Greymatter

Latest Episodes:

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

Show notes

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

Show notes

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

Show notes

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

Show notes

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

Show notes

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

Show notes

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

Show notes

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

Show notes

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

Show notes

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

Show notes

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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