer mobile and internet services, and media convergence. His investments include LinkedIn, Facebook, Roblox, Pandora, and Nextdoor and many more.

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Blitzscaling | Competitive Strategy with Reid Hoffman & Chris Yeh | Greymatter Jun 20, 2019

This episode in our Greymatter Blitzscaling capsule series, with Reid Hoffman and Chris Yeh, focuses on the topic of competitive strategy. In an ideal world, you won't have any competition. But the world is far from ideal. How should a blitzscaling company think about and respond to the competition? You'll hear about how Reid, Peter Thiel, and Elon Musk used speed to lead PayPal to victory in a contest with eBay's own payments system (you can also hear Reid and Peter discuss competition and many other topics on Reid's podcast, Masters of Scale). You'll learn why the most important factor in a blitzscaling business model isn't a traditional business school metric like gross margin, but rather the speed at which the model allows the business to grow and adapt. And you'll get specific advice on how to find, test, and hone your competitive edge. Finally, you'll hear why the ideal competition isn't the small or weak. Small and weak competitors are often the result of a small and unappealing market. Rather, the ideal competition is strong but inflexible.

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Blitzscaling From Startup to Scaleup with Reid Hoffman & Josh McFarland | Greymatter Jun 18, 2019

Greylock’s Reid Hoffman and Josh McFarland on the basic principles for successful blitzscaling. Blitzscaling is a set of practices for igniting rapid growth to accelerate to the stage in a startup’s life cycle where the most value is created. Bitzscaling prioritizes speed over efficiency in an environment of uncertainty, and it allows a company to go from “startup” to “scaleup” at a furious pace to capture the market. In this episode of Greymatter, Greylock partner Josh McFarland moderates a discussion with Reid Hoffman at Recode’s 2019 Code Conference. McFarland and Hoffman outline the rationale for the Blitzscaling set of practices and the counterintuitive rules necessary to scale up super fast.

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The Strategy Of Blitzscaling with Reid Hoffman & Chris Yeh | Greymatter Jun 11, 2019

Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman and Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh on defining and developing a competitive strategy. Blitzscaling is how startups become enduring, category-defining businesses at lightning-fast speed. This strategy utilizes a set of techniques to grow, raise financing, and quickly scale to a dominant position in a global market. Greylock partner Reid Hoffman and entrepreneur Chris Yeh share their advice for clarifying goals to create a competitive strategy, how to develop an aptitude for strategy, and examples of actionable strategies from today's leading tech leaders. This episode of Greymatter is the first in a new series dedicated to blitzscaling. The podcast themes draw on the lessons from Reid and Chris' new book Blitzscaling: The Lightning-Fast Path to Building Massively Valuable Companies, and go deeper into the practical details of how entrepreneurs and leaders can blitzscale their organizations.

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Safely Scaling Artificial General Intelligence with Reid Hoffman & Sam AltmanI | Greymatter Jun 06, 2019

Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman and OpenAI co-founder and CEO Sam Altman on the transformative potential of AGI. The AI revolution has only just begun. Over the next several decades, numerous industries will continue to see significant transformations as a result of advanced AI research and applications. As AI technology ramps up, so does the potential for artificial general intelligence, AGI, which refers to autonomous systems capable of human-level intelligence. It's challenging to predict when AGI will come into reach or even comprehend the impact this technology will have on society. Early on though, it will be important to have organizations that can prioritize a beneficial outcome for humanity. OpenAI's mission is to ensure that artificial general intelligence benefits all of humanity. This episode of Greymatter features Sam Altman, OpenAI co-founder and CEO and Reid Hoffman, Greylock partner and OpenAI investor and board member.

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Can The Current AI Boom Scale To AGI? Reid Hoffman & Open AI's Greg Brockman | Greymatter May 30, 2019

From the 2019 Startup Grind Conference, Greylock's Reid Hoffman and OpenAI Co-Founder and CTO Greg Brockman on the prospects of building beneficial AGI (Artificial General Intelligence). AI systems have achieved impressive capabilities that may one day reach human levels of intelligence. Autonomous systems with this intelligence and capability are referred to as artificial general intelligence (AGI). The future impact human-level AI will have on society is challenging to comprehend. Yet, it's broadly understood that prioritization of building beneficial and ethical autonomous systems today are vital for positive human impact. In this episode of Greymatter, OpenAI co-founder and CTO Greg Brockman and Greylock partner and OpenAI investor Reid Hoffman discuss the implications of today’s AI progress. Greg and Reid deep dive into the transformative potential of AGI on organizations of all kinds, the policy changes required of international governments, and ways to build and scale ethical AI and AGI systems. Founded in 2015, OpenAI is an AI research company discovering and enacting the path to safe artificial general intelligence. Prior to co-founding OpenAI, Greg previously was CTO at Stripe, which he helped scale from 4 to 250 employees. An accomplished entrepreneur and executive, Reid has played an integral role in building many of today’s leading consumer technology businesses, including LinkedIn and PayPal. As a Greylock investor, he currently serves on the boards of Airbnb, Apollo Fusion, Aurora, Coda, Convoy, Entrepreneur First, Gixo, Microsoft, Nauto, Xapo and a few early stage companies still in stealth. Reid is the co-author of Blitzscaling and two New York Times best-selling books: The Start-up of You and The Alliance.

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Speed: The Most Critical Competitive Advantage with Reid Hoffman | Greymatter May 15, 2019

From the 2019 SFELC Summit, Greylock's Sarah Guo and Reid Hoffman on blitzscaling massively valuable companies. Getting to scale is a competitive and enduring advantage. Blitzscaling is how companies achieve this massive scale at incredible speed. This strategy utilizes a set of techniques to grow a customer base and revenue, raise financing, and quickly scale to a dominant global position in a market. In this episode of Greymatter, Greylock Partners Reid Hoffman and Sarah Guo share feedback for taking strategical risk, blitzscaling techniques for larger organizations, and counterintuitive rules needed to succeed.

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The "Meaning Revolution" In Leadership with Google's Fred Kofman| Greymatter May 07, 2019

From the 2019 SFELC Summit, Google's Advisor of Leadership Fred Kofman on the biggest drivers of motivation. Today's leaders need to motivate their employees for the long-term. Material incentives like salary and benefits are nice, but the real driver for employees is the desire to work in an organization that has a greater purpose and mission. In this episode of Greymatter, Google's Fred Kofman shares his approach to organizational leadership that combines different aspects of economics, business theory, and conflict resolution. He explains how leaders must put aside their self-interest to allow their organization to best function and why companies that are able to focus their people, teams, and culture around meaning outperform their competition.

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Managing Creative Teams with Facebook's James Everingham | Greymatter Apr 30, 2019

From the 2019 SFELC Summit, Facebook's Head of Engineering James Everingham on management philosophies that foster innovation. Creative people and teams can build valuable and unpredictable innovations. Effectively fostering these creative ideas in the workplace though, requires its own style of management. In this episode of Greymatter, we share a presentation from the2019 SFELC Summit featuring Facebook's Head of Engineering, James Everingham. James shares the characteristics of managers that foster innovation, leadership advice for new managers, and his theory on the surprisingly similar factors between quantum mechanics and today's management styles. James is Facebook's Head of Engineering dedicated to exploring blockchain technology. Prior, he led Facebook/Instagram's engineering team. Earlier in his career, James co-founded and led startups including Luminate and LiveOps. SFELC is a curated community of 2500+ engineering leaders evolving the way leadership is implemented in the tech industry. Greylock Partners is the VC partner for SFELC, and sponsored the annual SFELC Summit which hosted top industry leaders to share management best practices and leadership advice.

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Building A Team Of Inspirational Leaders w/ Affirm CEO Max Levchin | Greymatter Apr 23, 2019

From the 2019 SFELC Summit, Affirm Founder and CEO Max Levchin on leadership qualities and the early days of PayPal. What does it take to be a real leader? It's not about your title or past experience. Leadership is about taking care of the people within your organization and leading by example. In this episode of Greymatter, you'll hear from Ben Jun, CEO of HVF Labs and Max Levchin, Founder and CEO of Affirm. Max shares the one metric your organization should be tracking, leadership advice for new managers, and lessons learned from the early days building PayPal. Max is a serial entrepreneur, computer scientist, philanthropist, and active investor in more than 100 startup companies. He is the Founder and CEO of Affirm, chairman of Glow, and general partner at SciFi VC. All three of these companies were created and launched from his San Francisco based innovation lab, HVF (Hard, Valuable, Fun). Earlier, Max was one of the original Co-Founders of PayPal where he served as the CTO until its acquisition by eBay in 2002. This discussion took place at the 2019 SFELC Summit. SFELC is a curated community of 2500+ engineering leaders evolving the way leadership is implemented in the tech industry. Greylock Partners is the VC partner for SFELC, and sponsored the annual SFELC Summit which hosted top industry leaders to share management best practices and leadership advice.

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Mastering Difficult Conversations with Google's Dir. of Engineering, Sarah Clatterbuck | Greymatter Apr 16, 2019

All leaders experience difficult conversations at some point in their career. Whether it's discussing poor employee performance or an organizational change, any conversation that involves human emotions is hard. These conversations become even more challenging when the delivery is muddled. In this episode of Greymatter, we share a presentation from the 2019 SFELC Summit on best practices for managing difficult conversations. Google's Director of Engineering, Sarah Clatterbuck, shares a Super Mario video game-themed guide to help managers prepare for a difficult conversation and suggested talking points for various challenging topics SFELC is a curated community of 2500+ engineering leaders evolving the way leadership is implemented in the tech industry. Greylock Partners is the VC partner for SFELC, and sponsored the annual SFELC Summit which hosted top industry leaders to share management best practices and leadership advice.

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Zooming Out From Engineering with Square's Alyssa Henry | Greymatter Apr 11, 2019

From the 2019 SFELC Summit, Square exec Alyssa Henry on leadership, career development, and building teams at scale. Leading an organization of 10 employees is considerably different than leading an organization of 10,000+ employees. As teams increase and communication becomes more challenging, a lot can break down. In this episode of Greymatter, we share a fireside discussion from the 2019 SFELC Summit on building and managing scaling teams. NodeSource VP of Engineering, Chanda Dharap talks with Square's Head of Seller & Developer Business Units & Infrastructure Engineering, Alyssa Henry. Alyssa shares lessons from scaling companies at hyper-scale including Square and AWS, how to bring purpose to your employee's work, and advice for building company culture.

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Mastering The Art Of Recruiting with Aditya Agarwal | Greymatter Apr 02, 2019

Recruiting and hiring great employees is a priority for every company at any stage of their growth. Yet, without question, recruiting is difficult to master. In this episode of Greymatter, we share a fireside discussion from the 2019 SFELC Summit on recruiting and hiring. In conversation with Dan Portillo, Dropbox's former CTO Aditya Agarwal shares his thoughts on how to recruit without having an established brand, advice to effectively sell your company to candidates and guidance for closing hires.

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The Future of Live Video is Social Broadcasting with Caffeine CEO Ben Keighran | Greymatter Mar 12, 2019

Caffeine CEO Ben Keighran on building a new social broadcasting platform. The rise of mobile technology and social platforms has created a massive shift in the way we consume, interact with, and share media. Today's consumers expect deeper and more meaningful interactions, specifically with content creators and streamers. Enter Caffeine, the social broadcasting platform connecting users, streamers and publishers to share live broadcasts of gaming, sports and live entertainment. In this episode of Greymatter, Caffeine CEO and Co-Founder Ben Keighran and Greylock Venture Partner John Lilly discuss building a sustainable business model, what to look for in strategic partnerships, and what's next for the future of live broadcasting.

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The On-Demand Enterprise with Greylock's Jerry Chen & Spoke CEO Jay Srinivsan | Greymatter Mar 05, 2019

The explosion of on-demand consumer services have transformed the way millions of us interact with the businesses and people around us. Immediate, transparent, and personalized experiences are characteristics that have become central to everyday life. The modern workforce has similar expectations for how they connect with the teams, tech and tools that help them do their jobs productively. This has created a need for innovative tools and services that adapt to today's increasingly distributed and fragmented workforce. In this episode of Greymatter, Greylock partner Jerry Chen and Spoke co-founder and CEO Jay Srinivasan discuss the organizational value of an “on-demand workplace”, the employee workplace expectation versus the reality, and trends in the on-demand enterprise.

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Scaling AI Technology In Health Care with Notable Health CEO Pranay Kapadia | Greymatter Dec 04, 2018

Notable CEO Pranay Kapadia and Greylock Partner Jerry Chen on building a health care company for the next generation. The healthcare industry is undergoing a digital transformation as emerging technologies are revolutionizing patient care in new and exciting ways. Artificial intelligence, specifically, is poised to become a transformational force in health care. As data becomes more available, machine learning and AI solutions can automate repetitive tasks to increase productivity and allow doctors to focus on what matters most: the patient. In this episode of Greymatter, Notable Health CEO Pranay Kapadia and Greylock partner Jerry Chen discuss characteristics to look for in a founding team, how to successfully partner with large enterprises, and AI trends in the healthcare industry and beyond.

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Blitzscaling with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella & Greylock's Reid Hoffman | Greymatter Nov 13, 2018

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Greylock Partner and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman share lessons learned from scaling Microsoft, LinkedIn and PayPal. Blitzscaling is the strategy that leading entrepreneurs have implemented to build strong, enduring companies. The techniques allow for startups and incumbents across any industry to scale at rapid rates and outdistance the competition. This episode of Greymatter is a discussion from Greylock's Blitzscaling Dinner with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Greylock partner Reid Hoffman. The two visionaries discuss the importance of consistency when scaling company culture, tactics to push forward new strategies with your board of directors, and steps to mitigate the unintended risks of blitzscaling. Greylock's invite-only event hosted CEOs, company founders and top CXOs to discuss the impact of blitzscaling across today's leading companies and ways that Microsoft is applying these techniques as an established company. Below are key takeaways and quotes from the discussion.

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Blitzscaling At Larger Organizations with Reid Hoffman and Sarah Guo | Greymatter Nov 06, 2018

Blitzscaling is often associated with high-tech companies in Silicon Valley, but the principles can be applied to organizations of any size, and at any stage. Incumbents can adopt strategies to outdistance their competition and create strong, lasting competitive advantages. Greylock partners Reid Hoffman, Sarah Guo and Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh share advice for established companies looking to apply blitzscaling techniques, defense strategies for leaders facing blitzscaling competitors (such as startups), and steps to responsibly blitzscale. This episode of Greymatter is the fifth in a five-part series on “blitzscaling” where general partners from Greylock discuss their experience building tech companies from startup to scaleup. The themes of these episodes are covered in Chris and Reid's new book, Blitzscaling: The Lightning-Fast Path to Building Massively Valuable Companies. You can listen to the other episodes in the series, here.

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Leading An Organization Through Blitzscaling with Greylock's John Lilly | Greymatter Oct 30, 2018

Blitzscaling is the ultimate test for managers and company builders. As employee count increases and communication becomes harder, a lot can break down. Founders that can weather these challenges and evolve their management practices build strong, enduring companies. Greylock's John Lilly experienced this hypergrowth first hand as CEO of Mozilla, the organization behind Firefox, the open source Web browser used by more than 450M people. In this discussion with Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh, John shares tactical advice to navigate key team transitions, hire for fast decision making, and build a strong company culture.

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The Risks And Rewards Of Being A Blitzscaling Founder & CEO with Josh McFarland | Greymatter Oct 23, 2018

The lessons of blitzscaling to achieve market dominance are counterintuitive. The strategy requires a shift from the traditional thinking of growth to a prioritization of speed over anything else. Greylock Partner Josh McFarland founded and scaled TellApart (which was acquired by Twitter in 2015), and he will be the first to tell you the risks and rewards of blitzscaling. In this discussion with Blitzscaling co-author Chris Yeh, Josh encourages founders to throw out the conventional approach of decision making and embrace the art of fast decision making and willingness to experiment.

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The Foundation To Successful Blitzscaling with Greylock's Jerry Chen | Greymatter Oct 16, 2018

The dot-com era saw the failure of numerous startup companies due in part to the strategy of copying and pasting existing business models, created for the offline world, to the Internet. To achieve market dominance and beat out incumbents, companies need to create an innovative business model that is designed to scale alongside your company. Greylock PartnerJerry Chen and entrepreneurChris Yeh share advice on how to avoid growth limiters, target the right customer and build defensible moats. This episode of Greymatter is the second in a five-part series on “blitzscaling” where general partners from Greylock discuss their experience building tech companies from startup to scaleup. The themes of these episodes are covered in Chris Yeh and Reid Hoffman's new book, Blitzscaling: The Lightning-Fast Path to Building Massively Valuable Companies.

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Blitzscaling 101 with Reid Hoffman, Sarah Guo & Chris Yeh | Greymatter Oct 09, 2018

Entrepreneur Chris Yeh and Greylock Partners Reid Hoffman and Sarah Guo on what it takes to scale to global dominance. Blitzscaling is the secret by which Silicon Valley and China have built startups into global, category-defining businesses at lightning fast rates. This strategy utilizes a set of techniques to grow a customer base, revenue, financing and ultimately create a dominant global position in a market at speeds which were not possible before. Greylock Partner Sarah Guo moderates a discussion between Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman and entrepreneur Chris Yeh about the basics of blitzscaling, decision making and how startups can become dominant companies in Silicon Valley and beyond. This episode of Greymatter is the first in a five-part series where we host several Greylock investment Partners to discuss their experience building tech companies from startup to scaleup. The episodes are in partnership with Chris and Reid to discuss the stories and lessons from their new book Blitzscaling: The Lightning-Fast Path to Building Massively Valuable Companies.

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Maintaining A Proper Balance Between Inspiration And Paranoia- Delphix CEO Chris Cook | Greymatter Aug 21, 2018

Advancement in technology has created a "disrupt or die" notion among large enterprises. To remain one step ahead of their competitors, leading CEOs understand that they need to bring in new technology and seek out partners who can help them achieve that goal. In this episode of Greymatter, Delphix CEO and President Chris Cook and Greylock Partner Asheem Chandna discuss how to lead during times of company uncertainty, what to look for in a new hire and how startups can effectively partner with large enterprises. Both Chris and Asheem know what it takes to scale enterprise startup companies. In 2016, Chris began as CEO and President at Delphix, whose mission is to free companies from data friction and accelerate innovation. Today, Delphix has nearly 400 employees in nine offices around the world and has grown the number of customer deals of more than $500,000 by 26% year over year. Prior, Chris served as President and COO of New Relic, a software analytics leader, where he spent over four years scaling the company's operations through a successful IPO. Asheem has helped create and grow multiple technology businesses to market-leading positions. He has served on 20 technology company boards including three public companies (Palo Alto Networks, Imperva, Sourcefire), and multiple companies that have been acquired in strong M&A outcomes including AppDynamics and Skyhigh Networks.

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The Future of Shipping and Logistics in An Autonomous World | Greymatter Jul 31, 2018

Convoy VP of Operations Kristen Forecki discusses the future of shipping and logistics with Greylock Partner Simon Rothman. Local and regional shipping is considered one of the largest and most antiquated industries in the United States. The multi-trillion dollar industry in many ways is the backbone of commerce, yet much of the logistics are still being processed manually with ample opportunity for human error. This episode of Greymatter features a discussion on the future of shipping and logistics from Greylock's Future of Transportation event. Greylock Venture Partner Simon Rothman and Convoy VP of Operations Kristen Forecki discuss the impact of automated technology on the space, competitor landscape, and what it takes to win. Convoy is a digital freight matching network connecting shippers with small trucking companies to ship freight more efficiently. Prior to Convoy, Kristen ran operations in marketplace companies including Rover and Amazon. Greylock's invite-only event hosted CEOs, company founders, and top industry leaders to discuss the impact of technology on the transportation landscape and the role of autonomy over the next several decades. Below are key takeaways from the panel.

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The Successful Startup and Enterprise Partnership with Greylock Partner Sarah Guo | Greymatter Jul 26, 2018

The rise of new technologies has created an opportunity for enterprises to innovate, improve efficiency and provide differentiated customer experiences. For faster technology adoption and better service and support, enterprises often partner with startup companies to maintain competitive advantage. However, the path to a successful partnership involves several learning lessons. At Greyscale, our annual conference that connects CXO leaders with enterprise founders, Greylock's Sarah Guo discusses how enterprise and startup leaders can effectively work together. Below, we share the four concerns all enterprises have when working with startups: scale, security, spend and supportability. To listen to the full presentation, tune in to the latest Greymatter where she maps out the journey of a successful partnership between enterprises and startup companies.

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Safely Scaling Autonomous Vehicles with Reid Hoffman, Chris Urmson & Stefan Heck | Greymatter Jul 12, 2018

Throughout history, technology has enabled transportation to meet the shifting demands of society. Advancement in AI and ML technology is helping the industry get one step close towards an automated future. In this episode of Greymatter, we share a panel discussion from Greylock's Future of Transportation event. Greylock's Reid Hoffman, Aurora co-founder and CEO Chris Urmson and Nauto founder and CEO Stefan Heck discuss the opportunities and challenges, including driver insurance and the digital divide, and the importance of working closely with policy makers and OEMs as we transition to autonomous vehicles. Aurora and Nauto are building software needed to build and scale autonomous vehicles safely. Prior to founding Aurora, Chris helped found the self-driving car team at Alphabet and led the team for seven years. Stefan was the co-architect of the sustainability practice at McKinsey and taught courses on energy and transportation innovation at Stanford before starting Nauto. Greylock's invite-only event hosted CEOs, company founders, and top industry leaders to discuss the impact of technology on the transportation landscape and the role of autonomy over the next several decades. Below are key takeaways and quotes from the panel.

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Scaling Organizations with Molly Graham and Greylock's John Lilly | Greymatter Jun 07, 2018

"Your only job is to continue to grow, learn and evolve as fast as you possibly can," says Molly Graham. And, she knows hypergrowth. Molly has helped scale several leading technology companies as an early employee at Facebook, COO at Quip (which was acquired by Salesforce for $750M) and most recently the VP of Operations at the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. In this episode of Greymatter, Molly and Greylock Partner John Lilly share how to define company culture, what to look for in a new hire and advice for dealing with constant change. At Facebook, she created Facebook's external "hacker" brand and built programs to strengthen the Facebook culture as it grew from 500 to 1,500 employees as well as a stint leading some of Facebook's long term mobile initiatives. After Facebook, Molly joined Quip three months before it launched in 2013 and was tasked with building out the business. She sold the first customers, ran sales and marketing, and ultimately hired key team members to help Quip scale. Prior to Greylock, John was CEO of Mozilla, the organization behind Firefox, the open source Web browser used by more than 450 million people. John also co-founded Reactivity, an enterprise security infrastructure company acquired by Cisco in 2007. Both Molly and John share stories of their past experience scaling organizations at different levels of growth and lessons learned along the way. A few key takeaways are below.

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How To Inject Speed and Transparency Into Your Startup with Rubrik CEO Bipul Sinha | Greymatter May 02, 2018

For startups, it's all about being the first to get to scale in a competitive market. Startups that build solid company practices around speed, transparency and market discovery can rapidly go to market and quickly defeat larger incumbents. This episode of Greymatter features Rubrik CEO Bipul Sinha (https://www.rubrik.com/company/about/#founders-modal) and Greylock partner Asheem Chandna (https://www.greylock.com/team/#asheem-chandna). The two enterprise tech leaders share actionable advice to inject speed into your startup, tips to implement radical transparency throughout your company, and strategies for due diligence of your product/market fit. Both Bipul and Asheem have a deep understanding of what it takes to start and scale the next generation of enterprise-focused tech companies. Today, Rubrik (https://www.rubrik.com/) is considered the fastest growing enterprise software company; in just a few years, the company has a $300M global run rate and more than 800 employees. At Greylock, Asheem has incubated and invested in more than dozens of technology companies, many of which have gone public or have been acquired in strong M&A outcomes including Palo Alto Networks (PANW), AppDynamics and Skyhigh Networks.

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Building An AI-Powered Society with AI Fund's Andrew Ng | Greymatter Apr 24, 2018

Research advances over the past five years in artificial intelligence and machine learning have caused organizations of all kinds to look for ways to apply these powerful algorithms and techniques in their businesses. Eventually, AI could have the same impact that electricity had across all industries a hundred years ago by transforming industries, displacing existing jobs and creating new ones, and requiring massive policy changes. In this episode of Greymatter, Greylock’s Sarah Guo and Dr. Andrew Ng, one of the foremost leaders in AI discuss AI and ML techniques being used in industry today, areas of ongoing research, how companies can leverage this technology, and the broader impact on the future workforce.

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Playing To Win with Blend's CEO Nima Ghamsari and Greylock's Jerry Chen | Greymatter Mar 22, 2018

Poker is a game of variants and probability. You can be dealt the best cards and play every hand perfectly until the river, the final card dealt in a poker hand, is played and shifts the game completely to the opponent. Similarly, startups constantly manage and learn from unpredictable experiences. Scaling a startup requires quickly learning from the wins and losses, focusing on the long term goals, and having a framework in place to help you make educated risks. This episode of Greymatter isn’t your typical discussion around building enterprise startups. Greylock Partner Jerry Chen and Blend’s CEO and co-founder Nima Ghamsari discuss the similarities between making educated risks in startups and playing poker. The two also share “The 5 Whys”, a framework to learn from your mistakes and successes, and what it takes for your company to move fast.

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Lessons Learned From Scaling TellApart with Greylock Partner Josh McFarland | Greymatter Mar 07, 2018

This episode of Greymatter comes from Stanford University's Entrepreneurial Thought Leaders Series podcast. Greylock Partner Josh McFarland shared with students his presentation The First Derivative of Startup Life. In this lecture at Stanford, Josh charts the ups and downs of entrepreneurship through his personal story with TellApart. He opens up about the lessons he learned as a founder and CEO, offers fundraising advice for startups, and shares the untold story of TellApart's acquisition by Twitter, which was the largest acquisition in Twitter history. Greymatter is produced by Greylock Partners and offers perspectives and lessons from some of the world's top technology entrepreneurs and business leaders.

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Getting Smart About Growth with Casey Winters & Uber's Andrew Chen | Greymatter Jan 31, 2018

Are B2C companies starting to see a decline in viral growth responsiveness? That’s what Greylock’s Growth Advisor Casey Winters and Head of Rider Growth at Uber, Andrew Chen believe. Andrew coined the term The Law of Shitty Clickthroughs to describe the idea that every ad channel and every marketing platform eventually sees a decay in responsiveness. Due to increased consolidation and competition, viral growth is now much harder to break through and in the long term will see a break down in effectiveness. In this episode of Greymatter, Casey and Andrew riff on why consumer growth is getting harder and more expensive, and what viable opportunities companies can leverage in their own growth strategies. Both Andrew and Casey have a deep background in growth. Andrew advises and invests in tech startups including Barkbox, Dropbox and Tinder and for the past decade, he’s written extensively on mobile, metrics, and growth. Before heading growth at Pinterest, Casey ran marketing for Grubhub. Casey and Andrew share actionable growth strategies for startups, current trends in paid acquisition, and why they are excited for the rise of enterprise viral growth. For even more growth advice, be sure to check out Andrew’s blog and Casey’s blog.

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Rethinking Transportation Safety with Reid Hoffman and Nauto CEO Stefan Heck | Greymatter Dec 14, 2017

Traffic accidents are one of the leading causes of death in the United States. Fully automated vehicles promise a new era in car safety, but completely self driving cars on roads are still in the future. With this in mind, Nauto is rethinking transportation by using AI technology to learn how to best equip automated vehicles for a future of safe and trusted transportation. In this episode of Greymatter, Nauto CEO Stefan Heck and Greylock partner Reid Hoffman discuss a blended environment with humans and machines, the evolution of road infrastructure, and the impact of AI on human jobs. The two visionaries also share advice on how startups can successfully partner with large companies and enterprises.

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Managing Crisis Communications with Senior Advisor to Former President Barack Obama | Greymatter Dec 06, 2017

Companies that have successfully managed crisis realize that how they behave in the minutes, days and weeks following a crisis is even more important than what actually happened. A company’s ability to successfully manage a challenging news cycle is paramount to maintaining company value. While working in the White House during the Obama Administration, Eric Schultz was the person you wanted in the trenches with you during times of crisis. As the former White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary, Eric helped managed the responses to Congressional oversight investigations including the Solyndra bankruptcy, the Justice Department’s Fast & Furious operation, and the Benghazi attacks. In this episode of Greymatter, I sit down with Eric to discuss relationship building with the press, why honesty is crucial during crisis (and always) and best practices to develop a credible communications response.

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Building Up Great Engineering Leaders with Greylock's EIR Wade Chambers | Greymatter Nov 09, 2017

In the latest Greymatter episode, we welcome back Twitter’s former Head of Revenue Engineering, now Greylock Executive In Residence, Wade Chambers. He sits down with Greylock partner Josh McFarland to discuss what characteristics make a great engineering leader and the best environment to foster leadership. Wade helped scale product and build out TellApart’s engineering, product, and services team at a time when the company was on track to almost triple revenue to over $50M. The two startup veterans share lessons learned from building TellApart, how founders can create a culture built on honest conversations, and advice for coaching up great engineering leaders. To hear more from Wade, listen to his previous Greymatter podcasts on Increasing Your Team’s Capacity to Win and the follow-up discussion on the Art of Hiring 10x Engineers.

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Thriving in Chaos with Greylock EIR Stephanie Hannon and General Partner John Lilly | Greymatter Sep 25, 2017

The startup environment is chaotic. Resources are limited and the hours are grueling. But it can also be one of the most rewarding experiences for an entrepreneur. They must get creative and think fast when it comes to building a team that will excel in this type of environment. The same is true in a presidential campaign. Stephanie Hannon was the Chief Technology Officer for the Hillary for America campaign and was tasked with building a team from scratch. In under 20 months, she built an 80 person engineering team which launched more than 100 products for fundraising, grassroots organizing, voter registration, voter activation and volunteer engagement. In this episode of Greymatter, Greylock EIR Stephanie Hannon and Greylock general partner John Lilly discuss their experience building and scaling some of today’s market-defining technology products. They share hiring advice for startups, best practices for building a diverse team and learning lessons for product managers. Stephanie and John both have a deep understanding of what it takes to build an enduring technology product. Prior to joining the Clinton presidential campaign, Stephanie spent a decade as Director of Product Management for Social Impact and Civic Engagement at Google. She launched Google Maps in 25 countries, built Google Wave and was Product Manager for Gmail in its first year of life. As an investor, John has partnered with several transformative companies including Instagram, Dropbox, and Quip to name a few. Prior, he was CEO of Mozilla, the organization behind the open source Web browser Firefox, used by more than 450 million people worldwide.

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Building a Live Social Network with Houseparty Co-Founders Ben Rubin and Sima Sistani | Greymatter Aug 31, 2017

The rise of social network giants Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn paved the way for the world to connect online and showed the power of people sharing their own ideas, thoughts and images. Today, people share their personal moments billions of times a day yet these platforms are still largely considered asynchronous, meaning you post to your followers and they interact later. The advancement in mobile communication technology has, in many ways, detached the human aspect of communication with the ease and speed of text, “likes” and shares replacing phone calls. Live group video chat app Houseparty is on a mission to reconnect people in the most human way possible, when they are physically apart. Founders, Ben Rubin and Sima Sistani, have been through the trenches together pivoting from live video app Meerkat to Houseparty. Houseparty is now winning over Generation Z, with more than 1 million daily active users connecting with friends and family through spontaneous togetherness. The co-founders have deep knowledge of what drives mobile social apps. Previously, Sima was Head of Media at Tumblr responsible for global media strategy and partnership. Ben is a serial entrepreneur who has worked abroad in Israel scaling startup companies and working with large corporations including Intel. In this episode of Greymatter, the Houseparty founders share learning lessons from pivoting a company, the challenges of adopting live video and the opportunity to rethink what it means to communicate online.

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Driving Fast Growth in B2B Companies with Casey Winters and Naomi Ionita | Greymatter Aug 09, 2017

Historically, there has been a clear divide of how to grow a B2B company and a consumer business. However, in the past 5 years, we have seen B2B companies shift from the traditional sales growth practice to techniques used by consumer startups, such as product driven growth initiatives, distribution through mobile App stores, free trials and lower price plans. Today’s leading companies like Atlassian and Twilio reached IPO levels without a traditional sales-specific approach and startups like Dropbox and Slack use growth tactics pulled right out of a consumer-oriented playbook. In this episode of Greymatter, Invoice2go VP of Growth Naomi Ionita and Greylock Growth Advisor in Residence Casey Winters discuss their experience with growth retention and monetization at B2B companies. They share insight on monetizing your product, best practices for converting your freemium users to paying customers and advice for preventing customer churn. Both have a deep understanding of what drives user retention and paid conversion. Prior to Invoice2go, Naomi worked in mobile product management at Evernote where she founded and built the Growth team. Casey led acquisition efforts at Pinterest and ran marketing for Grubhub, where he helped the company grow from 30,000 users to over 3 million.

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Reinventing Customer Service with Gladly Co-Founders Joseph Ansanelli and Michael Wolfe | Greymatter Aug 01, 2017

Engaging with customers is one of the most difficult challenges for most companies. With the growing number of ways consumers interact with brands — from phone calls, to texting, to social media messaging — it’s becoming increasingly hard for companies to aggregate interactions into useful information. Even today, customer service products focus on individual communication channels and treat customers as case numbers or tickets. The founders of Gladly think this standard needs to change. They are reimagining the business/consumer relationship by centralizing all communications and making the atomic unit of their product what it should be: the customer. Gladly CEO Joseph Ansanelli and VP of Engineering Michael Wolfe have a deep history of successful ventures together. The two first worked with each other at Kana, an early customer service software company that helped managed email and web based communications. The pair later founded Vontu, a data loss prevention software that was later acquired by Symantec. In 2015, they got the band back together and incubated Gladly at Greylock with mission to change how large enterprises interact with their many customers. In the latest episode of Greymatter, Joseph and Michael sit down with Greylock partner and Gladly board member, Jerry Chen. The founders share their vision for reinventing customer service, identifying spaces ripe for disruption, and what it takes to become the industry standard. Below are a few key takeaways from the discussion.

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The Future of Publishing with Verst CEO AJ Frank | Greymatter Jul 17, 2017

We’re still many years away from computers being able to write and create content at the level that humans can. But today there are a number of ways we can leverage artificial intelligence to help us write and publish smarter. This is the belief of AJ Frank, the chief executive of Verst. AJ is a technology and product veteran who’s worked at Uber, Twitter (Vine), and Google (YouTube) before coming on to lead Verst in 2016. Based in New York, Verst is building an intelligent, modern publishing platform. AJ and his team realized that in today’s publishing landscape, many of the tools are outdated, overly complex, or sometimes don’t offer enough. Verst saw a wave of publishers start to move towards building custom content management systems to manage their content, which is often both expensive and time consuming. AJ believes that publishers shouldn’t spend resources trying to build a complicated CMS; they should focus on what they do best — creating amazing content. Verst wants to be the technology layer that makes publishing intuitive, while at the same time offering powerful tools such as advanced analytics and A/B testing to help us create and share content more effectively. Upon the launch of Verst 2.0, Greylock’s John Lilly caught up with AJ to talk about what drove their team to build a new publishing platform and how it will differentiate itself from the other tools out there. They also talk about the pros and cons of building a world class tech company in New York, how AJ thinks about interviewing engineers, and the operating principals that set the foundation for Verst’s company culture.

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Growth Panel with Gustaf Alströmer and Ed Baker, moderated by Josh Elman | The Scaleup Offsite 2017 Jun 22, 2017

In this panel, Greylock's Josh Elman talks with Y Combinator Partner and former Airbnb Product Lead for Growth Gustaf Alströmer and former Uber Head of Product and VP of Growth Ed Baker about establishing a north star metric, growing in local markets, and how to measure the things that can't be measured. This panel was recorded at The Scaleup Offsite, an event focused on scaling companies co-hosted by Greylock Partners and YC Continuity.

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Starting and Scaling Marketplaces with Eventbrite GM Brian Rothenberg and Casey Winters | Greymatter Jun 21, 2017

In our latest podcast, our Growth Advisor in Residence Casey Winters invites Eventbrite VP and GM Brian Rothenberg to riff on starting and scaling marketplaces. Brian has a deep background in marketplaces — he was a PM at Yahoo! for their local marketplaces businesses, founded a local services marketplace called SkillSlate, and served as Taskrabbit’s Co-Head of Marketing before joining Eventbrite as VP of Growth. Before heading growth at Pinterest, Casey ran marketing for Grubhub. The pair dive into marketplace strategies and share how they’ve solved growth and operations problems in their past roles. This podcast is packed with helpful content and examples for anyone starting or working at a marketplace business.

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Building Your Board with Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman | The Scaleup Offsite 2017 Jun 13, 2017

Redfin’s CEO Glenn Kelman joined us at The Scaleup Offsite to share how his relationship with the board of directors has evolved over the year. He speaks from the heart about how to think about building a pipeline for your board, how to interview potential candidates, and how to leverage their skills and knowledge for the success of the company. This talk was recorded at The Scaleup Offsite, an event focused on scaling companies co-hosted by Greylock Partners and YC Continuity.

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Hiring Executives with Greylock Talent Partner Jeff Markowitz | The Scaleup Offsite 2017 Jun 08, 2017

Bringing on world class leadership is incredibly valuable for a scaling company, but executive hiring can be a long and delicate process. In this talk, Greylock Talent Parter Jeff Markowitz breaks down five steps of hiring executives, starting from planning all the way to making the final offer. This fireside was recorded at The Scaleup Offsite, an event focused on scaling companies co-hosted by Greylock Partners and YC Continuity.

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Digging into Construction with the Co-Founders of Rhumbix | Greymatter Jun 07, 2017

The Rhumbix inception story is unlike most in Silicon Valley. It’s a story of two navy veterans on seemingly parallel paths. Before founding Rhumbix, co-founders Zach Scheel and Drew DeWalt both served in the navy, as a civil engineer and a submarine pilot respectively, and eventually crossed paths at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business. In the summer of 2013, both Zach and Drew were working in Northern Chile. Zach was working at a copper mine, and Drew was at a startup that was building a non-collocated solar and pump hydropower plant. They found that they were facing the same challenges of data collection on construction sites and estimating labor costs, which led to a fateful conversation over beers about solving this problem. Soon after the pair returned from South America, they began the ideation for Rhumbix — a mobile platform that is reinventing the construction site by providing real time project data and insights to all stakeholders. In our latest podcast, Greylock partner Jerry Chen is joined by Zach and Drew to talk about the experience as veteran entrepreneurs, what Rhumbix does, and the future of the massive but slow moving construction industry.

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Designing for Trust with Airbnb's Joe Gebbia and Reid Hoffman | The Scaleup Offsite 2017 Jun 06, 2017

Since its founding in 2008, Airbnb has changed the way people travel and stay in new places around the world. In this fireside, Greylock's Reid Hoffman sits down with Airbnb co-founder and Chief Product Officer Joe Gebbia to talk about doing things that don't scale, designing for trust, and creating a company culture that inspires their team and community. This fireside was recorded at The Scaleup Offsite, an event focused on scaling companies co-hosted by Greylock Partners and YC Continuity.

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Scaling Culture with Jason Kilar | The Scaleup Offsite 2017 Jun 01, 2017

In the early days of a startup, founders can maintain control of company culture. But as the company grows, how can they ensure the DNA and values of the early team scale with it? Jason Kilar has worked at a number of iconic companies, including Disney and Amazon, before joining Hulu as the CEO and later founding Vessel. In this talk, he shares mechanisms some of these companies used to scale their culture as they grew to thousands of employees. This presentation was recorded at The Scaleup Offsite, an event focused on scaling companies co-hosted by Greylock Partners and YC Continuity.

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From Startup to Scaleup with Reid Hoffman and Sam Altman | The Scaleup Offsite 2017 May 31, 2017

Silicon Valley is home to many of the fastest growing and most well known startups in the world. In this fireside, Reid Hoffman from Greylock Partners and Sam Altman from Y Combinator share their perspectives on how Silicon Valley companies effectively blitzscale, how to think about hiring when a startup is growing quickly, and why culture is so connected to the success of a company. This fireside was recorded at The Scaleup Offsite, an event focused on scaling companies co-hosted by Greylock Partners and YC Continuity.

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Master Class in Communications with Square’s Aaron Zamost | Greymatter May 11, 2017

Forming a well crafted communications strategy is part action, and part reaction. It’s about developing and telling your brand story in a deliberate way, while at the same time understanding the macro media landscape and thoughtfully responding to the narratives about your industry. Aaron Zamost, the Head of Communications at Square who led comms through the company’s IPO, has done an amazing job at synthesizing how the tech press works in his blog posts including “What’s Your Hour in ‘Silicon Valley Time’?” and “The Invisible Force That Warps What You Read in the News.” In this podcast, Greylock Marketing Partner Elisa Schreiber sits down with Aaron to talk how a tech startup should think about communications from the early days all the way up to IPO.

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Why a Brand is an Operating System featuring Heidi Hackemer | Greymatter May 02, 2017

The term “brand” is often misunderstood in business. Many attach it to your company aesthetic — logos, fonts, colors, and website design. But thoughtful and strategic brand represents so much more. Few people in the world understand building and maintaining brands better than Heidi Hackemer, the founder of Wolf & Wilhelmine — a New York-based brand strategy shop that has worked with clients ranging from small startups to the White House to iconic companies like Google and Nike. In our latest Greymatter podcast, Marketing Partner Elisa Schreiber sits down with Heidi to discuss how to empower your team to be more creative, define a brand strategy, and why external brand and internal culture are interrelated.

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Scaling Up Snapchat with Casey Winters and Julie Zhou | Greymatter Mar 31, 2017

Snapchat’s public offering marked the biggest U.S. tech IPO since Alibaba in 2014. This milestone has put a spotlight on the social media company, with public investors digging into their long term growth potential and path to profitability. One of the increasing concerns about Snap is user growth. While Snapchat boasted 50M new daily actives users in 2016, their growth slowed down considerably at the end of the year, only adding 5M new users in Q4. This halt coincided with the launch of Instagram Stories, which many believe to be the biggest threat to Snapchat’s outlook. In 2017, Facebook has doubled down on their assault on Snap with more competitive products including Messenger Day and their new camera, featuring disappearing messages and the ability to add masks, frames and filters. In our latest Greymatter podcast, we asked two experts to dissect different dimensions of Snapchat’s growth. Greylock Growth Advisor in Residence and former Pinterest Product Lead for Growth Casey Winters teamed up with former Yik Yak Director of Growth Julie Zhou to dig into whether Snapchat is at risk of losing their millennial core market, if they need to change their unique UX to move upmarket to older users, if they should be allocating resources to continue engaging with influencers, and what things they should be thinking about to scale on an international level.

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Scaling Users, Products, and Growth Teams with Casey Winters | Greymatter Mar 15, 2017

We talk about growth all the time in the context of startups. How they grow, how they attract users, how they engage users. In this episode of Greymatter, two of the top minds in growth, Greylock Partner Josh Elman and Greylock Growth Advisor Casey Winters, talk about scaling Grubhub and Pinterest, starting growth teams, how to think about SEO, and optimizing user onboarding. The podcast is packed with full-stack growth marketing strategy and tactics Casey has implemented in his career, and these lessons are widely applicable to any consumer startup scaling up.

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Figma CEO Dylan Field on Collaboration and Design in the Workplace | Greymatter Feb 28, 2017

Demand for designers is higher than ever. Great products — the outcome of thoughtful design — are a result of stellar user experience. As design becomes a higher priority for startups, we are seeing a fundamental shift in how designers work. In this episode of Greymatter, John Lilly of Greylock catches up with Figma CEO and co-founder Dylan Field to talk about how he got started as a entrepreneur, the Figma product, and the shift they’re seeing in the design space.

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Dave Morin Fireside with Josh Elman | #ProductSF Jan 12, 2017

Greylock's Josh Elman chats with Slow Ventures founder and partner Dave Morin about social networks, his experience building the Facebook platform, and learnings from his startup Path. #ProductSF is a product-centric event hosted by Greylock Partners. The conference brings together a community of founders, PMs, and product leaders to talk about the challenges of building new, innovative products that change lives and create habits.

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Pinterest CEO Ben Silbermann Fireside with Sarah Tavel | #ProductSF Dec 06, 2016

At #ProductSF, Greylock's Sarah Tavel is joined by Pinterest co-founder Ben Silbermann to talk about the evolution of his roles as both CEO and product leader at a high growth company. Ben shares how thinks about distribution, hiring and scaling teams, and what makes a strong product manager. #ProductSF is a product-centric event hosted by Greylock Partners. The conference brings together a community of founders, PMs, and product leaders to talk about the challenges of building new, innovative products that change lives and create habits.

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James Currier on Unlearning What You Have Learned | #ProductSF Dec 06, 2016

Growth expert and managing partner at NFX Guild James Currier teaches us, in the words of the wise master Yoda, to unlearn what we have learned about scaling a business. He provides eight counter-intuitive examples for ways to think about growing and developing an early product. #ProductSF is a product-centric event hosted by Greylock Partners. The conference brings together a community of founders, PMs, and product leaders to talk about the challenges of building new, innovative products that change lives and create habits.

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dScout CEO Michael Winnick on Modern Research and How We Live Now | #ProductSF Dec 06, 2016

dScout CEO Michael Winnick shares his eye opening research on how people interact with mobile technology. According to him, an average user touches their phone 2.5K times a day over 90 sessions, while a heavy user can reach over 4.6K touches a day in 300+ sessions. Another interesting point: apps owned by Facebook and Alphabet account for 43% of all touches. A lot of interesting data and insight into how we interact with our phones. #ProductSF is a product-centric event hosted by Greylock Partners. The conference brings together a community of founders, PMs, and product leaders to talk about the challenges of building new, innovative products that change lives and create habits.

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Nextdoor Co-Founder Sarah Leary on The Journey of the Pivot | #ProductSF Dec 06, 2016

Nextdoor Co-Founder and VP of Marketing & Operations Sarah Leary talks about the journey of pivoting from FanBase to Nextdoor. She shares both the emotions and learnings their team took away from the pivot, and how they eventually identified the burning need for a social network for neighborhoods. Sarah highlights the importance of creating a product that is a “need to have” versus a “nice to have” and why it's key to do unscalable things in the early stages of building community products. #ProductSF is a product-centric event hosted by Greylock Partners. The conference brings together a community of founders, PMs, and product leaders to talk about the challenges of building new, innovative products that change lives and create habits.

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Scott Erickson on Microsoft HoloLens | #ProductSF Dec 06, 2016

Scott Erickson takes us behind the scenes to the vision and design thinking that went into building Microsoft HoloLens. He demos the many applications that their untethered “mixed reality” technology can have for different industries. #ProductSF is a product-centric event hosted by Greylock Partners. The conference brings together a community of founders, PMs, and product leaders to talk about the challenges of building new, innovative products that change lives and create habits.

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Musical.ly's Alex Zhu on Igniting Viral Growth and Building a User Community | #ProductSF Dec 06, 2016

Musical.ly co-founder and co-CEO Alex Zhu takes us through his journey coming from an enterprise software background to starting an education startup and then pivoting into Musical.ly. He talks about the distribution hacks they used to instrument viral growth and how they think about fostering their user community. He also updates us on what's going on in the technology landscape in China. #ProductSF is a product-centric event hosted by Greylock Partners. The conference brings together a community of founders, PMs, and product leaders to talk about the challenges of building new, innovative products that change lives and create habits.

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Ellie Powers on Secrets Every PM Should Know About Android and Google Play | #ProductSF Dec 06, 2016

Google Group Product Manager Ellie Powers tells us some of the “secrets” every product manager should know about Android and Google Play. Many PMs and developers don't know that Google offers a lot of design and testing support. Ellie gives us a good breakdown on how we can test and ship high quality Android apps. #ProductSF is a product-centric event hosted by Greylock Partners. The conference brings together a community of founders, PMs, and product leaders to talk about the challenges of building new, innovative products that change lives and create habits.

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Nir Eyal on Building Habit-Forming Tech | #ProductSF Dec 06, 2016

Nir Eyal, the author of “Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products” dives into the psychology behind building technology that creates consumer habits. He summarizes his four-step Hook canvas (Trigger, Action, Reward, Investment) and reminds us that it's not the best product that wins—the winner will be the product that forms the monopoly of the mind. #ProductSF is a product-centric event hosted by Greylock Partners. The conference brings together a community of founders, PMs, and product leaders to talk about the challenges of building new, innovative products that change lives and create habits.

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Reid Hoffman Fireside with Josh Elman | #ProductSF Dec 06, 2016

Partner at Greylock and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman offers a candid perspective on lessons learned from getting LinkedIn going and then scaling it beyond. He explains why he had conviction for social networks in the early 2000s and gives the scoop on his first (not as successful) startup Socialnet. He explains how he and his team navigated their financing strategy, and what he did to build his relationship with Jeff Weiner before bringing him on as the LinkedIn CEO. #ProductSF is a product-centric event hosted by Greylock Partners. The conference brings together a community of founders, PMs, and product leaders to talk about the challenges of building new, innovative products that change lives and create habits.

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The State of Gaming with Discord CEO Jason Citron | Greymatter Nov 02, 2016

The global video game industry is thriving. According to PwC, gaming is expected to grow from $71.3 billion in 2015 to $90.1 billion by 2020. Jason Citron, the CEO and founder of Discord, understands this space very well. He started gaming on the NES when he was five, learned how to program games in high school, founded and sold a social platform for mobile games, and is now building a messaging platform for gamers. Greylock investment partner Josh Elman caught up with Jason to talk about his entrepreneurial journey, the gaming industry, and what's in store for Discord.

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Biz Stone on “Unpivoting” and the Future of Search | Greymatter Sep 22, 2016

Greylock's Josh Elman sits down with Jelly Co-Founder & CEO Biz Stone to discuss what he learned in the process of pivoting away from — and back to — his original idea of Jelly, how the product works, and what the future of search might look like. Biz also demos a voice-based version of Jelly on the Amazon Echo that is still in development.

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The Art of Interviewing 10x Engineers with Dan Portillo and Wade Chambers | Greymatter Aug 17, 2016

Following their podcast on managing technical teams, Greylock Talent Partner Dan Portillo and Twitter Head of Revenue Engineering Wade Chambers pair up for another podcast on recruiting and interviewing engineers. Wade outlines the processes he’s developed through years of management and building out teams at Yahoo, Proofpoint, TellApart and now Twitter.

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Increasing Your Team's Capacity To Win with Dan Portillo and Wade Chambers | Greymatter Jul 26, 2016

Greylock Talent Partner Dan Portillo sits down with Twitter Head of Revenue Engineering Wade Chambers to discuss the art and science of managing technical teams. Wade shares personal insight into his development as a leader, and shares frameworks for structuring productive meetings, providing feedback, and optimizing for a high functioning organization.

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Fireside with Mike Clayville of Amazon Web Services | Greyscale Jun 18, 2016

In this fireside chat from Greyscale, an event hosted by Greylock Partners, Greylock enterprise investor Jerry Chen sits down with Amazon Web Services Vice President of Worldwide Commercial Sales Mike Clayville to talk about sales strategy, how Mike spots industry trends, and AWS. For more podcasts, visit news.greylock.com.

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Unit of Value with Jerry Chen | Greyscale Jun 18, 2016

Crafting and executing a go-to-market strategy is one of the biggest challenges for an early stage startup. In this talk from Greyscale, an event hosted by Greylock Partners, Greylock enterprise investor Jerry Chen shares his Unit of Value framework for taking a product to market. For more podcasts, visit news.greylock.com.

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Debugging Recruiting with Dan Portillo | Greyscale Jun 18, 2016

Recruiting great people is a priority for any company at each stage of growth. Especially in the early stages, hiring your initial team is core to instilling the right company culture. In this talk from Greyscale, an event hosted by Greylock Partners, Greylock Talent Partner Dan Portillo outlines what a strong recruiting process should look like - from sourcing to conversion. For more podcasts, visit news.greylock.com.

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How to Make an Executive Hire with Jeff Markowitz | Greyscale Jun 18, 2016

Hiring a critical executive is a long, delicate process that needs to be navigated with thoughtful planning. In this talk from Greyscale, an event hosted by Greylock Partners, Greylock Talent Partner Jeff Markowitz shares the best practices for managing the executive hiring process. For more podcasts, visit news.greylock.com.

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Reid Hoffman and John Lilly on Blitzscaling | Greyscale Jun 18, 2016

As an entrepreneur, starting up is just the beginning but scaling up is how you change the world. This Greymatter episode is a fireside chat that took place at Greyscale, an event for tech founders hosted by Greylock Partners. Chris Yeh, the co-author of The Alliance, sits down with Reid Hoffman and John Lilly to discuss how companies go from startup to scaleup. Reid, John, and Chris taught a course at Stanford centered on this theme of hyper-growth called “Technology-enabled Blitzscaling,” and here they discuss some of the key themes from the class. For more podcasts, visit news.greylock.com.

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The State of Enterprise Software by Jerry Chen | Greyscale Jun 16, 2016

Launching a startup isn't easy. At each stage of scaling - from founding to product-market fit, from product-market fit to hyper growth, and from hyper growth to maturity - entrepreneurs face unique challenges. Greylock Partners hosted an event, called Greyscale, focused on these challenges at each stage. In the opening keynote, Jerry Chen of Greylock Partners discusses the state of enterprise software after the first quarter of 2016. He summarizes the private and public markets, M&A activity, and explains how this climate affects the startup environment. For more podcasts, visit news.greylock.com.

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CIO Panel with Diana McKenzie and Manjit Singh | Greyscale Jun 16, 2016

In this customer panel at Greyscale, an event hosted by Greylock Partners, Greylock Chief Operating Officer Tom Frangione moderates a panel featuring Workday CIO Diana McKenzie and Clorox CIO Manjit Singh to uncover how they think about early interactions with young companies and forming partnerships with startups. For more podcasts, visit news.greylock.com.

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Overview of the Five Stages of Blitzscaling | Blitzscaling 01 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 1 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This lecture lays out an overview of the course and provides a summary of the five stages of Blitzscaling.

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Sam Altman on Y Combinator and What Makes The Best Founders | Blitzscaling 02 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 2 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features John Lilly interviewing Y Combinator President Sam Altman.

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Michael Dearing on Capitalism, Creativity, and Creative Destruction | Blitzscaling 03 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 3 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features a guest lecture by venture capitalist Michael Dearing, the Founder of Harrison Metal, who is then interviewed by Reid Hoffman.

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Ann Miura-Ko on FLOODGATE's Thunder Lizard Theory and Achieving Product Market Fit | Blitzscaling 04 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 4 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features a guest lecture by venture capitalist Ann Mira-Ko of FLOODGATE, who is later interviewed by John Lilly.

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John Lilly on Leveraging Community to Scale Mozilla | Blitzscaling 05 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 5 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This lecture recaps the Family stage and introduces the Tribal stage. Allen Blue talks about the early days of LinkedIn and John Lilly talks about the early days of Mozilla.

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Jennifer Pahlka on Founding Code For America and Starting the US Digital Service | Blitzscaling 06 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 6 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features John Lilly interviewing Jennifer Pahlka, the Founder and Executive Director of Code for America, and Co-founder of the United States Digital Service.

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Mariam Naficy on Lessons From The Dot Com Days and Knowing When To Blitzscale | Blitzscaling 07 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 7 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features Reid Hoffman interviewing Mariam Naficy, the Founder and CEO of Minted.com, and the Founder and Co-CEO of Eve.com.

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Eric Schmidt on Structuring Teams and Scaling Google | Blitzscaling 08 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 8 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features Reid Hoffman interviewing Eric Schmidt, the Executive Chairman of Alphabet Inc. (formerly Google).

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Reid Hoffman and Allen Blue on Why and How They Scaled LinkedIn | Blitzscaling 09 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 9 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This lecture recaps the previous three sessions and explains how the Village stage is the inflection point for blitzscaling. Reid Hoffman and Allen Blue then move into the when, why, and how of scaling LinkedIn.

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Selina Tobaccowala on Building a Global Business at SurveyMonkey | Blitzscaling 10 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 10 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features Reid Hoffman interviewing Selina Tabaccowala, the former President and CTO of Survey Monkey and Co-Founder of Evite. This podcast series has been produced by Greylock Partners.

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Patrick Collison on Hiring at Stripe and the Role of a Product-Focused CEO | Blitzscaling 11 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 11 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features John Lilly interviewing Patrick Collison, the Co-Founder of Stripe.

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Nirav Tolia on Growing Nextdoor and the Path to Monetization | Blitzscaling 12 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 12 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features a guest lecture by Nirav Tolia, the Co-Founder and CEO of Nextdoor, and the Co-Founder and CEO of Epinions, who is then interviewed by John Lilly.

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Shishir Mehrotra on Scaling YouTube and The 10 Things That Matter | Blitzscaling 13 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 13 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features a guest lecture by Shishir Mehrotra, who helped guide YouTube through hypergrowth after its acquisition by Google. At the end of the class, Shishir is interviewed by Allen Blue.

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Elizabeth Holmes on Managing Product Strategy, Regulation, and the Media | Blitzscaling 14 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 14 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features Chris Yeh interviewing Elizabeth Holmes, the Founder and CEO of Theranos.

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Diane Greene on Scaling Products and Culture At VMware | Blitzscaling 15 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 15 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features Jerry Chen of Greylock Partners interviewing Diane Greene, the Founder and former CEO of VMware and now SVP of Google’s cloud businesses.

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Reed Hastings on Building a Streaming Empire | Blitzscaling 16 Mar 02, 2016

This is session 16 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features Reed Hoffman interviewing Reed Hastings, the Co-Founder and CEO of Netflix.

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Marissa Mayer on Scaling Google and Yahoo | Blitzscaling 17 Mar 01, 2016

This is session 17 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features Chris Yeh interviewing Marissa Mayer, the CEO of Yahoo.

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Brian Chesky on Launching Airbnb and the Challenges of Scale | Blitzscaling 18 Mar 01, 2016

This is session 18 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features Reed Hoffman interviewing Brian Chesky, the Co-Founder and CEO of Airbnb.

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Jeff Weiner on Establishing a Plan and Culture for Scaling | Blitzscaling 19 Mar 01, 2016

This is session 19 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This class features Reid Hoffman interviewing Jeff Weiner, the CEO of LinkedIn.

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Final Recap and Student Discussion | Blitzscaling 20 Feb 29, 2016

This is session 20 of Technology-enabled Blitzscaling, a Stanford University class taught by Reid Hoffman, John Lilly, Allen Blue, and Chris Yeh. This lecture recaps the class and features a lengthy student discussion of the major topics of the class.

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